Smoked haddock brandade cakes with lime yogurt
It is the fluffy cake contrasting with the crunchy crust that makes these so appealing. Make them whatever size you want, and serve with the yogurt and lime sauce or, for less effort, with lime wedges.
6 people
Serving size
Ingredients
800ml-1 litre milk
500g smoked haddock
500g mashing potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 bay leaves (fresh, if possible)
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tbsp chopped parsley
3 tbsp olive oil
80g plain flour, for dusting
2-3 free-range eggs, beaten
200g panko
100ml vegetable oil, for frying
Lime wedges, to serve
Salt and pepper
For the sauce:
300g Greek yogurt
2 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
Grated zest of 1 lime
30ml lime juice
2 tbsp olive oil
Method
- Put all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, whisk and season to taste. Chill, or leave out for up to an hour.
- Bring the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan, turn down the heat and lay the haddock in the hot milk, making sure it is covered, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the fish with a slotted spoon, put it in a bowl and leave until cool enough to handle. Peel off any skin and roughly flake.
- Put the potato, thyme, bay and a pinch of salt into the haddock-infused milk and return to the heat. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for eight minutes, until the potatoes are soft. Drain, and discard the milk and herbs.
- While they're still hot, roughly mash the potatoes in a large bowl, add the flaked fish, garlic, parsley and oil, and combine - don't over-mix, otherwise you'll break up the fish too much. The mixture should be soft, but sturdy enough to shape. Season to taste. Use two spoons to form the mix into quenelles, about 50g each, or roll in your hands into similar-sized balls.
- Prepare three bowls, one with flour, one with eggs and one with breadcrumbs. Gently coat the quenelles in flour, shaking off any excess, then roll in the egg and finally coat with breadcrumbs. (You can now chill the cakes until ready to cook them; if you do so, you'll need to put them in a hot oven for a few minutes after frying to heat them right through.)
- Heat the oil in a medium frying pan. Once very hot, reduce the flame to medium and lay in a few fishcakes - don't crowd them. Fry on all sides for a minute, until golden brown. Drain on kitchen towel. Repeat with the rest of the cakes. Arrange three fishcakes on each plate, and serve with a wedge of lime and the sauce on the side.