Confit Fennel with Smoked Fish and Lemony Yoghurt

A nice clean tasting lunch or starter for a warm summers day!

Serves 2 for lunch, 4 as a starter

Prep time 15mins

Cook time 1.5 hours

Confit Fennel

3 Fennel bulbs - sliced across the rounds, reserving the feathery fronds for garnish

2 lemons - sliced

Small bunch of tarragon

1 tbsp fennel seeds

3 garlic cloves

Sprinkle of sugar

Few thyme sprigs

Enough sunflower oil to cover - about 1L

Everything else

400g greek yoghurt

1 lemon

Small bunch of tarragon

Small bunch of soft herbs, chives, mint etc

50ml oil left over from the fennel (optional)

300g smoked hot salmon or trout

1. Take the fish out of the fridge so that when you serve it its not fridge cold.

2. Preheat the oven to 120C. Arrange everything for the confit fennel in a baking dish, season and cover with the oil. Pop that in the oven and allow to cook for 1.5 hours until the fennel has softened.

3. Once cooked, remove from the oven and using tongs or a slotted spoon, carefully remove the fennel from the oil and lay on kitchen roll to drain excess oil. It's nice to keep the fennel slices as intact as possible.

4. For the yoghurt; slice the skin off the lemon and finely chop the flesh, discarding the rind and any pips. Finely chop the tarragon leaves and other herbs and mix them into the yoghurt with lemon and seasoning. If needed, add a little of the fragrant oil from the fennel to make it a bit looser.

5. Spread the yoghurt on the plate and top with the fennel. Flake the fish a little if you like and place it on top of the fennel and finish with the fennel fronds. Serve with bread if desired.

NB: Use the fragrant oil to make a lovely lemony mayonnaise.