Marinated skrei fillet

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 200 g fish fillet(s) (skrei fillet, tail piece)
• 4 cl apple juice
• 4 cl schnapps (aquavit)
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 80 ml olive oil
• 1 bunch of spring onions
• 2 lemons
• Black pepper, ground
• Sea salt, coarse
• butter

Instructions

Working time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 45 minutes

Skrei belongs to the cod family and is also called migratory or winter cod. Every year from January to the end of March, it migrates from the cold Barents Sea to the more southern waters around the Lofoten archipelago to spawn. The islanders named this fish Skrei, which means “wanderer.” This winter cod has more lean, fine white muscle meat than its counterparts from the North Sea and northwest Atlantic and is prized as a special delicacy not only in Norway. Preparation: Cut the zest of a lemon into fine strips, blanch briefly in boiling water, and drain. Then mix with apple juice, aquavit, the juice of both lemons, sugar, and pepper to make a marinade. Finally, stir in the olive oil vigorously until it is lightly emulsified. Cut the skrei fillet into fine strips and let it marinate for at least 15 minutes. Clean and wash the spring onions, dry them with kitchen paper, and slice them. Heat butter in a pan and briefly sauté the spring onions. Remove the pan from the heat and season the onions with salt and pepper. Remove the marinated fish strips from the marinade and let them drain briefly on kitchen paper. Place them in the center of the plates, season with coarse sea salt, preferably fleur de sel, and scatter the fried spring onions over the top. Depending on the quantity, this can be an amuse-bouche or a starter served with a mixed salad. Serve with a traditional Norwegian crispbread.