Saturday Morning Blues.

Backing ropes coming ashore from the Kastel Paol  after another successful crab hunt.....

 those heavy clouds are back.......

 which may put a damper on painterly proceedings........

 not that the guys on the fully shelter decked Isle of Man crabber Chris Tacha would be too concerned...... 

 shore captain Milford Mike, the oldest mender in town does the business.......

 so this is where Col Gadaffi is hiding......

 only in Newlyn do you get fishy road kill.......

 stating soon, the Newlyn Festival of Arts when many local artists throw open their studio doors and run open sessions.......

 two generations of fishermen.......

 a sea of masts against a turbulent sky.......

 confront Tom on watch.......

 latest show at the Orion Gallery, Restless Nature.......

 all set for the big wedding in Porthleven, not looking too good on the weather front!......

doggy tales.

Fishy Friday, and it's Escabeche for tomorrow's big Porthleven wedding.

 De-scale, fillet and skin the fish.......

 in this case haddock......

 skinning starts from the tail end.......

 with the knife held flat against the work top.......

 prepare the lime juice - not forgetting to get the halved limes in the juicer the right way round......

 at two limes per pound of fish......

 brushed into the fillets.......and left for 15 minutes to 'cook'.......

 back at the stove fry in olly oil the garlic, ground cumin and and a dozen black pepper corns......

 adding a bay leaf per half pound of fillets........

 the fillets are now lime juice 'cooked'........

 add sliced onion, one per two pounds of fillet.......

 and heat through for 4 minutes before adding white wine vinegar.......

 quickly brown one side of the fillets, both if bigger fillets.......

 add the olly oil to the sauce and pour over the fillets while still hot......

 once, cooled, keep the trays of marinade covered fillets in the fridge till needed, in this case the wedding reception in Porthleven tomorrow afternoon. There are dozens of variations on Escabeche recipes.

Cousin Jack Nowell Down Under!

The current England Under 18 Australian touring side has one Jack Nowell - son of beam trawler skipper Michael Nowell - enjoying life down on the winninmg side! This will be welcome news for all those local people who saw fit to sponsor Jack a short while ago while he was still a student at Truro and Penwith College's Rugby Academy as he now appears to be weaving a path towards the ultimate goal of a full England cap when he comes of age.

Latest news! Cousin Jack has now been selected to play for England under 20s - looks like that place at the top is one step closer!

PZ192 - The Newlyn trawler Jacqueline as she was.

TRAWLING

Movie copyright Bristish Pathe.

This film, made in the late 1940s begins with a tour of the major British fishing ports of the day. Trawling is the subject of the film and it is to Newlyn that the film crew travel and aboard the trawler Jacqueline for a glimpse of how life is aboard a trawler for the skipper and crew. The action covers an entire trip and includes shots of how side trawling, the norm for the period, in some detail. These trawlers were known as 'sidewinders' as they towed the trawl from either sideof the boat.

The boat in question was, until a few years ago, the last remaining side trawler in the Stevenson fleet. Here is a picture gallery of images shot aboard her in the early 1990s. By then she had had a new wheelhouse and casing fitted and a whaleback - doubtless there were many fixtures and fittings aboard the boat from the orginal movie film.

TRAWLING - OUT-TAKES - Reel 1

TRAWLING - OUT-TAKES reel 2

TRAWLING - OUT-TAKES reel 3

Seafish 2 a week double - simple fish curry Thai style.

 Dressing for the veg side dish, cocunut milk, lime juice, lime zest from half a lime.......

 to start the fish dish, fry till crisp a few finely chopped shallots, garlic and chilli.....

 veg side dish, blanch some finely sliced greens of choice, recommend chinese cabbage.......

 back to the fish dish, a couple of 100 gms of fresh pineapple (tinned will do out of season).......should have been crushed more than in pic!.......

 fry a teaspoon of red (or green or yellow) Mae Ploy Chilli paste (in Penzance from Steve Chan's Emporium in the Market Place) in coconut milk and lime leaves (get a small tub from Chan's and keep them in the freezer) for a few minutes before seasoning and adding the crushed pineapple.......

 add your fish of choice - firm flesh is best.......

ready to go, toasted nuts and the lime dressing get added to the green veg side dish.

Seafish 2aweek - keeping it simple.

 Le freshly picked garden beans.....

 Le straw chips.......

Le anon.

Cornish Fishmongers battle it out at Newlyn Fish Festival

Lee Trethewey from Fish For Thought crowned Cornish Fishmonger of the Year 2011

(from L to R) Champion Lee Trethewey with Runner Up Ian Pilkington

Visitors to this year’s Newlyn Fish Festival were treated to an enthralling display of skill and expertise, as six of Cornwall’s finest fish filleters and fishmongers competed for the coveted title of “Cornish Fishmonger of the Year 2011 supported by Seafood Cornwall Training.” Faced with a series of intense challenges, designed to test a full range of skills, the competitors were judged by three leading industry experts, headed up by Duncan Lucas, multiple National Fishmonger of the Year; Sue Lucas, one of the country’s most experienced fishmongers and award winning ‘ready to eat seafood’ expert; as well as Annie Sibert, owner of the Falmouth based seafood cookery school, ‘My Fish Kitchen’ and Seafish approved instructor for Seafood Cornwall Training. After two closely fought out heats, an adrenaline-filled final round saw Lee Trethewey, representing Fish For Thought, compete against Ian Pilkington from the St Ives seafood company, Matthew Stevens and Son, but there could only be one winner.

The two finalists had just ten minutes to complete a series of advanced techniques under the close scrutiny of the judges, as well as a full audience and TV cameras.

Steven Bell from The Fish Boutique – W Stevenson and Sons (Penzance)

Each candidate was scored on their technique, yield, presentation and attention to detail; extra points were awarded for finishing all the tasks within the allocated time and for creating an attractive display.
When their time was up, the judges combined their scores and the prestigious title of “Cornish Fishmonger of the Year 2011” was awarded to Lee Trethewey from Fish For Thought. A total of six seafood companies from Cornwall were represented at the event, many of the candidates had not competed before, but were keen to pitch their skills and experience against one another. The winner and runner up received their awards from Nick Crane, presenter of the BBC’s COAST Programme who commented, “I was thrilled to have been involved in an initiative that reminds us that seafood is a delicacy and that good fishmongers should be celebrated and supported. A great day for Cornwall.'

Ian Pilkington from Matthew Stevens and Son (St Ives) in action

On receiving his trophy, Lee Trethewey said, “Winning this award is a great accolade. Our customers have often commented on the high standard of preparation of the fish they receive, so I knew I was in with a good chance.  I shall definitely compete next year to defend my title, it was a nerve racking experience, but it was worth it for sure.” Paul Trudgian, owner of Fish For Thought, said, “This is the first time that we have entered an event such as this. We work very hard to ensure our customers receive produce of the best quality, prepared by experts. We were thrilled and proud to have Lee represent us, at what must be the ‘Oscars’ of the Cornish Fish Industry.”

Judge Duncan Lucas commented, “Sue and I have been privileged to be involved in the first ever Cornish Fishmonger of Year competition. The event was professionally run and as always, meeting six Cornish fishmongers who are enthusiastic about the industry, was great. We would both like to add, that the standard of all six competitors was very high indeed, it was a pleasure to be able to judge such high standards and the close scores proved this. Congratulations to Lee for becoming the overall winner and the current Cornish Champion for 2011.

We are sure this will become an annual event that will just get bigger and bigger. We also want to acknowledge and thank Trelawney Fish for supplying all the fish, as the quality was superb which is critical when running this type of event, in front of the general public.”  Sarah Crosbie, Manager of Seafood Cornwall Training who coordinated and sponsored the event, said, “The competition was launched to highlight the expertise of filleters and fishmongers from across the county, at the same time as promoting Cornish fish and the profession to a wider audience. The filleters that took part in the event, as well as their colleagues from across the county are the unsung heroes of our important and vibrant fish industry, here in Cornwall.

The competition has proved to be a huge success, although the youngest at only 24, Lee Trethewey from St Austell, has set a very high standard and has certainly laid down the gauntlet for next year”.