Sea urchin bisque with whipped saffron cream and seaweed chips

Ingredients

• For sea urchin bisque:
• 150 g (⅓ lb) sea urchin gonads
• 15 g (½ oz.) semi-salted butter
• 1 French shallot, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 sprig thyme
• 36 g (3 Tbsp) flour
• 150 ml (⅝ cup) white wine
• 750 ml (3 cups) fish stock
• 250 ml (1 cup) heavy cream (35%)
• Peppercorns to taste
• For whipped saffron cream:
• 250 ml (1 cup) heavy cream (35%)
• 2 g (⅓ tsp) Spanish saffron
• 3 g (½ tsp) fleur de sel
• For seaweed chips:
• 4 à 6 leaves of dried sea lettuce
• 15 ml (1 Tbsp) oil
• 2 pinches fleur de sel

Preparation

For sea urchin bisque

• Rinse the sea urchin gonads in cold water.
• Sweat shallot, thyme and garlic in butter. Add sea urchin and cook on medium heat for 1 minute. Add flour and pepper and mix well.
• Deglaze with white wine and let reduce by half. Add fish stock and let cook for 15 minutes.
• Remove the sprig of thyme and mix with an immersion blender. Pass through a conical strainer (chinois) and put back on the heat while incorporating the cream. Let reduce on medium heat until a perfectly smooth cream is obtained.

For whipped saffron cream

• Heat cream in a pot, add saffron and fleur de sel. Bring cream to a boil and let simmer on low heat for 5 minutes or until it becomes yellowish in colour.
• Take off the heat, strain through a chinois and let cool in the refrigerator for a few hours.
• When plating, whip the cream using an electric mixer or a whisk.

For seaweed chips

• Pre-heat oven to 180°C (350°F).
• While oven is coming up to temperature, rehydrate the desired quantity of seaweed and place a sheet of wax paper on a baking tray. Remove any excess water before putting in the oven.
• Place the seaweed on a sheet of wax paper, baste with oil and sprinkle with fleur de sel.
• Place a second sheet of wax paper on top of the seaweed and put in the oven until it becomes crispy.

Plating

• Ladle the hot bisque in a bowl. Place a quenelle-shaped dollop of saffron cream on the bisque. Add seaweed chips and enjoy!