Mackerel Pate

This is delish. Now I don't usually like mackerel- it's just so oily I feel a little nauseous eating it.

But this is something else. I could eat jars of it. Snack on it all throughout the day. But obviously I don't or people wouldn't want to go near me.

I eat it with wholegrain crudities ( the Swedish ones ) because I love them and they have a lovely wholesome taste but you can have it on rivita or toasted bread or... potato! whatever else you like.

And you gotta have it with the pickled cucumber. The sweetness they provide just add that extra something to the mate. If you don't like pickled cucumber, try adding a bit of honey to the pate instead.

This is my dad's homemade recipe and I have't gone back after he introduced it to me. I've read several cookbooks that claim they recipe is the best mackerel paste but it's just never enough. I haven't said in the title this recipe is the best but secretly it is..

Light and mousse-y with a freshness to uplift the dense fish, provided by the lemon. Tanginess from the horseradish yet no individual flavour can be tasted( apart from the fish...obviously ) it's just amazing.

Mackerel Pate

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 mackerel pate

• 1 heaped tsp cream cheese

• 1 heaped tsp Greek yoghurt

• 2tsp horseradish

• 1tsp Dijon mustard

• 1/4tsp salt

• 1 1/2tsp black pepper

• 20ml lemon juice ( more or less to taste )

• 1/4tsp nutmeg

• rocket, pickled cucumber and crudities, to serve

Method

- Start by gently peeling away the fish from the skin and adding it to the blender. I usually discard the grey-brown gunky stuff underneath fillets but you can keep it if you wanna make life that little bit easier.

- Then you basically just add everything listen in that list, to blender...

- Blitz the pate in pulses otherwise you lose that fibrous, mousse texture and it goes a bit sloppy and creamy instead of whipped. Keep pulsing until there are no big chunks of fish left.

- Serve it in a bowl or small jar with pickled cucumber, rocket, and something to serve it on.