Somehow chicken became the student staple meat. Dippers and nuggets are dubiously fried at dozens of York’s alluring takeaways; somehow everyone has fallen fowl (ha!) of poultry. An altogether more mystifying, frightening and seemingly complicated food is fish. We might eat it in Fingers or if we’re feeling insane a Filet-O at McDonalds but otherwise we keep clear of it. It’s expensive, a ballache to prepare, oily and smells foul if you let it go off, which, as students is a worryingly likely possibility. The truth of the matter is a lot of that is sadly true.
Fish does smell, is gross to handle with your bare hands and won’t keep for terribly long in your fridge. Neither does chicken though, unless you bung it in the freezer and we all know that that’s a death sentence for meat because really who has time or the pre-planning ability to defrost the chicken? Don’t even mention using the microwave because you inevitably balls that up as well and then you’ve just got chicken that looks like it was subjected to a nuclear explosion in miniature.
Fish doesn’t have to be hard and I am not talking about fish fingers. If you can stomach the walk to Morrisons you can easily get some nice fish fillets over the counter and they aren’t going to break the bank. Cover them in flour, dunk egg and then roll them around in bread-crumbs and fried you have super tasty and more importantly fresh fish. There’s nothing wrong with ready breaded fish but it tastes so much better if it hasn’t been sat in a fridge for three days and then dried out to a crisp crunch in your oven.
Fish cakes are also an easier and healthier alternative if breadcrumbed white fish doesn’t quite appeal. You can also give them a cheeky chilli kick if you want something that’s a bit bolder than what you’d get in blighty. Blending together a mix of prawns, chilli, ginger, spring onions and a little white fish meat (whatever you can get your hands on) and then moulding together into patties will give you a supremely filling dinner but it won’t leave you bloated and will be surprisingly light on the palate.
If a one pot wonder is what you’re after, cod in white sauce with all manner of greens could be just the dish for you. Fry the cod first and ensure that it is cooked all the way through: the last thing you want is raw cod in the middle of what ought to be a warming treat for you and your housemates. Then add the sauce over the top and once it’s simmering through add some mangetout, frozen peas and green beans and let it all come to the boil and cook through. Once you’re content you aren’t going to food poison yourself dish up and tuck in. If you’re willing to stretch to another dish a portion of mash with this is absolute potted perfection.
Fish can be fabulous, you just have to dip your toe in the water and before you know it you’ll have dived in.
