Flavours of Chittering Festival

The Cooking Professor has been very remiss in not updating his blog!!! It has been since March. Quel Horreur! However, a reader has reminded me that it would be nice to do an update, so now is the time.

A Good reason for an update is that I was asked to do a cooking demonstration by the wonderful people who organised the Chittering Valley's Wine and Food Festival - Flavours of Chittering. What a lovely event it was! The valley was in all its superb early Spring splendour of rich green. The produce was fabulous, and the wines? Well! Those of you who have been to the Cooking School's classes will remember the superb wines from Riseborough Estate that we feature at the School. Riseborough is one of about eight vineyards and wineries in the valley and surrounds and most were featuring their best on the day.

Here are the two recipes that I demonstrated at the Festival:

Moondah Chicken Tagine with Chittering Preserved Lemons

You Need

Chermoula

1 red onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 piece of fresh ginger, about thumb-sized, grated
1 coriander plant, (including the root and stems) finely chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 or two cloves, crushed
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp cinnamon
3 Tbsp olive oil
zest and juice of 1 lemon
¼ preserved lemon, finely chopped

Tagine

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 red onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 small chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
sprinkle of dried oregano, about 1 tsp
½ tsp saffron threads, crushed
250ml chicken stock, warmed
1 free-range chicken, jointed
1 preserved lemon, quartered, and sliced into strips
100g pitted green olives , halved
12 or so pitted prunes
1 Tbls honey
a good handful fresh coriander, chopped
a good handful flat leaf parsley, chopped

Method
Make the chermoula by putting all the ingredients into a food processor and processing into a paste. Marinate the chicken pieces in the chermoula for at least 3 hours.

When it is time to make the tagine, heat the stock and add the saffron threads to the stock to infuse. Meanwhile, in a tagine or heavy-bottomed, lidded casserole, heat the olive oil and fry the onions until soft. Add the garlic and chilli and then the ginger, oregano and cumin and cook gently for a few more minutes. Add the chicken and its chermoula to the tagine and stir to coat with the onion and spices. Add the preserved lemon strips and then the saffron-infused stock to just cover the chicken pieces. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on a very gentle heat for about 45 minutes. Then add the prunes and olives and stir in the honey. Cook for another 15 minutes or until the chicken is falling apart.

Add the chopped coriander and parsley just before serving.

Serve over buttered cous cous.

Slow Braised Chittering Beef in Red Wine
(serves 4-6)

You Need
1 kilo lean stewing beef

Marinade

1 celery stalk, diced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 crumbled bay leaf
zest of 1 orange
3 tbsp olive oil
1½ cups dry red wine
6 tbsp brandy

Rest of Ingredients

4 tbsp plain flour
olive oil
200g 1cm thick piece of rindless bacon, cut into lardoons (1cm chunks)
1 x 400 gm can diced tomatoes
1-2 cups beef stock
1 bouquet garni (sprigs of thyme, rosemary and parsley tied together)
20 button mushrooms, wiped with a damp cloth & quartered
Freshly ground Black Pepper

12 anchovies, mashed
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley


Method
A day ahead, cut beef into large cubes, trimming any excess fat. Combine all the marinade ingredients with the beef, mix well and refrigerate overnight. (Hint: If you forget this step, or haven’t the time, you can heat the wine until it boils and pour over the beef cubes and let it marinate the meat for about 20 minutes whilst you chop the vegetables and get everything else ready.)

The next day, preheat oven to 160C.
Drain the beef, reserving the marinade liquid and vegetables. Flour the beef, heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or casserole, and brown the meat in 2 or 3 lots. Wipe out the pot and heat fresh oil. Then toss in the bacon and cook for a few minutes. Return the beef and reserved marinade to the pot. Tuck in the bouquet garni. Add the tomatoes and just enough stock to cover. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover and put in the oven. Cook for 2-2½ hours or until the meat is very tender, adding more stock if needed.

Meanwhile, sauté the mushrooms and set aside. Mash together the anchovies, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic and chopped parsley to form a paste and mix into the casserole, together with the mushrooms, and return to the oven for a further 30 minutes of cooking.

Serve on creamy mashed potatoes.