Crisp Plaice and Potato Hash with Warm Salad
- Savory
Golden pan-fried plaice flakes tossed with crisp-edged potato cubes and barely wilted green salad. A light, savory one-pan dinner that comes together fast over high heat.
- Total
- 35 min
- Prep 15 · Cook 20
- Serves
- 2
- Difficulty
- Medium
You'll practice: Pan-frying · Searing
Instructions
-
Thaw the frozen plaice fillets fully, then pat them dry with kitchen paper and cut into 3 cm pieces. Peel the potatoes and cut into 1.5 cm cubes.
~8 min
Patting the fish dry removes surface moisture so it browns in the pan instead of steaming.
Pat the plaice very dry before it hits the pan; surface moisture steams the fish instead of browning it, and dry fish gives you those golden edges.
-
Heat 10 g of the extra virgin olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the potato cubes in a single layer, season with half the salt, and fry for 10 to 12 minutes, turning every few minutes, until golden and tender when pierced with a knife.
~12 min
A single layer lets each cube touch the hot pan, so the potatoes brown and crisp rather than steam.
Let the potato cubes sit undisturbed for the first couple of minutes in the pan so a crust forms before you start turning them.
Pan-frying Keep the heat medium-high and the pan uncrowded so the oil sizzles steadily; if it smokes or the food steams, the pan is too hot or too full.
-
While step 2 cooks
While the potatoes cook, put the green salad in a bowl and toss with the remaining 10 g extra virgin olive oil, the rest of the salt and the black pepper.
~2 min
-
Push the potatoes to one side of the pan and add the plaice pieces to the clear space. Cook over high heat for 3 to 4 minutes without moving them, until the underside is golden.
~4 min
Leaving the fish undisturbed lets a golden crust form before it releases from the pan.
Pan-frying Keep the heat medium-high and the pan uncrowded so the oil sizzles steadily; if it smokes or the food steams, the pan is too hot or too full.
Searing Lay the fish in the hot pan and leave it untouched until the underside releases easily and is golden, then turn once.
-
Turn the plaice pieces and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes, until the fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork. Fold the fish gently through the potatoes.
~3 min
Gentle folding keeps the delicate flakes intact instead of breaking them into mush.
Pan-frying Keep the heat medium-high and the pan uncrowded so the oil sizzles steadily; if it smokes or the food steams, the pan is too hot or too full.
Searing Lay the fish in the hot pan and leave it untouched until the underside releases easily and is golden, then turn once.
-
Divide the potato and plaice hash between two plates and serve with the dressed green salad alongside.
~1 min
