Mackerel in Quick Escabeche

Name: Mackerel in Quick Escabeche (Caballa en Escabeche)
Yield: Serves 6 to 8
Cuisine: Spanish
Ingredients: 2 bay leaves; ¼ teaspoon smoked sweet Spanish paprika; ½ cup sherry vinegar, preferably aged; Country bread, for serving; 1 jar (6½ ounces) marinated artichokes, drained; 4 medium-size garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed; 8 thick asparagus stalks, trimmed; ½ cup fragrant extra-virgin olive oil; All-purpose flour, for dusting the fish; Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper; 4 Spanish mackerel fillets (each about 8 ounces), each cut in half crosswise

Caballa en Escabeche

Preparation info

Serves
6 to 8

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The New Spanish Table

By Anya von Bremzen

Published 2005

About

Here’s chef Ferran Adrià’s delicious quick take on the classic Spanish dish escabeche. Though classic escabeches normally marinate for many hours, this fish is good to eat right away. Serve plenty of bread to sop up the tasty marinade. And feel free to try the recipe with other oily fish, such as bluefish or sardines.

Ingredients

4 Spanish mackerel fillets (each about 8 ounces), each cut in half crosswise
Coarse salt (kosher or

Europe
Spain
Starter
Pescatarian
Mediterranean

Method

Season the fish with salt and pepper and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Dust the fish very lightly with flour, shaking off the excess.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fish and cook, turning once, until brown and crisp, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the fish to a deep platter and pour off the oi