Through The Cooking-Glass #6: Maki De Aguacate Y Bogavante

Regular readers will recognise the dish that Executive Chef Carles Abellan is demonstrating in this latest video clip from internet videoblog Ver y Cocinar (To See And To Cook). Maki de aguacate y bogavante (avocado and lobster maki) is a dish from our Grand Festival tasting menu that I featured in this series back in June. More recently, I made a version of the maki at home, using Galician mussels instead of the lobster. As with the video clip of Chef Abellan preparing Sopa de fideos, the mis en place for this clip was prepared by my own fair hands.

Video clip courtesy of Ver y Cocinar (To See And To Cook)

Ingredients Fresh coriander 1 jalapeño chilli Salt 2 avocados

50g sushi rice Soy/rice vinegar dressing Extra virgin olive oil Black pepper

Crushed nachos Lime juice 50g lobster

Preparation Wash the sushi rice well and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and leave for 12 minutes. Peel the avocado and remove the stone, trying to retain the shape of the avocado as best as possible. Take one of the halves, cut into pieces and place in a plastic container with coriander leaves, some lime juice, salt and the jalapeño chilli, seeds removed. Blitz with a stick blender until a completely smooth guacamole is achieved. Once 12 minutes have passed, remove the rice from the stove, leave uncovered for two minutes to cool slightly and then season with the soy and rice vinegar dressing. Now open a second avocado in the same way, this one a little less ripe than the previous, and with a mandolin cut into very fine slices directly over a sheet of silicone paper. These we will use in the place of nori seaweed, as the outside wrapping of the maki. Now take the slices of avocado and place one on top of the other, only slightly overlapping from top to bottom on a sheet of laminate paper. Lubricate with a little sunflower oil, rub in well, and cover with cling film. Cut out a square around the cling film, flip the maki sheet over and remove the laminate paper so that you are left with the sheet of cling film with the upside down rectangle of overlapping avocado slices. Now place a small amount of the seasoned sushi rice in the centre, and form into a line along the length of the rectangle. Place the pieces of lobster on top of the rice and with the aid of the cling film, roll the maki carefully into a cylinder. Service Carefully place the maki onto a plate. Place the guacamole into a piping bag and pipe a small amount at one end of the maki. Place a coriander leaf on top to garnish. Spoon a small amount of the lobster essence by the side of the maki and drag into a teardrop with the back of the spoon. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil, a crack of black pepper and break small pieces of the nachos on top of the maki.