Red mullet with purple asparagus, mayonnaise, gin and lemon

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Andrea Sarri steams red mullet fillets to retain their delicate flavour and texture in his simple starter recipe. He pairs the fish with the iconic Mediterranean flavours of olive and anchovy and adds a note of freshness from a vibrantly green pea purée. The dish is completed with a final punch of flavour from a gin-infused salad dressing which coats the tender spears of asparagus.

First published in 2016

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Red mullet

  • 4 red mullet, filleted

Salsa verde

  • 7g of olives, preferably Taggiasca
  • 4g of capers
  • 4 anchovies, desalted
  • 12g of extra virgin olive oil

Mayonnaise

  • 2 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 10g of white wine vinegar
  • 125g of grapeseed oil
  • salt

Pea purée

  • 200g of peas, shelled
  • 30g of extra virgin olive oil

Salad

Salad dressing

  • 25ml of lemon juice
  • 25ml of gin
  • 75ml of extra virgin olive oil

Equipment

  • Mandoline
  • Bamboo steamer
  • Blender

Method

1
To make the salsa verde, finely chop the olives, capers and anchovies, then mix in the extra virgin olive oil
  • 7g of olives, preferably Taggiasca
  • 4g of capers
  • 4 anchovies, desalted
  • 12g of extra virgin olive oil
2
For the mayonnaise, whisk the whole eggs, egg yolks, white wine vinegar and a pinch of salt salt together in a bowl. Whilst continuing to whisk, slowly drizzle in the oil until a thick, pale yellow emulsion forms. Add more salt if needed
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 125g of grapeseed oil
  • 10g of white wine vinegar
  • salt
3
To make the pea purée, blanch the peas in boiling salted water for 4 minutes then blend with olive oil
  • 200g of peas, shelled
  • 30g of extra virgin olive oil
4
Steam the asparagus for 2 minutes, then refresh in iced water and thinly slice 3 of the spears on a mandoline
5
Whisk together the gin, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil and use to dress the asparagus and salad leaves
  • 25ml of lemon juice
  • 25ml of gin
  • 75ml of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 handful of baby salad leaves
6
When ready to serve, place the red mullet fillets on a piece of baking paper and steam in a bamboo steamer for 3–4 minutes. Season with a little salt
  • 4 red mullet, filleted
7
Place 2 red mullet fillets on each plate, arrange the salad on top and add dollops of mayonnaise, pea purée and salsa verde around the plate. Serve immediately
First published in 2016

With over thirteen varieties of fish on his menu on any given day, Andrea Sarri has made a name for himself as one of northern Italy’s most accomplished seafood chefs.

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