Poached crayfish with frozen bisque, mange tout juice and cream cheese

Method

1. 01

   Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Plunge the crayfish into the water for 2 minutes, then transfer to an ice-water bath. This initial blanch loosens the shells; it is not a guarantee that the meat is fully cooked.

2. 02

   Pull the tails and claws off the bodies. Using poultry scissors, cut along the undersides of the shells. Remove the whole tail meat and the gut, reserving the shells and trimmings for the stock. Refrigerate the tail meat until the final cooking step.

3. 03

   For the stock, heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot, leek and fennel and sweat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the crushed crayfish shells and trimmings, bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns and fennel seeds; sweat for a further 5 minutes to develop the flavours.

4. 04

   Add the lemon juice and cook until sticky. Add the chicken stock and simmer for 1 hour. Pass through a very fine sieve, pressing out all the juice.

5. 05

   Reserve 200 ml of the strained stock for the frozen bisque. Transfer half of the strained stock to a clean saucepan and reduce over high heat until concentrated and slightly sticky, about 20 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil and lemon zest. Transfer the bisque dressing to a clean, sterilised jar, cool promptly, cover and refrigerate until needed.

6. 06

   For the frozen bisque, soften the gelatine leaf in cold water for 5 minutes. Heat the reserved 200 ml stock until hot. Squeeze excess water from the gelatine, add it to the stock and stir until dissolved. Season with salt to taste.

7. 07

   Pour into a shallow tray and allow to cool promptly. Cover and freeze until solid, about 4 hours. Scrape with a fork to make a coarse granita and return to the freezer until serving.

8. 08

   Food-safety addition: before assembling, finish poaching the reserved crayfish tail meat in gently simmering water until it reaches 63°C at the centre and is opaque throughout. Do not rely on the initial 2-minute blanch. For cold plating, chill the fully cooked tails promptly in a clean ice-water bath and keep refrigerated until assembly.

9. 09

   Prepare the mange tout juice just before serving. Wash the mange tout and run through a clean juicer. Season with a pinch of salt and a light dusting of white pepper.

10. 10

    Slice the fully cooked crayfish tails into large medallions. Dress with some bisque dressing and season with a pinch of salt and a crack of white pepper. Divide equally among 4 shallow bowls.

11. 11

    Share the 150 g cream cheese among the bowls, broken into chunks — approximately 35 g per person, with the remainder shared out. Place teaspoon scoops of frozen bisque over the medallions and drizzle with the mange tout juice. Finish with the last drizzle of bisque dressing, garnish with pea flowers and shoots and serve immediately.