Salt Cod and Potatoes Bake Spring 2021
Recipes for Spring and Easter
Recipes using locally caught fish and rich in Omega-3, important for a healthy diet and to help boost the immune system."It reduces the risk of death from heart attacks and reduces the pain of arthritis. Omega-3 is good for providing a healthy brain, nerves, and eyes for babies and young growing children" (Ref. The Fish Foundation). Fish that provide the most Omega 3 are: Mackerel, Sardines Herring, Huss, Salmon, Sprats, and Crab. All white fish fillets including haddock, also contain smaller amounts.
Enjoy your fish.
Megrim Goujons with Sweet Potato Chips - a good recipe for encouraging children to eat a new fish and includes a healthy recipe for making lovely chips with sweet potatoes. Serves 4.
4 full side Megrim filets (or plaice fillets can be used)
4 dessertspoonfuls of flour, some salt and pepper to season
2 beaten eggs
125 g of breadcrumbs
2 sweet potatoes
4 dessertspoonfuls of olive oil
2 spoonfuls of balsamic (or malt) vinegar
Tartar sauce to serve
How to Cook -
Preheat the oven to 200C or gas mark 6
1. Cut the fish into long thin strips.
2. Season the flour and dust fish strips with the seasoned flour before dipping in the egg and finally coating in breadcrumbs.
3. Place the coated goujons on a sheet of greaseproof paper until needed.
To make the sweet potato chips,
1. Cut the potatoes in half lengthways and then cut each half into strips.
2. Place the cut potato chips into a bowl, drizzle with the olive oil and season.
3. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in the oven to roast for 15 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and drizzle over the vinegar, return to the oven to cook for further 5-10 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
5. Bake the fish goujons for 10 minutes or until browned.
6. Serve the goujons with sweet potato chips, tartar sauce and slices of lemon.
This recipe is from the Seafish Family cookbook. There will be more from this book through the summer.
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Mediterranean dab
Dab is a flatfish – it’s flaky, sweet, juicy and delicious and is similar to lemon sole. Virtually all dab caught gets thrown back into the sea, dead. That’s an unforgivable waste.
Ingredients
2 x whole dab, skin on and gutted
Olive oil
4 rashers smoked streaky bacon, the best quality you can afford
1 tablespoon pine nuts
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
a small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 lemon
8 cherry tomatoes, on the vine, halved or quartered a
small handful of black olives, stone in
2 large handfuls of interesting salad leaves, such as rocket, radicchio and chicory, washed and spun dry
balsamic vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
Method
Don’t be nervous about cooking fish on the bone. It makes the flesh juicer and more succulent, and gives it another dimension of flavour you don't get with fillets.
Use a small sharp knife to score the dab at 2cm intervals on both sides.
Add a splash of olive oil to a large pan on a high heat. Add the bacon and pine nuts and cook for a couple of minutes, or until lightly golden. Meanwhile, scatter a pinch of salt and pepper over the fish. Sprinkle over a little of the chopped parsley and finely grate over the zest of ½ a lemon. Rub that flavouring into the fish, making sure you get it into all the cuts. Repeat on the other side.
Tip the bacon and pine nuts onto a plate, add another splash of oil to the pan if you need to, followed by the dab, skin-side down. You may need to cook them in 2 batches or use 2 pans. After a couple of minutes, check to see if the fish are turning golden, and once they are, flip them over.
Add the tomatoes to the pan with the olives and remaining parsley. Give the pan a good shake, then add the bacon and pine nuts.
Quickly dress your salad leaves with a lug of balsamic, the juice of ½ a lemon, a pinch of salt and pepper and a couple of lugs of extra virgin olive oil.
Use your clean fingers to toss it all together.
Cook the fish for about 6 or 7 minutes in total. To tell if it’s cooked, put your fork into the plumpest part of the flesh and if you can easily pull it away from the bone, it’s ready.
Squeeze over the juice from your remaining lemon half, give the pan one last quick shake then take off the heat and serve with the salad on the side. You could have it with new potatoes too, if you like.
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Fried Gurnard with sweet and sour red onion serves 2
This is a very quick and simple recipe that is really worth a try and could be a starter for a dinner party.
Ingredients
Olive oil for shallow frying,
2 x 75g fillets per person
1small teaspoon capers for garnish
Salt and freshly ground paper.
For the sweet and sour onions
I tablespoon(tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
1 medium red onion, halved and sliced thinly
I tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey - I used Cornish honey from Trewen
Method
1. Prepare the sweet and sour onions: first - heat the olive oil in a frying pan and add vinegar, honey, a pinch of salt and some ground pepper and cook gently for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then, until they are soft - with a little bite, but not brown and overcooked . Keep warm
2. Season the fish fillets on both sides with salt and pepper and then coat them in the plain flour and knock off excess.
3. Pour oil into a frying pan and heat - lower heat before adding to the fish fillets and cook them for 1 minute on each side until lightly golden and cooked through. Lift out and allow to drain on kitchen paper.
4.Overlap the fish on a warmed plate and spoon over the onions. Scatter with the capers and serve or arrange in pairs on a single serving dish before spooning over the onions and capers
A “lovely” dish from Sicily - suggested by Hazel Bowden
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Gurnard baked with celery and apple - Serves 4
*Gurnard is available all year but needs to be well filleted because of its small pin bones. It has a good flavour and is quite firm and looks good with this sauce.
Ingredients
4 gurnard filleted
3 celery sticks thinly sliced
2 apples chopped into small chunks
4 spring onions chopped
25g/1oz butter
275ml/10fl oz single cream
1 tbsp French flat leaf parsley chopped
1 tbsp chopped walnuts for decoration
Method
Preheat oven to 230C, Gas mark 8.
Butter an ovenproof dish. Place in it gurnard fillet, sprinkle with celery, apple and spring onions.
Pour over single cream, cover with foil and put into oven.
Cook for 10 mins, uncover and cook for further 5 mins.
Decorate with parsley and walnuts.
Serve with broccoli and mashed potatoes sprinkled with parsley.
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Kipper Toasties serves 2 perfect for breakfast or supper
Ingredients
2 slices of hot toast
dash of Worcester sauce
3 cooked kipper fillets
2 dessert spoons of Creme Fraiche or double cream
grated cheese-cheddar is best
Method
Butter the lightly toasted slices and add a dash of Worcestershire Sauce
Cook the kipper fillets -by frying or baking for 10 mins
(You may prefer to jug them- place in a casserole with the tight-fitting lid.
Cover with well-boiling water and leave to steep in this water for 10-15 mins
depending on the size of the fillets, leave to steep for 10-15 mins)
Mash the kipper fillets when cooled, and stir in the cream fraiche or cream.
Add the grated cheese to taste
Spread the mixture on the toast and grill until it is bubbling.
Serve hot -maybe with a glass of beer (for supper) or Newcastle Brown.
Absolutely Yummy! This is a recipe from Craster on the NE Coast -hence the Newcastle Brown!
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Smoked fish paté with horseradish cream Serves 4
This is lovely if made with Buckling (smoked whole herring), but it’s often difficult to find so you can use Smoked Mackerel.
Ingredients
2 large buckling or smoked mackerel fillets
4 tbsp double cream
2-3 tsp lemon juice
2 rounded tsp grated horseradish – if you can’t get fresh horseradish then use ready made horseradish sauce, but up the quantity a bit
1 tsp tarragon vinegar
Salt and black pepper
Caster sugar
Lemon and cucumber for garnish
Method
Fillet each buckling into two halves removing the roe, skin and bones. Break fillets into bite-sized pieces. If using smoked mackerel flake the fillets.
Blend the cream with the lemon juice, horseradish and vinegar and season to taste with salt, pepper and sugar.
Mix the fish into the dressing and serve garnished with lemon slices and cucumber slices.
Serve with brown bread and butter.
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Smoked haddock and sweetcorn chowder serves 2
Ingredients
1dessert spoonful of oil
1 small onion and half a leek diced
100-200 Smoked Haddock or Whitefish fillet.
150 ml milk and a squeeze of lemon juice
200g butter bean drained and rinsed
100g can sweetcorn
250 ml vegetable stock
1 dessertspoonful of lemon juice
1 tbsp.chopped chives
Method
Fry the onion and leek gently over medium heat for 4mins until softened in a medium pan.
Meanwhile, place the fillet in a small saucepan and cover with the milk. Heat gently over a medium heat.when just simmering cover with a lid and cook very gently for 8 mins.Turn the fillets halfway through.
Drain the from the milk with a sieve and save both the milk and the fish separately.
Add the rinsed butter beans and stock to the pan with the diced leeks and softened onions. Bring to a simmer for 3 mins.
Add the poaching milk and some lemon juice to make the creamy base.
Flake the cooled fish fillet. Stir everything together and reheat simmering
Serve in a bowl with snipped chives over the top.
Cooking tip - You can also use 100g bacon lardons for frying the onions. Place in a hot pan and fry gently for 6mins. Add these to the chowder with the fish for extra rich soup.
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Kedgeree Serves 2
This is a simple recipe that the 8 year olds in the schools that we have worked with have made. Some using the vegetables and even eggs from their own school garden! Anyway, no excuses for not trying this delicious recipe!
Ingredients
200 g natural smoked haddock or whitefish fillet
I5g / 1oz Butter
I small onion
2 green cardamom pod split in half
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 cinnamon stick/ 1 tsp ground cinnamon
200 g basmati rice
300 ml stock made from cubes-vegetables or fish
1 hard-boiled egg
Parsley to garnish
Method
Preheat the open to 200C Gas mark 6. Boil the egg for 5mins. And cool
Wrap the fish fillet in foil adding the split cardamom pod. Place on a baking tray and cook in the oven for approx 6 mins-Check it is done by seeing if it flakes easily with a fork.
Chop the onion and fry for 3 mins in melted butter in a good-sized frying pan. Then add all the spices cook from 3 mins more.
Add the rice and stock, bring to the boil and then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15mins.
Stir in your flaked haddock and cook for another 5 mins
Divide it amongst the 2 plates and add the sliced boiled egg and some parsley garnish if you have some?
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Skate with Black Butter:microwave recipe – serves 2
Ingredients
2 skinned skate wings or 1 large wing cut in 2
50g butter
I tbsp of capers
Juice of half a lemon
2 tsps. of chopped parsley
Salt and pepper
Parsley
Method
Arrange skate wings with the edge towards the middle of a microwave casserole dish.
Cover and cook on High for 8/10 mins. Leave covered while preparing the butter sauce.
Heat a browning dish according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Add the butter and cook until golden. Then add capers and stir in the butter for 1 minute. Then reheat until the butter is a nut-brown colour and slightly frothy.
Add lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste and pour over the fish.
Garnish with roughly chopped parsley
Cooks tip.You can also poach the skate wings in a deep-sided pan using boiling seasoned water and some herbs such as parsley and thyme for 10-15 mins depending on the thickness of the wings.
Then make the Black Butter sauce by melting the butter in a frying pan. Melt the butter and then cook for an extra 2 mins until it goes nut brown. Add lemon juice and then chopped parsley with the seasoning to taste. It will still go frothy and then pour the sauce over the drained skate wings and add vegetables of your choice and serve.
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Fried Skate Wings with Warm Green Salsa – serves 2
Ingredients
For the Skate Wings
450g / 1lb Skate Wings - 2small or 1 large cut in half.
I heaped tablespoon of seasoned flour
25g/1oz butter and 1 tbsp of oil
For the Green Salsa
I clove of garlic
4 anchovy fillets, drained and finely chopped
I heaped tablespoon capers drained
1 rounded teaspoon of whole grain mustard
2 tablespoon of chopped parsley.
2 tablespoon olive oil (can be light)
4 tablespoons lemon juice or juice of a lemon
I tablespoon of chopped watercress
Freshly milled pepper
To make the sauce
This is a quick and easy sauce that can be used with any grilled or fried fish.
Chop and crush the clove garlic with a small tsp. of salt using the back of a tbsp. or broad blade knife.
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, add the garlic and combine thoroughly
To cook the Skate wings
Take a large frying pan and heat gently on a low heat
Wipe the fish with kitchen paper and coat with a light dusting of seasoned flour (put the flour in a plate and add seasoning and dip both sides of the skate wing)
Turn up the heat under the frying pan and add the butter and oil and as soon as it is foaming add the coated skate wings.
Fry them on both sides for about 5mins on each side.
To test if the fish is cooked, slide in the tip of a sharp knife and push to see if the flesh parts from the bone easily and looks creamy white.
Remove the fish and set aside and keep warm.
Pour the sauce into the pan and heat very briefly - it does not need to be to cooked but simply warmed a little.
Serve on the warmed plates with sauce first and then fried wings on top or to the side.
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Recipes used in Cornwall schools: 2015 - 2017
Hillfort School
Fish cakes with hake and tarragon
St Dominic School
Smoked mackerel dip with autumn apple juice
Ingredients
250g hot smoked whole mackerel
100g cream cheese
1 tbsp crème fraiche
1 tbsp cider vinegar and or 1tbsp apple juice if sweetness preferred
Chopped chives and ground black pepper
Method
Take mackerel flesh from fish carefully removing all bones and flake in a bowl.
Add cream cheese, crème fraiche, and mix.
Add cider vinegar and /or apple juice to taste.
Mix in chopped chives and season with black pepper.
Chill in ‘fridge before serving with hot toast or biscuits
This can be kept for 3/4days covered with cling film in a refrigerator.
