My farmer’s market lady now sells her fish in the church yard in Primrose Hill having been done out of her stall by dastardly means. So I don’t have to queue up for 40 minutes to get into the Saturday market just to get fish! All I have to do is pre-order and come and pick up! My Wednesday market is the better one so it’s a win-win! I always used to make salsa verde with herbs from my mother’s garden, you can use whatever is on hand – basil, dill, tarragon, but the central herb must be flat-leaved parsley. This is a lovely dish for a summer’s evening served with greens – swiss chard, spinach, sorrel, cavolo nero, pak choi  – and new potatoes. Oh and you could use any white fish fillet. Personally I prefer bream to sea bass as the flesh has more texture.

Serves 4
4 sea bream fillets
olive oil
salt and pepper

Makes a small jar

1 small shallot, finely chopped
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
4 anchovies, rinsed if packed in salt
Leaves from about 30g flat-leaf parsley (about 20g leaves)
Leaves from about 30g basil (about 20g leaves)
2 tbsp salted capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
120-150ml extra virgin olive oil

Method

Salsa verde

Put the shallot in a small non-metallic bowl with the vinegar and leave to soak for 45 minutes.

After half an hour, put the anchovies into a hand-bender then gradually add the herbs and capers and pound to a smoothish paste.

Stir in the shallot, with a little of the soaking vinegar, then slowly whisk in the oil until you achieve your desired consistency. Taste and add more of the vinegar if you like, plus seasoning if necessary. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge – or eat immediately wiht some delicious fish!

Fish

Season the fish fillets. Heat up the oil in  large frying pan and fry the fish on each side, 3-4 minutes. I start with the white fillet side and then turn over so the skin-side gets really crispy!