Everybody likes fishcakes. I remember the bright orange breaded ones we used to get in the fishmongers. They are easy to make at home. Choose sustainable white fish such as hake, coley and pollock. I like to add in some sea trout or salmon to add extra flavour. As a rule, use about the same amount of potatoes as fish. You can flavour with anything you like.
TASTY FISH CAKES
400g white fish
100g sea trout or salmon
semi skimmed milk
2 fresh bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh thyme
~~~
500g floury potatoes, Desiree, Maris Piper, peeled
blob unsalted butter
1 tablespoon salted capers, soaked
unwaxed lemon
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley
smoked sea salt
black pepper
~~~
3-4 tablespoons plain flour
2 free range eggs
6-8 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
Corn oil for frying
Check the fish carefully to remove any bones.
Wash it well in cold water and lay in a shallow saucepan.
Add the bay leaves and thyme.
Add enough semi skimmed milk or water to cover.
Bring to a gentle simmer and after 5 minutes take off the heat and set aside to cool.
~~~
Boil the potatoes in salted water until cooked.
Drain.
Mash with a good blob of butter and a splash of milk.
Tip into a large bowl.
Flake in the pieces of cooked fish into the potatoes, peeling off any skin and discard.
Rinse and chop the capers and add with the parsley, zest and juice of the lemon.
Add a sprinkling of smoked sea salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
Taste the mix and adjust the seasoning.
Put on the fridge for half an hour or so to firm up the mixture
~~~
Prepare three separate shallow bowls with seasoned flour, beaten eggs and breadcrumbs.
Now you’re ready to go! Great job for the kids.
Dip your hands in a little flour and form the mixture into fish cakes.
Dip each into flour, coat on all sides with beaten egg then press them onto the breadcrumbs to coat them.
Set aside on a flat plate. You will be able to make about 8.
~~~
Warm the oil in a shallow frying pan.
Test it with a small piece of bread and wait until it is sizzling before adding the first 4 fishcakes.
Fry until browned then turn to cook on the other side.
Drain onto kitchen paper and hold in a warm oven until all the fish cakes are cooked.
If you want an extra treat, make some home-made tartare sauce. Add chopped capers, gherkins, a grated shallot, parsley and lemon juice to your favourite mayonnaise. Season with a little cayenne pepper.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here