BARLEY RISOTTO WITH BEETROOT, PEAS AND LEMON-CHILLI OIL BUTTERNUT SALAD
SERVES 4
4.8g ‘I love this risotto – a feast for the eyes and the tastebuds, with wholesome, nutty flavours from the pearl barley and groundnut oil, deep earthy goodness from the beetroot and a pop of spring freshness with each tiny petit pois,’ says Jack Monroe. ‘If you’re stuck for time or pans, you can fling the beetroot in with the onion at the start – the vacuumpacked varieties work just as well as fresh ones.’ The lemon-chilli oil is optional, but is worth adding if you aren’t suffering with a sore mouth. This dish provides a bountiful selection of vitamins, including folate, beta-carotene and vitamin E.
500g fresh beetroot, peeled and diced (or use vacuum-packed and skip the first step)
1 litre hot chicken or vegetable stock
25g unsalted butter
1 onion, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
250g pearl barley
100ml red or white wine or water 200g frozen petits pois or other small green vegetable (such as green beans, broad beans, tenderstem broccoli or sugar snaps)
small bunch of parsley, chopped, to serve
FOR THE OIL (OPTIONAL)
zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon 2 tbsp groundnut oil pinch of dried chilli flakes
Put the beetroot in a saucepan and cover with some of the stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until tender – about 15 minutes.
Melt the butter in a large, shallow saucepan or frying pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook over a low heat until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the pearl barley and stir for a minute until well coated with the butter, then add the wine or water. Turn up the heat to medium for a minute and allow the wine to bubble and reduce.
When the beetroot is tender, blitz in a blender with the remaining stock. Add this, a ladleful at a time, allowing the barley to absorb most of the liquid before adding the next ladleful. Repeat until the pearl barley is soft, swollen and slightly sticky – about 30 minutes.
Toss in the frozen peas and stir through. Cook for a couple of minutes.
To make the lemon-chilli oil
(if using), mix the lemon juice and zest with the oil and chilli, then drizzle this over the top of the risotto. Serve with lots of freshly ground black pepper and some chopped parsley.
TIP This risotto will freeze well – just make sure you do so as soon as it has cooled to room temperature.
To make the chermoula paste, heat a frying pan and toast the coriander and cumin seeds. Leave to cool, then grind to a powder in a mortar and pestle. Tip into a bowl. Add the garlic, saffron, chopped herbs, salt, paprika, chilli and preserved lemons. Stir well, then mix in the olive oil. Spoon half the chermoula paste into a dish and lie the mackerel fillets on top. Spoon the remaining paste over the top to cover the fish. Leave to marinate for 15 minutes.
To make the salad, heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat, tip in the butternut squash and cook for 5-6 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and add the rocket, tomatoes and spring onions.
Using a spoon, dig out the pomegranate seeds from the skin and tip into the salad. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar and arrange on to four serving plates. When you’re ready to cook the fish, heat the oil in a nonstick frying pan over a high heat. Place the mackerel fillets, skin-side down, into the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the skin has coloured. Flip over the mackerel and cook for a further
3-4 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. Towards the end of the cooking time, tip any remaining chermoula into the frying pan with the mackerel.
Place the mackerel fillets on top of the salad and serve, spooning over the chermoula from the pan.