Stuffed Mackerel in the Oven with Vegetables

Name: Stuffed Mackerel in the Oven with Vegetables
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 2 carcasses (4 servings)
Ingredients: Mackerel – 2 pcs. Onion – 1 pc. Carrot – 1 pc. Zucchini – ½ pc. Sweet pepper – 1 pc. Tomatoes – 2 pcs. Garlic – 3 cloves. Cheese – 100 g. Black pepper, ground – to taste. Salt – to taste. Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp. Herbs – to taste.

Published: 06.09.2026

Updated: 06.09.2026

🤤 Здорові рецепти щодня

Cooking time 1 hour Portions 2 carcasses (4 servings)

The carcass here is cut along the back rather than along the belly, as people are used to doing. Through a cut in the back the backbone with the small bones comes out, while the belly stays whole — and it is the belly that holds the stuffing. A mackerel cut along the belly with the same filling will spread out over the tray in the very first minutes.

For the same reason the head and tail aren't cut off. They work as a frame: with them the carcass doesn't shrink in the oven and stays a recognizable fish rather than a roll. The gills, however, must be taken out — they stay in the head and give bitterness.

The vegetables for the stuffing are fried only until half done. They will spend another half hour in the oven, and brought to softness in the pan they turn there into a purée that runs out of the cut.

The moisture here is packed inside the fish. Small fish gets it from above instead, under a layer of sour cream, in baked Baltic herring with onion under sour cream, and a third answer seals each portion in foil with its own steam: baked pink salmon with potatoes in foil.

Caloric content: 205kcal

Ingredients

Mackerel – 2 pcs.
Onion – 1 pc.
Carrot – 1 pc.
Zucchini – ½ pc.
Sweet pepper – 1 pc.
Tomatoes – 2 pcs.
Garlic – 3 cloves.
Cheese – 100 g.
Black pepper, ground – to taste.
Salt – to taste.
Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp.
Herbs – to taste.

Cut along the back and remove the backbone

Thaw the carcasses in advance on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Make a lengthwise cut along the back and carefully remove the backbone with the small bones, the innards and the black membrane.

Take out the gills

Remove the gills but leave the head and tail on — with them the mackerel will keep its shape. Rinse the fish in cold water, salt and pepper it.

Fry the vegetable stuffing

Peel the vegetables, wash them and cut them into small cubes, chop the garlic with a knife. Heat the oil in a pan, first fry the garlic, then the onion with the carrot until translucent. Add the rest of the vegetables with the finely chopped herbs and fry only until half done. Salt it.

Stuff the carcasses

Line a tray or a dish with foil and move the prepared carcasses onto it. Pack the vegetable stuffing compactly into each one.

Sprinkle with cheese and bake

Grate the cheese on a coarse grater and cover the stuffing with it. Heat the oven to 200 °C and bake the fish for 25–30 minutes until the cheese crust is golden.

Serve

Move the stuffed mackerel onto a plate and serve it hot.

Notes

Take large mackerel. In a small carcass there is no room left for the stuffing once the backbone has been removed.
The garlic is fried first, separately. Thrown in together with the rest of the vegetables, it either has no time to give up its aroma or burns.
Cut the vegetables into small cubes. Large pieces don't stay in the carcass and fall out when it is moved.
Foil on the tray is compulsory. Cheese that runs off sticks to the metal for good.
Pack the stuffing compactly. Loose stuffing settles, and an empty space is left under the cheese crust.
It is good cold too. The same mackerel is served as a starter the next day — overnight the stuffing firms up and the carcass cuts into even slices.

Questions and Answers

Why is the cut made along the back and not along the belly?

Through a cut in the back the backbone with the small bones comes out, while the belly stays whole — and it is the belly that holds the stuffing. A carcass cut along the belly will spread out over the tray in the very first minutes.

Why leave the head and tail on?

They work as a frame: with them the carcass doesn't shrink in the oven and stays a recognizable fish rather than a roll. The gills, however, must be taken out.

Why are the vegetables fried only until half done?

They will spend another half hour in the oven. Brought to softness in the pan, they turn there into a purée that runs out of the cut.

Can this mackerel be served cold?

Yes, that is the second way of serving it. Overnight the stuffing firms up and the carcass cuts into even slices.

Recipe and step-by-step photos — kolizhanka.net.ua.