Category: GCC – Young Chefs

A beautiful dish for spring, when John Dory is at its best. You’ll need to start the dish in advance so that the curry oil has enough time to mature, so make sure you plan ahead.

Ingredients:
For the John Dory

• 4 John Dory fillets, skin on, each weighing approximately 140g
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• sea salt
• white pepper

For the curry oil

• 50g of curry powder, medium
• 300ml of groundnut oil, or very light olive oil

For the dressing

• 40g of sultanas
• 20g of pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 10g of baby capers, salted
• 10 coriander leaves

For the cauliflower purée

• 1 cauliflower
• 100g of unsalted butter
• 100ml of milk
• 50ml of single cream

For the glazed endive

• 2 heads Belgian endive
• 20g of icing sugar
• 40g of unsalted butter
• 2 oranges
• 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp of red wine vinegar

Method:

1. Begin by making the curry oil, as this requires 2 days to mature. Place a large frying pan over a medium heat until hot, then add the curry powder directly to the pan. Cook the powder, stirring constantly to ensure it does not catch or burn, for 2 minutes until the spices are toasted.
2. Add the oil and cook to 60°C. Remove from the heat, leave to cool then store in a suitable container for 2 days until required.
3. In advance of making the dressing, place the sultanas in a bowl and pour over enough boiling water to cover. Leave the sultanas in the bowl overnight to soak.
4. For the cauliflower purée, remove the outer leaves and slice the cauliflower into small florets, discarding any excess stalk. Melt the butter in a large pan over a medium heat, then add the cauliflower florets to the pan. Sweat the cauliflower for 3-4 minutes until tender, then add the milk to the pan, cover with a lid and increase the heat slightly.
5. Cook until it is very tender, then drain the cauliflower and transfer to a blender, discarding the liquid from the pan. Blend the cooked cauliflower in the food processor, gradually adding the cream until fully combined. Season the purée to taste, then strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl. Cover the bowl in cling film and set aside, keeping warm until required.
6. Prepare the endives by removing any brown outer leaves, then slice the heads in half lengthwise, dusting the cut sides thoroughly with icing sugar. In a large pan, melt the butter over a medium heat and cook until foaming. Add the endives to the pan, sugar-side down, and cook until they begin to caramelise.
7. Use a microplane to finely grate the lemon and 1 of the oranges and add the grated zest to the pan. Continue to cook the endive, turning every couple of minutes, until they are well coloured and caramelised all over.
8. Meanwhile, juice the lemon and both of the oranges and add to the pan along with the vinegar. Reduce the heat and allow to cook very slowly until the endive is tender and the liquid has become a sticky caramel. Season and set to one side, keeping warm until required.
9. To make the dressing, drain the soaked sultanas and place in a pan along with the pine nuts, baby capers and 40ml of the prepared curry oil. Heat very gently and stir to combine.
10. Meanwhile, coat the John Dory fillets in the remaining curry oil and leave to marinade for 10 minutes. Place a large, non-stick pan over a high heat and allow it to get very hot. At this point, add the fish fillets to the pan skin-side down. Using the curry oil marinade as cooking oil, leave the fish to cook for 2-3 minutes and allow the skin of the fish to crisp up.
11. Once the fish skin has become crispy, reduce the heat to medium and turn the fish over to cook for a further minute. Remove the fish from the pan, season, and sprinkle with a little lemon juice. Leave to drain on the kitchen paper.
12. To serve, use a teaspoon to add a swipe of cauliflower purée around the top and bottom of each plate and place a piece of endive in the centre. Allow the endive to fan out slightly before topping with the John Dory. Add the coriander leaves to the warm dressing and drizzle over the fish. Serve immediately.