Beef tartare with quails egg, capers, garlic crisps and grissini

Here is another instalment of our amuse feast, with a dish that is really quite old-fashioned. Beef tartare must have had its absolute height in the early Eighties, which is when I remember my Dad making it at home, but since the BSE crisis we don't see much raw meat around anymore. And why not, I ask, if you can really trust your source? And after all this controversy, beef production in Britain must be more thoroughly surveilled than Tony Blair and his cabinet...
We only use the finest quality beef fillet anyway, even mince it ourselves, so I am not worried about falling prey to Mad-Cow's-Disease, since my chances of getting run over by a car or bus on my way to the shops is considerably higher - and I still go out, despite the risk, don't I?
I hadn't had beef tartare in a long time and thought the amuse size would lend itself perfectly here - raw meat is not something I like to have for a main course! I seasoned the beef mince very well - mustard, worcester sauce, shallots, cornichons, pepper, etc and I got so carried away with so many things to prepare for our parade of amuse-bouches that night that I foolheartedly decided to prepare the tartare ahead and let it rest in the fridge: bad move! By the time we were ready to serve, the previously vibrantly red meat had turned slightly brown and pale and was not as nice to look at as I would have hoped... but it tasted delicious nontheless!
We served this amuse simply with the yolk of a quail's egg, a couple of grissini (thin bread sticks), some chopped capers and garlic crisps. Unfortunately, I had fallen in love with a bulb of "elephant garlic" at the shop and fried it for this purpose, not realising that this variety turns quite bitter when cooked... another lesson to teach me that looks are not eveything! Use regular garlic and this will be a real treat!

Beef tartare with quails egg, capers, garlic crisps and grissini
(serves 8 as an amuse, 4 as a starter)

170 g (6 oz) beef fillet
1 egg yolk
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 tsp worcester sauce
½ tsp tabasco sauce
1 large shallot (finely chopped)
1 tsp parsley (finely chopped)
1 tsp chives (finely chopped)
2 tsp gherkins (finely chopped)
1 tbsp argan oil
4 tsp capers (finely chopped)
8 cloves garlic
groundnut oil
8 quails eggs (yolks only)
16-24 grissini or other breadsticks
cracked pepper

Start off by peeling the garlic and cutting it into thin slices. Heat some groundnut oil in a deep pan and fry the garlic slices until the turn slightly brown. They will continue to cook for a bit longer once you've removed them, so do not over-fry in the pan. Lift with a slotted spoon and put on some kitchen paper to drain and crisp up.
Clean and finely dice the beef fillet with a very sharp knife, then combine with the remaining ingredients, less the capers. Arrange the beef tartare on spoons (I always use the shallow, white ceramic ones you would use for Asian soups, see picture) on a plate, top with the yolk of a quail's egg, sprinkle with cracked pepper and serve with the garlic crisps, capers and some grissini on the side.

Comments

[Joe]

Hmm... this looks like an interesting way to prepare beef tartare. I made some myself recently and really enjoyed it. I am going to have to do it a lot more often.