Nigel Slater’s potato and smoked mackerel dauphinoise

THE pack of smoked mackerel was lingering in the fridge and its “Use By” date had arrived. It had been bought by hubby who plainly had no intention (or idea, more likely) what to do with it.

Then I remembered a great recipe from Nigel Slater’s 1998 comfort-grub bible, Real Food (Fourth Estate), and its future was sealed.

I sliced some potatoes, pound-coin thin, mixed some cream, milk and mustard together and threw the lot together with the fish.

While it baked in the oven for a good hour, I had plenty of time to make a salad.

Mackerel is rich and oily and works well with fruit and clean flavours.

My spinach, orange and fennel salad was the perfect accompaniment; prepare the orange as you would a pineapple, slicing off the skin (taking the pith with you) using a sharp knife.

Store the segments in the fridge so they get really cold. Slice the fennel thinly and add some large, juicy green olives. Make a dressing using the left-over orange juice, some olive oil, a touch of mustard and some salt and pepper.

Nigel says this recipe serves four, but I found it perfect for two hungry people or three at the most!

Enjoy.

Nigel Slater’s potato and smoked mackerel dauphinoise Serves 4

450g waxy potatoes, scraped (use salad potatoes such as Charlotte)
225g smoked mackerel fillets
2 bay leaves
300ml double cream
200ml full cream milk
1 tablespoon grain mustard.

Slice the potatoes lengthways, about as thick as a one-pound coin.

Put them in a shallow baking dish about 30cm in diameter.

Break the mackerel fillets into large, bite-size pieces and toss them gently with the potatoes, try not to break up the fish too much. Tuck in the bay leaves.

Mix together the cream, milk, mustard and some salt and pepper then pour it over the fish and potatoes.

Bake in an oven pre-heated to 190C/Gas 5 for about one hour until the cream is bubbling and the potatoes are knife-tender.