A Meal
You Should
Consider Eating
In the interest of maintaining some sort of continuity, or what management professionals might call ‘clarity of vision’, we have asked one chef – James Ferguson of Beagle – to write us a menu for one full meal, consisting of six complementary courses.
When we first met James we talked about how much we hated molecular gastronomy and fine-dining, how its obsession with detail often makes for boring, heartless food. James has an interesting turn of phrase, and at one point roared that he would like to “smash a sous-vide bath into my own head”. At this, the deal was sealed. We had found our chef.
Seabass Ceviche
1 x 800g wild sea bass filleted and pin boned
Juice and zest of 2 limes
2 x red chillis finely diced
1 x red onion finely diced
1/2 x cucumber finely diced
1 x clove garlic, crushed
1 handful chopped coriander
Slice the sea bass at an angle with a sharp, thin bladed knife.
Arrange on a plate and season lightly with good sea salt.
Mix together all the other ingredients.
Add a pinch of salt and sugar.
Spoon this mixture over the sea bass, making sure it is completely covered.
Let stand for 5 mins and then serve with a nice crisp bread.
Grilled Chicory, Watercress & Ticklemore
2 x red chicory
2 x yellow chicory
1 bunch of watercress
1 handful of golden raisins ( soaked)
2 tbl spoons of balsamic vinegar
80 ml of olive oil
1 x garlic clove crushed
1 pinch finely chopped rosemary
200g ticklemore cheese, crumbled
Make a Simple dressing with vinegar, oil, garlic and rosemary.
Cut the chicory in half, lengthways, and drizzle over a touch of olive oil.
Season and place cut-side-down in a hot grill pan.
Cook for 10 mins, then turn and cook until just wilted.
Cut in half again, lengthways.
Place the warm chicory in a bowl and add the dressing, raisins, watercress and ticklemore.
Season and serve.
Parsley & Smoked Ham Soup
1 x smk ham hock
1 x white onion finely sliced
2 x king Edwards potatoes diced small
2 x garlic cloves
2 bunches flat parsley
50g cold butter
Sink your ham hock in water, adding thyme and bay leaves for flavour.
Cook for 2 hours or until the ham comes easily away from the bone.
Shred the ham and reserve your stock.
Sweat the onions in butter until soft, but without colour.
Add the potatoes and cook until they Start to disintegrate.
Stir in the garlic (crushed) and add 1 litre of the Reserved hot ham stock.
Simmer for 10 mins then add 1 bunch of the flat parsley, roughly chopped.
Cook for a further 5 mins and then remove from the heat.
Add the leaves from your remaining parsley and pour into a liquidiser.
As it blends add the cold butter and a generous amount of pepper.
Serve with the shredded ham and toasted croutons.
Generally speaking you shouldn’t need to add salt.
Braised Cuttlefish & Fennel
2kg cuttlefish, ink sacks removed and cleaned
2 x onions, finely sliced
4 x fresh bayleaves
4 x garlic cloves, finely sliced
2 x red chillis, deseeded and sliced
1 tsp of sweet, smoked paprika
3 x bulbs of fennel, cut into 6 pieces lengthways through the root
5 x overripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 glasses of dry white wine
Juice of 2 lemons
Cut the cuttlefish into manageable pieces.
Cut tentacles in half, and set aside.
Into a heavy bottomed casserole pour a generous glug of olive oil and place on a low burner.
Add the onions, bayleaves and fennel
Half cover the pan with a lid and allow to sweat until sweet and soft.
Add the garlic, chilli and smoked paprika; sweat for a further 5 mins
Add your tomatoes.
Cook for 10 mins beofre adding the cuttlefish and white wine.
Season with Maldon salt & Half cover the pan.
When It starts to simmer, reduce the heat until the surface is barely moving.
Braise for 1 to 2 hours until the cuttlefish is tender.
Finish with the chopped parsley and lemon juice to taste.
Grilled Fore-Rib of Beef & Baked Bone Marrow
1 x fore rib steak, cut through the bone,chine removed. 1kg in weight
1 x Beef Shin Bone marrow sawn in half lengthways
1 x handful stale white bread crumbs
A sprig of rosemary
1/2 x bunch of flat parsley
1 x clove of garlic
Chop together breadcrumbs, rosemary, flat parsley, garlic and rock salt.
Sprinkle on the bone marrow and set aside.
Heat a heavy cast iron grill pan until almost, but not quite, smoking.
Season the steak generously with salt and black pepper and place in the pan.
leave to caramelise for 5 mins and then turn over and repeat.
Remove from the pan, place on a rack in a roasting tin
Place in an oven preheated to 160 c.
Cook for approx 15 mins. The Steak should be medium-rare.
Remove from the oven and rest.
Increase the oven temperature to 200 c and roast the bone marrow for 10 mins
Remove when crumb mix is crisp and marrow is soft and unctuous.
Your steak will be rested so carve, against the grain.
Set the bone marrow alongside.
Serve with dijon mustard.
Swiss Chard
& Potato Bake
2 kg x floury potatoes, cut into slices as thick as pound coins
1 head x swiss chard
4 x onions, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 glasses of white wine
1l x double cream
Small bunch of thyme
1 tsp dijon mustard
Separate the stalks and leaves of the chard and wash.
Slice the stalks finely and place in a cast iron casserole with a good knob of butter.
Cook on a medium heat.
Add the onions and garlic and cook down until sweet.
Add thyme and white wine, then reduce by half.
Add the cream and reduce by a further third.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add the potatoes and simmer for 5 mins.
Fold in the chard leaves and mustard.
Now bake, covered, in an 170 c oven for approx 1 1/2 hours.
Remove the lid and allow to colour.
Serve.
Rhubarb & Almond Tart
1 Kg of Forced Yorkshire Rhubarb
1 Tbsp of Caster Sugar
The Juice of an Orange
Frangipane
250g of Butter - soft
250g of Caster Sugar
250g of Ground Almonds
5 Medium Eggs
2 Tbsp of Plain Flour
Sweet pastry
250g of Unsalted
Butter - Diced, Soft
180g of Caster Sugar
2 Medium Eggs
500g of Plain Flour
Frangipane
Place the rhubarb on a baking tray and coat with sugar, squeeze the orange juice.
Bake at 150 degrees c for 15 mins, until just tender. set aside and cool.
To make frangipane, place the butter and sugar in a mixer fitted with a K paddle.
Mix until fluffy and white.
Gradually incorporate the eggs.
Fold in the almonds and finally, the flour.
Sweet Pastry
Mix the butter, flour and sugar by hand until they have a bread-crumb consistency.
Mix in the eggs to form a dough, adding a little cold water if the pastry seems dry.
Rest in the fridge for 1 hr.
Roll out the pastry to line a 20cm tart case with removeable base.
Rest for 20 mins.
Set the oven at 190 c and blind-bake for approximately 15 mins, until the sides begin to colour.
Remove the baking beans and bake for a further 5 mins.
Add the frangipane to the tart and scatter rhubarb on top.
Bake at 180 for around 30 mins until the tart is just golden and set.
Serve with creme fraiche.________________________
Recipes: James Henderson for Beagle
Photography: Hayley Louisa Brown