Burrata With Eggplant Salad — Whip It UP!

Burrata With Eggplant Salad, Spiced Walnut And Bottarga

By Beppe De Vito, Restaurateur-Chef, ilLido Group/ Amò

A summer dish that’s very friendly to make, this is one of the antipasti created for Amò, the ilLido Group’s newest casual Italian restaurant on 33 Hongkong Street. The menu at Amò features original specialties founded on Italian classics, and this dish is a true representation of this culinary statement.

Restaurateur-Chef Beppe De Vito, who hails from the Southern region of Puglia, has created this dish inspired by tradition, seasonality and produce. This refreshing starter is given a contemporary uplift at Amò, after drawing from the traditions of classic Pugliese cuisine – which is all about fresh and light flavours, and well-known for their high-quality vegetables and dairy products.

Cooking time: 1 hour
Difficulty: 2/5
Cost: < $25

Ingredients

125g                           Burrata

For the Eggplant Salad

1                                 Eggplant
1                                 Green Capsicum
1                                 Tomato On Vine
10g                             Thyme
3                                 Basil leaves
5g                               Capers
2g                               Sweet Paprika

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, aromatized with garlic
Icing Sugar
Salt
Pepper

For the Spiced Walnuts

20g                            Walnuts
8g                              Worcestershire Sauce
2g                              Salt
2g                              Allspice (Jamaican Pepper)

For the Citronette Dressing

5g                              Lemon Juice
10g                            Extra Virgin Olive Oil
To taste                    Salt
3g                              Bottarga
5g                              Mesclun Salad

Directions

For the Spiced Walnuts

1. In a bowl, mix walnuts with Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and allspice.

2. Cover and keep overnight for one night.

3. Bake at 150°C for 8 minutes the day after, and allow it to cool down.

4. Chop into small pieces once cooled.

For the Eggplant Salad

1. Peel the eggplant, cut into 5mm slices, and roast.

2. Roast the whole green capsicum till the skin is charred. Then, put in a bowl and cover with cling wrap until it is cooled down. Peel and remove the seeds.

3. Peel the tomato, cut into quarters, remove the seeds and dress with salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil aromatized with garlic. Put thyme on the tray, then place the tomato on top and cover the entire tray with icing sugar. Bake at 80°C for 30 minutes.

4. Once the eggplant, green capsicum and tomato have been prepared, mix them with capers and basil leaves and chop.

5. Then, dress the salad with salt, pepper, sweet paprika, and extra virgin olive oil.

For the Citronette Dressing

Whisk lemon juice with salt, and slowly add the extra virgin olive oil.

Dress the mesclun salad with the citronette dressing.

To Finish/Garnish

1. Using a ring, form a disc of eggplant salad on the plate.

2. Place the mesclun salad on top of the eggplant salad.

3. Then set the burrata in the middle of the disc, and top with shredded bottarga.

4. Sprinkle chopped spiced walnuts around the burrata

5. Garnish the dish with freshly milled black pepper.