James Strawbridge’s Grilled Mackerel and Wood Fired Potato Salad
A seasonal dish with fish and foraged greens to cook at home or over an open fire.
On a breezy day at the beach with our photography team, chef and author James Strawbridge whipped up a feast with freshly caught mackerel, potatoes boiled in seawater, and greens that he picked from along the shoreline.
We’d love to see what variations you make on the original recipe using your own local ingredients.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 4 Cornish mackerel
- 1 kg new potatoes, blanched
- 1 lemon, juice and zest
- 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced
- Bunch of asparagus or sprouting broccoli (depending on the season)
- 200g samphire
- 1 tbsp seaweed flakes
- 1 tsp sea salt and cracked black pepper
- Foraged seasonal greens (optional) – try looking for pennywort, wood sorrel, wild garlic or nettles
Method
1. Start by cleaning out your gutted mackerel and patting it dry. Season generously with seaweed flakes, salt and pepper. Add the zest of a lemon and preheat your grill.
2. Blanche your potatoes in filtered seawater for extra flavour for 12-15 mins if you are cooking at the beach. Then place a handful of seaweed onto your grill as a natural trivet to impart extra coastal flavour beneath the mackerel and prevent it from drying out. Cook the mackerel fillets over hot embers along with the potatoes, samphire, foraged greens, broccoli or asparagus.
3. Turn the mackerel after 4-5 mins and cook on both sides allowing the skin to char and crisp up. Finish by drizzling with fresh lemon juice and toss the potatoes in a bowl with diced apple and foraged greens. You can substitute some of my wild salad ingredients with watercress to balance the flavours of the dish.
4. Season with a final pinch of sea salt and serve warm with a slice of lemon.
James’ new book, Salt and the Art of Seasoning, is available to buy now. You can also follow him on Instagram.
