- 8 ripe vine tomatoes, chopped
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 red chilli, de-seeded, chopped
- 3 free-range egg yolks
- 1 tsp English mustard
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- 300ml/10½fl oz light olive oil
- 50ml/2fl oz double cream
- 2 mackerel, gutted, filleted, pin-bones removed
- 4 rashers smoked streaky bacon, grilled until crisp and cut into small pieces
- 8 cherry tomatoes
- 2 Little Gem lettuces, leaves separated
- 110g/4oz samphire
- 10 basil leaves, ripped up
- For the tomato stock, place the tomatoes, vinegar, garlic, sugar and chilli into a bowl. Season with a bit of salt and stir until well combined. Spoon the tomatoes into a large piece of muslin and hang it over a bowl in the fridge overnight or for at least six hours. Reserve the liquid collected from the tomatoes (the tomatoes can be used in another recipe).
- For the sauce, mix the egg yolks, mustard and vinegar together in a bowl until well combined. Slowly whisk in the oil until the mixture thickens into mayonnaise. Whisk in the cream.
- Add a ladleful of the reserved tomato stock, then heat the sauce in a saucepan over a low heat, whisking continuously, until warmed through.
- Heat a frying pan until hot and fry the mackerel, skin-side down, with the bacon for one minute. Add the cherry tomatoes, drizzle with a little oil and a sprinkling of salt and cook for a further 3-4 minutes.
- Remove the mackerel and tomatoes from the pan and set aside.
- Add the lettuce and samphire to the pan used to cook the fish and cook for one minute.
- To serve, spoon the tomatoes and lettuce mixture onto serving plates. Top with the mackerel and spoon over the sauce. Sprinkle over the basil leaves.