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Seafood Menu...Help! Special Situaton

Discussion in 'Professional Chefs' started by chefinchina, Jan 4, 2011.

  1. Jan 4, 2011 #1
    chefinchina

    chefinchina

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    Hi Guys. I need some help.

    I am writing a seafood menu for a month long promotion, however... I live in China.  All the wonderful things I could normally do and whip out with no problem at home (In the USA), I seem to  have a problem with finding here.  I can get salmon, Halibut, Sole, Shrimp, Crawfish (Live) and a few kinds of shellfish here, but most of the stuff comes in frozen.  Stuff needs to be easily translatable and set up for a la carte service.  Most times I do not have trouble translating, or teaching the recipes. I have been here for almost 5 years and have a decent handle on the language....  It is just how to come up with new and interesting stuff using what is available to me.  For Christmas time I did a Fiery Peach glazed Salmon, but now the manager wants something "different"... no repeats.

    Some help would be appreciated as my ideas and brain are fried.  (I also teach English here and it keeps me quite busy having 2 jobs.)
     
  3. Jan 4, 2011 #2
    chefedb

    chefedb

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    Plenty of good Fish Cookbooks out there. Go on line. try a seafood sausage, or a quiche or a fish in pastry or filo dough.Rolled stuffed fish.etc.
     
  4. Jan 4, 2011 #3
    butzy

    butzy

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    Something different?

    Maybe try making the salmon into gravadlax?

    Any sort of fresh fish into ceviche?

    Smoked halibut (one of my favourites)

    I'm not sure how it would fit in and apeal to chinese taste buds though

    Whereabouts in China are you? Surely there should be plenty fish in the coastal regions?
     
  5. Jan 4, 2011 #4
    chefinchina

    chefinchina

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    Oh Let me tell you what I currently have on the menu plan....  Should have posted this above.

    Apps

    Coconut Shrimp w/ Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

    Fried Calamari

    Bacon Wrapped Scallops w/ Honey Soy Dipping Sauce

    Sesame Crusted Seared Tuna on Slaw

    Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Rolls

    Salad

    Smoked Salmon Roses on Mixed Green w/ Honey Dill Vinaigrette

    Soups

    Shrimp Bisque w/ Sweet Corn Fritter

    Tom Yam Gong w/ Shrimp

    Entrees

    Beer Battered Fish & Chips w/ Apple Fennel Slaw

    Blackened Salmon w/ Whole Grain Mustard Sauce

    Grilled Grouper on Fennel Apple Salad

    Salmon & Asparagus Spaghetti w/ Lemon & Olive Oil

    Clams & Mussels in White Wine Garlic Broth

    Tilapia with Banana

    Chilled Seafood Platter

    Salad ideas would be very helpful.  We do have a seafood chowder on the regular menu already.  This is an Italian themed restaurant, but they want foods from all over.  Thanks again!
     
  6. Jan 4, 2011 #5
    chefinchina

    chefinchina

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    Unfortunately, I am in landlocked Henan province.  FRESH seafood is not readily available, and most fishes that can be bought live are from the Yellow River, and I am unfamiliar with.

    Yeah...Lots of cookbooks out there, but....not in China. Unless I tried to go to a Foreign Bookstore in Shanghai...but I do not have that time or flexibility right now.
     
  7. Jan 4, 2011 #6
    cheflayne

    cheflayne

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    Curry Tea Rubbed Salmon ,a filet seasoned with curry, tea, ginger, chives, and lime zest, pan seared, finished in a hot oven and topped with a tropical fruit salsa and a mango lychee sauce

    Wasabi Crusted Catfish brushed with Wasabi, rolled in Panko, pan seared, finished in a hot oven and topped with a chilled Cilantro Sabayon and sprinkled with Black Sesame Seeds and Pickled Ginger

    Grilled Shrimp with Rum and Pepper Glaze, grilled and served with a Fuyu Persimmon Ginger Sauce

    Fresh Grouper grilled and topped with sautéed Asian Pear Apples and toasted Almonds with a Vanilla Scented Sauce

    Fresh Swordfish marinated with Yellow Miso, then grilled, served on bed of seared Bok Choy and topped with Sesame Ginger Soy Sauce and a Wasabi Nori Mousse

    Ahi Tuna, a filet seasoned with togarishi, then grilled and topped with a radish, almond, christophene relish and drizzled with a dulse vinaigrette

    Yellow Tail brushed with Raspberry Teriyaki Sauce, then pan seared and topped with a julienne of Daikon Radish and Red Clover Sprouts

    Togarishi Shrimp sprinkled with Togarishi, a Japenese condiment of Chiles, Seaweed, Sesame, and Orange Zest, then grilled and served on a bed of pan seared Bok Choy and topped with a Wasabi Black Pepper Sauce

    Japanese Inspired Catfish a fresh filet, sautéed and topped with a Nori Emulsion, a dollop of Wasbi, and drizzled with White Miso Sauce

    Salmon seasoned with a Green Tea Lemongrass Rub, pan seared and finished in a hot oven and topped with a toasted coconut sauce

    Ahi Tuna, a filet dusted with a cracked lavender and Szechuan peppercorns, then grilled and drizzled with a pomegranate ponzu sauce

    Coconut Poached Cod, a filet gently simmered in a spicy coconut broth, served on a bed of pan seared bok choy and cabbage and topped with a banana ginger chutney

    Glazed Shrimp, shrimp brushed with a honey lime glaze, then grilled and served in a won ton cup with a curried mango sorbet

    Tea Smoked Sturgeon, a filet seasoned with garam masala, then smoked over Earl Grey tea, thinly sliced, served with a grilled pineapple, christophene, and toasted coconut relish and drizzled with a lightly curried pineapple sauce

    Shrimp Rumaki, shrimp curled around fresh pineapple, then wrapped with bacon and grilled and drizzled with carrot chipotle syrup
     
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  8. Jan 4, 2011 #7
    butzy

    butzy

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    Bouillabaise (use all kind of fish and seafood you can find

    Cajun style fish (fish fillets, rubbed with cajun spice and deep fried or grilled)

    Fish coujons (fillet cut against the grain, coated with flavoured flour and deep fried)

    Then a link to a real worthwhile site with Indonesian fish recipes

    http://asiancook.eu/indonesian/ikan-laut

    By the way, carp can be a substitute for bass or perch

    Hope this helps
     
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