AI-generated image
Mackerel with gooseberry sauce
Pan-fried summer mackerel with sharp gooseberry sauce
In July and August shoals of mackerel come close to the piers from Kilmore Quay to Killybegs, and children catch them on hand lines for the evening pan. The old Irish partner for the oily fish is a sharp sauce of the gooseberries ripening in the garden at the same time, which cuts through the richness. Serve with new potatoes. Chef's tip: cook the fillets skin-side down almost all the way, so the skin crisps and the delicate flesh stays moist.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 9 oz gooseberries, fresh or frozentopped and tailed
- 1 ⅜ oz sugar
- 3 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp dill or fennel fronds (optional)chopped
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Fresh ingredients (1)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Simmer the 9 oz gooseberries, fresh or frozen, 1 ⅜ oz sugar and 3 tbsp water in a small pan for 8–10 minutes, until they burst into a thick, tart sauce. Taste and add a little more sugar if needed.
10 minStep 2: Pat the 8 mackerel fillets, pin-boned dry, slash the skin 3 times and season with ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper.
3 minStep 3: Heat the 1 tbsp rapeseed oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Lay the fillets skin-side down and press gently for 10 seconds so they don't curl.
2 minStep 4: Cook for 3 minutes until the skin is crisp and the flesh is opaque almost to the top, then turn for 30 seconds. The fish is done when it flakes easily. A common mistake is crowding the pan, which steams the skin.
4 minStep 5: Serve skin-side up with the warm gooseberry sauce and 1 tbsp dill or fennel fronds.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 28 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 30 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mackerel with gooseberry sauce take?
- About 25 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Moreton Bay bugsSlipper lobster with garlic butter
Moreton Bay bugs are the flat, shovel-nosed slipper lobsters caught off the Queensland coast around Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and for Queenslanders they are a summer treat, split and grilled at the beach house. The tail meat is sweet and rich, somewhere between lobster and prawn. Buy them raw, frozen or fresh, from a fishmonger and ask them to halve them if you like. A common mistake is overcooking, which makes the meat rubbery; it is ready the moment it turns white. Chef's tip: grill flesh side down first to mark it, then turn and baste in the shell.
Australian
All i pebreEel and potato paprika stew
In El Palmar and the other villages around the Albufera lagoon south of Valencia, the restaurants that are famous for paella serve something older first: all i pebre, "garlic and pepper", a brick-red stew of lagoon eel and potatoes thickened with a pounded almond and fried-bread picada. It is rich, garlicky and gently hot, eaten with bread to mop up the sauce. Ask your fishmonger to skin and cut the eel, and handle it with gloves: raw eel blood is irritating, though harmless once cooked. If you can't find eel, monkfish or hake works well. A common mistake is letting the paprika burn; it turns bitter in seconds, so add it off the heat. Chef's tip: break the potatoes with a knife instead of cutting cleanly; the rough edges release starch and thicken the sauce.
Spanish
Midia saganakiMussels with tomato and feta
Thessaloniki is Greece's mussel capital, with farms in the Thermaic Gulf a few kilometres from the seafront ouzeries where this two-handled pan arrives, still bubbling, at the table. Mussels steam open in a quick sauce of peppers, tomato and chilli, and crumbled feta melts into the juices at the end. Bread is essential. The classic version adds a splash of ouzo; this one is alcohol-free, using a pinch of fennel seed for that aniseed note (add 2 tbsp ouzo with the tomatoes if you like). Common mistake: overcooking — take the pan off the heat as soon as the shells open. Chef's tip: buy mussels on the day and keep them in the fridge in a bowl covered with a damp cloth, never in water.
Greek