Chef Chris’s fave dishes
Ayrshire Life chef Chris Steele is a fan of all Ayrshire produce and prides himself on preparing fresh ingredients.
Here, he picks two of his favourite dishes that you can prepare during Scottish Food Fortnight.
Pan fried sea bass, slow braised pork belly, nutmeg buttery mash, orange carrot puree, pak choi, honey, sesame seed and tarragon.
Slow braised for hours in honey, butter, red wine, tarragon, root vegetables and chicken stock until soft. Melts in the mouth, but the meat is never dry due to the high fat content. Served with the smooth carrot puree, nutmeg mash and sweet honey reduction, it is truly an outstanding food combination with flavours are to die for.
For the pork belly: One large piece of pork belly approx. 2kg; bottle of red wine; 25g fresh tarragon; 8oz block of butter; 100ml pure honey; mixed root vegetables, chopped 1kg; 500ml of chicken stock.
For seabass: Four seabass fillets.
For carrot puree: Six large carrots, peeled and sliced; few small knobs of salted butter; salt and pepper for seasoning; 200ml fresh orange juice; one orange, juice and zest; 200ml vegetable stock.
For the mash potato: 400g of Red Rooster potatoes; one small piece of nutmeg, zested or ground; 50g salted butter; 50ml double cream; salt and pepper for seasoning.
For the pak choi: Eight heads of pak choi.
To garnish: Micro red cabbage; 20g sesame seeds. Pre- heat oven to 130oC
For the pork belly: Place all ingredients and stock into a large deep oven tray and submerge the pork belly in it. Cover with tin foil and bake until soft. When ready remove pork belly from juices and cling wrap tight and chill. After few hours remove from cling film and slice. Pre- heat a non- stick frying pan with little olive oil until really hot, place the sliced pork belly into pan and sear until golden brown on both sides. Watch for the fat or crackling spitting at you. Once golden ready to serve. Crispy on outside but soft & amp; melt in the mouth on inside.
For the carrot puree: Place sliced carrot into the orange juice and stock, boil until soft, remove from heat and drain in a colander. Place back into pot and dry of any excess water with a gentle heat through. When done place into a food processor and blitz until smooth, add butter and seasoning as required.
For the nutmeg mash: Peel and 4cm cube the rooster potatoes and boil until soft. Drain and then place back on heat to dry the potatoes out. Then mash with potato ricer until smooth.
Add butter, seasoning, and nutmeg and double cream as required.
For the sauce: Pre- heat a small sauce pan and add all the juices from the pork belly oven tray, make sure sieve all vegetables out first. Reduce for 20 mins until dark in colour and strong in taste, finish with a knob of butter to leave a shiny pork belly demi glaze reduction.
For the seabass: Warm a non- stick pan, small drop oil. Place skin side down for 3mins until crispy.
Turn for three minutes and it’s ready to serve.
Melts in the mouth but the meat is never dry due to the high fat content Chris Steele