Fermented Rosehip & Almond Salmorejo

Recipe by Nikola Volfova

We came into possession of a large amount of Beach Rosehips (haws) this week. Beach Rose or Rosa Rugosa, is an invasive rose native to Asia. The garden from which they came, is an 18th century walled garden and restaurant called Pythouse. You can see why they are considered invasive in the UK, as they grow prolifically with their gnarly thorns, forming extremely dense thickets. It’s considered so invasive in other European countries, it’s illegal to sell them. Interestingly, in its native China, Beach Rose is now in decline and considered an endangered species . So a win for Beach Rose and its migration. However, in support of our native flora, picking the hips would be beneficial for our native plants survival.

Beach Rose produces absolutely massive hips, sometimes called haws. They are the size of large cherry tomatoes! Full of large seeds and irritative hairs. I spent some time a restaurant a couple of years back, painstakingly removing the seeds from rosehips for a recipe. Not only did it take forever, but I was left with the most itchy skin for the day. I would 100% not recommend doing this. Which is likely why most recipes call for boiling them and using the residual liquid to make, jam, jellies, syrups and the like.

Šípková is a lovely sauce we make in the Czech Republic, which requires a rose hip marmalade, along with vegetables, native juniper and a meat broth blended together. Generally we pair this with venison or wild boar in the autumn. More about that another time.

I did a good search of the internet to try and find something inspiring or unusual. But, there wasn’t something that really captivated the imagination. We wanted to try something new…

Voilà, the Rosehip Salmorejo was born.

Traditionally made with tomatoes, this is made with 100% rosehips in their place. We added a few spices like coriander, chilli and caraway. But, since this isn’t traditional, there’s not need to stay within the confines of time-honoured practices. We also opted to lacto ferment our ingredients for 3 days, which really helped to bring out the flavour with a slight twang. Replicating tomato flavour, the addition of extra vinegar, honey and brown sugar created something which you’d be hard pushed to differentiate between the rose and tomato.

The more slothful and energy efficient we go about making foraged recipes, is a win for us! Especially with 3 little humans to care for and jobs to attend. So, we’ve left the seeds in for this process, simply passing them out at the end. If anything they add extra thickness and a lovely viscosity to the sauce (I’ll use that word anywhere I can, great word). It does require a super fine sieve, what us chefs refer to us a chinois. We haven’t experimented with using cheese cloth, but I’m sure with a good squeeze this would also work.

What is the Difference between Gazpacho and Samorejo?

Both salmorejo and gazpacho are cold Spanish soups that are popular in the south of Spain. Gazpacho is a mix of vegetables (tomatoes, onions, peppers, cucumber and garlic), while Salmorejo only includes tomato and garlic. Salmorejo also incorporates stale bread into the puree, making it a very thick soup which is eaten from a bowl. Gazpacho has a much thinner consistency and is often enjoyed from a glass. We chose to use almonds instead of bread to make it gluten free. But, you could use bread instead, if you wanted.

Any Questions feel free to drop us a message on instagram, facebook or via the website. We’ve got a few other recipes in the pipeline for these wonderful wild fruits <3

Ingredients

Stage One

• 1kg Beech Rose Hips

• 10 Garlic Cloves

• 1 Teaspoon Habanero Chilli Flakes

• 100g Raw Honey

• 1 Tbsp Caraway Seeds

• 1 Tbsp Coriander Seeds

• Non-Iodized Sea Salt

Stage Two

• 200g Blanched Almonds (Or Stale Bread)

• 2 Tablespoons Smoked Paprika

• 4 Garlic Cloves

Stage Three

• 200g Honey

• 400g Cider Vinegar

• 100g Brown Sugar

• Salt to season

Method

Step 1

Pop all of your ingredients in stage one in to a sterilised fermentation vessel which is anaerobic (Sealed from oxygen). We used a 3 litre fermentation Kilner jar. Once everything’s in your jar, top with cold water to above to the line of ingredients. This is really important, you want to make sure the ingredients are fully submerged. If anything pokes out of the water line, unwanted bacteria are welcomed in.

It is also important to weigh your ingredients, including the water. Once you have a weight of water and ingredients, use a percentage calculator to figure out what 2% of this is. This calculation will help you to decide what weight of salt you need to add. Once you’ve added your 2% of salt, weigh down your ingredients in your fermentation vessel (making sure they’re below the brine) and leave for 3 days at room temperature.

Step 2

Remove your ingredients from the brine and pop them in a roasting tray. Cook on 200c for roughly 15 minutes until the rose hips are starting to colour. This is really important for a lovely sauce.

Step 3

Cover your nuts/seeds sparingly with oil. Roast them also on 200c until just coloured. This will help release their flavour.

Step 4

Pop your rosehip mixture and nuts/seeds into a heavy based pan and cover with water. Cook very slowly for 2 hours so everything becomes infused and soft.

Step 5

Pop in to your blender and blend ferociously. You may need to add some water to help the blender along.

Step 6

Pass your mixture through a fine sieve. Season with vinegar, sugar, honey and salt.

ENJOY :)