Recipe: Woodfired Freshwater Crayfish

Bring a taste of the outback home and indulge in this signature Mt Mulligan Lodge dish of woodfired freshwater crayfish with buttermilk, lychee and massaman. The fresh and delicate flavours of this recipe celebrate the local delights and tasty temptations of Tropical North Queensland.

Recipe: Woodfired Freshwater Crayfish

Ingredients

12 pieces of Crayfish (substitutes include Red Claw or Yabbies)
350g Lychee Flesh
60ml Lime Juice
80g Sugar
30g Glucose
5g Cumin Seed
1L Water
4 pieces Bush Tamarind
30g Bush Honey
10ml Fish Sauce
100ml Biodynamic Butter Milk

4 pieces Kaffir Lime Leave
8g Sea Salt
2g Xanthan Gum
1 bunch Garlic Chives
200ml Grapeseed Oil
20g Sago
10ml Sunflower Oil
20g Massaman Paste
500ml Cottonseed oil
10g Finger lime caviar

For the cracker:

• In a large pot, fry off Massaman paste in sunflower oil until slightly caramelised
• Add 600ml of water and sago, mix well and boil until fully cooked
• Spread the cooked paste on silicone matts 4mm thick in desired shape and dry paste in oven or dehydrator at 70c degrees for 8 hours
• Carefully remove the cracker from the matt and let cool down
• Bring cottonseed oil up to 190c degrees and fry off the cracker until lightly coloured
• Place cooked cracker on paper towel too drain off and keep cracker in a dry and warm environment

For the Sorbet:

• Boil glucose, sugar and 20ml lime juice
• Add the 300g off the lychee flesh and blend with stick blender for about 30 seconds
• Add mix in a pacojet cup and freeze for at least 12 hours at -18c degrees
• Blitz it in pacojet before use for best results

For the dressing:

• Combine milk, kaffir lime leaves and 40ml lime juice in vac pac and seal
• Place in sous vide machine and leave it on 48c degrees for 2 hours
• Cool mix down in ice bath before removing kaffir lime leave
• Add sea salt and xanthan gum before blitzing with stick blender until emulsified
• Chop remaining lychee in small pieces and mix through dressing

For the garlic chive oil:

• Place grapeseed oil and garlic chive in high power blender and blitz on highest setting
• Wait until the liquid reaches 80C degrees through friction heat
• Strain through oil filter and cool down

For the crayfish:

• Preheat charcoal grill, crack the bush tamarind and place it in a small pot
• Add 200ml water, fish sauce, cumin and honey
• Bring the mix to boil and let simmer for 10 minutes
• Stir the mix and strain through fine chinois, and let cool down
• Cut the crayfish in half lengthways and remove everything accept the flesh from the inside
• Brush the tamarind glacé on the flesh and char over hot coals for 3 min. Turn and grill for a another 3 minutes
• Let crayfish cool down and remove the flesh.

To finish:

• Toss crayfish flesh in butter milk dressing and spread out on plate
• Drizzle with chive oil and place a quenelle of the churned lychee sorbet on top
• Top with cracker and garnish with finger lime caviar

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