Equipment and preparation: You will need a mandolin slicer.
Ingredients
For the beetroot mayonnaise
- 1 cooked beetroot, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 medium free-range egg yolk
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 100ml/3½fl oz olive oil
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the salad
- 1 celery heart, grated on a mandolin, leaves reserved
- 100g/3½oz lamb’s lettuce
- 100g/3½oz beet salad leaves
- dash olive oil
- 1 lemon, juice only
For the oysters
- 6 medium oysters
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 1 medium free-range egg, beaten
- 2 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp desiccated coconut
- dash olive oil
- knob of butter
Method
For the beetroot mayonnaise, blend the beetroot with the mustard, egg yolk and vinegar in a food processor, gradually adding the oil to make a purée. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
For the salad, toss all the ingredients together in a large bowl and season.
Open the oyster shells using a shucker. Loosen each oyster from the base and discard the shell. Dry the oysters on kitchen paper.
Put the flour and egg in separate shallow bowls. Combine the breadcrumbs and coconut in a third bowl. One at a time, dip the oysters in the flour, then the egg and finally the breadcrumb mix, coating liberally.
Fry the oysters immediately in a little oil and butter over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes on each side, or until golden.
To serve, dot the beetroot mayonnaise across two serving plates, place the salad in the centre with the oysters around the edge.