Marinated Kipper Fillets and Potato Salad with Coriander Seeds and Cracked Pepper

This is a salad that can mostly be made way, way ahead – up to a week, believe it or not. Then all you do is steam some potatoes to go with it, or alternatively you can serve the kipper fillets as they are, and instead of the potatoes have a pile of buttered wholemeal bread on the table.

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This recipe is taken from How to Cook Book Two and The Delia Collection: Fish.

Method

To get the best fragrance from the coriander seeds and peppercorns, pop them in a small frying pan and place them over a medium heat to dry-roast for 2-3 minutes. Move them around the pan until they start to jump, then put them in a pestle and mortar and crush them fairly coarsely.

Next, prepare the kipper fillets by turning them skin side up on a flat surface, then, with a sharp knife, lift the skin away at the tail end. Now discard the knife and simply pull the skin from the flesh. If it clings at any point, just use the knife again and ease it away. Now snip each one in 4 lengthways, then cut them into 1½ inch (4 cm) pieces and lay the strips in the dish – this will probably have to be in 2 layers to fit them in – sprinkling the pepper and coriander mixture all over each layer. Next, scatter the shallot rings, bay leaves and lemon slices all over, tucking them in between the kipper fillets here and there.

Now, in a bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, sugar, mustard and oil, and when they're very thoroughly mixed, pour the mixture over the kippers. Cover with clingfilm and put a plate on top with some kind of weight on it to keep the kippers submerged, then place in the fridge and let them marinate for a minimum of 24 hours or up to a week.

When you want to serve the salad it's important to remove the kippers from the fridge at least an hour beforehand. Now steam the potatoes, generously sprinkled with salt, for 20-30 minutes (depending on their size), and, when they're cooked, place a cloth over them to absorb the steam for 5 minutes. Chop them roughly, divide them between the plates, spoon some of the kipper marinade over, then arrange the kippers and everything else on top.

Finish off with a few sprigs of flat-leaf parsley.