Compression of watermelon, smoked butter seared haloumi, holy basil puree and black olive dust

Serves 4 Prep time 25 minutes + 12 hours dehydration time & 30 minutes rest time
Cook time 5 minutes

50g black olives, pitted
100g unsalted butter, room temperature
½ watermelon
150g haloumi cheese, sliced to ¼-inch pieces 
50g holy basil, chopped to fine shreds

equipment
handheld smoking gun
vacuum pack machine

• To make black olive dust, place olives on a baking tray lined with baking paper and place in a preheated 60°C oven for at least 12 hours. (They should have lost all their moisture and turned brittle and dry.) Alternatively, place olives on a kitchen towel and heat them on high for 2 minutes in a microwave.
• Place into a grinder and blend on high speed till they’ve formed a fine powder.
• Whip butter for 1 minute till pale and fluffy. Using a spatula, smear butter up the sides of the mixing bowl and cover with cling film.
• Using a handheld smoking gun, fill the mixing bowl with smoke, using the cling film to prevent the smoke from escaping. Let rest for 30 minutes.
• Peel and cut the watermelon into rectangular blocks. Place in a vacuum bag and vacuum at 0 atmosphere. Keep chilled in refrigerator until needed.
• To assemble, heat smoked butter to 130°C and pan-fry haloumi slices until golden brown on each side.
• Place the haloumi in the middle of a serving plate. Add chilled watermelon alongside and sprinkle basil shreds and black olive dust to finish.

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