Ingredients

• 4 medium mackerel
• butterflied
• pin bones removed
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 good-quality pork sausages
• filling squeezed out
• skins discarded
• 1 bunch fresh tarragon
• chopped
• 1 bunch fresh flatleaf parsley
• chopped
• 500g/1lb 2oz all-butter puff pastry
• 2 free-range egg yolks
• beaten
• ½ cucumber
• peeled
• halved lengthways
• seeds scooped out
• sliced
• pinch sugar
• 2 tbsp cider vinegar
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 bunches watercress
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• squeeze lemon juice

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• Season the mackerel with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Mix the sausagemeat
• tarragon and half of the parsley together in a bowl.
• Spread the mixture over the cut side of the mackerel
• then fold each mackerel in half along the spine. Chill in the fridge.
• Meanwhile
• cut the puff pastry into four pieces and roll each piece out to a 5mm/¼in thickness.
• Wrap each fish in a piece of pastry
• leaving the mackerel tail poking out
• trim any excess and crimp the edge like a pasty.
• Brush the top of the pasties with the beaten egg and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes
• or until the pastry is cooked through and golden-brown.
• Mix the cucumber
• sugar
• vinegar and salt together in a bowl and set aside for five minutes
• stir in the remaining parsley.
• To serve
• toss the watercress with the olive oil and squeeze of lemon juice. Serve the pasties with the watercress and cucumber salad alongside.