NAC Niçoise

NAC Niçoise
quail egg | tuna | anchovy | new lettuce

What makes a classic dish? The essence of a recipe’s success is perfectly-matched flavours. Take the niçoise made famous in America by Julia Child in her cookbook The French Chef. Our version pushes the dish into new territory with soft-boiled quail eggs and spice-crusted tuna, served rare. Instead of potatoes we use pan-roasted Jerusalem artichokes and lettuce (ideally local) with a touch of frisée for crispiness. To add balance to the recipe, we add a lemon balm. Hungry yet?

Serves four.

Step One:

1 piece                Albacore Tuna
2 tbsp                 Togarashi spice mix
2 tbsp                 Paprika Hungarian (sweet)
½ cup                 Panko bread crumbs
¼ cup                 Olive oil

Method
Albacore tuna is definitely not the sushi grade tuna one would expect to buy for a dish of this nature.  Firm in texture it’s usually frozen and easy to find at your local fish monger. As with all frozen fish, it’s best to place it in the fridge for a minimum of 48 hours to thaw out. You can also let it sit on your kitchen counter but expect the thawing process to take anywhere from 6 to 12 hours.  Naturally, the first option is full proof. Albacore tuna comes with the skin off and is normally anywhere from 3 to 4.5 lbs.  Using a knife, remove the belly and–cutting from the head to the tail–split the fish filet completely down the center. Next, split each again from head to tail. You will be left with 4 pieces, approximately 12 to 17 inches long, square in shape. Trim the end up and cut each of the 4 portions into 4 additional portions. You should now have 16 portions. As we only need 4 pieces for this recipe, wrap the remaining 14 pieces in paper towel and plan to have another tuna night in the coming 2 to 3 days. I do not recommend freezing the fish as it has already been frozen once.

Now sear the tuna. Preheat a frying pan to medium high. Combine the panko, paprika and togarashi spice mix and spread on to a baking tray. On another baking tray, add the olive oil and coat each piece of fish in oil first and then coat with spice breading. Once coated, transfer the fish to the frying pan (no oil needed here). Sear each side for approximately 60 seconds until all four sides are coloured. Immediately transfer the cooked fish to the fridge to stop the cooking. The desired look here is a crisp, seared piece of fish that is rare on the inside.

Step Two:

quail egg | anchovy | new lettuce

10 pieces            Quail eggs
3 cups                 Water
¼ cup                 Vinegar       
8 filets                Anchovies (canned in brine)
1 head each        Organic or local greens (frisée, oak leaf, tatsoi)
4 pieces              Jerusalem artichokes
3 tbsp.                Olive oil
to taste               Salt and pepper

Method
Cook the quail eggs in boiling water for exactly 2.5 minutes. Arrest the cooking process in iced cold water for 5 minutes. Transfer to another pot with the vinegar and soak the eggs completely covered for 20 minutes. This will allow the shells to dissolve and make them easier to peel.  Naturally fresh anchovies would be brilliant, but let’s be honest, this is a simple salad. My recommendation is to give the anchovies a quick wash in cold water to rinse of the salt. For the Jerusalem artichokes, split them lengthwise and toss them in the olive oil, then season them with salt and pepper to taste and bake in a convection oven on a baking tray (with the cut side down) for 35 to 45 minutes at 400 degrees.

Step Three:

Lemon balm dressing
2 pieces             Lemons (juice and zest of one)
½ cup                 Extra virgin olive oil
To taste              Salt (kosher) 

Method
This part is pretty simple:  squeeze the lemons into a bowl and add the zest. Wisk in a stream of olive oil and season with salt. That’s it!

Step Four:

Black olive crackle
½ cup                 Kalamata black olives (pitted)

Method
Place the olives on a baking tray on parchment paper. Set your oven to “warm” and place the olives on the top rack. Go to bed. Wake up, have breakfast and lunch. Then open the oven: the olives should be dry little black “rocks”. Allow them to cool to at room temperature and chop them up with a knife to the texture you desire. Reserve for plate assembly.

Plate Assembly
Prior to assembly, make sure you have all your prepared items out on the table. First slice each portion of tuna into 3 to 4 cuts. Next, toss your lettuce in the lemon balm. Now you’re ready to start building your plate. Here’s the logical order: lettuce, olive crackle, Jerusalem artichokes, tuna, anchovies and anchovies. Finish off the plate by cutting your quail eggs. They should be slightly runny inside… Now relax pour a glass of wine and enjoy the fruits of your labour.