Metallic purses, and how to cook one of the best things James has ever eaten


Here's the last recipe in our our collaboration with British accessories designer Ally Capellino. Based on the metallic-foiled lambskin range of purses, bags and wallets, we thought a fish recipe would be rather fitting.

“One of the most incredible things I’ve ever eaten was in Shanghai. It was ‘deep sea fish head cooked in scallions’. My guess is that it was a cod’s head we had. There was so much gelatine in the meat and skin, it was a real thrill to eat. The flavour was so different to that of a bone-free roast fillet. I felt privileged to have been able to eat it and thought that, aside from people being a bit squeamish initially, everyone would enjoy the texture and flavour.”

Fish Head (serves 1)

One of the most incredible things I’ve ever eaten was in Shanghai, it was ‘deep sea fish head cooked in scallions’. It was at a restaurant that was incredibly hard for westerners to get in to - I had to recruit one of the waitresses at the restaurant I had been cooking at firstly to make the booking and secondly to argue with the restaurant once we arrived, that I should be allowed to try it! My guess is that it was a cod’s head we had. There was so much gelatine in the meat and skin, it was a real thrill to eat, the flavour was so different to that of a bone- free roast fillet. I felt privileged to have been able to eat it and thought that, aside from people being a bit squeamish initially, everyone would enjoy the texture and flavour.

The food at Lyle’s isn’t the cheapest in London but it is certainly one of the best-value menus. One of the ways we make the most of an expensive fish such as turbot is by not throwing a single part away. We generally brine and age the body but the heads we serve straight away, either on the lunch menu or as an optional extra on the dinner menu.

We either skewer the head and cook it over the grill or roast it in our wood-fired oven. This has a very special effect on the skin due to the intense, dry heat and flavour of the oven.

INGREDIENTS
1 fish head (turbot, brill or cod)
2L water
75g sea salt
200ml fish stock
150g butter
juice of 1 lemon
50g seaweed (dulse preferable)
1 lobe of bottarga

METHOD
The day before: rinse the fish head and remove the gills and any blood lines from inside the head.

Make the brine by heating the water slightly in a large pan and whisking in the salt until dissolved. Chill to fridge temperature.

Once the brine is cold, submerge the head and leave overnight.

Take the head from the brine the following day. Preheat the oven to 210C.

Place the head on a 5cm deep baking tray lined with baking parchment, or a casserole dish. Add the butter and place in the oven.

Baste the head with the butter every 3-4 minutes. After 12 minutes add the fish stock to deglaze the pan.

Unlike cooking a fillet, don’t worry about overcooking the head. It needs to cook through to get the most from the gelatinous pieces.

Baste the head with the stock. After 20 minutes take out the head. Squeeze the lemon juice.

Once cooled a little, you can serve. Taste the juices around the head; they should be salty, acidic and rich. If any of those are lacking - add more salt, lemon juice or butter.

Transfer to a plate and pour over the cooking juices. Grate bottarga over the whole plate with a fine microplane.