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Copyright 2007 by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Nick Fisher

Photographs copyright 2007 by Simon Wheeler
Additional photography copyright 2007 by Paul Quagliana, Marie Derme,
and other contributors (see page 605)
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the
Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com
Originally published in slightly different form in Great Britain by Bloomsbury
Publishing Plc, London, in 2007
First Ten Speed Press printing, 2012
Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks
of Random House, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Fearnley-Whittingstall, Hugh.
The River Cottage fish book : the definitive guide to sourcing and
cooking sustainable fish and shellfish / Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and
Nick Fisher ; photography by Simon Wheeler ; additional photography
by Paul Quagliana and Marie Derme Fisher. 1st U.S. ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
1. Cooking (Fish) 2. Cooking (Shellfish) 3. Cooking (Seafood)
4. FishesGreat Britain. I. Fisher, Nick, 1953- II. Title.
TX747.F38 2012
641.692dc23
2011038382
ISBN 978-1-60774-005-6
eISBN 978-1-60774-063-6
Printed in China
Project editor: Janet Illsley
Cover design: Chloe Rawlins
Interior design: Lawrence Morton
Photography: Simon Wheeler
The text of this book is set in Century Schoolbook and Trade Gothic
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First United States Edition

Scallops with chorizo serves 4 as a starter, 2 as a main course

There are many ways to cook scallops, but few to beat this. Its one of the best
possible expressions of the salty-spicy-pork meets sweet-succulent-shellfish
concept so beloved of the Portuguese.
If youre cooking this dish when fresh fava beans are available, blanch some
and toss them into the pan at the last moment. Sweet little fresh peas are
another delicious addition.
To make this a more British dish, you could substitute blood sausage for
the chorizo. Add 6 torn sage leaves to the pan with the scallops to bring out the
flavor of the sausage.
12 large diver-caught scallops

Optional extras:

Olive oil

Baby fava beans and/or peas, podded

8 ounces (250g) fairly hot chorizo,

and blanched for 2 minutes

cut into 3 8- to 3 4-inch-thick

(1- to 2cm-thick) slices
1 teaspoon fennel seeds (optional)
A few bay leaves (optional)
A squeeze of lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Open the scallops as described on pages 1057 (reserve the frills for bait or to
make fish stock). If the corals are plump and bright orange, leave them attached
to the main muscle. Otherwise add them to the frills for stock. Pat the scallops
dry with paper towels and set aside.
Heat a large, heavy-bottomed frying pan over high heat, add a little olive oil,
then throw in the chorizo and, if you like, a sprinkling of fennel seeds and a few
bay leaves. Fry for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring all the while, as the chorizo releases
its salty, spicy fat.
Move the chorizo to one side of the pan. Check that the pan is still really hot,
then add the scallops. Leave for about 45 seconds to 1 minute, then carefully
turn them over. After another scant minute, using a sharp shake of the pan
or a light stir with a spatula toss the chorizo and scallops together with all
that lovely, flavorsome fat. (This is the moment to add the optional fava beans
and/or peas.) Cook for just another minute, tossing and shaking regularly.
Add a twist of pepper, a little bit of salt (the chorizo is already pretty salty), and
a few drops of lemon juice, then divide the mixture among warmed plates and
serve right away, with bread and a green salad for which the oil from the pan,
with a few more drops of lemon juice, will make a sublime dressing.

shallow and deep-frying

313

S
almon tartare serves 4 as a starter
Youre probably familiar with the classic steak tartare, where finely chopped
beef is combined with a range of piquant flavorings and eaten raw. You can do
a very similar thing with spanking-fresh raw salmon with excellent results.
Raw salmon has a good, firm texture and eats best when cut fairly coarsely, in
contrast to the almost minced texture of steak tartare.
Also works with:
Sea trout
Mackerel
Scad

14 ounces (400g) boneless, skinless

salmon, cut into thumbnail-sized cubes

2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons finely chopped capers

Juice of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons finely chopped gherkin

A few shakes of Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons very finely chopped red onion

A few scant shakes of Tabasco sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put the salmon in a large mixing bowl and squeeze over the lemon juice, followed
by the Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco. Season with salt and pepper. Gently
fold in the parsley, capers, gherkin, and onion. Leave the mixture to stand for
10 minutes before serving, so the flavors get a chance to develop. Then mix
again, leave to rest for another 10 minutes, and serve. Eat with buttered toast
(whole-grain or rye is best).

138

fish cookery

L eek, celery root, and oyster broth serves 6

This delicate broth is a great way to serve celery root and oysters together a
pair that get on so well but meet so rarely. Well-flavored fish stock is essential,
so make some in advance. Its also important to cut the vegetables into small,
neat, evenly sized pieces.
3 1 2 tablespoons (50g) unsalted butter

1 small onion, finely diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped

About 14 ounces (400g) celery root,

3 cups (750ml) fish or shellfish stock

(see pages 25657)

peeled and cut into small dice (like

square petite peas)
1 small potato (about 31 2 ounces [100g]),
peeled and cut into small dice
2 tender inner stalks of celery, peeled and

2 glass of white wine

18 fresh oysters
Scant 1 2 cup (100ml) heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

cut into small dice

1 large leek, white part only, quartered
lengthwise and finely sliced

Set a large saucepan over medium heat and add the butter and olive oil. When
the butter is foaming, stir in all the chopped vegetables and garlic. Cook gently
for 5 to 10 minutes, until softened but not colored. Add the stock and white wine
and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once
or twice, until all the vegetables are tender.
Meanwhile, place a large pan over high heat and add half a glass of water.
When its boiling, place 6 oysters in the pan. Cover and allow them to steam
for 2 minutes. This will open the shells and allow you to remove the meat: you
will still need to shuck them (see page 104), but it will be a much easier task.
Repeat with the remaining oysters. Each oyster will have a little juice in its
shell make sure you dont spill this.
Finish the broth by stirring in the cream and the juice from the oysters and
seasoning to taste. Divide the warm poached oysters among warmed bowls and
ladle over the hot broth, making sure each person gets a fair share of vegetables
along with the liquor.

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fish cookery

G
rilled trout with fennel serves 4
If you grow fennel in your garden, this recipe is one to cook in late summer,
when the plants are overgrown and going to seed. Those leggy stalks may be too
fibrous for eating but theyre still full of aromatic oils, which can perfume fish as
it cooks.
Also works with:
Red mullet
Grey mullet
Mackerel
Scad
Black bream
Sea bass
Gurnard
Zander

A bundle of overgrown fennel sticks,

flower heads and all
4 trout or red mullet, gutted

4 bay leaves
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 garlic cloves, lightly crushed

Take four 4-inch (10cm) lengths of the freshest fennel sticks and bash them with
a rolling pin to release their flavor. Put a piece inside each fish, along with a
crushed garlic clove, a bay leaf, and some seasoning. Lightly brush the fish with
oil and season the skin do this generously, as the cooking will burn off a lot of
the seasoning.
Spread the rest of the fennel sticks on the grate over a hot, ready-for-cooking
fire. Lay the fish over the steaming fennel stems. As the fish cook, the fennel
will first steam and then burn, infusing the fish with its flavor. Cook for 6 to
7 minutes on each side, until the skin is crisp and the flesh opaque.
Serve steaming hot, with minted new potatoes and a salad a dish of paperthin slices of fennel bulb, dressed with orange juice and olive oil, will echo and
enhance the fennel notes in the fish.

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