Serves 8
Ingredients
Squab
4 x 500g squab
2 punnets Micro Bulls Blood leaves (beetroot leaves)
40 Society garlic flowers
100g course sour dough crumbs toasted
200g unsalted butter
50ml grapeseed oil
200ml reduced veal glaze
Bitter chocolate black pudding
500ml pig’s blood (fresh or powdered)
25ml sherry vinegar
50ml Oloroso sherry
200g pork back fat, finely diced
8 small French shallots, finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely diced
80ml double cream
100g sour dough crumbs
10g fine sea salt
100g bittersweet chocolate finely grated
Garlic cream
20g unsalted butter
3 cloves garlic peeled
500ml milk
5g agar agar powder
Fine sea salt
Beetroot purée
2 medium size beetroot, trimmed
3 French shallots, finely diced
20ml pedro ximenez noble sour vinegar
80g unsalted butter
30g castor sugar
200ml chicken stock
Fine sea salt
Method
Bitter chocolateblack pudding
Put the pig’s blood in a bowl and add the vinegar and sherry, then put aside. Take half the diced pork back fat and render it by gently heating it in a saucepan. Strain and discard any solids. Put the rendered fat into a pan and sauté the shallots and garlic until translucent. Remove the pan from the heat and cool slightly, then add the remaining fat and double cream and mix well. Add this to the pig’s blood mixture in the bowl, then add the sourdough crumbs, salt and chocolate. You can make a traditional blood sausage by filling fresh pig of lamb intestine skins and poaching the sausages in water for about 25 minutes at 75C. As we do in the restaurant, you can place the blood sausage mixture in a large vacuum bag to a thickness of 3cm and steam in a temperature controlled combi oven at 75C for 25 minutes, carefully turning the bag halfway through the cooking process to ensure even cooking. Alternatively you can cook it in a vacuum bag by creating a water bath using a large deep baking tray on the stovetop and using a thermometer, carefully turning half way through. Allow the black pudding to cool, then carefully remove it from the bag and cut into pieces as directed in the recipe. You can store the black pudding in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Garlic cream
Melt butter in a saucepan, add garlic cloves and gently sweat them in the butter. Add milk and bring it close to boiling point. Remove from heat and allow the garlic to infuse for 20 minutes. Pour the milk through a fine strainer into a clean saucepan and discard the garlic. Return the pan to the heat and whisk in the agar agar. Reheat the milk to 90C, continuously whisking to activate the agar agar. Taste and season with salt. Refrigerate the milk and allow to set. Once set place it into a blender and blend on a high speed to form a smooth paste. The garlic cream should be the consistency of mayonnaise when reheated.
Beetrootpurée
Preheat the oven to 180C. Wrap the beetroot in foil and place on a tray on a bed of rock salt. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes or until soft. Remove from the oven, peel the skin and dice the beetroot. In a small saucepan add 30g of unsalted butter and the diced shallots. Sweat until transparent. Add the beetroot, vinegar, sugar and chicken stock and reduce over a low heat until virtually no liquid is left. Place the beetroot mixture into an upright blender, blend on high speed while warm adding 50g of unsalted butter. Pass the purée through a fine sieve and check seasoning.
Squab and to finish
Preheat the oven to 200C. In a heavy based frying pan heat 50ml of grapeseed oil. Add the squab breast on the bone and seal on all sides. Add 100g of unsalted butter, allow the butter to foam in the pan with the squab. Turn the squabs upside down resting on the sides of the pan. Fill the squab cavities with the foaming butter, this will help to cook the squab from the inside as well as the outside. Place the squabs in the oven for 4 minutes (still in the pan). Remove from the oven and refill the squab cavities with the hot butter and allow the squabs to rest for 10 minutes in a warm part of the kitchen. Meanwhile, reheat the beetroot purée and garlic cream. Take 200g of the black pudding mixture; place it in a pot with 50g unsalted butter and 100ml of veal glaze. Stir well over a low heat. Quickly pass this mixture through a fine sieve and return to a clean saucepan and keep warm. Take another 200g of black pudding mixture, place on a chopping board and chop into fine pieces. In a non-stick frying pan, fry the black pudding with 50g unsalted butter and add the toasted sourdough crumbs. Mix well and continue to cook for a couple of minutes—keep warm.
To plate
Carve the squab breasts from the bone and remove the skin. Glaze the squab breasts with the remaining veal glaze. Place a tbsp of beetroot purée on the bottom of each warm serving plate. Top with the glazed squab breast, place 2 tsp of the bitter chocolate black pudding purée on either side of the breast. Place a tbsp of bitter chocolate black pudding crumbs over the squab breast. Garnish with Bulls Blood leaves and Society garlic flowers. Serve.
Find out more about the culinary career of Peter Gilmore