Monday 7 August 2017

Friends of friends...


Seared prawn and octopus salad on tomatoe coulis

An occasion will present itself, once in a while, when you not only know a chef ( Question here: When does a cook become a 'chef'?) but said chef will invite you to his/her's AND, cook for you. Remember the saying: "The tailor's wife is the worst clad?", tis very true for cooks and chefs too - an abiding memory of mine will be seeing the Japanese chef of an exquisite sushi meal, many years ago, in a 5 star, eating a Burger. lol

Such an occassion presented itself, a few weeks ago. An American friend knew this guy and asked if I would like to accompany her. So I, of course (duh!), said YES! Turns out, he worked as a sous-chef to Gordon Ramsey himself.


And between each freshly prepared course, regaled us with his stories from here, there and everywhere. We started with a delicious tomatoe and burrata salad (above). The vinaigrette was uplifted by the mix of fresh herbs: parsley, mint, basil and coriander.


Next came some bite sized morsels of fresh tuna on purple Peruvian potatoes, with a fresh sprinkling of herbs and some de-seeded chilli, for that extra bite. Along with this came stories of how our chef got started in the business.


It being the hot season, we had some more light and fresh tuna, this time quick seared and on a bed of squid, salmon and yogurt. Very fresh and melty.


And then the food became more serious and the type after which you lick your fingers ( and even the plate, provided no one is looking): King prawns cooked in the most delicious broth, I peeled, ate and then sucked head while my American pal pretended to, coz she had never done that before - lol. There are many places where meat and fish are sold in such a sanitized way that the end product doesn't look like it ever had bones and skin, let alone head and feet - Spain is most definitely NOT one such country. Just this dish, on its own, with some crunchy bread and a glass of white wine would send anyone on a straight trip to heaven, no layovers presaged. Mmmmmmm.


And last, but not the least, New Zealand lamb chops pan fried with confit endive and a sprinkling of goat's cheese.

'Twas all heavenly......Hurray for friends of friends who are chefs! Hurray for chefs! Hurray for food!








 

Thursday 8 June 2017

The Queenly Quinoa

Homemade quinoa and roasted veg
I don't know why I haven't mentioned quinoa considering how much of the stuff I hog! I discovered it a few years ago and man, oh man! Tis an ancient South American grain and so far, I have seen the red and white-ish varieties. And, not only does it taste nutty and yummy, it is also packed with nutrition and protein. And sooooooo easy to cook! Firstly though, make sure you WASH the damn thing- not easy as the grains are small but hey, use a sieve. And the actual cooking is easy peasy.

How to cook yer basic quinoa:
The ratio is 1 cup of uncooked quinoa to 2 cups of water/broth/miso. Bring quinoa and liquid to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
Homemade quinoa stir-fried with seitan
Once you have mastered this, quinoa will be the queen of your kitchen. You can add the cooked grain to a salad, use it instead of rice/couscus/pasta/potatoes ( obviously it won't substitute a creamy, buttery mash), heck, even use it to thicken soups, as they do in S America. Yummilicious! 

This grain is also a sporty person's dream - it is one of the few grains which contains all nine of the essential amino acids ( Of the 22 we need, 9 are not manufactured by our body and ergo called EAA). Most grains are low in lysine, therefore they are considered incomplete proteins. But, quinoa actually contains lysine, as well as all eight of the other amino acids, making it a complete protein, similar to animal proteins. How cool is that?

So folks, be brave and add this delicious grain to your table.

Thursday 27 April 2017

My O is for an Omelette....

Blood sausage & artichoke O, Restaurant Cañete, BCN
My body builder friends will call this their simple meal protein though heaven forbid they use the yolk. Such a shame to throw that rich yolk away though I get the cholesterol fest of 10-16 eggs with yolk included, eaten at one sitting. Be that as it may, us normal folk can enjoy a 2-egg omelette in all its glory from time to time. And oh my!

An egg is such an easy, fast and nutritious meal. Add almost any ingredient to it and you can elevate your already wonderful omelette to the title of Orgasmic Omelette to Die For. Check out my piece of heaven to your right - add a blood sausage and some artichokes and your soul will dance in delight. I MEAN, WILL YOU LOOK AT THAT? SLURP.......

Tortilla, Xampanyet, BCN
Then you have the slightly more time consuming version of an omelette, the Spanish Omelette or the Tortilla (NOT to be confused with the round, Mexican flatbreads). Whatever anyone might tell you, and believe me, they are lying through their eye-teeth, to have a truly orgasmic experience, you need to add tons of olive oil when you make this. I have tried making a healthier version with boiled potatoes/par-boiled ones/less oil and nope- you never get that rich, mouth melting sensation until you have used up at least half your bottle of olive oil. Sigh. Oh and I have seen some recipes online with butter (BUTTER! -Outrage!) and or milk and ignore those. Here is a decent one.


And then you have the Over The Top omelette which is your basic tortilla with- hang on.....Boloñese sauce (hysterical giggle), which I had to try in a random bar in Santander, a while ago. Was quite good, surprisingly enough!

Tuesday 25 April 2017

The Three Truffled Tasties

Truffled fried eggs and taters
The season for fresh truffles is roughly autumn to December, which is when I look forward to eating this natural wonder, lightly shaved on here and there or crumbled or grated, as in the delightful preparation above which is: sauté some potatoes in a pan, break a couple of eggs on top and just when the eggs are done, add salt, switch off the flame, grate some truffle and sprinkle some parsley. Serve instantly!

For those who don't know, a truffle is basically an underground fungus - which sounds as gross as curdled and rotten milk ie cheese but in reality is a delight to eat ( as cheese can be). Edible truffles are held in high esteem in many European and middle eastern countries and figure highly in 'haute cuisine' due to their special but pungent taste. 

To the left is another way to eat truffle- a cholesterol inducing but oh so wonderful bite-ful of egg yolks injected with truffle and then coated in tempura and fast fried. Accompanied by straw potatoes, this amazing dish is served in a restaurant nearby. Put a yolk in your mouth, bite in and have an orgasm as the runny yolk laced with truffle oozes onto your palate. Heaven.

A lot of places do something simpler, which is to make pasta and simply shave some truffle on top. A good dish becomes an amazing dish with this simple step, just like adding accessories can change you from 'nice' to 'wow'. 


And lastly, why not, pay out for some divine mortadella infused with truffle. Simply amazing. Accompany with your favourite wine and voilá, you have a chic starter.