Chicken livers,
sourdough and onionsCHICKEN LIVERSLab
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own. Stockists p175.Grilled oysters with tapioca
“This is an idea I got when I was travelling around
Australia with René Redzepi; the Aboriginal elders
threw the clams or oysters on the fire until they sang,”
says Clugston. “Then there’s a lot of fresh herbs, and
the tapioca gives acidity and adds flavour.”
Prep time 10 mins, cook 2 mins
Serves 4-6 (pictured p103)
1 tbsp milk
1 tbsp pouring cream
12 oysters, shucked, loosened and returned
to bottom shell, juice reserved(^1) / 3 cup (loosely packed) sorrel,
finely chopped
(^1) / 3 cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley,
finely chopped
(^1) / 3 cup (loosely packed) watercress,
finely chopped
2 tsp finely grated lemon rind
2 tsp finely grated horseradish
Pearl tapioca
40 gm (¼ cup) tapioca pearls
60 ml (¼ cup) apple cider vinegar
1 For tapioca, cook tapioca in a saucepan of
boiling water until transparent (15-20 minutes).
Drain in a sieve and rinse under cold running
water, drain and transfer to a container. Add
vinegar, cover and stand to absorb vinegar for
at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
2 Combine milk and cream in a bowl and season
to taste with strained reserved oyster juices.
3 Heat a grill or barbecue and grill oysters until
just warm but not hot (1-2 minutes). To serve,
drizzle ½ tsp of cream mixture over each, top with
tapioca and herbs, and scatter with lemon rind
and horseradish.
Chicken livers, sourdough and onions
“Living in France, I’m influenced by what’s eaten
here, especially classic so-called peasant food like
liver and onions,” says Clugston. “By making it into
a mousse, it’s more luxurious but still simple.”
Prep time 25 mins, cook 30 mins (plus cooling)
Serves 6-8
16 sourdough slices (5mm thick; from about
1 baguette)
Melted butter, for brushing
Liver mousse
2 tsp grapeseed oil
22 5 gm chicken livers, trimmed
2 thyme sprigs, plus extra to serve
60 ml (¼ cup) apple balsamic vinegar
(see note) or aged balsamic vinegar,
plus extra to season
85 gm softened butter, diced
2 tsp crème fraîche
Grilled fish with green olive and
pistachio
“My best mate’s father was a fisherman and he taught
us how to fish,” says Clugston. “On the weekends we’d
catch blackfish and snapper in Boambee Creek and I’d
take them home for Mum. This recipe is really about a
super-fresh fish dressed simply with briny olives and
crunchy nuts.”
Prep time 10 mins, cook 15 mins
Serves 4 (pictured p99)
60 gm pistachio nuts
4 fillets of firm, white-fleshed fish (about
200gm each), such as trumpeter or
blue-eye trevalla, skin on
2 tbsp reserved kelp sediment and oil from
kelp oil recipe on p104 (see note)
Wilted silverbeet, to serve
Olive sauce
150 gm (1 cup) large green olives in brine, pitted,
coarselychopped, 1½ tbsp brine reserved
1 Preheat oven to 180C. Roast pistachios on an
oven tray until golden brown (10-12 minutes).
Cool, then coarsely chop.
2 For olive sauce, blend olives with brine in a
blender, then gradually add water (up to 150ml)
until a pourable purée forms. Strain and heat in
PORTRAIT CARRIE SOLOMONa small saucepan before serving.
3 Heat a barbecue or char-grill pan to medium-
high heat. Brush fish with kelp sediment (see
note) and grill skin-side down until golden and
crisp (3-4 minutes). Turn and fry until just cooked.
4 Spoon olive sauce onto plates, top with fish,
scatter with pistachios and serve with silverbeet.
NoteIf you’re not making the kelp oil, use an
anchovy paste to season the fish before grilling:
pound 5 anchovy fillets to a paste with a mortar
and pestle, then add the juice of ½ a lemon and
50ml of extra-virgin olive oil, and stir to combine.
Softened onions
600 gm (about 3) white onions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp grapeseed oil
Lemon juice, to taste
1 For liver mousse, heat oil in a frying pan over
high heat. Pat chicken livers dry with paper
towels and fry, turning once, until cooked pink
(30 seconds to 1 minute each side). Add thyme
and swirl pan so thyme sticks to the livers.
Deglaze pan with vinegar, then pour out. Cool
livers briefly (10 minutes), then blend with butter
in a blender until smooth. Pass through a fine
sieve, pressing with the back of a ladle, adding
a little water if mixture splits. Season to taste
with salt and extra vinegar, fold in crème fraîche
and refrigerate in an airtight container until
ready to serve. Mousse is best eaten on the
day it’s prepared.
2 For softened onions, combine onions and
oil in a saucepan over low heat with a little
salt and sauté gently until softened without
colouring (15-20 minutes). Season generously
with lemon juice.
3 Brush sourdough with butter and fry in batches
in a large frying pan over medium heat, turning
once, until golden and crisp (1 minute each side).
4 Spread bread with liver mousse, cover with
onion, scatter with thyme and serve.
NoteApple balsamic vinegar is available from
select specialist food shops such as Gourmet Life
(gourmetlife.com.au).>