Category: summer

Consommé of Yellow Tomatoes

11 January 2018

Clarification

A bit of magic in your kitchen! This soup requires ‘clarification’ in order to become a true consommé. Clarification is a simple and very effective way of making a liquid clear, regardless if it’s cold (wine) of warm. The goal of clarification is to remove all insoluble matter before serving (or bottling in case of wine). The ‘matter’ is in most cases too small to be removed using a filter. Hence clarification. In this case we use a mixture of tomatoes, basil and egg white, the so-called clarifique.
We use yellow tomatoes to create a bit of a surprise. When you use red tomatoes your guests will immediately guess it’s a consommé of tomatoes. Using yellow tomatoes will definitely surprise them. Plus we think the yellow ones are a bit more gently, fresher, more refined.
You could also use all of the tomatoes for the soup and add ravioli to the consommé: turning it into Ravioli in Brodo.
A quick comment before you start : it’s a bit of work and it requires a bit of patience as well. It’s not your ordinary soup!

What You Need

  • 6 Yellow Tomatoes
  • 2 Shallots
  • 1 Glove of Fresh Garlic
  • 1/2 Red Pepper
  • Thyme
  • Rosemary
  • Parsley
  • Bay Leaf
  • Black Pepper
  • Water
  • Butter
  • Olive oil
  • 2 Egg whites
  • Garlic
  • Basil

What You Do

Peel all 6 tomatoes by leaving them for 10-15 seconds in gently boiling water. Cool and peel, one by one. Keep the skin. Set 2 tomatoes aside. Chop the 4 tomatoes in smaller bits. Add butter and olive oil to the pan and gently glace the chopped shallot for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and the finely chopped red pepper and leave for 1 minute. Now add the tomatoes and the peel and fry for a minute or so. Then add thyme, rosemary, parsley, bay leaf and water. Bring to a boil and leave to simmer for 45 minutes. Taste and if so required add a touch of black pepper. If you do so, leave for an extra 5 minutes. Adding pepper later on is not a good idea because you want a completely clear soup. Pass through a sieve and cool to room temperature.
Remove seeds and the internal white from the two tomatoes, keeping the outside of the tomatoes only. Set the outside apart. Using a bowl create a mixture of tomato left overs, cooked garlic, lots of basil and the two egg whites. Mix with a spoon and then blender a few seconds. This is the clarifique.
Transfer the soup to a pan and add the clarifique. Stir with a spoon, making sure the mixture is homogenous. Start heating the mixture gently, until just below boiling. Some people will argue it’s should be 80º Celsius, exactly, which we think is not the case. You don’t want it to boil because that will destroy the funny looking cake on top of the mixture. Leave it for 30 minutes. No lid required.
Now use a slotted spoon to remove most of the cake. You can simply throw it away. Pour the liquid into a sieve lined with wet cheesecloth (or a clean cotton kitchen towel if you cannot find a cheesecloth, as long it’s odour free it will work; if not odour free soak in water for 24 hours). And Lo and Behold: you have a clear soup, a true consommé! Just taste it and be surprised! Herbs, even basil and of course tomato.
Cut the remains of the 2 tomatoes in small chunks and put them in a warm soup plate and transfer to the table. Pour the consommé around the tomato and enjoy!

 

Ingredients of Consommé of Yellow Tomatoes © cadwu
Consommé of Yellow Tomatoes © cadwu

Curry with Shrimps, Cardamom, Coriander and Ginger

2 January 2018

A simple but very tasty main dish. Serve it with some rice and you will have a lovely and rich dish.

We enjoyed our curry with a glass of Spanish gewürztraminer. The white wine needs to be aromatic and herbal. The gewürztraminer should come with a touch of sweetness which links nicely to the coconut and the cardamom.

What You Need
  • 1 small Red Onion or a bigger Shallot
  • 1 Chilly Pepper (a quarter or a half, depending on the spiciness)
  • 1 Garlic Clove (both fresh and prepared)
  • 1 Cardamom
  • Coriander (seeds and fresh leaves)
  • Ginger (fresh, 5 centimetres)
  • Nutmeg
  • 1 or 2 Djeroek Poeroet leaves (these are the leaves of the Makrut or Thai Lime (Citrus Hystrix); if fresh use 1 leave
  • Curry Powder
  • 6 – 10 fresh Shrimps
  • Coconut Milk (150 ml)
  • Olive Oil
  • Black Pepper
What You Do
  1. Clean the shrimps and remove the parts you don’t want to eat, especially the dark vein. This is actually the shrimp’s gastrointestinal tract, so not something you want to eat
  2. Once cleaned, set aside
  3. Cut the onion in four and then slice
  4. Remove the seeds from the chilly pepper and cut the pepper in small bits
  5. Fry the onion gently in a skillet with olive oil
  6. Use a mortar to crush the coriander and cardamom seeds
  7. Add the curry powder, the cardamom, the coriander, the grated nutmeg and the chilly pepper to the pan
  8. Fry a bit more, making sure you get all the tastes
  9. Add one clove of fresh garlic, one prepared and the grated ginger
  10. Fry and stir
  11. Start adding the coconut milk and keep stirring
  12. Add the djeroek poeroet
  13. When the sauce starts to thicken, check if you have sufficient sauce for the shrimps.
  14. f not, add some more coconut milk
  15. When thickened, add the shrimps and let cook for 4 minutes, maximum, depending on size
  16. Chop the fresh coriander leaves
  17. Just before serving add three quarters of the fresh coriander leaves to the curry and mix
  18. Check if some black pepper is required
  19. Sprinkle some more fresh coriander just before serving the dish.
  20. Serve with rice, preferably Camargue red rice because it offers such a wealth of taste. Indian Basmati will also do the trick of course.