Pickled fish

In the UK, it is common to eat salmon on Good Friday. In many South African communities, particularly on the Cape Flats, where there is a strong Cape Malay influence, it is more common to eat pickled fish.

These days I can buy almost everything that formed a part of my shopping list in South Africa at at least one of my local supermarkets, but pickled fish is an exception (there is one other, and perhaps I will find and share a recipe at some point).

I was bemoaning this fact to a fellow ex-pat a couple of years back, and she happily shared her recipe with me, advising me to get myself a copy of the Cape Malay cookbook. To my embarrassment, I realised that not only did I have this cookbook, I used it fairly often. It had just never occurred to me to make my own pickled fish... or even to look for a recipe! I used to buy canned pickled fish in South Africa. It was one of those things you don't think of making (like baked beans and tuna).

So, if you'd like to try a slightly different fish tomorrow, how about this? It's almost certainly going to be cheaper than salmon!

I'm sharing the recipe today, because it needs 24 hours marinading time.

Ingredients

1kg (ish) of firm fleshed white fish
2 pinches salt
10ml red masala (or medium curry powder if you can't get masala)
175ml sunflower oil
1 cardamom pod, split open
375ml malt (brown) vinegar
10ml turmeric (borrie)
5ml chilli powder
15ml sugar
2 onions, thinly sliced
250ml water
2 bay leaves
2 curry leaves (if you can't get these, add more bay leaves)
4 allspice
1 whole clove

Method

• Blot the fish with paper towel and then sprinkle with one pinch of salt and about half of the masala. Leave to stand for a couple of minutes.
• Heat oil and cardamom pod in a frying pan and shallow fry fish until light brown.
• Remove fish from pan and spread in a large, shallow dish (not aluminium). Set aside for now.
• In a saucepan, place vinegar, turmeric, sugar, second pinch of salt, the rest of the masala, chilli powder, onion rings and water. Bring to the boil and simmer for a couple of minutes.
• Add the bay leaves, curry leaves, allspice and clove and remove from the heat.
• Allow to cool slightly, then pour over the fish, covering the fish completely.
• Cover and set aside for 24 hours for the flavours to develop.
• Serve with buttered bread and a green salad.

Easy fish pie

My mother will only eat white fish fried in batter, and can't bring herself to handle raw fish. So I never had any exposure to fish during my childhood (later edit: I lied - I ate fish fingers!). I developed the idea that it was something 'other' - something ordinary families didn't cook.

Then I only went and married a descendant of Scandinavian fisherfolk! My husband's beloved grandfather had a fishing boat and earned his keep catching and selling fish (including shellfish). My mother in law will eat pretty much anything that swims in the sea, and would know exactly how to prepare it before doing so. This is somewhat intimidating.

I am still pretty poor with fish, I have to say. The fact that my younger son doesn't enjoy it much possibly has something to do with that, too. But I have added a few fish dishes to my repertoire. This one is probably the easiest of the lot.... and it has the stamp of approval from my fish-resistant younger son, so it must be good!

I haven't used exact quantities, because it's very flexible, but hopefully you'll get the idea and maybe, just maybe, you'll turn out to be the person who was brave enough to try a fish dish for the very first time, using this recipe.

Many fishmongers in the UK prepare what they call 'fish pie mix'. It contains bite-sized pieces of white fish, smoked haddock and salmon. If you are able to get your hands on that, go for it. If not, just buy a few single portions of different types of fish fillets and chop them up together.

Oven temperature
180C

Ingredients
About 100g of fish per person, cut into bite-sized pieces
About 1 large-ish potato per person, peeled and cubed
Milk
Cornflour
Butter
Mature Cheddar cheese
Paprika
Salt to taste

Method

• Using the potatoes, some milk and a little butter (and salt to taste), make a soft mash (I realise I am assuming you know how to do this. If you don't please let me know in the comments, and I will explain)
• Steam the fish until it flakes easily with a fork. This takes a matter of minutes. I have a microwave steamer which does the trick. But you could a steamer pot, or even a metal colander on top of a saucepan of boiling water (don't forget to cover the fish).
• Using some of the butter, milk and cornflour, make a white sauce (once again, let me know if you don't know how to do this). You will need about 125ml per person.
• Mash the fish up in the bottom of an ovenproof dish and then mix in the white sauce.
• Cover the mixture with mashed potato. Work gently, or you will have fish mixture squooshing up through the mash. If you want to make patterns on top with a fork, you go right ahead.
• Sprinkle with the grated cheese and a little paprika.
• Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes.
• Pop under the grill for a few minutes to brown the topping if necessary.

Serve with vegetables. Since the dish isn't very colourful, go for boldly coloured things like broccoli and carrots to add interest to the plate.

Notes:

• You could try adding a bit of mustard or a pinch of mustard seeds to the white sauce
• Alternatively, add some chopped fresh parsley (I love it, but my husband doesn't like it) or dill (which my husband loves... how very Swedish of him!)
• Experiment with different combinations of fish. I like the blend of salmon with the smokey taste of the haddock and then a little white fish to balance it out, but you might like to try something a little different like mackerel or tiny shrimps.