Crab and lovage soup with pickled kohlrabi

Start with the pickled kohlrabi. Combine the red wine vinegar, caster sugar, star anise, saffron and coriander seeds in a pan. Bring to the boil and then allow to cool to room temperature

While the liquor is cooling, peel and slice the kohlrabi on a mandoline into 1–2mm thin discs. When ready, pour the pickling solution over the kohlrabi and leave to marinate for 30 minutes

To make the soup, melt the butter on a medium heat and sweat the shallot and celery until soft with no colour. Add the minced garlic and cook for a further 2–3 minutes, again without any colour. Heat the fish stock in a pan over a low heat

In the meantime, bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add salt – the water should be as salty as seawater. Add the lovage and parsley and cook for 1–2 minutes. Strain and refresh in ice cold water

Strain again and squeeze out as much excess water as possible. Roughly chop the herbs and add to a blender with the warm shallots and stock. Blend for 2–3 minutes until smooth and bright green. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice and chill immediately in the fridge

To make the brown crab emulsion, simply blend all of the ingredients until smooth, add salt to taste and store in the fridge until required

To dress the white crab meat, whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil to combine and mix with the crab, along with the parsley, salt and pepper. Quenelle the dressed white meat in the base of a bowl, garnish with the pickled kohlrabi and dots of brown crab emulsion. Finally, serve the chilled lovage soup at the table