The problem with cooking in our house is that my live-in supermodel, with whom I have had a child, loves cooking equally as much as I do. No, I’m not Jamie Cullum, just trying to be cheesy and romantic.
Because we both love cooking so much, I am being forced to cheat for the first part of today’s post and let the Mrs do the cooking. I asked if we could have something from a book that was something other than a Rachel Allen or Nigella Lawson book, and was blessed with Delia Smith. Now, Delia doesn’t seem to be in fashion nowadays, and Delia’s Cheat book, an attempt to rival Jamie Oliver’s current crusade, was roundly ridiculed. However, Delia has been writing about food for over 40 years, and is the UK’s most-sold cookery writer having sold an impressive 21 million books. Wikipedia tells me that the cake on the cover of “Let it Bleed” was baked by Delia Smith. This means that Delia Smith is unarguably Rock and fucking Roll. Who would have thought?
We settled on “Pad Thai Noodles with Shrimps” from “How to Cook” and made a stop at an oriental supermarket in the centre of York, where we picked up a packet of dried shrimp, a big packet of shelled and de-skinned peanuts, and rice noodles. I noticed that they had small tins of coconut milk – perfect for us, as we only ever use half a tin anyway. Anyway, I digress. We were surprised later that day when the Mother-in-Law, a coeliac, dropped in and asked if she could stay the night, on the way home from Leeds to Birmingham. By happy coincidence the Pad Thai is gluten-free, and the Mrs got on with dinner. Unfortunately, the Mother-in-Law is not as rock and roll as Delia, and isn’t keen on hot food. The recommended 2 chillis were reduced to a half.
Despite this, all was good. At first, I couldn’t place the shrimp, but they gave a definite fishy taste. I did miss the chilli – it really would have leant some flavour, but it was still a really tasty, tangy dish. I was pleasantly surprised with Delia’s recipe, and have decided that later in the week I will test-drive the “Stir-Fried Chicken with Lime and Coconut” from the same book.
For my part, I managed to cook more than half the recipes in a book this week! Unfortunately, the book isn’t exactly a masterpiece like “How to Cook” – its more of a pamphlet, that I got with one of my Christmas presents – a Jamie Oliver Flavour Shaker! I decided that I wanted one after struggling with Fennel seeds in a pestle and mortar for too long, and it has lived up to my expectations. I made the “Rustic French rub” for Lamb steaks, and served them alongside the “Basil, balsamic vinegar and pinenut” dressed salad. The general instructions is to shake with the dry ingredients in first, and then add herbs or garlic etc, and then finally add any liquids such as oil or vinegar. I’m not great at cooking steaks, but rubbed the lamb with the French rub, and left while I made the dressing. I tried to fry on quite a high heat, and managed to get the steaks done not quite rare enough, with just a small line of pink right in the middle. Verdict – the rub was maybe a little too peppery, but was otherwise tasty, while the dressing was great. I will mainly be using the shaker to grind spices but look forward to trying out other recipes in it – any recommendations?
My final foodie Christmas present was a selection of spice blends from a company called Spice Mountain, based at Borough Market. My brother kindly bought me a pack containing Moroccan Tagine spice, Ethiopian Berbere, Goan Curry, Jerk Seasoning and Kofte Kebab flavouring, along with a little pot of something called Sumac, described as a lemony spice. My brother and I must be on the same wavelength, as I bought him a leftovers kit from Rafi’s Spicebox! I am really looking forward to the Kofte Kebab – there is a recipe for spicy tomato chutney on the back of the pack, but I think I will serve with Bombay Potatoes from the Indian Cooking School book.
Delia Smith's "How to Cook" @ Amazon (this is the copy we have, although there are many variations)
No comments:
Post a Comment