Ingredients (serves four)
• Four pigeon breasts
• Curry oil
• Salt and pepper
• Butter
• Maldon sea salt
Curry melt
• 50g butter
• 50g nut butter
• 20g purple curry
• 80g dried honey bread
• 20g red beetroot granules
• Salt
Curry sauce
• 1 tablespoon chopped shallots
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• A little butter
• 1 teaspoon curry
• 30ml red grape vinegar
• 200ml red grape juice
• 500ml pigeon fond
• Prayer plant starch
• Salt
Coconut gelée
• 1 litre coconut milk
• Salt
• Sugar
• 10g agar agar
• 4 sheets gelatin
Mango mayonnaise
• 400g mango purée
• 6g lota (textura)
• 200ml olive oil
Method
1 For the curry sauce fry shallots and garlic in a pan. Add purple curry, the red grape vinegar and red grape juice, and stir until it looks like syrup. Add the pigeon fond, reduce down to half and sieve. Season and add the prayer plant starch.
2 For the coconut gelée boil the coconut milk with salt and sugar, add agar agar, boil, sieve it and add the gelatin. Put it in a 2cm-high mould and chill. Before serving put the gelée in a thermo mixer with a little argan oil and mix it until creamy.
3 For the mango mayonnaise boil the mango purée and add the lota. Mix with olive oil in a blender until it becomes an emulsion. Keep it warm.
4 Seal the pigeon breasts in plastic with hazelnut oil and cook them for 9 minutes in a controlled water bath at 65°C.
5 Melt 50g butter with 50g nut butter in a pot. Add purple curry, dried honey bread and red beetroot granules. Season with salt and keep warm.
6 Unwrap the pigeon breasts, season and roast them quickly in foaming butter, turning once. Spread them with the curry melt, season. Put the mayonnaise, curry sauce and coconut on the plate along with the pigeon breast and serve.
Restaurant open daily 7pm-11.30pm, tapas bar 4pm-2.30am. Park Rotana Abu Dhabi (02 657 3333).
The Chef
Name: Juan Amador
Nationality: German
‘My food should stay in people’s minds,’ says the three Michelin-star chef. Amador’s food is undoubtedly a highly complex work of art – both technically and visually. But its true value lies in its taste. Amador is undoubtedly a standout representative of the so-called molecular cuisine.
