Olia Hercules - Kaukasis
I first met Olia a couple of years ago when she came to join us as one of our guest chefs. She wasn’t too well known, we only sold 60% of the seats, but she was a vibrant individual, brimming with passion which infected all the guests who demolished the dishes and cried for more. So we gave them more, she came again a year later and it was a complete sell out and since then she has been championing the food and culture of the Kaukasis; Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia to devotees around the world.
She’s hot, really hot, in fact she’s so hot she’s cool. Many chefs I know adore her writing adding, I’m so over pomegranates (Middle Eastern). She’s an absolute tornado, driven to communicate the flavours of her childhood, whether on TV channels across the USA, on radio and TV across Europe and the UK. She doesn’t stop, I follow her on Instagram, it’s exhausting.
Reading her book really locates you to the region, bordered by Turkey, Russia and Iran with their own culinary traditions and undoubted influence. Olia says; ‘This is my interpretation, a symbol, a vision of how to cherish tradition while also being open to creating something new’
I’ve chosen to cook Hake with pistachio & cauliflower sauce & kindzmari on page 157. It’s open to interpretation and could equally sit on a roasted cauliflower steak. The kindzmari is a potent coriander, chilli and honey sauce, amazing with any white fish, so make some extra. The sauce was a joy to make, wending it’s way through some intriguing processes to get to a fabulous conclusion.
Of course, there’s no point cooking anything unless you have a receptive, hungry audience, so I’ve asked Louise Penny to come along with her head chef at The Radnor Arms, Pete Goodridge-Reynolds. The Radnor has been a bolt hole of mine for over 35 years, back then run by Richard and Lesley Penny, so it’s nice to see it back in the firm so to speak and appropriate that Louise and Pete should come along after a heavy lunchtime shift serving great food to a pub full of punters.
FISH WITH PISTACHIO AND CAULIFLOWER SAUCE AND KINDZMARI
This dish came from the numerous Georgian
supper clubs I have staged in the UK. I love
the creaminess of Georgian nut sauces but also
the acidity and aroma of kindzmari. If you are
cooking for a dinner party and want to dress it
up in style – add something crispy on top. If you
want to simplify the recipe, simply drop one of
the sauces – a good fish will be equally delicious
with either a dollop of the nutty cauliflower mixture
for creamy comfort or a slick of kindzmari for a
spicy kick. If you do have the time and are aiming
to impress, this is not a difficult dish to prepare.
Serves 4
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 hake fillets
Pistachio & cauliflower sauce
1/2 small cauliflower, divided into florets
2 shallots, peeled and halved
25g (1oz) unsalted butter
200ml (7fl oz) warm chicken, fish or
Vegetable stock
Small pinch of saffron threads
70g (21/2oz) pistachios or walnuts, toasted
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground
Black pepper
kindzmari
25g (1oz) bunch of coriander, stalks and all,
roughly chopped
2 green chillies, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon maple syrup or clear honey
Sea salt flakes, to taste
Floured and shallow-fried shallot rings
(or toasted flaked almonds or crispy seaweed)
Herbs
Pomegranate seeds
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas Mark 4.
2. Pop the cauliflower florets and halved shallots
on a baking tray, dot around the butter and
pour over half the chicken stock. Season well
with salt.
3. Crush the saffron with a little sea salt using a
pestle and mortar and add to the tray.
4. Roast the vegetables for about 30 minutes
until soft and caramelised, if the cauliflower
and the shallots catch a little at the edges,
it’s not a problem, a little colour creates a
flavoursome sauce.
5. Grind the pistachios into a powder, blitz the
shallots and cauliflower with the ground
nuts in a blender or food processor until the
mixture is super smooth, adding a little warm
stock if needed, it should be the consistency
of double cream.
6. Taste and season.