Recipe corner: spicy pineapple pickle

So you remember how in my last post I gave you a recipe for a pineapple cake?  Today we find out what happened to the other half of the pineapple.  You may, of course, wonder why we didn't just eat said pineapple and I couldn't tell you the answer.  I tend to eat more fruit at work, when it is in my lunchbox and just there than when I am at home.  It's not that I don't like it, I just tend not to think of it.  Definitely an area for improvement.

Anyway, pineapple pickle.  This was a last ditch attempt to save some pineapple that was going a bit brown and (no other word for it) manky.  It was a dying pineapple.  It was on the brink between this life and the next.  And it made a fantastic pickle I am very happy to say.  We had it with a curry (paneer and red pepper, if you're interested, from Meera Sodha's lovely "Made in India").  We had it with some jerk chicken and potato salad (our food combinations are somewhat random at the moment but don't judge - this was delicious!) And we had it in ham and cheese toasties wherein it was EPIC.  

Talking of random - I realised once I had started that I didn't have any mustard seeds (don't worry, they've subsequently been ordered online - the importance of a fully stocked spice cupboard is not to be under estimated) so I, er, rinsed off a tablespoon of wholegrain mustard.  It clearly didn't affect my enjoyment of the finished product but it felt a bit weird.  Mind, I read somewhere the other day that Jack Monroe, who has managed to carve out an entire career telling people what to do with random tins of food, recommends rinsing off spaghetti hoops in one of her books to make a store-cupboard version of cacio e pepe*.  So rinsing is apparently a thing in times of desperation.  

*I will, most very definitively, not be trying this.

Ingredients

2 dried chillies, soaked in boiling water (I see no reason why you couldn't sub in a fresh chilli if you didn't have dried.  If you do use dried, then soak them for at least an hour or else they won't be soft enough to blitz.

1 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated

1 garlic clove, grated

1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds

1 tsp ground turmeric

200ml white wine vinegar

Tbsp light brown sugar

Half a ripe pineapple, cored and cut into chunks

Drain the chillies and put in a pestle and mortar along with the ginger and garlic and a good pinch of salt.  Pound to a paste.  Add a tiny splash of the chilli water if it needs a little bit of help to amalgamate.

Heat a small, dry frying pan and then, when it is nice and hot, dry fry the mustard seeds until they start to the pop.

Transfer the seeds, and the paste, into a bowl large enough to hold all the pineapple, then add the turmeric, the vinegar and the sugar.  Set aside for 10 minutes or so, stirring every so often, until the sugar is completely dissolved.  Taste at this stage.  You may wish to add a bit more sugar if your vinegar is a particularly sour variety.

Add the pineapple and a decent pinch of salt.  Stir to ensure the fruit is coated in the liquid.  You could transfer it to a jar at this stage if you intend to take a nice picture of it for your blog (which you then forget to do).

Don't eat straight away - let it sit and collect itself for at least an hour before serving, and preferably longer.  The original recipe said that it would last three days in the fridge but I reckon you'd get a bit longer out of it than that.  Still, once you try one of those toasties you'll probably run through it in no time.

Recipe corner: D's green chilli and coriander salsa / chutney / sauce / thing

Hey! Long time no blog! I'd love to say it's because I've been out and about having adventures but other than going to work and getting ahead on my Goodreads challenge, I have accomplished very little.

I've been cooking - it's not that there has been nothing to say. We had a week of vegetarian meals, for example, which was great. I loved trying out some new recipes which included finally making Marcella Hazan's tomato butter sauce which I thought was DREAMY. And the kale salad that I served on the side was also a surprise hit.

We've also both developed something of an unholy passion for sriracha and are busily drizzling it on everything. Top tip - combine it with mayonnaise, Greek yoghurt, dill and a squoosh of lemon juice for the most fabulous burger sauce.

But today we're talking about another condiment which has taken up permanent residence in our fridge. This stuff is so good - stir it through rice, splodge it on cheese on toast or just eat it with a spoon, it's addictive. D just made his latest batch today and I got him to weigh out everything so that I could report it EXACTLY but, of course, as with any sauce of this type, you can tweak to your own individual tastes.

This keeps in the fridge for weeks. We run through it pretty quickly though.

Ingredients

150g green chillies
150g fresh coriander - stalks and all
25g shallot
25g garlic
90g vegetable oil
30g white wine vinegar
15g lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Whizz all the ingredients up together and season well. The end.

Recipe corner: Gochujang onion jam

I was going to open this post by talking about the aftermath of last week’s incident but self-pity is very dull indeed, especially when it is your own.  So, instead, let’s talk condiments.  I have already given you a creamy, herby salad dressing / dip to last the summer, now here is a relish guaranteed to improve any barbecue. 

It is spicy and smoky and sweet and sour all at the same time.  We have had it with both mackerel and burgers to triumphant effect;  at the weekend, D added pineapple chunks and juice and cooked it down even further to make a fruity caramel to serve with pork.  This is seriously versatile stuff.

The star ingredient here is the gochujang, which is a Korean chilli paste.  It is slightly fermented which gives it a very distinct, albeit hard to describe, flavour profile and is utterly addictive.  Korean food is supposed to be on trend at the moment, so you will probably find that gochujang is readily available in larger supermarkets.  I couldn’t honestly suggest a substitute. 

This recipe makes a large ramekin full of onion jam which is, I recognise, not a particularly useful measurement but the best that I can offer.  I have no doubt that it would keep well, in a jar, in the fridge, but we’ve been ploughing through it within a matter of days so have yet to test its powers of longevity.

Ingredients

3 red onions, thinly sliced

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tsp sugar

Tsp salt

30g sultanas

3 tbsp gochujang

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

 

Take a large saucepan and set it over a low heat to warm up while you slice the onions and transfer them to a bowl.  Toss the onions in the oil, sugar and salt and then place in the saucepan, turn the heat down as low as it will go, and cover. 

Meanwhile, place the sultanas in a bowl (you could use the onion one to save on washing up) and cover with water to plump them up.

Cook the onions until soft and golden, stirring occasionally.  I gave mine a good hour and they probably could have gone for a bit longer but I was bored!

Stir through the sultanas, the gochujang and the vinegar.  Turn the heat up slightly and cook for a further 10 minutes or so until the jam is slightly sticky and just beginning to catch on the bottom of the saucepan.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool before serving.

Recipe corner: super quick cucumber pickle

I hesitate to call this a recipe.  More of an extended tip.  But it is absolutely perfect for this time of year when, if you are anything like us, you will have a fridge groaning with cold cuts and cheeses.  It is a wonderfully simple, sweet-sour foil to anything from leftover turkey to gammon to wodges of Cheddar.  And, unlike most chutneys, it is quick to make.  Just allow about an hour for the salting and, if possible, a half hour at room temperature for the cucumbers to soak up some of the liquor.

Ingredients

1 cucumber
3 tbsp white wine vinegar
3 tsp sugar
1 tsp dill*
Salt and pepper

Serves 4, 1 pro point per portion

*I always tend to use dried dill because the real thing is so delicate that is doesn't last. Considering its delicacy, the dried stuff is really pretty good and provides excellent flavour.  I wouldn't be without it in my store cupboard.

Using a potato peeler, or an appropriate attachment on a food processor, reduce your cucumber to fat ribbons (rather than slices or shreds).  Peel down until the seeds just about start peeping through - the seeds themselves can be discarded.

Place the ribbons in a colander and sprinkle over several hefty pieces of good salt.  Toss well/  Then, cover the ribbons with kitchen paper and weight down with a bowl or plate and a couple of tins.  Leave for about an hour so the salt can draw the water out.  Meanwhile, you can whisk together the vinegar, sugar, dill and a couple of grinds of pepper.

When the cucumber is ready, rinse off the salt and then wring it out as thoroughly as you can - I tend to do it in small fistfuls, transferring it to the vinegar once it is, er, wrung.  Then, stir through and, if you have time, leave it to sit for a while to absorb the dressing.

That's it!  C'est tout!  You could try varying the herbs, perhaps adding a pinch of dried chilli flakes for background heat, and you may wish to alter the ratio of vinegar to sugar to suit your own tastes.

Let the Christmas feasting commence!

Recipe Corner – Mrs Scrooge’s Piccalilli

We ventured into York on Sunday. For the uninitiated, York, whilst a very beautiful city with many fine features, is what can only be described as a Tourist Trap. Especially around this time of the year when the main street seems to play host to one rather twee Christmas market after another.

Yes, I know. Bah humbug.

I love Christmas, I really do, but the advent of Internet shopping has spoiled me utterly and I can no longer bring myself to love Christmas shopping. I found myself in the Marks and Spencer’s food hall shooting imaginary death rays at all the old age pensioners who had decided that, despite the fact they have the ENTIRE WEEK to go and do their shopping, Sunday – and the Sunday two weeks before Christmas at that, is the very, very best time to venture out for mince and onion slices. The American tourists who were absolutely fascinated by the contents of the tinned goods aisle – apparently they don’t have Heinz Cream of Tomato soup in the States - were also on the end of my patented Beam of Death.

It was my husband that made me brave the ravening hoards to purchase the ingredients for homemade chutney. And it’s a good job he did really – I should have made it a couple of weeks ago but I’ve been shamefully disorganised. Last year I went it for a Nigella recipe inspired by all good flavours of Christmas, but this year I’m experimenting with a slightly simpler spiced apple recipe which I think will work beautifully with strong cheddar. It spent the night burbling away to itself in the slow cooker which made the whole process even more painless than usual. I’ll also be revisiting a fabulous piccalilli which I discovered a few years ago on the Waitrose website and which is reproduced below. This stuff is truly fantastic so I try and remember to make enough to both give away and retain a jar for us.

The only ingredient in this that the dedicated Weight Watcher needs to worry about is the sugar. I would therefore reckon on a single point for a good dollop.

Ingredients

700ml malt vinegar
2 tbsp coriander seeds
500g cauliflower, broken into small florets
2 onions, peeled and chopped
3 tbsp English mustard powder
3 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp Tumeric
2 tbsp ground ginger
150ml Cider vinegar
100g French beans trimmed and sliced
½ cucumber, quartered and sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
200g granulated sugar

Makes 1.7kg

Place the malt vinegar and coriander seeds in a large pan and bring to the boil, at which point add the cauliflower and onion and simmer for about five minutes until slightly softened but retaining some crunch.

Meanwhile, put the mustard, flour, turmeric and ginger into a small bowl and gradually whisk in the cider vinegar to make a smooth paste.

Add the remaining vegetables, garlic and sugar to the pan and stir over the heat for 2-3 minutes until the sugar has completely dissolved. Drain over a large bowl to collect the vinegar.

Put the mustardy mixture in the pan and bring to the boil. Gradually add the malt vinegar back in and then allow to simmer for 10 minutes, until it coats the back of a spoon. Now replace the drained vegetables and take off the heat.

The piccalilli can now be spooned into sterilised jars (the easiest way to do this is to run them through a hot dishwasher) and kept for as long as you can resist it. Not very long in our household.