Served in petri dishes, this was a delicious first seafood course. Initially, I'd planned on serving the three fishes together on one plate as a smoked seafood trio. The scallops had smoked scallop "bacon," the mackerel was smoked, and the shrimp chorizo was laced with smoked paprika. I ended up deciding to plate them separately, since I didn't think I could plate all three before they got cold.

I served some raw scallops, which were sweet and fresh and delicious. The scallop bacon was made by coating a couple scallops in some basic dry cure for about 2-3 days, then rinsed and dried and left open in the fridge for 8 hours or so to form a bit of a pellicle. Then they were smoked for a couple hours and chilled in the fridge. When I was ready to serve, I sliced the scallop bacon thinly and then rendered it in a pan on medium heat, turning it occasionally, until crispy.

The condiment is a charred scallion creme fraiche. I made this by charring some whole scallions on the grill, then pureeing them with creme fraiche and a bit of heavy cream. The dairy will separate and turn into clumps of butter. To get it to emulsify, warm it slightly on the stove until the butter starts to soften and melt, then transfer it back to the blender and blend with a bit of xanthan gum, until it thickens slightly. It'll stay emulsified (or at least the butter particles will stay tiny and in suspension). It'll hold in the refrigerator for about a week and a half.

Posted by Barzelay on 2009/11/25 @ 18:18 | Comments (1) | Lazy Bear, Sauces, Condiments, Seafood, Veggies, Fruit, Grain, Cheese

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