Pressed leeks, gribiche mimosa condiment

Serves 4

Preparation time: 1 h 30

Cooking time: 1 h 15

Resting time: 4 h

• 6 medium leeks
• 1 hard-boiled egg
• Espelette pepper

The sauce

• 50 g chopped shallots
• 30 g white vinegar
• 30 g dry white wine
• Fresh herbs
• 20 g flat-leaf parsley
• 10 g tarragon
• 40 g spinach
• 1 tbsp. mustard
• 1 egg
• 1 pinch salt
• 15-20 cl grapeseed oil
• 50 g gherkins
• 40 g capers
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. chopped flat-leaf parsley

Batter for root fritters

• 150 g flour
• 1 egg
• 230 g water
• 1 drizzle olive oil
• 1 pinch of salt
• Frying oil

1 - Prepare the leeks: cut the roots off the leeks, keeping the rootlets (filaments) for the fritters. Wash the leeks, remove the tough outer leaves, then cut off about half of the greenest part (the green will be used for the leek oil). Bundle the 6 leeks with kitchen string. Plunge into a large pot of boiling salted water (10 g/l) and cook for around 25 min. The leeks should be melting. Cool in an ice-water bath. Drain, remove the slightly crumpled outer leaves and gently squeeze out any moisture with your hands. Place in a dish on absorbent paper, press and leave to drain in a cool place for 3 or 4 h (or do it the day before).

2 - Prepare the sauce: remove the leaves from the fresh herbs and keep the stems. Place the 50 g chopped shallots, vinegar, white wine and fresh herb stems in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and reduce for 10 min. Turn off the heat, then squeeze the shallots to recover the reduced juice.

- Blanch the herbs: plunge the fresh herb leaves into a pan of boiling salted water and leave for 2 min, then cool in an ice-water bath and drain.

- Place the reduced juice in the bowl of a blender. Add the mustard, egg and salt. Blend, adding the oil a little at a time, as you would a mayonnaise. Add the herbs (blanched leaves) while continuing to blend and add oil. The sauce will take on a nice green color and should be glossy. Chop gherkins and capers. Add to the sauce, along with the chopped shallot and flat-leaf parsley. Mix well.

3 - Make the leek pressé: sponge the leeks one last time and adjust their length. Cover the work surface with cling film and lay 3 leeks head to tail. Place the other 3 on top in the same way. Cover with cling film and roll up tightly to form a sausage (5 or 6 turns). Tighten, then fold over the ends of the film. Pierce with the tip of a knife to drain off any water. Place on absorbent paper. Turn over and replace paper if soaked.

4 - Make the leek root fritters: take each root and cut off the base with scissors. Drop the rootlets into a bowl of cold water. Mix the ingredients for the dough, which should be smooth. Heat the frying oil to 150°C. Dry the roots, place them in a colander and pour in a few drops of paste, stirring to coat well. Plunge them into the hot oil and cook until crisp but not browned. Drain on paper towels and season with salt.

5 - To make the leek oil: wash and roughly chop the leek greens. In a blender, add 2/3 of the grapeseed oil. Blend. Filter and recover the green oil.

6 - Prepare the dressing: crush the whole hard-boiled egg. Remove the leek sausage from the fridge. Remove the core, then slice into 4 cm-high sections with a sharp knife, leaving the cling film on. Remove the cling film. Sponge off excess moisture if necessary. Brush with olive oil and warm in the oven. Lightly char or broil.

7 - Presentation: place a spoonful of green sauce in the center of the plate. Place a small crown of chopped hard-boiled egg, then place the leek pressé in the middle. Add a sprinkling of herbs (flat-leaf parsley, tarragon, etc.), a spoonful of leek oil for seasoning, then add the root chips for texture. Finish with a pinch of fleur de sel and Espelette pepper.