Bearfoot Bistro

604-932-3433 ext. 1 bearfootbistro.com

Freshness. Flavours. Texture. That’s what makes a great salad, according to Bearfoot Bistro Executive Chef, Melissa Craig.

Beautiful plating doesn’t hurt either. “It has to be appealing to your eyes,” Craig says of her smoked sturgeon salad with textures of peas, presented on two levels of a black bowl. “I tried plating it upside down, too,” she laughs. “But the servers couldn’t pick it up.”

Craig takes Oceanwise organic smoked sturgeon and caviar from Northern Divine on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast and weaves in peas from Pemberton’s North Arm Farm in a variety of forms: pea mousse, pea puree, fresh green peas, fresh snap peas and pea shoots. Added crunch comes from a citrus gremolata made with a pumpernickel caraway crumb. Light sherry vinaigrette pulls everything together.

She chose the sturgeon for its meaty quality, likening it to lomo, the Spanish cured pork loin. The smoked fish inspired the choice of vegetable: “I knew smoke and salt works well with peas,” she notes. “And it’s really cool to play with textures of one ingredient. It makes the dish so much more interesting.”