Recipes 2018: Poached salmon with courgetti, lemon, ricotta and mint salad

Serves 4

600g British salmon fillet, skin on
1 tsp peppercorns
200ml white wine vinegar
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
2 parsley stalks
6 lemon slices
2.5l water

120g courgette noodles (courgetti)
1g red chillies
1 x lemon
3g fresh mint
2g cooking salt
1g cracked black pepper

200g ricotta
2g cooking salt
1g cracked black pepper

8 x edible flowers
20ml golden rapeseed oil
Small punnet of micro cress

Method

Poached salmon
1. First, make the poaching liquid for the fish. Put the peppercorns, vinegar, fennel, bay leaves and parsley stalks in a saucepan with 2.5 litres of water, and bring to the boil. Boil for 10 minutes so all the flavours infuse into the liquid.

2. Make sure that you choose a roasting tin big enough to hold the salmon fillet. Strain the liquid into the empty tin, bring to the boil on the hob, then add the fish, skin-side down, making sure it is covered in liquid. Scatter around the lemon slices, and simmer gently for 1-2 mins until the fish changes colour completely. Cover the surface with a large piece of foil, turn off the heat and leave to cool completely. The fish will cook as the liquid cools.

Courgetti, lemon, ricotta and mint salad
1. Slice the red chilli, finely chop the mint, zest and juice the lemon.
2. Toss the courgetti in a bowl with the chilli, lemon juice, 3⁄4 of the mint, some salt and black pepper.
3. Season the ricotta with salt and pepper and put it into a piping bag.
4. Flake the poached salmon, wash and cut the micro cress.
5. To serve: put the flaked salmon on the plate, dot the ricotta around, put the courgette on top of the salmon and garnish with micro cress and edible flowers. Drizzle with golden rapeseed oil.