Kick-off your meal with fresh scallops served with crispy bacon, pea shoots, black pudding and a tangy apple purée. This was the winning starter Phil created for his MasterChef victory.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 2 slices black pudding
- 6 roe on scallops
- 4 rashes streaky smoked bacon
- 2 green apples
- 50ml water
- Pea shoots for garnish (or any other green garnish)
- Vegetable oil
- Salt
Method:
- Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C Fan) Gas Mark 6.
- Remove the scallops from the packaging and wash in iced or cold water. Place on a clean cloth and pat dry, then place in the fridge until ready to cook. If you do not like the roe, remove from the scallop meat (they are great to freeze and use in a fish pie).
- Dice the black pudding into 2cm cubes and place on a lined baking tray.
- Place 4 slices of streaky bacon on a second lined baking tray. Place the bacon and black pudding into the oven for 10-15 minutes, turning halfway through cooking. Bacon should be crispy, and the black pudding should have a nice crisp edge without being dry.
- While the bacon and black pudding is cooking, core, peel and thinly slice the green apples. Add to a pan and cover with 50ml of water. Bring to a medium heat and continue to cook until the water has evaporated, and the apples are soft. Stir regularly to ensure the mixture doesn’t catch or burn. Taste the sauce and add sugar if necessary – the sauce needs to be sharp with just a slight sweet tang. Remove from the heat and blend.
- In a preheated frying pan, add a tablespoon of vegetable oil, fry the scallops on a high heat for approximately 2 minutes on each side until golden.
- To plate, add three large teaspoons of apple purée around each plate, and top each with a scallop. Scatter the black pudding and crispy bacon around the plate and garnish with pea shoots. For an extra finishing touch, top each scallop with a small pinch of salt.
