Salmorejo salad with pickled quail eggs and sherry dressing

“Hailing from Cordoba in the Andalucían region of Spain, at its heart, salmorejo is a chilled tomato soup. The best salmorejo I had while I was there had lots of crunch and textural elements to it, so I’ve tried to recreate that in this salad. I’ve also lightened things up by aerating the soup in a cream syphon, but don’t worry if you don’t have one, it will still taste good!” Shane Delia, Shane Delia’s Moorish Spice Journey

• serves

  4

• prep

  1 hour

• cook

  35 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 40 g jamón fat
• 400 g pork mince
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 large green apple
• 4 thin slices jamón, torn into smaller pieces and lightly rolled
• handful of baby radishes, trimmed
• 1 turnip, peeled and very thinly sliced on a mandolin
• 6 chives, cut into 3 cm lengths
• 1 cup frisee lettuce leaves

Pickled quail eggs

• 125 ml (½ cup) white wine vinegar
• 60 ml (¼ cup) white wine
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp peppercorns
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 2 French shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 12 hard-boiled quail eggs, peeled (see note)

Salmorejo

• 4 ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 1 green capsicum, seeds and membrane removed, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 slices bread, soaked in a little water until soft, then squeezed dry
• 60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil
• dash of Tabasco sauce
• pinch of saffron threads
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Almond puree

• 30 g blanched almonds
• 400 ml milk
• 60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar

Dressing

• 125 ml (½ cup) Spanish sherry
• 2 French shallots, finely chopped
• 1 tsp toasted coriander seeds
• 2 tbsp coarsely chopped roasted almonds
• 2 tbsp finely chopped chives
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 125 ml (½ cup) olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Pickling time 24 hours

Instructions

To make the pickled quail eggs, place all the ingredients except the eggs in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil then simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Place the peeled eggs in a sterilised jar and pour over the pickling liquid. Seal, then refrigerate for 24 hours before using.

To make the salmorejo, place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until thick and smooth. Adjust the consistency if necessary to make a thick puree. Check the seasoning, then pour into a cream syphon or jug and refrigerate until ready to serve.

To make the almond puree, place the almonds and milk in a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or until soft. Remove from the heat, then place in a blender and process until silky smooth. With the motor running, add the olive oil and sherry vinegar and process until well combined. Transfer to a squeezy bottle and refrigerate until ready to serve.

To make the dressing, place the sherry in a small saucepan and simmer over low heat until reduced to 60 ml (¼ cup). Add the shallot, coriander seeds, almonds, chives and sherry vinegar and set aside to cool. Add enough olive oil to make a dressing consistency, then check the seasoning and adjust if necessary.

Heat the olive oil and jamón fat in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the pork mince, bay leaf, paprika, onion, garlic and cook, breaking up the meat with the back of a spoon for 12-15 minutes or until golden and crisp. Drain on paper towel and set aside.

To serve, dot each serving plate with a generous amount of almond puree. Peel the apple, then, using the small end of a melon baller, scoop 12 balls of apple and dot around the plates alternately with the jamón, drained pickled eggs, radish and turnip. Scatter with the crisp pork mixture, chives and frisee, then drizzle with some of the sherry dressing. If using a cream syphon, aerate with one cylinder of gas, then pipe into the centre of each serving plate and serve immediately. Otherwise, carefully pour the soup into the centre of each plate.

Note

• To cook the eggs, carefully drop into a small saucepan of boiling water and simmer for 2½ minutes. Remove and cool in iced water, then peel. Removing the shell is easier when the eggs are cold. To ensure the yolks are centred in the eggs, stir them whilst returning the water to the boil.

Shane Delia's Moorish Spice Journey starts Thursday 15 October 2015 at 8pm on SBS and finishes 17 December 2015. Visit the Shane Delia's Moorish Spice Journey program page to catch-up on episodes online, scroll through recipes and read our interview with Shane.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.