Red mullet with tomatoes and basil

Serves 4

(Jason Lowe)

Red mullet is one of those fish that needs very little doing to it; this light tomato relish is the perfect partner.

You can use any tomatoes for this; I've used both golden and red varieties here to create a colourful blend. I've added some tiny leaves of bush or Greek basil as they are more robust than normal basil and they will hold up in the dressing for about an hour without discolouring.

4 fillets of red mullet fillets weighing about 120-140g each or 8 smaller ones
2tbsp of vegetable or corn oil

For the tomato relish

4 medium-sized tomatoes, finely chopped
1 large shallot, peeled and finely chopped
A small handful of Greek or bush basil leaves, roughly chopped
3-4tbsp olive oil
tbsp white wine or cider vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix the tomatoes with the shallots, basil, olive oil and vinegar; season to taste and leave to stand for 15 minutes. Season the red mullet fillets, heat the vegetable oil in a non-stick pan and cook the fillets, skin-side down first, for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Serve the fish with the relish spooned over or on the side.