Tag: Potatoes

Categories
STARTERS/SIDES

Potatoes roasted in duck fat with Rosemary


1.5 kg/3 lbs floury potatoes, cut into 3 pieces, depending on size
1 cup/250 ml duck fat
Maldon sea salt
2 tablespoons/30 ml rosemary needles

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Place the potatoes in a saucepan of cold salted water and bring to the boil. Cook until halfway done (some resistance when pierced with a pointed knife). Drain, then return to the pan and shake well over medium heat to dry out and rough up the edges.  This is necessary to obtain the crispy edges.

Place the duck fat in a roasting pan, then heat for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, carefully add the potatoes to the duck fat and spoon over some of the fat. Sprinkle over the Maldon sea salt and rosemary, then return to the oven and roast, turning twice, for 45 minutes or until golden and crispy. Serve immediately

Categories
MAIN COURSE

PAN-ROAST FISH WITH MOREL SAUCE


Serve with creamy mash potato and spicy coleslaw.

Pan-fried fish with morel sauce

For the potato mash
1 kg/2 lbs potatoes, skin on
75 ml/⅓ cup of double cream
75 ml/⅓ cup milk
50 g/1.7 oz butter
salt and freshly ground white pepper

For the morel sauce
30 g/1 oz butter
2 shallots, finely chopped
8 dried morels
6 white peppercorns, crushed
4 red sorrel leaves
½ cup/125 ml Noilly Prat
1 cup/250 ml white wine
1 cup/250 ml prawn stock
¾ cup/175 ml cream
salt to taste

For the coleslaw
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely shredded
½ small cabbage, finely shredded
1 small apple, grated
½ cup/125 ml celeriac, finely shredded
½ red onion, finely chopped
2 spring onions, finely sliced
½ cup/125 ml fresh coriander

For the dressing
2 tablespoons/30 ml fresh ginger, minced
2 tablespoons/30 ml Japanese mayonnaise
2 teaspoons/10 ml rice wine vinegar
½ teaspoon/3 ml fine sugar
pinch of salt

For the fish
4 x 200 g firm white fish fillets, scaled and pin-boned, with skin on
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon/15 ml olive oil
1 tablespoon/15 ml butter

Panfried fish with morel sauce

  • For the potatoes and if you have the time, heat the oven to 180˚C/356°F, place the potatoes in the oven and cook until tender.
  • This will take about 90 minutes. Otherwise, boil them whole with skin on until totally soft.
  • Drain and remove the skin while still hot.
Put the potatoes through a ricer or, to make the mash really smooth, pass through a drum sieve. Stir some of the cream mixture through the potatoes and keep warm.
  • For the sauce, heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then add the shallots, morels, peppercorns and sorrel and lightly sauté until the shallots are translucent, but not brown.
  • Deglaze the pan with the Noilly Prat and reduce until about half. Then add the white wine and reduce again until half.
  • Finally add the prawn stock and cream and reduce again until half. Set aside for the flavors to intensify, then pick out the 8 morels and set them aside for garnish.
  • For the coleslaw, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle some lemon juice over, cover and set aside in the refrigerator.
  • For the dressing, whisk all the ingredients together and set aside.
    Pour the dressing over the slaw just before serving.
  • For the fish, preheat the oven to 100°C/212°F and season the fish. Heat a frying pan and add the oil and once the oil is hot, fry the fish skin side down for one to two minutes (depending on the thickness) when the skin turns golden, then add the butter and spoon the foamy butter over the fish whilst cooking for another minute.
  • Remove the pan from the heat and put in the oven for 5 minutes.
If you feel uncomfortable with the doneness of the fish or if your fish is very thick, let it cook for an extra minute but not longer.

To serve

  • Heat four serving plates.
  • When ready to serve, mix in a little more of the cream mixture to the potatoes until it reaches the consistency you want and gently reheat.
  • Strain the morel sauce, adjust the seasoning and gently reheat. Add the reserved morels.
  • Pour the dressing over the coleslaw and gently mix through.
  • Place dollops of mashed potatoes on each plate and top with a piece of fish. Pour the sauce around the fish, making sure that each plate has 2 morels, and scatter the coleslaw around.
  • Serve immediately.
Categories
SOUPS/SAUCES/CONDIMENTS

Crushed potatoes, green beans and shiittaki mushrooms


4 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 cm/0.4 in dice
250 g/9 oz green beans, top and tailed and cut into 1 cm lengths
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons/30 ml butter
250 g/9 oz shiittake mushrooms, stems removed, cut into 1 cm dice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup/125 ml parsley, finely chopped
10 drops of truffle oil
Parmesan cheese, grated (optional)

Cover the potatoes with water and bring to the boil.  Boil for 10 minutes then add the green beans and onions.   In a separate pan heat 1 tablespoon/15 ml of the butter and fry the mushrooms until tender.  When the potatoes are tender and the beans are almost cooked but still crispy, stir in the mushrooms.  Season with salt and pepper and let it heat through over very low heat for about ten minutes.  Gently stir through the chopped parsley and 10 drops of truffle oil and set aside in a warm place until ready to serve.  Sprinkle over some Parmesan cheese (optional).

Categories
SOUPS/SAUCES/CONDIMENTS

Tuna, potato and green bean salad


Serve with a green sauce, mustard vinaigrette and sour cream

LINE

Serves 4

This is a totally “free-style” version of the traditional Nicoise salad. It is fun to make because you can add, omit or swap ingredients every time you make it. It can be served as a starter or a light lunch, but it is very important for the tuna to be sushi grade. If any doubt, don’t use it as the tuna should really be rare in the middle.

TUNA NICOISE

The green sauce:
1½ cup/375  ml parsley
½ cup/125 ml mint
½ cup/125 ml dill
1 tablespoon/15 ml tarragon
5 canned anchovies, rinsed and pat dry
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
¼ cup/60 ml capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
olive oil
freshly crushed black pepper

The vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons/30 ml red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon/15 ml Dijon mustard
1 small garlic clove, minced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup/125 ml extra virgin olive oil

The salad:
400 g/14 oz fresh tuna fillet
250 g/9 oz potatoes, unpeeled
250 g/9 oz French beans, trimmed
2 large ripe tomatoes, skinned
2 tablespoons/30 ml vegetable oil

The sour cream:
2 tablespoons/30 ml fresh cream
4 tablespoons/60 ml plain yogurt
2 teaspoons/60 ml lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

The garnish:
½ small red onion, sliced in very thin rings, rinsed under cold running water
2 fresh free-range eggs, medium soft-boiled, shelled and quartered
4 black olives, stoned and halved
4 basil leaves, finely sliced

Trim the tuna and roll up tightly with cling wrap into a cylinder, then refrigerate.

Chop the herbs finely by hand and mix them with the anchovy, garlic and capers. Add olive oil just to loosen the paste, taste and season with black pepper (the anchovies is salty enough).

In a bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, garlic, anchovy paste, salt and pepper, then gradually whisk in the oil. Reserve 2 tablespoons/30 ml of the vinaigrette for the tuna.

Boil the potatoes in salted water until just tender. Set aside to cool then remove the skins and slice into 5 ml (0.2 in) slices and sprinkle some salt and pepper over.

Boil the green beans until tender but still crisp, drain and refresh in cold water. Drain again.

Slice the tomatoes so that you have 16 rings of about 8 mm/0.3 in thick.

Heat the oil in a frying pan, unroll the tuna, then sear all over for not longer than 30 seconds. Remove from the pan and pour over the reserved vinaigrette. Season and set aside until ready to use.
Whisk the cream until stiff, then fold in the yogurt, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. Set aside until ready to use.

To serve:
On each serving plate arrange the ingredients attractively and spoon the green sauce around.  Arrange the garnish all round and drizzle some more of the dressing over. Dot the green sauce with some sour cream, and finally sprinkle the basil over.