28 Jul smoked mackerel

I love frying up a few spuds for a breakfast or dinnertime hash. Smoked mackerel tops off our potato, spinach and poached egg dish by adding a salty sweetness. 

Smoked mackerel hash

Serves 2:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

6 baby potatoes, quartered

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Half a small white onion

1 clove of garlic

Salt

Pepper

2 large handfuls of baby spinach

2 eggs

Half a fillet of smoked mackerel, shredded

Method

1. In a small saucepan of water, boil the quartered potatoes for 10 minutes, until starting to soften. Strain and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium to high heat. When it’s nice and hot, transfer the potato quarters into the pan. Fry for 15 minutes, trying not to move them around too much so they can develop a golden, crispy skin.

3. Next, slice the onion into half moon slices and fry alongside the potatoes for three minutes, until softened. Finely dice the garlic clove and fry with the onion and potatoes for one minute. Season really well with salt and pepper. Set aside and keep warm until ready to serve.

4. In a smaller pan, wilt your spinach. Set aside and keep warm until ready to serve.

5. In a saucepan, boil water and poach two eggs. My method is to add a splosh of red wine vinegar to the boiling water and carefully crack the eggs into the water, cooking for 4 to 5 minutes for a soft yolk.

6. Divide the potatoes into two bowls. Add the wilted spinach and the poached eggs. Finally top with the shredded mackerel fillet, and finish with another pinch of salt and pepper.

Storecupboard Essential: Smoked Mackerel

Smoked mackerel is ready to stand out from behind the shadows of smoked salmon, and has a relatively long fridge-life. Try Connemara Smokehouse’s smoked plain and peppered mackerels (www.smokehouse.ie) or Frank Hederman’s whole smoked mackerel sold at Cork’s English Market (www.frankhederman.com).

This recipe first appeared in The Irish Independent on July 23rd