This recipe is full of Mediterranean flavours and is easy to prepare in advance, ready to be placed on the barbecue and cooked.
SERVES 4
- 8 medium tomatoes, each cut into 4 wedges
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 brown onions, roughly chopped
- 1 orange pepper, finely diced
- 50ml Pernod (or other aniseed-based liqueur)
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 whole large mackerel, approx 170g, cleaned and gutted
TO SERVE
- 2 lemons, cut in half
- Begin by cutting four pieces of baking parchment about the same length as your fish and four pieces of foil a little larger than that. Place each piece of foil beneath the baking parchment and set aside.
- Put the tomatoes, garlic, onions, and pepper with the Pernod in a large mixing bowl. Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper and mix together.
- Place each fish on top of the pieces of baking parchment and foil, and cover with about a quarter of the tomato and onion mixture. Roll the paper and foil around the fish and seal by crimping the edges. Set in a fridge for a few hours to marinate.
- When ready to cook, preheat a grill plate on the barbecue before placing the mackerel packages on top. Cook with the lid closed for 5 mins, then carefully open the packages and cook for a further 5 mins with the lid open to reduce the amount of liquid in the packages.
- Serve straight from the barbecue, each with half a lemon.
Recipe by Mat Follas from The Mediterranean, published by Ryland Peters & Small