HungryForever

SPANISH MACKEREL AU VIN BLANC POACHED WITH CARROT MOUSSELINE, LETTUCE-WRAPPED TARTAR WITH CAVIAR

A TYPICAL BISTRO DISH: maquereau au vin blanc has always been an affordable staple on menus throughout France, but was certainly not the kind of fish you found in gastronomic restaurants. Since mackerel is one of my favorites at the sushi bar, I thought we could highlight its versatility by presenting it raw and poached, our own interpretation of the classic.

Servings

Ingredients

Poached Mackerel and Pickled Vegetables

1 Spanish mackerel3-to 4-pound
2cups ¾white wine
1cups ½white wine vinegar
1teaspoon sachet (½each coriander seeds and black peppercorns and 4 sprigs of tarragonwrapped in cheesecloth and secured with butcher’s twine)
cup ¼small-diced red onionplus 3 tablespoons cut into thin ½-inch-long slices
cup ¼small-diced leekwhite and light green parts only, plus 3 tablespoons cut into thin ½-inch diamonds
cup ¼small-diced carrotplus 3 tablespoons cut into thin ½-inch discs with a ring cutter

White Wine Gelée

cup ½reserved poaching liquid from above
1gram vegetable gelatincarrageenan

Carrot Mousseline

Lettuce Puree

Mackerel Tartar

6ounces ½skinlessboneless mackerel fillet, reserved from above
teaspoon ½lemon zest
1teaspoon Lemon juice
1tablespoons ½olive oil
teaspoon ½grated fresh wasabi
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
8 blanched Bibb lettuce leavesreserved from above

To Finish

8 Tarragon leaves
cup ¼micro celery leaves
cup ¼golden osetra caviar
2tablespoons Creme fraiche
24 Lemon Confit stripshere
24 small romaine lettuce leavescut into 1½-inch spears

Instructions

For the Poached Mackerel and Pickled Vegetables

Using a sharp knife, carve the fillets from the mackerel. Chop the bones into roughly 1-inch pieces. Rinse the bones, head, and tail in cold water, and reserve them for the poaching liquid. Trim the thin belly meat from the fillets and slice the thicker ends of the fillets into 4 approximately 1½-inch diamonds. Lightly score the skin of each diamond with 4 to 5 parallel incisions and set aside. Remove the skin from the remaining flesh. Reserve the fish, chilled.
In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the bones, head, tail, 4 cups water, the wine, vinegar, and sachet, the small-diced red onion, leek, and carrot. Simmer lightly for 35 minutes, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface. Strain the liquid through a fine-meshed sieve into a clean saucepan and discard the solids. Measure ½ cup of the liquid for the gelée and reserve, chilled.
Arrange the mackerel diamonds in a single layer in a heatproof baking dish. Bring the liquid to a simmer and add the sliced red onion, leek diamonds, and carrot discs; simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, until tender. Immediately pour over the mackerel and rest at room temperature for 5 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator to cool completely, then cover, keeping the fish in the liquid.

For the White Wine Gelée

Transfer the reserved ½ cup poaching liquid to a small saucepan, and using a hand blender, mix in the vegetable gelatin. Bring to a simmer, then pour onto a rimmed plate or baking dish to reach ⅛-inch thickness. Refrigerate, uncovered, being sure to keep it flat, until it firms, about 2 hours. Using a paring knife, cut out 8 diamonds the same size as the poached mackerel diamonds.

For the Carrot Mousseline

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the carrot and cook, stirring, without coloring, for 3 minutes. Add the carrot juice, ginger, and cumin and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender. Discard the ginger and transfer the mixture to a blender. Puree until smooth, then pass through a fine-meshed sieve into a bowl. Chill the bowl over ice, then season with salt.

For the Lettuce Puree

Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the potato and onion. Cook, stirring, without browning, for 10 to 15 minutes, until very tender; set aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and place a bowl of ice water on the side. Separate 8 of the largest leaves from the lettuce heads. Boil for 5 seconds, strain, and chill in the ice water. Being careful not to tear, remove the leaves from the ice water, pat dry, and reserve for the tartar. Separate the remaining leaves from the stems and boil them for 20 seconds, then strain and chill in the ice water. Squeeze dry and transfer to a blender with the cooked potato and onion. Puree until smooth, pass through a fine-meshed sieve into a bowl, and chill over ice. If needed, adjust the seasoning with salt and reserve, chilled.

For the Mackerel Tartar

Finely dice the reserved fish and transfer to a bowl over ice. Stir in the lemon zest and juice, olive oil, wasabi, and salt and pepper. Line a flat surface with a 24-inch-square double layer of plastic wrap. Arrange 4 of the boiled lettuce leaves on the plastic in a horizontal, overlapping 12-inch-long line. Arrange half of the fish tartar in a horizontal line in the center of the lettuce leaves. Using the plastic wrap as an aid, begin rolling the lettuce up and away from you, tucking it tightly against the fish, and then roll forward to completely enrobe it. Roll the tartar in the plastic a few times to tighten into an approximately ½-inch-diameter log, then tie off the ends of the plastic. Repeat the process with the remaining lettuce leaves and fish. Chill well, at least 2 hours, and using a sharp knife, slice each plastic-wrapped roll into 12 cylinders. Gently peel off the plastic and reserve, chilled.

To Finish

For each serving, place a spoonful of carrot puree on a chilled plate and place a piece of poached mackerel, skin side up, in the center. Top the fish with a leaf of tarragon and then a gelée diamond to cover. Arrange a few of the pickled vegetables and micro celery leaves over and around the diamond. Stand 3 cylinders of tartar in a line with 4 dots of lettuce puree in between on an opposite side of the plate. Top each cylinder with a teaspoon of caviar, a dot of crème fraîche, and a small strip of the confit lemon zest. Rest 3 romaine leaves against the tartar cylinders.