Flaky fish fritters

‘I love fishcakes and fritters and often, across Italy and the Mediterranean, salt cod is used – which can be hard to find here. So, I’ve developed a technique that creates flaky-textured cod with ease.’

SERVES 6 TIME 50 minutes, plus salting

• 200g skinless, boneless cod, from sustainable sources

• 100g rock salt

• 500g potatoes

• ½ a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley (15g)

• 25g baby capers in brine

• 75g scamorza (smoked mozzarella cheese)

• 25g Parmesan cheese

• 100g fine stale breadcrumbs

• 1 large free-range egg

• sunflower oil, for frying

• 2 lemons

1 In a bowl, cover the cod with the rock salt, then cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. Meanwhile, peel and roughly chop the potatoes, cook in a pan of boiling water for 15 minutes, or until tender, then drain, mash and cool.

2 When the time’s up, rinse the cod under cold running water to remove the salt and pat dry. Chop half into ½cm cubes, then finely chop the rest and place it all in a large bowl. Pick the parsley leaves and finely chop with the capers, then chop the scamorza into 1cm cubes and add it all to the cod. Finely grate in the Parmesan and add the breadcrumbs and cooled potato. Season with black pepper, crack in the egg, then mix everything together well. Now shape the fritters however you like – use wet hands to make 18 balls or patties, or use two tablespoons to shape into 18 oval quenelles.

3 When you’re ready to cook, pour

1cm of sunflower oil into a large, sturdy, shallow pan on a medium-high heat. Once hot, place half the fritters in the oil to cook for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until golden and crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain while you get on with the second batch. Serve with lemon wedges, for squeezing over.

PER SERVING: CALS 347; FAT 22.4G; SAT FAT 3.1G; PROTEIN 14.6G; CARBS 23.1G; SUGAR 1.3G; SALT 1G; FIBRE 1.4G