Ingredients
For the beetroot
500g strong flour
300g water
300g salt
2 chioggia beets
For mackerel
80g smoked mackerel(MSC certified mackerel)
400g milk
50g cream
2g kappa
2 gelatine leaves
For beetroot juice
5 golden beets
200g stale sourdough
500ml 2% salt brine
For pine gel
200g pine vinegar
2g agar agar
To Plate
Fennel pollen
Horseradish
Introduction
This recipe uses only three flavours, beetroot, pine and mackerel. It combines them in a very simple flavourful, logical way that teases out the flavours of the ingredients. It’s a sum of more than its parts and shows that it’s not necessary to have expensive and high-end ingredients to create an interesting, flavourful dish, showcasing local produce proudly.
Method
Kneed together flour water and salt to form a dough. Scrub the beets and wrap in the dough. Roast in the oven at 220C for 10 mins and then bring down to 150C for 30 mins or until beets are just cooked. Remove from dough and cool.
Blend mackerel, milk and cream in a thermomix. Bring to 90C and stir in kappa and gelatine. Pass through sieve and cool. When cool and set churn again till smooth and season. Keep in a pipping bag
Scrub and dice the beets to 1cm dice. Cover with brine add sourdough and weigh down and cover. Leave at room temp for a week or 10 days. Strain the liquid and chill.
Heat vinegar to 90C and stir in agar. Set and cool. Churn set vinegar to smooth gel. Vacuum to knock out any air pockets.
Pipe some mackerel cream onto a plate. Grate on some horseradish to taste. Slice the beetroot quite thin and place over the cream. Pipe a few dots of the pine gel on the beets. Dust with fennel pollen. Dress with fermented beet juice just before serving.
Loam

