Fish is an important part of a healthy diet, as it’s very beneficial to your heart health. If you have kids, you may want to take care of their wellbeing by getting them to eat more fish, but how do you do it with such fussy eaters? We’ve outlined three fish-tastic recipes that your kids are going to love.
1. Prawn noodles with mangetout, French beans and sesame: This light meal is delicious and pleasantly filling.
- Add 15g sesame seeds to a dry frying pan that has been heated over a medium-high heat, and stir for three to four minutes, until lightly toasted.
- While those are cooling in a separate bowl, whisk together one tbsp dark soy sauce, one tbsp rice wine vinegar, one tsp toasted sesame oil, one tsp sunflower oil and 1/4 tsp caster sugar – this will form your dressing.
- After this, fill a large pan with salted water and bring it to the boil, while you top and tail 200g French beans and cut them in half lengthways. You should also cut 200g mangetout lengthways too.
- Cook the beans in the pan for three minutes, until they’re just tender, and remove them and refresh them with cold water. Do the same with the mangetout (you’ll probably be cooking for two minutes this time).
- Cook 125g dried medium egg noodles for roughly four minutes, drain and set aside to cool.
- Mix your mangetout, beans, noodles and most of the sesame seeds in with 400g cooked and peeled prawns and one medium-hot red chilli that has been de-seeded and chopped. Then add the dressing, toss together and sprinkle on the rest of the sesame seeds just before serving.
2. Salmon and ginger fishcakes with sweet-and-sour salad: Not only is the salad super-healthy, but the salmon and ginger really bring out the best in each other.
- In a screw-top jar, place a medium-hot red chilli (deseeded and finely chopped), two tsp sugar, one tsp Thai fish sauce, one tbsp lime juice and one tbsp vinegar. Shake well and set it aside.
- Cut a ½ cucumber in half and slice each piece into long thin strips. Add the cucumber to a bowl of a small yellow pepper (deseeded and cut into long, thin strips), a small carrot (cut into thin strips) and 12 cherry tomatoes (halved).
- Chop up a 500g skinned salmon fillet into a coarse, mince-like mixture, and put it into a bowl with a finely chopped 4cm piece of fresh ginger and four finely chopped spring onions. Mix together and season.
- Divide the salmon mixture into eight pieces and shape into fishcakes using slightly wet hands. Fry the fishcakes for 1½ minutes each side, until lightly golden and cooked.
- Toss the jar of dressing and some fresh coriander through the salad. Serve on a plate with two fishcakes resting on top.
3. Baked fish with a herb and lemon crust: Quick, light and easy – what more could you ask for?
- Preheat the oven to 230°C/fan 210°C/gas 8. Line a baking sheet with baking paper and lightly grease with oil.
- Season four 175g skinned thick white fish fillets – such as hake, haddock or sustainably caught cod fish – all over and put, skinned-side down, on the paper.
- Break four slices of crustless toast into a food processor with a finely-chopped garlic clove and the finely grated zest of one lemon. Whizz into fine crumbs.
- Add 25g of mixed fresh herbs (fresh tarragon, fresh chives and fresh flatleaf parsley) and whizz again.
- Add lemon juice and oil, season and whizz briefly to mix.
- Carefully press the breadcrumb mixture onto each piece of fish, and bake for 10-12 minutes on the top shelf of the oven – the topping should be golden and the fish should be opaque and cooked through.
- Serve with tartar sauce and grilled halved tomatoes and sugar snaps.