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THE COOKBOOK

Nathan Outlaw's Everyday Seafood (£20; Quadrille Publishing)

TESTED BY Susan Low

If anyone can help the fish-fearful shed their anxiety about cooking seafood, it’s Nathan Outlaw. As well as having four restaurants to his name, the Cornwall-based chef is one of the UK’s top seafood experts – and an all-round nice guy. In the book’s foreword, Jamie Oliver describes Nathan as “a big softie”, and his generous spirit shines through every page.

Nice guys or not, chefs – particularly ones whose restaurants have earned Michelin stars (Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, in Port Isaac, has two) – have a reputation for not quite understanding the meaning of ‘keep it simple’. Nathan does, so there are no unnecessary cheffy complications to his recipes.

This is not a fish-prep manual; most of the recipes call for ready-prepared fillets, so there’s not much need to wield the boning knife. Nathan is also a champion of sustainable fishing, so many of his recipes use under-appreciated species such as gurnard, cuttlefish, sardines, mackerel and grey mullet – although more familiar fish such as salmon, haddock and prawns are in there as well, to provide a security blanket for those who might need it.