THE FLOWERS IN THE SEA
Recipe By :
Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Seafood
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
280 g Fresh salmon fillet
280 g Fresh garoupa fillet
12 Romaine lettuce leaves
5 g Sea urchin roe *
8 Baby artichokes
1 1/3 c Fish stock
Salt, white pepper,
-vinegar, lemon juice
Flour
-----SAUCE-----
1 1/3 c Dry white wine
20 g Chopped shallots
1 c Fish stock
1 1/3 c Fresh cream
75 g Sea urchin roe (optional)
Salt, freshly-milled white
-pepper, lemon juice
40 g Butter
20 g Lobster coral (roe) **
-----GARNISH-----
4 Whole sea urchins (optional)
Vinegar/lemon juice, salt,
-oil
80 g Watercress
* (optional - lobster roe can be substituted, but it
will change the overall flavour)
** or substitute a pinch of paprika for colouring
purposes, although it will change over all flavour
This is another "not what it appears to be" dish. The
main part looks kinda like a sea anemone. It's
garnished with whole, boiled sea urchins++a nice
touch. You should be able to find the sea urchin roe
at a Japanese grocery. Remember the "shallots" called
for are probably green onions.
Establishment: Hotel Riverside Plaza Tai Chung Kiu
Road, Shatin, New Territories. Western Cuisine
Practical Class Gold Award - Hot Fish Dish Chef: Chow
Kwok-ting, Phil (Hotel Riverside Plaza)
To prepare: 1. Slice salmon and garoupa fillets into
thin squares about 9 to 10 cms wide and 3 to 4 mms
thick. Each ball needs two slices of each fish. (Do
not attempt to make them all exactly the same width,
as the subsequent moulding process is easier if the
layers of fish diminish in size.) Season with salt and
pepper. .
2. Blanch lettuce leaves by dipping in hot water,
then refresh in iced water. Cut into squares of
similar diminishing dimensions as fish slices. Each
ball needs four lettuce squares.
3. Pile up alternating layers of fish and lettuce,
starting with a bottom layer of salmon, then lettuce,
garoupa, lettuce, salmon, lettuce, garoupa, and a
final layer of lettuce. Place a dot of sea urchin or
lobster roe (optional)
4. Lay each pile on a piece of cling wrap about 20
cms square. Moulding upwards from the bottom layer,
form each pile into a ball. Wrap it firmly, twisting a
knot at top of cling wrap to hold moulded ball in
shape.
To cook: 1. To make sauce, reduce white wine with
chopped shallots to thickness of essence. Add fish
stock and reduce again. Add fresh cream, and
remainder of sea urchin or lobster roe (optional).
Strain sauce, add salt and pepper and a few drops of
lemon juice. Stir in butter and lobster coral (or
paprika). Keep warm.
2. To cook artichokes, bring a pan of water to the
boil. Add some lemon juice drops, salt, a little
plain flour and whole baby artichokes, and simmer for
25 to 30 minutes. Remove artichokes and discard green
outer leaves. Carefully peel off purple-tinted inner
leaves, trim them uniformly and set aside. Cut white
artichoke bottoms so that they have flat bases.
3. (Optional) Boil sea urchins, adding a little
vinegar or lemon juice, oil and salt to pan. (Please
note that the very prickly urchins must be handled
with care! Although they are edible garnishes,
special eating tongs are recommended!)
4. Heat fish stock. Simmer wrapped balls for about
five minutes, remove pan from heat and leave aside for
1 to 2 minutes. During simmering prepare the
presentation plates as below.
To present: 1. Pour sauce onto plates (forming the
"sea")
2. Place two artichoke bottoms on each plate , laying
two layers of trimmed artichoke leaves around each
bottom.
3. Remove fish balls from stock and make three
cross-wise inci- sions on top of each. (Cling wrap
will fall away, and cut "blossoms" reveal their layers
and "pollen' of sea urchin roe.) Lifting it clear of
its cling wrapping, place one fish ball on each
artichoke bottom.
4. Add watercress and cooked sea urchin (or
alternative garnish) to each plate.
From "Champion Recipes of the 1986 Hong Kong Food
Festival". Hong Kong Tourist Association, 1986.
Posted by Stephen Ceideberg; October 29 1992.
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