Cajun Blackened Cod with Charred Corn Salsa
Cod under a thick coat of smoked paprika and cayenne, sweetcorn charring underneath, and a salsa stirred together in the residual heat.
Why it works
Blackening is a dry rub meeting dry fish at high heat, so patting the fillets is the whole trick — surface water makes the spices steam into a paste instead of scorching into a crust. The corn and peppers sit on the basket floor, taking the most direct heat and blistering in exactly the nine minutes the cod needs. The rice goes on before the basket does and steams itself while you build the rub.
Method
- Boil the kettle and heat the air fryer to 200°C (400°F). Put the rinsed rice, its ½ tsp salt and the boiling water in a pan, bring back to the boil, then clamp on a lid and cook on the lowest heat for 10 minutes. Leave it covered off the heat until you serve.
- Mix the paprika, oregano, thyme, garlic granules, cayenne, black pepper and the ¾ tsp salt on your board.
- Rub the cod with 1 tbsp of the oil, then press the spice mix onto every surface until the fillets look genuinely dark, not dusted.
- Toss the corn and peppers with the remaining oil and spread them flat in the basket. Sit the cod on top and air fry 9 minutes, until the rub is near-black at the edges and the fish parts into thick opaque petals under a fork.
- Lift out the cod. Tip the hot corn and peppers into a bowl and stir through the onion, tomatoes, chilli, lime juice, avocado and coriander — the heat takes the raw edge off the onion.
- Fork the rice loose and spread it over four plates. Set the cod on top, pile the salsa alongside and add lime wedges.
For the toddler
Set a piece of cod aside at step 3, before the rub goes on, and cook it with nothing but a little oil, since the cayenne and salt are mixed in at step 2. Lift out some corn and pepper before the salsa is built at step 5, where the chilli, onion and lime go in. Quarter the cherry tomatoes lengthways, cut the pepper into soft strips, flake the fish for bones and mash a little avocado.
How the toddler notes workChef’s notes
Haddock, pollock or salmon take the same rub. Chicken thigh fillets need 14 minutes.
Mix a jar of the rub in advance; it keeps six months and is just as good on prawns. Two 250 g pouches of microwave rice instead of the pan.
Warm corn tortillas, a bowl of soured cream and a bottle of hot sauce on the table.
Flake the cold fish through the remaining salsa with more lime for a next-day lunch.