Nathan Outlaw cooks mackerel
Phillip and Amanda wanted mackerel so we got them mackerel... and a Michelin-starred chef to cook it!
Nathan Outlaw joins us in the studio from the only double Michelin-starred seafood restaurant in the world to show us the best way to cook mackerel.
He's got mackerel fillets with sardine ketchup on toast, and whole mackerel with beetroot and apple salad.
Mackerel with tomato and sardine ketchup on toast
Serves: 4
Ingredients
4 mackerel filletsFor the sardine and tomato ketchup:A little olive oil2 red onions, peeled and chopped2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped1 kg ripe tomatoes75g caster sugar2 bay leaves1 rosemary sprig, leaves only chopped200ml red wine vinegar3 a 120g ins good quality sardines in tomato sauce
To serve
Slices of crusty bread, toasted
Method
First make the ketchup, heat a large pan over a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil, when hot add the onions and garlic and cook for 2 minutes until the onions start to turn translucent. Add the tomatoes, sugar, bay leaves and chopped rosemary to the pan and cook for 15 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down. Continue to cook until the tomato liquid has reduced right down, almost to nothing. Now add the white wine vinegar and sardines and boil for 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
Transfer the contents of the pan to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth then pass through a sieve into a bowl. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as required. Transfer the ketchup to a clean container and allow to cool. This ketchup will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days or you can freeze it for up to a month.
To cook the mackerel, oil a non stick frying pan and place the fish, skin side down, in the pan. Cook over a medium heat for 3 minutes until the skin is crispy, then flip over and remove from the heat. The fish will finish cooking in a residual heat.
To serve spread the tomato and sardine ketchup onto the toasted bread and top with the fillet of mackerel
Whole mackerel with beetroot and apple salad
Serves: 4
Ingredients
4 large or 8 small mackerel, guttedlittle rapeseed oil for cookingCornish sea salt and freshly ground black pepperFor the beetroot and apple salad:4 raw beetroot, washed and peeled4 granny smith apples50ml white wine vinegar2 shallots, peeled and finely sliced2 tsp chopped chives4 tbsp mayonnaise
To serve
1 lemon, cut into wedges1 large baguette, sliced
Method
To make the beetroot and apple salad, slice the beetroot across into fine slices, then cut across the slices to give you julienne (match sticks). Peel and core the apples and similarly cut into julienne. Toss the apples and beetroot in a bowl with the white wine vinegar, shallots, and chives. Add the mayonnaise and mix well. Taste for seasoning and add the salt and pepper as required.
For the mackerel, wash the mackerel and pat dry with kitchen paper. Oil the fish and season all over with salt and pepper. Place the fish on the griddle and cook without moving for 5 minutes. Now turn the fish over (if it has stuck then leave it for another minutes before turning). Barbecue for 4 minutes on the other side until the flesh inside the cavity is opaque all the way through.
Carefully lift the fish from the griddle and serve the mackerel straight away with the beetroot and apple salad and lemon wedges. Accompany with plenty of bread for mopping up the juices.
TV: Recipes taken from Nathan Outlaw's British Seafood £25 and Fish Kitchen £20, Quadrille Publishing