Tommy’s Hogget, Greens & Pesto
Never tried fermenting foods? Tommy Banks makes it simple.
Ingredients
- 1x Hogget Rack, Two Bone Section. Hogget is meat from a sheep, not a hog. It comes from an animal killed when older than a lamb, but not as old as mutton.
- 1x Batch Nasturtium Pesto
- 1 Handful Brussels Sprouts
- 50ml Fermented Mushroom Juice
- 1 Handful Kale, Deep Fried Until Crispy
- 6 Heads Tender Stem Broccoli
- 1x Batch Fermented Turnip Puree – see below
- 30g Fermented Turnip Dice – see below
- 6x Small Nasturtium Leaves
- 60ml Lamb Sauce
- 20ml Minted Lamb Fat
- 10g Fermented Mushroom Powder
Method
- Remove everything from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking.
- Pre-heat your oven to 200c (180c fan).
- Season your hogget rack with sea salt and place, fat side down into a cold pan.
- Place this pan over a medium heat and as the pan heats up, the fat will start to render (ie melt).
- Once the fat is nicely rendered, turn up the heat to brown the hogget on all sides.
- Place a nob of butter into the pan and place into your oven for 5-6 minutes, until the internal temperature of the hogget reads 48c.
- Remove the hogget from the pan and allow to rest.
- Place the tender stem broccoli into the pan and return to the oven for 10 minutes.
- Whilst the tender stem is cooking, Place another small saucepan with a nob of lamb fat over a high heat.
- Half your sprouts and sear in the pan until golden brown.
- Add 50ml fermented mushroom juice to the pan and reduce to a syrup. Reserve.
- Remove your pan from the oven and use a thin sharp knife to carve the hogget.
- To plate, spread a ring of nasturtium pesto onto the base of your plate and place the carved hogget to the left.
- Pipe dots of fermented turnip puree around the pesto.
- Build up your cooked brassicas around the plate and garnish with fermented turnip dice and nasturtium leaves.
- Warm your lamb sauce and whisk in the minted lamb fat. Spoon this into the centre of your plate.
- Finish the dish with a dusting of fermented mushroom powder.
Nasturtium Pesto
Ingredients
- 300g Nasturtium Leaves
- 60g Spinach
- 200g Pumpkin Seeds
- 100g Yorkshire Pecorino, Grated
- 50g Parmesan, Grated
- 250g Rapeseed Oil
- 250g Sunflower Oil
Method
- Toast the pumpkin seeds in a pan until golden and blend to a powder.
- Roughly chop the nasturtium and spinach and blend into the pumpkin seed powder
- Add both cheeses, oils and some sea salt and blend to a smooth pesto.
Fermented Mushrooms (for juice and powder)
Ingredients
- 400g Chestnut Mushrooms
- 8g Sea Salt
Method
- Combine the mushrooms and salt in a blender and blend to a pulp.
- Pack into a Kilner jar. Weight down the pulp.
- Seal and leave in at room temperature to ferment for 3-4 weeks, opening the lid every few days to release excess gas.
- Once fermented, strain through a muslin cloth to extract the liquid- reserve.
- Spread the remaining pulp over a baking tray and place into a 60c oven overnight to dry.
- The next day, blend to a powder.
Fermented Turnips
Ingredients
- 1000g White Turnip, Peeled
- 20g Sea Salt
Method
- Whisk the salt with 1000g cold water until it has completely dissolved.
- Pack the peeled turnips into a kilner jar and top up with the salt brine.
- Seal and leave at root temperature for 3-4 weeks to ferment, opening the lid every few days to release excess gas.
Fermented Turnip Puree
Ingredients
- 500g Fermented Turnip, finely chopped
- 30g Butter
- 300g Whipping Cream
Method
- Place everything into a saucepan and gently simmer over a medium heat until the cream has reduced by 2/3.
- Blend until smooth.
Lamb Sauce Ingredients
- 5L 50% strong Lamb Stock
- Sea Salt
- Sherry Vinegar
Method
- Gently reduce the stock in a saucepan to a thick jus.
- Season with sea salt and sherry vinegar to taste.
Minted Lamb Fat
Ingredients
- 300g raw Lamb Fat
- 60g Picked Mint Leaves
Method
- In a saucepan, warm the lamb fat to 70c.
- Transfer to a blender with the mint leaves and blend on full speed for 5 minutes.
- Pass through a mesh sieve.