Also called sea trout, though it is not exactly salmon, trout or seagoing. With its firm but delicate pink flesh, it is said to combine all the virtues of trout and salmon. It weighs anything from 1 ½ to 4 lb (675 g to 2 kg), and can be cooked in exactly the same way as salmon (see above).
Basic fish batter
These quantities should be enough for 4 pieces.
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(serves 4 people)
1 1/2 lb middle-cut salmon (675 g)
2 oz butter (50 g)
2 bayleaves
Salt and freshly-milled black pepper
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 250′ T (130°C)
Start by wiping the fish with some damp kitchen paper, then place it in the centre of a large double sheet of foil.
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The salmon has a fascinating career. Once matured—that is anything between 2 and 7 years old—it will always return to the river to spawn, sometimes to the exact spot where it was itself halt heel. Unfortunately once a salmon enters the river it stops feeding and starts to deteriorate in quality. So commercially-sold salmon are always caught in the estuary just as they leave the sea.
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(serves 2 people)
A couple of frozen trout would be all right for this—only let them thaw first.
2 trout, gutted
5 tablespoons oil
1 large clove garlic, crushed
4 oz capers (110g), drained and coarsely crushed
The juice of a large lemon
Salt and freshly-milled black pepper
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There are two kinds of trout, the brown and the rainbow trout: the latter is actually becoming more widely available and less expensive because of notable successes up and down the country with commercial fish-farming. These farming methods can produce small trout weighing 6-10 oz each (175-275g), which from frozen will poach in about 10 minutes (6 minutes if fresh). Put some parsley, lemon slices,
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(serves 2 people)
Fresh silvery sprats are always an economical fish, and deep-fried and crisp they really are a delicacy.
1 lb sprats (450 gr)
Groundnut oil for frying
For the mustard sauce:
1 oz butter (25 g)
1/2 oz flour (10 g)
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Whitebait are tiny baby herring, rarely more than an inch long. At one time—more than a hundred years ago—they were caught at the mouth of the Thames, and consumed by Members of Parliament at ‘whitebait feasts’ in Greenwich at the end of the parliamentary session. Alas, they are almost never sold fresh nowadays—at least I’ve never seen them—but it doesn’t matter too much, because frozen whitebait are perfectly (more…)
(serves 3 people)
3 large mackerel, filleted
3/4 pint dry white wine (425 ml)
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
A large bouquet garni *
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Salt
* Bouquet garni—consisting of celery leaves, (more…)
