Plaice Milanese with warm tartare sauce

A simple yet elegant way to serve fish – the delicate plaice is coated in a crunchy panko crumb A real treat of a fish supper Credit: Chris Terry This is a very nice way to prepare plaice. It’s OK grilled and nice tranches are good roasted on the bone, but I don’t think anything can beat it cooked in breadcrumbs. This somehow brings out the best in this fish. The acidity and texture of a good chunky tartare sauce makes a perfect foil. Plaice start to become good around May and they get fatter and juicier as the year goes on, well into August. If you can get a fillet from a kilo-plus-sized fish you can cut it into four portions. I think these are the best. Overview Prep time 15 mins Cook time 8 mins Serves 2 Ingredients 2 handfuls plain flour 2 eggs, beaten 2 handfuls panko breadcrumbs 2 plaice fillets, weighing about 180g each, skinned (unless you like to eat the skin) vegetable oil for frying small handful chopped parsley (optional) lemon wedges, to serve For the Rockfish tartare sauce 80g dill pickles, chopped 20g capers 25g red onion, chopped curly-leaf parsley and dill, chopped 125g mayonnaise Method StepPut 2 handfuls plain flour, 2 beaten eggs and 2 handfuls panko breadcrumbs all on separate plates. StepUsing one hand, one by one dip 2 plaice fillets (skinned, unless you like to eat the skin) in the flour, then beaten eggs and then the breadcrumbs, making sure you get a nice even coating. StepPut about 1cm vegetable oil in a pan and heat to about 160C. If you don’t have a thermometer, heat the oil until a small piece of bread dropped in quickly fizzles and crisps. StepLay the fish in the hot oil and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until crisp and golden, then drain on kitchen paper. StepMix together 80g chopped dill pickles, 20g capers, 25g chopped red onion, chopped curly-leaf parsley and chopped dill, 125g mayonnaise for the tartare sauce in a saucepan and warm gently, then divide between 2 plates and spread out over the plate. StepPlace the fish on top, sprinkle a small handful of chopped parsley leaves (optional) and serve with lemon wedges. Recipe from Rockfish: The Cookbook by Mitch Tonks, which can be purchased from therockfish.co.uk