Chef makes a hearty stew

This week was very busy with 100+ bookings with Chefs, Catering Staff, Bar Staff and Kitchen Porters all working in Bristol and Bath.

After a crazy Friday afternoon I decided to put a stew in the oven and go to the pub for a few well deserved beers.

I decided on making a popular stew that we have made on a number of occasions in our household. The best advice on this recipe is to cook slowly over a low temp and the meat turns out lovely and tender.

Ingredients

Olive oil
A knob of butter
1 onion, peeled and chopped
A handful of fresh sage leaves
800g stewing steak or beef skirt, cut into 5cm/2 inch pieces
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Flour, to dust
2 parsnips, peeled and quartered
4 carrots, peeled and halved
1/2 a butternut squash, halved, deseeded and roughly diced
500g small potatoes
2 tablespoons tomato purée
1/2 a bottle of red wine
285ml beef or vegetable stock
Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
A handful of rosemary, leaves picked
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

• Preheat the oven to 160ºC/300ºF/gas 2.
• Put a little oil and your knob of butter into an appropriately sized pot or casserole pan.
• Add your onion and all the sage leaves and fry for 3 or 4 minutes.
• Toss the meat in a little seasoned flour, then add it to the pan with all the vegetables, the tomato purée, wine and stock, and gently stir together.
• Season generously with freshly ground black pepper and just a little salt.
• Bring to the boil, place a lid on top, then cook in the preheated oven until the meat is tender.
• Sometimes this takes 3 hours, sometimes 4 – it depends on what cut of meat you’re using and how fresh it is.
• The only way to test is to mash up a piece of meat and if it falls apart easily it’s ready. Once it’s cooked, you can turn the oven down to about 110°C/225°F/gas ¼ and just hold it there until you’re ready to eat.

• Mix the lemon zest, chopped rosemary and garlic together and sprinkle over the stew before eating. Just the smallest amount will make a world of difference – as soon as it hits the hot stew it will release an amazing fragrance.


Foot Note: After a few beers this was a nice way of filling the stomach. There was plenty made so we even managed to feed some friends.

Chef makes a curry

At Back-2-Front we have been catering for a number of Indian Weddings in Bristol, Bath, North Somerset and Cotswolds.

With waiting staff, catering staff and cooks supplied to each of the weddings I have decided that I would get authentic and cook another curry dish.

This week I made an Aloo Gobi (Potato and Cauliflower).

Ingredients

3 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/2 onion, finely chopped
200 g potatoes cut into cubes
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
4 ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 large cauliflower (about 1.25 kg), cut into florets
2 cm piece of ginger
1 teaspoon sugar

• Heat the oil in a karhai or a deep,heavy-based frying pan over low heat. Add the mustard seeds, cover the pan and wait for the seeds to pop.
• Add the onion and potato and fry until lightly browned.
• Add the turmeric, cumin, coriander and garam masala to the pan and fry for couple of seconds.
• Add the tomato and stir until the spices are well mixed.
• Add the cauliflower florets and stir until well mixed.
• Stir in the ginger, sugar and 125 ml water, increase the heat to medium and bring to the boil.
• Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt to taste.
• Uncover the pan and if the sauce is too runny, simmer it for another 1-2 minutes before serving.


Foot Note: This is a very quick and easy dish to make. I had it with boiled rice and naan bread. It tasted delicious; however it could do with a little bit of a chilli kick.

Its Pancake Day.. Need I say more??

So its that time of year again where all catering staff and chefs alike clear their cupboards out ready for lent.

It is an age old ritual to clear the kitchen stores of all eggs, flour, sugar and milk before we fast for 40 days and 40 nights.

I have contacted a couple of the Bristol and Bath Chefs I know to ask them for their favourite pancake recipe and filling. After talking to them both they were in agreement that the best pancake is the original lemon and sugar version. Here is the recipe below.

Ingredients

110g Plain flour, sifted
pinch of salt
2 eggs
200ml milk mixed with 75ml water
50g Butter

To serve

caster sugar
lemon juice
lemon wedges

• Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl with a sieve held high above the bowl so the flour gets an airing. Now make a well in the centre of the flour and break the eggs into it. Then begin whisking the eggs - any sort of whisk or even a fork will do - incorporating any bits of flour from around the edge of the bowl as you do so.

• Next gradually add small quantities of the milk and water mixture, still whisking (don't worry about any lumps as they will eventually disappear as you whisk). When all the liquid has been added, use a rubber spatula to scrape any elusive bits of flour from around the edge into the centre, then whisk once more until the batter is smooth, with the consistency of thin cream. Now melt the 50g/2oz of butter in a pan. Spoon 2 tbsp of it into the batter and whisk it in, then pour the rest into a bowl and use it to lubricate the pan, using a wodge of kitchen paper to smear it round before you make each pancake.

• Now get the pan really hot, then turn the heat down to medium and, to start with, do a test pancake to see if you're using the correct amount of batter. I find 2 tbsp is about right for an 18cm/7in pan. It's also helpful if you spoon the batter into a ladle so it can be poured into the hot pan in one go. As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip it around from side to side to get the base evenly coated with batter. It should take only half a minute or so to cook; you can lift the edge with a palette knife to see if it's tinged gold as it should be. Flip the pancake over with a pan slice or palette knife - the other side will need a few seconds only - then simply slide it out of the pan onto a plate.

• Stack the pancakes as you make them between sheets of greaseproof paper on a plate fitted over simmering water, to keep them warm while you make the rest.

• To serve, sprinkle each pancake with freshly squeezed lemon juice and caster sugar, fold in half, then in half again to form triangles, or else simply roll them up. Serve sprinkled with a little more sugar and lemon juice and extra sections of lemon.

Foot Note: Everyone loves pancakes.. Get out your pan and get cooking. This is probably one of the easiest recipes to follow and great fun for kids :o)

How do you toss yours?