Crossword Genius

Idiot has not served up seafood (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

plankton

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'seafood' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'idiot has not served up' is the wordplay.
'idiot has' becomes 'plank' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'served up' says the letters should be written backwards (in a down clue, going upwards).
'not' backwards is 'ton'.
'plank'+'ton'='PLANKTON'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for plankton that I've seen before include "food for school, possibly" , "Whale's staple diet" , "Aggregate of small marine organisms" , "Marine organism" , "Drifting marine organisms" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sunday Times and The Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app