Salmon Tartare with Smoked Salmon & Quail’s Egg

Smoked Salmon is such a staunch Scottish favourite you’d be forgiven for not knowing that it was in fact the Russians who brought the idea of smoking salmon to our shores somewhere in the late 19^th century. The refrigeration was so poor they needed a way of preserving this wonderful pink fish;  once they tried their methods on our Scottish wild salmon a gourmet food was born.  Nowadays, there’s more award winning Scottish smoked salmon out there than you can shake a blini at but with this dish there is one simple rule. The more expensive, the better the quality.

I’ve decided to champion our salmon with a combination of smoked and tartare. Yes, I do mean raw!  But let me tell you; with the addition of these acidic ingredients its a far cry from the fisherman’s dream flapping along the riverside.  Give it a go and you will find this is much more of a weekly treat than a nervous once a year “impress your foodie friends” extravagance.  I’d love to know how you get on with it – come back and post your comments for us all to enjoy!

Serves 6 starters

300g Scottish salmon fillet, finely diced
150g Scottish smoked salmon, finely diced
50g extra small capers
80g gerkins, finely diced
1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon finely chopped chives
2 shallots, finely diced
100ml of quality salad vinaigrette
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6 quail eggs
3 tablespoons of olive oil

Bread Crouton or Roll to serve
Salad Leaves to Serve

Finely dice all the ingredients as well as you can (except the eggs and oil!) and  simply combine them in a large bowl. Place in the fridge.

15 minutes before eating, taste the seasoning and adjust as required.

Gently heat a non-stick frying pan with the oil and carefully crack the eggs into 6 individual cups and gently pour into the hot oil, baste with the oil whilst cooking, keep rare as you can, lightly season and remove from the heat.

Quickly shape the tartare as you desire onto each serving plate, place the egg on top and serve with a large crouton of bread and some salad.