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Purple. Ninja. Radishes. If ever you have an opportunity to feature purple ninja radishes in appetizer or entrée, you must. So we have this: what we'll refer to on this page as tinned mackerel cakes, using the same recipe as the one for our Better Big Mac(kerel) patties, but here setting the mackerel atop a slice of olive oil drenched toast and slathered with roasted garlic hummus, those purple ninjas with a place of prominence for a good pop of color and delicious crunch.
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A better Big Mac(kerel). That’s right. Tins of mackerel turned into sweet paprika-spiced patties, with a saffron-Dijon special sauce, for a burger that'll make everyone swoon. Sure, the drive-thru beef option has its place, but with mere minutes of preparation you can do so much better.
Picture yourself on a warm summer's afternoon in a backyard patio full of lush greenery, sitting at a table surrounded by friends, a crisp and cold pint in hand, and this beauty of a burger before you. Make the dream reality.
Total Time: 15-20 minutes, or thereabouts.
Servings: 4 burger sandwiches.
for the dressing
for the patties
for the rest
1. Mix up all the ingredients for the dressing in a nice little bowl. Whisking is probably the way to go about this.
2. In a much larger bowl, empty the tins of mackerel fillets, crack the couple of eggs, add paprika, sea salt, garlic, and scallions.
3. Go to town mashing and mixing and shaping the combination into patties of appropriate size. Above, you'll see patties shaped just so for the buns procured. Maybe you'd like to go vertical with the double-decker style. Or perhaps you're more a fan of the oversized patty, boldly stretching beyond the edges of the bun. The choice is yours.
4. Over medium heat, cook patties about three minutes on each side.
5. Top with more scallions, radish slices for a pleasing crunch, and the saffron-Dijon sauce.
6. Eat in silence, not because of any underlying resentment toward those you're sharing a meal with, but because you are all relishing the joyous melody of complementary of flavors inherent in each bite. Nod approvingly at each other, and smile.
Inspired by this video from Gordon Ramsay.
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Sometimes, a small piece of toast and a good slab of butter is all the accompaniment you need.
Our Cantabrian anchovies in a combo that will convince all to love the tiny fish.
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Our first in a series of customer serving suggestion favorites (thanks, Jim L.!) was also a tapa of great renown at Bar Biscay in Chicago (thanks chef Johnny!), that particular incarnation featuring radishes, if you'd like to mix it up a bit.
Get your hands covered in butter and wine and enjoy.
Total Time: 10 minutes.
1. Heat butter and olive oil in a pan of appropriate size, then add that minced garlic until the wonderful scent begins wafting through the kitchen. We'll say this is a minute or two.
2. Pour in the wine, then drink some, because drinking wine while cooking is one of life's great pleasures.
3. Bring it to a simmer and add the razor clams, until the clams are desirably warm. Maybe add a bit more butter here? You really can't go wrong with more butter, but the choice is yours.
4. Top with freshly ground black pepper with an option for a sprinkling of chopped parsley, and serve alongside a sizable loaf of freshly baked bread, very crusty, good for breaking off big chunks to then soak in the sauce so you get every last drop.
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A little fish from Spain, a little sauce from Italy, a little bread from the bakery down the street. You have yourself a tapa.
The sauce for Pasta Milanese last night becomes a perfect tapa topping the next, a harmonious combination of spicy red pepper flakes, sweet tomatoes, and salty Cantabrian anchovy fillets.
Total Time: an hour last night, but tonight just the amount of time it takes to grab it from the refrigerator and slice up the bread.
1. We used an adaptation of a recipe by chef Nick Lama of Avo in New Orleans from the Wall Street Journal (subscription maybe required). For the details, please see the article.
2. Basically, you're putting a few anchovies, olive oil, onion, fennel, and garlic in a pot until golden, then adding fennel seed, black and red pepper, then some white wine, followed by hand-crushed (very satisfying) tomatoes. Simmer and stir for 45 minutes or so.
3. Put it in the fridge over night.
4. For the tapa, simply put a heaping spoonful on fresh crusty bread or toast, and artfully place Cantabrian anchovy fillets on top of that heaping spoonful. Toasted breadcrumbs go on top of that.
A meal one night, an appetizer the next. Not a bad deal.
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Some tinned sardines require few words. One example? Our sardines in escabeche. Just look at them. Straight from the tin.
However, if you would like some words, here's what Tom U. wrote:
Amazing flavors … Best sardines ever! What an amazing combination of flavors! I’ve indulged in sardines every week for the last 50+ years and these are the VERY best I’ve had! They even brought me good luck as a stream snack on my recent trout fishing expedition! Thank you!
These lucky sardines can be yours, via this very website. Enjoy.
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Looking for a simple weeknight supper recipe that seems like it took ages? Your search is over. See above.
How do you make what you see above? Easy:
Total Time: The time it takes to cook linguine, plus two minutes.
1. Boil some water and cook linguine, as you do. The box will be more specific.
2. Open a tin or two (or three) of small scallops in sauce (zamburiñas en salsa de vieira).
3. When the pasta is done, pour out most, but not all, of the water. You'll want to keep some for the next bit.
4. Mix scallops and ricotta with the pasta (and the bit of pasta water remaining) until you feel good about what you see.
5. Serve topped with fresh basil and black pepper, to the delight of all.
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Behold: Mack, Mac 'n' Cheese. For decades, scientists believed mac 'n' cheese could only possibly contain one mac. No longer. Donostia Foods Mackerel Fillets in Olive Oil bring a whole new mack to the dish, a discovery sure to change the world as we know it. Inarguably the most important news you've read today.
You probably have a favorite mac 'n' cheese recipe. We are all very particular about this. Stick with the one you love. And enhance it with mackerel fillets. You will approve of this slight but delicious variation with a smile and nod.
What you see above includes the mackerel fillets (obviously), macaroni (again, obviously), and also cheese (Swiss and cheddar), broccoli, mushrooms, green peppers, red peppers, onion, and spinach.
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Yet another new addition to our selection of tinned seafood? Yes. Creating something new from two classics, we now have our unparalleled sardines drenched in the same tangy, tantalizing marinade of our mussels in escabeche. A new superstar of tinned fish.
To concoct the savory sandwich you see above, simply open a tin of sardines in escabeche and add baby spinach, heirloom cherry tomatoes, crispy onions, slices of chevre and pile it all atop a sesame seed bun. A simple yet sensational lunch.
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You need not much to accentuate the deliciousness of the latest addition to our tinned fish collection. Our small scallops in sauce, Zamburinas en salsa de Vieira, are a flavorful tapa straight from the tin. Or, if you'd like to spend but a few minutes creating something unusual yet no less delectable, you can warm them gently in a pan while you pop some hash browns in the toaster. Slice up a few guindilla peppers while all else is heating, and combine them along with a few turns of freshly cracked black pepper and you'll have yourself an appetizer that will appeal to everybody.
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Donostia Foods had not one, but two of our foods mentioned in The Wall Street Journal just before Christmas. And it brought a tsunami. The best possible kind.
About our cod fish in Biscayne sauce, writer Benjamin Kemper says, "Salsa vizcaína is a Basque classic made from choricero peppers and onions. This rendition and the tender cod it swaddles taste so uncannily homemade, you could serve it to a Spanish abuela and she wouldn’t bat an eyelid."
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As for our anchovies, he says, "Forget the limp, bristly, oversalted anchovies of bad Caesar salads and worse pizzas. Donostia’s anchovies are the real deal, wild-caught off the Cantabrian coast and salt-matured for six months."
Read Benjamin Kemper's full article at wsj.com.
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See additional details and serving suggestions for each by clicking the delectable photos above.
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Our adaptation of a classic montadito, the blissful pairing of white anchovy (boqueron) and dark (anchoa). Our tale begins, as many do, with bread. In this instance, toasted. Then we see freshly grated tomato pulp with garlic and black pepper come into the picture, the always welcome pan tumaca-type topping. Roasted green peppers now join the assemblage, after a brief cooldown period.
Then... the glory.
A plump, juicy, tangy, delicious boqueron marinated in wine vinegar and olive oil is laid across the top, quickly joined by its perfect complement, the salt-cured anchoa. Finally, fresh parsley completes the ceremony. The best of both styles of Cantabrian anchovy, together forever* in one pintxo.
Total Time: 10-15 minutes.
1. Warm a little olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Throw in slices of the green bell pepper. Keep an eye on this until you've reached your desired level of roasted pepper.
2. While your doing the above, or after if you'd prefer to focus on each step singularly, cut a fresh tomato in two and grate the pulp into a bowl. Add some minced garlic and black pepper.
3. Toast your tiny toasts.
4. Once the green peppers are out of the pan and cooled for a few minutes, layer on top the tomato mix, green pepper, white anchovy, dark anchovy, and fresh parsley.
5. You just made something delicious. Well done, you.
*Until you eat them.
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