Squid/chicken fat and marron broth

By: Aaron Turner
From: Igni
Serves: 4
Photographer: Julian Kingma

This dish was born from economic necessity. While I love to cook with marron, at $20 or so each they are expensive, so we need to get a second dish out of them. Thinking bisque-wise I started by experimenting with roasting the shell heads fiercely over the fire but the result was a little bit bitter, so we tried it again, starting the shells in an inch or so of chicken fat with some fennel tops and carrots, which lent the shells a nice sweetness and left us with this rich, earthy broth.

Some of the best squid and cuttlefish comes from Port Phillip Bay and when it’s on I often order it in for the restaurant without a plan for what to do with it. Used raw here it provides the dish with a smooth textural element that is mirrored by the nice, silky mouthfeel of the broth.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
1 x 500g	squid
	saltbush berries, to garnish

chicken fat and marron broth

Quantity	Ingredient
6	marron heads and claws
100g	roasted chicken fat
1	onion, sliced
3	carrots, roughly chopped
3	young fennel tops
3 litres	chicken stock
splash	mushroom soy
splash	mirin

Method

To prepare the squid, hold the squid body with one hand and the head in the other and pull in opposite directions. Clean the cavity and wash with running water, then remove the wings by sliding your fingers down the seam, removing the membrane as you go. Cut the squid tube in half lengthways, then stack the tube halves on top of each other, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze overnight.

For the chicken fat and marron broth, roast the marron heads and claws over an open fire until red and aromatic.

Melt the chicken fat in a heavy-based saucepan, add the onion, carrot and fennel cook until softened. Add the roasted marron shells and sauté for 3 minutes, then pour over the chicken stock and simmer until reduced and golden red in colour. Season with mushroom soy and mirin to achieve a nice balance of sweet and savoury, then strain through a fine sieve. Set aside.

When ready to serve, remove the squid from the freezer and, while still frozen, slice into thin strands with a very sharp knife. Leave to defrost at room temperature then divide it between four deep serving bowls. Heat the broth, ladle it over the squid and garnish with saltbush berries to finish.