Confit mackerel with potato salad
Cooking mackerel slowly allows the meat of the fish to become almost buttery. I tend not to add too much to the potato salad, as I enjoy the spices seeping into the mackerel and the fish being the star of the dish.
Wine notes: the Alberiño 2021 from Palacio de Fefiñanes, in Spain’s Rias Baixas, has just the right amount of refreshing apple and stone fruit charm to offset the richness of this dish. It would go equally well with the pappardelle with chilli clams and courgettes.
Ingredients
For the mackerel
For the potato salad
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 150°C/fan oven 130°C/mark 2. While the oven is coming up to temperature, check the fillets to make sure that there are no bones left in. Place the fish in a roasting dish, add the bay leaves, the coriander and fennel seeds, and 2tsp flaky sea salt. Pour over the olive oil – you want enough oil to just cover the fish. Transfer the dish to the oven and roast the fish for 30 minutes.
Step 2
Meanwhile, fill a large saucepan with cold water and a pinch of salt, add the potatoes and bring the water up to a boil. You can check the potatoes are cooked by piercing them with a knife – they should feel soft.
Step 3
Drain the potatoes and leave them to cool. Remove the skin delicately and slice into 2cm discs. Place on a serving dish.
Step 4
In a bowl, mix the shallot, garlic and lemon juice with a pinch of salt and slowly stir in the olive oil. You want this to emulsify, as this is the dressing for the potatoes.
Step 5
Check the mackerel – it should be more opaque and be falling apart. Take the mackerel out of the oil, removing any excess oil and set aside on a plate.
Step 6
Mix the dressing with the potatoes, then stir through the parsley – you want the leaves to be large within the salad. Before serving, arrange the fillets of mackerel on top of the potatoes and parsley.
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