Stew & Dumplings
I’m feeling a bit guilty this week. A friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, is good friends with a guy over Wilton way who has a mate who has a contract to cull deer locally. He shoots about 100 annually and from time to time, the crown jewels come in my direction, namely the heart and liver, normally reserved for the Gilly. The liver is indescribably delicious, almost purply black in colour, sliced, seasoned and seared in a pan, then turned over and finished with a splash of balsamic vinegar. I shared it with my chef yesterday, we had it with sauteed spinach and a duck egg. Life rarely, if ever, gets any better. It’s my last meal request should I ever be presented to the hang man.
The reason I’m feeling guilty, is because none of it is heading in your direction, although I am working on it. I know a lot of you like liver, but how do you feel about heart? To be honest, before I bought Fergus Henderson’s, St John cook book, I don’t think I would ever have ordered it in a restaurant. But since I’ve been inspired to give it a go, I’ve found the heart, once prepared, looks way more attractive than the pulsating organ one imagines beating in our and every other living creatures breast, well almost all. Then when marinated in sugar, vinegar, olive oil, seasoning and fresh mint, cooked to perfection, on a griddle, like a steak, sliced thinly and combined with gem lettuce, peas, charred spring onion and capers is another meal fit for kings.
If you want to try the venison liver or the heart, give Manor Farm Butchers a call, they told me they could probably get hold of either with a couple of days’ notice.
Apparently there hasn’t been this much wild deer in the country for a thousand years, there are upwards of 2 million of them wreaking havoc across the land, so this week we’re asking you to, eat in to help out, by ordering in some venison stew with herby dumplings. I know the last time we did dumplings as a take away they were a bit rubbish, but we’ve cracked it this time round, especially with our ‘finish at home’ technique which customers are seeming to enjoy.
We’ve paired this with lovely, lovely saffron, roast garlic mash, just made to sit with stew and mop up all the juice. Plus shredded savoy cabbage sauteed in olive oil with sliced garlic and caraway seeds and a splash of water.
Fish & shellfish stew with pernod, coriander & lemon is back on the menu, any excuse to revisit the gurnard, this time with scallops, cod cheeks, coley, mussels and a splash of Pernod. The stew is cooked, all you have to do is bring it back to the boil, then throw in the fresh fish and simmer for 3-4 minutes before demolishing with some crusty bread.
Here’s a little ‘alternative’ parable which has always amused. ‘Sell a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, ruin a perfectly good business opportunity’
So for the vegetarian dish this week, I’m giving you a recipe for one of my favourite concoctions which you can knocked up in minutes. We’re also offering for sale, the secret ingredient which makes it so delicious, the jars of Brindisa beans, imported from Spain.
I’m also cooking it as a take away for you to re-heat at home, whichever you prefer. It’s vegan, ergo vegetarian but it’s also a perfect accompaniment to a piece of grilled fish for the pescatarians or grilled meat for the carnivores. It’s definitely a great recipe to have in your arsenal, and the beans, I find a store cupboard essential.
Finally, the pudding is an amazing recipe from Jose Pizarro’s ‘Seasonal Spanish Food’. The ingredients speak for themselves, soft nougat, golden raisins, 30 year old PX sweet sherry, Burford Brown eggs and double cream. It leaves you gasping.
VENISON STEW, HERBY DUMPLINGS - £9.50
SAFFRON, ROAST GARLIC MASH - £3.00
SHREDDED SAVOY CABBAGE - £3.00
FISH & SHELLFISH STEW WITH PERNOD, CORIANDER & LEMON - £9.50
SAUTEED VEGETABLES, WHITE BEANS, HERBS - £6.50
TURRON MOUSSE - £5.00
BEANS
We have three different beans available, Alubias Blancas (white haricot), Judion (large butter beans), Garbanzos (chickpeas). This dish below is great with any of them. Personally I like to mix the Alubias and Judion together. The recipe below is vegan, but the beans work really well flavoured with a little chorizo or pancetta obviously, or anything else you fancy. My top tip, cook anything, add the beans, delicious, eat.
NAVARRICO HARICOT BEANS
The alubias haricot beans are grown in Ávila near Madrid. Then they’re taken to Navarre at the foot of the Pyrenees where El Navarrico cook them to perfection before packing the beans in jars.
£3.75 (720g)
NAVARRICO BUTTER BEANS
These white Judion large butter beans - also known as garrofo or garrofón - are called the "Rolls Royce" of beans, and have a silky smooth, unctuous creamy texture, with a mild mineral taste. Hailing from Navarra in Northern Spain, bordering the Basque country, they are a popular ingredient in pinxtos or eaten as part of a main meal. The beans are sorted by hand to select only the highest quality Judion beans.
£4.95 (700gm)
NAVARRICO CHICKPEAS
Navarrico garbanzos chickpeas, with their excellent texture and flavour, are a great, quick addition to Spanish stews, cold salads with tuna fish and tomatoes and can also be used to make an easy hummus.
£3.75 (700gm)