Brill dish ideas (From The Argus)

Brill dish ideas

11:18am Thursday 28th June 2012 in Dining In By Clayton Green

With the summer having finally arrived, we would like to take this opportunity to give you two dishes ideally suited to for a relatively informal but stylish weekend dining.

The first dish is a terrine of slow roasted chicken, with a fruity plum chutney and balsamic toasts.

Served cold, it is a light and pleasant snack, perfect as a starter or on a platter with cooked meats, hams and pickles.

It can all be made well in advance and only needs assembling on plates before serving, so a stress-free starter, giving you time to enjoy the hosting of your dinner guests.

The second dish is a main course of brill. Brill is a wonderfully delicious flat fish, eaten extensively in France but less so in the UK. It offers a terrific flavour, similar to turbot, but without the hefty price tag. It is available from most good fishmongers.

With this dish, I am using quinoa, spelt berries and basmati rice to add a lighter option than potatoes. These can be prepared in advance, along with the green tomato chutney, again making your dining occasion really simple to execute.

By using green tomatoes with ripe red tomatoes you are, in effect, creating a simple sweet and sour combination that will not over power the flavour of the fish.

Fillet of Brill, Grilled Tiger Prawns, Sautéed Mixed Grains, Green Tomato Chutney

For the sautéed mixed grains:

100g basmati rice
100g quinoa
100g spelt berries

For the green tomato chutney:

1 x white onion, diced
200g green tomatoes, diced
50g plum tomatoes, diced
150g raisins
1 x red chilli, sliced
1 x clove of garlic
10g yellow mustard seeds
50ml red wine vinegar
30g Demerara sugar

For the brill and prawns:

Ask your fishmonger for 4 x 200g pieces of brill fillet from large fish if possible. Buy some prepared tiger prawns from your fishmonger, with the head, shell and vein removed.

Sautéed mixed grains

1 Cook the grains separately in salted, boiling water until tender. the reason we do this is because the grains cook at different speeds, the spelt taking by far the longest to cook.

2 Set aside to cool and then refrigerate.

Green tomato chutney

1 Sauté the onions in a little oil.

2 Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot one by one, except the sugar.

3 Simmer for 35 mins on a low heat until the liquid in reduced.

4 Add the sugar and simmer for a further 20 mins.

5 Set aside to cool.

6 For service; reheat the grains in a wok or large pan with oil and seasoning.

Brill & prawns

1 Brush the prawns with oil and char grill for 3 minutes each side.

2 Dust the fish in seasoned flour, tap in your hands to remove excess flour.

3 In a large frying pan, put a little oil and fry the fish skin side down for approximately 3–4 mins.

4 This will crisp the skin and then turn the fish and set aside.

5 The residual heat from the pan will cook the fish through.

6 Remove the prawns and the grains from the heat and start to assemble on the plate.

7 Add the chutney and serve.

Slow Roasted Chicken & Confit of Garlic Terrine, Plum Chutney, Balsamic Toasts

For the terrine:

1 x sprig of rosemary
1 x small bunch of thyme
150g butter (split into 100g & 50g)
1 x small whole free range chicken
1 x lemon
4 x cloves of garlic, peeled
1 x small bunch chives
1 x small bunch parsley
balsamic glaze
1 x baguette

For the Plum Chutney:

½ white onion, finely chopped
2 x cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 x red apple, chopped
300g ripe plums, diced
50ml red wine vinegar
Splash of red wine

Terrine Method

1 Finely chop the rosemary and thyme and mix with 50g of softened butter.

2 Rub this mix under the skin of the chicken and inside the cavity.

3 Quarter the lemon and place in the cavity.

4 Season the bird with salt & pepper.

5 Place the bird onto a baking tray and cover with foil.

6 Pre-heat your oven to 160C and roast for 45 mins.

7 Remove the bird and uncover.

8 Increase the heat to 180C and roast for a further 15 mins.

9 Remove the bird and check that its juices run clear.

10 Conserve the juices from the tray and set aside the bird to cool.

11 When the bird has cooled sufficiently for you to handle it, pick the meat from the carcass and set aside in a bowl for later.

12 Meanwhile, put 100ml of the juices in a small saucepan with the garlic cloves and simmer gently until the garlic is soft.

13 Once the garlic is soft, set aside the pan to cool.

14 Mash the garlic with the back of a knife on a board and add to the bowl of picked chicken.

15 Add the 100g of melted butter to the bowl along with the chopped soft herbs.

16 Season with salt and pepper.

17 Add some of the pan-juices to the bowl and start to bring together the moist mixture with your hands.

18 Lay out a long sheet of tin foil on your work surface and top with cling film.

19 Onto this make a long sausage of the meat mixture.

20 Roll the covering over and tighten the ends to form a sausage shape or Christmas cracker.

21 Leave to firm in the fridge for 6 hours.

Chutney Method

1 Sauté the onion gently in a little oil until soft.

2 Add the garlic, apple and plums.

3 Cook until the fruits start to release their juices, then add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for a further 30 minutes on a low heat.

4 Set aside the pulp to chill.

To put the dish together, slice the terrine and present with the chutney and some oven toasted baguette with balsamic glaze.

Recipies by Clayton Green, head chef at English's of Brighton, East Street, Brighton, for more information call 01273 327980 or visit www.englishs.co.uk.

All recipes are to serve four people.