Seafood salad

Seafood salpicón is a truly impressive recipe: it works both as a delicious starter and as a light first course that will make you look wonderfully good. Virginia, author of Sweet&Sour, brings us her tips for making it—you'll love it!

The dish I’m bringing you today, the seafood salpicón recipe, is a staple on my table at New Year’s Eve dinner because, by this point in the game, we’re a little overwhelmed by big dishes and sweets and we especially need that night something light and fresh that lets us keep the party going long after the grapes.

Seafood salpicón has the advantage that we can make it ahead of time and open dinner in an elegant, light way. My trick is to use quality seafood along with a flavorful fish—in this case I’ve chosen spider crab, prawns, and a couple of octopus tentacles—and a fish with plenty of flavor, such as monkfish, to bring out that taste of the sea. And of course, you need a quality olive oil and vinegar, which will round out the dish, because we mustn’t forget that it’s served raw.

Le Creuset Mini casserole and Green Cosmos bowls and plates by Tokyo Design

When I make salpicón for summer meals, I like to add hard-boiled egg and sometimes even replace the classic vinaigrette with a light mayonnaise-style sauce. That’s not the case for New Year’s Eve dinner, where the seafood should shine in all its glory.

Ingredients (for 4-6 people)

• 1 fresh tail of small monkfish or frogfish (about 500gr)*
• 16 fresh prawns
• 4 fresh spider crabs
• 2 octopus tentacles
• 2 spring onions
• ½ green pepper
• ½ red pepper
• Fresh parsley
• 175ml of Triolliva gourmet extra virgin olive oil
• Edmon Fallot sherry vinegar (or any other mild one)
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Lime zest

*You can replace the fresh monkfish with frozen monkfish if it’s too expensive at this time of year, or with scorpionfish or fresh hake, which is quite affordable these days.

Le Creuset Damascus steel kitchen knife, Master Class round board and Le Creuset mini cocottes

Preparation

1. Remove the skin from the monkfish, if your fishmonger hasn’t already done it. Cut the monkfish tail into thick slices about 3 cm thick and cook it in boiling salted water for 4 to 5 minutes from the moment it returns to a boil. Set aside while it cools to lukewarm.
2. Cook the spider crabs. To cook them without them cracking open, put them into cold salted water and count about 7 minutes from the moment it comes to a boil. Once cooked, set aside while they cool to lukewarm.
3. Cook the prawns for 2 or 3 minutes once the water starts boiling, in salted water. Set aside.
4. Chop the octopus tentacles with a pair of scissors into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
5. Dice the peppers and spring onions into brunoise, either with a mandoline, or with a good knife. Set aside.
6. Make the vinaigrette by mixing the vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper in a jar. Cover and shake to emulsify. Add the lime zest, which will give it a fresh touch.
7. Assemble the salpicón in a bowl, mixing the vegetables, shredded monkfish, spider crab meat, octopus, and the prawns cut into two or three pieces.
8. Add the vinaigrette and mix well. Let it rest for a few hours so the flavors can settle.
9. Serve the salpicón in our Le Creuset mini cocottes, sprinkled with chopped fresh parsley and decorated with a prawn tail.

Ready to kick off New Year’s Eve dinner.

Virginia