Hello Everyone! Finally I am (sort of) back on track with things on here and I apologise for falling behind. Things have been starting to build up at work and my quieter days are starting to become a little hectic, but still not full on crazy at least. That’s bound to happen somewhere in October and I am so not looking forward to late nights in the office and puffing up the eye bags then.

So! As always when I say this (but never happens), I’m going to keep tonight’s post short because it’s late and I need sleep. The theme for the month of July on Amcarmen’s Kitchen is BEETROOT! If you remember from my post earlier this year in January, beetroot is one of the 20 foods I listed out that can help lower your blood pressure. People with High Blood Pressure saw significant improvements from drinking beetroot juice. The nitrates found in the juice brought down one’s high blood pressure within just 24 hours. If you’re not too keen on drinking beetroot juice, you can easily roast or steam the whole root and add it to a green-packed salad, stir-fry, or stews.

If I’m being honest, I never really took a liking to the taste of beetroot. For me it always had this aftertaste of eating soil – probably because of it’s earthy flavour to begin with. Anyway, even if I’m not too fond of it, who know, maybe by the end of the month beetroot might be my new favourite vegetable. Tonight’s recipe is a classic with a modern twist to it:

For the beetroot & white wine cure

For the tartare

PREP TIME 20 MINS* | COOKING TIME — | SERVES 2-3

*Please allow 24-36 hours for the curing of the ocean trout before proceeding with the tartare recipe.

INGREDIENTS

For the beetroot & white wine cure

• 800g smoked ocean trout fillet (skin removed)
• 100ml white wine
• 100g salt
• 100g sugar
• 1 large beetroot, grated
• Juice of 1 lemon

For the tartare

• 800g smoked ocean trout fillet, cured in beetroot and white wine
• 1 medium-sized free range egg, yolk only
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 2 tsp baby capers
• 1 & 1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp salmon roe (optional)
• Cooked beetroot cubes
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Sweet marjoram leaves
• Ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste

• Thin wafer, to serve

METHOD

1. In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the white wine, salt, sugar, lemon juice, and grated beetroot.
2. If needed, cut your smoked ocean trout fillet into two pieces to fit into a zip lock bag. The bigger the piece, the longer that the flavours will take to infuse into the trout.
3. Place the trout inside the ziplock bag and pour the beetroot cure mixture into the bag with the trout. Ensure that all edges of the trout are well coated. Seal the bags and place in the fridge. Turn every 12 hours, and then remove from the fridge after 24-36 hours.
4. Remove from bag, rinsing off cure mixture, and  pat dry with paper towel.
5. Dice finely and place into a medium-sized bowl together with the minced shallots, olive oil, ground sea salt and black pepper, lemon juice, lemon zest, and sweet marjoram leaves. Toss to combine.
6. Plate up accordingly, and top the tartare with baby capers, beetroot cubes, sweet marjoram leaves, egg yolk, and salmon roe (optional). Serve with a thin wafer, in my case we served with a spicy wafer for an added kick to the dish. Enjoy!

BON APPÉTIT

– Ally xx