Spring's (almost) here: a recipe with British asparagus

Asparagus, Chicken Vinaigrette, Buckwheat & Burford Brown Egg (Serves 4)

This recipe is quite time consuming but I believe it’s very important to follow it through. When the food is simple it needs something to really lift it. In this instance the quality of the asparagus and the eggs are so vital. On top of this the vinaigrette is stunning, light and has a very unexpected depth.

INGREDIENTS
16 x Asparagus spears
100g x Buckwheat
200g x Butter
200g x Water
50g x Chervil
4 x Burford brown eggs
6kg x Chicken wings
6 x Onions
Salt & best quality white wine vinegar for seasoning

METHOD

Asparagus:
Select the best asparagus.
Snap the bottom off the asparagus, as this will be woody and dry.
Cut the thicker bottom ends into discs the thickness of a pound coin. Until about 1cm up. Cut half the spears in half lengthways.

Slow cooked egg:
Place the eggs in a container that will hold them and is deep enough for the immersion circulator to work properly.
Cook the eggs at 63degC for 80 minutes.
Place into iced water to stop them cooking. Stir the water every minute for 5 minutes, take them out and then move the eggs to the fridge until you need to use them.

Buckwheat:
Clarify 400g butter.
In a frying pan or pot fry the buckwheat in the clarified butter until light brown in colour and smells ‘toasty’.
Strain off onto paper towels and season with fine salt. This will also help to pull oil away from the grain.

Chicken ‘vinaigrette’:
Chop half the onions into 8 and put on an oven tray.
Place half the chicken wings on a separate tray, put both in the oven at 170degC.
Keep checking the onions and keep them moving around and flipping them to stop them burning.
After an hour turn the wings and continue cooking for 30 minutes.
You need to use common sense here, if you’ve a fan assisted oven they may colour quicker. You want all the wings to have rendered all fat and to have released all their liquid.
Ideally you are looking for the colour of the most perfect roast chicken you can imagine all over, before you take them out of the oven.
The onions are ready when they too have coloured all over and have softened completely. Put the onions and chicken wings into a pot or tray, cover with filtered water and bring to simmer.
Cover the pot/pan and place in a 90degC oven for 8 hours (or overnight) Take the pan out of the oven to cool. Pass off the liquid and discard the wings (or use them for a pie mix!)
Now roast the other half of the wings and the onions in exactly the same way. This time, instead of covering them with water, cover them with the chicken stock you made the first time.
Bring to simmer and cook for 8 hours again at 90degC.
Pass and weigh the stock. Allow to cool to 50degC.
Pour 10% the weight of the stock in egg whites into a blender and blend with equal weight of ice for 1 minute.
Pour this mixture into the stock while whisking and continue to whisk vigorously for 30 seconds.
Put the pan on a low heat and wait for a layer of cooked egg to form on top of the stock. As the egg cooks and rises through the stock it will clarify it. Once the egg is solid, scoop out a hole on the edge, ladle out the stock and pass through a fine mesh sieve lined with muslin.
Season quite highly with salt and best quality white wine vinegar.

The dish:
15 minutes before you want to serve, heat water to 60degC and place the eggs in it.
To form a butter emulsion, add the water to a pan and bring to simmer. Cube the butter and whisk it in to the water one piece at a time.
Blanch the whole asparagus in the emulsion for 3 minutes, then add the halves and then the discs.
Lift out after 30 seconds and drain on paper towel. Season with salt and black pepper.
Crack the egg and place the yolk on the plate.
Add the asparagus.
Sprinkle a spoon of the toasted buckwheat.
Heat the broth and add a splash of clarified butter. Spoon onto the plate. Tear sprigs of chervil and add over the asparagus.

Photograph by Per-Anders Jörgensen