By John Cox, chef at Casanova and La Bicyclette in Carmel
Serves 4
My favorite way to enjoy the subtle flavor and unique texture of fresh local abalone is to serve it raw. As with all shellfish, knowing the source of the abalone and ensuring its quality is the most important step in the recipe.
4 small live abalone
1 watermelon radish
1 lemon cucumber
1 bunch basil or Opal basil
1 Meyer lemon
8 wild fennel flowers (or fennel pollen)
1 tablespoon Maldon sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh cracked Tellicherry pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil (preferably a young, tannic variety)
Clean abalone (see www.ediblemontereybay.com for abalone cleaning instructions)
Using a razor sharp knife, slice the abalone lengthwise as thinly as possible.
Slice the radish, cucumber and ½ lemon into thin round slices.
Arrange slices of cucumber, radish, lemon and abalone on 4 individual serving plates and decorate with basil leaves and fennel flowers.
Sprinkle the plates with Maldon sea salt and Tellicherry pepper.
Squeeze the juice from the remaining ½ lemon over each plate.
Drizzle the plates with olive oil and serve immediately.
Alternately: You can mix the ingredients as you would a salad and serve it in the abalone shell.
For John Cox’s instructions for cleaning abalone and his recipe for Abalone with Heirloom Tomatoes and Capers, inspired by Ernest “Pop” Doelter’s classic recipe, go to the EMB website.
About the author
At Edible Monterey Bay, our mission is to celebrate the local food culture of Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey Counties, season by season. We believe in sustainability, and we believe everyone has a right to healthful, clean and affordable food. We think knowing where our food comes from is powerful, and we hope our magazine, website and newsletters inspire readers to get to know and support our local growers, fishers, chefs, vintners and food artisans.
