An amazing Tokaj wine dinner with recipes

October 4, 2017

An amazing Tokaj wine dinner with recipes

Patricius wines and dishes by a Hungarian star chef

Frigyes Vomberg is an important figure of Hungarian gastronomy. He was coach of Bocuse d’Or European Champion Tamás Széll, and has been teaching gastronomy for decades. Recently he has become well known outside trade, too, since he was one of the three chefs at television cooking reality show called Chef of the chefs. Frigyes Vomberg has created a special four course menu for Patricius Winery in Tokaj – the dinner took place at the estate not long ago with great success. The recipes are not easy, but they are worth the effort!

(All recipes are meant for 4 people.)

Stuffed rabbit with couscous salad
Sárgamuskotály, 2015

Ingredients

For the stuffed rabbit: I whole rabbit with the offal (1.2-1.4 kg), 150 g garlic, paprika boiled fatty bacon, salt, ground pepper, a pinch of ginger, egg, 4 pieces of toast without the crust
Preparing the couscous: 100 g couscous, salt, 150 g boiling water or stock
For the salad: 1 orange, 1 grapefruit, 100 ml olive oil, salt, ground pepper, 100 g tomatoes of different colours, 100 g deseeded cucumber, 4 dessertspoons roughly chopped parsley, 1 Moroccan salted lemon zest finely chopped, 50 g toasted crushed hazelnuts, pea sprouts, small salad leaves according to taste.

How to prepare

Wash the rabbit and pat dry.
Remove the legs and shoulders, bone the remaining meat from the stomach area, the ribs and along the spine. Make sure you don’t cut the meat as this makes it more difficult to stuff. Spread out the boned meat, salt lightly, cover and leave to rest.
Bone the shoulder and the legs and mince or grind on the large hole grinder. Add the small cubes of bacon, the offal chopped in small pieces, slightly dampened and pressed toast, salt, pepper, ginger, egg and mix thoroughly.
Put the stuffing in the middle of the rested meat and roll up tightly. Wrap tightly in aluminium foil and twist the ends carefully.
Place in a small dish so that the end of the join is underneath. Pour in water to cover half the roll and cook for 70-80 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 160°C.
After taking out of the oven, set aside the liquid as you can use it for the couscous. Place the meat on a tray so all the joins are underneath, the place a chopping board on top with a weight (packet of salt, flour) and leave to press until cool.
Unwrap the cooled meat and set aside until eating.
Place the couscous in a pot with a close-fitting lid, add salt and pour on the boiling water or stock from the rabbit. Cover and leave to rest for 15 minutes.
Cut the orange and the grapefruit skin and remove all the white pith, then cut out the fruit from the membrane. Squeeze out the juice left on the orange/grapefruit. Cut the fruit into chunks.
Chop the cucumber and tomatoes into small cubes.
Pour the grapefruit and orange juice into a mixing bowl and mix well with the oil and salt.
Fork through the couscous to fluff up and then mix in the cucumber, tomato, Moroccan lemon rind, the chopped orange and grapefruit, pea sprouts, small salad leaves, parsley and half of the prepared dressing.
Fry all sides of the rested stuffed rabbit in a hot frying pan for 2-3 minutes then slice on a chopping board.
To serve put the salad on the plate with the sliced meat, garnish with the toasted crushed hazelnuts and serve the remaining dressing at the side.

Roasted pork belly with sweet potatoes
Katinka, 2013

Ingredients

For the meat: 1 kg uncooked pork belly with skin, 1 onion, 1 bulb of garlic, salt
For the marinade: 1 dessertspoon light salted soya sauce, 2 dessertspoons honey, 1 pinch of crushed coriander seeds, chilli sauce to taste, a small piece of ginger grated, a little oil for roasting
For the sweet potatoes: 400 g sweet potatoes, 3 dessertspoons roughly chopped coriander leaves, salt, 50-100 ml coconut milk,
For the roasted chicory: 2 chicories, 1 dessertspoon olive oil, 1 dessertspoon honey, 4 dessertspoons orange juice, pinch of salt, 80 g Shimeji mushroom
For the apricot chutney: 150 g dried apricots, 150 g fresh apricots, 3 spring onions, 1 star anise, 1 bulb of garlic, freshly grated ginger, 100 ml water, 50 ml Katinka, 50 g brown sugar, pinch of salt, 1 chilli pepper, 2 dessertspoons apple or wine vinegar
To serve: finely chopped parsley, coriander, lemon grass, a touch of chilli, chopped spring onion green – enough for 4 dessertspoons.

How to prepare

Wash the meat and cook in water. Add an onion and a peeled bulb of garlic, salt. Cover and cook slowly until tender. When tender, remove the meat and put on a tray to rest.
Sieve the meat stock and set aside. It will be used for the soups. Mash the garlic cooked with the meat in a small dish and add to the marinade ingredients. Carefully rub into the meat and put a chopping board on the meat with a weight to press it to the same thickness. Press like this in the fridge for one night. Before serving cut into four equal pieces and score the skin so it will crisp well. Leave to rest on a kitchen table to come to room temperature.
Chutney: Chop the dried apricots and pour boiling water to cover. Put aside for 2-3 hours to swell. Put the sugar, water, grated garlic, salt, grated ginger and chopped chilli into a pan and bring to the boil. Add the soaked dried apricots, roughly chopped spring onions and vinegar. Simmer for 15 minutes. Then add the fresh apricots chopped into cubes, the wine and cook together for 5-6 minutes. Take off the heat and set aside to rest for one night.
Sweet potato: Wash the sweet potatoes and bake in their skins at 180° C oven. Take out when soft, peel and mash with a fork. Mix with salt and a little coconut milk in a pan on the stove. Before serving take off the heat and mix in the chopped coriander.
Roasted chicory: Cut the chicory into 4 and fry in a little oil for 2-3 minutes. Add the honey, salt, orange juice and cook for 1 minute, then immediately serve on the plate.
Before serving fry the pork belly pieces on all sides in a little hot oil in a frying pan so the skin side is crispy. Take out the meat and add the small mushrooms. Do not fry but toss quickly and take out immediately. Pour a little stock from the sieved cooking liquid into the pan and bring to boil.
To serve put the sweet potato on the plate, make a stripe with a spoon, place the roasted pork belly on top, the roasted chicory next to it and a few mushrooms. Sprinkle the top with freshly chopped greens and place the chutney and the sauce next to it.

Duck liver on fried brioche
4 puttonyos Tokaji Aszú 200

Ingredients

500 g fattened duck liver, salt, five-spice mixture
Toasted brioche: 200 g buttery brioche, 50 g sliced toasted almonds, 2 eggs, 100-150 ml cream, salt, 40 g butter for frying
For the fruit garnish: 2 pears, 1 lime, 40 g butter, 1 star anise, 80 g tender sugar-snap pea pods
To serve: 4 dessertspoons quince purée, 4 dessertspoons pomegranate seeds

How to prepare

The brioche: Cut the brioche into small cubes and dry fry in a frying pan. Separate the eggs, mix the yolks with the cream and then add the toasted almonds and fried brioche. Add the lightly beaten, salted egg whites to loosen the mixture. Before serving make a small flat cake and fry in butter.
Prepare the pear, slice thinly and fry to crispy with star anise. Grate over a little lime zest, add a little juice. Before you take it off the heat, mix in the chopped pea pods.
Slice the liver and leave it to come to room temperature on a plate. Gently fry in a frying pan that is not too hot so the centre remains soft. Add herbs and salt.
To serve put the quince purée on the plate, then the liver around the fried brioche rounds. Place the fruit next to it and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.

Date cheese cream with peach
6 puttonyos Tokaji Aszú, 2005

Ingredients

For the cheese cream: 100 g fresh, soft, creamy goat cheese, 100 g mascarpone, 100 ml cream whipped to peaks, 80 g dates, the seeds scraped from 1 vanilla stick, 1 dessertspoon honey
For the layers: 2 strudel pastry, 20 g icing sugar, a little oil
For the walnut crumble: 20 g butter, 10 g flour, 50 g sugar, 30 g ground walnuts, salt
Peach compot: 300 g peach, 1 lime, 1 dessertspoon honey, 3 sticks lemon balm

How to prepare

For the walnut crumble mix the flour, sugar, ground walnuts and a pinch of salt, then crumble together with the butter. Sprinkle the mixture on a lined baking tray.
Put into pre-heated oven at 180° C and bake till golden around 10-15 minutes. Take out of the oven and use a fork to break up into crumbs.
Separate the strudel pastry and spread out one. Brush with a very little oil and then sprinkle with icing sugar and then place the second layer on top.
Place on a lined baking tray with another layer of baking paper and then another baking tray on top. Cook in a pre-heated oven at 200 °C for about 10 minutes until lightly browned. When you take it out of the oven, take off the baking tray and set aside.
For the cheese cream mix the goat cheese with the vanilla from the pod, the mascarpone and honey. Add the finely chopped dates and finally the whipped cream to loosen the mixture. Leave to rest in the fridge until serving.
Wash the peaches and cut into chunks. Grate the lime zest over the peaches. Remove the white pith from the lime with a knife and cut out the fruit from the membranes. Squeeze out the remaining juice from the fruit and mix with honey. Add the lime pieces to the peaches and carefully toss together. Then add the roughly chopped lemon balm pieces.
To serve sprinkle the crumbs on the plate, spoon the peaches on in stripes, then press small mounds of cheese cream through an icing bag. Place the broken pieces of the baked strudel pastry into the cheese cream.