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Mackerel is a versatile fish with a distinct flavour. It is a very soft fish, rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, and there are countless ways to prepare it. Smoked mackerel is very well-known, but fresh mackerel can also be grilled or baked. You can use mackerel in a variety of ways!
The best-selling product from Mooijer-Volendam’s fish smokehouse is our smoked mackerel. Every day, our colleagues work very hard to meet our high-quality standards. Our smoke masters still work with real smoke to preserve the unique flavour experience of smoked mackerel.
Would you like to get acquainted with the top-quality mackerel products from Mooijer-Volendam? In this article, we explain in detail the variety of mackerel products and the various preparation methods. You can also check out our extensive mackerel assortment.
The topics covered in this article:
The mackerel is a ray-finned fish, and it belongs to the Scombridae family. They have the same typical characteristics as tuna, which also belongs to the mackerel family (Scombridae). However, mackerel are smaller and have a shorter life span than tuna. Mackerel is also known as ‘Atlantic mackerel’, ‘Boston mackerel’, ‘Norwegian mackerel’ or ‘Scottish mackerel’.
Mackerel are mainly steamed or smoked in the Netherlands rather than sold as fresh. That is because fresh mackerel has a short shelf life. In addition, the fish has a unique flavour, which not everyone likes when fried or grilled.
Mackerel has typical fish meat that distinguishes it from all other fish species. What makes the mackerel unique are the dark zebra-like stripes, its green-blue coloured back and silvery-white belly.
Even before the mackerel has been smoked or steamed, its red fish meat already has a smoke-like smell. Mackerel is a very oily fish and contains a lot of vitamin B12. You can achieve the daily recommended amount of Omega-3 fatty acids by eating just one portion of mackerel per week.
The fishing and storage methods of this popular fish are crucial as mackerel does not keep very long. How exactly is mackerel caught, and how can you keep it fresh?
The Dutch fishing boats go out all year round, making it possible for us to enjoy a delicious piece of mackerel throughout the entire year. Mackerel are found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Mackerel is a schooling fish and swims in large schools on the surface of the water, making it easy for anglers to catch large quantities of fish in a short period.
By using freezer trawlers, the mackerel is sorted and frozen immediately after being caught, therefore ready for sale at home and abroad on return – usually after two to three weeks.
Mackerel is not only a very healthy fish, but it is also a sustainable choice. Mackerel stocks are not endangered as they are closely monitored. That is partly because the mackerel is a pelagic fish species: they live in large schools in the water currents, not at the bottom of the ocean. Therefore, purse seines, pelagic trawls, and handlines are used to catch mackerel.
In the Netherlands, we mainly use pelagic trawls. This technique is also known as midwater trawling. This fishing technique does not damage the bottom habitat and has very little resistance, consuming a lot less fuel. The disadvantage of pelagic trawls is that there is always a bycatch.
Some fish species, such as tuna and cod, you never see in their entirety: as a customer, you will find the fish neatly filleted in the cooling, and as a buyer, you would normally buy the fish already filleted. That is not the case with mackerel, even though they are hardly ever sold fresh. Fresh mackerel is especially popular with foreigners who live in the Netherlands.
As fresh mackerel has a short shelf life, most mackerel is purchased steamed or smoked by wholesalers to resell. Raw, freshly frozen mackerel are also easy to buy and store. Mooijer-Volendam has a wide range of various types of mackerel, both smoked and frozen.
The demand for whole smoked mackerel has decreased over the years. Consumers are increasingly opting for convenience and prefer to buy ready-made products. Therefore, smoked and steamed filleted mackerel is now more popular than ever. A smoked mackerel fillet is also often bought with toppings such as pepper or paprika spices. At Mooijer-Volendam, the mackerel are prepared according to the wishes of the client.
Of course, there are always people who would rather fillet the smoked mackerel themselves. Without experience, this can be quite a tedious job. Mackerel have dozens of small bones that need to be removed with expertise. Before consuming a mackerel fillet , we advise you first feel in the middle of the fillet from top to bottom whether there are any small bones left behind.
As stated earlier, freshly smoked mackerel is the best-selling product from our fish smokehouse at Mooijer-Volendam. Our colleagues work hard every day to meet our high-quality standards. The smoked mackerel is prepared familiarly and traditionally in the fish smokehouse. Our smoke masters still work with real smoke to preserve the unique flavour experience of the smoked mackerel. Mooijer-Volendam’s ultramodern smokehouse is located in the brand new company building at Dwarskuul 2 in Volendam.
Mackerel can be fished all year round, but mackerel is only suitable for the smokehouse in December, January and the first two weeks of February. That has to do with the fact that mackerel must have a specific fat percentage, therefore, making it suitable for the smokehouse. Consequently, mackerel for smoking gets caught during a short period in the year, similar to herring, and processed in such a way, making it a top-quality product available all year round!
The mackerel arrive frozen at the mackerel smokehouse. Once defrosted, all the giblets get removed before they are smoked. This process is called gutting, just like with herring, but unlike herring, mackerel gutting is always done by machine.
After the mackerels organs have been removed, they are then pickled in sea salt. Once they have been in the brine long enough, the mackerel are strung on iron skewers and hung in the smoke-box. This process is clearly shown in the video below, recorded in the mackerel smokehouse of Mooijer-Volendam.
The smoking process takes around four/five hours in the smoke-box. Then the mackerel are put in a fridge to cool, and after cooling, the mackerel is ready to be filleted and packaged.
Just like an eel, smoked mackerel fillet is delicious on a sandwich, in a salad or on toast. The popular product is available at every fishmonger’s, ready-to-eat for immediate consumption. To enhance the flavour of the mackerel, the fillets are often served with a little bit of pepper and salt and sometimes topped off with a dollop of mayonnaise .
A question that fishmongers generally get asked: is the mackerel smoked or steamed?
Basically, the smoked mackerel you buy at the store for on your bread, is in reality, steamed mackerel. As with sprat, described in detail in the article ‘Sprat and the herring family‘.
Hot smoked mackerel is smoked for several hours at a minimum temperature of 62 degrees. Cold smoked mackerel is smoked for longer but at a much lower temperature of a maximum of 26 degrees.
The result? A completely different product from the same fish. Due to the low temperature, cold-smoked mackerel remains almost raw: the colour of the fish meat is a little greyer and slightly glassy. Due to the fish being in the brine longer, it is also much saltier.
In the Netherlands, the steamed (= hot smoked!) mackerel is a delicious delicacy. Because this fish is also ‘smoked’, confusion often arises between the meaning of smoked and steamed. A perfectly steamed mackerel will be golden in colour, shiny with a black band across its back, and slightly wrinkled. The fish meat will be creamy white, smooth and greasy, but not too greasy. Furthermore, the mackerel should not be too salty… and the taste should leave you wanting more!
Are you a wholesaler, company, speciality store, and are you curious about Mooijer Volendam’s range of mackerel products? At Mooijer-Volendam, we have a diverse range of mackerel products: from the very popular steamed mackerel fillets Likewise, Mooijer-Volendam is also the right place if you are looking for Indian mackerel.
Are you looking for good quality mackerel products? Then you’ve come to the right place. As a mackerel wholesaler, Mooijer-Volendam sets high standards for its quality. Our customers can rely on AAA product quality, which is what our customers demand from us.
This is why more and more clients know how to find us as a catering wholesaler or as a wholesaler for fishmongers, speciality stores and large retailers.
Are you curious about all our mackerel products?