Episode 44: Seafood

Oyster Beignets Served on Fleur de Sel & Caramelized Onions
Salad of Crawfish w/ Fingerling Potatoes & Tarragon Mayonnaise
Clam & Pernod Chowder
New Zealand Green Lipped Mussel Stew w/ Flava Beans & Fresh Lemongrass
Oyster Shooter w/ Hazelnut Cracker
Shrimp & Lemongrass Soup

OYSTER BEIGNETS SERVED ON FLEUR DE SEL AND CARAMELIZED ONIONS
20 oysters
8 eggs, separated, whites only
4 cups yellow cornmeal (500 grams)
4 cups 2% milk (1 litre)
1 cup canola oil (250 millilitres)
1 scallion, thinly sliced
salt and pepper
2 cups vegetable oil (500 millilitres)

Preparation time is 20 minutes
Ease of preparation is easy

For the batter, whip the egg whites until firm peaks form. In a bowl, mix the milk the cornmeal, the oil and the scallions. Season with salt and pepper. It should look like pancake batter. Fold in the egg whites.

In the meantime, put 2 cups of vegetable oil in a pot and bring to 400 degrees. Dredge the oyster in flour and then in the batter. Fry for 3 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on piece of paper towel.

Season with salt and serve on a bed of caramelized vidalia onions, fleur de sel and sea asparagus.

Yield: 4 servings
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SALAD OF CRAWFISH WITH FINGERLING POTATOES AND TARRAGON MAYONNAISE
16 crayfish
16 fingerling potatoes
1 cup of tarragon mayonnaise (250 millilitres)
2 sprigs of fresh tarragon
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (30 millilitres)
¼ cup of Pelee Island Chardonnay wine (60 millilitres)
¼ cup coriander cress (60 grams)
¼ cup baby watercress (60 grams)
¼ cup arugula (60 grams)
¼ cup of baby oak leaf (60 grams)
2 tablespoons canola dressing (30 millilitres)

Preparation time is 45 minutes
Ease of preparation is easy

Cook the fingerling potatoes in salted water for 20 minutes. Refresh in cold water and peel. Reserve for later use.

To cook the crayfish, plunge them in a court bouillon for 5 minutes. Let them cool before cleaning them. Clean them as you would a lobster.

In a sauté pan, melt the butter, sauté the shallots and the crayfish for 1 minute on each sides. Add the fingerling and continue cooking for another minute with another tablespoon of butter. Deglaze the pan with white wine and reduce to dry. Season.

Slice the warm fingerlings (coated with the mayonnaise and seasoned) in round disks of about 1/3 inch thick. Arrange on a plate in a circle. Put 4 crayfish on top of the potatoes and top with the seasoned (dressing) mixed cress. Drizzle coriander oil around the salad.

Yield: 4 servings
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CLAM AND PERNOD CHOWDER
5 pounds of littleneck clams (2 ½ kilos)
2 ½ cups of Russet potatoes , peeled and diced in brunoise (625 grams)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus 3 tablespoons for the roux (60 millilitres)
2 medium size shallots, peeled and diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced finely
1 leek, white part only, cut in half and julienned
½ fennel bulb, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Pernod (30 millilitres)
5 cups of fumet (1 litre, 250 militaries)
1 cup of heavy cream (250 millilitres)
1 sprig of fresh tarragon

Ease of preparation is easy

In a large saucepan, boil the diced potatoes until cooked. Refresh in cold water. In another pot, melt the butter and sauté, the shallots, celery, garlic, fennel and leeks until they are soft and transparent.

Add the clams, season with salt , pepper and cover. Cook for 5 minutes and remove the clams and their liquid from the pot. Reserve for later use. In that same pot, add the flour, butter and whisk together. Add the Pernod and reduce. Bring to a boil and add the fumet of fish, the clam liquid. Simmer for 5 minutes and add the cream. At the last minute, add the diced potatoes, the clams, the fresh tarragon and don’t forget to season with salt and pepper.

Yield: 4 servings
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NEW ZEALAND GREEN LIPPED MUSSEL STEW WITH FAVA BEANS AND FRESH LEMONGRASS
4 pounds of fresh mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut in macedoine
½ small turnip, peeled and cut in macedoine
½ celeriac, peeled and cut in macedoine
1 cup of fava beans, cooked and peeled (250 grams)
2 medium size tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 stalk of lemongrass
1 small piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
½ cup Pelee Island Sauvignon Blanc wine (125 millilitres)
2 sprigs of fresh tarragon
2 sprigs of fresh parsley
sea salt and Szechwan pepper
1 star anise

Preparation time is 30 minutes
Ease of preparation is easy

In a large skillet, saute the vegetables in olive oil until tender. Deglaze the pan with the dry white wine. Add the lemongrass and the ginger. Add the mussels and the fava beans. Add half of the fresh herbs and season with sea salt, the Szechwan pepper and the star anise. Cover the pot and cook for 5 minutes.

Remove the mussels and the vegetables from the pot and reduce the sauce for 3 minutes. Add the butter at the end to create an emulsion and add the rest of the fresh herbs. Pour the sauce over the mussels and vegetables in a bowl.

Yield: 4 servings
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OYSTER SHOOTER WITH HAZLENUT CRACKER

For the coriander oil:
1 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (15 millilitres)
1 ½ cups of olive oil (375 millilitres)
salt and pepper

For the tomato syrup:
1 pint of cherry tomatoes
¼ cup of simple syrup (60 millilitres)
salt and pepper
¾ teaspoon of sea salt
4 teaspoons of champagne vinegar (20 millilitres)
4 hazelnut crackers
4 oysters
1 tablespoon Oseitra caviar (15 millilitres)

Preparation time is 1 hour 40 minutes
Ease of preparation is moderate

Preheat oven to 175 degrees Fahrenheit

To make the coriander oil, combine the fresh cilantro and ½ the olive oil in a bar blender. Whiz for 3 minutes without stopping. In the meantime, in a pan, heat the coriander seeds until the smoke point to release the flavours. Cool totally. Add the coriander seeds to the blender and continue to turn with the remainder of the olive oil. Pass through a fine sieve and reserve.

For the tomato syrup, cut the cherry tomatoes lengthways in half and put them round side down, on a baking tray with a grill rack on top. Season and cook at 175 degrees for 1 ½ hours. Remove from the oven. Put the tomatoes in a container with the simple syrup and with a hand blender, whisk until well pureed. Pass through a fine sieve and reserve.

Put 1 teaspoon of the pulp only of the coriander oil in the bottom of each shooter glass without spilling any on the sides. With a knife, pour the tomato syrup on top of the pulp slowly by letting it slide down the side. Repeat for each glass. With the same process, slide some champagne vinegar on top of the tomato syrup. Repeat for each glass. Finally, slide the oil only of the coriander oil on top of the vinegar and repeat for each glass.

Shuck the oysters. Place a hazelnut cracker on top of each glass and place an oyster on top of each cracker. Add the caviar on top and the sea salt. Garnish with fresh dill.

Yield: 4 servings
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SHRIMP AND LEMONGRASS SOUP

2 cups of shrimp shells (250 grams)
1 teaspoon tomato paste (5 millilitres)
1 onion, peeled and chopped finely
½ fennel bulb, cut in half and julienned
1 medium size carrot, peeled and sliced
1 celery stalk, cut finely
1 lemongrass stalk, smashed
1 small piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
1 cup of Franz Reh Lark Riesling white wine (250 millilitres)
1 litre of shrimp stock (1 quart)
½ celery root for garnish, brunoise
1 leek, white part only, cleaned, cut in half and julienned
8 shrimps, peeled, de-veined and sautéed in butter
4 sprigs of sea asparagus

Preparation time is 2 hours
Ease of preparation is moderate

In a saucepan, heat the oil and butter. Add the shrimp shells and sauté until they turn red. Add the tomato paste, the onion, the fennel, the carrot, celery , lemongrass and ginger. Cook until the vegetables are soft. Deglaze with the white wine and reduce the liquid

Add enough shrimp stock to cover the shells. Season with salt and pepper. Do not boil. Simmer for about 1 ½ hours and pass through a fine sieve. Serve with a brunoise of sautéed celery root, julienned leeks, sautéed shrimps and sea asparagus.

Yield: 4 servings
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Recipe courtesy of Chef Caroline McCann-Bizjak.