The French House Party – A culinary adventure to France (Day 2)

Posted on May 4, 2015 by julianrolfe

I thought that it was about time to show you some food as this is a food blog! After arrival on Friday we met Robert Abraham and talked through our activities for the first session of the Gourmet Explorer Course, and was presented with a lovely recipe pack with basic instructions.

Dishes would include Carrot Veloute, Roasted Langoustine, Guinea-Fowl, Tartare of Salmon and Chocolate Fondant, all these would introduce the guests to a number of cooking techniques.

Before all of this was to start, we needed to visit the local market in the town of Revel, so we set of first thing in the morning to search out our ingredients.

I LOVE cheese and the merry chappy above invited us to have a go at using a traditional cheese wire and when we returned, have a go at mixing the Aligot with a ‘raft paddle’, it seemed like one at least.

Our first chef tutor Robert is no spring chicken but boy, can he cook. He has over 50 years of cooking experience, his sauces were AMAZING as were his skills and techniques which we were going to learn over several days.

As expected, the market was an abundance of fabulous produce including beautifully presented fruit, vegetables, bread, cheese and stalls cooking local specialities such a Aligot (Potatoes, Cheese & Garlic, creamed with a large paddle).

After our trip round the market we headed back to start cooking for real.

Each day we typically have 2 x three course meals to prepare, one for lunch and one for the evening, except when we are visiting a local restaurant to take a break. There is always cheese to finish so there is absolutely no chance of going hungry!!

The meal is always accompanied by wine, each course has a perfect match for the 1st three days selected by Robert, and excellent choices they were too.

The first cooking session was ‘relatively’ simple but the food was delicious, we started to learn plating techniques and how to build on flavours in sauces. I am not going to let you into the secrets, as this is a ‘window’ into what is an amazing experience if you want to enhance your cookery skills.

………………..Until next time……..L8ers………………..

The French House Party – A culinary adventure to France (Day 1)

Posted on May 2, 2015 by julianrolfe

The alarm fired at 5:15 a.m. on Friday, not the usual expectation of a customer visit but the start of my annual adventure to learn some new cookery skills, eat some lovely food, share worldy travel tales with like minded people, I had been looking forward to this for months.

My destination was the acclaimed French House Party, which has won a number of awards, and as I am finding out, rightly so. Set in a picturesque area of France, about 45 minutes from Toulouse its an easy destination to get to, in my case via a BA flight from Heathrow.

On arrival I was collected from the airport and whisked to the small hamlet of Pexiora, which was to be my base for the next 6 days, I was curious as to how many others were on the course, and when they would be arriving.

The location is ‘Stunning’, Birds chirping, Hares hopping and only a 10 minute walk from the Canal du Midi its in a quiet idyll in the South West Corner of France. After a warm welcome from the host Moira over a cup of tea, I was shown to my room and provided with a comprehensive agenda and all the info I needed to understand what we were going to be doing over the next few days.

That evening I met the rest of the guests as we set to work in the Kitchen with our first very experienced chef Robert, who has recently retired after a distinguished career. There were four of us taking part and like last years trip, I was the only ‘bloke’ doing the cooking course……!

We learnt how to prepare some canapes, as a way of getting to know each other and ‘breaking the ice’. Simple delights such as ‘Cucumber Sushi’, ‘Aubergine Caviar Mini Croissant’, ‘Red and Black Cherry Tomatoes’ ‘Courgette grillees et Crevettes”, and ‘Chevre Fromage Puffs, we were soon chatting and laughing along as if we had known each other for years.

Shortly after, the bubbles were cracked open and we munched and chatted as Robert prepared the evening meal as a welcome treat. We were delighted to Cream of Pea Soup with Mint, A beautiful Duck breast with spiced sauce, and a melange of desserts, followed by cheese. For each course Robert had selected a local wine that you would not be able to get in the U.K., a real treat.

We all slowly departed to our rooms, in anticipation of what was to follow the next day, our trip to the local market at Revel was scheduled for 9 a.m. after a typical French breakfast. Following that, the 1st ‘official’ lesson was to take place and what a treat that was going to be.

Until Part Deux……………………………..L8ers

Its Mustard! Sausages, Fennel, Spiced Crispy Apple, Baked Jersey’s and a Wicked Sauce

Posted on April 26, 2015 by julianrolfe

This was going to be a simple recipe, but ended up more complex as my brain chewed (sorry!!) over the options.

I had popped into the local Deli (Cook & Butcher, Thatcham), its recently moved to a larger location and was checking on my whether they had expanded on their range of Fox’s Gourmet products. A quick look around the shelves and yes, they had, my eyes drawn to a Tarragon & Champagne Mustard which looked interesting.

There were some freshly made sausages in the chilled counter, and I was soon walking out of the Deli, my brain whirring away with ideas on various recipes and thoughts on what I could prepare to delight the taste buds, Sausages & Mustard!

This isn’t a 30 minute meal, we are going to make a Chicken Stock from scratch which needs 2 hours simmering so read the whole post first, the stock can be made in advance and the leftover frozen for future use.

There is one picture in this post you might find a bit distressing, you have been warned…………………………

So as the dish developed there was a common theme developing, Aniseed. Linking flavour profiles and textures makes what might seem a boring meal that bit special, and I wanted to take the humble sausage (I am an addict of this British favourite), to the next level.

So if you fancy having a go, you will need the following;

1.5 Kgs Chicken Wing Tips
1 Calfs Foot, Split!
1 Carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 or 2 Sticks Celery roughly chopped
5 Cloves Garlic
1 Tsb Tomato Puree (Double Concentrate)
1 Glass White Wine
Olive Oil
6 Litres of Water
1 Jar Fox’s Gourmet Tarragon and Champagne Mustard
6 Pork Sausages (the BEST you can get, don’t skimp!), 3 per person!
Jersey Royal potatoes
1 Apple (I used Pink Lady), peeled, cored and cut into 10mm approx. slices
1 Lemon
1 Fennel Bulb (sliced 5mm thick)
300 Ml Double Cream
Butter
1 Egg
Plain Flour for dredging the apples
Panko Bread Crumbs for coating the apples
2 -3 Star Anise
Ghee (clarified Butter)
Salt
10 White Peppercorns
Pepper

Making the Chicken Stock from Scratch

Yep, this is what 1.5kgs of Chicken Wing tips and a split Calfs foot looks like, drizzle with Olive Oil, mix well and roast in the oven at 180-200 deg, until browned 20 – 30 minutes.

Once you have roasted off the Chicken etc. place in a very large saucepan add 5 litres of water and slowly bring the boil.

Using the baking tray for the meat, place on the stove top, add the vegetables, 5 roughly chopped Cloves of Garlic, and start to scrape the bottom of the tray, releasing any sticky meaty bits.

After about 5-10 minutes, as you can start to smell the aromas, add the Tomato Paste to cook out the raw bitterness, then add the Wine and cook for a further 5 minutes to burn of the alcohol.

Then, add the remaining litre of water, add to the Stock Pot and start to skim off any scum that rises to the surface with a large spoon. The Stock needs to gently simmer for 2 hours, Chicken does contain quite bit of fat, so keep checking the surface and remove as the delicious broth develops its deep rich flavour.

After 2 hours, remove any remaining fat on the surface, and put to one side to cool down. You will only need about 1/2 Litre for the recipe, but now you have an amazing base for sauces and gravies which will be so much nicer than anything you get in the shops.

To cook the main event is quite straightforward. Bake the Sausages in the Oven, mine took about 35-40 Minutes at 180 deg. The Fennel once sliced, is placed in a baking dish and almost covered with some of the freshly prepared stock, add a decent knob of butter, season with Pepper, and squeeze 1/2 Lemon over the top. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for about the same time as the Sausages.

I boiled the Jersey Royals, let them cool and they also got the oven treatment to crisp up in some clarified butter, and seasoned with Sea Salt when served at the end.

With everything doing its cooking in the oven, you can prepare the Apples, which need dunking in well seasoned flour ( I only used Black Pepper, no Salt), beaten Egg and then Panko Breadcrumbs as in the picture above. At this time, you might want to stick some plates in the oven to warm up, ready for serving.

To cook, add a decent amount of Butter in a frying pan, then 3 – 4 Star Anise, you don’t want the Butter too hot or the solids will Burn.

You will start to see the Aniseed theme, in the Mustard, in the Apples, and of course, the Fennel. Once cooked to crisp on both sides, remove from the pan and drain on kitchen paper, they can rest for a few minutes in the warm over whilst you finish the final stage, the amazing sauce.

When everything is cooked, we are ready to get the sauce done and serve up. Take a frying pan, place on the heat and add about 300 mls of the Chicken Stock and boil vigorously, reducing by at least 1/2, then add a ‘glug’ of white wine, and continue to do the same.

Take the dish with the Fennel in, and take about 2 Tbls of the cooking Liquor and add to the frying pan, this enables the Fennel theme to travel further through the dish, and the Lemon Juice in the cooking liquor, adds a further lift, finally add about 150 mls of Double Cream and continue to reduce.

This part of the process requires YOU to estimate, based on taste and consistency, every Pan and Hob is different so use YOUR judgement to adjust and you will be rewarded with a sauce of beauty.

The last stage is too add the Fox’s Gourmet Mustard, I used about 2 Tsp’s, again adjust and taste to get to your preferred flavour, finally season with salt after tasting again, if needed. If you are happy with the consistency, then serve up, if not reduce or add more cream, whatever you feel is needed.

That’s it, Sausages, Fennel, Jersey Royals, Crispy Star Anise Apples and an amazing sauce, you won’t be disappointed.

Yes, preparing the stock takes some time, but its really well worth it as now you have the base for further cooking with all the major prep done.

Hope you have a go at this and get the same satisfaction that I did. I am off to France in the next few days to learn some more cooking skills at The French House Party, I will be posting if I get the time and a full review will get posted after.

Until next time……………………L8ers…………..

Toulouse is Smokin’ – My take on a Italian, Rick Stein Sausage Dish! (Oh, and a short review of Michael Neaves Kitchen and Whiskey Bar)

Posted on April 3, 2015 by julianrolfe

I was originally planning to cook a Moroccan dish, the centre stage being Merguez Sausages but when I arrived at the Ginger Pig in Marylebone they didn’t have any!

The Ginger Pig is an acclaimed butcher, they began over 20 years ago, with a near-derelict farmhouse and three Tamworth pigs, and now farm over 3,000 acres of their own pasture and North Yorkshire moorland, and work with a small network of like-minded farmers to supply their seven London butchers’ shops.

At the heart of everything they do is good animal husbandry and welfare; livestock that is looked after well in the field will simply taste better on the plate.

So looking at the options available to me and searching deep in the grey matter for a taste tingling sensation I tried to conjure up a fitting recipe for another sausage, the Toulouse, which they did have in stock. I picked a hearty smoked variety.

I’m going to go of on a tangent here for a few moments (it IS relevant). I recently discovered that someone I worked with had a sister in the world of artisan food.

Della, the owner of Fox Gourmet Foods make an amazing range of Jelly’s, Jams, Sauces and Chutneys, being artisan you won’t find them in the larger supermarkets, only in smaller Deli’s and specialist food outlets.

When I was out getting my hair cut recently, I popped into our local deli (had not ventured in there for many months), and discovered they stocked some of Della’s products, so bought a jar of Green Grape, Apple and Lemon Thyme Jelly, with a plan to try it in a recipe.

Eureka moment, Rick Stein had published a nice looking dish in his Mediterranean Escapes Book, using Luganega Sausages from Italy that are fennel based, and braised with Potatoes and Lemon, I could do a twist on this and use the Toulouse variety and incorporate the Jelly from Fox’s to add to the flavour profile.

So, for this take on Sausages with Potatoes and Lemon you will need the following (as per the picture at the head of this post, adjust the vegetable volumes by eye/sense);

3 Sausages per person (get REALLY strong flavoured ones like Toulouse if you can, it makes a big difference)
Waxy Potatoes such as Charlotte
2 Bay leaves
1 Lemon
4 – 5 Shallots
2 1/2 Tbls Green Grape, Apple and Lemon Thyme Jelly
1 Clove Garlic
Bunch Wild Garlic (In season at the moment)
Optional – 1 Bulb of Fennel, shaved on a Mandolin. (I forgot to use mine, hence optional!)
1 Tsp Piment d’Espelette (available HERE)
1 Bunch Fresh Parsley
Olive Oil
1 Glass White Wine (Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc are good)
Salt and Pepper to Season

Start of by quickly browning your Sausages in some Olive Oil and set aside, you can just see them in the white bowl in the upper left of the picture. Remove from the pan and add the Shallots, (thinly sliced), and then the Garlic clove, (sliced), and soften for a few minutes.

Then add the Glass of Wine and cook vigorously to evaporate the alcohol, add the potatoes which have been sliced into approx. 1 1/2 inch chunks and cook for a couple of minutes. Stir in 2 1/2 Tbls of the Fox’s jelly until melted, you can see the flavoursome Jelly just as I had added it, in the picture above.

Next, sprinkle the Piment d’Espelette over the top. Piment d’Espelette literally means “pepper of Espelette” in French. It is a food product produced around the town of Espelette in Southern France, in the region known as Basque Country. This pepper is so famous that it has been given a protected designation by the European Union, ensuring that only peppers grown in the Espelette region may be labeled as “piment d’Espelette.” There are only 7 villages in the area that are permitted to produce it.

Finally, add the Sausages back into the pan, along with 2 Bay Leaves. Take your Lemon and Pare (remove the outer skin), with a Peeler, leaving the white bitter pith behind and add to the pan, then cut the Lemon in half and add the Juice, squeezing through your hands to catch the pips, (or use a sieve!!).

Cover, turn the heat down, and Braise for 45 Minutes, check occasional as you don’t want the potatoes overcooked.

A couple of minutes before your ready to serve, if you have managed to get some Wild Garlic Leaves, cut them in 2 c.m. lengths and add them to the pan, and finally chop the Parsley, add, and your finished.

Voila, thats it —- I was obviously tired when preparing this dish as I had purchased a Fennel Bulb to slice and add some crunchy texture, but forgot it altogether. I will be doing this dish again and adjusting some of the ingredients, including adding the Fennel, Doh!

My acid test when cooking is whether the Mrs! likes it. She is honest and critical, so if she does not like something, I will know very quickly.

The verdict, bl@@dy delicious, punchy Sausages, Lemony sauce, subtle Garlic and Thyme, the jelly added both consistency and flavour so I was really chuffed, as was the Mrs who polished her whole plate with nothing left.

Please look out for the Fox Gourmet Range, they are available online from specialist Deli’s google will assist you find your local supplier.

Review – Michael Neaves Kitchen and Whiskey Bar, Edinburgh

A recent trip to Edinburgh on business and I was looking for somewhere decent to eat. Many (not all) Hotels these days have tedious menu’s using words such as ‘classic’ that really don’t inspire confidence in me wanting to even try their food.

My research found Michael Neaves Kitchen and Whiskey Bar, a restaurant that has only been open for a couple of years, but with a head chef who is only 23, yes TWENTY THREE.

The menu had an excellent, but controlled mix of Seafood, Meat and Vegetarian dishes that really made your mouth water.

The starter I picked was Pigeon Carpaccio, with Candied Walnuts and Beetroot Dressing, it was just AMAZING, the flavour and texture combination worked brilliantly.

The main course of John Dory on Bisque, with Kale was absolutely stunning, the Fish was spot on, crispy Skin, but not overcooked, the bisque, subtle and not too overpowering. I have to say it’s probably the BEST fish dish I have ever eaten (and this guy is only 23!!).

As for dessert, the Blueberry parfait with Pistachio crumb and Meringue was just beautiful, flavour packed, lovely textures, and went down a treat.

This was one of the best meals I have ever had (The other 2 being both in Edinburgh, Tom Kitchen and Martin Wishart, both much much older, and with a Michelin star each).

So Michael, thanks for lovely food, your staff are fantastic, service being spot on, highly recommended and if I am back in the lovely city of Edinburgh, your restaurant is on my must re-visit list.

Till next time……….L8ers

A Rockin’ Indian Sauce Base – Mums Masala, You Gotta Try It!

Posted on March 15, 2015 by julianrolfe

This post is a bit unusual, you will notice 1 jar of cooking sauce and only one spice (and that was only because I could only get a ‘medium’ and I do like my food spicy)! My usual posts included loads of ingredients and lengthy cooking processes, here is a simple and seriously tasty dish you can produce in no time at all.

I work in an interesting and dynamic industry, and one that from time to time, forces people to change direction and do something different, or move to a similar company and carry on (that’s me).

I was really delighted to hear a friend for over 10 years, had taken the plunge and decided to set up his own company, making a range of Indian sauce bases. To be clear from the outset, I purchased this sauce in a retail store with no discount (well 2 actually), and have not been paid, or asked to favour. I don’t write bad reviews (a recent case of a lady in France that ended up in court with big fines is an example of why you have to be careful), If I don’t like something I move on to the next….and ignore. If its get to print, it good; simple as that.

For me, the impressive is that the sauce is already stocked in Morrisons, has a stamp of approval from Heart U.K. and a Global Ambassador in Sally Bee, who regularly features on daytime T.V.

So here’s what i did.

Luckily, I had planned a trip to my local Oriental Supermarket See Woo to get some ingredients for a mothers day special I was cooking, Weeping Tiger Salad, I also grabbed a bag of Tiger Prawns, which was to be the protein in my quick curry. Just around the corner there is a Morrisons so a chance to pickup a jar of Mums Masala sauce base, something I have been keen to try since hearing of my friends new venture.

Wanting to add a bit of texture to the dish, a Green Pepper was chopped and a fried with some Onion before adding the sauce. you DON’T have to add these ingredients, but it just that way I do things!

The mixture was gently fried for 2 -3 minutes, just to take the harshness away before adding the jar of Mums Masala sauce base.

So, lets get to the point. I DON’T use jars of cooking sauces (until now that is!), the proliferation of brands that fill the supermarkets shelves leave a lot to be desired. I have tried numerous over the years and they are; Bland, Too Salty, Too Sweet, Stuffed with Saturated Fats, Too much Tomato, Full of stuff I don’t recognise as a food, disgusting, horrible.

Rant over, this is the reason I started my blog in the 1st place, to try and encourage people to cook, I am not a professional, but cooking from scratch is a relaxing break from my daytime, ‘Generation Y’ world of Tech…… This was going to stretch me a bit as its all a bit ‘simple’.

So whats in the jar; Onion, Diced Tomatoes, Rapeseed Oil, Ginger Puree, Water, Red Chilli Puree, Garlic Puree, Garam Masala (Ground Coriander, Ground Cumin, Ground Cassia, Ground Black Pepper, Ground Star Aniseed, Ground Ginger, Ground Green Cardamom, Ground Pimento, Ground Black Cardamom, Ground Cloves, Ground Bay Leaf, Ground Nutmeg), Turmeric Powder, Salt, Tomato Paste, Cumin Seeds, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Acidity Regulator: Acetic Acid, Cornflour, Dried Fenugreek Leaf.

If you are wondering, Acetic Acid is the pure name for Vinegar, and an Acidity Regulator is used to ensure Bacteria does not grow. I recognise ALL the ingredients in Mum’s Masala so that is 1 BIG tick in the box. If you compare the ingredients to other sauces there are some subtle nuances, the use of the word ‘Puree’ instead of powder, real ingredients!!!!!

So, after 5 minutes of cooking I added the bag of Tiger Prawns, and gave the mixture a thorough stir to coat all the Prawns, then following the instructions on the jar, added just under half a jar of water, to slacken the mix. I also added 1 Teaspoon of Kashmiri Chilli Powder, which is why the dish changed colour to a deeper red. The ONLY reason I did this is I like a spicy curry and could only get a medium version of the sauce base.

As this was to be a quick meal, I had got a couple of Coconut Rice Pouches, some Geeta’s Mango Chutney (which is really good), some ready made Poppadoms, and knocked up a quick Onion Salad.

I have a thing about Onion Salad, and feel another minor rant coming. On the occasions where an Indian Takeaway is used, there is never enough Tomato, or Fresh Coriander in the Onion Salad. Mine is packed with both, alongside some subtle cucumber and a sprinkling of Cumin.

So, to my good friend Narinder, the brains behind Mum’s Masala you really challenged me when I found out about your sauces. I was really sceptical, and wasn’t sure what my fussy palate would think. I was also worried that if I didn’t like it, things might be ermmmmmmm awkward….

But hey, you have NAILED IT buddy, bloody well done.

The Boss is equally as fussy as me, sometimes I think more so. In fact, when I said what I was going to do, she questioned my utter madness based on both our previous experiences and disappointment with jars of ready made sauces and did take some persuading before going along with my plan.

Its a VERY GOOD sauce base, simple to use (great when you don’t have hours to prepare a meal), its VERY healthy and if you don’t believe me, just read the article below.

I am going to develop some recipes using the sauce as a staring point so watch out for future postings, and in the meantime, hunt out your local Morrisons and get a Jar or two of Mums Masala for yourself, you will be eating quick, tasty AND healthy in no time at all.

Kouign Amann, well Breton Kouignettes, and a couple of restaurant reviews

Posted on February 8, 2015 by julianrolfe

Twitter is an interesting tool that can inspire cooking at a instant. A case in point happened to me recently when a very good cook I ‘follow’ Sabrina Ghayour, tweeted a picture from a trip to Paris. The picture was of a variant of Kouign Amann, a Breton pastry from Northern France.

The sticky buttery rich pastry just looked amazing, and as I had a team meeting coming up after the weekend, an excuse to do some research and find a suitable recipe set me going online and attacking the keyboard. My initial concern was time, having made puff pastry by hand before it was a lengthy process taking up to 3 days (allowing plenty of rest time makes it very special), and this was based on a similar process.

I found the answer here; http://eatthelove.com/2014/03/kouign-amann/

A ‘speedy’ way to make a version of the pastry, I set about gathering the ingredients and digging out the food processor from under the cupboard.

The basic premise of this recipe is to incorporate loads of salty Breton Butter (readily available from Waitrose and probably larger Tesco’s) into flour using the method described on the web link above. Once it has had some time to rest and cool down in the fridge, a series of folds to create the layers that puff up and expand when cooking. This is a yeast based dough so the final result is croissant like in its texture.

The last stage requires dusting your work top with sugar instead of flour, which will create the lovely sticky, crispy, caramelised outside after cooking is completed. It was surprisingly straightforward to do, following the steps carefully. I changed one element of the recipe, which was to use vanilla infused sugar to add an extra dimension to the dish.

I couldn’t work out a way to easily get the shape from the original ‘tweeted’ picture so continued to follow the instructions on the website which requires you to cut the final dough into squares, and bring together from the centre, placing into a well oiled muffin tray as above.

They need about 40 – 45 minutes, I had some extra dough left, had some placed on an oven tray beneath the one above and a couple of them went to far! Keep and eye on them for the last 10 or so minutes as you want them dark and sticky, but they can soon burn.

Give them a go, they were bloomin’ delicious!

This week involved a lot of travelling, Newbury to Solihull, then Leeds, then Norwich, then back to Newbury so a couple of overnights would be needed.

My stomach dictates when away from home and gives me the chance to experience new food and restaurants, this week it was to be Tharavadu in Leeds and The House of Thai in Norwich.

Tharavadu is a Kerelan restaurant, a style of cuisine I had not tried before, rich in coconut and spices, and absolutely delicious.

The starter I chose was Adipose Chemmeen, marinated Prawns served with a Lemon Chutney it was amazing, tingling the palate with lots of flavour, it set the scene quite nicely.

Mains were Kerala Khozi Curry, Mambazha Pulisshery, and a Paratha. I was too busy eating this delicious meal to take a picture, but it was very very tasty indeed.

Desert was a Semolina based dish, Pineapple Kesari, studded with raisins and cashew nuts it finished the meal nicely.

The wine choice was very good and reasonably priced, I went for a Trimbach Gerwurztraminer which countered the spicy meal perfectly. The service was excellent, attentive but not overbearing, and the restaurant was busy, busy busy, so book ahead if you fancy a culinary trip to Kerala, well recommended, please give it a go.

After Kerala, my next stop was Thailand, via House of Thai in Norwich!

I had been late arriving at both restaurants as traffic had been particular bad, but have to say VERY impressed at how accommodating both places were.

Starters at House of Thai were Tung Tong, or Golden Parcels, again an amazing starter, getting the taste buds ready for the main course.

The parcels are filled with a herb marinaded chicken and vegetable mixture, wrapped in a thin pastry and fried until crispy. Great starter…….yumm

I struggled picking a main, I have eaten Thai a few times and wanted to try and find something a bit different, so Pla Kra Pao was my choice of crispy Sea Bass with stir fried oyster sauce, served with fresh Thai Red Chillies, Coriander and Basil leaves. Thai Jasmine Rice worked with the Bass nicely it was very good value for money.

Desert was interesting as an iPad was used to show pictures of each of the dishes, a really good idea. Dessert was Banana based, and studded with Coconut, not too sweet but something I had not eaten before, very tasty and I forgot the write down the name. Wine to accompany was a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

The whole meal was very tasty, service was very good and unhurried (considering I was 45 minutes late!), another cracking experience, well worth a look out if you are venturing to Norwich add this to your must do list.

Thats it for now, until next time……….L8ers……..

Malay Meets China, Assam Heh & Nasi Lemak

Posted on February 7, 2015 by julianrolfe

The urge for something tasty, I ended up driving to our local Oriental Supermarket and sought out some appropriate ingredients, such as Pandan Leaves (also known as screwpine), Thai Birds Eye Chilli’s, and some massive Prawns, the dish is called Assam Heh, or Nyonya Prawns!

This tasty number gets it roots from a mix of two cultures, China and Malay who merged through the 15-17th Centuries. The cuisine is often referred too using the term Nyonya, which apparently means ‘women’.

The Prawns need marinading in a mixture as follows;

3 Tbsp Tamarind Concentrate
1 Tbsp Kecap Manis
1 Tsp Palm Sugar
1 Tsp Sea Salt
1 Tsp Muntok White Pepper

I had removed the shell of the Prawns but left the head on, removing the long tentacles and legs to neaten them up. Marinade for a least 1 1/2 hours in the fridge to let the Prawns soak up the flavours.

After marinading, the Prawns just need to be fried on both sides, on a really high heat with a good glug of the marinade to cover them and make them sticky and yummy!

The accompaniment for this treat is Nasi Lemak, a Rice dish cooked in Coconut Milk and Pandan Leaves, which is served with a Boiled Egg per person, some Cucumber, some roasted Peanuts and a couple of Sambal’s or relishes, to add more intense heat and flavour.

I had some Jasmine Rice in the cupboard, and just followed the instructions on the packet, substituting Coconut Milk for Water, and adding 3 Pandan Leaves to the pot, you can see them above nestling away!

The other elements were in part, a cheat. I had some Sambal Oelek (you CAN find it in supermarkets) and bought some Sambal Ikan Bilis (which has anchovies in it), boiled a couple of Eggs, roasted some Peanuts, and scooped out the centre of 1/2 a cucumber after running a peeler along the outside 4 times leaving a gap between each to create a light and dark green pattern, you can see it in the finished dish.

The only critical thing to watch is timing, making sure the cooking of the rice is timed to the cooking of the Prawns. The dish is quite straightforward but absolutely delicious to eat, if you don’t have the confidence to try some of the more challenging dishes on my blog, this one is easy, you can google the Sambal names and find recipes to make your own if you have the time.

The finished dish presents very well, I finely chopped a Thai Birds Eye Chilli and scattered on top of the Rice, which was moulded in a small round souffle dish before turning onto the plate

That’s it for this time, next is a quick Breton sweet dish that is really delicious to eat and a couple of restaurant reviews.

Till next time……………L8ers………..

Grousing Around – Winter Fare and Organic Birds!!

Posted on January 25, 2015 by julianrolfe

Christmas seems a distant memory and January is almost over, its been an absolutely manic month and minimal time has been spent in the kitchen. I’ve been toying with the idea of trying some new proteins, and some I have not had for many years. A trip to Casey Fields Farm Shop just before christmas provided the opportunity to invest in some Organic Game Birds such as Partridge, Grouse, Pheasant and Pigeon which quickly found their way into the shopping basket!

I wanted to introduce some different flavours into the dish, not going down a traditional route tends to mean I will use Middle Eastern or Far Eastern influences for a more vibrant and mouth tingling experience.

Beware – Pictures of Spatchcocked Grouse Lay Ahead

Ploughing through various ‘traditional’ cookery books, birds like Grouse appear to be served with either a fruit based sauce, or a reduced game & veal stock, and game ‘chips’ or ‘Pomme Gaufrettes’ as they are known in France, Potato that has been cut by a waffle blade on a mandolin which creates a criss-cross pattern.

Nope, not for me and I decided to look at some different options with influences from Bethany Kehdy and Sabrina Ghayour, and the books Jewelled Kitchen and Persiana.

For this recipe, Middle Eastern Grouse with Royal Freekeh you will need the following ingredients for 1 person.

1 Grouse (Check whether the Heart and Liver are still in the cavity, mine were!)
1 small Onion
1/2 Preserved Lemon (readily available, I made my own a year ago, it’s easy to do)
2 Cloves Garlic
75 g Freekeh
50 g Butter
1-2 Tsp Harissa
1/4 Tsp Aleppo Pepper
1/2 Tsp Anardana (Ground Pomegranate Seeds)
1/2 Tsp Za’atar
1/4 Tsp Cinnamon
A few strands Afhgan Saffron (Steenberg’s stock this, its amazing!)
1 Tsp ground Coriander
1/2 Tsp ground Cumin
1/2 Tsp Allspice
A handful of Pistachio’s
A handful of Pine Nuts
3 -4 Green Cardamom Pods
a ‘Slurp’ of Pomegranate Molasses
A handful of Almonds
A handful of Barberries
Bunch Fresh Coriander
500 ml Chicken or Vegetable Stock

If you don’t fancy spatchcocking your Grouse, your butcher will do it for you, I have shown how to do it on a previous post with a Chicken, you are just removing the backbone and pushing down on the breasts to flatten.

The Grouse is marinaded by the Butter, Harissa, 1 Clove Garlic grated (I used a fine Microban) and 1/4 of the Preserved Lemon, very thinly sliced. Its needs at least a hour, and could be done a day in advance and left overnight in the fridge.

Grouse is one of the Game Birds I had not eaten before, so this was going to be a interesting experiment to see if I could get everything to work in harmony, apparently Grouse is quite a ‘gamey’ meat with strong flavour so whatever I served with it needed to be ‘gutsy’.

The ‘Royal’ in the dish is my slant on ‘bejewelling’ Rice, but in my case the lesser know Freekeh. Freekeh, Frikeh or Farik is made from Green Wheat, its great at absorbing flavours, has a really good texture, slightly chewy and its good for you! The Jewel components are Pine Nuts, Pistachio Nuts and Almonds which have all been toasted, along with a good handful of Barberries.

Freekeh is available online from a number of suppliers including ‘The Sous Chef’, ‘Ottolenghi’s’, BUT BE CAREFUL and check the cooking instructions on the packet. Whole Freekeh takes a lot longer to cook than crushed or cracked Freekeh!

Timing for this dish is quite important, as I found out! I made the mistake of not checking the Freekeh I was using, and ended up with a Grouse that was ready 30 – 40 Min’s before the Freekeh!

Anyhow, its still tasted really good so you need to finely chop the onion and fry in Olive Oil and Butter for a good 20 minutes, you are looking for the colour above. Don’t be tempted to rush this stage, the smell and flavour even at this stage is lip smacking.

Next, add the Anardana, Za’atar, Coriander and Cumin Powder, Aleppo Pepper, Allspice, Saffron, Cardamom Pods (lightly crushed), Cinnamon a continue to cook out the spices, then add the Freekeh and coat the grains thoroughly. Add the Chicken or Vegetable stock according to the instructions on the packet.

If you are using whole Freekeh it needs about 45 minutes to cook, timing the cooking of the Grouse is really important because you DO NOT want to overcook it, it WILL be tough and nowhere near as good if cooked for the correct time and left to rest.

Searching a number of books and Internet resources i went for the following method.

Set you oven on 200 degrees and allow to heat up, then, get a frying pan hot add a small amount of Olive Oil and Butter, and place the Grouse Breast(buttered) side down into the Pan and Leave for 5 minutes.

After 5 Minutes, put the bird in the oven for 10 minutes, then remove, and leave to rest for 5 minutes covered with foil and thats it! So you need to allow 20 Minutes for the Grouse to cook and ensure your Freekeh is good to go at the same time, something I managed to royally mess up ;-).

I sometimes think of Bejewelling as similar to tempering a Dhal! You have a base of Rice or Grains (or Lentils in the case of Dhal), and add some punchy fresh flavours at the last minute. So a minute or so before you are going to serve up, add the other 1/4 thinly sliced Preserved Lemon, the other Garlic Clove, Grated, and the toasted Nuts and Barberries, you are just warning them all through at the last minute. Finally stir in a handful of fresh coriander leaf, finely chopped and a good drizzle of Pomegranate Molasses.

Despite messing up the Freekeh timings, the dish was hearty, wholesome and delicious. There was a hint of fruit, but also some freshness from the Preserved Lemon and Pomegranate Molasses, I am really chuffed with my first attempt at Grouse, the Middle Eastern influence was something quite special.

Not sure in which direction my cooking is heading next, but as the new year settles down, I hope to get some more time in the kitchen soon.

Until next time……………L8ers……………….

3 Interesting months and Braised Red Cabbage

Posted on December 27, 2014 by julianrolfe

A series of unforseen circumstances and events, and its been 3 months since my last post. Acute Bronchitis, infected leg after an amazing trip to Tunisia, and a health scare with the Mrs knocked my mojo for six. Things started to get better after a work event in late November, driving tanks in wet muddy fields, it was awesome, the antibiotics also had started to do their thing!

So my last post of 2014 is a twist on the Christmas staple of Braised Red Cabbage. This is a dish I always cook at least one day in advance as the flavours develop when left to rest in the fridge, well covered in cling film and foil. This year, I added some more unusual additions in the form of Ras Al Hanut spice mix (I use the Steenbergs variant which is awesome), some Ginger, and Pomegranate Molasses, along with some Kirsch soaked Barberries at the end, which definitely added an extra ‘Christmas’ element to the dish and Middle Eastern influence.

The Ingredients

1 Red Cabbage thinly sliced
2 Onions, thinly sliced
3 Apples (Cox’s work well), randomly cut to form different sized pieces!
30g butter
1 Orange (or 2 Satsumas), juiced
150 ml Port
3 Tbsp Moscatel Vinegar (Red wine will do but its sharper)
3 Star Anise
1 5cm Cinnamon Stick
3 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1 Clove Garlic
2 Tsp Ral Al Hanut
1 1/2 Tsp Ginger
1/4 Grated Fresh Nutmeg
50 g Barberries steeped in Kirsh for 24 Hours
2 Tbsp Pomegranate Molasses

Thinly shred the Cabbage, Onion and slice the Apple into pieces about 3-4 mm thick, we want them to retain some texture during the cooking process and not break up and go mushy.

Put some butter and Oil into a Dutch Oven or decent sized oven proof pot, and heat on the hob, adding the Onion first, then the Cabbage and stir for a few minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the Barberries and Kirsch), and keep stirring ensuring all the ingredients are well mixed.

I put a layer of foil on the Dutch oven before adding the lid and placing in a pre-heated oven at approximately 130 degrees (fan). Cook for about 2 hours, stirring every 1/2 hour.

After the 2 hours, remove from the oven, stir once more, replace the lid and let cool, before transferring to a dish that will fit in your fridge, covered with cling film, and then tin foil.

The dish just needs to be reheated on Christmas day (or whenever you decide to have a go!), and add the soaked Barberries for the last ten minutes, which add the occasional ‘zing’ of Christmas spice.

Hope you all had a great Christmas and Happy New Year.

See you in 2015…………..L8ers……………..

çorba, சூப், ស៊ុប, well back to Europe actually and a Portugese national dish, Caldo Verde (Soup)!

Posted on October 4, 2014 by julianrolfe

I promised I would venture back closer to home with my food, and this weeks post is just that. One of the wonders of organic veg boxes are the surprises you get as the seasons change, this week had one of the those surprises Cavolo Nero. An Italian cabbage used in the dish ‘ribollita‘ it can also be used in one of Portugal’s national dishes Caldo Verde (green broth).

I have been off work all week with Flu and completely out of kilter food wise, so the arrival of the veg box was as excuse to try to find something simple and healthy to eat, which was also quick and would not take too much effort, even doing the simplest of tasks was exhausting.

A chance trip to buy some of my favourite bread, (which does not cause my stomach to grumble due to too much yeast and chemicals), and a well know supermarket magazine found its way into the basket. (Begins with W!). Leafing through the pages and staring me in the face were the dark green leaves of Cavolo Nero, and some dishes to make it more interesting including Caldo Verde, from Portugal. A quick search on the Internet and I had all the details I needed to have a go, and here is how it went.

Luckily, all the ingredients were to hand, including some Chorizo from our local farm shop which is very good. Making the dish is easy, chop the Onion, into a pan with a good glug of Olive oil, followed by Garlic and a couple of Chorizo Sausages (with their skins on). Cook on a low-medium heat for 5 – 10 mins until the Onion is translucent. Then, add some quartered Potatoes and cook for a further 5 minutes or so. I believe the original dish used water to boil the Potatoes, I used a light Chicken Stock (750ml for 2 people), to add some subtle background flavour.

The Potatoes, Onions and Chorizo cook, covered in the stock for about 25-30 minutes until they are falling apart, remove the Chorizo and blitz with a stick blender or food processor and you are nearly finished. I used a whole head of Cavaolo Nero to finish the dish of, which was sliced finely as a Chiffonade. You can see the blended Potato, Onion and Garlic mixture below and the chopping above!

Add the Cavalo Nero and simmer gently for another 30 – 45 minutes, depending on how thick you want the end result. The Soup gets greener (and thicker) the longer you cook it.Whilst your Soup is gently simmering you can finish off the Chorizo. Remove the skins, slice into 3-4mm pieces and fry in some Olive Oil until crispy. Put to one side keeping the Red Spicy Oil and Chorizo together as it will add a final flavour burst to the dish.

This dish was a bit of a gamble, ‘Cabbage Soup’, thickened with Potatoes and some fried Chorizo!

Believe me, its knockout. I am not really a soup fan but sitting down to eat this with the missus was just fantastic. The combination of flavours and textures was beautiful, the Chorizo kick, the slightly bitter Greens, the balanced flavours of the broth and occasional piece of Potato, where I had not done a thorough job with the blender.

Other than peeling and chopping, the mise en place is negligible and the Caldo Verde took little effort to make, but packed a massive hit of flavours (and is cheap to make). So if you get struck down withe Flu, or fancy trying one of Portugal’s national dishes have a go at this one, you will be pleased you did.

It went perfectly with Richard Bertinet’s ‘proper’ bread. Yummmmmmmmm

Until next time…………..L8ers……………

Julian Rolfe

My Foodie Life

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