91. Ham knuckle salad with pineapple, egg and spring onion mayonnaise















Ingredients

For the knuckle ham:
1 ham knuckles
1 onion, peeled and quartered
2 Bay leaves
2 tsp Muscavado sugar
8 Black peppercorns

For the spring onion mayonnaise:
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp English mustard
250ml peanut oil
2 Spring onions, finely chopped

For the salad:
2 baby gem lettuces
Olive oil
squeeze of lemon juice
8 plum tomatoes
4 Eggs, softly boiled for 5 ½ minutes
2 slices fresh pineapple
1 bunch purple cress or mustard cress



Method

1. For the knuckle ham: put the ham knuckle in a pan with the onion, bay leaves, sugar and peppercorns. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for about 2 hours, topping up the water as needed.

2. Remove the meat from the pan and leave to cool a little before removing the fat.

3. For the spring onion mayonnaise: whisk the egg yolks and vinegar together. Stir in the mustard. Slowly add the oil, continually whisking until all the oil is added, occasionally adding a few drops of hot water. Season with salt and pepper and add the spring onions.

4. For the salad: cut the bottom off the little gems, wash, pat dry and toss in a bowl with a little olive oil and few drops of lemon juice.

5. Scatter the leaves between four plates. Using your fingers, tear strips off the cooked knuckle of ham and scatter over the lettuce.

6. Halve the tomatoes and soft boiled eggs and divide between the plates.

7. Remove the skin and core from the pineapple and cut into chunks. Add to the salads.

8. Drizzle over the spring onion mayonnaise, scatter over the cress and season with a pinch of sea salt and freshly milled black pepper.