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Category Archives: Kitchen Tips
Fiddleheads and Pig Cheeks
Friday morning and up well before 06h00 to prepare and cook Pig’s Cheeks so we have special dinner when our boys and a school friend come home tonight – and we return from a very cold East Sussex. Follow the thread and … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Alliums, Kitchen Tips, Memories, Seasoning, Simple Food
Tagged Bracken, Braising, Cartouche, Cornichons, Cottage Pie, Fern Fronds, Fiddlehead Ferns, Katie Stewart RIP, Lancashire Hot Pot, Les Joues de Cochons, Les Joues de Porc, Maine, Nicotine, Oregano, Pickled Red Cabbage, Pickled Walnuts, Pickles, Pig Cheeks, Sauteing, Shepherd's Pie, Wild Sicilian Origano
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“Peppa’s, Yer Peppa’s, Pahnd-a-Bohl!”
In these bankster-induced tough, purse stretched times, that street markets are selling fresh fruit and vegetables at £1 a bowl is not just welcome, it’s a gift for the canny shopper. Listen out for the barrow boys’ throaty calls of “Pahnd-a-Bohl!”. The … Continue reading
Posted in Aubergine, Blue Collar Gastronomy, Eggplant, Kitchen Tips, melanzane, Real Italy, Richard Olney, Simple Food, Southern Italy, supermarkets, Techniques
Tagged 'Queer Gear', Ada Boni, Anti-Pasti, Bell Peppers, Best Bargain Food, Contorno, El Pais, Elizabeth David, EVOO, Exotics, Grilled Peppers, Hydroponics, Lewisham Market, London Street Markets, Marcella Hazan, Old Borough Market, Old Covent Garden, Old Retainers, Old Spitalfields Market, Peperonata, Red Peppers, Roasted Peppers, Valencia
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Out of my Head
I’ve said before, my grandmother in Wales was a great farmhouse cook – simple food made exquisitely well. She and her faithful Aga were a team remembered to this day as far from Cherrytree House as Sete and Valencia. People would often … Continue reading
Posted in Blue Collar Gastronomy, Chicken, Classic Rice Dishes, Fish, Ingredients, Kitchen Tips, Nonna's Cooking, Oysters and Shellfish, Po Valley, Risotto, Stocks and Stock Making, supermarkets
Tagged Auqerello Rice, Blue Collar Gastronomy, Inspired Cooking, M&S, Pomodori di Colline, Sugo, Vongole
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Falling in Love Again – with Tomato Puree
For years I never used tomato puree, preferring instead to reduce cans of chopped Italian tomatoes – or fresh, on those rare occasions you can find them sun ripe and in sufficient quantity. In these past few months tomato puree has re-entered … Continue reading
Stock Items and their Hue
I have always been a fiend for stocks. They are the root of so much of my cooking style. Chicken stock is a near weekly travail – it’s the stock that has the widest permutations by far. No need for … Continue reading
Posted in Alliums, Batterie, Blue Collar Gastronomy, Chicken, Fonds and Jus, Game, Great Chefs, Ingredients, Kitchen Tips, Onions, Stocks and Stock Making
Tagged Beef and Veal Stocks, Blue Collar Gastronomy, Chicken Stock, Escoffier, Minestrone, Repertoire de la Cuisine, Stock Making
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The Mothers of Vinegars
Vinegar is a kitchen essential. That’s no glib statement – it’s true and yet vinegar, I fear, has become a near forgotten ingredient for all too many home cooks. It’s nobody’s fault – it just happens that good everyday vinegar is a scarcity … Continue reading
Posted in Alliums, Chicken, Fish, French Markets, French supermarkets, Game, Ingredients, Kitchen Must-Have, Kitchen Tips, Oysters and Shellfish, Salad, Simple Food, supermarkets, Techniques
Tagged Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale, Ancient Rome, Artisan Vinegar Makers, Blue Collar Gastronomy, Cider Vinegar, Dijon, Genuine Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, L'Ancienne, Orleans, Rheims, Sherry Vinegar, Tarragon Vinegar, Vinaigrette, Wine Vinegar, www.gustiamo.com
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Shine at Le Cordon Bleu, then Break Free
Genuine Master Chefs, like all great artists, more often make their mark by breaking the rules and working on a new plane – think of Masters such as Bocuse, Pic, Guerard, Troisgros, This, Ducasse and others who’ve reigned over their craft these past 3-4 … Continue reading
Posted in Fish, Food Influencers, Food travel, Game, Great Chefs, Kitchen Tips, Risotto
Tagged Asian Fusion, Auguste Escoffier, China, French Gastronomy, Le Cordon Bleu, Nouvelle Cuisine
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