IT’S MACKEREL season at the moment and what a great tasting fish it is! With firm flesh and a distinct flavour, mackerel is perfect to pan fry, bake or BBQ. In the following recipes the mackerel is pan fried with very simple ingredients to accompany and complement the flavour of the fish. It’s summer food that’s easy to prepare and great to eat. Enjoy!

‘Meuniere’ is a posh name for a medley of simple ingredients that really enhance the flavour of mackerel. In this recipe you can use portions of mackerel fillets or steaks.

Ingredients

4 pieces or steaks of mackerel

plain flour, for coating the fish

100g butter

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons roughly chopped parsley

Preparation

• Coat the mackerel lightly with the flour, shaking the fish slightly to remove any excess flour. Heat a little cooking oil in a heavy base frypan and sauté the fish on both sides until golden. The cooking time depends on the thickness of the fish. Transfer the mackerel to a serving plate and keep warm.

• Wipe the frypan with some paper towel to remove the oil and heat the pan over a medium to high heat. Add the butter and swirl the pan as you remove the pan from the heat. The butter shouldn’t be too dark and the pan will have enough residual heat to melt the butter. Immediately add the lemon juice and parsley. Swirl the pan again to incorporate the ingredients and then pour them over the mackerel.

• This recipe is simply prepared and simply delicious. Serve with some extra lemon wedges.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons cooking oil

2 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

4 mackerel portions or steaks

1/2 cup flaked almonds

2 tablespoons roughly chopped parsley

Procedure

• Heat the oil and butter in a heavy base frypan over a medium heat. Add the roughly chopped garlic to the pan and stir fry for a couple of minutes. Pour the garlic butter from the pan and keep to one side. You will be using the garlic butter later in this recipe.

• Add the mackerel to the pan and cook on each side until just cooked through. Once more cooking time will depend on the thickness of the mackerel pieces. Remove the mackerel from the pan, cover and keep warm.

• Lower the heat under the frypan. Add the flaked almonds to the pan and stir fry until golden brown. Add the chopped parsley and the reserved garlic butter and stir. The garlic butter sauce should be a delicious golden colour.

Serve the mackerel with the buttery garlic and almond mixture tumbled over the top of the fish.