Posts

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Tomato Sauce

This is a nice and simple yet tasty tomato sauce.

Take a small (or half a large onion) and dice finely.

Take half a red pepper and dice finely.

Soften the onion and pepper in a large frying pan with a splash of olive oil.

When the onion and pepper are nearly cooked you can add some chopped mushrooms (but this is optional, however they do add a really nice flavour).

Once the mushrooms are cooked add a good splash of balsamic vinegar and turn up the heat.

Now add a tin of chopped tomatoes or passata. I usually just use a tin of chopped (or whole) tomatoes and then whizz it in a blender. Add some tomato puree and cook for at least fifteen minutes.

It goes well with a lot of dishes, meat, fish or vegetarian.

I served mine with plain rice and thin pork loin steaks which I had covered in flour, then egg and then breadcrumbs and shallow fried.

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Griddled Squid

Continuing their daily series of Hugh’s fish recipes, the Guardian today publish a very nice griddled squid recipe.

I do like squid and I have cooked squid in this manner myself and it is delicious. If you have only ever had pre-battered calamari rings then you are doing squid a diservice and you really must try freshly cooked squid.

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Food on Film

The Guardian has published an informative and interesting article on the relationship between and the part food plays in films.

What is the most famous food scene in all cinema? Could it be Samuel L Jackson interrogating the men he’s been hired to kill about European hamburgers and the metric system in Pulp Fiction? Or might it be Debbie Reynolds jumping out of a cake to do the charleston in Singin’ in the Rain?

Read more

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Beer Battered Fish

Another excellent recipe from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall in today’s Guardian, beer battered fish.

Generally I like to use beer in my batter, but I found it interesting that Hugh said to use proper beer and avoid lager. I am sure I recall from another chef that lager was best for batter.

Ah well, the next time I make batter I will use a decent proper beer and see how that works.

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Bizarre!

There are some good food programmes on television, there are some really good programmes, there are some poor offerings and then there is the downright bizarre!

In the Ready, Steady, Cook slot is a bizarre programme called Food Poker!

Food Poker

Basically chefs play a weird kind of poker to pitch a dish from ingredients that are on their cards.

As a result you get weird dishes like oriental haggis!

It is just bizarre.

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Sea Bass Recipe

The Guardian has published another of Hugh’s recipes, sea bass baked in a salt crust.

This is one recipe I won’t follow due to the amount of salt involved though I know a salt crust is more a cooking process then a seasoning process, having done this in the past (with a chicken), the end result is still quite salty.

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I know, but they taste so nice…

I am generally very much as fan of fresh produce, organic tasty home cooked food and a proponent of home baking.

So why do I enjoy Mr Kipling’s Bakewell Slices so much?

They taste so nice!

I know I could cook a “better” bakewell tart, one which contains a lot less sugars, additives and probably a lot more taste (and more natural almond taste).

There is something I guess nostalgic for me about these slices and it is that memory I am enjoying again through the slices rather than the actual taste.

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Pasta with Chicken and Mushrooms

In a frying pan cook off some pancetta bacon, remove from the pan. Cook the chicken, I usually use chicken thigh (bonless and skinless) cut into a size which is about the same as the pasta I am using. Cook the chicken over a relatively high heat. Remove the chicken and then add the onions, cook until softened. Now cook the mushrooms.

Whilst this chicken and mushrooms are cooking cook the pasta. I used fusilli (pasta twirls) and cooked until al dente.

Once the mushrooms are cooked, add back the pancetta and chicken, add some creme frache.

Mix the chicken mixture with the cooked pasta and a good handful of freshly grated parmesan and some freshly ground black pepper.

Serve.

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The Price of Chicken

BBC Food has an interesting article on chicken.

Chicken is no longer the expensive luxury it was and as poultry prices have dropped, the welfare of the animals themselves has declined. Here’s how you can source higher-welfare chicken and eggs.

Personally I do enjoy eating chicken, however I will now only buy organic. Compared to other chicken though more expensive the flavour is so much better.