“This is so popular at Cafe. You can try smoking your own or buy good-quality smoked fish from a fishmonger or market stall. This keeps well in the fridge for up to a week and can be potted up into ramekins, topped with a splash of melted butter for storing. The pickles are a great addition, as are oatcakes of course.”
Makes enough for several servings
INGREDIENTS
3 fillets of smoked mackerel
2 tablespoons of crème fraîche
Juice of half a lemon
A twist of pepper
250ml cider vinegar
250ml water
100g sugar
A few spices (star anise, peppercorns)
A handful of vegetables like carrots, cucumber and onion, peeled and cut into nice shapes
A teaspoon of good salt
A few oatcakes
METHOD
Firstly make a pickle by boiling the spices, vinegar, water, salt and sugar together for a minute. Then add the vegetables to this liquor. Remove from the heat and put in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. This can be stored for months if you don’t use all the pickles at once.
To make the mackerel pâté, blitz the mackerel with the crème fraîche in a food processor until smooth. Then add the pepper and lemon to taste. It should be nice and smooth.
Keep the pâté in a tub in your fridge until required. It’s perfect with oatcakes and those pickles!