CARAWAY-CURED TAI SNAPPER CUCUMBER AND DILL BROTH
I LOVE THE COMBINATION of citrusy cured fish with fresh and crisp crudités boosted with zest and spices. Here we choose tai snapper, which is cured with salt, sugar, and citrus zest and then sprinkled with citrus juice so that it retains a rather firm texture. The palette flavor in this ceviche is in fact quite Scandinavian, with dill, cucumber, and caraway, a hint of my time in Denmark. A touch of mint in the cucumber broth, poured tableside, brightens the taste. Tapioca and radish pearls provide a contrasting texture, while the briny caviar crowns the dish.
Servings
6
Servings
6
Ingredients
Tai Snapper Ceviche
Dill Glaze
Cucumber Broth
Tapioca Pearls
To Finish
Instructions
For the Tai Snapper Ceviche
  1. In a shallow, nonreactive dish, combine the salt, sugar, zests, and caraway seeds. Add the fish and coat with the mixture on all sides. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Remove the fish from the cure, rinse, pat dry, and cut into ½-inch cubes. Reserve, chilled. When ready to serve, season the fish with the lemon juice, lime juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper.
For the Dill Glaze
  1. In a small saucepan, combine the dill oil and glycerin monostearate and place over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring, just until the glycerin monostearate is dissolved. Chill over ice and store, refrigerated.
For the Cucumber Broth
  1. Combine the cucumbers, celery, mint, olive oil, and vinegar in a blender and puree on high speed until smooth. Season with Tabasco sauce, salt, and pepper. Add the xanthan gum and blend to combine. Pass through a fine-meshed sieve into a bowl set over ice and stir until very cold. Reserve, chilled, in a sauce pitcher.
For the Tapioca Pearls
  1. Place the tapioca in a small saucepan, cover with water, and sprinkle lightly with salt.
  2. Boil until cooked and translucent, about 20 minutes. Strain, transfer to a small bowl, and toss with the olive oil. Reserve, chilled.
To Finish
  1. With a mandoline, thinly slice half of the radishes into a bowl of ice water. Slice 2 radishes into julienne. Use a very small Parisienne scoop to form balls from the remaining radishes, or cut them into small dice. When ready to serve, brush the inside of 6 chilled wide-rim pasta or soup bowls up to the rims evenly with dill glaze. Divide the snapper, sliced and julienned radishes, tapioca, and radish pearls (or dice) into the bowls.
  2. Top each serving with a crouton and place a spoonful of caviar on top. Garnish with micro sea cress. Pour cucumber broth into the bowls at the table so as not to soften the bread, filling the bowls from the side to reach two-thirds of the way up the fish.