Recipes, re-invented from cooking shows

Red Mullet with Sauce Maltaise (demo)

Name: Red Mullet with Sauce Maltaise (demo)
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 50–60 minutes

Prep. Time:

Baking Time:

30 minutes

Total Time:

50–60 minutes

Serves:

2 portions

Matthew Ryle created this dish for MasterChef UK Professionals Season 18. A classical French skills test benchmark: pan-fried red mullet with crispy skin served on vermouth-braised fennel, accompanied by a blood orange and grapefruit citrus salad, and finished with Sauce Maltaise - a beurre noisette...

Often, our recipes are complicated, to achieve "television ready" dishes. If you would like a version you can easily make at home, please just ask.

Ingredients

HOLLANDAISE REDUCTION
Banana shallots, finely sliced — 80 g
Fresh thyme sprigs — 3 sprigs
White wine vinegar — 45 ml (3 tbsp)
Dry white wine — 45 ml (3 tbsp)
Water — 30 ml (2 tbsp)
White peppercorns, lightly crushed — 1.5 g (½ tsp)

SAUCE MALTAISE (BLOOD ORANGE HOLLANDAISE)
Unsalted butter — 170 g (¾ cup / 1½ sticks)
Egg yolks — 3 large
Blood orange juice, freshly squeezed — 45 ml (3 tbsp)
Blood orange zest — ½ tsp
Lemon juice, to balance acidity — 5 ml (1 tsp), or to taste
Fine sea salt and white pepper — to taste

BRAISED FENNEL
Fennel bulbs, quartered lengthways — 350 g (2 small or 1 large)
Olive oil — 15 ml (1 tbsp)
Unsalted butter — 14 g (1 tbsp)
Dry vermouth (Noilly Prat preferred) — 80 ml (⅓ cup)
Vegetable or light fish stock — 120 ml (½ cup)
Salt and white pepper — to taste

RED MULLET
Whole red mullet, scaled and gutted — approx. 900 g total (2 fish, 400–500 g each)
Olive oil, for frying — 15–30 ml (1–2 tbsp)
Unsalted butter, for basting — 14 g (1 tbsp)
Salt and white pepper — to taste

CITRUS SALAD
Blood orange, supremed — 1 large
Ruby grapefruit, supremed — ½ large
Lime — ½ (segmented or zested and juiced)
Fresh red chilli, finely chopped (seeds optional) — ½ small
Fresh mint leaves, torn — 6–8 leaves
Extra-virgin olive oil — 15 ml (1 tbsp)
Flaked sea salt — pinch

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Instructions

MAKE THE HOLLANDAISE REDUCTION
Combine the shallots, thyme, white wine vinegar, white wine, water, and lightly crushed white peppercorns in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and reduce by half, about 5–7 minutes. The liquid should become fragrant and slightly syrupy. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing the shallots to extract maximum flavour. Set aside to cool completely — the reduction must be cool before it contacts the egg yolks.

BROWN THE BUTTER
Melt the butter in a small, light-coloured saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking, swirling occasionally, until the milk solids turn deep golden brown and the butter smells of hazelnuts, about 6–8 minutes. Pour immediately through a fine sieve into a clean bowl to stop the cooking. Allow to cool to approximately 60°C / 140°F — warm enough to emulsify, cool enough not to scramble the yolks.

MAKE THE BLOOD ORANGE REDUCTION
Pour the freshly squeezed blood orange juice into a small saucepan and reduce over medium-high heat to approximately 1 tablespoon — a glossy, intensified syrup. Add the blood orange zest. Set aside.

BRAISE THE FENNEL
Heat the olive oil and butter in a wide, shallow pan over medium-high heat. Place the fennel quarters cut-side down and cook for 3–4 minutes until golden. Season with salt and white pepper. Add the vermouth and stock, then lay a cartouche (a circle of greaseproof paper cut to fit the pan) directly on the surface of the fennel. Braise over medium heat for approximately 15 minutes until completely tender — a knife should pass through without resistance. Keep warm.

FILLET AND PIN-BONE THE RED MULLET
Lay each fish on a board with its back facing you. Using a sharp, flexible filleting knife, make an incision behind the head and run the knife along the backbone from head toward the tail to release the first fillet. Flip the fish and repeat from tail to head on the reverse side. Trim the belly flap and any ragged edges. Working along the lateral line of each fillet, use tweezers to feel for and remove every pin bone. Run a fingertip along the flesh to verify. Season the flesh side with salt and white pepper immediately before cooking.

ASSEMBLE THE CITRUS SALAD
Supreme the blood orange and grapefruit: cut off the top and bottom, remove the peel and pith following the curve of the fruit, then cut between the membranes to release clean segments. Combine in a bowl with the lime zest and a squeeze of lime juice. Add the chopped chilli, torn mint leaves, and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Season with flaked sea salt. Dress at the last moment so the mint stays bright.

BUILD THE SAUCE MALTAISE
Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water — the base of the bowl must not touch the water. Add the egg yolks and the cooled hollandaise reduction. Whisk vigorously for 3–4 minutes until pale, thick, and ribbon-like, roughly doubled in volume. Remove from the heat. Add the cooled brown butter in the thinnest possible stream, whisking constantly — almost a dribble at first to establish the emulsion, slightly faster once half is incorporated. Season with salt and white pepper. Stir in the blood orange reduction and zest. Taste and adjust with a few drops of lemon juice. Keep warm over the hot water with the heat off, whisking occasionally.

COOK THE RED MULLET
Heat a non-stick or well-seasoned stainless pan over medium-high heat until very hot. Add the olive oil. Place the fillets skin-side down and press gently with a fish slice for the first 15–20 seconds to prevent curling. Cook without moving for 2–3 minutes until the skin is golden and crisp and the flesh has turned opaque almost to the top. Add the butter, allow it to foam, and baste the flesh side briefly. Remove from the heat when the flesh is just turning pink at the very top — residual heat will finish the cooking.

PLATE
Place the braised fennel in the centre of each warm plate. Lay the red mullet fillet alongside or atop the fennel, skin-side up. Arrange the citrus salad to one side. Spoon the Sauce Maltaise generously around or alongside the fish — not over the skin, to preserve its crispness. Serve immediately.