Sea Bass with Candied Aubergine and Fennel with a Ponzu Reduction

 

Sea bass on a bed of shaved fennel with candied aubergine

and a ponzu sauce made from a reduction of citrus fruits 

with dashi, soy and mirin.

The fennel is shaved and marinaded in lemon juice and salt.

The aubergine in cooked in a simple syrup and then cooled. The 

process completely changes the texture and taste but it's not 

overly sweet (think nice ripe fruit sweet). The sweetness 

counteracts perfectly with the sharpness of the fennel and 

ponzu.

The ponzu is made by reducing clementine and lime juice and

adding dashi, mirin and soy. I discovered Ponzu from my time 

spent with Nuno Mendes but it's actually not his recipe. Its more 

an Alain Duccasse recipe that I've tinkered with.

This is one the few dishes I've worked on in detail so far.

It's practically perfect in balance and is one of the few dishes

I would happily add to my future 'dream restaurant' menu in

it's current state.

It's also a possible starter for my exam at Tante Marie next month,

and if they don't like it I might just shoot them.

Comments

[Tristan.]

There we go, stealing my ideas again.... honestly!

Look forward to tasting it.

[Helen]

I am very intrigued by the idea of candied aubergine! I am also off to check out Helen's food blog. She's got an awesome name for starters.

[thewaroncookbooks]

Tristan
Thanks, but I think you'll find the recipe quite different to your fish fingers, peas and alphabites dish.

Helen
Sweet Aubergine rules savory aubergine any day. Sweet is the new black I think.