Braised Salmon "Bruno", Pommes Fondant, Spinach Velouté, Potato Crisps

Introduction

Love heals and love destroys—every beginning has an end. This is the last main course in the book, and it’s no accident it sits in the New Year’s chapter, where endings meet beginnings. The person I lived with for a decade loved salmon, potatoes, spinach—and little else. As a farewell and a tribute, I built this dish around those ingredients. I named it after him.

Instructions

For the pommes fondant:

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C. Simmer vegetable trimmings covered with water for stock while you continue.

2. Clarify 4 knobs of butter: microwave until melted with white foam on top; skim foam, pour off clear fat, discard solids.

3. Peel a potato, trim the oval ends, halve horizontally.

4. Cut cylinders with a round cutter.

5. Heat clarified butter in a hot pan until very hot.

6. Brown the cylinders well on both sides.

7. When the second side colours, add stock to three-quarters up the potatoes.

8. Add thyme, garlic in skin, salt, pepper and another knob of butter.

9. Bake 45–50 minutes until tender through.

For the spinach velouté:

1. Blanch spinach in boiling water 10–15 seconds until vivid.

2. Plunge into iced water.

3. Squeeze dry in a cloth.

4. In the same pan, heat oil, add roughly chopped onion, then garlic; sweat without colour.

5. Add roughly chopped potato and courgette.

6. Add bay and grated nutmeg; sweat 1–2 minutes.

7. Cover with reserved stock—not too much—and simmer 15 minutes until potato is tender. Discard bay.

8. Blend spinach with the thickened broth until smooth.

9. Pass through a chinois.

10. Stir in cream to taste. Keep warm.

For the potato crisps:

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C. Slice red potato thinly on a mandoline.

2. Invert a baking tray, line with paper, lay slices in one layer, drizzle oil, top with another sheet and another tray. Bake 10 minutes. Sprinkle fleur de sel.

For the braised salmon:

1. Score the skin lengthwise; trim fillets evenly if you like.

2. Heat a film of oil in a hot pan.

3. Lay salmon skin-down; sear 8 minutes with fleur de sel and pepper.

4. Flip, sear 5 minutes. Rest.

To serve:

1. On a wide oval plate, place salmon skin side up.

2. Ahead of the salmon with a gap, arrange 2–3 pommes fondant.

3. Lean potato crisps against the fondants.

4. Tuck coriander leaves and edible flowers between potatoes and crisps.

5. Spoon velouté gently into the space between salmon and potatoes.