Recipe... Around the world in 7 days with Princes Mackerel

At the start of the New Year, I like to clear out the cupboards, read up on some new recipes and give our daily meals a bit of an overhaul. We all tend to have the best of intentions, don’t we, when a new year begins? And I have a fun and healthy recipe idea to share with you, in collaboration with Princes.

Having a well-stocked cupboard is really useful when preparing midweek meals and we always have some cans of tuna and some veggies too. But how about mackerel fillets? I really like mackerel, particularly in salads, but have never tried anything other than plain fillets. Princes has a full range of mackerel fillets in a variety of delicious sauces and I have been experimenting to come up with a tasty dish using their Mexican flavour.

I love Mexican food and mackerel is packed full of omega-3 fatty acids and so good for you, so I had a lot of fun putting this together. I wanted to create a quick dish that’ll appeal to little ones, mixing in that mackerel with a few different colourful veggies so that all the good stuff is hidden from any fussy eaters, and that’s quick to prepare too.

So, let me introduce you to my Mexican Mackerel Boats…

Mexican Mackerel Boats

Serves: 2-4 people (depending on size of appetite, with some filling left over)

Time to prepare: 25 minutes, from start to finish

Difficulty: easy peasy (little ones can help with the mixing!)

Ingredients:

1 x 190g can Princes Mackerel in a Chipotle Mexican Style Sauce

2 x jacket potatoes

1 x red pepper

3 x spring onions

1 x small tin sweetcorn

Grated cheese, to top the potatoes

Method:

1. Pop your jacket potatoes in the microwave for 12-15 minutes, depending on size. You can pre-heat the oven on a high gas mark to quickly brown off the skin once they are cooked through, if you like your jackets this way.

2. While your potatoes are cooking away, prepare your mackerel and veg. First, open your can of Princes Mackerel in a Chipotle Mexican Style Sauce and use a fork to mash the fillets up, creating a saucy mix that’s got an even consistency Put to one side.

3. Slice your red pepper into strips then cut crossways so you have small diced pieces. Add to the mackerel.

4. Trim the spring onions and finely slice. Add to the mackerel mix.

5. Drain your sweetcorn, then add. Stir into the bowl of mackerel, pepper and spring onion. Now, you can pop this into the microwave for a minute, to heat it all through (Princes says that the fillets are even better hot, but it’s up to you).

6. When your jacket potatoes are ready – whether straight from the oven or after 5 minutes of browning in the oven – cut them in half and let the steam escape. Then take a small spoon and scoop out the fluffy insides. Top tip: Don’t scoop too close to the skin, as you need this to keep its shape.

7. Add the fluffy potato to the bowl with the mackerel and veg, and mix together well. The sauce will help bind everything together nicely.

8. Fill the jacket skins back up with the mackerel mix – as much as you can stuff in!

9. Place each jacket skin on a wire rack, sprinkle with grated cheese then place under the grill for 2-3 minutes, until the cheese melts and goes all bubbly.

10. Your Mexican Mackerel Boats are ready to be devoured! Serve up with some salad. 

Top tip: You could make some guacamole if your children don’t mind a bit of green. Simply mash an avocado, add the juice of a lime, some sliced spring onions and a twist of salt – and some chopped jalapenos for adults!

This recipe was so easy to put together, is full of good things and a great way to sneak in some oily fish and veggies if your kids are less than keen. The fluffy potato and cheese are familiar, popular flavours and the sauce from the fillets is delicious and binds everything together nicely. It’s also cheap and quick to make – a winner for any busy mum sticking to a budget.

Top tip: If you have some filling left over, it’ll keep in the fridge for the next day, or you could roll into balls, dust with a little flour then pop on a baking sheet until golden to enjoy as some Mexican potato and mackerel bites. Yum!

The Princes Mackerel range has a wide selection of flavours inspired by cuisines from all over the world – visit www.princes.co.uk/around-the-world to find out more.