Panfried Hapuku and Crushed Herbed Potato Salad, Crisp Prosciutto and Lemon Mayonnaise

(Serves 4-6)

Ingredients For Lemon Mayonnaise

• 2 egg yolks
• finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• 300 ml light olive, canola or safflower oil
• lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients For Salad

• 6 very thin slices prosciutto
• 800 gms small new potatoes, eg Jersey Bennes, boiled until tender in plenty of salted water, well drained but hot
• 50 mls extra virgin oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup each mint and basil leaves, ripped into small pieces
• 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 1/2 cup green olives
• 600g skinned boned harpuku fillet cut into 3 cm pieces
• flour for dusting
• olive oil for frying
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• lemon wedges for squeezing

Method for Mayonnaise

Beat the yolks and zest and add the oil, drop by drop until you see the mixture thicken and become creamy. (This can be done in a food processor).

Continue beating and adding the oil in a thin stream until it is all used. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Reserve.

Method for Salad

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Spread the slices of prosciutto on a baking sheet, place in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes until crisp.

Remove, cool and reserve.

Put the potatoes into a warmed wide shallow salad bowl and crush them lightly with a fork. Add the extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, mint and basil leaves, spring onions, capers and olives and mix carefully but well.

Dust the pieces of harpuku lightly with flour and panfry them in a little hot olive oil until well browned and just cooked through. Don’t crowd the frying pan, do it in a couple of batches if necessary. Remove the harpuku pieces from the pan and arrange them on the potato mixture. Blob the mayonnaise on top.

Break the prosciutto into shards and sprinkle the prosciutto and parsley over the salad. Serve immediately with extra lemon wedges, it will be mixed as everyone helps themselves.

Wines (Riesling)

Palliser Estate

Fallen Angel

Framingham Classic

Bald Hills

Grosset Polish Hill