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Grilled kippers

Oak-smoked herring grilled with butter for breakfast

In the tiny harbour village of Craster on the Northumberland coast, herring have been split and oak-smoked in the same smokehouse for over a century, and kippers are the classic English breakfast fish in seaside hotels and on dining cars. A kipper is cold-smoked but not cooked, so it must be heated through; grilled with butter it turns rich, salty and smoky. Serve with brown bread and butter, a poached egg or a squeeze of lemon. Chef's tip: grill them skin-side up first so the skin crisps and the flesh stays juicy.
Total time
15 min
Difficulty
easy
Serves
2
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Ingredients

Serves2

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What you'll need

Fresh ingredients (3)

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Method

0/4 done
  1. Step 1: Heat the grill to high and line the grill pan with foil.

    3 min
  2. Step 2: Lay the 2 whole kippers skin-side up and grill for 2 minutes until the skin starts to bubble.

    2 min
  3. Step 3: Turn them flesh-side up, dot with the ⅔ oz butter and grill 3–4 minutes more, until sizzling and the flesh flakes easily from the bones and is piping hot all through. A common mistake is overcooking, which makes them dry and very salty.

    4 min
  4. Step 4: Grind over 1 pinch black pepper and serve with the buttery juices, 2 lemon wedges and 4 slices brown bread and butter. Watch for the fine bones as you eat.

    1 min

Nutrition per serving

Calories
390 kcal
Protein
30 g
Carbs
1 g
Fat
30 g
Fibre
0 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does grilled kippers take?
About 15 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?
2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
What can I use instead of butter?
The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
What can I use instead of brown bread and butter?
The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).

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