Summer lunch up North (meaning Scandinavia) has seafood rillettes on the menu.
Like this Smoked Mackerel Rillettes With Rye Crisps recipe from ScandiKitchen: Midsommar: Simply Delicious Food for Summer Days (Ryland Peters & Small, 2018, 2021) by Brontë Aurell, co-owner of ScandiKitchen in West London.
Smoked Mackerel Rillettes With Rye Crisps
This is a super-easy way to prepare an appetizer or light lunch. Rillettes are a coarse, potted meat similar to pâté that are stirred together and spread on toast. They’re usually made with fatty pork (or duck) leftovers, but I love making rillettes with fish. This recipe works well with both smoked mackerel and smoked salmon.
Ingredients:
8–12 thin slices of rye bread or store-bought rye crisps (available in supermarkets)
200 ml/3⁄4 cup crème fraîche
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons chopped chives
squeeze of fresh lime juice
1⁄2 teaspoon horseradish sauce
300 g/10 1⁄2 oz. smoked mackerel
freshly ground black pepper (hold the salt until you taste it, some mackerel is very salty)
TO SERVE
1⁄4 small fennel bulb
1⁄2 apple
freshly squeezed lemon juice
fresh pea shoots
4 individual serving glasses
Serves 4 as a generous appetizer or light lunch
Directions:
If using rye bread, preheat the oven to 140°C (275°F) Gas 1. Slice the rye bread very thinly and place on a baking tray. If the bread is too thick it will be hard to eat as crispy bread, so do make sure it is thinly sliced. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10–20 minutes (depending on your bread) until completely dry. You can make it several days ahead and store in an airtight container.
Mix the crème fraîche with the mustard, chives, lime juice and horseradish (if using). Remove the skin from the mackerel and add the fish to the crème fraîche mixture. Stir just until mixed – I like my rillettes with a few chunky bits, but some people prefer it smoother. If you like yours smoother, simply mix a while longer. Check for seasoning and add black pepper to taste. Spoon the mixture into the serving glasses. Chill until ready to serve.
When ready to serve, slice the fennel and apple very thinly, ideally using a mandoline. Add a squeeze of lemon juice to stop the apple going brown and mix well. Serve the apple and fennel salad with pea shoots, the glasses of mackerel and the rye toast on the side. You may need extra toast as the mackerel makes a generous portion.
( Reproduced with permission from ScandiKitchen: Midsommar: Simply Delicious Food for Summer Days By Brontë Aurell, Ryland Peters & Small, 2021 / photography by Peter Cassidy © Ryland Peters & Small, 2018, 2021)
P.S: Please note that the recipes in ScandiKitchen: Midsommar are the same as in ScandiKitchen Summer, which was published in 2018.