Michelin Star Recipe Design

Dish Title: Ember & Petal – A Dialogue Between Earth and Sky
Conceptual Narrative:
Inspired by the elemental contrast between volcanic resurgence and alpine serenity, Ember & Petal explores the tension and harmony of opposing natural forces through taste, texture, and temperature. The dish juxtaposes the deep, umami-rich essence of black garlic—slow-fermented over 40 days—against the ethereal lightness of wild alpine gentian flowers, foraged at peak bloom. Drawing from Japanese kaiseki philosophy and modernist French technique, the dish unfolds in three movements: Earth (fermentation, fire, depth), Air (aromatics, suspension, levity), and Sky (crystalline textures, floral purity). Each component is meticulously engineered to dissolve on the palate while evoking a sensory journey from subterranean warmth to mountain air.

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Component 1: Black Garlic Miso Caramel Sphere

Earth’s Embrace – Umami Caramel with Volcanic Depth

Ingredients:

• 100g black garlic pulp (fully fermented, smooth consistency)
• 120g glucose syrup
• 60g granulated sugar
• 30g white miso (Shiro Miso preferred)
• 50ml water
• 2g agar-agar
• 0.8g sodium alginate
• 1L calcium lactate bath (1% solution)

Technique: Spherification with Fermented Base

1. In a vacuum bag, combine black garlic pulp, glucose, sugar, and water. Seal and cook sous vide at 85°C for 45 minutes to homogenize and caramelize gently.
2. Pass mixture through a fine chinois. Return to heat, add miso and agar-agar, whisk until fully dissolved. Cool to 40°C.
3. Using a 10mL spherical mold, inject warm mixture. Flash-freeze in liquid nitrogen for 10 seconds to set surface.
4. Immerse briefly (8 sec) into calcium lactate bath to form a hydrocolloid shell—this creates a dual-layer sphere: frozen core beneath a gelatinous, burstable membrane.
5. Store in chilled calcium bath until plating.

Sourcing Note: Black garlic should be sourced from a specialty fermentation producer (e.g., La Belle Mère, France, or Black Garlic Co., UK) ensuring uniform 40-day enzymatic aging. Wild-foraged gentian flowers must be gathered sustainably from alpine regions (e.g., French Alps or Swiss Jura) at 2,000m elevation during July bloom.

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Component 2: Gentian Air & Charcoal Emulsion

Air’s Whisper – Aromatic Foam with Smoky Undertone

Ingredients:

• 150ml gentian hydrosol (distilled from fresh Gentiana lutea flowers)
• 50ml crème fraîche (30% fat)
• 1g lecithin (sunflower)
• 2g activated bamboo charcoal (food-grade)
• 1g xanthan gum
• 10 drops bergamot essential oil (culinary grade)
• Sea salt crystals (Maldon)

Technique: Emulsified Aromatic Air

1. Reduce gentian hydrosol by half over low heat to intensify floral-herbal notes. Cool.
2. Blend with crème fraîche, xanthan gum, and activated charcoal until smooth. Strain.
3. Add lecithin and bergamot oil. Using an immersion blender, froth into a stable, cloud-like foam (microbubbles).
4. Hold in a whipped cream siphon charged with N₂O, refrigerated.

Plating Role: This foam is piped at the table via a tempered glass cloche, creating an ephemeral “mist” that settles over the dish like morning fog over mountains.

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Component 3: Crispy Sunchoke Soil with Gold Leaf

Rooted Texture – Earthy Crumble with Gilded Fragility

Ingredients:

• 200g sunchokes (Jerusalem artichokes), peeled
• 30g rice paper (gluten-free)
• 15g rendered duck fat
• 0.5g white tea powder (Gyokuro, ground)
• Edible 24k gold leaf (0.1g)
• Salt from Himalayan pink crystals

Technique: Dehydrated Soil Matrix

1. Shave sunchokes thinly using a Microplane. Fry at 140°C in duck fat until crisp. Drain, season with salt and white tea powder.
2. Pulverize in spice grinder to coarse crumble.
3. Mix with rice paper crisps (baked at 180°C until golden, then crushed).
4. Just before service, lightly mist with duck fat emulsion and sprinkle with gold leaf shards.

Sourcing Note: Sunchoke variety Fuseau preferred for nutty flavor. Duck fat from Label Rouge French Moulard duck. White tea must be first flush Gyokuro from Uji, Japan.

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Component 4: Poached Quail Egg Yolk in Gentian Gelée

Sky’s Core – Delicate Custard with Alpine Clarity

Ingredients:

• 4 quail egg yolks (yolks only, pristine)
• 100ml gentian-infused consommé (clarified via agar-agar method)
• 1g agar-agar
• 0.5g citric acid (for pH balance)
• 10ml verjus (unripe grape juice)

Technique: Clarified Infusion & Encapsulation

1. Steep fresh gentian flowers in hot verjus (60°C, 20 min). Strain.
2. Clarify: Mix infusion with agar-agar, heat to 90°C, pour into container. Cool. Once set, break gel into chunks and filter through chinois lined with cheesecloth.
3. Reheat clarified gelée to 40°C. Gently submerge each raw quail yolk into the gelée, allowing a 2mm-thick coating to form upon cooling.
4. Chill in mold for 3 min.

Result: A quivering orb of golden yolk suspended in translucent, faintly tart gelée—resembling a dewdrop on a petal.

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Assembly & Plating: The Ritual of Unfolding

Plate: Hand-thrown black stoneware by ceramicist (resembles cooled lava flow), pre-chilled.

Sequence:

1. Base: Spoon 20g of sunchoke soil in an off-center arc.
2. Center: Place black garlic caramel sphere on soil.
3. Elevation: Rest gentian gelée-encased quail yolk atop the caramel, like a yin-yang balance.
4. Final Layer: At the table, the server places a glass cloche over the dish and injects gentian air foam from below, causing the cloche to fill with fragrant charcoal-gray mist.
5. Cloche is lifted tableside—the foam gently settles over components, revealing the gilded soil and jewel-like yolk.

Garnish: One fresh gentian blossom (edible, deep blue), placed with tweezers.

Accompaniment: Served with a warm spoon of black garlic dashi (strained, reduced with kelp) poured around the base just before eating.

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Tasting Experience:

• First Bite: The caramel sphere ruptures, releasing molten black garlic-miso core—sweet, fermented, profound.
• Mouthfeel: The air foam dissolves instantly, releasing bergamot and smoke.
• Contrast: Crispy soil provides crunch; gelée yields to unctuous yolk; dashi warms the palate.
• Finish: Lingering floral bitterness of gentian cleanses, echoing alpine air.

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Innovation & Technique Highlights:

• Unusual Pairing: Black garlic (fermented, sweet-savory) + gentian (bitter, floral)—a dance of opposites harmonized.
• Advanced Techniques: Dual-layer spherification, cold oil spherification bath, hydrocolloid clarification, aromatic air, and sous-vide caramelization.
• Sustainability: Foraged gentian is harvested under CITES guidelines with biodynamic partners. All components are zero-waste (e.g., sunchoke skins used in stock).

Ember & Petal is not merely a dish—it is a geological poem, a meditation on transformation, and a testament to the alchemy of fire, time, and altitude.