Cowl Bysk – my starter for Great British Menu 2017

Tom Brown

Tom Brown

10th May 2017
Tom Brown

Cowl Bysk – my starter for Great British Menu 2017

Cowl Bysk – my starter for Great British Menu 2017

Ingredients

  • Lobster
  • 2 live lobsters (700-800g) from Wild Harbour Fish Co.
  • Cured Pork
  • 500g cured & air dried mangalitza pork belly from Pitt Cue
  • Tomato salad
  • 1kg Buttervilla heritage tomatoes
  • Green sauce
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 tbsp Lilliput capers
  • 6 Ortiz anchovies
  • 2 pickled dill gherkins
  • 25g rocket
  • 25g mint
  • 15g parsley
  • 1 tbsp Cabernet Sauvignon red wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 100ml cold pressed Cornish rapeseed oil
  • Tomato tea
  • 1.5kg overripe Buttervilla tomatoes
  • 7 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 5 sprigs thyme
  • 12 basil leaves
  • 3 tbsp sea salt

Method

Tomato tea
Cut the tomatoes in half, squash out the seeds and pass
Sweat the garlic in half the olive oil until lightly golden
Add the tomatoes, strained juice, thyme, 1 tbsp sea salt and 5 basil leaves with 50ml water
Cover and cook on low until the tomatoes start to break down
Simmer uncovered (20 mins)
Add the rest of the olive oil, salt and basil and leave to steep with a lid on before straining off and cooling
Green sauce
Chop the garlic, capers, gherkins and anchovies together to a very fine paste
Finely chop the herbs and then mix together with the capers, gherkins, anchovies and garlic and chop again until almost smooth
Mix in the mustard, vinegar and oil
Lobster
Kill the lobster and separate the heads, claws and tail into similarly sized groups to allow even cooking
Boil the lobsters in a pot of salted water according to the size they are
Allow to cool naturally before removing shells and cutting into portions
Tomato salad
Remove the eyes and blanch the tomatoes in rapidly boiling water
Place in ice water very briefly to stop from overcooking
Pat dry, remove the skins, and cut the tomatoes into varying shapes and sizes
Season and leave at room temperature to bring out the flavour
Pork Belly
Finely slice the belly into pancetta like strips
Plating
Arrange the tomatoes in a neat attractive pile slightly off centre to the left of the plate
Place 3 pieces of lobster (2 pieces of tail, 1 piece of claw) alongside the tomatoes
Drape 3 slices of the cured pork on and around the lobster and tomato, weaving in and out slightly so you can see all the elements
Top with a small quenelle of the green sauce
Lightly drizzle with Cornish rapeseed oil
Serve with tomato tea in a cup on the side and put a few drops of rapeseed oil on top to finish

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