Serves 6
This dish was inspired by Chef Ferran Adrià. It features a passion fruit noodle made by mixing agar, a gelling agent, with passion fruit puree. The puree is piped through a thin, flexible tube to form it into noodles, and then placed in an ice bath to set. We also have a seared diver scallop with coconut milk powder and just a touch of lemon juice on it, and then we lay the noodle right on top. It’s essential to use hand-harvested diver scallops here, which you can find at high-end fish counters, because their flavor is impeccable. There are all these wonderful tropical notes, and then we add a popcorn puree, which makes it fun. The shiso syrup lends a crisp, herbaceous quality, while the puree provides creaminess.
75 grams passion fruit puree (see Sources, here)
25 grams coconut water
1.5 grams agar (see Sources, here)
0.5 gram salt
200 grams whole milk
25 grams unsalted butter
50 grams popcorn, popped
1.5 grams salt
50 grams shiso
100 grams simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water)
0.75 gram salt
6 U-10 diver scallops
12 grams salt
10 grams canola oil
50 grams unsalted butter
15 grams fresh lemon juice
25 grams coconut milk powder (see Sources, here)
Syringe (at least 50cc; optional)
Poly tubing (no larger than 1-cm diameter; optional)
Put the passion fruit puree, coconut water, and agar in a medium saucepan. Mix well, preferably with an immersion blender. Set over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 1 minute to activate the agar. Remove from the heat. Fill a syringe with 50cc of the passion fruit mixture. Attach a length of poly tubing to the end of the filled syringe and place the length of the tube with the open end in an ice water bath. Depress the plunger, filling the tube with the passion fruit mixture until it is close to, but not touching, the open end of the tube. After a few minutes, fill the syringe with air and blow the passion fruit noodles out of the tubing. Reserve until ready to serve. Alternatively, you can line a sheet pan with a silicone mat and then pour the hot passion fruit mixture onto the mat, tilting the pan so that it spreads out in an even layer. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for at least an hour, until completely set. Peel the passion fruit mixture off the silicone mat and lay it on a cutting board. Cut it into thin slices resembling noodles. Reserve until ready to serve.
Combine the milk and butter in a medium saucepot set over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat. Add the popped popcorn to the pot, cover, and steep for 20 minutes. Pulse with an immersion blender to break up the kernels and puree the popcorn. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve and season with salt. Keep warm until ready to serve.
Put a small pot of salted water over medium heat and bring to a boil. Prepare an ice bath. Blanch the shiso for 30 seconds and immediately transfer to the ice bath. Once cool, pat the shiso dry with paper towels, pressing gently to remove the liquid, and put it in a blender with the simple syrup and salt. Blend on high speed for 1 minute, until smooth. Store the Shiso Syrup in a covered container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Season each scallop with 2 grams of salt and let them sit on a plate at room temperature for 10 minutes. Pat the scallops dry with a paper towel. Put the canola oil in a large sauté pan set over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot and has just begun to smoke, sear the scallops on one side for 1 to 2 minutes, until they are a deep golden brown, then add the butter to the pan. Flip the scallops over and use a large spoon to baste them with the butter for 1 minute. Transfer the scallops to a warm plate and sprinkle with lemon juice. Keep warm until ready to serve.
Place 20 grams of Popcorn Puree in the center of each plate. Make a divot with the back of a spoon in the center of the puree. Place a scallop, seared side up, in the center of the puree. Cover the scallop with 1 Passion Fruit Noodle. Spoon 10 grams of the Shiso Syrup in a circle around the scallop. Sprinkle 5 grams of coconut milk powder to the right side of the plate. Repeat with the 5 remaining plates. Serve immediately.