Hot smoked salmon with avocado salsa
Ingredients
250g hot smoked salmon, flaked into large pieces
For the lobster oil
175g lobster or langoustine shells 350ml sunflower oil
1 tiny piece of broken star anise 3 white peppercorns
5cm piece carrot, peeled and diced 2 shallots, diced
5cm piece celery, diced
2 cloves of garlic
15g mixed herbs (such as parsley, thyme & tarragon) 1/2 tsp tomato purée
50ml dry white wine
For the salsa
1 large ripe hass avocado
2 ripe plum tomatoes, peeled,
seeded and chopped into 1cm dice
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1 red chilli, seeded and finely chopped
1 tbsp Japanese pickled ginger, finely chopped (optional)
3 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
2 tsp Thai fish sauce
Juice and zest of a lime
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
A squeeze of lemon juice
Method
Crush the shells and drain away any liquid. Heat 4 tbsp of the oil in a pan, add the shells, star anise and white peppercorns and fry over a medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring every now and then. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the oil, and cook until the wine has evaporated. Add the rest of the oil and leave to simmer for 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for 24 hours. Strain through a muslin-lined sieve, transfer to a bottle and seal. This will keep in the fridge for about a month.
To make the salsa, halve the avocado and remove the stone. Halve again and remove the skin before chopping it into 1cm chunks. Place in a mixing bowl and add the chilli, onion, coriander, pickled ginger if using, tomato, Thai fish sauce, a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper and the lime zest and juice. Mix well and leave at room temperature for about 10 minutes for the flavours to develop.
To serve, set a 7.5cm biscuit cutter or food ring in the centre of a plate. flake the salmon, and using about 75g per ring, press into the base of each ring, banking it up the sides of the ring so that it will hold. Spoon the salsa on top of the salmon and press down lightly. Remove the ring carefully and garnish with a small handful of slightly dressed salad leaves piled on top. Drizzle round the lobster oil.