Recipe of the week: Emancipation by Michael O'Hare

How Great British Menu's Michael O'Hare makes his star dish 'Emancipation'. Recipe from his book Violations on Good Judgement

 

Pickled onion juice

• 250g pearl onions
• 500ml malt vinegar
• 150g sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• 10g black peppercorns

 

Peel the onions, leaving them whole. In a large bowl, cover with sea salt. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. Wash the onions under running water and transfer to a sterilised air-tight container.

 

In a saucepan, combine all of the remaining ingredients and heat to dissolve the sugar. Allow to cool. Cover the onions with the pickling liquid and seal. Store in a cool area for six weeks.

 

Pass through a fine sieve to obtain the pickled onion juice when required.

 

Parsley oil

• 150g flat leaf parsley
• 200ml vegetable oil

 

Wash the parsley and remove the leaves from their stalks. Blanch the parsley in boiling water for 10 seconds and submerge immediately into an ice bath for 10 seconds.

 

Wrap the leaves in cloth and squeeze to remove moisture. Blend the parsley on full power with 50ml of the oil, slowly adding the rest of the oil to form a smooth green pulp. Drip the pulp through muslin cloth directly over a chilled bowl.

 

Cod

• 1 side Skrei cod
• 150g sea salt
• 150g sugar
• Peanut oil

 

Remove the skin from the cod and set aside. Trim the belly and remove any silverskin. Split into two fillets from either side of the bloodline and portion into 80g pieces.

 

Combine the sugar and salt in a large bowl and mix until even. Coat the cod portions in the cure gently and refrigerate for 22 minutes. Wash the cure from the cod portions carefully under cold running water and drain well. Seal into vacuum bags with a dash of peanut oil.

 

Cook at 56ºC for 8 minutes in a water bath.

 

Cod skin dashi

• Skin from one side of Skrei cod
• 12 chicken wings
• 30g kombu
• 35g katsuobushi
• 80g shiitake mushroom
• 15g sea salt
• 2l water

 

Trim any flesh away from the skin. Roast at 140ºC for 45 minutes or until completely dry. Char briefly on a plancha, allow to cool.

 

Roast the chicken wings heavily at 200ºC until dark golden brown. In a pot, cover the chicken wings with the water and bring up to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes, skimming regularly. Carefully clean the shiitake mushrooms and add to the pot with the kombu. Continue to simmer for 15 minutes. Ensure you do not bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, cover and steep for 25 minutes.

 

Pass through a fine sieve and stir in the katsuobushi. Cover and refrigerate for 12 hours to cold infuse. Strain through a fine sieve.

 

Crispy potatoes and shallots

• 2 banana shallots
• 1kg Maris Piper potatoes
• Vegetable oil
• Olive oil
• Sea salt

 

Prepare the shallots by peeling and slicing into a fine julienne.

 

In a saucepan, completely cover the shallots with olive oil. Increase the cooking temperature gradually until the shallots start to bubble. Continue to fry until completely crisp, stirring occasionally to ensure even colouration.

 

Drain well on paper towels and season with salt.

 

Peel the potatoes and rinse under cold running water. Using a mandolin, slice the potatoes into a super fine julienne, Wash the excess starch from the potatoes under cold running water and drain.

 

Deep-fry the potatoes in vegetable oil at 160ºC until completely crisp. Drain well on a paper towel.

 

Gently combine the shallots with potatoes, taking care not to break them.

 

Gem lettuce

• 4 baby gem lettuce
• 150ml parsley oil
• 7g sea salt

 

Wash the gem lettuce and remove the first layer of outer leaves. Trim the root of the lettuces and transfer each lettuce to a vacuum bag with sea salt and parsley oil. Fully seal.

 

Steam for 4 minutes and refresh in an ice bath.

 

Squid ink vinegar powder

• 50g squid ink powder
• 50g malt vinegar powder

 

Combine the two powders evenly and transfer to a fine hand sifter.

 

To finish

• Baby crevettes
• Bronze spray
• Koji
• Vegetable oil

 

Quarter the gem lettuces and char on the barbecue for 2 minutes.

 

In a saucepan, heat the cod skin dashi and add some of the crispy potato shallot mixture to make a ragu. Season with koji and pickled onion juice. Add some of the additional potato and shallot at the very end to add texture.

 

Deep-fry the crevettes until crisp. Drain and spray bronze.

 

Top the cod with potato ragu then cover with a layer of crispy potato and shallot.

 

Dust with an even, solid layer of squid ink and vinegar powder. Sauce the squid ink dashi and add the baby crevettes.

 

Recipe from Violations on Good Judgement by Michael O'Hare (A Way With Media, £135)