Saffron-braised quince with rhubarb
Quinces require just one thing – to be cooked gently and for a long time. If you have any quince left over, it goes well with roast chicken, pork or duck, and it's also lovely in salads or as the fruit base for a crumble. Serve this cold or warm, as it is, or with whipped cream, yoghurt or custard.
For 6–8 desserts
600ml water
300ml sweet dessert wine or apple or pear juice
4 allspice, crushed
1 generous pinch saffron
300g caster sugar
4 large quince
200g rhubarb, cut into 1cm lengths
1 Preheat oven to 170C/325F/gas mark 3. Place the water, wine or juice, allspice, saffron and 200g sugar in a pot. Bring to boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.
2 Meanwhile, peel the quince (wear gloves, they leave a sticky film on your hands), cut into halves, remove the cores and seeds (but keep the cores with the peel of 1 quince) and cut each half into 4 wedges. Place the quince in a bowl of cold water as you go – it will discolour, but this will disappear when cooking.
3 Wrap the reserved cores and the peel in a piece of muslin or cotton, tie it up loosely and add to the simmering liquid – it all adds texture and body to the quince.
4 Once the poaching liquor is ready, place the drained quince wedges in a ceramic or stainless steel roasting dish in a single layer. Carefully pour the unstrained liquid over until almost submerged, and top up with boiling water if necessary. Place a sheet of baking paper on top, then seal tightly with foil. Bake in the centre of the oven for 1½ hours. Remove from the oven, pour off 250ml of the cooking juices, and leave the quince to cool.
5 In a wide pan, cook the remaining 100g sugar over a moderate heat until it caramelises, shaking the pan as the sugar melts. Once it's turned a caramel colour, pour in 250ml of the quince cooking liquid and bring to a boil to dissolve the caramel. Add the rhubarb and poach it over a rapid simmer until the rhubarb has softened – but don't let it become mushy. Leave to cool.
6 Serve quince and rhubarb drizzled with their cookingliquors.
Every Day by Peter Gordon (Jacqui Small)
Harissa, chicken and potato stew
Harissa is a chilli paste or sauce often used in North African cooking. Made mainly from chillies, it also contains caraway, garlic and oil, or couscous.
Serves 4
For the harissa
25g dried red chillies
3 fresh red chillies
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground caraway seeds
1 tbsp hot smoked paprika
4 garlic cloves
4 tbsp olive oil
For the stew
1 whole chicken, jointed into 8 pieces, or 8 chicken thighs
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, thickly sliced
3 garlic cloves, thickly sliced
4 potatoes, cut into medium chunks
2 pickled lemons, thickly sliced
800ml chicken stock
4 tbsp fresh coriander leaves
250g Greek yoghurt
Salt and black pepper
1 For the harissa, put the dried chillies in a bowl and just cover with water, then soak for 20 minutes. Deseed and roughly chop the fresh chillies. Strain the soaked chillies (reserving the water), discard the stalks and roughly chop them. Put them in a food processor or pestle and mortar with the rest of the harissa ingredients. Blend until pureed, then add some of the reserved water and continue processing to form a smoothpaste.
2 Put the chicken in a bowl with half the harissa paste and stir well. Marinate for at least 4 hours, but preferablyovernight.
3 Heat a large flameproof casserole dish, add half the olive oil and half the chicken and fry on each side until browned. Remove, set aside and repeat with the rest of the chicken. Add the onions and garlic to the pan and cook until softened with a little colour. Add the rest of the harissa paste and cook for 1 minute, then return the chicken to the pan.
5 Add the potatoes, pickled lemons and chicken stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 1¼ hours over a very gentle heat.
6 Meanwhile, roughly chop the coriander. Season the stew with salt and pepper, then whisk in the yoghurt and stir in the coriander.
Slow Cooking by James Martin (Quadrille)
Beef and onion gratin
This one-pot wonder is a great supper dish.
Serves 4
600g braising steak, cut into 2cm cubes
Plain flour, for dusting
100ml vegetable oil
2 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
A few thyme sprigs
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 bottle of red wine
400ml chicken stock
Worcestershire sauce
A splash of balsamic vinegar
100g Japanese panko/ordinary breadcrumbs
100g freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Season the meat and toss it in plain flour.
2 Heat the oil in a pan until smoking hot. Add the meat and brown it on all sides. Be sure not to overcrowd the pan – the meat must brown, not stew. As the meat is browned, set it aside.
3 Add the onions, garlic and thyme to the empty pan, then the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the red wine and stir, scraping up all the juices and sticky bits from the bottom of the pan. Continue until reduced, then replace the meat and add the stock. Cover and simmer for about 1½hours.
4 Add a splash of Worcestershire sauce and balsamic vinegar. Lift the meat and onions out and set aside. Bring the liquid back to the boil, then simmer until sticky and shiny. Return the meat to the pan, stir and season.
5 Transfer everything to an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and grated parmesan. Place under a preheated grill or in an oven preheated to 180C/350F/gas mark 4, until the top is golden.
Angela's Kitchen: 200 Quick and Easy Recipes, by Angela Hartnett (Ebury Press)
Braised squid with chickpeas
This dish also works well in a pressure cooker – cook for half the time at a medium to low heat.
Serves 4-6
600g squid, cleaned and cut into 2½cm pieces
600g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
1 garlic bulb
1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
200ml fino sherry
50ml extra virgin olive oil
1 large brown onion, quartered
6 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded
3 bay leaves, roughly chopped
700ml water
200g fresh chorizo
1 tsp saffron threads
1 tbsp mint, finely chopped
1 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped
2 tsp whole black peppercorns
Crusty bread, to serve
1 Place the squid in a casserole dish. Add the drained chickpeas, garlic, paprika, sherry, olive oil, onion, tomatoes and bay leaves. Cover with 700ml cold water, seal and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce to low–medium, simmer for 45 minutes, then remove from the heat and cool for at least 5 minutes.
2 Remove and reserve the garlic bulb, then add the chorizo and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, or until the chickpeas are tender.
3 Meanwhile, toast the saffron threads in a dry frying pan over medium heat until they deepen in colour. Use a pestle and mortar to pound with mint, parsley and peppercorns to a coarse paste. Squeeze the reserved garlic cloves from their skins into the mortar. Add 1 tbsp of the cooking liquid and pound smooth.
4 Stir the mixture into the chickpeas and simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve hot, with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the juices.
Adapted from MoVida Rustica by Frank Camorra and Richard Cornish (Murdoch)
Slow-roasted duck with braised lettuce
Everybody loves crispy duck from a Chinese takeaway – this English version is a substantial main course.
Serves 4
1 free-range duck – about 2.5kg
1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns, ground
300ml chicken or duck stock
100g butter, cubed
10 sprigs of thyme
Thinly pared peel of 1 lemon
4 little gem lettuces, halved lengthways and rinsed
150g runny honey
75ml soy sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste
Sea salt flakes, to taste
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Pierce the duck all over with a small sharp knife; don't tear the skin. Season with the Szechuan pepper and salt to taste and place on a wire rack in a roasting tray.
2 Place the tray in the oven and roast for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, pour off and reserve the fat that has accumulated in the tray. Reduce heat to 110C/225F/gas mark ¼. When it reaches that temperature, return to the oven and roast the duck for 1¼ hours, basting every 20 minutes.
3 Mix the stock, butter, thyme and lemon peel together in a large saucepan over a high heat and bring to the boil. Place lettuce halves in the stock, cover the pan and simmer over a low heat for 8–10 minutes until they start to wilt. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
4 Take the duck out of the oven and pour off 90% of the fat. Turn the heat up to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
5 Pour the runny honey over the top of the duck, then return the tray to the oven and roast for a further 15–20 minutes, basting every 5 minutes with the pan juices and watching closely that the honey doesn't burn, until the duck is cooked through and tender. On the last baste, add the soy sauce. Remove the duck from the tray and leave to rest, uncovered, for 45 minutes, then serve.
Adapted from Tom Kerridge's Proper Pub Food, by Tom Kerridge (Absolute Press)
Slow-baked chocolate cake
If the notion of "too much chocolate" is meaningless to you, the next recipe should stand as a reality check.
Serves 12
Vegetable oil
480ml double cream
200g firmly packed light brown sugar
455g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
¼ tsp fine sea salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
8 large egg yolks
Sweetened and whipped double cream, to serve
Fresh fruit, to serve
1 Preheat the oven to 80C/175F/gas ¼. Coat the bottom and sides of a 20cm round springform cake tin with the vegetable oil, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
2 In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the cream and brown sugar until simmering. Turn the heat to low, add the chocolate, and stir until the chocolate is melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the salt, vanilla and almond extract until smooth. Mix in the egg yolks. Pour into the prepared pan.
3 Bake until the surface of the cake is solid but still feels soft in the centre; about 4 hours. Take out of the oven - it will look like chocolate pudding at this stage - and cool to room temperature on a rack. Refrigerate for several hours until firm. Cut around the sides of the cake and remove the sides of the pan from the bottom. Invert the cake on to a plate, and remove the bottom of the pan and the paper or foil liner. Invert then back on to a serving plate. Serve in thin slices with whipped cream and fruit, if desired.
Adapted from Cooking Slow by Andrew Schloss (Chronicle)
Braised mushroom ragu
Use a combination of large field mushrooms and portobellos and a few button mushrooms for this, but you could also add dried porcini to up the flavour intensity. Smoked tofu is used here, but it would be good with smoky bacon or pancetta, too. Serve with buttery mash, fresh pappardelle or dried rigatoni.
Serves 8-10 with pasta
100g smoked tofu, diced
2 medium brown onions, peeled and diced
2 carrots, finely diced
2 ribs celery, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled & sliced
1.5kg mixed mushrooms, half thickly sliced, halfdiced
1 small bunch thyme
400g tin chopped tomatoes
50g butter
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
750ml water
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Put an ovenproof casserole dish or frying pan over a medium high heat. Add a few tbsp olive oil and cook the tofu until golden brown all over. Remove the tofu and add the onion – with a little more oil if it looks dry.
2 Cover and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until soft and slightly golden. Add carrots, celery and garlic and cook for a few minutes. Add the mushrooms in batches, stirring until they cook down and make space for the rest.
3 When all the mushrooms are in, add the browned tofu, thyme, tomatoes, butter and 2 tbsp soy sauce. Top with 750ml water. Bring to a simmer on the stove top then pop in the oven. Cook, uncovered for 2 – 2½ hours, stirring every half an hour or so. It's ready when the mushrooms are nice and tender and the liquid has reduced to a lovely saucy consistency. Taste and season with a little extra soy, salt and pepper if needed.
Recipe supplied by Jules Clancy, thestonesoup.com
Ginger-braised ox cheeks with spiced red lentils and watercress yoghurt
This is curry crossed with French braising. Theginger in this recipe is so good with the beef, adding a real dark warmth to the dish.
Serves 4
300ml stout
4 star anise
2 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp ground ginger
2 large ox cheeks, about 400g each, cut in half andtrimmed
Rapeseed oil
2 onions, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, crushed
150g fresh root ginger, skin on and finely chopped
600ml beef stock
For the spiced red lentils
250g red lentils
4 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, grated
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder
1 cinnamon stick
800ml chicken stock
Freshly squeezed juice of 2 limes
Salt and pepper, to taste
For the watercress yoghurt
Leaves only from 1 bunch of watercress, finely chopped
200g plain yoghurt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1 A day before you plan to serve this, mix the stout, star anise, coriander and cumin seeds, chilli flakes and ground ginger together in a large bowl. Add the ox cheeks, cover and marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
2 The next day, preheat the oven to 140C/275F/gas mark 1. Remove the ox cheeks from the marinade and pat dry with a tea towel. Reserve the marinade. Heat 4 tbsp rapeseed oil in a flameproof casserole over a medium heat. Add the ox cheeks and sear on both sidescaramelised colour. Remove from the pan and set aside.
3 Add the onions to the fat in the pot, reduce to low and fry, stirring occasionally, for at least 5 minutes until softened, but not coloured. Add a little extra oil to the pot if necessary, then add the ginger and garlic and fry, stirring, for 4–5 minutes until they are browned, but not burnt.
4 Return the meat to the pot, pour in the stout marinade and the beef stock and bring to the boil. Cover the pot and place in the oven for about 3½ hours until the beef is very tender.
5 Remove the pot from the oven and leave on one side for at least 1 hour. You can serve the dish at this point, but it really doestaste even better if you leave the cheeks to cool in the covered pot for 24 hours. If you dodecide to wait a day, once the beef and liquid are completely cool, transfer the pot to the fridge.
6 Meanwhile, make the spiced red lentils. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 and place the lentils, in a roasting tray, in the oven. Toast for 10–15 minutes until lightly tinged. Remove from the oven and set aside.
7 Heat oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the onion and garlic and fry, stirring occasionally, for at least 5 minutes until softened, but not coloured. Stir in turmeric and chilli powder and stir for a further 1–2 minutes. Add the lentils and the cinnamon stick, then pour in the chicken stock and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer the lentils, uncovered and stirring occasionally to make sure they don'tcatch on the base of the pan , for about 40 minutes until they fall apart and you have purée in the pan. Add lime juice and season.
8 Just before serving, mix the watercress, yoghurt and black pepper together. Reheat the ox cheeks and their cooking juices. Serve the cheeks with a little of the cooking juices, the red lentil purée and a good dollop of the watercress yoghurt.
Adapted from Tom Kerridge's Proper Pub Food, by Tom Kerridge (Absolute Press)
Eight-hour lamb with feta
This is a fantastic recipe for a dinner party.
Serves 4-6
2 onions, quartered
2 bulbs garlic, cut in half through their equators
12 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half lengthways
2 bunches rosemary
1.5kg leg of lamb
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g crumbled feta or soft goat's cheese
Lemon wedges and strips of lemon zest, to serve
For the herb and lemon dressing
A large handful of fresh basil
A large handful of fresh Italian parsley
A large handful of fresh mint
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 tbsp salted capers, rinsed
2-3 anchovy fillets, drained
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
125ml olive oil, plus extra if needed
1 Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Place the onion and garlic in a roasting tin and scatter with the sprigs of the rosemary.
2 Pour a glug of olive oil into your hands. Rub them together, then rub all over the lamb. Using a small, sharp knife make 12 slits (about 2.5cm deep) in the meat. Push two garlic halves into each of the slits, then cut six rosemary sprigs in half, fold them over and stuff into the slits with the garlic.
3 Season the lamb generously with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little more olive oil. Cover the meat loosely with foil, lightly tucking it in around the inside of the tray. Roast in the oven for eight hours, checking the meat occasionally. If it starts to look a little dry, add a splash of water or white wine.
4 When the lamb is cooked, remove it from the oven and leave to rest for 20 minutes before shredding the meat – it should fall easily from the bone and have a wonderful, silky texture.
5 To make the dressing, place the herbs, mustard, vinegar, capers, anchovies, lemon juice and zest and olive oil in a food processor and process to a paste. Add in more olive oil if it looks too thick – you want it to be a bit runnier than pesto so it drizzles over the lamb.
6 Arrange the lamb and feta on a platter and drizzle with the dressing. Serve with lemon wedges and sprinkle with lemon zest.
Adapted from What Katie Ate by Katie Quinn Davies (Harper Collins)
Pulled pork with cinnamon and clove
This Goan pulled pork is a meal for times of celebration, and this version makes an interesting alternative to a traditional Sunday roast.
Serves 6–8
2kg rolled pork loin, shoulder or collar
50ml vegetable or rapeseed oil
Baby gem lettuce leaves, cleaned and well drained, to serve
3 tbsp fresh coriander, to garnish
For the masala marinade
1 tbsp broken pieces of cinnamon
15 cloves
2 large dried red chillies
5cm piece fresh root ginger, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves
2 small red onions, coarsely cut
1 longish fresh green chilli
½ heaped tsp turmeric
2½ tbsp tamarind paste
100ml palm vinegar (if not available use cider vinegar)
½ tbsp brown sugar
25ml sunflower or rapeseed oil
½ tbsp salt
1 To make the marinade, coarsely crush the cinnamon and cloves with a pestle and mortar. Gently toast this mixture in a dry frying pan over a low heat. Tear the red chillies into pieces and add to pan. Continue to dry-fry but do not burn. Set aside to cool.
2 Put the cooled spice mix in a blender. Add the remaining ingredients. Blend to a paste.
3 Rub the masala all over the pork, and place the meat snugly in a dish. Set aside any remaining masala. Cover and chill the meat for a few hours.
4 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Pour the oil into a roasting tin and heat on the hob over a medium heat. Scrape excess masala from the marinated pork, put the pork in the roasting tin and brown well on all sides. Transfer to the oven and cook for 30minutes.
5 Reduce the oven heat to minimum. You can nowpour a few tbsp of marinade over the pork. (Any leftover marinade can be set aside to use to make another dish.) Cover the pork tightly with tinfoil, ensuring it is well tucked in so that the pork essentially steams in the tin. Cook for a further 3–3½ hours. The meat will fall apart when cooked.
6 Remove the pork from the oven and shred using two forks. To serve, put some pork on top of a lettuce leaf and scatter with coriander.
The Incredible Spice Men by Cyrus Todiwala and Tony Singh (BBC Books)
