These crispy little fish bites are delicious served with a glass or two of chilled Sauvignon Blanc. Instead of frying them in oil, we like this recipe as it suggests baking them in the oven. To save time, breadcrumb the fish bites earlier in the day and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to bake them.
You can make the colourful green pea dip in seconds, as you don’t even have to cook the peas!
Serves 4 as an appetizer
Crispy baked fish bites
2 tbsp olive oil
75g plain flour
½ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp paprika
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 egg
1 tbsp milk
100g fresh breadcrumbs
300g haddock fillets cut into bite-sized pieces
olive oil spray
½ lemon cut into wedges to garnish
a little chopped parsley
Green pea dip
200g frozen peas, defrosted and drained
50g natural yoghurt
1–2 tbsp lemon juice to taste
salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
1. Preheat your oven to 200°C, gas mark 7.
2. Drizzle the 2 tbsp olive oil over the base of a baking tray and place in the oven to heat for 5 minutes until hot.
3. Take 3 shallow bowls and add the flour, cayenne pepper and paprika to the first bowl and season well. In the second bowl, whisk together the egg and the milk. Tip the breadcrumbs into the third bowl.
4. Dip each piece of fish into the flour, then into the egg mixture and finally into the breadcrumbs.
5. Remove the baking tray from the oven and using a slotted spoon, carefully place the breadcrumbed fish in the hot oil. Spray the top of the fish with a little olive oil.
6. Bake the fish bites for 15-20 minutes until they are brown and crispy on both sides, turning over halfway through cooking.
7. Meanwhile make the green pea dip. Place the drained peas in a food processor and blend to a thick, chunky purée.
8. Add the yoghurt, lemon juice and seasoning and blend again, leaving the mixture slightly lumpy.
9. Spoon the dip into a small serving bowl and serve with the hot crispy baked fish bites garnished with the lemon wedges and sprinkled with chopped parsley.
The tablecloth design in this photo is Fishes Blue.
Recipe developed and styled for Wipe Easy Tablecloths by Lottie Francis, Food Designer at Look to Cook.