The Atlantic Mackerel is part of the Chub mackerel family, but the more cold, northern Portuguese and European waters. It is a blue fish, extremely fat. To take advantage of its juices and to feel its fat in a soft and pleasant way, it is important to consume it very fresh. It is delicious in various ways: on the grill, boiled in water and salt, in the oven, smoked and raw.

The small ones are called “massacotes” and are fundamental in a good fish castor. The biggest axillary seabreams can have between 300-40 0g and can weight up to 400-600 g maximum. They are excellent for grilling and frying. Try this delicious recipe from Chef Bertílio Gomes!: Beans and “botagem” salad with fried Axillary seabreams.

This one is a representative of the Azores Island marine fauna! Regarding Portuguese waters, this specie is not found on the mainland coast, being exclusively caught in Azores Archipelago waters. The Barracuda is a very fast and greedy predator that patrols the submarine peaks in search for other fish. Its head and mouth are very intimidating, but on the plate it has a very nice flavour, having a moderately white meat, but soft texture.