Smoked Scottish Pollack Salad with Ayrshire New Potatoes

Hot smoked pollack salad with new potatoes

Pollack is a member of the cod family, very similar in taste to its more illustrious cousin. It is considered a more sustainable alternative to cod. This particular pollack was rod and line caught from a boat on Loch Fyne on the West Coast of Scotland.

Hot smoked pollack fillet

Pollack can be cooked in many different ways, including shallow or deep fried, baked or even grilled. Cod recipes can even be made to read as pollack recipes. In this instance, though, the fillets were brined and hot smoked to create something just that little bit different from the norm and not too unlike the fabulous Arbroath Smokies (which could easily be substituted for the pollack to create a very similar dish). They were then left to cool before being incorporated in this recipe.

Homegrown tomatoes

Ingredients per Person

Ayrshire new potatoes, quantity as desired
1 large lettuce leaf
2 slices from half a peeled red onion
2 cherry tomatoes
1 yellow banana leg tomato
Splash of Scottish rapeseed oil
Salt and pepper
4 ounces or as desired of smoked pollack flakes
Bit of butter
1/2 teaspoon dried mint

Prepared salad vegetables

Directions

Wash the potatoes and if they are a little bit on the large side cut them in half before adding them to the cooking pot. Pour in plenty of cold water and season with salt. Put the pot on to a high heat until the water begins to boil then reduce the heat and simmer for around twenty-five minutes or until the potatoes are just softened.

While the potatoes are cooking, wash the salad ingredients and gently pat dry with kitchen paper. Roll and shred the lettuce leaf and add to a large bowl along with the onion slices separated in to strands. Quarter the cherry tomatoes and cut the banana leg tomato in to chunks before also adding to the bowl. Drizzle with the rapeseed oil and season with salt and pepper. Carefully stir fold to combine.

Pollack flakes are added to prepared salad

The flesh should be plucked from the cooled smoked pollack fillet in large flakes before being added to the combined salad in the bowl.

Pollack salad is ready to serve

Give the salad a further careful stir fold to evenly distribute the pollack flesh.

Butter and mint are added to potatoes

Drain the potatoes through a colander and allow them to steam off for a few minutes before returning them to the empty pot. Add some butter, some dried mint and gently swirl the pot for a minute or two to melt the butter and evenly coat all the potatoes. Plate the potatoes alongside the salad for service.