Switch the Fish

– One Tray Oven Baked Hake and Chips –

Regular Lavender and Lovage readers will know that I am a bit of a fish and seafood addict; we eat fish (or seafood) about two or threes times a week, and favourite recipes are prawn curry, fish pie, fish cakes and fish and chips. I also make numerous salads with fish throughout summer and salmon is usually the prime suspect in my fishy salad recipes – my recipe for lemon and herb poached salmon salad is always a big hit and is easy to make. So when Sainsbury’s contacted me to see if I would like to “Switch the Fish” and use an alternative fish that is more sustainable, I was very keen to participate.

On Friday the 12th of June, customers will be encouraged to widen their repertoire by being offered a free portion of a ‘lesser known’ fish from their fish counters when they ask for one of the ‘Big Five’ fish……Salmon, Tuna, Haddock, Cod or Prawns…..these five fish varieties make up a staggering 80% of UK sales for fish and seafood, and yet we have so many other fish on offer. The alternative fish that will be offered to all customers for free this Friday are Sea Bass, Coley, Hake or Loch Trout. I love all of the alternative fish and you can see some previous recipes on Lavender and Lovage here: Coley recipes, Hake recipes and Sea Bass Recipes.

Today’s recipe is my very popular baked fish and chips dish…..using my all time favourite fish, Hake. You can use home-made chunky chips or as I did last time as I needed the meal on the table quickly, ready-made chunky oven chips. Just adapt the recipe if you are using frozen oven chips by pre-cooking them for 15 to 20 minutes (instead of the suggested 25 to 30 minutes in the recipe below) before adding the breaded hake fillets or steaks. This is my family’s favourite way to eat fish, it’s low in fat and only uses one tray, so eliminates lots of washing up and mess.

For more “Switch the Fish” recipes, there are some lovely ideas over on the Sainsbury’s website here: Switch the Fish Recipes. I was particularly taken with Roasted lemon sole with butter bean mash, Thai mussel broth and Harissa sea bass with griddled vegetables & couscous. All the alternative fish are ideal for cooking on the BBQ or served up as part of a summer dish so as part of Sainsbury’s campaign to “Get Summer Started“, all four of the alternative fish will be on offer from Wednesday the 10th of June until Tuesday the 23rd of June. DO try one of the alternative fish on offer…..go on, live dangerously!

Roasted lemon sole with butter bean mash – Image: Sainsbury’s

My baked Hake and Oven Chips recipe is shared below, and they would make the perfect “Fish on Friday” family supper dish. Serve simply with salad leaves, fresh lemon wedges and parsley, or with peas. You can also use any other alternative firm white fish for this recipe such as coley, pollack, lemon sole and sea bream, as well as the usual big five as listed above. Karen

*Commissioned work for Sainsbury’s*

Baked Hake & Oven Chips

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Serves	2
Prep time	10 minutes
Cook time	45 minutes
Total time	55 minutes
Allergy	Egg
Meal type	Lunch, Main Dish
Misc	Child Friendly, Pre-preparable, Serve Hot
Occasion	Casual Party, Easter
Region	British
By author	Karen S Burns-Booth

A fabulous recipe for low-fat oven baked fish and chips that uses one pan! This will prove to be a family favourite at the supper table and uses prime Scottish hake in place of cod or haddock, which is a more sustainable fish to use. Children will love its mild taste too. If you do have some sustainable haddock or cod to hand, then use that, basically any meaty fish is perfect for this iconic British dish with a healthy low-fat twist.

Ingredients

• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunky chips
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• a little rapeseed oil
• 2 boned hake fillets or steaks, about 125g to 150g each (skinned too if you prefer)
• breadcrumbs
• plain flour (or crushed cornflakes for gluten free)
• 1 small free range egg, beaten
• lemon wedges to serve

Note

A fabulous recipe for low-fat oven baked fish and chips that uses one pan! This will prove to be a family favourite at the supper table and uses prime Scottish hake in place of cod or haddock, which is a more sustainable fish to use. Children will love its mild taste too. If you do have some sustainable haddock or cod to hand, then use that, basically any meaty fish is perfect for this iconic British dish with a healthy low-fat twist.

Directions

Step 1	Pre-heat oven to 220C/450F/Gas Mark 7.
Step 2	Place the cut chips into a large bag and season generously with sea salt and black pepper. Add about a tablespoon of oil and shake the potato chips in the bag so they are evenly coated on the seasoning and oil.
Step 3	Place a large roasting tray in the hot oven to heat up for about 5 minutes and then tip the potato chips in and move them around, making sure they are in a single layer. Bake them for about 25 to 30 minutes, it depends on the type of potatoes you use. You can turn them around after 15 minutes or so to brown evenly.
Step 4	Meanwhile, pat the hake fillets dry with a paper towel and coat them in flour, then the beaten egg before covering in bread crumbs. If you are wanting a gluten free meal, then crush some cornflakes and coat the fish pieces in crushed cornflakes.
Step 5	Take the chips out of the oven after their initial cooking time of 25 to 30 minutes and make some space for the fish in the middle of the tray, place the fish in and drizzle a little oil over the top or spray them with some low-fat oil such as frylight.
Step 6	Bake for a further 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fish is cooked and opaque, and the chips are light brown and crispy.
Step 7	Serve with salt, pepper, malt vinegar, salad or peas and a large lemon wedge.
Step 8	Quantities can be increased or decreased with ease for families or solo diners.