Great British Menu ™
Baker:
Season:
Week:
Challenge Type:
A Day by the Sea
Mark: "So the name of my dish is 'A Day by the Sea' and it's inspired by a collection of Scottish inventors, including the inventor of the vacuum flask, James Dewar, the inventor of color photography, James Clark Maxwell, and the inventor of the adhesive stamp, James Chalmers."
Mark: "I have wrapped the haddock fillet in nori. I'm going to poach the fish in the flask. The main dish, there will be a brandade, add a little bit of Arbroath Smokie in there as well. Seaweed cracker with a leak on top."
Notes taken during cooking
Before Mark's haddock can be poached in a flask, it is brined in white wine and nori seaweed.
Later ...
Mark's starting his brandade - an emulsion made with haddock, Arbroath Smokies, garlic and potato.
Mark: "This is a smoked dashi base with dried shiitakes, dulce, lemon, thyme, and then some of the bones from that haddock that been cured and smoked and dried. The goal is to use the whole thing and add a bit more flavor into it."
Aktar Islam, talking behind the scenes
"So the broth has a lovely flavor, but my only concern is what's it going to taste like after it's been used to poach the fish."
Plating
Mark's fish dish has many technical components that need bringing together at the last minute.
Clams go in the fryer..
He's celebrating three Scottish inventors and taking an inventive approach himself with a 20 year Great British Menu first ... poaching haddock in a muslin bag using a humble flask! He's also serving seaweed postcards, complete with edible pictures.
With his haddock brandade (Mark says "fishy mash" where I come from"!) ready, the postcards are positioned.
Aktar Islam: "So you've cooked the fish, You've poached it in the liquor inside the flask?"
Mark: "Yeah."
Peers, tasting behind the scenes
"That fish is cooked perfectly."
Back in the judging room
Aktar Islam: "Are you happy with the cooking of the haddock?"
Mark: "I think it's nice. Soft and gentle."
Peers, tasting behind the scenes
"Not a big fan of the texture of the nori on the outside with the water."
Back in the judging room
Aktar Islam: "Are you happy with how you've balanced the seasoning on the broth?"
Mark: "To me, it's not over seasoned as a dish. I think if you eat it with the cracker as well."
Peers, tasting behind the scenes
"There's a sweetness to it."
Final Judging
Aktar Islam: "Mark, for your dish, "A Day by the Sea", the poaching of the fish in the vacuum flask was incredible. The broth was lovely and had lots of deep flavor. However, when adding it to the rest of the dish, I just found it to be ever so slightly over seasoned. I thought it was a great example of a brandade. It's lovely and smoky and I think it added to the dish."
As a family-run site, we pour our hearts into recording and transcribing cooking shows, developing tested recipes, and sharing culinary insights—all without bombarding you with ads.
Your low-cost subscription would help us cover ingredient costs and confirm that our passion project matters to you.
Please join our cooking community today.