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Smoked eel, bacon and watercress salad

Name: Smoked eel, bacon and watercress salad
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 8 thin bacon rashers; 2 free-range eggs, hard-boiled; 600g smoked eel fillets, skinned; 1 bunch watercress, leaves picked; Lemon wedges, to serve; 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 tablespoon salted baby capers, rinsed; 1 teaspoon Dijon or wholegrain mustard; 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives or dill

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by Jill Dupleix

Food writer

Oct 03, 2015

Smoked eel pairs so well with crisp salty bacon and peppery rocket or watercress.

8 thin bacon rashers
2 free-range eggs, hard-boiled
600g smoked eel fillets, skinned
1 bunch watercress, leaves picked
Lemon wedges, to serve

Dressing

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon salted baby capers, rinsed
1 teaspoon Dijon or wholegrain mustard
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives or dill

Method

1.

Fry bacon, in batches, in a dry frypan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes on each side until crisp. Drain on paper towel.
2.

Peel the hard-boiled eggs and cut into quarters. Break the eel into bite-sized chunks. Wash and spin-dry the leaves.
3.

For the dressing, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, capers, mustard, chives, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper in a large bowl until combined.
4.

Toss the smoked eel and the leaves gently in the dressing and arrange on 4 dinner plates with the quartered egg, bacon and lemon wedges.