A very relaxing late lunch nestled into the cushions on the window seat at Andrew McConnell’s Bar Lourinha on a recent long weekend in Melbourne was a stand-out. After eating my way through the all-too-good-not-to-order menu at SuperNormal (also by Andrew McConnell) the night before, I wasn’t feeling up to much more than a lettuce leaf, and here it was in all its smoky, charred, salty, fishy deliciousness. Simplicity at its best. Here is Matt’s recipe. We struggle to get bottarga, which is a salted cured fish roe, so I use whatever smoked roe my fish monger has on the day. Serve this to friends, as a light lunch or part of a tapas selection. They will think you’re very clever.
Ingredients
| 2 | Cos lettuce, hearts, small and trimmed, halved lengthways (Main) |
| 1 drizzle | Olive oil |
| 2 Tbsp | Aioli |
| 1 | Egg, free-range, hard boiled (Main) |
| 1 sprinkle | Fish roe, such as salmon roe, avruga, smoked herring, bottarga, mullet or tuna (Main) |
| 1 drizzle | Olive oil, lemon infused |
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Directions
- Lightly rub the trimmed and halved cos hearts with a little oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on a grill that is at its hottest setting and grill for about 45 seconds to 1 minute on each side so the cos gets a nice charred flavour and softens a little.
- Smear the aioli to cover a serving bowl or plate, and arrange the charred cos hearts on top.
- Using a fine microplane, gently shave the boiled egg over the cos. Then, using a small teaspoon, scatter the roe over the salad.
- To finish, shave the bottarga (if using) over the top of the salad using a fine microplane and liberally dress with the lemon oil and a little cracked pepper.
