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Ingredients

Method

  • STEP 1

    Trim the swordfish of any fatty layers and cut out any bloodstained flesh or ask your fishmonger to do this for you. Cut into 4 chunky steaks (about 2cm thick). The thickness must be even for a perfect 'cuisson' (a chef’s term for 'doneness').

  • STEP 2

    In a shallow dish, mix 120ml oil, 1 tbsp sesame oil, juice of 1 lime, 1 lightly crushed garlic clove, 2 good pinches of salt and the rosemary. Put the fish steaks into the marinade, cover and chill from 1 hr to a day until ready to cook, turning them once or twice.

  • STEP 3

    For the salsa, peel and dice the pineapple and put two thirds of the diced flesh into a blender or food processor with 1 tsp salt, the shallot, 2 tbsp olive oil and the remaining sesame oil. Whizz until smooth.

  • STEP 4

    Slit the chillies open and remove seeds. Chop the flesh. Peel the lemongrass; cut the stalk into strips then dice. Place the chillies, lemongrass, 1 garlic clove and lime juice into a large mortar. Roughly crush, then work the onions and ginger in to form a paste.

  • STEP 5

    Finely chop the coriander leaves and shred the basil leaves. Add to the chilli mixture, then mix with the pineapple purée and the extra pineapple dice. Put in a bowl and pour over the remaining 1 tbsp oil. Cover and chill for up to a day.

  • STEP 6

    To cook the swordfish, heat a grill or griddle pan until really hot. Drain the steaks from the marinade and place on the griddle. Watch the flesh change from translucent to pale cream – the ‘cuisson’ – 1 min. Turn the steaks and cook for 1 more min – no more! To serve, arrange the cherry tomatoes, cucumber pappardelle and roasted lettuce on plates. Drizzle over the salsa and top with the swordfish.

RECIPE TIPS
BUYING THE BEST SWORDFISH

Swordfish has really compact flesh that stands up to aggressive cooking on a grill. When you’re buying it, look out for fish with a clean, white flesh free from any bloody streaks and remove any fat and marks from the bottom of the fish.

THE MAGIC OF MARINATING

Leaving the fish in a marinade helps to give it a good flavour and tenderises it. Adding the acidic lime juice helps the other seasonings to penetrate the flesh, too.

HOW TO GRILL YOUR SWORDFISH

Gordon uses a purpose-built griddle unit for grilling fish, but that said, a griddle pan or even barbecue grill will work just as well. If you want a chic criss-cross pattern on the steaks then give them a quarter turn after the first 30 secs of grilling each side.

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