Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Stew

(inspired by a recipe for Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Pie in Gourmet Traveller)

Serves 2

1. Melt half the butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and garlic, cook for 5 minutes
2. Add the mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove from pan  and set aside.
3. Toss the steak in seasoned flour.
4. Melt the rest of the butter in the saucepan and sauté the steak for about 5-7 minutes or until browned.
5. Return the onions and mushrooms to the pan with the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6. Add beef stock, Guinness and mushroom ketchup (or Worcestershire sauce), tomato puree, bay leaf and bring to the boil.
7. Cover and then simmer gently, stirring occasionally,  2 hours or until the meat is tender.
8. Serve with boiled potatoes tossed with chopped parsley and butter.

Related posts:

1. Duck & Mushroom Dumplings
2. Spiced Beef Soup Vietnamese Style
3. Beef Broth

No related posts.

Squid Ink Risotto
(recipe adapted from Gourmet magazine)

serves 2

Ingredients

2 cups fish stock or bone broth
30 ml  olive oil + butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
300 gm small squids, cleaned, tentacles separated and bodies cut into rings
¼ cup (firmly packed) thinly sliced greens (silverbeet, spinach or any asian greens)
140 gm risotto rice, rinsed (Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano)
1  sachet (4 gm) squid ink

Method

1. Bring fish stock or bone broth to the boil in a saucepan over medium heat, then reduce heat to low and keep hot.
2. Heat olive oil/butter in a large heavy-based saucepan over low heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is soft and translucent.
3. Add squid and cook until opaque (3-4 minutes).
4. Add greens, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir continuously until soft.
5. Add rice and squid ink, cook over medium heat, then add 1 cup of hot stock at a time and cook, stirring until stock is absorbed, then continue adding more stock as stock is absorbed.
6. Cook until al dente (about 20-25 minutes), adding more water if risotto is too dry.
7. Season to taste and serve immediately.

Related posts:

1. Spiced Beef Soup Vietnamese Style
2. Spiced Carrot Soup
3. French Onion Soup (without the tears)

With leftover cooked rice  in the fridge, I made these lovely crackers using the recipe from the book Wild Fermentation.

Sourdough Rice Crackers

Ingredients
1 cup leftover cooked rice
1/2 cup of sourdough starter
1/2 cup water
2 tbs melted coconut ghee
2 tbs sesame oil
1 cup spelt flour
1 tbs sea salt
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup brown rice flour
3 tbs black sesame seeds

Method

1. In a large bowl, mix the rice, sourdough starter, water, ghee, sesame oil and spelt flour.  Stir into a thick batter and leave to ferment for 8 to 12 hours.
2. Once it is good and bubbly, add the salt, garlic, and rice flour.  Knead into a dough, adding a little more flour if the dough seems sticky.  Leave to ferment for a further 8 to 12 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 160 C.
4. On a floured surface, roll out balls of dough one at a time, getting each as thin as you can roll it.
5. Cut the rolled-out dough into individual crackers and place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet.
6. Prick crackers with a fork, brush with oil, sprinkle sesame seed on the surface and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until dry and crispy.

Related posts:

1. Dehydrated Veggie Crackers – Crispy and Crunchy!
2. Sourdough Pasta (Pel’meni Dough)
3. Sourdough Chocolate Cake

Sardines are highly nutritious – rich in omega 3 fatty acids and a good source of vitamin D, calcium, B12 and protein.   I love fresh sardines and buy them whenever I spot them at Spanner Crab Noosa.  They are delicious simply pan fried or grilled. I have also used them to make fermented fish and in pate.  But for today I will leave with you this recipe.

Sardines with Kamut Pasta

(Serves 2)

Ingredients

• 1 tbs butter or  bacon fat
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
• 200 sardine fillets cut into 2cm pieces
• 30 gm  crispy macadamia nuts
• 140 gm  kamut spaghetti (or homemade sourdough pasta)
• flat leaf parsley, chopped
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• lemon juice
• shavings of Parmesan cheese
• extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Cook pasta and drain.
2. While the pasta is cooking, heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the chilli and garlic.
3. Add sardines and lemon zest and fry until cook through, about 2 minutes.
4. Stir in the macadamia nuts.
5. Mix the sardines through the pasta,  add a squeeze of lemon juice, some chopped fresh parsley and a drizzle of olive oil.  Season with some sea salt and pepper and top with some Parmesan cheese.

Related posts:

1. Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni
2. Green Papaya Salad
3. Sourdough Pasta (Pel’meni Dough)

Max and I love Asian dumplings.  They are easy to make and the variations are endless.  I did one with duck and mushrooms recently.  Here is the recipe:

Duck & Mushroom Dumplings

Ingredients

For the filling:

• 100 gm mushrooms (shiitake, oyster or swiss brown…), chopped
• 300 gm minced duck
• 100 gm minced fatty pork
• 1 tbs green onions (scallion), finely chopped
• 1 tbs coriander, chopped
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 1 tbs fish sauce
• 1 tsp vinegar (rice or kombucha)
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• freshly ground pepper
• 1 egg, beaten
• Gow Gee wrappers or homemade wrapper (pel’meni recipe)

For the dipping sauce:

Mix together in a small bowl:

• 1 tbs finely shredded ginger
• 2 tbs vinegar (rice or balsamic)
• 1/2 tbs fish sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp hot chilli sauce

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the minced duck, pork, scallion, coriander, ginger, chopped mushrooms, fish sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, pepper and egg.  With clean hands, mix together ingredients until well combined.
2. Place 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper.  Dab lightly the outside edge of the wrapper with a little water.  Fold wrapper in half and press together.  Seal tightly, then pinch and pleat.
3. Arrange dumplings in a lightly oiled plate and steam until cook (about 15 to 20 minutes).  Alternatively, the dumplings can be fried.
4. Serve the dumplings hot with the dipping sauce.

Note:  Be creative and try different fillings -  use minced chicken, prawn, pork,  beef, add water chestnut, bamboo, chinese cabbage, chives…   I am fermenting a new batch of kim-chi and once they are ready, I will be making pork and kim-chi dumplings.

Related posts:

1. Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Stew
2. Grilled Fish with Carrot, Yacon & Seaweed Salad
3. Chicken Rice – Singapore Style

A very versatile sauce made from ripe, full flavoured tomatoes.  Use it as base  for sauce,  stew or soup.

Roast Tomato Sauce
(recipe source: The River Cottage Cookbook)

Ingredients

• 1 kg ripe organic tomatoes (like those pictured above)
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbs live oil
• sea salt & ground black pepper

Method

1. Cut tomatoes in halves and arrange in a single layer in an oven-proof dish.
2. Mix garlic with olive oil and drizzle it evenly over the tomatoes.
3. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
4. Roast in a preheated oven at 180C for about 45 minutes, until tomatoes are soft, pulpy and slightly charred.
5. Rub through a sieve, discarding the skins and seeds.
6. The sauce is ready for use.

Use some of the sauce to make a Roast Tomato Soup.

Roast Tomato Soup

Put an equal amount of the roast tomato sauce and homemade stock in a blender.   To thicken the soup, add a steamed sweet potato.  Blend until smooth,  reheat, add herbs/spices (if you wish), and serve with a swirl creme fraiche and some sourdough croutons.

Related posts:

1. Lacto Fermented Tomato Sauce
2. French Onion Soup (without the tears)
3. Slow Roasted Lamb with Pomegranate Glaze

These were made with left over pel’meni dough and pork cheek rillettes.  Quick and easy to put together.   After cooking the ravioli in salted boiling water, they were lightly pan fried in butter & garlic chives.

Related posts:

1. Rillettes – Simple, Rustic and Fattilicious!
2. Duck & Mushroom Dumplings
3. Pomelo Salad with Pork Cracklings

Warning:  Don’t read this on an empty stomach,  may make you very hungry!

Rillettes are traditional French delicacy which were originally made with pork.  However, you can make rillettes from duck, goose,  chicken, rabbit and even fish.  I made mine mostly with pork and duck.  Made with good quality meat and fats, they are delicious and flavoursome.  A great way to enjoy this meaty fattilicious spread is to eat on toasty baguette.   Whichever meat you use,  the method is basically the same, sloooow and gentle cooking

For change in style and cut of pork, I used pork cheeks and gave the rillettes a Spanish twist. The pork cheeks were acquired from Fernleigh Organic farm during a recent trip to Daylesford, Victoria.  The pork from their farm comes from the Wessex Saddleback pigs (a rare breed).  Pork cheeks are not easy to find.  I was glad that Fiona Chambers suggested I buy pork cheeks in place of pork belly which was not available on the day I was there.  I had the opportunity to learn about another cut of pork which I have not tried before although I did cook 1/2 a pig’s head, cheek and all and made a head cheese once.  Well that is another story which I may share with you later.

I have since learnt that in Italy this cut of pork is used to make Guanciale.

Spanish-Style Pork Rillettes (Manteca Colorada)
(Idea for this recipe came from one of my favourite book: “Fat – An appreciation of the misunderstood ingredient,  with recipes”).

Ingredients

• 1 kg pork cheeks (or pork belly)
• 125 ml dry sherry
• 4 cloves garlic, peel and halve
• 2 fresh bay leaves
• 4 sprigs thyme
• 1 tbs coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp fennel seeds crushed
• 1 tsp hot pimenton (smoked paprika)
• 1 tsp mild paprika
• freshly ground black pepper and fine sea salt

Method

1. Place the pork cheeks in a large bowl and add the sherry, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, coarse salt, and fennel seeds.
2. Sprinkle both types of paprika over the pork and season generously with pepper.
3. Stir to combine and marinate the pork for 6 to 8 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
4. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 120 C.
5. Transfer the pork with all the seasonings and the sherry to a heavy pan or Dutch oven, cover, and cook in the oven, stirring occasionally, until the pork is so tender that it falls apart, about 4 hours.
6. Remove the pork from the oven and tip the pork with all the fat, spices and juices into a large fine-mesh sieve suspended over a bowl.
7. Empty the contents of the sieve onto a large platter and pour the liquid from the bowl into a measuring cup.   Set aside the liquid and the let the meat mixture cool slightly.
8. Remove the skin and set aside.  Using your fingers, pull the meat and fat apart, discarding the thyme sprigs and bay leaves as you go.  Discard any pieces of membrane or sinew that don’t shred.
9. Return the shredded mixture to the bowl.
10. The cooking liquid will have separated into fat and juices.  Carefully pour off the fat and set aside.
11. Add about 125 ml of the juices to the shredded mixture so that it is very moist.  Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding salt and pepper if necessary.
12. Pack the mixture into ceramic dishes or a terrine, leaving a 6 mm gap at the top of each dish.
13. Place the dishes in the refrigerator for a few minutes to firm up.
14. Once surface is firm, seal the dishes with a layer of liquid fat and refrigerate the rillettes for 2 to 3 days to allow the flavour to meld.
15. Sealed with fat, the rillettes will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.
16. Once seal is broken, eat the rillettes within a week.

Note:  Crisp the skin in a hot oven and used on salad or as a pork crackling snack

Related posts:

1. Rillettes Ravioli
2. Slow Roasted Lamb with Pomegranate Glaze
3. Pomelo Salad with Pork Cracklings

It was cold and windy on Sunday but that did not deter me from visiting our local Winter market at Mapleton. Although there were not many produce stalls,  I did find some local & organically grown Chinese Cabbage (Wong Baak) and Daikon for making Kim-chee, Yacon and Black Radishes, some of which I used to create a Japanese style salad to go with the grilled salmon.

Recipe for Grilled Fish with Orange Honey Glaze

(serves 4)

Ingredients

4 pieces of salmon (or barramundi or snapper) with skin on

For the glaze

2 tbs organic miso hoisin sauce (Spiral Brand)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp finely grated lacto-fermented ginger
1 tsp of the fermented ginger juice
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbs raw honey
juice of 1/2 orange
1 tsp of orange zest

Method

1. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the glaze.
2. Add fish and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
3. Remove fish and reserve the marinade.
4. Place fish on grill and cook  for about 5 minutes per side, basting with reserved marinade.
5. Place remaining marinade in a saucepan, bring to a boil.
6. Spoon glaze over fish and serve.

Recipe for Carrot Yacon & Seaweed Salad

Ingredients

For the Dressing

1 tsp tamari
½ teaspoon wasabi powder
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar (kombucha or apple cider vinegar)
1 tbsp orange juice
1 tbsp raw honey
½ teaspoon orange zest
1 tsp grated ginger
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Combine ingredients in a bowl and stir until mixed. Set aside.

For the Salad

1 cup  carrot, julienned or shredded
1 cup yacon, julienned or shredded
1/2 cup black radish, julienned or shredded
1/4 cup of lacto fermented ginger
1/4 cup wakame (seaweed), soaked in some warm water to rehydrate
toasted sesame seeds

Method

1. Place all the ingredients for the dressings in a screw top jar and shake until well combine.
2. In a large bowl, place all the salad ingredients (except sesame seeds) and mix to combine.
3. Spoon the dressing over the salad and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Note:  I buy most of my fish and other seafood from Spanner Crab Noosa. (They have a shop in Noosaville and are at the Noosa Farmers Market every Sunday).  The salmon used in this recipe comes from Yarra Valley Salmon.

Related posts:

1. Pomelo Salad with Pork Cracklings
2. Steamed Fish Curry Thai Style
3. Green Papaya Salad