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Mackerel croquettes with herby couscous

Preparation time
less than 30 mins

Cooking time
10 to 30 mins

Serves
Serves 4

By Matt Tebbutt
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the béchamel

  • 250–300ml/9–10fl oz full-fat milk (or any milk)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 2 thyme sprigs (or dried thyme or any other herb)
  • 30g/1oz unsalted butter
  • 50g/1¾oz plain flour
  • 100g/3½oz strong cheddar, grated (or any hard cheese)
  • 1 tsp hot pepper paste

For the mackerel croquettes

  • 2 x 125g tins mackerel (or any tinned fish, such as sardines or pilchards), chopped
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
  • 1 shallot, diced
  • 2 anchovy fillets, chopped
  • 100g/3½oz plain flour (or any flour)
  • 2 free-range eggs, beaten
  • 200g/7oz dried breadcrumbs (or any breadcrumbs, such as panko)
  • vegetable oil, for deep-frying
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the couscous

  • 400g/14oz couscous (or bulgur wheat), gently toasted in a dry pan
  • 1 tsp ground cumin (or any ground spice)
  • 1 tsp ground coriander (or any ground spice)
  • 1 red pepper, seeds removed and diced
  • 1 green pepper, seeds removed and diced
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh flatleaf parsley (or any soft herb)
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill (or any soft herb)
  • 1 chicken stock cube (or any stock cube)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

  • handful rocket leaves
  • 2 tbsp roughly chopped fresh dill

Method

  1. To make the béchamel, place the milk, bay, garlic and thyme in a saucepan. Place over a low heat and bring very slowly up to simmering point, which will take approximately 5 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and strain the milk into a bowl, discarding the flavourings. Gently heat the butter in a clean saucepan and once just melted, add the flour. Cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring vigorously to make a smooth paste. Gradually pour the infused milk into the butter mixture and whisk continually until you have a smooth sauce. Add the cheese, whisk until melted and then stir in the paste.

  2. To make the mackerel croquettes, mix the mackerel, dill, shallot and anchovies with the béchamel and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper and place in the fridge for at least an hour to cool and firm up.

  3. Fill a deep-fat fryer or a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan two-thirds full with the oil. Heat to 180C (a cube of bread should turn brown in one minute when dropped in.) CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended. Place the flour, egg and breadcrumbs in separate shallow bowls. Spoon out the mixture from the tray and form into small croquettes. Dip them first in the flour, then the egg and then coat them in the crumbs. Place into the deep fat fryer for 4–5 minutes, depending on the size of the croquettes, until golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

  4. To make the couscous, add all of the ingredients to a large bowl except the stock cube and oil. Dissolve the stock cube with boiling water and pour just enough stock into the bowl to cover the ingredients. Cover and allow to absorb for 20 minutes, then stir in the oil and season with salt and pepper.

  5. Serve the croquettes with the couscous, rocket and a sprinkling of dill.

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