Spectacular Seafood

Fresh seafood as breath-taking as the Tasmanian seas. 

While the only restaurant in Binalong Bay had magnificent views of the coast line, the one half an hour's drive  away blew us away with its food. The menu in the Blue Shed at St Helens, Tasmania was a tour de force in its representation of everything fresh and local in Tassie.

Not only were its oysters farmed in the sea right off its coast, they were fantastically seasoned with yummy pancetta and a superb hot sauce and then grilled to perfection. After we had swallowed the dozen of morsels of pure muscle, we were compelled to ensure that not even the generous serving of sauce remained.

Its calamari out-rivals the way Italy best prepares this dish, and that is done with an Asian twist. The feather-light crumbed rings of melt-in-your-mouth flesh has to be sparingly dipped into a groovy light gravy to introduce the vast contrast in taste that as yet complements this catch from the sea. Regular patrons make their pilgrimage from where ever in Tasmania to St Helen's just to repeat the divine experience of savouring this dish.

Fortunately, I have a few seafood recipes under my belt to ensure that hubby's taste buds continue to be similarly pampered when we are back in Singapore. So I'll be serving lovingly stewed oysters, American style but plated on its shell, as an Asian tapas to start the evening. This is followed by an Australian inspired recipe of charcoal grilled prawns specially seasoned with sweet paprika and freshly squeezed lemon juice. The mains will take its honours from Latin America - a paella-like fragrant rice dish with plenty of ocean fresh mussels thoroughly stirred through the spicy grains.