Lemon-ey Mackerel Tartare on a bed of Jerusalem Artichokes (from Gastronaut)
This is dead easy if you get your fishmonger to fillet and skin the mackerel fillets for you. Don’t worry about doing them yourself though - it doesn’t need to be a neat job as they will all be chopped up anyway!
Feeds 4 as a starter
Ingredients
500 g Jerusalem artichokes, peeled. (if not available use pink fur apple potatoes or salad potatoes)
2 very fresh whole mackerel or 4 mackerel fillets
Zest and juice of half a lemon
salt and pepper
a splash of olive oil
For the dressing:
50 ml groundnut oil or peanut oil
50 ml olive oil
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
a smidge of lemon juice
a splash of water
a small handful of herbs such as dill, chervil, tarragon and chives, finely chopped
1 pack of lamb’s lettuce (mache)
Put the peeled Jerusalem artichokes (or potatoes) in a saucepan of cold, salted water. Bring it to a gentle boil, and cook them until just tender – between 10–20 minutes depending on the size of your ’chokes.
Whilst they are cooking, look to your fish: remove all the bones from the mackerel, including the pinbones, then skin it (a decent fishmonger will do this for you if you lack the dexterity). Dice it finely, then put it into a bowl with the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Keep this in the fridge for the moment.
When the ’chokes are ready, drain and leave to cool with a small splash of olive oil, and once cool, chop them finely to the same texture as the mackerel, or as close as you can get, and slip them into the fridge, too.
Now for your dressing: make a mayonnaise base by putting the egg yolk into a mixing bowl, then add the groundnut oil (or peanut oil) and olive oil drop by drop, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, a squirt of Dijon mustard and a smidge of lemon juice. Then add some water to loosen it (we’re after a dressing rather than a nice whippy mayo) and fold the chopped herbs into it.
Using a cookie cutter, if you have one, put it onto the plate and lay down a base of artichokes. Cover that with a layer of the mackerel and top it with lamb’s lettuce and then remove the cookie cutter, leaving a nice timbale shape. Drizzle the mayonnaise dressing over the top and serve to great acclaim.
