Eunice Power's smoked mackerel & anchovy pâté
Ingredients
More often than not if I am having friends over for dinner, I skip the starter per se and instead have some pate, pickles and if in season a bundle of radishes with some Maldon sea salt and toasted sourdough bread on the table for my guests to munch on, it gives everyone especially the cook a chance to relax and gather themselves.
Serves: 4
50g butter, softened
2 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
3 tbsp chopped dill, plus extra to garnish
1 tbsp horseradish sauce
100g full-fat crème fraîche
150g pack of smoked Mackerel fillets (skin removed)
Juice of ½ small lemon
1 tbsp capers
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Fresh Cucumber pickleThere's nothing quite like a fresh cucumber pickle—vibrantly green, crisp, and crunchy. It’s the perfect accompaniment to elevate simple dishes such as pate, fish cakes to a humble sandwich, transforming them into something even more delicious. This is a quick pickle and should be used within a few days.
2 cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon of salt
30ml cider vinegar
1/2 tablespoon caster sugar
Method
This is best made in the bowl of a food processor, first blitz up the butter and anchovies then add the dill, horseradish and crème fraîche.
Season with a little salt and pepper, then whizz quickly for a few seconds.
Add the Mackerel fillets, lemon juice and capers and whizz again for a few seconds until just mixed but still with some texture.
Check the seasoning, then spoon the mixture into a small bowl.
Serve the pâté with toasted sourdough and some cucumber pickle.
Fresh Cucumber pickle
Using a vegetable peeler, peel both cucumbers from top to bottom, to make long, wide, thin ribbons. Keep going until you get to the seedy centre and then this can be discarded (or eaten).
Place the ribbons in a bowl with 1 teaspoon of flaked salt and mix well. Transfer to a sieve placed over a bowl and set aside for 15 minutes, for some of the water to be extracted.
Put the vinegar and sugar into a separate bowl and whisk until the sugar dissolves.
Add the cucumber, toss to combine, and set aside for 20 minutes to lightly pickle.
Eat immediately or certainly within a few days, before it loses its crispness. It can be stored in the fridge.
