Chef Momo from the Cloudy Bay Shed has designed an exclusive recipe to match the wines that composed the November Cloudy Bay Circle selection, and took the opportunity to pay tribute to our heroes from the Islands by choosing beans of Heilala vanilla as the key ingredient.

Heilala is the best vanilla from the Kingdom of Tonga: there’s a reason it is loved by chefs and home cooks alike. Most of the time, vanilla is only used in sweet courses. However, its incredible aroma makes it an appealing match for many savoury foods as well. In his recipe, the vanilla really complements the smoky and roasted flavours that Chef Momo is focusing on.

Vanilla also really brings out the best in our Founders’ Cellar Syrah 2021, the wine pairing for this dish. This wine is exclusive to members of the Cloudy Bay Circle.

Join the Cloudy Bay Circle today and get the November selection on time.

A SHARED COMMITMENT

Vanilla is very labour-intensive, with all of the weeding, mulching, pollinating, picking, drying, curing, and grading completed by hand. In addition to paying their vanilla farmers above the market rates for their beans, Heilala proudly holds the distinction of being the world's first B Corp-certified vanilla company.

Here at Cloudy Bay, around a third of our vineyard crew are seasonal workers from the Pacific Islands. Village to Village Charitable Trust was created to help our seasonal workers in building their own businesses when they return home. One example is Allain Liu-Vitivae, who will receive an interest-free loan to start the first egg farm on his home island of Ambae in Vanuatu.

1) Place butter in a bowl at room temperature for 2 hours (preferably overnight).
2) Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise and use the back of the knife to scrape out the contents. Finely chop the parsley, zest the lemon and save the lemon for juice.
3) Once the butter is soft, combine all the remaining ingredients for the vanilla butter in a bowl and mix until smooth.
4) For the vanilla dressing, slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Using the back of the knife, scrape out the contents carefully and add to an airtight jar with a lid.
5) Add the remaining ingredients for the vanilla dressing to the jar and shake well. Store in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
6) Add all the ingredients for the beef marination to a bowl, mix well and let the meat marinate for 30 minutes.
7) Place a frying pan over high heat, with a drizzle of oil. Cook the steak for 2 minutes on each side.
8) Add the vanilla butter and crushed garlic to the hot pan and cook the steak for 1 minute further on each side.
9) Remove the steak from the pan, pour the butter on top and let it rest for 4 minutes.
10) Cut the asparagus 1 inch from the bottom to remove the hard part.
11) Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and grill over a high heat. Once cooked, set aside and drizzle with a healthy amount of vanilla dressing.
12) Serve with the steak and any leftover vanilla butter, along with a glass of Founders’ Cellar Syrah 2021.