Ben Rush works alongside Sarah Norman both as Head Chefs. “We have the all-day dining so with two of us it ensures there is consistency at all times.” The menu is updated four times and year and is designed by inviting the other chefs from the group, the Opps. Director and Paul Milsom to a taster session to approve their new ideas. “It’s very rare we present a dish to them that’s a no no.” Some of their most popular dishes are still fish and chips and the Milsoms burger however their duck tacos with hoisin sauce are particularly popular at present.
Get the Taste
Milsoms
Stratford Road
Dedham
Colchester
CO7 6HW
01206 322795
www.milsomhotels.com
Ingredients
For the salad
New potatoes
French beans
Hen’s eggs
Banana shallot (peeled and cut into rings)
Cherry vine tomatoes (halved)
Torn basil leaves
Marinated white anchovy fillets
Pitted black olives (halved)
For the French dressing
30g Dijon mustard
60ml white wine vinegar
½ tbsp clear honey
225ml vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
For the Lamb
4 x lamb rumps 6-7oz fat cris-crossed on top – you can ask your butcher to prepare this. Alternatively just score the fat on the top of the meat.
Method
All of the listed ingredients above just make up the base of the nicoise salad, so you can use as much or as little of the ingredients as you like. The potatoes, beans and eggs are best served warm, but they can be used cold if necessary.
Boil the new potatoes, until soft, then slice. Put to one side. Top and tail the beans and boil until al dente, so they still have a crunch. Boil the eggs, then place the eggs in the saucepan, cover them with cold water by about 1/2 inch (1cm), place them on a high heat and, as soon as they reach boiling point, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and give the following timings…
3 minutes if you like a really soft-boiled egg
4 minutes for a white that is just set and a yolk that is creamy.
5 minutes for a white and yolk perfectly set, with only a little bit squidgy in the centre.
If you are not eating the salad straight away, place the eggs in cold water, still in there shells, and then when you cut them open later the yolk should still be runny.
For the French dressing, hand whisk the ingredients together in a bowl the mustard, vinegar and honey, then slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking. This must be done carefully as too much will ruin the consistency. If it’s still too thick you can always add a touch of water. Season well to taste.
For the lamb, preheat oven to 180°c. Heat a frying pan then add the lamb skin/fat side down. Sear all sides of the lamb so that they are darker in colour, then place the meat into a preheated oven for 13-15 minutes, remove from the oven and heat and leave to rest for 10 minutes. These instructions cook the meat medium rare. If you prefer the meat more well done then leave in the oven for longer.
To finish, mix all of the salad ingredients together, without the eggs, add the dressing and make sure the salad is well covered. Place this in a heap in the middle of the plate. Slice the lamb rump into about 3 slices and lay this on top of the salad. Peal the eggs and cut into quarters, place this around the edge of the salad.
