Pine-cured Chalkstream trout with Worcester berries, blackcurrant and jalapeño

Start the fermented blackcurrant kosho at least 1 week before you want to serve the dish. Blend the jalapeños and blackcurrants to a coarse purée. Stir through the salt until evenly incorporated, then transfer to a sterilised jar, pressing the mixture down firmly to remove any air pockets. Cover the surface directly with cling film and seal with a lid. Refrigerate and allow to ferment for at least 1 week before using

For the pine trout cure, place the pine needles, lemon zest and salt in a small food processor and blitz until finely ground. Remove to a bowl and fold through the sugar

Spread half of the cure evenly over the base of a tray. Lay the trout on top and cover completely with the remaining cure. Place in the fridge for 4 hours to cure

Rinse the trout thoroughly under cold running water to remove the cure, then pat dry with a clean cloth or kitchen paper. Chill until needed

For the bonito gel, combine the sugar, white wine vinegar and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved completely. Leave to cool

Place 375g of the cooled pickling liquor into a vacuum bag with the rice wine vinegar, tamari, lime zest and juice and the bonito flakes. Seal under full vacuum and refrigerate for 24 hours to cold infuse. Alternatively, if you don’t have a vacuum packing machine you can infuse the base of the gel by giving everything a good stir until well mixed, then leave to infuse in an airtight container in the fridge (the flavours won’t be as strong)

Strain the infusion through a fine mesh sieve, pressing gently to extract as much liquid as possible. Weigh the strained liquid into a saucepan and calculate 3% of its weight. Measure this out in agar agar and whisk into the liquid. Bring to the boil then boil for 1 minute to activate the agar. Transfer to a container and leave to set completely

Blend until smooth then transferring to a piping bag and set aside in the fridge until needed

For the tarragon oil, heat the oil in a small pan to 120°C, whilst you put the tarragon leaves in a Thermomix (or see below if you don’t have a Thermomix)

Carefully and quickly pour the oil over the tarragon and blend on a high heat until smooth. Pour the mixture into a large bowl set over a bowl of ice, then stir to ensure it cools down quickly. Alternatively, if you don’t have a Thermomix, place the tarragon and oil in a high-powered blender and blend on full speed until the mixture is smooth and steam begins to rise from the oil (about 3-5 minutes). Pour into a saucepan and gently bring to a boil to extract the chlorophyll, stirring occasionally – this will happen as soon as it comes to boil; the oil and solids will separate and turn the oil bright green. Cool as above

Once cold, hang in a nut milk bag in the fridge to drain out the oil. Place the drained oil into a piping bag and store this upright so any water falls to the tip of the piping bag. When ready to serve, snip the end and drain and water. Place the oil into a container or bottle and chill in the fridge until needed

Slice the cured trout into D-shaped slices approximately the thickness of a £1 coin

Just before serving, lightly season the Worcester berries with a splash of rice vinegar and whisk together all the ingredients for the blackcurrant dressing along with 10g of the tarragon oil

To plate, arrange the trout neatly on the plate. Pipe 5 small dots of bonito gel over and around the trout, followed by 5 dots of blackcurrant kosho. Arrange the Worcester berries on the gel and kosho. Garnish with the red butterfly sorrel and rock samphire. Finish by spooning the blackcurrant dressing around the plate and serving immediately