WINTER // Recipe for four
Soft leeks, dark rye crumb and animal glaze
This is a large winter leek, cooked over the coals, scraped back and then coated in the richest sauce of animal glaze. Ask your butcher for the animal cuts – feet and heads tend to produce the most meaty and gelatinous glaze. This turns a simple leek into something very special.
ANIMAL GLAZE
2 lamb heads or neck bones
4 pork trotters
5 kg (11 lb) chicken feet
4 leek tops
4 brown onions, roughly chopped
500 ml (17 fl oz) sherry vinegar
Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Place the lamb heads and pork trotters in a roasting tin and roast, turning once, until dark brown. Transfer everything, including the pan juices, to a large heavy-based pan. Add the chicken feet, leeks, onions and 1.5 litres (52 fl oz) water and cook, uncovered, for 12 hours over low heat. Strain the liquid through a fine strainer, put in the fridge and leave to cool.
Remove the excess fat from the top and put the stock in a heavy-based pan. Add the sherry vinegar and then cook over medium heat for 3–4 hours until reduced to a clear, gelatinous glaze.
LEEK
4 large leeks
20 g (3/4 oz) salt
Obtain some good local timber that is dry and not green with which to light a small fire. Trim the green tops off the leeks (use them for the animal glaze). When you have hot coals, place the leeks on the coals and cook them on all sides until black. Alternatively, chargrill the leek on a barbecue until blackened. Leave to cool, then gently peel away the outer burnt skin to expose the tender flesh. Coat with the dark rye crumb, below.
DARK RYE CRUMB
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) dark rye bread
400 ml (14 fl oz) grape seed oil
20 g (3/4 oz) fennel pollen
2 teaspoons salt
Place the dark rye bread in a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs. Heat the grape seed oil in a pan and fry the crumbs until they are crunchy. Remove from the heat and strain through a fine sieve. Season with fennel pollen and salt and use to coat the leek.
BURNT BUTTER
150 g (5½ oz) butter
2 teaspoons salt
Put the butter in a saucepan and heat until light brown. Remove from the heat and season with salt.
