Kangaroo, Beetroot, Bocconcini & Grilled Shallots on Carrot Noir

Whilst at a work function the other week, i was flicking through the television in my hotel room when onto the screen came a blast from my culinary past: Gabriel Gate. Alongside Geoff Jansz, Gabriel Gate is probably the first 'celebrity chef' that i can remember seeing, from the good old days of midday television when i was a child. Funnily, i'd never seen anyone actually make their dishes. Well, Gabriel Gate was taking the viewer through, in 3 minutes no less, a beautiful French salad of beetroot and fresh herbs on this intriguing black puree, all of this somehow connected to the Tour De France.

Well a bit of research showed me that the black puree was made from burnt carrots, which i've decided to fancy up a bit and call carrot noir. The sweetness of the carrots is tempered by the smokiness that the burning imparts, but it was much less overpowering than i imagined. I tried to match the flavors in the 'salad' as best as i could, to turn it into a main attraction kind of affair. I think i succeeded!

If you're not in Australia, i would recommend replacing the kangaroo with spring lamb.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 400gm kangaroo fillets
• 4 small beetroots or 16 true baby beetroots
• 4 large carrots
• 2 tbsp butter
• Dark soy sauce
• 16 shallots
• 1 large bocconcini
• Parsley to garnish

Method

Heat oven to 180 degrees. 
To make the carrot noir, heat an open grill to high heat and place the unpeeled carrots on them.

Turn occasionally and cook until the carrots are blackened on all sides. The more skin that is black, the better.
Remove the carrots from the heat and place in a steamer until tender.

Puree the carrots with 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp soy sauce (the soy will help to darken the puree).
The puree should be a dark brown colour and a thick paste consistency.

Set aside for later
Trim the stems and roots from the beetroots and place in a pot of salted water.

Bring to the boil, and boil until the beets feel tender when pierced with a fork.
Peel the beetroot and slice into large bite sized pieces.

Peel the shallots and place in oven on a lightly greased pan for 20 minutes.

Return the grill to a high heat.
Place the whole kangaroo fillets on the grill and cook until medium rare.

Let kangaroo rest for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a frying pan over medium heat.

Add the roasted shallots and the beets and saute for 5 minutes.

Spoon some of the carrot noir onto the serving plate and spread with a spatula or the back of the spoon.

Place the kangroo, beets and shallots in an attractive fashion onto the carrot noir.
Tear pieces of bocconcini from the large ball and tuck into spots on the dish.
Garnish with some parsley leaves.
Serve at room temperature.