Mackerel with potato salad & cucumber
Gordon Ramsay gives the humble mackerel special attention in this light lunch dish
Difficulty and servings
Serves 4
Preparation and cooking times
Ready in 45 minutes
- Not all potatoes work well for salads; you need a reasonably waxy potato that will stay firm once it has cooked, not a floury one that will turn to sludge. Charlotte are perfect for salads as they keep their shape and have a lovely slightly nutty flavour. Cook them in boiling water for 10 minutes or until they are tender - to test, stick a knife in one and if it is ready it will slide off the blade easily. Leave to cool. When cold, peel (or leave the skin on if you prefer) and cut into slices about the thickness of a pound coin. Peel the cucumber, cut it in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Cut each half into small halfmoon shapes, also about the thickness of a pound coin.
- Put the eggs, if using, gently into a pan of simmering water, leave them for 1 1 / 2 minutes and then fish them out with a slotted spoon. Run them under cold water for a minute and then gently peel and halve them.
- Then make the dressing. Caviar adds a fantastic texture and the eggs burst in your mouth, adding a salty edge to the creaminess of the mayo. We use what is called pressed caviar - it's made from slightly damaged caviar eggs which, as the name suggests, are pressed into a block. It looks like boot polish and has a stronger flavour than normal caviar. You could also use Onuga (made from herring eggs), this is widely available in supermarkets and much cheaper. Put the pressed caviar (or Onuga) in a bowl and 'mince' it by pressing it against the bowl with the back of a spoon to break it up, then add the mayonnaise and mix in. Fold in the potatoes and add a little pepper.
- If you have bought fillets the fishmonger should have scaled and cleaned the fish; you might need to give the skin a wipe on some kitchen paper, though. Check for any little bones that may have got left behind by running your fingertips over the flesh - if you feel any, pull them out. Score the skin of each fillet about 12 times with a sharp knife. Dust the fillets on both sides with seasoned flour then put them skin-side down in a cold frying pan with a little olive oil. Starting with a cold pan will stop the fillets curling up. Turn the heat to high and leave for around 4 minutes - you want most of the cooking to happen on the skin side so it crisps up and ends up looking brown and blistered. Then flip over and cook for another 10 seconds. No longer than that, trust me. Remove from the pan and squeeze over a little lemon juice.
- To serve, start by dividing the potato salad evenly between 4 plates or shallow bowls, add some cucumber around the potato and arrange some salad leaves around the outside. Put 2 mackerel fillets, skin-side up on top of the salad in the centre of the plate. Add the eggs to the plates (about 6-7 halves on each). A little sherry vinegar drizzled over at this point is a nice touch - it looks good and will cut through the richness of the fish.
Mackerel
The trick to cooking mackerel is to not overcook it - as with mullet, trout and salmon, aim to eat it when it is just cooked in the centre. Keep the cooking time to a minimum and cook it five minutes before you're going to eat it so that it's warm, rather than hot.
382 kcalories, protein 20.8g, carbohydrate 10.3g, fat 28.9 g, saturated fat 5.4g, fibre 1g, salt 0.66 g
Recipe from olive magazine, May 2006.
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Ingredients
- 3 handfuls Charlotte potatoes
- 3 tbsp good-quality mayonnaise (use one made with whole eggs. Stokes, available in delis is good)
- 1 tsp pressed caviar (Onuga will do)
- 8 mackerel fillets (buy fillets to save yourself the fuss of filleting)
- plain flour
- 1 lemon , halved
- 1 cucumber
- 3 handfuls mixed salad leaves , dress them in vinaigrette just before serving
- 12-14 quail's eggs (optional)
- olive oil
- sherry vinegar for dressing
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ratings
Difficulty and servings
Serves 4
Preparation and cooking times
Ready in 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 3 handfuls Charlotte potatoes
- 3 tbsp good-quality mayonnaise (use one made with whole eggs. Stokes, available in delis is good)
- 1 tsp pressed caviar (Onuga will do)
- 8 mackerel fillets (buy fillets to save yourself the fuss of filleting)
- plain flour
- 1 lemon , halved
- 1 cucumber
- 3 handfuls mixed salad leaves , dress them in vinaigrette just before serving
- 12-14 quail's eggs (optional)
- olive oil
- sherry vinegar for dressing
382 kcalories, protein 20.8g, carbohydrate 10.3g, fat 28.9 g, saturated fat 5.4g, fibre 1g, salt 0.66 g
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07 September 2009
Mark H commented on this recipe
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07 September 2009
Mark H commented on this recipe
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