Name: Tinned Fish Charcuterie Board
Cook time: P0Y0M0DT0H45M0.000S
Total time: P0Y0M0DT0H45M0.000S
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Ingredients: 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature; 1/4 cup sour cream; 1 teaspoon lemon zest; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 2 teaspoons drained prepared horseradish; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; One 4-ounce tin smoked trout, drained; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives, plus more for garnish; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley, plus more for garnish; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnish; One 4-ounce tin octopus (12 to 14 pieces); 12 to 14 good-quality pitted green olives; 12 to 14 small strips jarred piquillo peppers; 12 to 14 small cocktail onions or strips of Serrano or other Spanish ham, optional; 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar; 1 tablespoon dry sherry; 1 tin smoked mussels in oil; 1 tin ventresca (tuna belly) in oil; 1 tin cockles in brine; 1 tin anchovies in oil; 1 tin sardines in spiced tomato sauce; Assorted crudité: sliced fennel, radishes, endive spears, sliced cucumber, bell pepper strips, celery sticks, cherry tomatoes; Assorted breads and nibbles: sliced baguette, cocktail pumpernickel bread, rice crackers, olive oil potato chips, salted roasted chickpeas, salted Marcona almonds; Assorted pickled items: olives, giardiniera, pickled mushrooms, Spanish pickled peppers, caperberries; Assorted condiments: aïoli (garlic mayonnaise), good-quality unsalted butter, chili crisp; Flaky salt

Directions

Special equipment:

12 to 14 wooden or bamboo skewers, each about 5 inches long

For the smoked trout dip: Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, lemon zest, lemon juice and horseradish in a food processor. Season with a pinch of salt and a generous grinding of pepper. Process until very smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Break the trout into chunks, add it to the processor and pulse just to combine. Transfer to a serving bowl and stir in the chives, parsley and dill. Garnish with more chopped herbs and refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the octopus skewers: Drain the oil from the octopus, reserving 2 tablespoons in a medium bowl. Add the octopus, olives, piquillos and onions, if using, to the bowl. Drizzle with the sherry vinegar and sherry. Let marinate while you assemble the board, or marinate it for an hour or two in the refrigerator for more flavor.
When ready to make the skewers, fold the peppers into squares and thread one on a small (5-inch) wooden skewer. Add a piece of octopus and an olive each. If desired, add a cocktail onion or a strip of ham, folded into a square like the pepper. Repeat with the remaining ingredients, making 12 to 14 skewers. Transfer them to a serving dish and drizzle with the marinade.
For the board: When ready to assemble the board, place 4 tins of seafood in the four corners of a very large serving board and place the fifth in the center. Add the smoked trout dip and skewers to the board. Arrange your choice of crudites, breads and nibbles, pickled items and condiments around the board, placing any in bowls as needed. Place the salt in a very small bowl and put it on the board. Generally arrange the best go-withs near each tin of fish, but there are no hard-and-fast rules about placement. Make sure each tin, dip and condiment has its own small fork or spoon for serving so flavors don’t mix.

Cook’s Note

When choosing seafood for your board, we recommend some finfish (trout, tuna, sardines, anchovies or mackerel), some shellfish (cockles, mussels, oysters) and cephalopods (squid or octopus). Also think about flavors, selecting a smoked option (smoked mussels or trout or salmon) and perhaps one in a spicy sauce or marinade (sardines in spiced tomato sauce or salmon in chili crisp are tasty options). Excellent domestic products are available, but you can also branch out to ones from Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Scandanavia, Canada and more. Tinned fish is most flavorful served at room temperature, but leftovers can be refrigerated within 2 hours of opening. Enjoy within a day or two.