Beetroot cured salmon- Will Mordido & Brett Mcgregor; Hawai’i Kuauli Pacific & Asia Cultural Festival Award winning dish

Featured in the Salmon Hub at the Twizel Salmon & Wine Festival 2024. This recipe is curtesy of Will Mordido & Brett Mcgregor who created this dish for the Hawai'i Kuauli Pacific & Asia Cultural Festival which won the people's choice award.

Freeze Dried beetroot and kawakawa cured Mt Cook Alpine Salmon with smoked Aoraki Salmon rillettes, Comvita Mānuka Honey Lemon Gastrique, pickled vegetables, New Zealand Togarashi Salmon Skin Wafer finished with Mt Cook Alpine Salmon Ikura First of Season Caviar

Serves 10

Freeze Dried beetroot and kawakawa cured Mt Cook Alpine Salmon

• x1                         Mt Cook Alpine Salmon, whole fillet, deboned and skin (keep skin for the New Zealand Togarashi Wafer)
• 5g                        Flaky Sea Salt
• 1g                        Kawakawa (dried – optional)
• Dusting              Fresh As Freeze dried Beetroot Powder

Method:

1. Place salmon in a deep container and sprinkle both sides with flaky sea salt a dusting of Fresh As Freeze Dried Beetroot Powder.
2. Cover the dish with cling film directly on top of the salmon, refrigerate overnight to cure.
3. Gentle wash off salt and cure and pat dry with paper towels.
4. Sprinkle with dried kawakawa and another dusting of beetroot powder

Smoked Aoraki Salmon Rillette

• 400g                   Aoraki Hot Smoked Salmon
• 75g                      Sour cream
• 25g                      Shallot or red onion, very finely diced
• 25g                      Capers, very finely chopped
• 25g                      Gherkins
• 10g                      Parsley, finely chopped
• 10g                      Chives, finely chopped
• x3                        Lemons, zest and juice

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients until well combined.
2. Adjust seasoning with salt.
3. You can adjust the amount of sour cream depending on the consistency you desire.

Comvita Mānuka Honey Lemon Gastrique

• 150g                     Manuka honey
• 50ml                    White wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
• 120ml                  Water
• 120ml                  Fresh lemon juice (about 2-3 lemons)

Method:

1. Place all ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil.
2. Lower to a gentle simmer and cook until a syrup consistency
3. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt. You can add more honey or lemon juice to your liking.
4. Allow to cool completely.

Pickled vegetables

• 500ml                  Water
• 500ml                  Apple cider vinegar
• 5g                          Salt
• 15g                        White sugar
• X10                       Radish, chopped into quarters
• x1                          Daikon, very thinly sliced lengthwise

Method:

1. Bring water, apple cider vinegar, salt and white sugar to the boil.
2. Place chopped radish and daikon into separate containers and pour picking liquid over the vegetables.
3. For best results, allow to pickle overnight.

New Zealand Togarashi Salmon Skin Wafer

• x1                         Reserved salmon skin
• Dusting               NZ Togarashi
•                              Flaky Sea Salt
• 400-500ml        Canola oil

Method:

1. Preheat the dehydrator to 70°C.
2. Scrape as much salmon meat from the skin and place it on a dehydrator tray lined with baking paper.
3. Dehydrate overnight or until the skin is completely dry.
4. Heat oil to a high temperature (around 180°C). Break the dehydrated salmon into smaller pieces. Using tongs, submerge the salmon skin until it puffs up completely. Quickly remove it from the oil and drain it on paper towels.
5. While the skin is still hot, season it with NZ togarashi mixed with flaky sea salt.

Plating:
To assemble the dish, place two pieces of pickled daikon side by side on a paper towel and pat them dry. Spoon a small amount of rillette mix onto one end and roll it to form a cylinder. Add more rillette mix if needed. Position the rolled daikon cylinders in the center of your bowl.

Thinly slice the salmon and drape three long slices over the rillette cylinders.

Garnish the dish with 5 to 6 pickled radishes, a drizzle of the Manuka honey lemon gastrique, a few pieces of salmon skin, a teaspoon of Mt Cook Alpine Salmon Ikura First of Season Caviar, and a few sprigs of dill.

Watch Will & Brett put this dish together and talk about their amazing trip to Hawaii here.