This tapas recipe will please seafood lovers as it combines fillets of flavourful turbot with delicious clams in a butter and olive oil base that highlights the taste without overshadowing it. The celeriac and saffron purée comes as a perfect match, as it’s aromatic and pairs well with the delicate main ingredients.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
For the Turbot
– 8 Jerusalem artichokes, scrubbed
– 4 turbot fillets, lightly seasoned
– 16 clams, washed
– 100g butter, cubed
– Olive oil
– Sea salt
For the celeriac and saffron purée
– 1 celeriac
– 500ml milk (or enough to cover the celeriac)
– Pinch of saffron
Method:
To make the purée
1. Peel and dice the celeriac. Cover with milk, add a pinch of saffron and cook until soft. Strain and blend in food processor with enough of the reserved liquid. Season to taste. Pass through a fine sieve if required.
2. Place the artichokes in a pot and cover with water. Bring the water to the boil and simmer until the artichokes are soft. A knife will pass through at this point. You don’t want them to be too limp, so keep an eye on them. Remove from the pot and refresh in ice water. When cold, remove from the ice-water and cut in half lengthways.
To cook the turbot
1. Heat some olive oil in a large non-stick pan. When hot, add the four seasoned fish fillets, skin side down. Cook for 90 seconds and then turn over. At this stage, add the clams, the cubed butter and the artichokes.
2. Cover the pan for another minute, then remove then fish and rest in a warm place. When the clams are all open, remove the pan from the heat. Take the clams and artichoke out of the pan and place on some absorbent paper.
To serve
1. Place a swirl of purée in the centre of the plate. Arrange the four clams and two artichoke halves around the purée. Place the fish in the centre of the plate. If you want you can garnish with some micro-celery leaves or any other baby leaf that will complement the fish.
JP McMahon is a chef, restaurateur and author. He is culinary director of the EatGalway Restaurant Group, which comprises of Michelin-starred Aniar Restaurant, award-winning Spanish restaurant Cava Bodega, and Eat Gastropub – which has inspired his next cookbook Gastropub Revolution. He also runs the Aniar Boutique Cookery School.
JP is the founder and plays host to one of the biggest and most talked about international food events in Europe, Food On The Edge. The inaugural event took place in Galway in October 2015 with 2016 already causing stir. The event features the best international chefs from across the globe.Director, founding and current chair of the Galway Food Festival, JP is an ambassador for Irish food and a network leader for the global Cook it Raw project. He is also the ambassador for Spanish food in Ireland in particular promoting the wines of Rías Baixas (Galicia) and Jerez.
Recipe taken from Cava Bodega Tapas: A Taste of Spain in Ireland by JP McMahon, available to purchase at RRP €25 from www.cavarestaurant.ie/pages/cookbook.html.
For more information on the EatGalway Restaurant Group visit www.eatgalway.ie.
JP McMahon EatGalway