He’s on a mission to make fish and seafood cooking more accessible to home cooks with his new book, Fish For Dinner, full of tips and advice to “demystify” fish – with a big focus on seasonal and sustainable shopping.

One major mistake many home cooks make is overcooking the fish. “I’d say 80-85% can be eaten raw, for a start, so you never need to worry about [undercooking] with any species that you have at home. Even if it’s slightly undercooked, nothing’s going to happen,” says Outlaw. “It does seem the case that people err on the side of caution and overcook – and then unfortunately what happens is you probably have an experience that’s not great and it’s dry.

“Fillets always cook very quickly – three of four minutes maximum and most fillets of fish are already cooked.”

Soused red mullet, grape, chickpea and celery herb salad

Credits: PA;

Alternative fish: mackerel, bass, grey mullet,gurnard, goatfish, Atlantic mackerel, searobin

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

4 red mullet, about 400–500g each, gutted, descaled, filleted and pin-boned

Celery salt

White pepper

For the pickling marinade:

A generous drizzle of olive oil

1 white onion, finely chopped

2 celery sticks, de-stringed (with a peeler) and finely sliced

2 garlic cloves, halved, germ removed and finely chopped

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

2 sprigs of lemon thyme or thyme leaves, sliced

1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained

2tsp smoked paprika

150ml sherry vinegar

150ml dry sherry

250ml fish stock

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve:

2tbs sliced celery herb

20 red seedless grapes, halved

A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. To prepare the pickling marinade, heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. When the oil is hot, cook the onion for four minutes, stirring occasionally and cooking without any colour until soft.

2. When the onions are soft, add the celery, garlic, chilli and thyme, and cook for two minutes. Add the chickpeas and smoked paprika to the pan and cook for a further two minutes, then add the sherry vinegar and cook for a further two minutes. Pour in the sherry and stock, bring to the boil and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.

3. Take the red mullet fillets and cut each fillet into three equal chunks. Lay them in a serving dish large enough to hold the fish flat and level. Bring the marinade back to a simmer, then carefully pour it over the fish. Leave to stand for 10 minutes.

4. Just before serving, scatter the celery herb and grapes over the fish and finish with a drizzle of olive oil over the top and a sprinkle of celery salt and white pepper. Place the dish on the table and allow your lucky diners to help themselves, or plate up individually.

TIP: This process works well for large parties as you can make the recipe well in advance and then all the pressure is taken off. It doesn’t even matter too much about serving temperature, just as long as it’s not too cold; when ingredients are too cold, their flavours are muted.

Grilled Gurnard wrapped in pancetta, parsnip and parmesan mash, lemon and sage butter

Credits: PA;

Alternative fish: mackerel, bass, grey or red mullet, sea bass, goatfish

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

1 gurnard, about 2kg, descaled gutted, filleted, pin-boned and trimmed

Zest of 1 lemon

12 sage leaves

12 slices of pancetta

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the parsnip mash:

4 large parsnips, unpeeled

4tbs rock salt

100g unsalted butter

100g grated Parmesan, grated

2tbs chopped chives

For the lemon and sage butter:

2tbs chopped sage

1 shallot, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

250g unsalted butter, softened

Method

1. First make the butter. Place the chopped sage, shallot, garlic, lemon zest and juice in a bowl. Add the softened butter and mix with a spatula until evenly blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Lay a sheet of baking parchment on a work surface and spoon the butter onto it. Wrap the butter in the paper, rolling it into a long sausage shape. This can be kept in the fridge for up to three days or frozen for one month. Before cooking the fish, cut the butter into thick slices; three per portion of fish.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C Fan (400.F), Gas Mark 6. Place each whole parsnip on a tablespoon pile of salt on an oven tray and cook for one hour, then set aside to cool a little. When you can handle them without burning yourself, carefully cut them lengthways and scoop the cooked flesh out into a bowl, keeping the outside skin intact.

3. Mash the cooked parsnip with the butter, Parmesan and chives, taste and season with salt and pepper. Divide the parsnip mash between the parsnip shells, then slice each in half and lay them onto a tray, ready to be reheated. To reheat, place them in the oven for 15 minutes.

4. To cook the gurnard, preheat the grill to a medium setting. Take the fish out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking as this will help you get a good even cook. Cut the two gurnard fillets in half to give you four equal portions and season with salt, pepper and the lemon zest. Place three sage leaves on the skin of each fillet and then wrap three slices of pancetta around each one, encasing the sage beneath the pancetta. Arrange the fish, skin-side up, on an oiled grill tray and place under the grill for six minutes. If the fish fillets are very thick they may need another couple of minutes. Rest for two minutes on the hot tray and place three slices of butter on each fish fillet. Place back under the grill for two minutes.

5. To serve, warm four plates and lay two parsnip halves on each plate. Carefully lift the gurnard from the grill tray and place next to the parsnips. Share any butter left on the grill tray between the four plates and serve immediately.

Green gazpacho with crab and walnuts

Credits: PA;

Alternative fish: poached lobster, raw scallops (or cooked if you want) or smoked mackerel.

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

200g (7oz) picked white crabmeat

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the green gazpacho:

1 celery stick, sliced

1 small green pepper, deseeded and chopped

150g cucumber, peeled and sliced

1 courgette, sliced

100g stale white bread, crusts removed

1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped

1 garlic clove, sliced

1tsp sugar

50g walnut halves, lightly toasted

100g baby spinach, picked

30g tarragon

10g flat-leaf parsley, chopped

2tbs cider vinegar

100ml olive oil

60g full-fat Greek yogurt

200ml water

150g ice cubes

2tsp sea salt

White pepper, to taste

To garnish:

4 pickled walnuts, chopped

½ cucumber, peeled and finely diced

1 green apple, peeled and finely diced

1 small green pepper, peeled, deseeded and finely diced

1tbs chopped tarragon

1tbs finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

6tbs olive oil

Method

1. For best results, mix together all the ingredients for the gazpacho the day before and leave them to mingle and get to know one another in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

2. The next day, place all the gazpacho ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend for two minutes until smooth. Place a sieve over a bowl and pass the gazpacho through it, using the back of a ladle or large spoon to squeeze as much through the sieve as possible. Chill the gazpacho and discard any debris in the sieve.

3. To prepare the crabmeat, pick through your crab, checking for any shell or cartilage to discard. Place the white crabmeat in a bowl, season with salt and pepper to taste, then refrigerate.

4. Mix all the garnish ingredients together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

5. Before serving, chill four bowls for 30 minutes in the freezer. To serve, divide the gazpacho between the chilled bowls and top with the crabmeat and a generous spoonful of garnish. Serve immediately.

Credits: PA;

Fish For Dinner by Nathan Outlaw is published by Kyle Books. Photography by Kate Whitaker. Available now.