Surf ‘n’ Turf. I’ll admit – the concept, I hate. For me, it conjures images of either the 90s or a tacky date in Vegas; both equally damning. Are you steak or are you lobster? Both are beautiful ingredients, both unique and both fairly premium- not cheap. However, naturally they don’t wholly complement each other. Give me a fabulous lobster tail with a bisque made from its shell and something green. I also love a big meaty steak, dry aged for at least 30 days, well-marbled and seared to just over rare. But marrying the two? The combination screams excess, with little justification based on marriage of flavours. An only slightly less pretentious version of slathering caviar on foie gras.
However, in our modern times the traditional conception of‘Surf ‘n’ Turf’ has evolved, grown up. Grown into something more persuasively flavoursome. Chefs have taken the theme of land vs sea onto the plate and produced dishes which work excellently. Scallops with pancetta, for example, or monkfish with bacon. But a few examples. These I look more favourably, and greedily, upon.
And so, when a group of food bloggers I know, set our group the challenge of all cooking a dish under the S&T theme, it was to the New School that I looked for inspiration. I racked my brains for combinations I loved and this dish was the result.
Sea Bass needs a bit of salt, and the pork belly provides lots. Both white fish and pork love a sharp, white wine based sauce and so the creamy fish veloute works well with both ingredients. It’s punchy enough to provide a punch of luxurious flavour, but not thick and claggy so as to
become sickly. Fennel comes in last, washing everything away in waves of sweet, Pernot juice. These are classic flavours and, though their sources were born in very different arenas, they were born to be eaten together.
You can make the veloute in advance, the pork belly too, and just reheat when ready to plate– making it an impressive and feasible dinner party dish. Do enjoy!
However, in our modern times the traditional conception of‘Surf ‘n’ Turf’ has evolved, grown up. Grown into something more persuasively flavoursome. Chefs have taken the theme of land vs sea onto the plate and produced dishes which work excellently. Scallops with pancetta, for example, or monkfish with bacon. But a few examples. These I look more favourably, and greedily, upon.
And so, when a group of food bloggers I know, set our group the challenge of all cooking a dish under the S&T theme, it was to the New School that I looked for inspiration. I racked my brains for combinations I loved and this dish was the result.
Sea Bass needs a bit of salt, and the pork belly provides lots. Both white fish and pork love a sharp, white wine based sauce and so the creamy fish veloute works well with both ingredients. It’s punchy enough to provide a punch of luxurious flavour, but not thick and claggy so as to
become sickly. Fennel comes in last, washing everything away in waves of sweet, Pernot juice. These are classic flavours and, though their sources were born in very different arenas, they were born to be eaten together.
You can make the veloute in advance, the pork belly too, and just reheat when ready to plate– making it an impressive and feasible dinner party dish. Do enjoy!
Recipe
Ingredients (Serves 2):
For the fish & pork belly:
2 medium sized sea bass (or 1 big), fillets removed
300g pork belly slices (3 1 inch thick slices of belly)
Veloute:
2 shallots, diced
125ml white wine
125ml dry vermouth
250ml fish stock (make from the seabass bones)
250 double cream
Fennel:
2 heads of fennel, fronds and outer layers trimmed off, green shoot removed to leave a ‘v’ shape
50g butter
1 tsp sugar
55g white wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper
Dill
Method:
1. Pork Belly; Place the pork belly in a terracotta dish or a baking tray with a couple of tablespoons of oil so that it is coated. Season lavishly with salt. Place under a hot grill for about 16-20 minutes, turning occasionally until the skin is crisp and the belly is cooked through, still moist. If it’s getting dry you can add a little stock to the dish to moisten it.
2. Veloute: heat a saucepan over medium heat with some oil in. Saute the shallots until
soft. Add the wine and vermouth and simmer until the alcohol has burnt off and it is about a third of its size. Add the fish stock and reduce again until it is about half the size. Add the cream and simmer away on low heat until it has reduced and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (so when you trace a finger across the spoon it leaves a clean line that holds its shape). Season with a little salt, if needed. Leave until later – just heat up when you need it.
3. Fennel; slice the bulbs in half. Steam the fennel for 10 minutes (if you don’t have a steamer, boil a few inches of water in a pan, place the fennel in a sieve and ‘lid’ the sieve with tin foil. Poke a few holes in the top and set over the boiling water). Remove from the steamer.
4. Heat a pan with the butter and sugar. When the butter is hot, add the fennel cut side down.
Brown for 5 or so minutes until caramelising, then turn and do the other side for 3 minutes. If the butter starts burning or there isn’t enough, just add more.
5. Add the vinegar and half a cup of water, put a lid on the pan (or more tin foil) and cook for around 12 minutes more until it is soft and cooked through. Remove the lid and cook on higher heat for a few more minutes.
6. Sea Bass; score the skin of the fillets diagonally. Season the skin with plenty of salt and a few grates of black pepper. Heat a pan with a few tablespoons of oil until smoking hot. Place a fillet skin side down (lay it away from you, to stop hot oil splashing on you). You might need to press it down into the pan with your fingers at first to stop it curling up from the heat. Depending on the size of your pan, do maybe 2 fillets at a time. Don’t over crowd the pan – it cools the pan and stops your fish skin getting crispy. Cook on the skin side for around 3 minutes, no longer, or until the skin is crisp. Season the flesh side lightly. Then turn and cook for no longer than a minute on the other side. Remove from the pan. Squeeze a very small amount of fresh lemon juice over it.
7. Plate: Make sure all your components are hot and slice the pork into 1 inch pieces. Place the fennel into the middle of the plate and lay the fillets on top of it. Carefully pour the veloute sauce around the fish and fennel. Place the pork pieces around the fish and a little chopped dill. Serve and devour!!
Ingredients (Serves 2):
For the fish & pork belly:
2 medium sized sea bass (or 1 big), fillets removed
300g pork belly slices (3 1 inch thick slices of belly)
Veloute:
2 shallots, diced
125ml white wine
125ml dry vermouth
250ml fish stock (make from the seabass bones)
250 double cream
Fennel:
2 heads of fennel, fronds and outer layers trimmed off, green shoot removed to leave a ‘v’ shape
50g butter
1 tsp sugar
55g white wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper
Dill
Method:
1. Pork Belly; Place the pork belly in a terracotta dish or a baking tray with a couple of tablespoons of oil so that it is coated. Season lavishly with salt. Place under a hot grill for about 16-20 minutes, turning occasionally until the skin is crisp and the belly is cooked through, still moist. If it’s getting dry you can add a little stock to the dish to moisten it.
2. Veloute: heat a saucepan over medium heat with some oil in. Saute the shallots until
soft. Add the wine and vermouth and simmer until the alcohol has burnt off and it is about a third of its size. Add the fish stock and reduce again until it is about half the size. Add the cream and simmer away on low heat until it has reduced and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (so when you trace a finger across the spoon it leaves a clean line that holds its shape). Season with a little salt, if needed. Leave until later – just heat up when you need it.
3. Fennel; slice the bulbs in half. Steam the fennel for 10 minutes (if you don’t have a steamer, boil a few inches of water in a pan, place the fennel in a sieve and ‘lid’ the sieve with tin foil. Poke a few holes in the top and set over the boiling water). Remove from the steamer.
4. Heat a pan with the butter and sugar. When the butter is hot, add the fennel cut side down.
Brown for 5 or so minutes until caramelising, then turn and do the other side for 3 minutes. If the butter starts burning or there isn’t enough, just add more.
5. Add the vinegar and half a cup of water, put a lid on the pan (or more tin foil) and cook for around 12 minutes more until it is soft and cooked through. Remove the lid and cook on higher heat for a few more minutes.
6. Sea Bass; score the skin of the fillets diagonally. Season the skin with plenty of salt and a few grates of black pepper. Heat a pan with a few tablespoons of oil until smoking hot. Place a fillet skin side down (lay it away from you, to stop hot oil splashing on you). You might need to press it down into the pan with your fingers at first to stop it curling up from the heat. Depending on the size of your pan, do maybe 2 fillets at a time. Don’t over crowd the pan – it cools the pan and stops your fish skin getting crispy. Cook on the skin side for around 3 minutes, no longer, or until the skin is crisp. Season the flesh side lightly. Then turn and cook for no longer than a minute on the other side. Remove from the pan. Squeeze a very small amount of fresh lemon juice over it.
7. Plate: Make sure all your components are hot and slice the pork into 1 inch pieces. Place the fennel into the middle of the plate and lay the fillets on top of it. Carefully pour the veloute sauce around the fish and fennel. Place the pork pieces around the fish and a little chopped dill. Serve and devour!!
beautiful sea bass
fennel and fish
caramelising fennel
beautiful belly pork
fennel time
now, how pretty is that
a pretty plate
