Despite my best intentions I have not been great at finding sustainable fish to eat but I am planning on changing my ways! It’s quite hard though as I know we have a fish shop locally somewhere but I have never found it and am too guilty of always going to Waitrose which actually has really good fish. Imagine my joy when I saw both Dab and Pollock at the fish counter. I bought some Dab – for three people it cost the princely sum of £3.90 and I cannot tell you just how absolutely delicious it is. Coating it in seasoned flour, and then egg and lastly polenta (powder – or of course breadcrumbs) with lemon zest and finely chopped parsley, then fry in a little oil. I found organic rapeseed oil in Azda which was really good value. Or just butter and fresh herbs like tarragon, dill, and parsley, sea salt and freshly ground pepper and a good squirt of lemon juice. Dab is sweet and tender and a bit like plaice. So yummy! The recipe below is fantastic for any more boring white fish as it is really flavoursome. It works well with chicken too. The Marine Conservation has an excellent little pocket guide to download so you can really source your fish.
Although when I was at school (in the dark ages of the 70s) we learned to make Scotch eggs and doughnuts – how incredibly useless and pointless is that? And why is it that school kids are allowed to head off to the chicken and chip shop for their lunch even if they have a healthy school lunch? (Now I know I am sounding like an old battle-axe!). But brains need nourishing and teenage boys, with the flood of testosterone almost overwhelming them, making them tired and aggressive need extra special nutrients like zinc and omega three especially.
Pesto fish with sun dried tomatoes
Ingredients for 4 people 4 white fish fillets 12 sundried tomatoes 50g pine nuts Bunch of basil (25-30g) 50g Parmesan cheese 150 ml olive oil 2 garlic cloves Preheat the oven to about 200°, 175°C fan, gas mark 6
To make the pesto
Gently toast the pine nuts in a frying pan for about 30 seconds. Shake them a couple of times to toast both sides. Put them in a food processor with the other ingredients and blitz until smooth and creamy. Lay the fish in a heatproof dish and cover with half the pesto, then turn them over and cover the other side with the rest. Lay the sundried tomatoes over the fish. Cook for about 20 minutes Serve with lightly steamed spinach and new potatoes
