Champagne oysters

Serves

The most unforgettable hot oyster dish I have ever eaten was at Harvey's in Wandsworth where Marco Pierre White made his name. This remains one of Marco's all-time classics; I'm sure he will agree. There were thin ribbons of cucumber with a warmed oyster on top then a champagne sauce and a good spoonful of caviar. Rock oysters are fine for this dish as the delicate flavour of the natives would be lost in the cooking process. Ask your fishmonger for some seaweed to serve the oysters on.

You could use keta (salmon caviar) instead of the real thing, but this dish is all about unashamed luxury and it's not worth cutting corners. The same goes for substituting cheap fizz for champagne. This dish is also too good – and expensive – to share with more than one other person.

4 large oysters, opened, juices and shells reserved

1/2 flute of champagne

1 medium egg, beaten

10g butter

100ml double cream

15g sevruga caviar

Salt and pepper

Bring the champagne to the boil with any juices from the oysters and simmer until reduced to about a teaspoon. Add 80ml of the double cream and simmer until reduced by half and thickened. Take off the heat.

Meanwhile melt the butter in a small pan on a low heat with the rest of the double cream. Add the egg and season with salt and pepper and stir on a low heat until softly scrambled. Drop the oysters into the sauce, bring back to the boil and remove from the heat. Spoon the scrambled egg into the oyster shells, lift the oyster out of the sauce with a spoon and place on the egg. Spoon a little sauce over each oyster and top with caviar.