the ingredient

living
EXPERT SERIES
text ELAINE DONG
photography SOO PHYE
art direction & styling ELAINE DONG
& JAMIE SOO-HOO
T:
THE INGREDIEN
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IK A N
W E LO VE TH E
C K ER EL )
K EM B U N G (M A
TI LI TY - JU ST
FO R IT S VE RS A
SA
IN A SS A M LA K
A S D EL IC IO U S
PA N FR IE D .
A S IT IS SI M PLY
EI G H S IN O N
ST EV E A LL EN W
SH .
TH IS LO C A L FI
Q
a
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BEST WAYS TO
COOK MACKEREL?
I love pan frying mackerel, because the crispy skin takes
away some of the strong fish taste and gives it a great
texture. Also I love having fresh mackerel raw in a tartare
with horseradish and apple.
Q
a
HOW DO YOU TELL THE FRESHNESS OF FISH?
Make sure the gills are bright red; a little bit of slime
is fine and actually healthy. Of course this fish naturally
smells but make sure the smell is that of the sea and not
too strong. Also the flesh should be firm and not soft.
Sometimes when filleting the fish you will find the flesh
breaks down in your fingers, which means it’s been frozen
or simply not fresh.
Q
CAN YOU TELL US THE PRESSURE POINTS OF
THE RECIPES?
I find dusting the fish skin in flour helps when cooking and
helps to prevent sticking to the barbecue or the pan. Also
don’t overcook the fish, I usually find that the fish is best
when it’s just 70% cooked. A little bit of pink in the fish is
nothing to worry about and will help keep it moist.
a
Q
a
Q
a
HOW TO FILLET A FISH
Filleting a fish is no easy task so take your time. I always
make sure I take the scales off the fish first (if there are
scales), then take off the fins and gills, this will make
filleting the fish easier.
Always start from the head and make your way
down to the tail. Always use a sharp knife and keep
your knife as close to the bone as possible, otherwise
you will end up with no meat on the fillet.
With the mackerel, be very careful when taking the
pin bones out, be careful not to pierce the skin and not
to take too much of the flesh out.
PEOPLE ARE NOW MORE MINDFUL ABOUT
WHERE FOOD COMES FROM? WHEN IT COMES
TO FISH, WHAT SHOULD THEY BE CONCERNED
ABOUT?
For me we should all start to look at where the fish comes
from and the ethics behind it. If you are buying wild fish,
make sure it’s sustainable and from a reputable source.
It’s not a problem if it’s farmed, actually half of the worlds
consumed fish is now farmed. Farmed fish has a higher
nutritional value compared to wild and buying farmed is
helping keep the correct predator ratio in the sea. But
as with all things these days, farm fishing needs to be
regulated more in this part of the world and with more
demand for knowledge I’m sure this will happen.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FISH THAT
ARE GOOD FOR DIFFERENT DISHES?
I would say that you need to follow a few rules when
cooking fish in different dishes. I try to use more oily fish
for raw use, poaching, steaming and pan-frying and white
fish for stews, deep frying and curries.
“IF THE FLESH BREAKS DOWN IN YOUR
BEEN FROZEN OR SIMPLY NOT FRESH.”
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FINGERS WHEN FILLETING, IT MEANS IT’S
“A FISH IS BEST WHEN IT’S 70%
COOKED. A LITTLE BIT OF PINK IN THE
Pan fried mackerel with a potato salad
serves 4 STARTERS
TRIED & TESTED!
The Home & Decor team
was on hand to try out
every recipe in this series,
and we give it the great
seal of approval!
ingredients
Method
• 2 whole mackerels filleted and
deboned
• Plain flour for dusting
• 16 new potatoes, skin on
• 15g mint
• 25g butter
• 75g low fat crème fraiche
• 15g chives
• 30g salad onions
• 5g flat leaf parsley
• 1 lemon
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Boil the potatoes in a pan of water with the butter, mint and some salt.
Once cooked leave in the water until cooled down.
Take out the potatoes, peel and then cut into four pieces.
Finely chop the chives, salad onions, parsley and add to the
crème fraiche.
Zest the lemon and add to the crème fraiche along with a few drops
of juice.
Fold the dressing into the potatoes and serve. (Try not to chill,
best served slightly warm).
Flour the skin of the mackerel and season with a little salt.
Place in a cold pan with some olive oil.
Place the pan on a high heat
and cook on the skin until crispy and brown.
Turn the fillet of fish over and cook for 10 seconds and
place straight away onto the salad.
The secret to great pan-fried mackerel
“I learnt this method working for Gordon
Ramsay. I was working on a T.V. show called
Kitchen Nightmares and I had cooked
mackerel before and had extreme problems
that the skin burnt and curled up very easily.
Gordon noticed me pan frying in a very silly
way pressing the fillet down in the frying pan.
Obviously this didn’t work, I got scolded
and then he showed me this way with a cold
pan. It’s the most simple way to cook a fish with
skin on. By getting the skin crispy you slowly
generate heat through to the fish without
having to cook the flesh side. If you cook the
flesh side it will become tough so cooking
mainly on the skin side keeps the fish nice nice
and soft. I also find this method works well for
salmon and sea bass.” – Steve Allen
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FISH WILL HELP KEEP IT MOIST.”
BBQ Mackerel with galangal, chili and lime
serves 4
ingredients
Method
• 4 whole mackerels
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoon Gula Melaka
• 15g peeled & grated galangal
• 3 small chili padi, sliced finely
• 2 lime, zested and juiced
• 5 tablespoons thai fish sauce
• 2 tablespoon sesame oil
• Mix all of the ingredients together apart from the mackerel and olive oil.
• Separate the dressing into two, leaving one half for the dressing and
the other half for the marinade.
• Marinate the mackerel for at least 3 hours and maximum 12 hours.
• Brush off the marinade and rub olive oil onto the mackerel.
• Place on the barbeque and grill until cooked.
• Serve with the rest of the dressing.
Profile
“I have never aspired to any single chef in my career. I have had
great mentors but I feel that if you truly want to be unique it’s
best not to aspire to anyone but follow what makes you happy.
Smiling guests who are happy about their experience make
me happy. I hope in my life I have helped to do that to a lot of
people and that’s quite simply my inspiration.”
“I TRY TO USE MORE OILY FISH FOR
RAW USE, POACHING, STEAMING AND
PAN-FRYING; WHITE FISH FOR STEWS.”
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Steve Allen is the CEO of The Delicious Group, which has
restaurants in Malaysia and one in Singapore. Go to
www.thedeliciousgroup.com for more information.