Flathead Waldorf Salad Cups

[kingie chaser]

Hi Raiders, thought today I'd do a twist on an old classic salad with adding the ever available humble bread & butter fish, the flathead.

 

The original salad has been around since the late 1800's, created at New York City's Waldorf Hotel, later known as the Waldorf-Astoria.

 

Originally it comprised of just 3 components which were apples(whichever variety you like), celery & mayonnaise.

 

As usual some chef decided I like extra bits in mine & then things like walnuts & grapes were added.

 

Anyway I say if it contains apple, celery & walnuts that makes it a Waldorf.

 

For the flathead after deboning the fillets I made a stock with the bones, stained it & then dropped the boneless fillets into the simmering stock to poach the fish for a few minutes.

Cooled this down a bit in the fridge while I sliced the apple(red gala), celery(used the inner more tender stalks), the stock can be saved & frozen for another dish at some point.

When slicing the apple dont forget to squeeze some lemon onto it into a small bowl & mix to stop discolouration & the lemon willadd flavour to the mix.

 

Although in this instance I did poach the fish there is no reason you couldnt panfry the fish with some butter & olive oil & let it cool.

 

Once cooled flake the fillets as large or as smallas you like, I like to do this by following the natural segments of the flakes. 

Again straying away from the classic I used some chopped coriander instead of some parsley & as it had seafood in it I also topped it with some lumpfish caviar as I had some in the fridge from xmas day.

Along with the roasted walnuts & sitting in some baby Cos leaves its a nice combination of flavours & crunch which can also be served in the middle of the table in a large bowl with the Cos sliced or diced & mixed in.

 

Also if your on a pescatarian diet there are some decent vegan mayo's available now or of course you could just do a mustard vinaigrette 😉

 

Squeeze of lemon & a drizzle of olive oil, it was pretty tasty 😁

 

 

 

Edited January 2, 2021 by kingie chaser

[mrsswordfisherman]

Now that’s what I am talking about!

That looks delicious @kingie chaser

[masterfisho7]

Looks great

[kingie chaser]

1 hour ago, mrsswordfisherman said:

Now that’s what I am talking about!

That looks delicious @kingie chaser

Thanks Donna.

 

As previuosly mentioned my ethos here is to show fish being used other than what is generally perceived as normal by most.

 

Not that there is anything wrong with beer battered flathead & chips, I enjoy that myself from time to time but its more that variety is the spice of life.

 

Apart from a bit of mayonnaise in this recipe its pretty low fat but rich in omega3 with the fish & the walnuts plus you could also use low fat yoghurt as the dressing as well which would again reduce the fat level.

 

Just something out of the box from what most fisho's would try I think?

Edited December 31, 2020 by kingie chaser

[Hoods]

Love your work kingie chaser - I'm off tomorrow to catch the flathead.

Thanks for a great looking recipe.

Hoods

[kingie chaser]

35 minutes ago, Hoods said:

Love your work kingie chaser - I'm off tomorrow to catch the flathead.

Thanks for a great looking recipe.

Hoods

Thanks Hoods, not a complex recipe at all but the crucial part as with any seafood is just dont over cook the fish when poaching.

 

Plenty of other recipes im my heat to come.

 

Maybe a more modern & popular version would be flathead taco's or flathead mac & cheese?

Edited December 31, 2020 by kingie chaser

[noelm]

You can't beat a fish wrap, some salad in a wrap (Tomato, Lettuce, Onion and Cucumber) , long fish fillets (Flathead or Whiting are the best) a bit of Mayonaise or similar and it's a done, a quick lunch that's just the best sitting outside with a cold drink of your choice, I will give your salad a go, but I am not a huge fan of Celery.

[Hoods]

Agreed, We have been deep frying flathead, kingy & dolphin fish & putting them in wraps. Easy & great tucker.

[Larkin]

This looks great! Thanks for the recipe kingy chaser.

I don’t mind the good old Waldorf salad - going to try this out.