Turbot with white asparagus and hollandaise

A white meat flatfish with the ability to grow up to 15 kilograms, turbot may become a new family favourite once tried in this dish.

• serves

  6

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Stream free On Demand

Episode 1

episode • Guillaume's Paris • 

travel • 

24m

G

episode • Guillaume's Paris • 

travel • 

24m

G

Ingredients

• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 leek, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 fennel, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 5 peppercorns
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 whole turbot, 3-4 kg, cleaned and scaled
• A little olive oil, to drizzle
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 10 sprigs thyme
• 750 ml white wine
• 12 large white asparagus

Hollandaise

• 500 g unsalted butter, diced
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 lemon, juiced
• ½ bunch parsley, picked and chopped
• Pimient d’espelette, to taste (see Note)

Instructions

1. To the clarified butter for hollandaise: Place the butter in a small pot and put on super low heat being careful that the butter doesn’t simmer or boil. You want the butter to separate slowly. Leave the butter to settle then strain through a fine sieve, discarding the whey. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 180ºC.
3. If you have a turbotiere or a fish kettle, remove the tray insert then place the carrot, leek, onion, fennel, celery, peppercorns and bay leaves on the bottom. Place the turbot on the tray insert, drizzle with olive oil then place lemon slices and thyme on top. Alternatively, you can use a roasting tray and place the fish directly on top of the vegetables after the next step.
4. Pour white wine onto the vegetables and place the kettle on the stove to bring the liquid to the boil.
5. Place the tray on top of the vegetables then top up with water until fish is half covered.
6. Place in the oven and cook for 45 minutes, until the turbot has a good colour, and it is cooked through.
7. Meanwhile, to make the hollandaise:  Start whisking in the clarified butter to emulsify the yolks. You will need to make sure your eggs don’t get too hot and start to cook. As they cook, the eggs will become frothy and increase in volume, and then thicken. When you can see thick ribbons that start to hold their shape longer, your hollandaise is ready. Remove from the heat and season with pimient d’espellete and salt. Finish with chopped parsley. Keep in a warm place.
8. Bring a pot of water to the boil.
9. Using a peeler, remove the stringy part of the white asparagus being careful not to peel too much. When the water is on a rolling boil, blanch asparagus (in batches if necessary) for 1½ minutes. Drain and set aside.
10. When the fish is ready, remove it from the turbotiere then place on a serving platter. Serve with the white asparagus spears and the hollandaise.

Note

• Also known as espelette pepper, pimient d’espelette is a mild chilli with a warm, fruity flavour. Find pimient d’espellete powder from special retailers and some delis. 

• Guillaume's suggestion for checking the temperature while whisking the egg yolks is to lift the bowl from the pan every 30 seconds or so and check the temperature by placing your hand on the bottom of the bowl. "If it's too hot for your hand, it's too hot for the egss. Take it off and cool it down, then start [whisking] again ... you have to do that many times when you make a hollandaise."

Sample the delicacies of Paris' arrondissements through the eyes of chef Guillaume Brahimi in Guillaume's Paris.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Stream free On Demand

Episode 1

episode • Guillaume's Paris • 

travel • 

24m

G

episode • Guillaume's Paris • 

travel • 

24m

G