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Quail, Scallops, Shiitake, Cauliflower, Avruga
- Steps
- Ingredients
Ingredients
Roasted Cauliflower Puree
Quail Jus
Quail Breast Ballotine and Legs
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Steps
- Preheat the oven to 170°C fan forced. Set the water bath to 85°C.
- For the Roasted Cauliflower Puree, line a deep oven tray with baking paper and scatter cauliflower florets over. Roast the cauliflower at 170°C for 20 minutes or until lightly golden. Set aside at room temperature to cool.
- For the Quail Jus, place stock in a large saucepan over high heat and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer over medium heat for 1 hour, occasionally skimming, until reduced to demi glaze stage.
- For the Quail Breast Ballotine and Legs, remove the wings from the quail and discard. Separate the legs from the quail crown.
- For the Quail Breast Ballotine, remove the wishbone and discard. Butterfly the quail breasts and debone, keeping both breasts together, connected by the skin. Remove the tenderloins and set aside. Discard the bones.
- Cut a large square of plastic wrap and lightly spray one side with extra virgin olive oil spray. Place the quail breast, skin down onto the greased side. Place the tenderloins down the centre, between the two breasts to fill the gap. Season quail with smoked salt and pepper. Roll the breast from the thin base end up and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Twist the ends to form a cylinder about 8-9cm in length. Place wrapped quail breast into a small sous vide bag and use a commercial cryovac machine to vacuum and seal. Set aside at room temperature.
- For the Quail Legs, remove the thighbone. Trim the tip of the leg. Scrape the meat down the length of the leg, removing the tendons and leaving 2cm of clean bone frenched. Season the inside flesh with smoked salt and pepper. Fold thigh flesh down over the trimmed bone, piercing it through the flesh, ensuring the skin remains on the outside. Shape meat in a ball at the end of the bone to form a lollipop. Wrap each leg in plastic wrap, twisting tightly around the flesh to hold the round shape. Place both leg pieces into a sous vide bag and use a commercial cryovac machine to vacuum and seal. Set aside at room temperature.
- For the Roasted Cauliflower Puree, place roasted cauliflower, miso and butter into a large sous vide bag and flatten out. Use a commercial cryovac machine to vacuum and seal. Place bag in the water bath at 85°C for 45 minutes. Avoid agitating and touching the bag if possible. When cooked, remove puree and set aside at room temperature.
- For the Quail Jus, add tamari and remove from the heat. When the stock is less than 85°C, add jasmine tea, stir and set aside at room temperature for 4-10 minutes to infuse. Pass through a fine sieve lined with muslin cloth into a small saucepan and set aside at room temperature.
- For the Roasted Cauliflower Puree, empty contents of sous vide bag into a blender. Process on high speed for 4-5 minutes until silky smooth and shiny, scraping down the sides as needed. Add xanthan gum and process through the puree.
- Pass the puree through a fine sieve and transfer to a squeeze bottle fitted with a cap to seal. Set the puree aside at room temperature.
- Reduce the temperature of water bath to 68°C. If needed, use ice cubes to help bring temperature down faster.
- For the Quail Breast Ballotine and Legs, when temperature has reached 68°C, place both bags into the water bath for 12 minutes.
- Remove the quail breast from the water bath and place into a small bowl of iced water for 2 minutes to chill. Continue to cook the quail legs for a further 3 minutes.
- When the quail breast is cold, remove from sous vide bag and remove plastic wrap. Place breast onto a small pizza tray.
- Remove the quail legs from the water bath and place in the same iced water for 2 minutes. Once cold, remove legs from sous vide bag, remove plastic wrap and place on the same pizza tray with the breast. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature. Reduce the water bath to 65°C.
- Add squeeze bottle of cauliflower puree to the water bath to keep warm until required.
- For the Quail Breast Ballotine and Legs, place a small non-stick frypan with the extra virgin olive oil over high heat to warm. Add the quail legs and breast and sear for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Transfer the quail to a small clean pizza tray and rest at room temperature until required.
- For the Quail Jus, place the saucepan of jus over high heat to warm.
- Place a small non-stick frypan over high heat. Add ¼ cup of jus. Add shiitake mushrooms, flat side down and cook for 3 minutes, spooning jus over until mushrooms have a glazed coating. If necessary, add an additional 1 tablespoon of remaining jus at a time to help achieve glazed coating. Remove mushrooms from the frypan and set aside. You should also have 2-3 tablespoons of jus set aside in a serving jug
- Place a small non-stick frypan over high heat. When hot, add the extra virgin olive oil and butter and place the scallops in the frypan. Cook for 2 minutes on the presentation side or until golden brown. Flip the scallops over and cook for 1 minute further or until almost cooked through. Transfer to a small pizza tray, season with salt flakes and rest scallops for 2-3 minutes.
- Slice the quail breast into 3cm thick medallions. Place Quail Breast Ballotine, one Leg, scallops and shiitake on the plate. Pipe generous dollops of Roasted Cauliflower Puree around to fill the gaps. Spoon Avruga caviar onto each scallop and garnish the plate with 2 nasturtium leaves and ice plant. Spoon a small amount of Quail Jus over the quail to serve.