Koulibiaka Recipes

Steps:

• First, get everything prepared. Boil a pan of salted water, add the eggs and cook for 8 mins exactly. Drain and cool under cold water, then peel and set aside.
• Heat half the butter in a non-stick frying pan and sizzle the slices of salmon for 1 min on each side (Pic 1), just to firm up the fillets but not cook them all the way through. Lift the salmon onto a plate.
• Now cook the rice. Melt the rest of the butter in the same pan. Add the onion, cumin and coriander seeds, cardamom and star anise, then gently fry for 8 mins until golden. Stir in the rice and add the bay leaf and cinnamon stick (Pic 2), then pour over the stock and season generously. Cover and bring to the boil, then lower the heat to its lowest setting and continue to cook for 10 mins. Turn off the heat and leave covered for 10 mins, then stir through the lemon zest and juice. Set aside to cool. This can be done several hrs in advance. Once cool, stir though the chopped dill.
• To assemble the pie, roll out one of the pieces of pastry to a rectangle as wide but a third longer than this magazine (23 x 40cm), then lay on a baking tray. Pack half the rice along the middle of the pastry, discarding the star anise and cinnamon as you do so, leaving a good 5cm border around the edge. Lay the salmon over the rice, then slice the eggs and lay those over the whole salmon layer (Pic 3). Top the eggs with the remaining rice and use your hands to gently pack everything down to a firm, even shape. Brush any stray grains of rice off the border, then brush the border with beaten egg,
• Roll the second piece of pastry out to a rectangle slightly larger than the first. Drape over the coulibiac and gently press the edges to seal the 2 pastry sheets together. Trim the edges to neaten and crimp with your fingers or press down with a fork. The uncooked pie can now be chilled, on the baking sheet, for a day or frozen for up to 2 months.
• To cook, heat oven to 220C/200C fan/ gas 7. Brush the pie all over with beaten egg and, if you want, lightly score the pastry with the back of a knife in a criss-cross fashion, making sure you don't cut all the way through (Pic 4). Bake for 20 mins, then reduce the heat to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and continue to cook for 20 mins until golden brown. Leave to rest for 10 mins, then serve in thick slices with a bowl of Dill cream or Herb salsa (see recipes, below).

Steps:

• For the court bouillon: Add the mushrooms, wine, bay leaves, thyme, onions and 1 quart water to a saucepan. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and continue simmering about 1 hour. Strain.
• For the salmon: Place a flameproof roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add the court bouillon and bring to a simmer. Add the salmon, skin-side up. Turn heat to low and bring to a slow simmer. Cook for 5 minutes per inch, measuring the thickest part of the salmon, about 10 to 15 minutes total. The salmon should be cooked to rare (a thin knife can be inserted into the center with slight resistance); keep in mind the salmon will cook a second time later in the recipe. Remove from the poaching liquid and let cool slightly. Break the salmon up into chunks and place in a bowl. Discard the skin and set aside.
• For the mushroom duxelles: Add the shallots to a food processor and pulse to chop. Add the mushrooms and continue pulsing until a rough puree forms.
• Add the butter to a medium skillet over medium heat and cook until foaming. Add the shallot and mushroom puree and cook until the mushrooms have released their liquid, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the cream and continue cooking until incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• For the spinach: Add the butter to a medium skillet over medium heat until foaming, then add the onions. Saute until translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the spinach and toss and saute until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• For the crepes: Whisk together the eggs, butter and heavy cream in a large bowl. Whisk in both flours until incorporated and a pourable batter forms. Let the batter rest at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour.
• Heat a 9-inch nonstick crepe pan over medium heat, then add a thin layer of batter (about 1/2 cup). Spread around the pan to completely cover the bottom. Cook until the top is dry and the edges begin to curl up, around 1 minute. Flip and cook another minute, then remove the crepe to a sheet pan and repeat to make additional crepes, using all the batter.
• To assemble: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Line a large roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay a thawed sheet of puff pastry on the bottom. Cover the puff pastry with 3 crepes, overlapping a bit. Add half of the cooked spinach followed by half of the salmon, leaving a slight border of puff pastry and crepes around the edges. Make a furrow in the middle of the salmon running the length of the pan, then add the duxelles. Top with the remaining salmon and spinach, in even layers. Cover everything with more crepes, overlapping a bit. Top with the remaining puff pastry sheet. Crimp the edges together to seal. Whisk the egg together with a tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Brush over the top. Brush the melted butter over the egg wash. Using a sharp knife, score the top in a cross-hatch pattern to release steam as it bakes. Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes.
• For the beurre blanc: Cook the white wine, champagne vinegar and shallots in a heavy nonreactive saucepan over medium heat to a glaze, about 10 minutes. Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Add the butter 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until each piece is absorbed before adding the next piece. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to a bare simmer and keep warm.
• For the rice pilaf: Add the butter, onion, a good pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper to a saucepan over medium heat. Add the wild rice and cook for 5 minutes. Add 2 cups cold water and bring to boil. Cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan.
• For the creme fraiche: Mix the creme fraiche and caviar together in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Slice the coulibiac into 2- to 3-inch pieces. Drizzle with the beurre blanc. Serve with the creme fraiche and rice in bowls on the side.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter over low heat and saute onion until translucent. Mix in rice, mushrooms, dill, and lemon juice and let cool.
• Lay out puff pastry, place rice mixture over half of pastry and place salmon on top. Season with salt and pepper, and cover with eggs. Fold over pastry and seal with beaten egg.
• Crimp the edges of the kulebyaka. Brush with egg and poke a couple of holes in the pastry to let out steam. Bake for about 30 minutes until pastry is golden brown. Let cool and serve.

Steps:

• To make the rice pilaf, heat 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in 2 1/2 tablespoons of onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with butter. Pour in 1 cup chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the rice is fluffy and all of the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set the rice aside.
• For sauce, melt 1/4 cup of butter in a saucepan over medium heat until a pinch of flour sprinkled into the butter will just begin to bubble. Whisk in the flour to form a thick paste the consistency of cake frosting. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the flour has turned golden, and begins to smell like toasted bread, about 20 minutes. Whisk in 2 cups chicken broth and simmer until thickened and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Pour the sauce into the rice pilaf, reserving about 1/4 of it for serving, if desired.
• Heat another 1/4 cup of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the mushrooms and cook until soft, about 5 minutes; add the 1 1/2 cups onion. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 8 minutes. Combine the onions and mushrooms with the rice mixture and allow it to cool slightly. Stir in the lemon juice, chopped hard-cooked eggs, and fresh dill.
• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with buttered parchment paper.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the cabbage leaves and cook, uncovered, until softened, about 2 minutes. Drain in a colander, then immediately immerse in ice water for several minutes to stop the cooking process. Once the leaves are cold, drain well, and blot dry with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry to a 1/4-inch thickness. Cut the pastry into 6 rectangular shapes; they should be three times wider than the salmon fillets, and 2 inches longer. Lay 2 cabbage leaves on each rectangle and top each with a spoonful of the rice mixture. Place each fillet "skin-side" up on top of the rice, and season with salt and black pepper. Top the fillets with another spoonful of rice; fold the cabbage leaves over the fillets to encase them. Center the folded leaves on the puff pastry.
• Fold the short ends of the pastry in, and then the sides together to make a packet; pinch along the seams to seal. Place the pastries onto the parchment-lined baking sheet seam sides down. Cut a small slit in the center of each pastry to act as a steam vent. Beat the egg and 1 tablespoon water together in a bowl; brush the pastries with the egg wash.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the pastries are deep golden brown, about 15 minutes. The internal temperature of the salmon should reach 135 degrees F (57 degrees C).

Steps:

• Boil the eggs for 7 mins, then plunge into cold water. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan, add the mushrooms and a pinch of seasoning and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 mins until golden. Add the rice, dill, lemon zest and juice, capers and some more seasoning, then remove from the heat.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment. Put two sheets of pastry next to each other on the tray, slightly overlapping in the middle. Brush with some oil and top with another two sheets, then repeat with two more sheets. Butterfly the salmon by cutting through the side, but not all the way through, so you can open it like a book. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• Place the salmon on the pastry and stuff with the rice mixture. Peel and slice the boiled eggs and arrange on the rice. Close up the salmon fillet, season and wrap with the pastry to form a parcel. Scrunch the remaining pastry sheet over the top, drizzle with a little more oil and bake for 40 mins. Serve with lemon wedges and dressed salad leaves.