Panfried Hake Fillet with New Potatoes, Wilted Spinach & Watercress and a Leek & Chive Cream Sauce
- Felicity Vincent
- Apr 1, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 1, 2024
New potato season celebrated in style with my leek & chive cream sauce
This sauce is amazing drizzled on new potatoes, served with fish or chicken, slathered onto poached eggs, or it even makes a great pasta/gnocchi sauce. Here I've served it with panfried hake, some seasonal greens and new potatoes for a special dinner.
Ingredients (serves 4):
700g new potatoes
4 hake fillets
1 tsp curry powder
400g spinach
100g watercress
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 garlic clove
10g butter
S&P
Leek & Chive Cream Sauce:
2 leeks
20g butter
250mL cider
200mL cream
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp dijon mustard
15g chives
S&P
Method:
To make the sauce:
Cut the leeks lengthways down the middle then rinse them under cold water making sure to get in between the layers to remove any dirt. Thinly slice all the leeks, including the dark green tops, they will cook down for long enough so no need to throw them away.
Melt the butter in a saucepan on medium-low heat then add the leeks, season with salt and leave them to sweat down for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally, they should start to caramelise a bit.
Deglaze the leeks with cider and leave to simmer and reduce for 20 minutes until all the water from the cider has evaporated. The leeks should now be soft and caramelised.
Before serving, add the mustards, cream, black pepper and the thinly chopped chives. Stir them into the leeks before bringing the sauce to the boil once, then remove from the heat. Taste to adjust seasoning then spoon over the final dish.
New Potatoes:
I find these are best when steamed but you can also boil them.
To steam: rinse the potatoes, halve them and cook over simmering water for 10-15 minutes until the tip of a knife goes straight through easily.
To boil: Rinse the new potatoes and add them to a saucepan before covering with cold water. Bring it to the boil then add salt and reduce to a simmer. Cook until they are tender, about 20 mins.
Wilted Spinach & Watercress:
Wash the spinach and watercress leaves in cold water then drain them.
Peel and halve a clove of garlic and prick it with a fork so the clove covers the end of the fork.
In a hot frying pan, melt the butter then add the leave and leave to wilt for 2 minutes while stirring with the garlic fork.
Once wilted, transfer to a dish and cover to keep warm while cooking the hake.
Squeeze 1/2 lemon juice on top and season with salt and pepper before serving.
Panfried Hake Fillet:
Dry the fillets with kitchen paper while heating a frying pan on high heat with a bit of oil, I use the same one that I used to cook the spinach in.
Sprinkle curry powder onto the flesh side of each fillet, then put them in the frying pan skin side down.
Cook on the skin side for 5 minutes until it goes nice and crispy. Then flip onto the flesh side and cook for 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper.
Assemble all the elements onto a plate and enjoy.
Bon appétit!
More about this recipe:
Make sure to save this chive sauce recipe to use for gnocchi, pasta, chicken, poached eggs, pies or anything else you could fancy. Chives are coming into season so it's a great sauce to make throughout spring.
Look out for New Potatoes coming into season towards the second half of April, they are potatoes harvested early which means they are sweeter and firmer and will keep their shape well when cooked.
They make a great spoonful of happiness as they contain:
Vitamin C - is involved in converting dopamine to noradrenaline - low amounts of noradrenaline are associated with depression.
Carbohydrates - increase the production of serotonin, a good mood hormone that regulates mood, sleep and reduces stress.
PQQ compound (Pyrroloquinoline Quinone) - is an antioxidant associated with growth, anti-aging and mental focus which supports good mood.
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