Cod Fish Cakes with a Caper Mayonnaise

 So the cod from my mishap with the freezer yesterday made a delicious dinner today.

The conversation this evening went like this:

Mr 7: "What's for dinner Mummy?"

Me: "Fish cakes, peas and sweetcorn"

Mr 7: Turning to his brother "Guess what? We are having cakes for tea"

Mr 4: "I love cake"

Mr 7: "Haha tricked you. Not real cakes. Fish cakes"

Mr 4: "Look there's a monkey in the garden"

Mr 7: looking out of the window "No there's not"

Mr 4: "Tricked you"

Mr 7: "No you didn't I knew there wasn't"

Mr 4: "Mummy I tricked him and he said I didn't. But I did"

Mr 7: "He didn't. He didn't"

Mr 4: "I did"

Me: "Boys. There's a kangaroo sitting on the car bonnet"

Both run to the veranda "No there's not"

Me: "Hahahaha. Tricked you"

They just looked at me, decided they were better off just talking to each other.

Mr 7: "What do fish eat on their birthday? Fish cake"

Mr 4: (who is giggling so hard he almost falls off the sofa) "Haha. Fish cake."

Mr 7: "I have another one. Why did the fish go in the oven? Because it was in a cake"

Mr 4 now falls off the sofa. "Me got one.What's a fish's favourite dessert? Fish cake"

They are both now rolling about on the floor laughing so hard that they can't stop.

Crazy kids! But I do love it when they laugh, even if it is at their own bad jokes.

The boys like to eat these with ketchup/BBQ sauce, but I made a caper and parsley mayonnaise to enjoy mine with. I like to make the fish cakes quite small, that way you get, what I consider, the perfect mix of crispy crumb and fluffy inside.

I have tried these with panko breadcrumbs but I find they crisp up too quickly and don't coat the mash sufficiently. I prefer to use standard breadcrumbs, mixed with a small amount of parsley. I make my own breadcrumbs with left over stale bread and then stash them in the freezer. If I find there isn't any in there (or more likely I can't find any) then I put some bread in the toaster for about a minute, then whiz it in the food processor.

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INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

Caper Mayonnaise

• 125ml mayonnaise (½ cup)
• 1 heaped tablespoon capers
• 1 teaspoon parsley

Fish Cakes

• 450g white potatoes
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1tbsp chives
• Salt
• White pepper (If you don't have white pepper then black will be fine)
• 450g cod fillet (or any white fish)
• 1 small onion
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon black pepper corns
• 200ml milk
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoon flour
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley (finely chopped)
• 100g white breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil

 

1. Chop the capers and parsley.
2. Mix together the mayonnaise, chopped capers and parsley. And place in the fridge to chill.
3. Peel and chop the potatoes into even (ish) sized chunks.
4. Put them in a pan and cover with boiling water.
5. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and cook for 10-15 minutes until tender.
6. Meanwhile cut the onion in half.
7. Add the onion, bay leaves and pepper corns into a shallow pan with a lid.
8. Place the fish in the pan, pour over the milk, top up with water, until the fish is just covered.
9. Cover the pan and bring to a gentle simmer.
10. Cook the fish for 5 minutes and then take it off the heat. Leave the fish in the hot milk for 10 minutes.
11. Once the potatoes are tender, drain and return to the pan with the butter and chives.
12. Mash until smooth. Check the seasoning. You will probably need more salt and pepper.
13. Remove the fish from the milk with a slotted spatula.
14. Flake the fish into large chunks and gently mix it through the mash.
15. Beat the egg and pour into a shallow bowl or plate.
16. Spread the breadcrumbs and chopped parsley on to another plate.
17. Sprinkle the flour over a chopping board and carefully shape your fish mixture into 12 round cakes. You might need to flour your hands.
18. Next you want to dip each cake into the egg and then into the breadcrumbs. Tapping them slightly to give them a nice covering.
19. Place on a plate and allow them to chill for at least an hour.
20. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the fish cakes for 4 minutes on each side or until crispy and golden.
21. Serve with a wedge of lemon and a large dollop of the caper mayonnaise.