Warm smoked pollock with roast peppers and marsh samphire

Method

1. Lay the fish fillets flesh-side up on a tray, then sprinkle the unskinned Pollock with salt as though you were seasoning generously. Leave for at least an hour but not more than 3 hours. Dry the fillets with kitchen paper, place on a wire rack and leave to dry in a cool, airy place for about 30 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 250°C.

3. Put the peppers on a baking tray and bake for 20-30 minutes until the skin blisters and the flesh is soft.

4. Alternatively, put a wire rack over a mild gas flame and roast the peppers on all sides. When they are charred, remove. When roasted, put the peppers into a bowl and cover with an upturned plate for a few minutes, which will make them much easier to peel. Peel, deseed and cut into strips.

5. To smoke the pollock, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of sawdust (we use apple wood) on the base of a rectangular biscuit tin or smoking box. Put a wire rack into the tin and lay the fish, flesh-side up on top. Put the box on a gas flame over a high heat for a minute or so until the sawdust starts to smoulder. Cover the box with a lid or tightly with tin foil, then reduce the heat and smoke for 6-7 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave to sit, unopened, for 5 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, put the samphire into a saucepan of boiling water (not salted), return to the boil and simmer for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Drain off the water (refresh in cold water if serving later). Toss the samphire in extra virgin olive but do not add salt because samphire has a natural salty tang.

7. To serve, divide the smoked pollock into nice flaky pieces, arrange on a serving platter with strips of red and yellow pepper and sprigs of samphire on top. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and freshly ground pepper and a few flakes of sea salt. Serve with homemade mayonnaise.
   From Grow, Cook, Nourish published by Kyle Books