Macadamia Crusted Fish

Macadamia Crusted Fish represents the 'Modern Australian' cuisine movement of the 1980s-90s — the fusion of Indigenous Australian ingredients (macadamia nuts, endemic to the east coast) with European cooking techniques. The macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia) is the only commercially significant food crop native to Australia; it was a staple of Aboriginal people for thousands of years. Modern Australian chefs began using crushed macadamia as a crust for fish in the 1980s, creating a dish that is now on virtually every Australian fine-dining and café menu. It is the emblem of modern Australian cuisine: native ingredient + European technique.

A fillet of fish with a golden, crunchy crust of crushed macadamia nuts, the inside moist and white, served with a pool of lemon-butter sauce. The nut crust is buttery and crisp; the fish is sweet and clean; the sauce ties it together. It is the taste of modern Australian fine dining — native ingredients, European technique, Pacific freshness.

The macadamia nuts must be crushed (not ground to a powder — you want texture) and mixed with breadcrumbs (pure nuts would burn). The fish is first dipped in flour, then egg, then the macadamia-breadcrumb mixture. It is pan-fried (not deep-fried) in butter or oil over medium heat — the crust must brown without burning (macadamias burn faster than breadcrumbs). The fish should be just cooked through (opaque, still moist).