Category: Geen categorie

Blanquette de Veau

21 August 2019

Hard to say what the original way of preparing Blanquette de Veau is. In all cases the veal is added to a cold liquid (preferably a combination of water, wine and stock) and then cooked slowly. The sauce must be made using egg yolk.
Make sure the veal has some nice layers of fat. This will add falvour to the dish and it will help make the meat moist.
We use mace to add additional flavour to the Blanquette. Mace is the outer skin of a nutmeg seed. It is removed by hand and then dried. It is sold in whole pieces or ground. Given its strong flavour, using mace comes with a risk. Use a small piece and taste well after 30 minutes or so. Remove the mace from the stew before it becomes overwhelming.
Don’t underestimate Blanquette de Veau. You need time and patience.

Wine Pairing

We enjoyed our Blanquette de Veau with a Pinot Noir from Austria. A red Burgundy would also work. If you prefer a new world Pinot Noir, make sure it’s not too woody. The vanilla that comes with the wood is too strong for the delicate taste of the Blanquette.

  • 300 gram of Veal
  • 1 Shallot
  • Little bit of Mace
  • Cup of White Wine
  • Cup of Veal or Chicken Stock
  • Water
  • 100 gram white Champignons de Paris
  • Butter
  • One or two Egg Yolk(s)
  • Cream
What You Do – Day 1
  1. Cut the veal into cubes. Not too small because during the cooking process they will become smaller
  2. Take a pan, add wine, stock, veal, peeled (but not chopped) shallot, mace and water, making sure the veal is covered
  3. Put on a medium heat and wait until you see a brownish froth
  4. Carefully remove this  with a slotted spoon
  5. Transfer the pan back and leave for 30 minutes on low heat
  6. Taste and check if you’re okay mace-wise
  7. Remove the mace when you think it is becoming too present
  8. Check again after 30 minutes
  9. Cook in total for 3-4 hours on low heat
  10. Clean the mushrooms and fry very gently in a skillet with butter for 15 minutes on low heat
  11. Remove the shallot and mash with a fork.
  12. Decide if you want to reduce the liquid, depending on taste and volume
  13. If you decide to reduce, store the meat on a plate for the duration of the proces
  14. Transfer the mushrooms to the stew and leave for 15 minutes
  15. Make sure you get all the juices form the skillet
  16. Cool the Blanquette and put in the refrigerator for the next day.
What You Do – Day 2
  1. Warm the stew gently
  2. Combine one egg yolk (or two, depending on the volume) with the cream
  3. Mix well
  4. Now add a spoonful of the very warm liquid
  5. This is what is called ‘marrying’
  6. Add more liquid, one spoonful at the time
  7. Keep stirring
  8. Once your mixture is of a similar temperature, add the liquid to the stew and keep stirring until it starts to thicken
  9. Make sure the stew is (very) warm but not cooking. If it becomes too warm you will ruin the marriage.
  10. Taste, check if you want to add some white pepper
  11. Serve on a warm plate with rice or with green beans with a splash of olive and grated nutmeg (!) and crusted bread.
PS

A very tasty alternative is to use Girolles. Agreed, the blanquette will become a bit yellow, but the taste of the Girolle goes very well with the mace and the sauce. It’s a more intense, powerful blanquette.

blanquette de veau or classic french stew of veal with rice
main ingredients of blanquettte de veau or classic french stew

Cod with Lentils and Cilantro

14 August 2019

Plat du Jour

Think France, think a nice small bistro in a small street, off centre, nothing posh, no Michelin star in sight. It’s 12.30, time for a quick lunch. You enter the restaurant, take a seat and order today’s dish, the plat du jour. It turns out to be a generous helping of brown lentils, two fried sausages and mustard. A beer works beautifully with it. After having enjoyed your lunch, you think about the joy of good food, French mustard and the beauty of lentils. Time for coffee. And maybe a glass of Calvados?

Lentils

Let’s talk about lentils. Not expensive at all, very healthy and a pack of essential vitamins and nutrients. Lentils are used in many kitchens and grown in many countries (India, Canada, Australia and also Europe, North Africa and the USA). Lentils have been around for a long time, possible 10.000 years. So you would expect lentils to be popular, but for some reason you don’t see them too much, unless in restaurants serving organic food or as soup. A pity, because a simple dish of rice and lentils with a dash of chutney is healthy, cheap and tasty.

The red lentil (key element to Indian Dhal) is well-known. We use it in our pumpkin soup. It is a split lentil and it will cook very soft.
The Beluga lentil is black, as the name suggests. We could have used Beluga lentils in this recipe because of the colour combines nicely with the white fish.
Most lentils are green or brown. The Du Puy green lentil is special, not only because of its Appellation d’origine contrôlée but very much because of their great taste and the fact that they keep a beautiful shape, even when cooked. Beware of fake Du Puy lentils! All Du Puy lentils are green and from France, but not all green lentils from France are Du Puy lentils. They have names like ‘Le Puy lentils’ or ‘Dupuis lentils’. All nasty marketing. If you want real Lentille Verte du Puy then look for the A.O.P and A.O.C. We prefer the ones from Sabarot (Happy 200th Birthday!)
The recipe for the plat du jour is relatively straight forward (make sure the meat in the sausage is not too finely minced) and we have enjoyed it many times.
Lentil soup combines really well with fresh cilantro, so we use the same combination in this case, although using fresh parsley is also a good idea. Key elements in this dish are excellent fresh cod, a mild fish stock and cilantro leaves and seeds.

Wine Pairing

We very much enjoyed a glass of Spanish Verdejo with this dish. In our case a bottle of Monteabellon Rueda. In general wines made from the Verdejo grape combine very well with fish. The wine comes with the right acidity, giving freshness to the wine. It has floral aromas typical for the Verdejo grape. You may recognise the aromas of banana and exotic fruit.

What You Need

  • Shallot
  • Butter
  • Cilantro Seeds
  • Green, Du Puy or Beluga Lentils
  • Mild Fish Stock
  • Cod
  • Butter
  • Fresh Cilantro (or Parsley)
  • White Pepper

What You Do

Cut the shallot in small bits and glaze gently in butter. In the mean time check the lentils for small pebbles; wash them. Once the shallot is glazed, add the lentils and heat them for a few minutes, as you would do with risotto rice. Gently crush the cilantro seeds a bit and add to the pan. Add the mild fish stock and leave to simmer on low heat. In parallel pan-fry the cod in butter in a non-stick pan. Just before the lentils are ready add half of the finely cut cilantro or parsley to the lentils and mix.
Timing is all. The lentils should be cooked, all liquid evaporated and absorbed and the cod just done. Meaning the cod is opaque and the flakes can be separated easily. And overcooked meaning you can see those small white bits and the fish becomes dry.
Serve the cod on top of the lentils and sprinkle some cilantro or parsley over the lentils and cod. Maybe add a touch of white pepper.

 

Ingredients of Cod with Lentils, Cilantro and Parsley © cadwu
Cod with Lentils and Cilantro© cadwu
Du Puy Lentils AOP AOC © cadwu
Verdejo Monteabellon Rueda 2016 © cadwu

A Classic for you – 1

3 February 2018

Ratatouille

Think summer vegetables, think Ratatouille! Which is also a comedy released in 2007 about a rat called Remy with a passion for cooking. If you want to see how he prepares ratatouille then simply enter Remy cooks ratatouille as search term in YouTube (or buy the DVD if you’re old fashioned like us).
Ratatouille brings back memories of summer, of the South of France, of the Mediterranean. Or for some, of their youth. It combines very well with a simple sausage, with lamb, with grilled chicken.
However you prepare your ratatouille, be sure to use courgette or zucchini, aubergine or eggplant, tomato and bell peppers. Also make sure you prepare it a day ahead. The taste becomes much more integrated after a day (or two) in the refrigerator.
Our recipe is very much the recipe of a dear friend. She taught us how to make ratatouille in her summer kitchen, overlooking the pool and the garden with herbs and vegetables. Indeed, fond memories.
To our surprise she added cilantro (you would expect thyme or basil) and many years later we are still grateful for this twist. The cilantro enhances the feeling of summer and it supports the various vegetables in a beautiful way.

We enjoyed our ratatouille with a glass of simple, red wine with lots of red and black fruits. Spicy. A wine that brings summer to your glass.

Here is what you need:

  • Aubergine
  • Courgette
  • Red Bell Pepper
  • Chili Pepper
  • Tomatoes
  • Cilantro
  • Garlic (optional)
  • Olive oil

If you combine 1 of each, with the exception of 3 tomatoes, this will serve 4 people.
Start by cutting the aubergine in small but not too small chunks. Drizzle with salt and mix. Let the mixture rest for a few hours, allowing for the aubergine to loose water and become firm. Best way to do this is by putting the aubergine in a sieve and let it rest above a bowl.
The tomatoes require some attention as well. You could peel them, but that’s optional. What is not optional is to separate the tomato meat and juices from the pits. First step is to remove the internal hard bits and the pits and put these aside. You now have the outer part of the tomato, which you can slice. Cut the remainder of the tomatoes roughly, add to a sieve and by using the back of a spoon make sure you capture the juices. Be surprised about the volume of tomato juice and the small amount of tomato bits that remain in your sieve.
Peel the courgette, slice in the way you sliced the aubergine and fry over medium heat in olive oil. In the mean time cut the bell pepper into long slices and add these to the pan. Continue frying. Add the finely chopped chilli pepper (not the seeds of course). Add the firm aubergine after having removed the remaining salt with water. After a few moments add the tomato chunks, fry a bit more, add the tomato juice (and the optional garlic) and leave on a medium heat for 30 minutes. Try not to stir too much; otherwise you risk creating mashed vegetables. Cool, set aside and store in the refrigerator.
The next day gently warm the ratatouille, add some chopped cilantro, mix and add more cilantro just before serving.

 

 

Apricot Chutney

1 February 2018

One For The Cupboard

Something you have to have in your cupboard (or refrigerator in our case): chutney. Why? Because once in a while you don’t feel like making a sauce when you eat duck, rib eye or grilled lamb chops. Or because you want to eat something nice, simple and vegetarian, like rice with lentils and, there we are, chutney.
If there would be a top three of main ingredients for chutney it would read mango-tomato-apricot. The basic recipe is the same for all three; it’s a matter of adjusting the quantities and choosing the spices.
Chutney needs to integrate, much more than jam or marmalade. So cook it for an hour or so and leave it in a jar for at least a week before using it. The fact that it needs to integrate will create a hopefully nice surprise when opening the jar. If not, there is little you can do (eat more quickly, give a jar to a not too close friend et cetera).
We use just a bit of sugar so our chutney needs to be stored in the refrigerator. Too much sugar (200 grams on 1 kilo of mango for instance) will only hide the taste of the mango. Chutney is a balance of sweet (fresh fruit, onion, garlic, cinnamon), sour (vinegar), bitter (the skin of the apricot or tomato), spiciness (ginger, red chilli, garlic) and depth (cardamom, nutmeg, cumin). Too much sugar will only disturb the balance. Cooking is about pairing tastes and textures, not about creating a simple, one-dimensional product.
Why would we make apricot chutney if it’s our number 3? Simple: we like the touch of bitterness that comes with the apricot.
When making mango chutney, try using unripe mangos. The chutney will be much tastier and complex!

What You Need

  • 1 kilo stoned Apricots (meaning 1,25 kilo of Apricots)
  • 2 Shallots
  • Olive Oil
  • 2+2 gloves Fresh and Cooked Garlic
  • 1 Red Chilli
  • 100 ml Vinegar
  • 100 ml Water
  • 50 grams of Sugar
  • Fresh Ginger
  • Spices such as
    • Cardamom
    • Mustard Seed
    • Coriander
    • Cinnamon
    • Nutmeg
    • Cumin

What You Do

Stone and quarter the apricots. Cut the shallots in 4 and slice (not too thin). Slice the fresh garlic. Same with the seeded red chilli. Cut let’s say 5 cm of ginger in small bits. Start by glazing the shallots for 10 minutes in olive oil, making sure they will enhance the sweetness of the chutney. Then add all other ingredients to the pan, mix, add the grated ginger, the spices of your choice, mix and bring slowly to a simmer. We used vinegar and water given the acidity of our apricots. If your apricots are really sweet and ripe use 200 ml of vinegar. Spices wise we prefer using cardamom, cinnamon, and a touch of cumin and nutmeg. Leave to simmer for at least one hour. Stir occasionally but gently. After an hour increase the heat and transfer to very, very clean glass jars. Close the jars, leave them to cool a bit, then put in cold water and later on transfer to the refrigerator.

 

This Week was Special-A

27 January 2018

This week on Friday and Saturday the annual Amsterdam Symposium on the History of Food took place at the main auditorium of the University of Amsterdam. Such a pleasure to listen to great papers presented, discussing the origin of umani or the history of Byzantine taste (presented by Anouk Everts). The key-note was delivered by Peter Klosse. He made many interesting points with regard to taste and flavour. His analysis of Mouth Feel is food for thought and discussion.
PS Garum as used in the Byzantine kitchen is a fish sauce. It is made from fermented fish (sardines for instance) and salt. It goes back to Roman times. Fun to make, actually….

Johannes van Dam prize

Yotam Ottolenghi received the prestigious Johannes van Dam prize. The jury, chaired by professor Louise O. Fresco, mentioned Yotam’s impressive contribution to current Dutch and International cuisine. The prize is named after culinary writer and critic Johannes van Dam who was not only known for his reviews of restaurant but also for his massive collection of books on food and drinks. Mr. Ottolenghi was very pleased to receive the prize (as you can see in the picture!)

Joop Witteveen prize

Antwerpen a la carte was the winner in the Academic category, the Joop Witteveen Prize. A book that discusses not only the history of food in the port city of Antwerpen, but also today’s role of a (hungry) city in the area of food production and consumption. Main authors are Ilja van Damme and Leen Beyers. The book is linked to an exposition at the MAS in Antwerp.
More information about the papers can be found on the website of the conference.

Peter Klosse’s analysis of mouth feel ©cadwu
Byzantine Ingredients ©cadwu
Professor Louise O Fresco reads the laudation for Yotam Ottolenghi ©cadwu
Yotam Ottolenghi thanking the jury for the Johannes van Dam Award 2017 ©cadwu
Antwerpen a la Carte

Antonio Carluccio

10 November 2017

Inspiration

Sadly Antonio Carluccio passed away this week on Wednesday November 8th 2017. To us he has been a true inspiration, especially when it comes to mushrooms. Thanks to him we started to explore a wide variety of mushrooms, such as Ceaser’s mushrooms and Pied Blue. His books on mushrooms showed us the world beyond the classics mushroom recipes. Every year we prepare his oysters with sabayon and white truffle. Pure magic.

Carluccio also showed us that you need to be a chef to create Michelin star worthy food, and that you need to be a decent cook to create tasty and healthy daily food. A combination of olives, pancetta, cheese, artichokes and a glass of red wine is a great way to start your meal and will only take you a bit of shopping and 5 minutes to present the food. And reading his books: you can learn how to be a decent cook.

MoF MoF

He said his motto was “mof mof” – minimum of fuss, maximum of flavour. No doubt a lot of hard work is required to reach that level, but let us assure you: it’s a great motto for daily cooking.