RECIPE
Andrew Ballard's Poached Akoya with Mushrooms, Smoked Buttermilk & Sorrel Oil
Akoya
6 Akoya
500 ml vegetable Nage (light vegetable stock)
Sorrel Oil
1 bunch green sorrel or roquette
300 ml canola oil
Smoked Buttermilk
100 ml good quality buttermilk
King Brown Mushroom A La Greque
6 baby king brown mushrooms
15 ml raspberry vinegar
25 ml peppery olive oil
¼ red shallot, finely diced
Zest and juice from ½ lemon
½ tomato, fined diced
1 tbsp finely chopped curly parsley
- Blanch the sorrel in boiling water, refresh in ice water and then dehydrate for 24 hours at 50C.
- Blend the oil and dehydrated sorrel, allow to sit for 1 hour and then drip strain through muslin cloth to obtain a clean bright green sorrel oil.
- Place the buttermilk in Thermomix and season with salt and white pepper.
- Gently stir in the machine while smoking with applewood using a smoking gun.
- For the mushrooms place the oil and vinegar into a pot with the other ingredients and gently warm to approx. 65C.
- Remove from heat and allow to marinate for 30 minutes before serving.
- Thaw Akoya in fridge for 2hrs or 1hr on the benchtop before use.
- To shuck, pinch either side of the Akoya at the bottom to create a gap in the top of the shell.
- Using a blunt knife, insert the knife between the shell and the Akoya meat and gently separate.
- Repeat on the other shell to release the meat.
- Gently remove the green byssal thread by pulling sideways and the Akoya is ready to prepare.
- Clean and reserve the shells for serving.
- Gently poach in simmering vegetable nage for 1 min, place on shells then top with mushroom, sorrel oil and buttermilk dressing.