Pan-roasted turbot with braised leeks and verjus sauce
Colin McGurran serves perfectly cooked turbot with a verjus and raisin sauce, sweet braised leeks and nori dressing in this stunning dinner party dish.
Ingredients
Turbot
- 500g of turbot , wild, cut into four even portions
- 4 knobs of butter
- 1 lemon , halved
- 1 dash of oil
- fronds of fresh dill , to garnish
Herb and nori dressing
Braised leeks
Verjus sauce
- 1 tbsp of banana shallot , finely diced
- 170ml of verjus du Perigord
- 170ml of fish stock
- 450g of butter , diced
- 1 tbsp of cucumber , deseeded and finely diced
- 1 tbsp of golden sultanas, soaked in ver jus overnight
- 1 tbsp of dill , chopped
Equipment
- Blender
Method
1
Cut the leeks into 8 3cm long pieces. Place the leeks into a pan along with the stock, butter and a pinch of salt. Gently poach for around 15–20 minutes or until soft but not mushy
2
Remove the outer layers of each piece of leek and discard then set aside the pan ready to re-heat later
3
Place the nori sheet into a blender and blitz to a powder
4
Blanch the dill, chives and parsley in boiling water then plunge into iced water. Squeeze out as much water as you can, then add to the blender with the nori. Add the oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and blitz for 1 minute on high until smooth. Pour the dressing into a bowl and set over ice to chill as quickly as possible
5
Make the verjus sauce by sweating the shallot down in a little oil with no colour. Add the verjus and fish stock to the pan and reduce by half
- 1 tbsp of banana shallot , finely diced
- 170ml of verjus du Perigord
- 170ml of fish stock
6
While the verjus stock is simmering, whisk in the cubed butter, one piece at a time, until the sauce is thick and glossy – the sauce might not take all of the butter. Keep the sauce warm until ready to serve to prevent the sauce from splitting. Squeeze the excess verjus from the sultanas and add these to the sauce. Just before serving, stir in the cucumber and dill
7
To cook the turbot, preheat the oven to 160°C/140°C fan and cut the turbot into 4 equal-sized pieces
8
Place an ovenproof, non-stick pan on a medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add a little oil and add the turbot, skin-side down. Cook the fish until it is half-cooked – this should take around 3–4 minutes. Add the butter and place in the oven for 2 minutes
9
Remove from the oven and squeeze over the lemon juice. Carefully lift the fish out of the pan, remove the skin and set aside in a warm place
- 1 lemon , halved
10
To finish the dish, reheat the leek in the emulsion for 2 minutes until hot, and gently warm the sauce. Place the turbot in the centre of the plate with the braised leeks around it. Spoon over the sauce, drizzle over the dressing and garnish with dill fronds
- fronds of fresh dill , to garnish
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Pan-roasted turbot with braised leeks and verjus sauce
