More Little Gems Discovered in my Kitchen
12 February 2008
On Sunday Simon and I celebrated “let’s eat up all the fine food before we move out and leave for Japan – part II”; starring some delicious little Puy lentils (just enough for a starter), some 15-year-old extra reserve balsamic vinegar (which I had bought years ago in an Italian delicatessen shop in Frankfurt), as well as some dried wild mushrooms - all discovered in the depth of my kitchen cabinet. Strangely enough the cupboards still do not seem to get any emptier…
The guest star of our Sunday evening dinner was a nice thick slice of monkfish, which, with its firm and fleshy meat, was perfect to complement the culinary delight of this starter.
Balsamic Lentils with Seared Monkfish Bits
| serves 4 as a starter |
| 200g monkfish filet (net weight without bone) |
| 120g Puy lentils |
| 2 shallots |
| 1 clove of garlic |
| 30g dried wild mushrooms |
| 40g pine seeds |
| 2 leaves of dried laurel |
| 1 branch of fresh rosemary |
| approx. 200ml vegetable stock |
| 5 tablespoons of extra reserve balsamic vinegar |
| 2 tablespoons of cold-pressed olive oil |
| some freshly chopped parsley |
| some freshly ground pepper |
| 1/2 cup of red wine |
| some oil for frying |
Soak the dried mushrooms in a mixture of water and red wine until they are soft. This will take at least 30 minutes, so it is most convenient to do this a little bit in advance.
Rinse the Puy lentils and put them aside. In a pot, quickly sauté the shallots, finely chopped, as well as the garlic, squeezed through a garlic press. Add the lentils and stir well; then pour in about half of the vegetable stock. Add the laurel and the whole branch of rosemary and let the lentils simmer gently for about 30 minutes in total. Check regularly if the liquid has been absorbed, and add the remaining vegetable stock bit by bit. After about half of the lentils’ cooking time, drain the wild mushrooms, chop them into small pieces and add them to the lentils.
Cautiously roast the pine seeds in a non-stick frying pan, while stirring regularly, until they are slightly browned. Once the lentils are done, remove the laurel leaves and the rosemary branch, add the roasted pine seeds and season to taste with salt. Finally finish the lentils with a dash of cold-pressed olive oil (about 2 tablespoons full) and about 5 tablespoons of extra reserve balsamic vinegar.
A little hint: As an alternative to the extra reserve vinegar you can use some boiled-down “normal” balsamic vinegar: Heat 1-2 tablespoons of icing sugar until it starts melting, add the vinegar (about 3 times the amount specified for the extra reserve one), and let it simmer until boiled down to about 1/3.
Chop the monkfish filets into bite-sized cubes, season with salt and sear them very quickly in a very hot pan with little bit of olive oil, moving the pieces constantly until they are slightly browned on the outside. Arrange on plates with the balsamic lentils and garnish with some fresh parsley and some freshly ground pepper.