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My friend Phil is celebrating his 51st birthday this week (he says he’s 47, but I’m not buying that. You should see his beard…). Last year, Daisy and I invited Phil and Lou over for a five-course birthday supper. We did the same again this year, but now I’m writing this blokes-in-the-kitchen blog, I’ll let you know what I did.

For a start, Phil is a healthy foodie – by that I mean he likes good scran, rather than a food-lover with an insatiable urge to be trim. So, with that in mind, I’m not going to get away with serving rubbish. At least, I’m not going to try and get away with serving him rubbish.

I decided on four courses, plus cheese and port to finish. The courses themselves weren’t particularly balanced (two fish, one meat, one dessert), and someone who knows about this sort of thing would roll their eyes to the ceiling, but readers of this page would know I don’t really worry about that sort of thing. It was fun making them, and I think Phil & Lou enjoyed them.

I’ll start with the hors d’oeuvre – naturally. Last year, I did almond-stuffed dates wrapped in bacon in a balsamic vinegar reduction, which came out great. This year, it was something totally different. Phil & Lou were treated to / subjected to fishballs in breadcrumbs. I call them fishballs because I don’t know any other name for them. In the same way the when you create burgers, the smaller round ones are called meatballs, then in this instance I made smaller versions of fishcakes, and call them fishballs. Doubtless someone has a proper name for them.

Fishballs and chilli ketchup, two minutes after being presented to the table…

For this take on them, you will need fish (preferably salmon, though haddock, cod, trout and most others available in the supermarket will be great too), potatoes and your own flavours. I’ve used garlic, English mustard, lime juce, chives, paprika (spice of the Gods), lemon and dill. So here goes…

Making them is fairly easy. Your ratio ought to be roughly four parts fish to three parts spuds. For the quantities below, you should get about 15-18 fishballs.

Poach, over a medium heat, about 400g of fish in milk with some finely chopped (not smashed) garlic, a couple of bay leaves, and a twist of pepper to taste – about 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, and set aside.

Meanwhile, boil 300g of peeled and chopped potatoes in lightly salted water until soft, also about 10 minutes. Drain the spuds, and return to the pan. Toss in the drained fish, along with some mustard, the juice of a lime, and some finely chopped chives. Mash everything together. Milk / cream / yoghurt aren’t necessary here; in fact I’d go further and say don’t use them at all. Once you finished mashing, set aside to cool for a while.

For the breadcrumbs, take an 8cm slice of bread (brown or white), and cut off the crusts. Tear into pieces and place in a blender. Whizz until the bread resembles breadcrumbs.

Into a bowl, tip in the breadcrumbs, adding the grated zest of two lemons, a couple of teaspoons of dried dill and a teaspoon of paprika. You may want to add the option of some chilli powder while you’re at it. Add salt & pepper to taste. Stir all these together.

Take the cooled fishmash, and using your clean hands, scoop out a handful, and roll into a ball – around 3-4cm across. Repeat this until you’ve used the whole mash.

Take each of these balls and roll them successively through a plate of plain flour, beaten egg and the herby spicy breadcrumbs, ensuring a thin but complete covering all round in each case. Fry in a very hot pan of rapeseed oil (olive oil/butter mix is also good) until crispily coated all round.

Serve with chilli ketchup, cold beer and good company.

In my next round of scribbles, I’ll talk about the next fish dish; the starter, cullen skink.

Cheers, Al