You are here:

Baked herring with toasted chickpeas, chilli and rocket pesto

Alex Mackay from Great Food Bites
For a simple supper with a special touch, Alex Mackay rustles up baked herring, golden crisp chickpeas and a sensational rocket pesto

Baked herring with toasted chickpeas, chilli and rocket pesto

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5.

2. To make the rocket pesto, bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and blanch the rocket leaves for 30 seconds. Refresh in cold water, squeeze dry and place in a food processor.

3. Add the grated Parmesan, pine nuts, olive oil and seasoning and whiz until the mixture becomes a coarsely textured paste.

4. For the herring, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan and fry the onion and garlic over a gentle heat until softened.

5. Add the rocket, increase the heat and cook for 1 minute, until just wilted. Season well and spoon the mixture onto a baking tray in 4 circular heaps.

6. Top each with 3 fillets of herring, season well and pour over the remaining olive oil. Bake for 5-7 minutes. While the herring is in the oven, cook the chickpeas.

7. For the chickpeas, heat a frying pan with the vegetable oil and fry the chickpeas for a couple of minutes until golden and crisp. Add the chopped chilli and season well.

8. Carefully transfer the herring and rocket to 4 warmed dinner plates and serve immediately, surrounded by the chickpeas and topped with the rocket pesto.

Comments add a comment

Be the first to add a comment...

Serves: 4

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 15 min

Ingredients

For the rocket pesto

50g Rocket
50g Parmesan, grated
30g pine nuts
4-5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and fresh ground black pepper

For the herring

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, peeled and finely diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely diced
150g Rocket, roughly chopped
12 herring fillets