Tetsuya egg with spinach and asparagus salad
Item 1 of 1
- medium
- 4
- 2 hours
This spectacular vegetarian starter recipe by Fabrizio Marino features a hollow ice 'egg' as its centrepiece, and is a tribute to chef Tetsuya Hasegawa. Hasegawa taught the chef 'about the use of natural elements' in dishes, thus inspiring this inventive presentation. It may look like a complicated dish to put together, but by completing the various components in stages the recipe becomes a lot less daunting and the impressive results will certainly make the extra effort feel worthwhile. Remember to begin at least a day in advance in order to prepare the hazelnut oil and soak the almonds for the curd.
First published in 2015
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Spinach cream
- 150g of spinach, puréed
- 600g of soya milk
- salt
- 15g of cornflour, dissolved in a little water
Almond curd
- 200g of almonds, shelled and peeled
- 1l water
- 11g of salt
- 80g of lemon juice
- 1 pinch of lemon zest
- 1 pinch of chilli
- 1 bunch of chives, finely chopped
Hazelnut oil
- 50g of hazelnuts, toasted
- 200g of sunflower oil, cold-pressed
- 50g of extra virgin olive oil
- 5g of salt
Salad
- 5 asparagus, cut into thin slices with a mandolin
- 30 spinach leaves, washed and dried
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced with a mandolin
- 10 mint leaves
- extra virgin olive oil, as needed
- salt
- 5 drops of balsamic vinegar
To plate
- 12 spinach leaves
- 8 asparagus, tips
SAVE RECIPE
Equipment
- Food processor or blender
- Siphon bottle or cream whipper
- 2 siphon cartridges
- Balloons 4
Method
1
Begin preparations a day in advance. Place the almonds in a bowl and cover with water, leaving to soak. To make the hazelnut oil, blend all the ingredients in a blender and pass through a fine sieve. Pour into a bottle or jar and leave at room temperature overnight for the flavours to develop
- 50g of hazelnuts, toasted
- 200g of sunflower oil, cold-pressed
- 50g of extra virgin olive oil
- 5g of salt
- 200g of almonds, shelled and peeled
2
Fill 4 balloons with 250ml water in each. Place in the freezer until the outside it frozen but the centre is still liquid. Carefully make a small hole in the balloons and drain out the water in the centre to create a cavity, then return the balloons to the freezer for the hollow ice to firm up
3
Drain the soaked almonds and blitz with the water in a blender until they form a creamy liquid. Pass through a sieve until smooth
- 1l water
4
Heat the almond cream in a saucepan until it reaches 85°C, then remove from the heat and add the lemon juice and salt. Let it stand for 30 minutes so the almond cream separates into curds and transparent buttermilk
- 11g of salt
- 80g of lemon juice
5
Remove the curd with a perforated spoon and transfer to a container adding lemon zest, chilli and chopped chives. Refrigerate until ready to serve
- 1 pinch of lemon zest
- 1 pinch of chilli
- 1 bunch of chives, finely chopped
6
For the spinach siphon, bring the soy milk to the boil in a small saucepan and reduce by half. Add the puréed spinach and season with salt, stirring well until fully combined. Bring the mixture back up to the boil, then whisk in the cornflour until the mixture thickens
- 600g of soya milk
- 150g of spinach, puréed
- salt
- 15g of cornflour, dissolved in a little water
7
Cool the spinach mixture over a bowl of iced water, then transfer to a siphon and charge with two gas canisters. Refrigerate until ready to serve
8
For the salad, mix the vegetables and mint together in a bowl, seasoning to taste with the olive oil, salt and balsamic vinegar
- 5 asparagus, cut into thin slices with a mandolin
- 30 spinach leaves, washed and dried
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced with a mandolin
- 10 mint leaves
- extra virgin olive oil, as needed
- 5 drops of balsamic vinegar
- salt
9
Just before serving season the spinach leaves and asparagus tips and allow to sweat gently in a little oil over a medium heat
- 12 spinach leaves
- 8 asparagus, tips
10
To serve, spoon the almond curd onto each plate and swipe to create a well. Drizzle the hazelnut oil into the wells and around the plate, topping with the spinach and asparagus. Gently cut away the balloon and fill each ice egg with the salad and a shot of spinach siphon, then place the eggs in the centre of each plate and serve
First published in 2015
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