1
Begin the day before by pickling the red onion. Bring a small pan of water to the boil and blanch the onion petals for a couple of minutes, then drain. Make the pickle liquor by adding the rest of the ingredients to a separate pan and heat until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Add the onions, cover and leave to pickle. The recipe makes more than you will need for this dish but can be kept for weeks as long as the petals remain fully submerged in the pickle
- 1/2 red onion, sliced into fine petals
- 200g of red wine vinegar
- 60g of water
- 35g of sugar
- 10g of salt
2
Make the chive oil for the mayonnaise the day before too. Roughly chop the chives, then blend with the oil for 5 minutes (or until it reaches 75ºC if using a Thermomix). Pass through a sieve lined with a muslin cloth or kitchen paper set over a bowl. Do not try and push the oil through or disturb the chive sediment – leave it to naturally drip through overnight in the fridge, providing you with a nice clear green oil
- 200g of chives, roughly chopped
- 200g of neutral oil, such as vegetable oil
3
The next day, preheat an oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4 and place the potatoes on a tray with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt. Bake the potatoes for 45 minutes
- 4 Charlotte potatoes, large and all a similar size
4
While the potatoes bake, you can make the mayonnaise. Place the yolks, vinegar, mustard and sugar in a bowl or small blender and whisk until thick and pale. Slowly drizzle in the chive oil whilst continuously whisking until you have a bright green emulsion. If it looks like it is splitting, add a splash of water. Taste and season with the salt and lemon juice, then transfer to a piping bag or squeezy bottle and store in the fridge
- 60g of egg yolk, (approx. 3 yolks)
- 10g of Chardonnay vinegar
- 7g of English mustard
- 17g of sugar
- 5g of salt
- 12g of lemon juice
5
Once the potatoes are cooked, carefully slice off the tops lengthways and scoop out the potato, trying not to tear the skins as you need these for presentation. Pass the potato through a sieve into a pan and gently heat with the knob of butter, milk and the sour cream to create a smooth mash. Taste and season with salt, then keep warm
- 1 knob of butter
- 1 dash of whole milk
- 1 tbsp of sour cream
6
Prepare a deep-fat fryer or heat deep pan of oil to 160ºC then deep-fry the potato skins for about 1 minute, or until crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside (keep the oil hot for the onion rings)
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
7
Create a quick batter by whisking together the self-raising flour and sparkling water with a pinch of salt. Dust the shallot rings in flour, then dip in the batter and deep-fry until golden. Drain on kitchen paper and season with salt
- 75g of self-raising flour, plus 1 tbsp to dust
- 90ml of sparkling water
- 1 banana shallot, sliced into rings
- 1 pinch of salt
8
Season the steaks heavily with salt and pepper and place a large frying pan over a high heat. Once smoking, add a dash of oil followed by the rib-eyes and sear for 2–3 minutes on each side, depending on how rare you want them. Add the butter to the pan with the garlic and thyme, then once foaming baste the steaks for a further minute. Leave to rest in a warm place for 5 minutes
- 2 rib-eye steaks, weighing 300g each
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 dash of vegetable oil
- 2 knobs of butter
- 2 garlic cloves, bashed in their skins
- 3 sprigs of thyme
9
To cook the mushrooms, place a frying pan over a high heat with a knob of butter. Once melted, add the maitake mushrooms and gently cook for a minute or two. Season with a pinch of salt and set aside, then repeat this process with the girolles
- 1 knob of butter
- 4 handfuls of maitake mushrooms
- 100g of small girolles
10
To serve, pipe or spoon the warm sour cream mash into the potato skins and cover with finely chopped chives. Carve each rested steak in two and place alongside, then top them with the cooked maitake mushrooms. Add the potato and pipe a large dot of chive mayonnaise next to it, then place the girolles in between with warm sauce poured over the top. Finish by arranging the onion rings, pickled onion petals and tarragon leaves on top of the steak
- 1/2 bunch of chopped chives
- tarragon leaves
- beef jus, hot
