How to Roast a Lamb_ New Greek Classic Cooking - Michael Psilakis [96]
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ Spanish or sweet onion, finely chopped
1 cup Vialone Nano, Carnaroli, or Arborio rice
1 quart white wine
1 quart Lobster Broth (recipe follows), warm
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper
2 teaspoons finely chopped dill
2 teaspoons finely chopped parsley
¼ cup grated graviera cheese
¼ cup Tasmanian red crabmeat, picked over
FOR THE LOBSTER BROTH
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 pound lobster shells and heads
6 shallots, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
1 bulb fennel, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
¼ cup tomato paste
1 quart ouzo
1 cup white wine
3 quarts light chicken stock, homemade
TO ASSEMBLE
Sea Urchin Tsatziki
4 tablespoons Greek or sheep’s milk yogurt
4 free-range or pasture-raised egg yolks
8 sea urchin tongues
4 tablespoons Osetra caviar
Small sprigs dill and parsley, deep-fried
Risotto, warm
SEA URCHIN TSATZIKI
In a blender, combine the vinegar and garlic, and purée until smooth. With the motor running, add the yogurt 1 tablespoon at a time, emulsifying between each addition. Add the sea urchin tongues slowly, in the same way. Pulse until very smooth. Pass the mixture through a chinoise and season with kosher salt and pepper.
RISOTTO
Warm a heavy saucepan over medium heat and add the butter and olive oil. When the butter foams, add the onions and sweat them until tender.
Add the rice to the onions and sear for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring. Add the white wine and reduce until the pan is dry.
Add the Lobster Broth a little at a time, stirring frequently. Keep adding broth until the rice is almost tender but still has a little bite at the center of each kernel. Season liberally with kosher salt and pepper; stir in the fresh herbs and the graviera. Fold in the crabmeat. Reserve, warm.
LOBSTER BROTH
Warm a large stockpot over medium-high heat and add the butter. When it foams, add the lobster parts and all the vegetables. Sauté until the vegetables are light brown. Add the spices and tomato paste, and cook, stirring all the time, until the paste is dark brown but not scorched.
Add the ouzo and deglaze the pan. Simmer briskly to reduce until the pot is almost dry. Add the white wine and simmer to reduce by half. Add the chicken stock, reduce the heat, and partially cover the pan. Simmer for 1 hour.
Pulse in a food processor until fairly smooth. Pass the broth through a chinoise to remove the shell bits. Reserve.
TO ASSEMBLE
Make a large swoosh of Tsatziki in the bottom half of a bowl. On the opposite side, place a small pool of the yogurt. Gently place an egg yolk in the yogurt, to resemble a sunny-side-up egg.
Place two sea urchin tongues and a quenelle of caviar in the bowl, opposite the “egg.” Top with the fried herbs.
At the table, spoon the hot Risotto over the “egg,” and stir in the yolk.
THE SOUL OF THE SEA
Sea urchin captures the flavors of the ocean better than any other seafood I know. Whenever I taste sea urchin, I am transported back to an island in Greece. There, we eat the urchins right out of the shell—just rinse with a little sea water and squeeze a little lemon over the top. Immediately you get a rush of the muddy-murky flavor of the ocean floor and that wonderful briny flavor. It reminds me so much of the sea; I close my eyes and I am there.
SMOKED OCTOPUS WITH FENNEL PURÉE, LEMON CONFIT & PICKLED VEGETABLES
SERVES 4
No protein symbolizes the identity of the Greek culinary lexicon better than octopus. Grilling it, as tradition mandates, enhances the flavor while showcasing the unique textural aspects of this eight-legged marvel of the sea.
This dish reflects on that tradition with a creative spin. First we braise the octopus, to tenderize it. Then we break from tradition and cold-smoke it to capture the smokiness of the open flame without influencing the texture. Next we affect texture by pan-roasting the octopus in oil to crisp it on all sides. This allows us to infuse the oil with herbs and