Something fishy with Simon Rhodes of the  Lobster Pot Fishmongers, Wood Street Food Hall, Swindon

A FEW weeks ago I attended my daughter’s school to talk about varieties of fish and shellfish.

Being only five-years-old they were full of enthusiasm and the questions kept coming even though some of them were a bit obscure.

I ended up cooking them some mussels and clams for them to try which they loved.

Surprisingly they also loved the smoked salmon and smoked mackerel which also went down well with the teacher!

One little lad loved the smoked mackerel so much that he came into the shop with his mum and bought some more. How wonderful was that!

As you know I am a great believer in getting the kids to eat healthier so it was great to see these youngsters loving fresh seafood; also it was encouraging to get feedback from the parents who wanted to introduce fish into their diets a little bit more.

If you have children or grandchildren and you wish to introduce them into the world of eating fish try them first on something simple like plaice fillets. Gently pan fried in a little butter and a pinch of seasoning, they will love it. Also it is a quick meal and easy to prepare and doesn’t cost the earth.

For the little more adventurous why not try our homemade fishcakes, made simply with fresh fish and potato? Again, they are delicious oven baked or shallow fried.

They could even make their own which gets them involved in the kitchen. You never know in a few years’ time they could end up cooking you an amazing fish supper… or even appearing on MasterChef!