Roast Pike With Piquant Herb Butter

Serves: 3

Kirstin Bosco

1 January 1970

Based on User reviews:

43

Spice

49

Sweetness

49

Sourness

38

mins

Prep time (avg)

4.9

Difficulty

Ingredients:

1 cup

Olive Oil

1

Salt

Directions:

1

Heat the oven to 375 degrees

2

Wash the pike inside out and dry it on paper towels

3

Cut 2 or 3 diagonal slashes in both sides of the fish so the oven heat can penetrate and cook the fish more evenly

4

Tuck herb sprigs into each slash

5

Trim the tail into a neat v shape

6

Set the fish in an oiled baking dish or roasting pan and sprinkle it with olive oil, salt and pepper

7

Roast the fish, brushing regularly with more olive oil, until the skin is brown and crisp, 30 to 40 minutes

8

The fish eye will have turned white and the flesh should no longer be transparent; check it by flaking a bit from the backbone with a fork

9

Herb Butter: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil

10

Discard the stems from the large watercress and spinach and the large stalks from the parsley and chervil

11

Add the herbs to the boiling water and blanch them by simmering for 2 minutes

12

Drain, rinse with cold water and pat dry on paper towels

13

Drain the anchovies and work them in a food processor with the pickle, capers garlic and butter until finely chopped

14

With the blades turning, slowly pour in the olive oil

15

The herb butter will be creamy and a lovely shade of green

16

Add the mustard and season the butter to taste with lemon juice, salt and pepper

17

To finish, transfer the whole fish to a warm platter and decorate it with lemon wedges

18

Serve the herb butter in a separate bowl