Salmon Fishcakes with Tartare Sauce & Lemony Wedges

The salmon fishcakes recipe here itself is one of Nigella's and one which I followed pretty much to the letter except for using Japanese panko breadcrumbs instead of matzo for the coating, as that is what I have in the cupboard. And also being too lazy to make mash, shop bought. I think the point here is that you use leftover mash but whoever makes mash and manages to have some leftover is a much better person than me. In any case, I was preparing potatoes for the wedges and just couldn’t be bothered to have two lots of potato prep on the go.

One thing I quite like about this recipe as that as the fishcakes need some chilling & firming time, you can get them done quickly, bung them in the fridge and then turn your attention to getting the sauce and wedges ready. It’s all actually very easy and quick.

These really are great fishcakes: crisp on the outside yielding to a light and fluffy centre, I will definitely be making these again.


Salmon Fishcakes with Tartare Sauce & Lemony Baked Wedges
serves 2

For the fishcakes
200g cold mashed potato
212g tin of red or pink salmon (bones & skin discarded)
7.5g unsalted butter, melted
small pinch of cayenne pepper
¼ lemon, zest only
small pinch of salt
small pinch of pepper
1 medium egg, whisked
50g panko breadcrumbs
25g unsalted butter

1 tbsp vegetable oil

For the tartare sauce
juice of ½ lemon
1 heaped tbsp capers, chopped
1 heaped tbsp 0% Greek yogurt
1 heaped tbsp mayonnaise
½-1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

For the potato wedges

2 medium potatoes, each cut into 8 wedges
1½ tbsp olive oil
½ lemon, juiced
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
½ tsp chopped fresh thyme

2-3 garlic cloves, left whole & unpeeled but given a bit of a bash

Preheat the oven to 200C.

In a large bowl mix together all the fishcake ingredients, up to the egg (and only mix in half of the egg) with your hands.

Cover a baking sheet with clingfilm and form 4 fat, palm-sized patties out of the fishcake mixture.

Place these on the baking sheet and stand in the fridge to firm up for about 30 minutes to an hour.

Mix together all the ingredients for the tartare sauce in a small bowl.

Taste & adjust carefully for seasoning if required, set aside.

Put the potatoes in a saucepan, pour in enough water to cover and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5-8 minutes, then drain well, giving the colander a good shake.

Put the olive oil, lemon juice and rosemary in a roasting tin with some salt and pepper. Add the potatoes and toss well until they are coated with the lemony & herby oil.

Leave for around 10 minutes so that potatoes can soak up some of the flavour then bake for about 40-60 mins, shaking the tin halfway through until the potatoes are nicely browned and crisp.

When the wedges are about 10 minutes away from being done, take out the fishcakes. One by one, dip the fishcakes into the beaten egg and then dredge with the panko, turning them and giving the sheet an occasional shake as you go to help coat them. 

Put the butter and oil in a large frying pan, heat till the butter begins to froth and then fry the fishcakes for 4-5 minutes on each side until the crusts are golden, and speckled brown in parts.

Serve with the potato wedges, tartare sauce and some dressed rocket leaves, with some shavings of parmesan.

Duck Breast with Ginger Sesame Greens

Blimey, another Olive recipe. But another absolutely great one that really doesn’t take much effort at all. 

I doubled up the amount of five-spice in this: not because I felt that it would need it but rather I forgot to adjust the quantity down for it from 4 people to 2. I thought that it was perhaps a little too much when we ate, but the bf thought it perfect so I have left it as it is here. Feel free to halve though if you want to stick to the original recipe.

I also used mixed white and black sesame seeds but you can just use the more common white if that is what you have.


Duck breast with Ginger Sesame Greens
serves 2

2 duck breasts, skin scored
2 tsp Chinese five-spice
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 clove garlic, sliced
small knob of ginger, shredded
200g spring greens, sliced and blanched
sesame oil

sesame seeds, toasted

Rub the duck breasts all over with the five-spice.

 Place fat side down in a cold frying pan: heat the pan and when it comes up to temperature continue to cook the duck breasts for 10 minutes until the skin has turned golden and crisp.

Turn the breasts over and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Remove from the pan and set aside under foil to rest.

Spoon out the excess fat from the pan and add the soy, brown sugar, rice vinegar and a splash of water. Simmer for 5 minutes then add the duck back in and glaze with the sauce.

Meanwhile stirfry the garlic and ginger in a little sesame oil in a small wok.

Add the greens and cook for 2 minutes before tossing through another splash of sesame oil.

Divide the greens between 2 plates and cut each duck breast in half diagonally and arrange on top of the greens. Spoon over any remaining sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Serve with a nice glass of red wine.

Braised Italian Sausages with Soft Polenta

Another Olive recipe, and one that reminded me how blimming lovely soft polenta is and how I really should eat more of it. Massive bowlfuls of it. One thing it is worth mentioning though is that while you must prepare yourself for Vesuvius sized volcanic eruptions while cooking it (see pic below: made me laugh), you should also prepare yourself for a washing up nightmare of similar proportions unless you get that polenta pan full of water and soaking as soon as you finish with it. I’m not sure why but polenta will set like cement given half a chance. You have been warned.

Feel free to use any sort of herby sausage to make this - obviously squat fat Italian sausages would be the best if you can get hold of them. And if you can, lucky you! I used Toulouse as the smell of them in the supermarket was irresistible, even through the packaging.

This post also marks the laziest of ingredients photos, where I haven’t even taken anything out of the packaging, let alone done any mise en place before snapping away.

Braised Italian Sausages with Soft Polenta

serves 2

1 tsp olive oil

6 sausages

3 rashers smoked streaky bacon, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

½ glass red wine

few sprigs rosemary, leaves picked

small tin chopped tomatoes

500ml chicken stock

100g instant polenta

25g butter

25g parmesan

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and brown the sausages all over then set aside.

Add the bacon to the pan and fry until crisp. Scoop out and set aside with the sausages.

Add the onions to the pan and cook fairly gently until soft and golden, about 10 minutes. Then add the garlic and cook for a minute or so more.

Turn up the heat a little then add the red wine and cook until reduced by about half before adding the sausages and bacon back in.

Tip in the tomatoes and add the rosemary and 100ml of the chicken stock.

Simmer for about 30 minutes until the sauce has reduced slightly and the sausages are cooked through.

Make up the polenta, following the package instructions but using the remaining 400ml of chicken stock instead of water.

Beat in the butter and cheese.

Divide between two plates or wide bowls topped with the sausages and sauce.

Penne alla Vodka

Penne alla vodka was a dish I always got in my late teens / early 20s at a North London (Golders Green specifically) Italian called l'Artista. It was, as I remember, absolutely delicious and it always followed a starter of garlicky tomato pizza bread, which was sensational: the best garlic bread I think I have ever had, anywhere.

Penne alla vodka seems to be another one of those recipes of which there seem to be as many versions as there are people that cook it. I myself have cooked it in a variety of ways but on this occasion opted for prawns - as I remember the l'Artista version having, and mushrooms (which I always think go well with prawns) with a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Most recipes call for the vodka to be stirred into the sauce but a tip I picked up from Nigella is to add it to the drained pasta and then stir the sauce into that. I think agree with her that this is a much better way to do it: I’m not even sure why, it just is. Oh, and this is one seafood pasta recipe where I will actually add a sprinkling of parmesan cheese, as the creaminess of the sauce lends itself to it.

Penne alla Vodka

serves 2

1½ tsp garlic oil.

½ small onion, finely chopped

small tin of chopped tomatoes

4-5 mushrooms, sliced

100g prawns

200g penne

2 tbsp vodka

2½ tsp butter

2 tsp cream

pinch of red pepper flakes

parmesan

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put a large saucepan of salted water on to boil.

In a sauté pan heat the garlic oil and add the finely chopped onion and a pinch of salt. Cook the onion over a low-medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until it is very soft and beginning to caramelize. Don’t let it catch or burn. Add the mushrooms and cook for another few minutes until they are softened a little.

Add the chopped tomatoes and red pepper flakes and continue simmering over a gentle heat for a further 20 minutes.

Add the prawns and cook for a couple of minutes (until just heated through) then stir in the double cream and take the pan off the heat.

Cook the penne for 3-4 minutes less than the packet instructions and then start testing it as you want it perfectly al denté.

Drain the cooked pasta then tip it back in the pan and pour over the vodka and stir in the butter. Add the tomato sauce to the pan, tossing everything together until the pasta is evenly coated.

Divide between two bowls and serve with a sprinkling of parmesan and a good grind of black pepper.

Lamb Shank Tagine

Knowing I was going to have a weekend pretty much left to my own devices recently, and remembering that there was a solitary lamb shank lurking in the fridge I decided to put it to good use with a nice slow and long-cooked tagine for one. 

I think I’ve mentioned in another post that I’m not a massive fan of fruit in savory dishes but this is an example of there nearly always being at least one exception to the rule. I never used to like prunes but have become a fan of their treacly, rich stickiness in the last couple of years and here they almost melt into the sauce adding to the unctousness left by cooking the lamb for a long while on the bone.

A nice treat for a chilly night alone (are we soon to see the last of them?)  in front of the telly after a luxurious soak in the bath. Feel free of course to double up the quantities for two. If you must.

A couple of things to note here regarding the ingredients photo: the chilli doesn’t feature as I only decided to add it as I was cooking (I frequently decide to add a little chilli warmth at the last minute) and the coriander is missing as I was yet to pop to the shops to get it.


Lamb Shank Tagine
serves 1

1 ½ tsp olive oil
1 lamb shank 
1 tbsp blanched almonds (about 10)
1 small onion, finely chopped
½ medium heat red chilli, finely chopped
1 small pinch saffron threads
⅓ tsp ginger powder
¼ tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ras el hanout
¼ tsp turmeric
250ml hot water
½ cinnamon stick
1 tsp rose harissa
1 small carrot, cut into rough 2in batons
6-8 ready to eat prunes, roughly chopped
small pinch freshly ground nutmeg
small handful coriander, finely chopped
1 tsp honey
5g butter, melted

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 160C.

In a large heavy bottom casserole, heat the olive oil, and add the lamb shank, turning frequently until golden brown all over (or as much as you can, it’s obviously quite an awkward shape). Set aside.

Add the blanched almonds to the casserole and sauté till golden. Turn the heat down low and add the onion. Season with salt & pepper and cook for at least 10 minutes until softened, but not coloured. Add the chopped chilli and cook for a couple minutes more.

Add the lamb back to the pot and add the turmeric, saffron threads, ground coriander, ground ginger and ras el hanout tossing the shank around to coat.

Add the hot water, harissa and cinnamon stick and bring to a boil.

Cover and then pop in the oven and let cook for about 2 hours or until the meat is starting to get really tender.

Add the prunes and carrots and perhaps a little water if you think it needs it (err on the side of caution though as you don’t want to dilute the sauce) and put back in the oven for 45 mins to an hour.

Remove the casserole from the oven and set the lamb aside in a warm place. Place the casserole over a low heat and add the chopped coriander, honey, nutmeg and a small knob of butter.

Increase the heat, and bring to a rapid simmer, letting the sauce reduce and caramelise slightly. Remove from heat and stand for 5 minutes.

Serve with rice or couscous with the sauce spooned over and around the lamb.

Coconut & Coriander Salmon

I’m loving my Olive magazine subscription: lots of recipes every week that range from super easy to pretty advanced. Everything I’ve tried so far has turned out well and is always tasty which is after all the most important thing.

This recipe is on the easy end of the scale. Very easy and very quick so an excellent choice for a mid-week dinner when you’ve either little time on your hands or just can’t be bothered with anything more complicated. It’s pretty cheap as well so what’s not to like.

I amended this slightly: the original just called for 2 tbsp of thai curry paste but I chucked in a tablespoon of Panang curry paste too, because it was there and I think I always know best. This is of course completely optional. Do taste as you add the Thai curry paste though and add more or less depending on your preference. 

If you can’t get skinless salmon fillets (I couldn’t), simply peel the skin off after cooking and discard.

Coconut & Coriander Salmon
serves 2

2 tbsp Thai red curry paste
1 tbsp Panang curry paste
400ml can half-fat coconut milk
2 skinless salmon fillets 
100g green beans, blanched
1 tsp fish sauce
1 lime, juiced
½ small bunch coriander, chopped

Cook the curry paste in a splash of coconut milk in a wide shallow pan for a couple of minutes. Tip in the rest of the coconut milk and simmer for a minute or two more.

Add the salmon and cook for about 7 minutes, turning once very carefully, until just cooked through. 

Add the beans in the last minute or so.

Stir in the fish sauce, lime juice and coriander and serve with plain basmati rice.

Hot & Tangy Lamb

I actually tried this recipe ages ago, probably not that long after these noodles and it was my second attempt at a Ken Hom recipe. Another extremely simple one at that. It was another that infinitely attracted me though: spicy lamb mince - what can possibly go wrong?

Ken Hom is of course a legend in his own lifetime: a Chinese American chef, regarded by many regarded as the world’s leading authority in Chinese cookery, with an OBE no less and possibly the best smile in the business.

Unfortunately however this recipe, taken from Ken Hom: 100 Easy Chinese Suppers, part of the My Kitchen Table series, also just didn’t do it for me. It’s not that it’s actually bad or anything. It was just not that great.

So that’s two recipes now that have not, in my opinion, quite cut the mustard. But I have the book now so I will persevere for a little while longer at least: another two or three tries I think but then Ken & I may have to part ways....


Hot & Tangy Minced Lamb

serves 2-3

 

1½ tsp groundnut oil

225g minced lamb

1½ tsp chopped garlic

1 tbsp chopped ginger

1 tbsp tomato purée

1 tbsp sesame paste (not tahini which is different)

2½ tsp dark soy sauce

2 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp chilli bean paste

1 tsp sugar

2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine

½ green chilli, finely sliced and a little chopped coriander to serve

Heat a wok until almost smoking and add the oil, closely followed by the lamb.

Stirfry for 2 minutes, using a wooden spoon to break up the lumps and then add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute.

Stir in the tomato purée, sesame paste, soy sauce, lemon juice, chilli bean paste, sugar and rice wine.

 

Cook for 4 minutes then divide between 2 bowls and serve garnished with the chopped chilli and coriander.