Ottolenghi Inspired Chinese WELSH Lamb

What, lamb in China? Really? How do we not know about this already …. Well perhaps because our Cantonese upbringing did not include the thrills and spills, treats and meats of Northern China where there is a large Muslim community who retained some Middle Eastern culinary influences (I’m alluding to the heavenly marriage of cumin with lamb).  Whilst I have taken the ingredients from Yotam, I have to confess, I was not enamoured by his preparation (such faddles as dicing a shoulder of lamb and removing all fat and wobbly bits…. – he clearly has ‘staff’ and besides, there would be nothing left! Has he seen the marbling of our mountain / definitely non-texel sheep?) – this all sounded very time consuming and his instruction to ‘stir fry’ I knew would simply end in chewy disappointment.  I was having none of it.  So, herewith I have Welshified the recipe from our hero, the Oracle our YO, it to an easy no fuss version of a slow roast with huge benefits (primarily in the form of lashings of eye rolling melt in the mouth flavour).  Be assured, you will not be disappointed with this one.  Whilst it may take many hours to slow cook, it can be prepared in a jiffy. 

Prep 5 min THE NIGHT BEFORE
Marinate overnight
Cook 5 hours early in the day so it has time to cool down for the evening
Serves 15 at a curry night with 2 other main courses

1.4kg lamb shoulder boned and rolled, whole (frozen is fine as it will have the night to thaw in its marinating fun)

The night before, place the lamb in a cast iron pan (Le Creuset/roasting pan with foil over the top). 

Marinate in:
4 tsp cornflour
2 tbsp ground cumin
90ml dark soy sauce/tamari
60ml cooking wine/or Shaoxing rice wine if you have it
2 tbsp caster sugar

Mix it all in a bowl and smear generously all over the lamb, put the lid on and say nitey nite.

The next day, cook at 200C for 30 mins, then turn down to 150C basting with the tasty spices every hour or so.  Meanwhile…

4 aubergines, cut into 6cm x 2cm pieces, covered in

1 tbsp ground cumin and

1 tsp Salt

Sautéed in

60ml vegetable oil, for 5 minutes until beginning to brown stirring occasionally.  Add:

4cm piece fresh ginger, grated

2 tbsp soya sauce,

Fry for 3 more minutes stirring all the time until the aubergine is dark golden brown, leave to one side.  At this time it is a good idea to separate some aubergine for the ‘vegan option’ if needed - see NB below.

Meanwhile,

4 tbsp cumin seeds (optional), dry fry until crisp, don’t burn them like I did – 30 seconds max until fragrant, tip into a saucer.

When the lamb is cooked use 2 forks to break up the extremely tender meat, lifting out any slices of fat and wobble.  Leave the meat shreds in the liquid marinade until it is reabsorbed.  When it is cool the excess oil will float to the top.  Use kitchen towel to absorb this, or cool it down in the fridge and pick off the hard fat. 

When read to serve, over a high heat, quickly toss the lamb, aubergines and cumin seeds with:

4 tbsp soya sauce

6 mild red chillies, finely sliced on an angle (deseeded, if you prefer less heat)
6 spring onions, finely sliced on an angle – a leek would do
30g coriander, (ie a large bunch) stalks only (save the leaves to serve)

Remove from the heat and sprinkle over the

Coriander leaves
3 tsp rice-wine vinegar if you have it/ or balsamic vinegar.

Serve straight away.

NB: vegans and vegetarians? Do the final stir fry in 2 pans, and only put meat in one and Carlin peas (UK black peas) in the other.  The aubergine makes a satisfying meat alternative.

Serving suggestions:

This worked well for a dinner party for 10 guests (plus 4 extra family members and a few left overs for the next day).  Large platters of salads provided a colourful display of self-serve starters.  These were followed by the 2 curries and this lamb served with rice.  Apple cake made a fine desert.  It is easier to pre-plate the main course with a 2-man production line.

Salads:

Beetroot, goats cheese and toasted walnuts with mustard dressing (Dijon mustard, honey, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and S&P).

Tricolore, tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, olive oil S&P.

Leaves, Figs, Parma ham, honey dressing (3tbsp olive oil and 2tbsp honey, S&P)

Main:

Chinese Welsh Lamb (recipe above)

Patar Paneer

Vegetable Curry with broccoli and cauliflower (large quarters of white onion, ‘mild curry powder’, coconut milk, broccoli, chunky sweet potatoes, cauliflower, chick peas)

Boiled Rice

Desert

Simply The BEST Apple Cake (in the world) – with its crunchy cinnamon crumb and tart Bramley apples from the farm, it went down well.

 

Thanks be to YO, The Oracle

Simply The BEST Apple Cake (in the world)

I have combined a few recipes here, including Kristy's wonderful one with sour cream (without the sour cream as I never seem to be able to find it, and I couldn't deal with the cups and non British references); and a Ukranian recipe.  So this is the ultimate, best of the best, simple cake recipe and works easily and is quick to prepare and cooks well (no raw cake mixture).  It is a chunky apple cake with a delicious cinnamon crumble on the top, it reminds me of our late great friend Patty who used to make blueberry muffins with a similar topping.  Oh Patty if only I could pick your brains about those muffins.  I think this might just work with blueberries too ......

Turn the oven onto 170C, makes 8 portions 

 

For the Cake

8oz margarine (flora, pure etc) NB this must not be butter

5oz caster sugar

Beat until pale and fluffy with had mixer or Kitchen Aid.

Add

4 eggs

8oz SR flour

1tsp bicarbonate of soda (not baking powder)

A few drops of vanilla extract

Beat until you have a smooth batter.

2 large Bramley apples peeled and chopped into large chunks approx 1-1.5cm, stir into the cake mixture

Tip the mixture into a small rectangular baking tray lined with baking parchment (non stick), or grease a baking dish (I use a small Ikea roasting tin – 25x17.5cm)

 

For the Crumble

By hand rub the fat into the dry ingredients:

1.5oz salted butter (or unsalted butter and a pinch of salt) NB this must not be margarine

2oz flour

3oz demerara sugar (important for that gritty texture and crunch)

2 heaped tsp cinnamon

When it resembles breadcrumbs add:

60g pecan nuts broken up into small pieces

 

Sprinkle the crumble onto the top of the apple cake batter and bake for 45-60 minutes or until it is firm and a spike comes out clean.  Cool it in the dish.  Cut up into squares

 

Pizza Soup

To take to Poppit Sands  - serve just after a New Year's Day Swim

After your gorgeous kids have made you Pizzas for New Years Eve, use up the surplus toppings and make ‘pizza soup’.  Not nearly as alarming as it sounds.

 

Ingredients: 

1 red onion sliced

Olive oil / or chili oil

2 sliced mushrooms

2 tbsp medium curry powder

1 sliced mild chili (optional) or chili flakes

A cup or so of red lentils

1 can pizza topping sauce

1 pint or so of jelly wobble turkey stock or bone broth (omit for the vegan version)

1 can coconut milk

1 chicken stock cube

Salt and pepper

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

1 brown onion diced

4 sticks of celery finely chopped

Pinch of mixed herbs

4 small carrots finely chopped

2 blocks frozen spinach

 

Method: 

Fry red onion, chili oil (olive oil), mushrooms, for a few minutes.

Add curry powder, and fresh chili, fry off.

Add red lentils, fry off.

Add pizza topping sauce, stock, coconut milk, chicken stock cube, salt, pepper, mixed herbs, chopped garlic, brown onion, celery, carrot, frozen spinach.  Simmer gently for half an hour until the veggies are tender and the lentils are soft and mushy.  Add water if you think it is too thick.

Whizz up so fussy people don’t know what’s in it.  Re-heat and put in warmed thermos flasks wrapped in blankets.  Take it to the beach with a cheeky flask of mulled wine and some Christmas cake.   Great after a freezing dip in the sea - but probably great without the outing....

Seville Orange Marmalade

 The rule is, as soon as you have put the Christmas decorations away, you go in search of Seville Oranges!  They are in the shops from the second week of January to the end of January and then they are not.  So if you miss them, you miss them for a whole year, and it is very hard, almost impossible (unless you have a very savvy WI lady or granny nearby) to find homemade Seville orange marmalade.  It is wonderful almost addictive – and even mum, lifts her sugar ban in honour of proper marmalade.   If the thought of making marmalade is too daunting in January, remember they freeze very well, and you then have the choice to make it throughout the year (the advantage here is that the chopping is a lot easier as the peel is softened by freezing).  You need about 9 oranges for a 1.5kg batch (roughly) which is the right size for a jam pan.  This recipe has been tweaked over the years.  It started off with Gary Rhodes’, but, sorry Gary, yours is just too sweet - and has ended up nearly the same as Grampie’s recipe.  Look, if you like sweet marmalade, you just add more sugar (I’ll put it in for you softies below), and the more sugar you add, the more pots you make for the same effort (so, that’s why it’s done), and if you have wimpy kids who are scared of the peel, you just put the peel in the bag, with the pips – it saves an awful lot of chopping too!  I use organic oranges – as the peel is boiled to death and you eat the ‘stock’, I think this is really important (and I have read that they put colouring on non-organic Seville oranges which is why the washing is particularly important).  Download a good podcast to listen to, or rope in the family, as this is a fine example of ‘slow food’ and make sure the knives are super sharp.

Equipment:

A good large pan with a thick bottom – a jam pan is ideal.  Mine is 27cm across and 15 cm deep

A muslin cloth (preferably) or clean tea towel (boil it first if you are worried about its history or colourfastness)

A jam funnel – a wider spout than a ‘funnel funnel’ (for filling the jars, not essential, but saves wiping sticky jars) – I love my funnel and wouldn’t be without it

A jam thermometer – Not necessary, but if you happen to have one, dust it down and use it.  I don’t have one anymore, mine lost all its calibrations when I made soap with it once

Rubber gloves for testing setting and filling jars

4-6 Clean jars, put them in the dishwasher, or oven on 100C for 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

Seville Oranges, 1.5kg (approx. 9) 

Lemons, 3

Water, 3.6L

Sugar, 1.5kg (but some people use as much as 3kgs)

Wash and cut the oranges in half.  Squeeze the juice out and put it in your best bottomed pan or jam pan (if using frozen oranges miss out this stage).  Using a large metal spoon (or a knife) scrape out the innards of the orange, the pips and pith - and retain them in a pudding bowl lined with a muslin cloth.  How much of the pith you scrape out depends on your patience and time, but it is worth having as little left on the orange peel as possible. 

Cut the peel into ultra-thin shreds, again this is not crucial, but I find the extra time taken here makes the product better.  I would not recommend using a food processor, it makes the marmalade cloudy and bitty, however, it is all about taste, and Sue from the country market does it, and her marmalade is quite good. 

Put the peel shreds into the orange juice in the pan and add the water.  Squeeze the juice out of the lemons, and add to the pan.  Roughly chop the lemon rind and put it in the muslin bag with all the bits and bobs.  Tie up the bag very securely with string and put it into the jam pan with the peel, water and juice.  Tie the bag onto the handle of the pan to keep it from floating off.  Bring the pan to the boil and simmer until the peel has softened and the water has reduced by about a half.  It probably takes about an hour and a half.  Cool the pan and remove the muslin bag.  With clean hands squeeze as much as you can out into the marmalade, but don’t get hung up about every last drop, there will be plenty of pectin already released.  Discard the contents in the compost bin.

I sometimes carry on the next stage the following day.

Add the sugar and heat gently stirring occasionally until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Carefully try it.  If you want more sugar, add it at this stage.  Bring the pan to the boil and boil rapidly (I use my biggest ring, top left, on the highest setting), but you will have to assess and keep an eye open.  Put a saucer in the fridge to cool.  You will know it is nearly ready when the boiling changes.  The bubbles will become smaller, more fizzy, and will rise up the pan, if it is dangerously near the top, turn the heat off immediately, until it retreats a bit and continue heating and watching.  After about 15 minutes start testing for setting.  Put rubber gloves on, and place a small amount of boiling liquid onto the cold saucer in the fridge.  Leave it for 5 minutes to cool.  Poke it with your finger, if it starts to get a skin or jellify, you are nearly there.  Test every 5 minutes.  You don’t want it rock solid, you want a soft jelly to form.  If you think it is done, turn off the heat while you wait for your final test – you can always turn it back on and carry on if not ready, but you don’t want to risk burning it.  If you have a sugar thermometer, it will tell you when you have reached setting point.  But your nose, and your eyes will also help you.

Leave to cool for about 20 minutes.  If you are too eager to jar it up you risk burning yourself, and the peel will float to the top of the jars and you won’t win first prize at the county show.  Wipe off any scum from the surface – it is still edible, so keep it for breakfast.  Stir in the peel.  Put the funnel over the first jar.  Put on the rubber gloves, and use a jug to ladle the marmalade out of the pan, holding a saucer underneath to catch the drips.  Fill the jars and wipe around the top if there are sticky bits.  Put the lids on.  They should pop and suck in as they cool.

Look forward to breakfasts to come when marmalade is best served on crisp cooled whitish toast with thick unsalted butter with tea (following eggs).  For treats it is nice with blue cheese instead of butter.  I can’t like marmalade on bread, but Paddington did, and so might you.

Cranberry Sauce

It’s a Nigel Slater unadulterated original, not too sweet, amazing colour, takes minutes, so easy you wonder why you haven’t done this for years.  Definitely a Christmas tradition to continue.

250g Cranberries

100g Sugar

100g White wine (last night’s cava)

6 ultra-thin shreds of Satsuma skin

Boil up for a few minutes – about 10, don’t stir too much.  Put in Jar.  Keep in the fridge, serve warm - much much nicer than Ocean Spray, and a very lovely colour. 

TIP.  Keep a few berries back so you can put them on the top of the Christmas pudding as our holly NEVER has any berries on it, and real cranberries are much bigger and better (and safer) than poisonous holly berries anyway. 

Excellent with turkey bread sauce, stuffing and sprouts, (and in Brevilles with the aforementioned) but also amazing all year round with chicken, ham, duck and cheese……  

Mushroom Stroganoff

Great when you feel that you have over indulged in meat, but need a tasty comforting meal, which isn’t too heavy.  Serve with green petit pois and creamy mash, the ultimate comfort food after a walk on the cliffs.  Quick to prepare, a good way to use up a mushroom situation (which is why I have recorded it!).

Olive oil, a glug

Onions, chopped, half small one per person

Fry the onions until softened, about 5 mins.  Add:

Mushrooms, handful per person, I use chestnut, sliced

Garlic, half a clove per person

Stock cube, chicken (or veggie), in turkey stock (or water)

White wine, a glug (or flat rose cava)

Tomato Puree, half a tablespoon per person

Lemon, small squeeze of the end

Boil for about 5 minutes, add:

Salt and pepper

Paprika, preferably smoked, a sprinkle to taste, approx. half tsp

Worcester Sauce, slosh, but not if doing veggie

Cornflour, 1 tsp, mixed into some cold water, stir in to thicken

Boil for a minute or so, and take off the heat.  Stir in:

Crème Fraiche, half table spoon per person

Sprinkle with:

Parsley, fresh and chopped

29^th December 2013

Mulled Wine with Caramelized Chili and Spices

Mulled Wine with Caramelized Chili and Spices:

This is the Olly/Jamie version where the sugar is caramelized and the spices are ‘fried’ in the sugar before adding the liquid.  Allow an hour to mull over.  Everyone likes the sweetness of this, but if I was making it just for myself, I would put 4 of sugar instead of 6.

6 heaped desert spoons of light soft brown sugar

1 chili, whole fresh, cut down centre and in half, use seeds’n’all

6 all spice balls

2 cinnamon sticks, broken into 3

2 nutmeg, whole

20 cloves

Fresh root ginger, 1 inch, sliced

Zest and juice of 2 oranges (use potato peeler for thin layer of zest, no pith)

400ml water

1 bottle red wine

Put sugar in the pan and heat.  As it starts to melt WATCH IT doesn’t burn, and add all the spices and orange zest.  ‘Fry’ spices for 5 minutes, adjust heat to stop any burning, stir occasionally.   Carefully add the water.   This will splutter, so be careful and the chili may burn your eyes if they are too close!  The sugar will set rock hard, but then re-dissolve back into the water, heat slowly.  Add wine and orange juice.  Do not boil.  Mull for about an hour, strain before serving.  Makes about 1.2L, 10 small glasses, 120ml.