Ham, egg and peas Recipe
- 40g/1¾oz liquid glucose, warmed (available from specialist baking suppliers and online)
- 400g/14oz frozen petit pois
- 2 sprigs mint, roughly chopped
- pinch caster sugar, if needed
- pinch salt, if needed
- 4 very fresh free-range duck eggs, at room temperature
- 8 wafer-thin slices French baguette
- drizzle olive oil
- 3-4 tbsp good-quality chicken stock
- 10g/½oz salted butter
- 100g/4oz freshly shelled peas
- pinch salt
- 4 wafer-thin slices British air-dried ham, or similar such as Serrano or Parma ham
- 100g/4oz fresh pea shoots, chilled
- To make the pea sorbet, bring the liquid glucose and 200ml/7fl oz of water to boil in a saucepan to make a stock syrup. Add the frozen petit pois and mint. Allow to cool slightly and then pour into a food processor or blender. Process on high speed to make a purée. Chill, then pour into an ice cream machine and churn for 20-30 minutes or until the sorbet reaches a soft-scoop ice cream texture. Taste for seasoning and adjust with a pinch each of sugar and salt if necessary. Transfer to a freezer container and freeze.
- Next, poach the eggs. A rice cooker is the best thing to use, but if you don't have one, heat a pan of water to around 62C/143F, ideally monitoring the temperature with a digital probe. Carefully add the eggs in their shells and leave at 62C/143F for about 1½ hours – the whites will be just firm and the yolks runny. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Arrange the bread slices on a large baking sheet, brush with olive oil and bake for about 12 minutes or until golden-brown.
- Pour the chicken stock into a medium saucepan and add the butter, shelled peas and a good pinch of salt. Simmer gently for 3-4 minutes to braise the peas until tender.
- To serve, carefully peel the shells from the duck eggs. Spoon the braised peas into the centre of warmed shallow soup bowls. Sit the eggs on top of the peas. Lay a slice of ham over each egg, and arrange a spoonful of pea sorbet to one side. Lay a couple of pieces of toast on top of the ham. Dress the pea shoots with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt, then scatter them all around.
