Salad of Lobster, Fennel and Beetroot with Savoury Blackcurrants

Prepare the lobster. First, kill the lobsters humanely, then cook them to obtain the meat. Bring a large pan of water to a rapid boil. Put a sharp knife through the head of each lobster to ensure they are killed humanely. Remove and reserve the tails and claws, and reserve the heads, if you like – they can be used to make a bisque (keep the heads refrigerated and use within 3 days).

Cook the tails first in the pan of boiling water for about 5 minutes or until they are cooked and have turned red, then drain, refresh in iced water and drain again. Next, cook the claws in the same pan of boiling water for at least 7 minutes (cooking time will depend on the size of the claws) or until they too are cooked and have turned red, then drain, refresh in iced water and drain again. Remove the meat from the tails and claws (reserve the shells to make a bisque, if you like – keep them refrigerated and use within 3 days). Keep the lobster tails whole, but trim off any raggedy bits to tidy them up, then finely chop these trimmings for the croquettes. Finely chop half of the claw meat and reserve this for the croquettes too. Place the whole shelled tails and the remaining claw meat in a plastic container or white plastic tray, drizzle over the olive oil and top with the tarragon sprigs, then cover and refrigerate until needed.

Make the croquettes. Put one-third of the trout into a blender, add the egg white and blend together until smooth, then add the cream and salt and pepper and blend to combine. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Finely chop the remaining trout, then add it to the blended trout mixture, along with the reserved finely chopped lobster meat and the chopped tarragon. Mix well, then adjust the seasoning to taste. Divide the trout mixture into 8 equal portions (approx 50g each) and roll each one into a ball, then place on a plate, cover and chill in the fridge.
Use a vegetable slicer to make the potato ‘spaghetti’ (please refer to my Confit Salmon recipe for an image and details of how to do this), then mix the potato ‘spaghetti’ with the clarified butter and salt and pepper. Wrap some potato ‘spaghetti’ around each trout ball, place on a plate and refrigerate until needed.

Meanwhile, cook the beetroots for the salad. Preheat the oven to 160°C/Gas Mark 3. Remove and discard the top leaves from the beetroots and wash the beetroots. Place the baby beet in a single layer in a roasting tin and drizzle with 50ml of the olive oil, then season with salt and pepper. Bake in the oven for about 1¼ hours or until cooked and tender. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for 1 hour, then peel the beetroots and pour any liquid that might be left in the tin into a bowl. Add the cooked beetroots to the cooking liquid in the bowl, then add the blackcurrants, red wine vinegar, fennel seeds, 50ml of the remaining olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Toss gently to mix, then set aside until you are ready to serve.

Next, cook the baby fennel. Cook the fennel in a pan of boiling salted water for about 6 minutes or until just tender. Drain, refresh in iced water, then drain again and pat dry on kitchen paper. Put the fennel in a bowl with the remaining 50ml olive oil and salt and pepper to taste and toss gently to mix. Cover and refrigerate, then remove from the fridge 10 minutes or so before you are ready to serve.

Prepare the crushed peas. Blanch the peas in a pan of boiling salted water for about 2 minutes or until just tender, then drain, refresh in iced water and drain again. Put the peas into a bowl, add the olive oil, tarragon, lime zest and juice and salt and pepper and crush the peas using a fork, mixing the peas with the other ingredients. Set aside until you are ready to serve.

Meanwhile, cook the croquettes. Heat some sunflower oil in an electric deep-fat fryer or in a deep frying pan to a temperature of 160°C (or until a small piece of bread browns within 20 seconds in the hot oil). Once the oil is hot enough and you are ready to serve, deep-fry the croquettes in the hot oil for 5–6 minutes or until golden and crisp all over (you will need to cook the croquettes in two batches). Using a slotted spoon, remove and drain the croquettes on kitchen paper, season with salt and keep hot.

To serve, thickly slice the cooked lobster meat and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the beetroot and blackcurrant salad, the fennel, crushed peas and sliced lobster meat off-centre on one side of each serving plate, then garnish with the lime segments, pea shoots and caviar, if you like. Drizzle over the beetroot pickling liquid, then place the croquettes off-centre on the other side of the plates and serve immediately.