What's Pressoir Cooking?
by Daniel Johnnes
Wednesday, October 14, 2020
I have been ruminating on what to cook for the next La Paulée Selections 3 pack. In case you haven’t noticed our La Paulée Selection is accompanied by a short video of me preparing a dish (or 3) to go with the wines. We believe wine is enhanced by a fine dish just as a fine dish is amplified by a delicious, perfectly chosen wine.
Last month I cooked chicken 3 ways - roasted, grilled and braised. Each called for a different wine.
Now, I am preparing a striped bass one way but with 3 different sauces and seasonings, each having a strong say in what wine I would pair with it.
The bass will be accompanied by couscous tossed with fava beans, celery, carrot, zucchini, chanterelle mushrooms and depending on which wine I want it to pair with, I will incorporate either creme fraiche, lemon and tarragon or bacon and red wine or just a simple butter and lemon sauce.
Here’s the striped bass with bacon and red wine.
Couscous preparation:
1 cup couscous
1 cup chicken stock
- Bring 1 cup chicken stock to boil. Add couscous, mix, cover and set aside
Vegetable mixture
1 carrot
1 zucchini
½ pound fava beans shelled
½ pound chanterelle mushrooms
3 strips bacon cubed
1 onion
Thyme
- Sweat onion, add carrot, sauté mushrooms and bacon until cooked, then add zucchini, fava beans and thyme which cook very quickly. Remove and mix with fluffed couscous and set aside.
Fish & sauce
1 filet striped bass (about 3/4 pound)
1 diced shallot
1 cup red wine
2 tablespoons Glace de Volaille stock (I like the More than Gourmet brand)
1 branch thyme
1 tablespoon butter
- Heat sauté pan with olive oil. Sear bass on one side for 2 minutes, turn and cook for another two minutes and put in 375 degree pre-heated oven for another 2 minutes. Remove fish from pan, add shallots until translucent. Add cup red wine, 2 tablespoons fond de volatile (stock), add branch of thyme and reduce by half. Finish with one tablespoon butter.
To finish presentation
Plate one large tablespoon couscous mixture. Place fish on top and dress with 2 tablespoons sauce. Garnish with a sprig of thyme.
For the other two sauce preparations, you will have to buy the La Paulée Selection pack, available soon.
Bon Appétit et Bonne Degustation!
