Hazelnut-Crusted Hake with Mash

📝 Ingredients

• 4 frozen hake fillets (about 150 g each)
• 50 g hazelnuts
• 30 g breadcrumbs
• 10 g fresh parsley
• 1 lemon (zest for the crust, the rest cut into wedges to serve)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 500 g carrots (about 5 carrots)
• 600 g potatoes
• 150 ml semi-skimmed milk + 15 g unsalted butter
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large saucepan
• Baking sheet
• Potato masher
• Bowl
• Fine grater

📖 Steps

1. Thaw the hake fillets in the fridge the day before, then pat them thoroughly dry with kitchen paper: otherwise the water will make the crust soggy. Preheat the oven to 200 °C and line the baking tray with baking paper.
2. Peel the carrots and potatoes. Cut the carrots into 1 cm rounds and the potatoes into 3 cm cubes: the carrots take longer to cook, so they need to be smaller. Put them in a pan of cold salted water, bring to the boil and cook for 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, make the crust: chop the hazelnuts into small pieces with a knife, or pulse for a few seconds in a food processor. Mix with the breadcrumbs, chopped parsley, grated lemon zest, olive oil and a pinch of salt: the texture should be like damp sand.
4. Place the fillets on the tray, season lightly with salt and pepper, then brush the tops with mustard using the back of a spoon: it acts as glue. Spread the crust over the fish in a layer about 5 mm thick and press it down firmly with your fingers so it sticks.
5. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the crust is nicely golden and the hake flesh is white and flakes easily. If the crust browns too quickly, cover it with a sheet of foil.
6. Check the vegetables are cooked: the tip of a knife should slide in with no resistance at all. Drain thoroughly, then return the vegetables to the hot pan over a low heat for 1 minute to evaporate any remaining water: the mash will be less watery.
7. Mash with a potato masher (never a blender, which makes potato gluey), then stir in the milk warmed for 1 minute in the microwave, the butter and the cumin. Mix with a wooden spoon until smooth, then season with salt and pepper.
8. Serve each fillet crust side up on a bed of piping hot mash, with a lemon wedge to squeeze over the fish at the last moment — not over the crust, so it stays crisp.