Hed Chef: Mentaiko pasta

For a quick yet luxurious dish that is easy to rustle up, try mentaiko pasta.

Mentaiko is spicy cured pollock roe, but I find it more savoury than spicy.

Being crazy about shiso (perilla), I have added more of it in my take on this Japanese fusion dish. You can do without shiso and use nori strips as a garnish, but it isn't quite the same.

Shiso has a herbaceous nutty mintiness that helps cut through the creaminess and intensify both flavour and texture.

This is one dish that requires very little washing up afterwards. Serve it up with a side salad and you are set for a delectable fuss-free meal.

INGREDIENTS (SERVES ONE)

• 2 shiso leaves
• 2 litres of water
• 2 tsp fine salt
• 85g angel hair pasta
• 1 tbsp thickened cream
• 45g mentaiko (marinated pollock roe), removed from the sac
• 10g finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• Pinch of sea salt
• 10 nori strips
• 3g Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings

METHOD

1. Rinse and dry the shiso leaves.

Weets Eats

Bites

Sep 20, 2018

2. Place the leaves one on top of the other. Roll them up and slice finely. Set aside.

3. Bring 2 litres of water to boil in a saucepan. Add 2 teaspoon of salt.

4. Let water reach boiling point again and add pasta. Boil according to packet instructions. It is usually around 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off fire.

5. Pour pasta out into a colander to drain off water. Place pasta back into pot.

6. In a bowl, mix thickened cream with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

7. Add this to the pasta and stir through.

8. Add in three-quarters of the mentaiko and toss through. Sprinkle on the pinch of sea salt and toss briefly.

9. Transfer the pasta onto a plate. Place the remaining mentaiko on top. Garnish with finely sliced shiso, nori strips and Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings.

10. Serve immediately.