Moreton Bay Bug Tail, Gnocchi, Chestnut and Sage Cocotte - Chef Recipe by Romain Bapst

Ingredients

400g Moreton Bay bug tail meat
200g Bintje potatoes

Stock:

Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 leek, thinly sliced

Gnocchi:

1 egg yolk
100g semolina
250-300g plain flour
120g peas
8 chestnuts, peeled
500mL chicken stock
120mL white wine
8 sage leafs
50mL bug jus

Method

Stock:

Peel the bugs, reserve the meat, and make the stock with the shell. In a saucepan cook olive oil, onion, garlic, leek and the crushed shells. Cover with water and cook for 40 minutes. Strain and reduce to the desired consistency.

Gnocchi:

Boil potatoes and once soft drain and press through sieve. Mix in egg yolk, seasoning and semolina. Slowly add flour until fingers are not sticky and flour is combined. After a minute it will form a dough, knead lightly.

Cover bench in flour and roll small balls roughly 2cm in diameter. Boil water and add the gnocchi for two minutes until floating to the surface.

To Serve:

Pan fry the bug meat and chestnuts, deglaze the pan with white wine, add chicken stock and bug jus and reduce for another 5 minutes. Add the peas and sage.

Bring all ingredients together in the cocotte and simmer for 5 minutes

Credits: Flavours of Queensland is available for $80 from Smudge Eats Bookshop.