The Irish attitude to fish has been ambivalent for a long time.

Probably this has to do with it having been mandatory once a week for most of the country for so long. It's a peculiar state of affairs when the very best Irish fish isn't to be found in markets at home, but instead winds up being sold at exorbitant prices in France and Germany. (EuroCuisineLady ate her very first Irish oyster in Zurich.)

But slowly attitudes are beginning to change. Partly this may have had to do with the various high-visibility TV chefs and other media personalities who've descended on Irish shores over the past decade and raved about the quality of the seafood. Whatever the cause, Irish fish are beginning to be seen as the cool thing to be eating. Which is nice, since not only do they taste great, but they're also good for you.

And chief among the Good For You fish is probably the handsome mackerel. Full of omega-3 oils and bearer of Good Cholesterol, mackerel is a win-win proposition from the nutritional point of view. What's almost suspicious, considering this, is how great its flavor is, and how well it picks up and enhances the flavors of what you cook with it.

This being Ireland, it's no surprise that bacon would involve itself in the process sooner or later. Oatmeal, too, turns up in this recipe: not the rolled kind, but the "pinhead" oat, which (crushed or ground down a little) makes a wonderfully crunchy crust with a nutty taste. And the oatmeal's healthy, too. The bacon fat is the only thing that's a little suspect, but think of it as being balanced out by all those omega-3 oils.

This is a quick dish to make, simple and hearty. Some people might like it as a starter, but it makes a great lunch, too (that being what EuroCuisineLady did with it after taking the pictures).

Click on "read more" for the recipe and method.

Ingredients:

Per serving:

• 1 mackerel, scaled and filleted
• 3 tablespoons pinhead oats
• 1 egg
• 2 strips or rashers of bacon
• 1 small onion, sliced into rings
• Salt and fresh-ground pepper to taste

Beat the egg in a small bowl: set it aside.

In a blender (or in a spice grinder if you have one) whizz half the pinhead oats until very finely ground. Put into a shallow bowl. Whizz the rest of the oats, but for a shorter time, so that they are a little coarser. Add to the rest of the oats and mix them together well. Season with salt and fresh-ground pepper.

Split each mackerel fillet down the middle. Dunk each piece in the egg, then in the ground oatmeal. Set aside.

In a heavy-bottomed frying pan, fry the bacon and remove: then fry the onions in the bacon fat. Remove them as well when slightly browned.

Add a little butter or oil to the pan if necessary and raise the heat. Fry the mackerel until the fish is partially cooked through and the crust on that side is well browned, usually about 3-5 minutes. Flip and do the same for the other side. Remove the pan from the heat a little before the fish is done.

Put the onions on a plate and arrange the mackerel on top. Chop or crumble the bacon, and sprinkle on the mackerel as a garnish. Serve very hot, with lemon wedges if you like, and possibly a green salad on the side. Either wine or Guinness will go very well with this.

Enjoy!