"Eat a little less meat and go for the good stuff, with animals you know are not only well cared for but also grass fed," says Alla Wolf-Tasker.
Alla Wolf-Tasker's tartare of Brooklands British White beef with pickled shallot
A simple starter where the produce shines.
- 30 mins preparation
- 15 mins cooking (plus cooling)
- Serves 4 - 6
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Ingredients
- 200 gm day-old sourdough baguette
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 quail eggs
- Seasonal herbs and flowers, to serve
Pickled shallot
- 125 ml rice wine vinegar
- 150 gm caster sugar
- 1 banana shallot, thinly sliced into rings
Beef tartare
- 300 gm British White beef topside
- 1 tbsp finely chopped chives
- ½ banana shallot, very finely chopped
- 30 gm cornichons, finely chopped
- 30 ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 heaped tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp baby capers, finely chopped
Dressing
- 200 ml herb oil (see yabby recipe)
- 40 ml Worcestershire sauce
- 5 drops Tabasco
- 3 gm salt
Method
- 1For pickled shallot, place shallot in a heatproof bowl. Combine 175 ml water, vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to the boil then pour over shallot and set aside to cool.
- 2For bread crisps, preheat oven to 180°C. Slice bread as thinly as possible to 2mm-thick. Place slices on a large oven tray lined with baking paper, then brush with oil and season to taste. Top with a sheet of baking paper and another tray to keep slices flat and bake until light golden (8-10 minutes). Set aside to cool then store in an airtight container.
- 3For beef tartare, cut beef into 5mm dice then combine with remaining ingredients in a bowl, season to taste, mix well then cover directly with plastic wrap to prevent oxidisation.
- 4For dressing, combine ingredients in a bowl.
- 5Cook quail eggs in a small saucepan of boiling water until medium soft-boiled (2 minutes 20 seconds). Refresh in iced water. When completely cool, carefully peel. (If eggs are difficult to peel, place in a bowl of water with 10 per cent vinegar and leave for a few minutes. This will soften the shell, making peeling easier.)
- 6To serve, spoon tartare onto a plate. Top with drained pickled shallot and quail eggs then drizzle with dressing and top with herbs and flowers. Serve with crisps.