Pan-fried cauliflower with sweetbreads and chanterelles

Serves 4

To serve, put a slice of cauliflower on each plate and arrange the sweetbreads and chanterelles on top (JASON LOWE)

Pan-frying a thick slice of cauliflower may not seem the obvious thing to do with it, but it is quite delicious with all types of offal or game. You can serve this as a gutsy starter or main course.

1 medium-sized cauliflower
500g lamb's sweetbreads
Vegetable oil for frying
Butter for frying
120g chanterelles
2tbsp chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Trim any brown leaves from the cauliflower (leave the core) and cook whole, in boiling salted water, for 10-15 minutes, until just cooked. Remove from the water, plunge into cold water and leave to cool. Put the cauliflower on a chopping board and cut a couple of centimetres off each side. Then cut 4 x 2cm-thick slices, across the cauliflower.

Place the sweetbreads in a pan of salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes, then drain in a colander. Once cool enough to handle, remove any sinew and membrane.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan. Lightly flour the cauliflower and cook on a medium heat for about 3-4 minutes on each side until golden. In another non-stick or heavy frying pan, heat a couple of knobs of butter until foaming, season the sweetbreads and cook on a medium heat for 4-5 minutes, turning them as they are cooking, until golden. Transfer to a dish and keep warm.

Add the rest of the butter to the sweetbread pan and toss the chanterelles and parsley in it for about 30 seconds and season.

To serve, put a slice of cauliflower on each plate and arrange the sweetbreads and chanterelles on top.