“If you can, use wild salmon, which is at its best at this time of year. It has a deeper, slightly sweeter flavour than the farmed variety and is lovely and pink. ”
In a pestle and mortar, bash the fennel seeds with a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper.
Place the salmon, skin-side down, in a roasting tray and sprinkle the fennel salt over the top. Finely grate over the lemon zest.
Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until just cooked, but still a little translucent in the centre (if you’re using wild salmon, reduce the cooking time to 10 to 12 minutes).
Mix the crème fraîche with half the lemon juice, the horseradish, a good lug of oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, to taste. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil.
Once the salmon is done, leave to cool a little before removing skin and breaking flesh into chunks.
Boil the quail eggs for 2 minutes, or hen eggs for 5½ minutes. Cool in a bowl of cold water then peel carefully.
Spoon a dollop of horseradish crème fraîche onto your plates, top with a few pieces of salmon and some watercress. Allocating 2 quail eggs or 1 hen egg per person, cut into halves or quarters and place around the salmon. Finish by picking over the dill and drizzling with extra virgin olive oil.