Scallop Crudo with Passion fruit, Celery Leaves & Shiso Oil
In Italian cuisine, Crudo is a raw fish dish dressed with olive oil, sea salt, and citrus juice such as lemon juice and sometimes vinegar. I used passion fruit instead. Sue me. You don’t need to follow a recipe for crudo as it is very much ingredient-driven. You could simply serve thin slices of the fatty part of freshly caught raw swordfish with olive oil, lemon juice and rosemary and if the ingredients are top notch you’ll end up with something truly fantastic. Crudo is about finding the best ingredients available and letting their flavors shine. The combinations are endless.
Yeah sure, I took some liberty with the passion fruit juice but it’s not so wacky since its acidity level is similar to lemon and it brings a nice exotic perfume to the sweet scallops, it also plays well with the shiso oil. I realized that celery leaves have a special affinity for passion fruit. They bring out the best in each other but they need the back-up of the olive oil to really work. As always, fat acts as flavor transmitter. And the fleur de sel does what it does best. It brings out the goodness in everything it’s sprinkled on.
When making crudo you have to rely on your tastebuds to find the right balance of fat, acid, spice and salt and that’s why i didn’t include specific measures on this recipe. You’ll be able to figure it out on your own, otherwise call 1(800) Zen Chef for help. Chances are you won’t get an answer but that’s because there’s no better exercise for serious cooks than to take a few simple but fresh ingredients and improvise them into a dish bigger and better than the sum of its parts. Have fun and enjoy!
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Scallop Crudo with Passion fruit, Celery Leaves & Shiso Oil
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- Serves 4
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For the crudo:
- 8 diver scallops
- 1 or 2 passion fruit
- good olive oil
- Fleur de sel
- celery leaves
- microgreens (optional)
- shiso oil, see below
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For the shiso oil:
- 1/2 cup shiso leaves
- 1/4 cup spinach leaves
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1 cup grapeseed oil
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For the shiso oil:
- Blanch shiso and spinach for 30 seconds and transfer to ice bath. Squeeze out water and blend with salt and sugar while adding grapeseed oil in a steady stream. Blend for 2 minutes. Keeps in a fridge for 1 week.
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For the crudo:
- Slice the scallops in third or fourth, the long way.
- Extract the juice from the passion fruit and reserve a few seeds for garnish.
- Arrange the scallop slices on 4 plates. Keep cold.
- Drizzle olive oil and passion fruit over the scallops, garnish with celery leaves, microgreens and passion fruit seeds. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and drizzle with shiso oil. Serve immediately.