Off Duty
After reading Chubby Hubby’s post a while back I was inspired to order ‘Off Duty - the world’s greatest chefs cook at home.’ Not only were the proceeds going to a worthwhile cause, The Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation, it also boasted an impressive line up of international chefs, 48 in total, who are widely credited as the best in the world. To name all of them would be a laborious task but notable examples, from this country (UK), included: Gary Rhodes, Jamie Oliver, Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers.
It has proved to be excellent bedtime reading. The interviews conducted with each one are insightful and sometimes rather amusing; Heston Blumenthal sights butterscotch Angel Delight as one of his top ten ingredients, Thomas Keller votes sushi his favourite food, Giorgio Locatelli claims he never eats junk food, and most of them rightly concur that great quality, fresh ingredients form the basis for successful cooking.
The truly interesting aspect of the book however is the chef’s menu selection, which gives the reader a glimpse into what the world’s greats whiz up in the confines of their own kitchens. I particularly enjoyed Angela Hartnett’s offering comprising; pumpkin tortelli with amaretti biscuits, followed by braised halibut on red and yellow pepper confit, then roasted figs in red wine with zabaglione for pudding. Her formidable boss, Gordon Ramsay offered a delectable menu of; warm salad of smoked eel and new potatoes with horseradish cream, calf’s liver with sweet and sour mushroom and rocket marmalade, finished off with coffee panna cotta. Delicious.
Rick Stein’s recipe for marinated tuna with passion fruit, lime and coriander also caught my eye and served as the inspiration for last night’s supper. Whilst this was not strictly speaking a sashimi recipe (the tuna is partially cooked by the lime) it still required the freshest fish one could find, anything remotely smelly would have left you gagging. Bearing this in mind I headed for my nearest fishmonger, Steve Hatt, renowned for it’s excellence and friendly staff. I spied a ruby red tuna loin gave it a cautionary sniff and declared it perfect for the job. Next door, at the greengrocers, I grabbed the remaining ingredients and rushed home to see if I could recreate the dish.
Originally I was going to photograph my attempt but my slicing of the tuna left a lot to be desired and didn’t truly resemble the original. The sauce however was easy to prepare. The pomegranate – fruity and aromatic, counterbalanced the meatiness of the tuna. The end result, whilst not the prettiest, tasted magnificent.
I urge everyone to go out and buy this excellent book.
Marinated Tuna with Passion Fruit, Lime and Coriander – Rick Stein
3cm thick piece of tuna loin fillet – 400g
2 small ripe and wrinkly passion fruit
1 tablespoon lime juice
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 medium hot green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon caster sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander
5 turns of the black pepper mill
Put the piece of tuna on a board and cut it across into very thin slices. Lay the slices, side by side but butted close up together, on four 25 cm plates. Cover each one with cling film and set aside in the fridge for at least an hour or until ready to serve.
Shortly before serving make the dressing. Cut the passion fruit in half and scoop the pulp into a sieve set over a bowl. Rub the pulp through the sieve to extract the juice, then discard the seeds. There should be about 1 tablespoon of juice. Stir in the lime juice, sunflower oil, green chilli, sugar, coriander, salt and pepper.
To serve, uncover the tuna, spoon over the dressing and spread it over the fish with the back of the spoon. Leave for 10 minutes before serving.
2 Comments so far
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yum sounds amazing - can you make that next time I come round please!
Comment by Gisellabelle 04.05.06 @ 2:59 pmLeave a comment
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Interesting! I might go for the purchase. Essential criteria for me though, are there good pictures of the suggested food
Comment by Bea at La Tartine Gourmande 04.05.06 @ 2:57 pm