If you happen to cook for an army and ended up with some leftover fish, this is a great and efficient way to re-use it. No leftover fish? No problem - just get some fresh fish and pre-cook it in a pan or in the oven.
I am not entirely sure why, but I seem to be incapable of eating the same meal twice in a row. I have never quite been able to get on board with that, no matter how tasty the dish is. Whilst this can sometimes be a curse, especially after a long, tiring day, it gives me the chance to get a little creative with my leftovers and ensure that nothings gets wasted. For this recipe, I have used some leftover cod which had been baked in the oven, but you can use whatever fish you prefer or have handy - swordfish, bass, haddock etc.
Yields about 16 fishballs
Ingredients:
- 500g of white fish (I have used cod for my version)
- 2 eggs
- 1 lemon
- a bunch of fresh parsley
- 1 clove of garlic
- breadcrumb (I have used golden breadcrumb for my version)
- a pinch of salt
- oil to shallow fry (I have used sunflower oil, but you can use a different type)
Method:
Shred the leftover fish with the help of a fork, making sure no bones are left - best to be safe than sorry, even if you have bought de-boned fish. Place the shredded fish into a bowl.
On the side mince the garlic and finely chop the parsley. Add to the bowl with the fish.
Add the eggs, the grated lemon peel and a pinch of salt to the bowl. Mix all of the bowl ingredients together.
Take a large plate (flat if possible) and spread a layer of breadcrumb - this is where we are going to coat our fishballs.
Using a teaspoon (and/ or your hands!) form small round balls from the fish mix you have prepared. I have soon given up using the spoon and mostly shaped the fishballs with my hands as I found they would hold together better. Once you have shaped a fishball, roll it in the breadcrumb, ensuring that all of the surface is covered.
Set aside and continue with this process until you have used up all of the mix. Depending on the size into which you roll your fishballs, you might end up with more or less than me.
Once you have all of the fishballs ready and coated, pour some oil in a deep frying pan - try and fill it so that the liquid will cover at least half of your fishball.
Heat up the oil so that it is hot, but not smoking.
In order to check if your oil is ready, my mum always told me to take a little piece of bread and drop it in - if the oil is at the correct frying temperature, the oil around the bread will start bubbling up immediately; if the bread just floats there or there isn't decisive bubbling, your oil is not yet ready. Having your oil at the right temperature is incredibly important as it avoids your food soaking up too much oil and ending up greasy and fatty.
Once your oil is ready place the fishballs into the pan and fry until the outer coat is crispy and golden brown. Flip half-way through to get the same colour on both sides. I would suggest frying the fishballs in batches as if you overcrowd the pan, not only will they be difficult to flip, but they will also not cook well and evenly.
Once cooked, remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and place on a plate lined with kitchen roll to absorb any excess oil.
Extra tips
You don't necessarily have to add one fish type only to the mix - you can try a combination of different types of fish.
For some texture and a different flavour combination you can even add some prawns to the blend!
SPICE IT UP: I haven't had a chance to try this on this version, but I would be curious to add some smoked paprika to the fish mix to give it a Spanish twist!