28 November 2021

Gurnard with shrimp and tarragon sauce




Pour 200ml of prawn bisque, the zest of 1/2 an orange, 2 tbsp orange juice with a chopped clove of garlic into a large saucepan and add 20g unsalted butter. Bring to the boil over a medium heat and then let it bubble to reduce down to about 150ml

Then add 2 tbsp cognac, 1 tsp tomato paste and 2 tbsp tomato frito.

Cook for 5 mins, then add 3g hacked tarragon.

For the fish, preheat an oven to 240°C/gas mark 9. Trim the edges of 2 gurnard fillets (poon) to neaten and season them with salt. Heat a large non-stock ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat.

When the pan is hot, add a drizzle of olive oil and carefully add the fish fillets skin-side down. Cook for 2 minutes, then transfer the pan to the oven and cook for a further 2–3 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven; the fish should still look a little translucent on the top

Carefully turn the fillets over and leave them to finish cooking in the residual heat for 30 seconds or so.

While the fish finishes cooking, give the sauce a good whisk and pour it equally into 2 warmed bowls. Using a palette knife, carefully lift each fish fillet from the pan and place on top of the sauce. 

Finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and serve straight away

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27 November 2021

Escargots served on a coulis of watercress with garlic crisps


To make the watercress coulis, pick 2 bunches of watercress (saving the branches for the sauce) and save some nice leaves for plating. Wash carefully
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook for 5 minutes, until the watercress is soft. Refresh in iced water then drain well

Blend the watercress in a blender until smooth, season with salt and pepper and set the purée aside

To make the garlic chips, peel 3 cloves of garlic and slice finely on a mandoline, or carefully with a sharp knife

Place 80ml milk and an equal quantity of water in a small pan, and bring to the boil. Add the garlic and cook the garlic for 1 minute. Repeat this process twice more with fresh milk and water

Drain the garlic and dry on kitchen paper

Heat 250ml vegetable oil in a small pan to 140℃ and fry the chips until golden brown, then drain on kitchen paper

To make the emulsion, sweat 1/4 chopped onion and the leftover watercress stems in 3g butter until soft then add 50ml milk and 10ml cream
Bring to the boil then remove from the heat. Infuse for 1 hour

Strain the emulsion then season with salt and add 3g butter

For plating, warm the emulsion and blend with a hand blender to create a foam

Just before serving, finish the watercress coulis. Heat a small saucepan and add 25g butter, cook until it reaches a nut brown colour then add the reserved watercress purée. Cook for a couple of minutes until the purée has reduced slightly

To warm the snails, melt 1tbsp butter in a frying pan, when it begins to foam add 12 pre cooked snails from a tin. Simmer for 2-3 minutes
Finish with 1tsp chopped garlic, 1tsp chopped parsley, 1tsp chopped shallots, salt and pepper

To plate, place a spoon of the watercress coulis on the bottom of the plate and using a ladle, push to the edges. Arrange the snails and garlic crisps on the plate and finish with the watercress emulsion. 

Garnish with rocket leaves, borage flowers and croutons


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Squid salad with 'nduja and crème fraîche


Buy cleaned squid tubes and cut one of them into evenly sized 0.5cm ringlets. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil and add the juice of a lemon. Drop the squid in for 30 seconds, strain and refresh in ice cold water. Remove from the water and store in the fridge until required.

For the 'nduja balls, mix 1/2 grated shallot with 40g 'nduja and 100g porc mince. Add 15g breadcrumbs, mix well and form into 8 (ca 20g) balls

Place a frying pan over a medium-high heat with a small amount of olive oil. Fry the balls until golden brown on all sides, remove from the pan, season with salt and allow to rest

Cut or tear a slice of sourdough bread into bitesize chunks. Mix with 1 tbsp olive oil, season with salt and place into a preheated oven set to 180°C/gas mark 4 for 10-12 minutes until crunchy and golden brown. Remove from the oven and store in a warm place

For the vinaigrette, combine 13ml Chardonnay vinegar, salt and 40ml good olive oil in a bowl, or container with lid. Whisk or shake until combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly

To prepare the salad, pick out 15g bright green frisée leaves and combine in a bowl with a sliced spring onion, 3g picked chervil leaves and 10g pea shoots. 

Just before serving, add the croutons and dress to taste

Pan-fry the squid in a very hot pan with olive oil for 10-15 seconds, remove. Reheat the 'nduja balls in the same pan. Serve the hot squid and 'nduja on the dressed salad with some dollops of créme frâiche to finish


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24 November 2021

Traybake with chicken, fennel and chorizo


It'll never win first price in a 'the art of plating' contest, but this is a delicious meal, full of flavours. And only 10 mins of work!

Pre heat the oven at 200°C

Quarter a red onion. Slice 2 fennel bulbs in 6 segments. Cut a 50g chorizo sausage in small cubes.

Put 2 chicken legs in a baking tray, surrounded by the onion, the fennel and the chorizo. Season with pepper salt, 1 tsp dried thyme and the zest of an orange.

Add 2 tbsp olive oil and the juice of 1/2 orange. Shake well to cover everything.

Put in the hot oven for 35 mins.

Take out and add 125g cherry tomatoes and bake for another 15 mins.

In a small bowl pour 1 tbsp of boiling water over a pinch of saffron and set aside. Put 2 crushed cloves of garlic, 2 egg yolks and 1 tbsp Dyon mustard into a food processor or blender. Blitz into a paste and very slowly dribble in 150 ml grapeseed oil to make a thick mayonnaise-style sauce. When everything's come together add the saffron, saffron water and the juice from 1/4 lemon, then season to taste. 

Serve with this aïoli.

(Recipe by Janneke Vreugdenhil in her Low-carb Bible) 


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22 November 2021

Soba noodles, salmon and cucumber bowl


Peel 1/4 cucumber, remove the seeds and slice thinly.

Peel a celery stick* and slice

Slice a spring onion

Mix 2 tbsp lime juice, 2 tsp sesame oil and 3 tbsp soy sauce to make a dressing

Toast 1 tbsp white and black sesame seeds.

Slice 150g fresh salmon in sashimi-bites

Bring 1l water to the boil, add 90g soba noodles and boil 4 mins. Rinse under the cold tap.

Serve as shown in bowls.

(Recipe from Janneke Vreugdenhil's Low-carb Bible)

* Use the celery leaves for a nice and crispy tempura:





21 November 2021

Tomato tartare


Halve 120g small tomatoes, sprinkle with salt, pepper, sugar, olive oil end lemon juice and bake in a 100°C oven for 4 hours. Peel and hack (or use 120g sun-dried tomatoes). 

Mix with 7g capers, 14g finely sliced cornichons, 7g Dyon mustard, 7g finely sliced parsley, 7g finely sliced shallot, 1/2 egg yolk, 3 drops of Tabasco, 3 drops of Worcestersauce, salt and pepper.

Sprinkle 3 pieces of Melba toast with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake in a 150°C oven during 5 mins

Then crush them

Serve as shown, the tartare on top of the crushed Melba, finish with edible flowers

(A Niven Kunz recipe)


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15 November 2021

Courgetti with anchovies, sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts


Slice 4 anchovies and 2 cloves of garlic very finely. Sweat them in 4 tbsp olive oil with a pinch of chili flakes till the fish have melted.

In the meantime slice 4 sun-dried tomatoes into strips, hack 12 black olives. Add to the pan with 2 tbsp pine nuts and 3 tsp capers. Warm in 2 mins.

Add 300g courgette pasta for 1 more minute.

Serve with grated Parmesan.

(Another Janneke Vreugdenhil recipe from her Lowcarb Bible)

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14 November 2021

Sea bass with Chinese five spice


For the sauce, bring 250ml fish stock to the boil with a knob of finely sliced fresh ginger, 1 thinly sliced garlic clove, 1/2 deseeded, chopped red chilli and 2 trimmed and sliced spring onions. Once boiling, add 1tsp soy sauce


Remove the skin from 2 sea bass fillets and place on a waxpaper in a steam basket. Season with salt and 1/2 tbsp Chinese five-spice then add thin strips of 2 spring onions and matchsticks of 1 carrot to the tray

Drizzle the fish in a few drops of sesame oil. Place into a steamer until cooked through, approximately 5-7 minutes

To serve, divide the fish into shallow bowls and ladle the hot sauce  and veggies over the top



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Yuzu scallops


Make the marinade by putting 2tsp yuzu paste into a deep saucer. Spoon 1,5tbsp water over the yuzu paste, and use the back of a teaspoon to mix it together

Place 2 scallops in the marinade for 10 minutes, turning them over half way through

Next, bloom 5g dried wakame by putting it in a dish and covering it with warm water
Make a dressing for the seaweed by mixing together 1tbsp rice wine vinegar, 1/2tbsp sake, 1/2tbsp soy sauce and 1/4tbsp caster sugar

Heat 1tbsp oil in a cast iron skillet. When it's just starting to smoke, put the scallops on the pan and cook for 2 minutes either side. Before you finish cooking, tip the remaining marinade over the scallops in the pan

To serve, toss the seaweed in the dressing and divide it between 2 plates. Place a scallop on each seaweed bed and garnish with 1tsp black sesame seeds. Serve immediately


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6 November 2021

Bowl with kidney beans, coffee and chocolat


Sweat a chopped onion for 10 mins, the add a sliced red chili and 3 finely sliced cloves of garlic.

After 1 min add 1/2 red and 1/2 green paprika, sliced in strips

After another 3 mins add 3/4 tbsp cumin powder, 1/2 tbsp dried oregano, 3/4tsp cayenne, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika and 1/2 tsp salt.

A minute later add 100ml vegetable stock, 40ml strong espresso, 10 halved cherry tomatoes and 200ml tomato frito. Bring to a boil, put a lid on the pan and then simmer during 1 hour.

Then add 225g kidney beans from a can, simmer for another 15 mins, then stir in 15g grated chocolate (80% or more, mine was 94%)

Taste and season.

Serve as shown with red onion, grated cheese, avocado, little gem and coriander. 

(Recipe by Janneke Vreugdenhil)

 

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1 November 2021

'Wraps' with pulled chicken, cole slaw and coriander mayo


Marinate 400g chicken thighs overnight in 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 and 3/4 tsp cumin, 1 tsp paprika powder, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/8 tsp salt, 1 tbsp white wine vinegar and 1 finely sliced clove of garlic.

Pre heat the oven at 100°C and bake the chicken in the marinade for at least 1 and 1/2 hour. 

In the meantime make a cole slaw from 150g white cabbage, 100g grated carrot, 1 finely sliced red onion, 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tsp olive oil, taste and season with salt and peper

Then put 50g mayo, 25g creme fraiche, 15g coriander , 1 clove of garlic, 1 tbsp jalapeño relish in the blender to make coriander mayo. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Add 2 tbsp to the cole slaw.

Pull the succulent meat apart with two forks




Use leaves of little gem as wraps, spoon in the chicken, then the slaw and finish with the mayo

(From the Koolhydraatarme Bijbel van Janneke Vreugdenhil)



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24 October 2021

Stuffed baby squid


Begin by making the tomato sauce. Put 150g very finely sliced onion into a saucepan with 1 tbsp olive oil and let it sweat slowly over a low-medium heat for around 15 minutes until it's soft (do not allow it to colour). If it looks as though it might catch, add a splash of water to the pan

Add 500g large, ripe tomatoes, 1tbsp tomato paste and season with salt. Leave to simmer over a low heat for about 45 minutes, until the tomatoes are thick and rich, adding a little water if the level of the liquid gets too low. Remove from the heat

Put 1/2 tbsp oil oil in another pan with 1 chopped clove of garlic and cook over a low-medium heat. When it's almost golden brown, add 10g basil leaves and stir. Pass the oil through a sieve into the cooked tomato sauce

Whisk the sauce to break up the tomatoes. If it's too thick, thin it with a little water, ideally some pasta cooking water. Pass the sauce through a wide-holed sieve resting over a bowl, and use the back of a ladle to extract the smooth mixture. I added 1tbsp homemade red pesto.

Check the seasoning and add more salt if necessary

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6

Blanch 60g frozen peas in boiling water for 30 seconds, then drain well

Put 2 baby squid (keep the tentacles) and 1 (boiled) egg white into a food processor and pulse until they are roughly chopped. Add 100g diced romano peppers, the blanched peas and 5g chives and continue to pulse until you have a coarse mixture

Use this mixture to stuff 4 baby squid, keeping some space free at the top. Place a piece of the tentacles at the end of the filling and close the calamari with a rosemary sprig or a toothpick

Trim the other end of each calamari to create a tiny hole and keep the filling from bursting out when cooking

Heat a large heatproof baking dish over a medium heat and fry a garlic clove in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add the calamari and fry for a couple of minutes until browned, then pour in 50ml white wine and let it evaporate over a medium-high heat

Add 200ml of the tomato sauce and 100ml fish stock, then transfer to the oven for 20 minutes. You can check the filling is cooked through by sticking a toothpick in the centre of the filling; it should feel hot when you touch your lips. Serve immediately

(Here Francesco Mazzei's original recipe)
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Beetroot röstis with hot smoked salmon and creamed horseradish



Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Coarsely grate 125g waxy potatoes and 125g yellow beetroot. Place in a clean tea towel or piece of muslin and squeeze out any excess liquid, then place in a bowl. Season lightly with salt and black pepper

Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and brush with a little of olive oil. Place two 8.5cm metal rings or cutters on the sheet and fill them the rösti mixture to form a thin cake. 

Drizzle the rösti with a bit more olive oil and bake for 15 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove from the oven and cover with foil to keep warm

Meanwhile, stir 1/3tbsp creamed horseradish into 1 tbsp crème fraîche and season with lime zest, dilll, salt and black pepper

To serve, place a rösti on each plate and top with flakes of hot smoked salmon and a teaspoon of the dill&horseradish cream. 

Garnish with a little black pepper and a sprinkling of chopped dill, and serve with a few watercress leaves.

Cook's tips

Make and cook the rösti several hours in advance. Reheat in a hot oven for 5 minutes before serving.

(A Country Living recipe)

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18 October 2021

Hot smoked salmon amuse



< Dill

< Wasabi sesame 

< Mustard sauce

< Hot smoked salmon

< Wakamé/cucumber






Mix 1tbsp whole grain mustard, 1 tbsp sugar, 1/2 dl sour cream and 1/2tbsp white wine vinegar in the blender blender. Whisk in 1/2dl sunflower oil, bit by bit, to create a nice emulsion. Taste and season.

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15 October 2021

Julia Moskin's Best Chicken Salad


    
What lifts chicken salad up is the pure, clean texture of breast meat – one of the  very few really good uses for this almost entirely flavorless cut. Poaching it is the only way to get the right texture. But if the water boils, the meat contracts and stiffens and is ruined.

To counter this, some years ago Julia Moskin adopted a Chinese method for poaching that is foolproof, low maintenance and ideal for summer cooking. All it requires is a heavy pot – enameled or plain cast-iron is ideal – and a bit of nerve.

This is because you do not cook the chicken. Instead, you slip it into boiling water, turn off the heat and then walk away for at least two hours. 

Over time, the gentle but steady residual heat cooks the chicken through, giving it a texture the California chef and interpreter of Chinese cuisine Barbara Tropp called “plush” – perfect for chicken salad. (It turns out that the Southern-cooking doyenne Edna Lewis poached her chicken in much the same way.)

Choose a heavy pot or Dutch oven with a tightfitting lid. It should be large enough to hold the chicken snugly, but not much bigger. Fill pot about 2/3 full with cold water, but don’t put the chicken in yet. Boil some extra water in a teakettle.

Add 2 scallions and 6 peppercorns to the water, cover and bring to a rolling boil. Turn off heat and slip 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts into the hot water. If needed, add boiling water from the kettle to cover chicken with water by 4 cm. Replace the lid and let chicken rest in the hot water for about 2 hours. Do not turn the flame back on: The pot will retain enough heat to cook chicken thoroughly and safely. (To test, cut into 1 piece of chicken and check the meat near the bone. If it is still pink, return the pot to low heat, bring the water to a simmer and simmer 10 minutes more.)

Lift chicken out of the pot. Remove and discard bones, skin and fat. Pat the meat dry with paper towels, then cut or shred into small bite-size pieces and transfer to a bowl. (Meanwhile, simmer cooking liquid until tasty, strain and refrigerate or freeze to use as chicken stock.)

In a bowl, whisk together juice of 1/4 lemon, 70g mayonnaise and 40g creme fraiche. If using, whisk in 1/2 tsp Dyon mustard. Taste and adjust the seasonings and thickness to your liking. Pour over chicken, scraping the bowl clean with a rubber spatula.

Add 1 sliced stick of celery, 1/2 sliced red onion, 1,5 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon leaves and salt and pepper. Toss gently but thoroughly. Refrigerate, covered, at least 4 hours. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. 

Serve as shown above, with walnuts and apple julienne, as a small appetizer.


Or, as a lunch, with salad, crackers, grapes and cherry tomatoes

(Recipe Julia Moskin, New York Times)









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19 September 2021

Créme brûlée saveur crevettes


Pre heat the oven at 100°C

Whisk 2 eggs plus 1 yolk, add 200ml cream or crème fraîche and whisk again.

Add 200 ml seafood stock, stir well and pour in 4 heatproof crème brûlée ramekins

Put the ramekins in an oven dish and pour enough boiling water in the dish to surround the ramekins.

Put in the oven for 1 hour.

Cool and keep in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

Just before serving dust some big prawns with Piment d'Espelet and panfry them in olive oil

Sprinkle sugar on top of the crème in the ramekins and melt with a burner

Serve as shown, with f.i. sea lavender.

About shellfish stock: when we eat shellfish I always keep the heads and shells in my freezer and once in a while use this recipe from Great British Chefs:


Heat a tablespoon of oil and butter in a large stock pot. Add as many seafood shells (and any juices that have leaked out of them) as you have and cook over a medium heat for 10–15 minutes, stirring to avoid sticking. The shells should be in one layer on the bottom of the pan to enable proper caramelisation, so work in batches if you need to. If you are using langoustines or prawns, use a rolling pin to crush the heads open. Once nicely coloured, transfer the shells to a bowl

 

Deglaze the pan to collect up all the delicious bits stuck to the bottom. Do this by turning the heat up high, then add about 50ml of brandy. Turn the heat back down and use a spatula to scrape the pan clean. Tip these juices into the bowl of shells

 

Add another tbsp of oil and, once hot, add  1 diced onion, 1 finely sliced leek, ½ finely sliced fennel, a finely sliced celery stick,  a finely sliced small carrot and smashed cloves of garlic (skin left on). Cook for about 10 minutes until caramelised, stirring to avoid any burning (which would impart a bitter flavour)

 

Add 2 tbsp tomato puree and cook out for 2 minutes

 

Add the shells back into the pot along with the delicious juices. Pour in 150 ml brandy (or dry sherry or white wine) and reduce by half

 

Top up with water to about 3cm above the shells. Bring to the boil and then skim off the scum which rises to the top using a ladle

 

Add 1 tsp lightly crushed coriander seedsbay leaves4 sprigs of thyme (and any other herbs you choose: tarragon, dill and or chervil) to use and simmer the stock uncovered for 2–3 hours. Make sure the stock stays at a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil, and periodically skim off impurities floating on the surface

 

Once ready, place a colander over a large bowl and line with muslin or a thin, clean tea towel. Carefully pour the pan's contents into the colander. Use the back of a ladle to crush the shells, making sure you extract every last bit of stock

 

Return the stock to the pan and reduce further till 3/4 is left.


(Recipe Agnes van der Aar)


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13 September 2021

Oyster and beef tartare


Slice 150g bavette or beef tenderloin into thin strips and then the strips into very small cubes. 

Cut 2 oysters into small pieces and mix with the meat, with the oyster water, add 1 tbsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Now you need 2 thin slices of celeriac (use the rest to make a nice soup). Slice them into long matchsticks. Mix with 1 tbsp mayo and 1 heaped tsp horseradish cream.

Hack 4 walnuts and add to the celeriac salad.

Serve as shown, with watercress and finally the celeriac on top.

(Here the video with Jeroen Meus making his recipe)

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12 September 2021

Crayfish tartare in carpaccio


Hack 100g crayfish. Slice 1/2 shallot as fine as possible. Do the same with 5 sprigs of chives and the leaves of 1 sprig of fresh tarragon.

Mix the crayfish tartare with the shallot and the herbs

Whisk a cocktail sauce from 1 tbsp mayo, 1 tsp ketchup, 1/2 tsp whisky, 1/2 tsp ginger syrup and black pepper. Mix with the crayfish.

Add a bit of lime juice and taste. Eventually season with pepper and salt.

Slice 3 discs of apple into matchsticks, mix with 10g rucola and dress with some walnut oil and a few drops of white balsamic vinegar. Season the salad with pepper and salt.

Divide the fish over 2 plates, cover with thinly sliced beef carpaccio.

Put some salad on top and finish with shavings of parmesan


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17 August 2021

Pan-seared duck breast, toasted hazelnuts and red current sauce


Make, in a tight crisscross pattern, 
very shallow cuts across the surface of 2 duck breasts. Cutting through to the flesh, however, will expose the meat to direct heat, overcooking it before enough fat has rendered out, so maintain a delicate touch while scoring the skin.

Mix 1/4 tsp cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, some chili flakes, 1/2 tsp salt and 2 tbsp olive oil and massage this mix onto the flesh side. 

Massage another 1/2 tsp sea salt into the fat and leave for 1 hour to get room temperature.

In the meantime prepare the sauce. Toast 50g hazelnuts in a dry pan. Cool.

Finely slice 1/2 onion and softly fry in 1 tbsp oil during 5 mins.

Keep a few hazelnuts for decoration and ground the rest in the blender. Add 135ml chicken stock, 1/2 stick of cinnamon, 1/8 tsp nutmeg and 1 tbsp red current jelly and the light browned onions and softly cook for 30 mins.

Use the blender again to make a nice sauce.

Put the duck in a dry and cold frying pan on a low heat to melt part of the fat and gently warm the meat. After 15 mins go to medium heat and turn the breasts.
Cook for another 2 mins. for medium-rare.

Wrap in alu foil and rest for 10 mins before serving in a 70°C oven.

Pour the fat from the pan and deglaze with another 90 ml chicken stock and scrape the brown bits from the bottom. Add to the sauce (after removing the cinnamon stick), plus finely sliced parsley.

Serve as shown


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15 August 2021

Pastrami, fig and watercress salad


Preheat grill to high.

Tear 3 figs in half. Place, torn-side up, on a lightly oiled oven tray, then drizzle with extra oil and apple syrup. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then grill for 5 minutes or until warmed through.

Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice, oil and a pinch of salt in a small bowl.

Arrange 3 slices pastrami, some watercress, goats cheese and parmesan shavings on each of 2 plates. Top with figs, then drizzle over dressing. 

Scatter over 1 tbsp crispy Asian fried shallots and stand for 15 minutes to allow flavours to develop. 


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