London's culinary scene welcomes a taste of Portugal with two standout recipes from Luso restaurant's head chef, Kimberley Hernandez. Celebrating core elements of Portuguese dining culture, these dishes offer a genuine flavour of Iberian hospitality for home cooks.
The Heart of Portuguese Dining: Couvert and Pastry
At the foundation of Portuguese meals lie two cherished traditions: the couvert and savoury pastries. The couvert is a customary starter found on every restaurant and family table, typically featuring bread, butter, pickles, cheese, and a fish paté. At Luso in London's West End, chef Hernandez honours this ritual with her refined fish paste.
Meanwhile, the mushroom tart pays homage to Portugal's renowned pastry-making heritage. While traditional savoury tarts often contain mixed vegetables, Hernandez's version focuses intensely on showcasing the diverse flavours and textures of multiple mushroom varieties.
Smoked Fish and Vegetable Paste Recipe
This versatile paste blends smoky fish with sweet, softened vegetables, creating a smooth spread perfect for toast, crackers, or crudités. For a creamier consistency, a tablespoon of creme fraiche can be folded in after blending.
Preparation takes 25 minutes, with a cooking time of 35 minutes, yielding approximately 300g.
The ingredients for the paste include 300g of undyed smoked haddock or cod, poached in 600ml of whole milk with a bay leaf. The vegetable base is made from olive oil, chopped brown onion, carrot, fennel, garlic, and pink peppercorns, softened and then deglazed with optional white wine.
After poaching and flaking the fish, the cooked vegetables are blended until smooth, combined with the fish, and seasoned. An optional chilli oil, infused with rapeseed oil, chilli flakes, and bay leaf, provides a finishing touch. The paste keeps for up to three days in the fridge.
Indulgent Multi-Mushroom Tart Recipe
This rich tart features a base of ready-rolled puff pastry topped with a savoury mushroom caramel and layers of five different seared mushrooms, offering a deep, umami flavour.
It requires 20 minutes of prep and 1 hour 10 minutes of cooking, serving two people.
The process begins with creating a caramel from sautéed shallots, finely chopped chestnut mushrooms, and light soy sauce, puréed until smooth. Two rectangles of puff pastry are par-baked, then layered with the caramel and an assortment of mushrooms—king oyster, shiitake, oyster, chestnut, and maitake—each variety seared separately and brushed with more caramel before a final bake.
The result is a golden, crisp pastry topped with intensely flavoured mushrooms, best served hot or at room temperature with a fresh green salad.
Bringing Portuguese Flavours to London
These recipes from Kimberley Hernandez at Luso in London W1 provide an accessible way to explore authentic Portuguese cuisine. They highlight the simplicity of quality ingredients transformed into deeply satisfying dishes, perfect for sharing and embodying the convivial spirit of Portuguese dining.
