7 Delicious Seafood Recipes You Must Try This Summer

There's a particular kind of magic to the British summer that no other season can quite match. The first warm weekend arrives and suddenly everything is possible: a frosted pint in a sun-soaked beer garden, long lazy lunches spilling out into the garden, the smoky sizzle of a barbecue drifting over the fence and long afternoons on the beach with sandy feet and something cold to drink. But for those of us who love to cook and eat well, summer has an even greater gift: the sea.

As the water warms and the days lengthen, Britain's coastline comes alive with some of the best seafood. Lobsters and crabs emerge from the depths, mussels grow plump and sweet and mackerel dart through the shallows in silver shoals. There is no better time to savour the flavours of the ocean.

The recipes that follow are our favourites from the Hive Beach Café Cookbook — dishes we've cooked and loved through countless summers on the Dorset coast. Simple enough to make at home, but special enough to make any summer's day feel like an occasion.

1. Cold Shellfish Platter

A stunning summer centrepiece packed with fresh shellfish, served on a bed of vibrant blanched seaweed. Impressive to look at, surprisingly simple to put together. It’s worth remembering that fresh shellfish is loaded with essential minerals, protein, vitamins B12 and C and Omega 3 fatty acids that help keep your cholesterol levels low. It also tastes absolutely amazing.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 whole cooked lobster
• 1 whole cooked crab
• 4 fresh oysters, shucked
• 6 cooked langoustines
• 6 cooked crevette prawns
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• Large handful of fresh seaweed
• Crusty bread, to serve

Method

1. Prep the lobster: Twist off the claws and use a sharp knife to cut the lobster in half lengthways along its body. Crack the claws with the back of the knife or a lobster cracker so the meat is easy to pull out at the table. Set aside.
2. Prep the crab: Remove the claws and legs from the body. Turn the crab upside down and press firmly on the body section to separate the top shell from the body. Remove and discard the grey feathery gills ("dead man's fingers") and any soft grey matter. Crack the claws so the meat is accessible. Set aside.
3. Check the oysters: Check that your pieces of fresh oysters are freshly shucked and smell clean and briny. Discard any that smell off. Keep them on the half-shell and refrigerate until ready to plate.
4. Blanch the seaweed: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add a large handful of fresh seaweed and blanch for 2–3 minutes until bright green and tender.
5. Refresh the seaweed: Immediately transfer the seaweed to a bowl of ice-cold water. Leave for 2 minutes — this stops the cooking and locks in the vibrant green colour. Drain well and spread across a large serving platter.
6. Arrange the platter: Place the lobster halves in the centre as your showpiece. Arrange the crab, fresh oysters, langoustines, and crevette prawns around it, grouping each type together so guests can easily identify what's what.
7. Finish and serve: Tuck the lemon wedges around the platter for colour and freshness. Serve immediately with crusty bread and finger bowls of warm water with a slice of lemon — shellfish can get messy, in the best possible way!

Buying tip: Ask your fishmonger for pre-cooked shellfish to save time — lobster, crab, langoustines and crevettes are commonly sold this way. All you'll need to do is prep and arrange.

2. Grilled Mackerel with Red Onion & Pepper Salsa

This dish reappears on the Hive menu every summer, and it’s as much of a favourite with us as it is with our customers. The sharp combination of red onion and pepper in this recipe works wonders with the dense flavour of the mackerel, which is best served straight from the grill.

Serves: 4 | Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients

• 8 mackerel fillets (from 4 whole mackerel)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 red onion, finely diced
• 1 red pepper, finely diced
• 1 lemon (half juiced for salsa, half cut into wedges to serve)
• Small bunch of chives, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
• Crusty bread, to serve

Method

1. Preheat the grill: Set your oven grill to its highest setting and allow it to heat up for at least 5 minutes before cooking. A properly hot grill is key to getting crispy skin.
2. Make the salsa: While the grill heats up, combine the red onion and red pepper in a bowl. Drizzle with 3–4 tablespoons of olive oil and squeeze in the juice of half a lemon (half juiced for salsa, half cut into wedges to serve). Add the bunch of chives, season with a teaspoon of sea salt and stir everything together. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Set aside — the salsa is served at room temperature, so there's no need to refrigerate it.
3. Prep the mackerel: Pat the mackerel fillets dry with kitchen paper — this helps the skin crisp up under the grill. Season both sides with sea salt and drizzle the skin side with a little olive oil.
4. Grill the mackerel: Lay the mackerel fillets skin-side up on a baking tray and place them under the hot grill. Grill for 4–5 minutes — you do not need to flip them. The fillets are cooked when the flesh is opaque all the way through and the skin is lightly charred and blistered.
5. Plate and serve: Slide the fillets onto warmed plates as soon as they come off the grill. Spoon the salsa generously over the top and serve with the remaining lemon wedges and crusty bread.

3. Mussels with White Wine, Herbs, Garlic & Cream

The mussels we use at the Hive Beach Café hail from the point at which the River Fowey spills into Lyme Bay. This isn’t just a blind local loyalty. The mussels from here are rope-grown (i.e cultivated on lines that float in the warm, nutrient-rich water close to the river surface) and we believe this makes them meatier and ultimately much more tasty. Our no-frills take on classic moules marinière is best enjoyed with a bottle of chilled wine like our Hive Beach Café White Wine – Les Cépages Du Sud, France and a hunk of crusty bread to mop up the sauce. It simply flies out of the Hive kitchen in the summertime.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients

• 900 grams mussels
• 1 shallot, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 20 grams butter
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig thyme
• 100 millilitres white wine
• 100 millilitres double cream
• 1 bunch parsley, finely chopped

Method

1. Clean the mussels: Rinse the fresh mussels in their shells under cold running water. If needed, pull off any stringy beards (the fibrous threads poking out of the shell) by gripping them firmly and pulling sharply downwards toward the hinge and scrub off any barnacles with a stiff brush. Tap any open mussels firmly on the counter — discard any that do not close within a few seconds, as these are dead and unsafe to eat. Also discard any with cracked or broken shells.
2. Soften the shallot and garlic: Melt the butter in a large, deep lidded saucepan over a medium heat. Add the shallot and 2 garlic cloves and cook for 3–4 minutes , stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent but not browned.
3. Add the herbs, mussels and wine: Add the bay leaves and sprig of fresh thyme to the pan, then tip in the cleaned fresh mussels, in their shells. Pour in the dry white wine, then immediately place the lid firmly on the pan to trap the steam — this is what opens the mussels.
4. Steam the mussels: Turn the heat up to high. Cook for 3 minutes, shaking the pan firmly by its handle once or twice during cooking to help the mussels cook evenly. At the end of 3 minutes, lift the lid — the mussels should all be open. Discard any that have remained shut, as these are also unsafe to eat.
5. Add the cream: Reduce the heat to medium. Pour in the double cream and stir gently through the broth. Cook for 1 further minute until the sauce is heated through.
6. Serve: Divide the mussels between 2 large warmed bowls, discarding the bay leaves and sprig of fresh thyme as you go. Ladle the sauce generously over the top and scatter with the small bunch of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley. Serve immediately with plenty of crusty bread to serve on the side.

4. Fresh Crab & Avocado Salad

We’re very fond of a Weymouth crab here at the Hive. Those that are landed in the buzzing harbour town – a few miles along the Jurassic Coast from Burton Bradstock village – tend to provide deliciously creamy and sweet white meat, which is the ideal accompaniment to the range of summer salads on our menu. The avocado and herbs in this dish combine perfectly with the crab to create the ultimate light lunch; and we get a lot of orders for this along with a cold bottle of white wine when the sun is shining.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 whole cooked crab (to yield approx. 150 grams white meat)
• 2 medium avocados, peeled, stoned and cut into small cubes
• 2 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
• Small bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• 4 sprigs of fresh dill, roughly chopped
• Small bunch chives, roughly chopped
• 2 large handfuls of crunchy salad leaves
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lemon, halved
• 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Pick the crab meat: If using a whole crab, twist off the claws and legs. Use a knife to open the body and scoop out all the white meat. Run the meat slowly through your fingers to check carefully for any fragments of shell — these are easier to feel than to spot. Set the picked meat aside. You're aiming for around 150g of white meat.
2. Make the dressing: In a small bowl or jar, combine the olive oil with a generous squeeze of juice from half a lemon. Season well with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper to taste and stir to combine. Taste and adjust if needed.
3. Assemble the salad: Place the crunchy salad leaves in a large serving bowl. Add the avocados, plum tomatoes, flat-leaf parsley, dill and chives. Pour over the dressing and toss gently to coat everything evenly.
4. Add the crab and serve: Add the white crab meat to the bowl and toss very gently — you want it to be distributed through the salad without breaking up too much. Taste for seasoning, adding more lemon or salt if needed. Serve immediately in the bowl for everyone to share, with the remaining lemon half on the side for squeezing.

5. Grilled Lobster with Garlic Butter

When lobster is served this simply, only the very best will do. All of the lobsters we use at the Hive are caught off Burton Bradstock, Freshwater and Weymouth and are delivered to us each morning, which absolutely guarantees their freshness. Unsurprisingly, this dish - which complements the succulent meat with a delicious, herby, garlicky sauce - is in hot demand with our customers during the summer months.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• Bunch parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 100 grams butter
• 1 whole cooked lobster

Method

1. Make the garlic butter: Place the butter, softened to room temperature, in a bowl. Add the garlic, flat-leaf parsley and all the zest from the lemon. Squeeze in half the juice of the lemon and add a good pinch of sea salt to taste. Mix everything together thoroughly until well combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Set aside.
2. Preheat the grill: Set your oven grill to a medium-high setting and allow it to heat up for at least 5 minutes before cooking.
3. Halve the lobster: Place the cooked lobster on a sturdy chopping board. Using a large, sharp knife, cut it firmly in half lengthways — starting at the head and cutting down through the tail. Open it out flat, shell-side down. Remove and discard the stomach sac (a small, firm pouch near the head) and the intestinal tract (a thin dark line running along the tail).
4. Add the garlic butter and grill: Spoon the garlic butter generously over the exposed white meat of both halves. Place the lobster halves shell-side down on a baking tray and slide under the hot grill. Cook for 4–5 minutes until the butter has fully melted and is bubbling and the lobster meat is warmed through. Watch closely for when the meat is already cooked – it will turn rubbery if left too long.
5. Serve: Transfer to warmed plates immediately. Serve with the remaining lemon juice squeezed over the top, alongside chips and salad to serve.

6. Seabass for Two

As sea-to-plate dishes go, seabass can’t be beaten. Especially when eaten outdoors with a glass of cold rosé and the sun on your back.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 1kg fresh, line-caught seabass, scaled and gutted
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges

Method

1. Preheat the oven: Heat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan / Gas Mark 6) and allow it to come to full temperature before cooking.
2. Prepare the fish: Pour the olive oil onto a baking tray and spread it around. Pat the seabass, then lay it on the tray. Rub a little extra oil over both sides of the fish with your hands. Using a sharp knife, score the skin 3–4 times on each side with shallow diagonal cuts, cutting just through the skin. This helps the heat reach the flesh and prevents the fish from curling. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt generously over both sides.
3. Stuff the belly: Open the belly cavity of the fish and push in the sprigs of fresh rosemary and half a lemon. The lemon will steam gently inside the fish as it cooks, adding flavour and keeping the flesh moist.
4. Roast the seabass: Place the baking tray in the centre of the oven and roast for 15 mins, the fish is ready when the skin is golden and crisp and the flesh at the thickest part flakes easily when pressed with a fork. If in doubt, insert a small knife into the thickest part for 5 seconds — if it feels hot when removed, the fish is cooked through.
5. Serve: Bring the whole fish to the table and serve straight from the tray. To portion it, run a knife along the backbone and lift the fillets away from the bones. Serve with the remaining lemon, alongside new potatoes or chips and fresh green salad.

7. Brown Crab Salad

Brown crabs spend the cold winter months in a bit of a sloth-like state and this inactivity means the meat gets watery and unappetising. Once the sea warms up a little though, they head to shallower water and move around a lot more, improving the texture and volume of the meat dramatically.

Serves: 2 | Cooking time: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 fresh, whole brown crab, cooked
• Handful of chives, chopped
• 1 lemon cut into 4 segments
• 4 tbsp good-quality mayonnaise
• Crusty bread to serve

Method

1. Make the chive mayonnaise: Spoon the 4 tablespoons of good-quality mayonnaise into a small bowl. Add the bunch of chives and squeeze in the juice of 2 lemon segments. Stir well to combine. Taste and adjust — add more lemon if you'd like it sharper, or more chives for extra flavour. Set aside.
2. Prepare the crab: If your crab hasn't already been prepared, twist off the claws and legs. Turn the crab upside down and press firmly on the central body section to separate it from the top shell. Remove and discard the grey feathery gills — these are not edible. Crack the claws with the back of a heavy knife or a lobster cracker so the meat is easy to access at the table.
3. Serve: Place the cooked brown crab on a large board or platter. Serve with the chive mayonnaise alongside the remaining lemon wedges for squeezing, plenty of crusty bread and a finger bowl of warm water for messy hands.

These recipes are a collection of wisdom passed down from our founders who started the Hive Beach Café in 1991, as well as from the fantastic chefs whose creative culinary minds have been allowed to run wild in our kitchens. These summer seafood recipes have been taken from our cookbook The Hive Beach Café Cookbook — available to purchase from our online shop.