Recipe Harriet Boucher, Images Brydie Thompson
Fig Chutney
Serve this fig chutney on a cheeseboard, in a sandwich, or with the salmon wrapped in fig leaf below. It’s a great way to use up an abundance of figs and to enjoy them throughout the year.
Ingredients:
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups figs, fresh or frozen, stems removed and quartered
1 apple, diced
1 large white onion, chopped
⅓ cup raisins
⅓ tsp salt
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Soak raisins in a bowl of hot water for 10 minutes, then drain.
In a saucepan add all of the ingredients, including the soaked raisins.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat and cook for about an hour, stirring frequently.
Put the chutney into a jar and store it in a cool dry place.
Salmon Wrapped in Fig Leaf
This method of cooking is based off the French term ‘en papillote’—enveloped in paper. Except instead of baking paper, we are using a fig leaf. This helps keep moisture in and the fig leaf adds a subtle coconut aroma to your fish.
Ingredients:
4 fillets of salmon, 80–100g each
4 large fig leaves
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
Preheat your oven to 180°C. Drizzle the salmon with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wrap each piece of salmon in a fig leaf and place on a lined baking tray. Transfer to the oven, and bake until cooked through, 10–12 minutes. Unwrap salmon and serve on top of the fig leaf with a side of fig chutney.
