Recipe of the month: mackerel

PUBLISHED: 08:59 12 March 2016 | UPDATED: 08:59 12 March 2016

Sarah Sturt

Andy's super-fresh grilled mackerel

Archant

Within the last 10 years or so, more and more people have taken a keen interest in knowing exactly where their produce comes from. Whether that is meat, fish or vegetables, consumers want to ensure they’re buying the best produce possible.

Following the horsemeat scandal in 2013, brands realised that far greater transparency was needed and in fact the market demanded this.

It’s really no different in restaurants; as long as I have run the kitchen at Chapter One we’ve always had guests ask us where the produce originated from.

In fact many restaurants now list the region and breed of the meat. It’s always been important to me to use producers I trusted and who truly cared about their produce as much as I care about the quality of the food I serve in my restaurant.

Locality is also key and I source as much produce near the restaurant as possible.

When I get time out of the kitchen I like to plan various food trips to source my own ingredients for Chapter One, hunting and fishing being among my favourites.

This month I’ll be taking a few chefs with me to the coast for a couple of days to fish for sea bass and mackerel.

If I don’t have the time to fish myself, I’ll turn to a fantastic Kentish supplier, Chapmans of Sevenoaks.

The fish supplied to the restaurant is caught locally and on day boats. This means the fish comes back to port on the day and is caught rather than trawler fishing, where the boats can be out at sea for more than a week at a time.

This month’s recipe is my grilled fresh local mackerel with celeriac remoulade, hazelnut dressing and sautéed trumpet mushrooms. Enjoy!

RECIPE

Grilled mackerel with celeriac remoulade

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 large mackerel filleted and pin boned

100g trompette mushrooms

For the celeriac remoulade

1 tbsp Pommery mustard

1 lemon

1 small celeriac

Peel and slice the celeriac on a gravity slicer as thin as possible then place the slices on a board and finely cut to achieve julienne (matchstick cuts). Once sliced, blanch in seasoned boiling water and refresh; squeeze out excess water. Mix with mayonnaise and Pommery mustard. Check seasoning with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

For the hazelnut dressing

50g whole hazelnuts roasted and lightly crushed

1 shallot chopped finely

10g chives chopped finely

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

Mix all of the above together to form a thick dressing

For the mayonnaise

150g egg yolk

500ml grape seed oil

30g Dijon mustard

Salt, pepper and lemon for seasoning

In a food processor blend the egg yolk and mustard together, slowly add the grape seed oil until the mixture goes thick like a mayonnaise. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Remove from the blender and place into a bowl and refrigerate.

To serve, place the mackerel fillets on a metal non-stick tray, brush a little olive oil over the skin and place under a very hot grill for two minutes, or until cooked through.

Place a mound of celeriac remoulade in the middle of the bowl with some hazelnut dressing around and then place the mackerel fillets on top.

In a separate hot pan sauté the trompette mushrooms in a little butter and scatter over the top of the mackerel.

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