Oysters Poached in Red Wine Sauce with Duck Confit and Celeriac by Tom Aikens

Ingredients

  • 12 oysters, opened and cleaned (Keep the shells and clean with a brush and cold water. Then warmthe shells through the oven at 160ºc for just 3 mins).

Duck confit:

  • 2-3 duck legs
  • 150g coarse sea salt
  • 2g thyme
  • 1g picked rosemary
  • 4g black peppercorns crushed
  • 4 Cloves garlic cut in half and bashed
  • ½ tsp Juniper berries
  • 2 Bay leaves
  • 600-800ml duck fat (or enough to cover the legs completely)

Red wine sauce:

  • 400g shallots thickly sliced
  • 500ml red wine
  • 300ml port
  • 3g of whole thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 10 crushed black peppercorns
  • 25g butter
  • 500ml chicken stock

Celeriac mash:

  • 400g peeled celeriac
  • 35g unsalted butter
  • 3g coarse sea salt
  • 20ml lemon juice
  • h of pepper
  • Pinch of dried thyme leaf
  • 1 tsp caster sugar

1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large,
heavy-bottomed frying pan over a
medium-low heat.
2. Add the leeks and onion and sweat
gently for about 10 mins until softened.
Add the garlic and cook for another
2 minutes.
3. Add the rice to coat in the buttery oil, add
the wine and bring to a gentle simmer.
4. Cook while stirring, until most of the
liquid is absorbed.
5. Start adding one ladleful of fish stock
at a time, making sure each ladleful is
almost completely absorbed before
adding the next one.
6. Add the reserved oyster juice. (If you find
you are running out of stock before the
rice is cooked, just add some boiling
water). The final result should be smooth
and creamy with the rice still al dente.
7. Stir in the fennel.
8. Prepare the Gutweed by heating an 8cm
depth of oil in a deep saucepan to 180º
(until a cube of stale white bread dropped
in turns golden within a minute).
9. Deep-fry the gutweed in batches:
carefully lower into the pan using tongs
and fry for 4 – 6 seconds only, then
remove with a slotted spoon and place
on kitchen paper to drain while you
deep-fry the rest.
10. Melt some butter in a heavy non-stick
pan and sauté the oysters until nicely
browned.
11. Check the seasoning of the risotto and
divide between warmed plates
or individual ramekins.
12. Arrange an oyster on each one and
sprinkle on the fried gutweed.

Serve Immediately