Dinner Tonight: Mackerel with Currants
I felt really good about myself after I bought this fish. All kinds of articles told me it was healthful and sustainable and that I was doing the right thing.
It wasn't until I got this prize of a fish home and tossed it on the cutting board that I wondered how I was going to cook it. Though many articles like to talk about the health benefits of this fish, few offered recipes. After searching through my cookbooks and then online, I found that there were frighteningly few mackerel recipes out there. The ones that I did find called for smoked mackerel. What about a fresh one?
I finally found one in The Silver Spoon, which, to its credit, had a whole mackerel section (it's a truly great cookbook).
I settled on this recipe, which pairs the full-flavored fish with currants and white wine. It's really straightforward and lets the fish have most of the spotlight. And that turned out to be a great thing because the mackerel was rich and almost meaty. Tilapia has nothing on this guy.
Mackerel with Currants
- serves 2 to 3 -
Adapted from The Silver Spoon.
Ingredients
1 1-1/2 pound mackerel, cleaned
3/4 cup currants
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, sliced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper
Procedure
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour the currants into a bowl and top with warm water. Let sit for 10 minutes or so. Drain the currants, reserving 1 1/2 ounces of the liquid.
2. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is soft, about 8 minutes. Add the wine, liquid from the currants, and sugar. Bring to a simmer and then season with salt and pepper.
3. Make several diagonal slashes down each side of the fish. Set it in a roasting pan. Pour the contents from the skillet on top of the fish. Place roasting pan in the oven. Cook for 10 minutes and then add the currants. Cook for another 10 minutes. Carefully remove the fillets and serve with the sauce.
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14 Comments:
I've never had it with currants. interesting.
Because of its high fat % it goes extremely well with miso-ginger braise.
or just salted, grilled mackerel with grated daikon radish+ soy sauce. mmm.
Oh and it goes with tomatoes too.
hmw0029 at 5:58PM on 03/23/09
Saba shioyaki...heaven on earth. A little soy sauce, some rice...I agree with hmw. The fat content and grilling it crispy gives it almost a buttery taste. So good.
ajdaddy at 6:21PM on 03/23/09
I've had mackerel ceviche with lychee sorbet. Sublime.... perhaps shockingly so!
Pointy at 6:59PM on 03/23/09
really great with just oil salt pepper and lemon juice- grilled
jammin83 at 9:20PM on 03/23/09
I usually take a mackerel of that size, score the flesh on both sides (as I see you've done), lay on some julienned ginger, wrap on a plate with cling film and microwave-steam for 6 minutes. While that's in there, chop two stalks of green onions thin on the bias and chuck those into a tall, narrow coffee mug about 1/3rd full of soy sauce (the green onions should float on top and not touch the bottom). Place into an empty sink. Take a couple tablespoons of neutral vegetable oil and heat over high flame until just smoking, and pour into the mug of soy sauce (watch the sizzle & splatter). Whisk sauce to combine and pour over your freshly steamed fish. My parents also add cilantro, but I think that tastes wretched.
shoneyjoe at 12:56AM on 03/24/09
Thanks for all the other suggestions on how to cook the mackerel. I'll definitely tell my wife to cook this for dinner, and have this feast before my son and I grind warcraft gold on WoW.
BobbyJ at 3:02AM on 03/24/09
Mmm. I take it those currants are dried? This sounds wonderful right now for some reason. Wonder if I can get my hands on some this weekend.
onalark at 3:34AM on 03/24/09
Mackerel is brilliant in risotto with saffron and whatever veg you prefer...asparagus works well, as do mushrooms and broccoli. Just filet it and poach it in stock with lemon, butter and wine while the risotto simmers, and add it just near the end with copious parmesan. Oh, lots of onion and garlic too.
NotAmerican at 3:36AM on 03/24/09
I should also add, you can often get off-cuts of mackerel and other seafood (salmon, shrimp, crayfish) from a fish-monger and make a delicious seafood pie. Poach them all, then add a white sauce with some peas, some carrots, and your preferred cheese (I like cheddar or gruyere) and spread out in a casserole dish. Then top with creamy mashed potatoes, which are then topped with more cheese) and bake in a hot oven until the top is lightly browned.
You can also do this in ramekins and serve as a starter. Lovely.
NotAmerican at 3:41AM on 03/24/09
We catch small mackerel up in Maine. Usually just fillet it, toss with sliced onions, waxy potatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper, and bake. It's also very good smoked.
Love the risotto idea!
emilydev at 7:47AM on 03/24/09
Mackerel is so oily and flavorful, I don't do anything to it. Just stick it under a broiler and eat it with rice and things. Yum.
LHSK12 at 9:42AM on 03/24/09
I love it simply roasted or sauteed with potatoes and greens and served with harissa or romesco or some other zippy sauce, OR marinated with garlic, ginger, lime juice, tamari - like I posted here:
http://www.lastnightsdinner.net/2008/07/11/gone-global/
Jennifer Hess at 2:31PM on 03/24/09
FYI it's the fastest spoiling fish ever (tend to cause hives if you eat it slightly old).
I won't be able to get edible fresh mackerel in St. Louis, for sure. sob...
hmw0029 at 3:36PM on 03/24/09
I haven't seen fresh mackerel at stores here in suburban Chicago, but it's one of my favorites whenever I'm at a sushi joint on the coasts.
Oh, and The Silver Spoon is great.
MarvinDog at 4:52PM on 03/24/09