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Citrus-baked mackerel with couscous

Published: 28 Feb 07
Updated: 18 Mar 24

This lightly spiced dish, with mackerel and couscous, has a wonderful sweet and sour flavour, while the oranges take the edge off the oilyness of the fish.

Easy
March 2007

Test kitchen approved

for 4 people
Takes 20 minutes to make and 12-15 minutes in the oven

This lightly spiced dish, with mackerel and couscous, has a wonderful sweet and sour flavour, while the oranges take the edge off the oilyness of the fish.

Dairy-free recipes

Per serving: 664kcals, 42.7g fat (7.9g saturated), 42.6g protein,
34g carbs, 8.1g sugar, 0.4g salt

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Ingredients

2 oranges
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
2 tbsp olive oil
Thumb-size piece fresh ginger, grated
4 medium, whole fresh mackerel, gutted and cleaned

For the couscous
200g couscous
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
Juice of 1 orange
1 tbsp olive oil

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Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. For the fish, make a paste by mixing together the finely grated zest of 1 orange with the cumin, coriander, oil, ginger and some seasoning. Make 3 slashes on both sides of each mackerel, rub the paste inside and over the outside and transfer the fish to a large roasting tin lined with foil.
2. Cut the un-zested orange into round slices and stuff inside each fish. Juice the zested orange and pour over the fish. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the fish is cooked. A good test is to see if the top dorsal fin comes out easily – if it does, it’s cooked, if not, cook for a further 5 minutes and try again.
3. Meanwhile, put all the couscous ingredients into a large bowl. Pour over 225ml just-boiled water, cover with cling film and set aside for 5 minutes to absorb the liquid. Fluff up the grains with a fork and season to taste with salt and black pepper.
4. Carefully lift a mackerel onto each plate, spooning over the pan juices and rearranging the orange slices inside each fish. Spoon the couscous alongside to serve.