Chef Thomas
A Ploughman's Salad
The old pub ploughman's, shaken loose from its board and laid across butter lettuce with a sharp mustard dressing, for the kind of lunch that feels like you've given yourself the afternoon off.
Culinary Explorer
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Smoked Mackerel, Beetroot and Horseradish Salad
Created by Chef Thomas
Flaked smoky mackerel scattered over earthy beetroot with watercress and a sharp horseradish cream, the sort of plate that takes fifteen minutes and tastes like you meant every one of them.
Salads
British
Weeknight
Quick Meal
15 min
Active Time
0 min cook•15 min total
Yield2 servings
October, and the beetroot are in. Deep crimson things from the Saturday market, still dusty, the leaves wilting but the roots heavy and firm in the hand. This is their season, and the best thing I know to do with them is also the simplest: quarter them, put them on a plate with good smoked mackerel, and let the horseradish do the talking.
Smoke, earth, and heat. Three flavours that were made for each other and need very little help from you. The mackerel brings its salt and oil, the beetroot its quiet sweetness, and the horseradish cuts through both with a sharpness that keeps the whole thing honest. Watercress, because it belongs here, peppery and green against all that crimson and bronze.
This is a Tuesday supper. Fifteen minutes, most of which is spent standing at the counter flaking fish and stirring crème fraîche. There are few better feelings than putting a plate like this in front of someone on an ordinary evening, something that looks like you tried, tastes like you cared, and asked almost nothing of you. I wrote it down in the notebook last week: mackerel, beetroot, horseradish, rain. That was enough to remember it by.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
hot-smoked mackerel fillets
Quantity
2
cooked beetroot
Quantity
4-5 small
quartered
watercress
Quantity
2 generous handfuls
fresh horseradish
Quantity
2 tablespoons
finely grated
crème fraîche
Quantity
3 tablespoons
lemon
Quantity
half
juiced
extra virgin olive oil
Quantity
1 tablespoon
dill (optional)
Quantity
a few sprigs
fine sea salt and black pepper
Quantity
to taste
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| hot-smoked mackerel fillets | 2 |
| cooked beetrootquartered | 4-5 small |
| watercress | 2 generous handfuls |
| fresh horseradishfinely grated | 2 tablespoons |
| crème fraîche | 3 tablespoons |
| lemonjuiced | half |
| extra virgin olive oil | 1 tablespoon |
| dill (optional) | a few sprigs |
| fine sea salt and black pepper | to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •Mixing bowl for the dressing
- •Wide serving plates or a large platter
Instructions
- 1
Make the horseradish cream
Stir the grated horseradish into the crème fraîche with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Taste it. You want it sharp enough to make you sit up, a quiet burn that catches at the back of the throat. If it's polite, add more horseradish. It needs to hold its own against the smoke and the earth of everything else on the plate.
Fresh horseradish is worth finding. It's fiercer and more alive than the jarred kind, which has usually been tempered with vinegar and sugar. If fresh isn't available, use the best jarred horseradish you can get, the sort that makes your eyes water when you open it. - 2
Prepare the beetroot
Quarter the beetroot and spread them across your serving plates or a wide dish. If you've cooked them yourself, all the better, but the vacuum-packed sort from a good greengrocer work well here. Avoid the ones drowned in vinegar. You want earthy sweetness, not pickled sharpness. Drizzle a little olive oil over them and season with salt and pepper.
- 3
Flake the mackerel
Peel the skin from the mackerel fillets and flake the fish into large, generous pieces with your fingers. Don't be too tidy about it. You want rough, uneven chunks that show the grain of the flesh, bronze and gold on the outside, moist and smoky within. Scatter them over and among the beetroot.
Hot-smoked mackerel varies enormously. The best is oily, dense, and tastes of the sea as much as the smoke. If you can, buy it from a fishmonger rather than a supermarket shelf. The difference is the difference between a meal you remember and one you don't. - 4
Assemble the salad
Tuck the watercress in and around the mackerel and beetroot. Not on top like a garnish, but through it, so the peppery leaves are part of the dish. Spoon the horseradish cream over in rough, generous dollops. Tear the dill over everything if you have it. A final thread of olive oil. Carry it to the table.
Chef Tips
- •If you can roast your own beetroot, do. Wrap them in foil with a splash of water and roast in a hot oven until a knife slides through without resistance. The flavour is sweeter and more concentrated than anything from a packet. But a good vacuum-packed beetroot, the kind without vinegar, is an honest shortcut on a weeknight.
- •The balance of this plate lives in the horseradish cream. Too mild and it disappears behind the mackerel; too fierce and it's all you taste. Start with a generous amount and add lemon juice until it has a brightness that lifts the whole thing. Season and taste. Then taste again.
- •A few pickled walnuts, quartered and scattered through, are worth it if you keep a jar in the cupboard. They bring a vinegary depth that plays well against the smoke. Not essential. But worth writing down.
Advance Preparation
- •The horseradish cream can be made a few hours ahead and kept covered in the fridge. It will mellow slightly as it sits, which is no bad thing.
- •If roasting your own beetroot, they can be cooked up to two days ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before assembling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 350g)
Calories
590 calories
Total Fat
47 g
Saturated Fat
13 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
33 g
Cholesterol
120 mg
Sodium
1200 mg
Total Carbohydrates
16 g
Dietary Fiber
3 g
Sugars
11 g
Protein
28 g
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