"Quickies" 22 - Salcombe Smokies

A foody highlight of the South Hams are the Salcombe Smokies produced in Fore Street Kingsbridge by the Catch of the Day fishmongers. Mackerel caught locally and smoked on the premises in state of the art smokers in the cellars of this high street shop.

In September 2025 I was completing a small photo project for my blog which I have now published here. It was a stroll around Kingsbridge doing close ups of the town, but when I reached Catch of the Day in Fore Street and asked if I could take a close up of my favourite local speciality, I was given a quick tour of the smokery too which was a bonus. So here is a post dedicated to Salcombe Smokies.

"At Catch of the Day Kingsbridge, Darren and Emma will give you a warm welcome into their shop and they will be happy to guide you through your selection of fish products using the knowledge they have gained in over 40 years combined experience in the fishing industry. We offer a wide selection of the finest, freshest fish, caught from Plymouth and delivered straight to the shop on a daily basis, where we prepare it to your requirements. Having been established for over 70 years, we pride our business on our award-winning seafood. Not to mention our famous Salcombe Smokies that attract people from miles around!"

First thing you need are the fillets of mackerel, here seen on ice, waiting to go into the smoker.

Here are the smoking racks fresh out of the smoker. Smoked mackerel is an oil-rich fish preserved by curing and smoking, highly valued for its flavour and health benefits, particularly its high content of omega-3 fatty acids. It is commonly available year-round in various forms, including whole fish and fillets, and can be enjoyed both hot and cold.

They are incredibly versatile, making both a great winter warmer dish layered in potatoes onion, fennel and a creamy sauce or flaked in a salad in summer drizzled with a vinaigrette.

Torbay Express and South Devon Echo - Friday 22 August 1997

Devon's foodie delights

........But if you're a serious seafood fan you can't ignore Salcombe Smokies. In fact many locals

are convinced this is the ultimate mackerel. The product of Salcombe Smokers, the succulent hot-smoked fillets are available in a lot of delicatessens.

I love them with jacket potatoes, fresh, crisp runner beans, and a dark apple-rich vintage cider that fizzes and bubbles over the taste left behind by the smoked fish. The wedding of orchard bubbly and the heavenly seafood is a liaison fantastique, something the Sunday Chimes would celebrate if it wasn't so London-orientated.

This is my most used recipe, sort of. Recipe is probably too precise a word for this, as it is pretty much just an idea of what you can do with them.

Recipe time.

I use large flakes of 2 smokies for this. No measurements I'm afraid, just go for it.

You need.......

Potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced, not too thin, about 3mm or eighth of an inch so they have some bite when cooked.

Thinly sliced onions, as many as you like, probably 50/50 with the potato. At this point something like sliced fennel is a great addition.

About 300 ml of double cream, thinned a little with about one third of that amount of milk. Stir up the milk and cream. But you can use as much as you like, experiment guys.

If you are in the mood some Panko breadcrumbs and grated cheese mixed together to finish it.

Salt, pepper and Mace. It must be Mace but it is powerful so if you are not familiar we are talking pinches not spoonsful.

The rest is easy, throw it all in a baking dish and put in a hot oven to cook.

More precisely, I alternate layers of sliced onion and fennel and sliced potato and flaked fish, probably two layers of each ending up with potato on top.

As you go, sprinkle the salt, pepper and Mace finishing up with a sprinkle on top. Pour over the milk and cream which dissolves all of your seasonings.

I then pop it covered into the microwave on full nuclear fission for ten minutes to get it going. In fact to get all it's little molecules vibrating to be exact.

Then I take off the lid and throw on the panko breadcrumb and cheese mix and put it in a fan oven on 180 C uncovered.

After about 35 minutes check it is toasty and brown on top, and stick a sharp knife into the potato layers. The knife should go in without resistance, otherwise just leave until it does.

That is Salcombe Smokies for you, smoked on these very premises in the cellar.

That will feed one or six, depending on how many of you intend coming to venture down Squeezebelly Lane.

Bones. Yes I have to mention bones. Although filleted, they have a line down the middle of pin bones. These are very easily removed with a tweezers or designer finger nails, in a couple of minutes, and I am now an expert. I will do a separate post about pin boning smokies next time I get some. The bones are easy to spot too as when they are hot smoked the fish shrinks while the bones do not. If you have a close look at the top photo you can make out down the middle a row of tiny points sticking up, these are they. When cooked they are easily pulled out. If definitely is worth doing.

Torbay Express and South Devon Echo - Saturday 23 May 1992

THINK of South Devon and several things come to mind; the sea, safe beaches, red cliffs, Dartmoor, clotted cream and cider. But for the casual gourmet and the more fastidious gastronome our celebrated red soil corner of England has a lot to offer.

Seafood

Mackerel - This fish is a Westcountry favourite. My dad liked them soused in rough cider but I prefer a feed of young mackerel known locally as "joeys" which were sometimes available straight off the boats in Paignton and Brixham harbours.

Salcombe Smokies - Many locals believe this is the ultimate mackerel. The succulent hot-smoked fillets can be bought at Salcombe Smokers in Kingsbridge......

Torbay Express and South Devon Echo - Saturday 10 August 1991

CLOTTED cream and cider and pasties spring instantly to mind when someone starts putting together a Devon menu but there are a lot of surprises on the shelves of the red soil pantry for anyone prepared to look closely.

FISH DISHES

With an English Channel coast and a Bristol Channel coast you would expect the sea to yield a rich harvest for Devon's cooks. Take joeys, for instance. That's Devonian for young mackerel, and they're delicious fried in butter and served with new potatoes.

Larger mackerel adopt a distinctive taste if they are soused in rough cider or cider vinegar, but among my favourite dishes are Salcombe Smokies. These succulent hot smoked mackerel fillets are difficult to resist. I buy mine in Salcombe or Kingsbridge at Salcombe Smokers which also sell shellfish and smoked prawns.

Plymouth Extra - Thursday 27 July 1995