Pomegranate & Ginger Mignonette
This gorgeously vibrant, and sweet-yet-earthy mignonette is sure to be a crowd-pleaser at your fall festivities. This crimson concoction pairs well with a briny-yet-sweet oyster, and elevates the oyster's flavors to the next level.
I’ll admit it —I’m an oyster purist, and have a difficult time adding anything to my bivalves. Sometimes, however, the right pairing can bring out an underlying flavor profile in your oysters that you didn’t know was there. Plus, it’s fun to dress up oysters in vibrant colors and create them to be stand-out dishes at dinner parties.
I’ve always been drawn to the bright crimson hue of the pomegranate. I love picking out and eating the individuals seeds that pop with a delightful sweet and sour juice. Pomegranates are in season from September through February, making them a fantastic choice for a fall mignonette. Plus, in Ancient Greek mythology, pomegranates were known as the “Fruit of the Dead” - adding to their mystique.
For a traditional mignonette recipe, I always chop up some shallots, and utilize 2-3 tablespoons of a vinegar of my choosing. I’ve found that the red wine vinegar works best here because the second wave of flavor behind that of vinegar is fruit, which pairs great with our pomegranate. To further intensify our pomegranate, and infuse some earthiness into the recipe, I also used some ground nutmeg and ginger.
In keeping with the theme of Greek Mythology, I chose Aphrodite Oysters from South Thomaston, Maine as my oyster-of-choice for this recipe. Aphrodite Oysters have a lovely upfront brine with a second wave of sweetness that pairs amazingly well with this pomegranate mignonette. Moreover, Krista Tripp, the owner of Aphrodite Oysters, loves pairing her oysters with something fruity. (She also recommended the wine pairing from Oyster River Winegrowers, pictured above!)
For this recipe, I used a full medium pomegranate, which produced enough mignonette for roughly three dozen oysters (depending on your mignonette portioning). To de-seed the pomegranate, I first rolled the fruit to loosen the seed. I then scored the middle of the pericarp - the outer layer of the pomegranate - and then sliced it in half. Hold one half of the pomegranate over a bowl, seeds facing down, and tap the skin with a wooden spoon to release the seeds and juice.
Once I have my bowl of pomegranate seeds and juice, I mix in 2-3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a finely diced small shallot, and 1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg. At this juncture, you have three options: (1) you can leave the mixture as is and add in your ginger, (2) you can crush the pomegranate and shallot mixture with a mortar and pestle to release more juice, or (3) you can place the mixture briefly in a food processor or blender to further liquify the mignonette. Whatever your preference, make sure to add in roughly 2 teaspoons of shaved fresh ginger to the mignonette mixture before placing it in the refrigerator.
You can serve this right away, but I prefer to refrigerate this for roughly 3 hours for the flavor to meld and the ground spices to hydrate. Then serve over your favorite shucked oysters. I especially love serving this with whole pomegranate seeds because it inspires slurpers to chew the seeds (and the oyster) to get the maximum flavor!
Wine Pairing: For this recipe, I selected an American White Wine from Oyster River Winegrowers, in Warren, Maine. It is really important to me to support my local Maine farmers, and I was so happy that Krista Tripp of Aphrodite Oysters introduced me to this light, crisp, and slightly bubbly white wine. Oyster River’s American White Wine is made with Native yeast that is fermented in a barn in Warren, Maine.. The farm manages its own vineyards and orchards organically, and creates its wines in a low-intervention style using local fruit I highly recommend checking out some of Oyster River Winegrowers’ other selections to pair with your bivalves; the farm has a great distribution network and its wines are available in most states in the U.S.
Pomegranate & Ginger Mignonette
Ingredients
Instructions
- Prep the fruit. Remove the seeds from the pomegranate by slicing the fruit in half, and holding skin side up over the bowl. Smack the skin firmly and the seeds and juice will accumulate in the bowl below.
- Finley dice a shallot.
- Mix the mignonette. Into your bowl of pomegranate seeds and juice, mix 2-3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar (depending on whether you want your mignonette to have more of a berry or more of a vinegar taste), the diced shallot, and t teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
- Add in your garnishes. I used the back of a large spoon to break up some of the pomegranate seeds to add some additional juice. Depending on your preference, you can use a mortar and pestle or even a blender to further break up the seeds. But make sure to leave a good deal of seeds intact, as they are the key to adding fantastic texture to this mignonette!
- Add in the ginger. Finely, shave/grate roughly 2 teaspoons of fresh ginger into your mignonette.
- Combine. Using a spoon, mix the mignonette thoroughly, cover, and store until you are ready to serve!
- Serve 1 teaspoon per freshly shucked oyster!