Grilled Mackerel With Fennel, Apple and Celery Slaw

How to re-create this recipe:

Ingredients:

(Serves 2)

• Good quality Olive Oil for drizzling
• Black Pepper
• Salt
• 1 Boston Mackerel or 2 small sized Boston Mackerels
• 1 Medium sized Fennel Bulb
• 1 Apple (a crisp Apple, not a mealy one)
• 1 Celery Stalk
• 1 Lemon
• Grissini Breadsticks (optional)

Ingredients for the slaw dressing:

• 1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise
• 1 Tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons of chopped Tarragon
• 1 Tablespoon of chopped Dill
• 1 Tablespoon of Fennel Fronds
• 2 Teaspoons of Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/4 teaspoon of sugar

Putting it together:

1. Make the slaw dressing first by chopping up the herbs (Tarragon, Dill and Fennel Fronds) and putting them in a small bowl.
2. To that bowl add 2 Teaspoons of Fresh Lemon Juice, 1/4 teaspoon of sugar,  1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise, and 1 Tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar. Whisk in 2 Tablespoons of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil. Set the dressing aside.
3. Pre-heat a grill pan on Medium heat.
4. Prepare your veggies for the slaw by slicing off the top of your fennel bulb (Make sure to tear off the fennel fronds before chucking it in the trash can) and shaving it on a mandoline. Add the fennel to a medium sized bowl.  Cut the Apple in Half and Shave it on a mandoline as well. Afterwards stack the apple slices and Julienne them (cut them into matchsticks). Place in bowl with shaved fennel. You can shave the celery stalk on a mandoline with the Julienne attachment to save time or you can cut the celery stalk into 4 sections and cut the celery vertically so that you slice matchsticks as well. Add the dressing to these ingredients and toss them together till they are all nicely coated with a set of tongs.
5. Rinse off your cutting board from preparing your vegetables and on that cutting board drizzle Extra Virgin Olive oil, salt and black pepper on your Fish (on both sides).
6. Grill the Fish on each side for 6 minutes. The center should look opaque and the outside should be nice and charred.

Nourishment for your body:  Mackerel fish is packed with tons of protein. Of all the fish varieties it tends to have some of the highest levels of  Omega 3 fatty acids and is high in vitamin B-12, Selenium, Niacin, and phosphorus. Some people don’t like Mackerel because it is more oily and tastes “fishy” compared to other fish. But I find that when you grill Mackerel it tends to tame down the flavor a quite a bit.

Tips when cooking:  A mealy apple is an apple that is typically used for baking ( such as a Red Delicious). Some crisp varieties of apples you can use are Granny Smith, Fuji, or Gala. A Mandoline is a good cooking utensil to invest in. It is used to slice vegetables. They range in price and are a nice tool to have in your kitchen because your vegetables come out looking uniform in shape and size and makes prepping them faster. They come with attachments so you don’t have to Julienne the vegetables yourself. When buying Mackerel you can ask your fish monger to gut it for you and take the head off. It is usually available year round and is good for the environment because it is considered a sustainable species (meaning that it is not over-fished and reproduces quickly).

And remember, you don’t have to travel far to feel like you are having lunch or dinner on the Adriatic Sea!