Roasted whole baby barramundi with Sweet potato and quinoa salad

I know most of you freak out when you think of whole fish but I think there is just no better way to eat fish (well, other than sashimi which is my real favourite!).  You might ask why I prefer whole fish - why not just buy the fillets? Well I like to ensure my fish is super fresh so when I shop for whole fish, I can look for all the "fresh signs" (eg, clear eyes, shiny scales etc). The freshness of fillets can be a bit suspect and a lot has been frozen and then thawed. And sometimes you do save a bit on the cost as the cost of fish fillets has a labour component built into the price. I ask the fishmonger to clean and scale it and sometimes I even ask him to cut the head off which I can use for soups or fish stock (bargain!). 

But cooking whole fish is actually quite easy. This baby barra I made weighed about 500gm (which yields about 250gm in flesh). Mr Carrots and I just love the sweetness and tenderness of barramundi. As with meat, it's important to take the fish out of the fridge well before you cook it so it can cook evenly (I take mine out about 30-45mins before cooking in cold weather - a bit less in summer). 
I scored the fish on both sides, placed some lemon slices and dill sprigs in the stomach cavity and seasoned well all over the fish. Lightly brushed the fish with some cooking olive oil. Then I placed it in a parcel of foil lined with baking paper, folded up the ends and wrapped it loosely. Then Mr Carrots threw it on the barbeque and roasted it for about 10-12 mins. If you don't have a bbq, you can pop this in the oven - my guess is at 180-200C for 15 mins.
I served it with this great sweet potato, quinoa and rocket. So easy to make - just steam your sweet potato, cook your quinoa, add a clove of garlic and once all cooked, toss with rocket leaves. A good dressing is just simple EVOO, lemon juice, salt/pepper. If you want a little more flavour, add a tiny amount of sesame oil (not too much as sesame is high in sat fats and calories).