Frank's Recipes! Tea Smoked Salmon Steak on Soba Noodles with Pickled Cucumber and Star Anice Wilted Vegetables

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Tea Smoked Salmon Steak on Soba Noodles with Pickled Cucumber and Star Anice Wilted Vegetables

Salmon
6 x 150 g pieces of salmon fillet
18 shallots, roasted
1 packet of Japanese Soba noodles
12 baby bok choy hearts, washed and blanched
1 head of fennel, sliced into fine rounds
1 cucumber, peeled
6 tsp of fresh salmon eggs (if available)

Tea Smoking Mix
1 tblsp of fragrant rice (jasmine)
1 tblsp brown sugar
2 whole star anice
1 tsp sichuan pepper corns
zest of 1 orange
1 tblsp of jasmine tea leaves
1 tblsp of oolong tea leaves
1 piece of dried mandarin peel
1 piece of casia bark

Pickled Cucumber
1 telegraph cucumber
2 medium onions, sliced
1/2 cup salt

Wash and slice the cucumber into matchstick thick slices. Layer the cucumber, onions and sprinkle each layer with salt in an earthenware bowl. Leave over night. Drain and rinse well, and drain again.

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
400 mls cider vinegar
2 sticks of cinnamon
1 tsp whole allspice
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/8th tsp cayene pepper

Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar and tie cinnamon and allspice in a cloth bag and add to vinegar. Boil 1-2 mins. Stir the remaining ingredients and add the cucumber and onions. Let scald for 25-30 mins over very low heat. Do not let boil or simmer.

Liquid broth for wilting bok choy
1 litre of white chicken stock
3 slices of fresh ginger
2 spring onions
1 whole star anice
1 tblsp of orange zest
50 mls of light soy sauce
a few drops of sesame oil
100 mls of chinese rice wine
50 mls of cucumber pickle mix
a little chicken fat (skimmed from the stock)

Put all the above ingredients, except the chicken fat, into a saucepan and bring to simmering point over a low heat. Allow the liquid to cook over a very gentle heat for approximately 1 hour. Do not at any stage allow this to boil. Once the hour of simmering has been completed, remove from the heat and pass through a fine mesh sieve. Now you can stir in the chicken fat. This will give the liquid added gloss.

To prepare the Soba noodles, toss into rapid boiling water and cook for 3 minutes or until just cooked. Strain and refresh under cold running water. Now toss to remove as much excess water as possible and then mix in a little olive oil to prevent the noodles from sticking together.

To prepare the salmon fillets, butterfly each portion and roll up tying each piece loosely with light kitchen twine.

To smoke the salmon line a wok with tin foil and place over a high flame until hot. Now add the smoking mixture and when it seriously starts to smoke place a rack above and place the salmon pieces on the rack. Cover with a tightly fitting lid and smoke for approximately 3 minutes on each side. Remove the fish from the wok and let rest on a plate until ready to use. The salmon fillets should still have rosey, rare layer in the centre (not be cooked all the way through).

To wilt the Bok Choy bring the star anice liquid to the boil and place the washed, trimmed baby Bok Choy into the liquid. Bring to the boil and simmer for approximately 1-2 minutes. Remove and add the Soba noodles to the liquid and allow to heat through.

To present the salmon, place the noodles and bok choy hearts in the centre of each serving plate. Place the Salmon on top of this, scattering the roasted shallots around the dish. Place some pickled cucumber on top of the fish and top with some fresh salmon eggs if available.

Spoon a little of the cooking liquid around the dish and serve immediately.

Recipe provided by my good friend Graham Hawkes
President of the New Zealand Chefs Association