Marinated Mackerel Fillet in Foil

Name: Mackerel Baked in Foil with Provencal Herbs – Marinated Fillets
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 2 h
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: Mackerel 1; Lemon 1 (sliced into rounds, 1 tbsp juice and a quarter for serving); Dry white wine 0.5 cup (100 ml); Fresh sprigs of rosemary, mint, thyme to taste; Dry Provencal herb blend 0.5 tsp; Coriander seeds 0.5 tsp; Black peppercorns 3-4; Allspice berries 1-2; Salt 1-2 pinches; Olive oil 2 tbsp; Garlic 1 clove

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2 h

A simple way to make tasty baked fish is to bake it in foil. Mackerel in foil is made from boneless fillets with the skin on, marinated briefly in wine with fresh herbs and then baked. By the way, this method almost eliminates the smell typical of this fish, which many people dislike. Without foil, you can also cook mackerel in the oven with a fried onion stuffing.

Back in childhood, when we were endlessly delighted by the film about d’Artagnan, a new word entered our vocabulary: Provence. We never even wondered what it was. It was just a word from a popular song, along with Gascony, Burgundy and others. Yet Provence is a historical region of France (Provence, literally “province”). Its capital is Marseille, one of the oldest French cities. Provencal cooking makes wide use of aromatic herbs, both fresh and dried. Dried Provencal herb blends are something almost everyone has come across.

Fish baked with Provencal herbs has long been part of world cuisine. Mackerel, for example, is the number one commercial fish in the world, fatty and tasty, with few bones. It is sold frozen in any store. Mackerel baked in foil with Provencal herbs, like stuffed mackerel , is an easy dish and an exceptionally tasty one.

Provencal herbs are a blend made up mostly of spicy, aromatic herbs that grow in the Mediterranean region: rosemary, basil, thyme, sage, peppermint, summer savory, oregano and marjoram. They are widely used as an addition to soups, sauces and salads, and go very well with roast meat, ground meat and fish dishes.

Blends sold under the name “Provencal herbs” are available in stores and, notably, consist of the right herbs. They contain no salt and no scary additives to “improve” the flavor. And if you like, it is easy to make the blend yourself, since all the herbs are sold separately. Fish fillet marinated in wine with a dry Provencal herb blend is excellent for baking. Mackerel baked in foil after marinating with the herb blend is a very tasty and aromatic dish.

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Ingredients

1 serving

For the fish and marinade
Mackerel 1
Lemon 1 (sliced into rounds, 1 tbsp juice and a quarter for serving)
Dry white wine 0.5 cup (100 ml)
Fresh sprigs of rosemary, mint, thyme to taste
For rubbing
Dry Provencal herb blend 0.5 tsp
Coriander seeds 0.5 tsp
Black peppercorns 3-4
Allspice berries 1-2
Salt 1-2 pinches
For baking
Olive oil 2 tbsp
Garlic 1 clove

Step-by-step recipe

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Preparing the fish

Thaw the mackerel at room temperature, or better, move the frozen fish from the freezer to the fridge the evening before. The fish will thaw perfectly and will not leak.
Fillet the mackerel. Rinse the fish, cut off the head and tail, slit the belly and remove all the innards. Thoroughly remove the black film lining the cavity; it comes off easily with your fingers under cold running water. With a sharp knife, take two fillets off the fish and carefully remove all the large bones and any remaining fins.

Marinating

Rub the fillets with spices. In a mortar, combine 0.5 tsp Provencal herb blend, 1-2 pinches of salt, 3-4 black peppercorns, 1-2 allspice berries and 0.5 tsp coriander seeds. Grind the spices coarsely and sprinkle them over the flesh side of both fillets.
Marinate the fillets in wine. In a ceramic (or plastic) dish of a suitable size, lay a few thinly sliced lemon rounds and put both fillets on them skin side down. Arrange sprigs of fresh herbs: rosemary, thyme and mint. Pour over a mixture of 1 tbsp lemon juice and half a cup of dry white wine (100 ml). Refrigerate the fish to marinate for 1 hour.

Baking in foil

Layer the fillets on the foil. Take the fillets out of the marinade, pat dry with paper towels and brush with olive oil. On a piece of foil, put half of the lemon rounds from the marinade, and on them one fillet skin side down. Finely chop a garlic clove and scatter it over the mackerel, then add all the herbs from the marinade.
Press the second fillet, brushed with oil, on top so that flesh meets flesh. Add the remaining lemon rounds.
Wrap the stacked fillets tightly in foil, preferably in two layers. Pierce the foil with a toothpick in several places; steam will escape through the holes.
Bake the mackerel at 180°C for about 45 mins. Preheat the oven to 180°C, put the package on a baking sheet, preferably ceramic, and place it in the oven. It takes some time for the mackerel to heat up: when a thin stream of steam comes out of the holes in the foil, the mackerel has started to bake. From that moment, bake for another 20 mins.
The cooked fillet is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.

Serving

Before serving, unwrap the foil (carefully, hot steam will escape) and put the mackerel on plates.
Add a lemon quarter to the fish. Mackerel in foil is served with a side of fresh herbs, fresh and pickled vegetables. It goes nicely with baked potatoes.

Calories and macros

730 kcal

Serving ≈ 270 g

Protein43 g24% of kcal
Fat59 g74% of kcal
Carbs4 g2% of kcal

100 g271 kcalProtein 15.8 gFat 22 gCarbs 1.6 g

Calculated from the recipe ingredients, excluding salt and spices. Data: USDA and Matvaretabellen.

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