I have just dressed a crab for the first time. A Scottish one. At Billingsgate Fish market in London, which offers the largest selection of fish in the UK. The occasion was courtesy of Seafood Scotland, the umbrella organisation for promoting Scottish Seafood. It was awesome! Part of a day of filleting, gutting, skinning and generally preparing fresh whole fish and shellfish for the table. The group of invited food writers got up at 5am to see the market in action (by 8am they’re hosing down the stalls and starting to pack up for the day). It was really informative and now that I have the lowdown on all the cheap (Scottish) fish and shellfish, I will pass on the highlights. See the mackerel recipe below.

The first tip would be to tackle preparation yourself. To my shame I had never attempted a crab, and the odd recipe that I have devised using crab, has always been using tinned. But to be fair, you don’t really understand how to dress crab until you have seen it done before your eyes. All those step-by-step photos don’t really convey all the pushing and shoving, easing and delving about involved.   The other thing is that ”dead men’s fingers” aren’t poisonous! These are the crab’s feathery gills, which I always assumed were fatal. It’s best to take them off because the texture is rather unpleasant to eat. But you won’t give yourself gastro-enteritis, which is reassuring. I rushed home with my prepared crab, white and brown meat, and immediately made a crab quiche with dill, eggs, creamed Boursin, sun dried tomatoes for sweetness, feta and a finely chopped red onion. My kids devoured it and I am salivating over it for supper.

Whole fresh mackerel are currently £5.99/kg in Waitrose (3-4 portions) and your local fishmonger or market will be cheaper and fresher, I am betting. make sure they don’t smell tinny though (a sign they are starting to spoil). In any case this makes a cheapish, fabulous supper or main course, unusual enough for a dinner party.

Recipe: Grilled Sesame Mackerel

Ingredients (serves 2)

2 small whole mackerel, gutted (fishmonger can do this)

Marinade:

1/2 red chilli, deseeded and chopped

2 tsp grated root ginger

1 tsp honey

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sesame oil (can be ready toasted)

splash soy sauce

1 tsp sesame seeds

sea salt and black pepper

Method:

Mix all marinade ingredients together. Slash flesh of mackerel. Put fish on a rectangle of foil on a baking sheet and spread the marinade over. Leave to marinate 5-10 minutes. Grill on high heat 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked. The flesh will be opaque and firm to the touch. Serve with a salad comprising mixed leaves, peeled sliced cucumber, sushi ginger (try it!), mint and coriander leaves. Lime wedges are optional.