In Season: Beetroot

In Season: Beetroot

More than just a pretty addition to your salads, beetroot comes with lots of essential nutrients. It’s a great source of fibre, folate (vitamin B9), manganese, potassium, iron, and vitamin C. Traditionally beets were used as a natural medicine, treating various blood related conditions. Today it’s bright colour, sweet taste and earthy texture makes it a versatile cooking ingredient.

At Prestige Venues & Events, we source the very best seasonal produce and incorporate it within our menus. By eating seasonally, you can rest assured that the fruit and veggies you love are fresher, have travelled fewer miles and are at the peak of flavour

This February, our talented culinary teams have been crafting, plating, and celebrating beetroot. Incorporate this superfood at your next conference and event to keep your delegates engaged. Get in touch with our hub team today to find out more about our superfood menus.

Chef Ian Page, Head Chef of Major Events shares one the many ways in which he incorporates this root vegetable in his meals. A delicious Scandinavian inspired recipe, Beetroot Gravadlax. The beetroot cured salmon gravadlax, or gravlax, is infused with sea salt, raw beetroot, lemon, and fresh dill. You can serve this with a homemade soda bread and horseradish créme fraîche for a sophisticated combination of flavours. See the recipe below!

The Recipe

Top Tip: Prepare the salmon and beetroot gravadlax 48hours before you want to serve this dish.

Cooking Time: 30 minutes for the soda bread.

Vegetarian Friendly: No

Vegan Friendly: No

Ingredients

Beetroot Gravadlax

• 200 g raw beetroot
• 50g fresh horseradish or jarred horseradish sauce
• 1/2 lemon
• 100 g flaked sea salt
• 50 g demerara sugar
• 40 ml vodka
• 700g side of salmon, skin on, scaled and pin-boned
• 15g bunch of fresh dill
• lemon wedges, for squeezing over

Soda Bread (Makes 1 small loaf)

• 250g plain white flour
• 250g plain wholemeal flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 400ml buttermilk

Horseradish crème fraîche

• 100 ml crème fraîche
• 30 g fresh horseradish
• 1/2 lemon

Method

Preparation (48 hours before serving):

1. In preparation for serving this delicious dish, scrub the beetroots and horseradish, then coarsely grate them into a bowl.
2. Finely grate in the lemon zest, add the salt, sugar and vodka and mix well.
3. Place the salmon in a tray and cover with the beetroot mix, pushing everything down to ensure all of the flesh is in contact with it, then cover tightly with cling film.
4. Place a weight on top to help pack everything down, chill in the fridge for 36 hours or until the salmon is cured and firm to the touch. There’s no need to cook the salmon as the dressing will preserve the fish.
5. Carefully unwrap the fish and remove the curing mixture. Rinse under a tap to wash away any excess, draining all the juices, then pat dry with kitchen paper.
6. Pick and finely chop the dill, then scatter it over the salmon for garnish and flavour.
7. Tightly wrap in cling film again, then weigh it down and put back in the fridge.
8. You can now leave the gravlax until you are ready to serve. The bread and crème fraîche can be prepared on the day of the dinner, or in advance depending on preference.

For the Soda Bread:

1. Heat the oven to 200°C/Gas6, andline a baking tray with baking parchment.
2. Put the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl and mix well.
3. Make a well in the centre and pour in half the buttermilk.
4. Using your fingers, mix the flour into the buttermilk. Continue to add the buttermilk until all the flour has been absorbed and you have a sticky dough. (You may not need all the buttermilk – it depends on the flour you use).
5. Tip the dough out on to a lightly floured surface, shape it into a ball and flatten it slightly with the palm of your hand.
6. Put the dough on the baking tray. Mark into quarters with a large, sharp knife, cutting deeply through the loaf, almost but not quite through to the base. Dust the top with flour.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on the base—there’s nothing like the smell of fresh bread.

For the horseradish crème fraîche:

1. Put the crème fraîche in a bowl and finely grate in the horseradish and lemon zest.
2. Mix well and season to taste with lemon juice and salt.
3. To serve, use a long sharp knife to slice the salmon thinly at an angle, then dish it up with the warm soda bread, horseradish cream and your choice of quality salted butter.
4. Enjoy your masterpiece from the comfort of your kitchen!