What's cooking / VT cookbook merge

[rjw63]

Hahahahaaaa :-)

[mjmooney]

Strictly speaking, that's baking, not cooking.

Cooking is an art, baking is a science, as they say.

[b6bloke]

It alll goes in and out the same way.

[rjw63]

It alll goes in and out the same way.

That's what the dirty ginge said ;-)

[Shillzz]

I'd like to share this one with you. It's the best thing I've ever cooked (and Ive cooked a lot), the flavours just hang together perfectly.

Monkfish with Chorizo and Lemon Risotto.

For the Risotto:

Couple of Shallots fried in Olive Oil.

Add Arborio Rice, cook untill translucent.

Add a healthy glass of light, white whine.

Add the Zest & Juice of 1 large lemon.

Top up with good vegetable stock in the usual Risotto way, stirring as you go.

Add some fresh garden peas about 4 minutes before serving.

For the Monkfish

Wait untill perhaps 10/15 minutes before the Risotto is cooked.

Add diced Chorizo (the cooking kind) to a pan covered in olive oil.

Cook on a low temperature, basically to bleed out the flavour.

Keep cooking untill the olive oil has taken on a Paprika flavour to it.

Dice 1 monkfish tail into healthy sized chunks and add to the pan.

Season with plenty of pepper and a tiny bit of salt.

Add a bit of lemon Juice aswell.

Present the meal in a large pasta bowl with the Monkfish & Chorizo gathered on the top of the risotto.

Sprinkle with a tiny bit of fresh parsely, ideally flat leaf.

Chow Down.

[mjmooney]

I'd like to share this one with you. It's the best thing I've ever cooked (and Ive cooked a lot), the flavours just hang together perfectly.

Monkfish with Chorizo and Lemon Risotto.

For the Risotto:

Couple of Shallots fried in Olive Oil.

Add Arborio Rice, cook untill translucent.

Add a healthy glass of light, white whine.

Add the Zest & Juice of 1 large lemon.

Top up with good vegetable stock in the usual Risotto way, stirring as you go.

Add some fresh garden peas about 4 minutes before serving.

For the Monkfish

Wait untill perhaps 10/15 minutes before the Risotto is cooked.

Erm, how long do you cook the risotto?

[Shillzz]

It takes ages with the Rice I use, usually 20/25 minutes. Though not on an exceptionally high temperature.

There are rices which cook much quicker though, granted.

[peterms]

I'd like to share this one with you. It's the best thing I've ever cooked (and Ive cooked a lot), the flavours just hang together perfectly.

Monkfish with Chorizo and Lemon Risotto.

For the Risotto:

Couple of Shallots fried in Olive Oil.

Add Arborio Rice, cook untill translucent.

Add a healthy glass of light, white whine.

Add the Zest & Juice of 1 large lemon.

Top up with good vegetable stock in the usual Risotto way, stirring as you go.

Add some fresh garden peas about 4 minutes before serving.

For the Monkfish

Wait untill perhaps 10/15 minutes before the Risotto is cooked.

Erm, how long do you cook the risotto?

Until it's done. Hard to be more precise. Need to keep stirring, and tasting. Cooking it faster means there's more chance of it catching and burning, slower is better but means you're tied to the stove for longer. Can't leave it, must keep stirring.

Arborio/Carnarole rice might take about 30 mins on a low-medium heat if the stock you add is boiling when you add it.

General rule with risotto is that when you put a spoonful on a plate it should spread and slump. If it stays in a firm pile, not enough stock, or undercooked, or both.

[peterms]

I'd like to share this one with you. It's the best thing I've ever cooked (and Ive cooked a lot), the flavours just hang together perfectly.

Monkfish with Chorizo and Lemon Risotto.

For the Risotto:

Couple of Shallots fried in Olive Oil.

Add Arborio Rice, cook untill translucent.

Add a healthy glass of light, white whine.

Add the Zest & Juice of 1 large lemon.

Top up with good vegetable stock in the usual Risotto way, stirring as you go.

Add some fresh garden peas about 4 minutes before serving.

For the Monkfish

Wait untill perhaps 10/15 minutes before the Risotto is cooked.

Add diced Chorizo (the cooking kind) to a pan covered in olive oil.

Cook on a low temperature, basically to bleed out the flavour.

Keep cooking untill the olive oil has taken on a Paprika flavour to it.

Dice 1 monkfish tail into healthy sized chunks and add to the pan.

Season with plenty of pepper and a tiny bit of salt.

Add a bit of lemon Juice aswell.

Present the meal in a large pasta bowl with the Monkfish & Chorizo gathered on the top of the risotto.

Sprinkle with a tiny bit of fresh parsely, ideally flat leaf.

Chow Down.

Good recipe.

I would add the chorizo at step 2, ie between the shallots and the rice, add the fish with (or instead of) the peas, and add more than a tiny bit of parsley. And fish stock instead of veg (actually chicken stock would work here, strangely), and some garlic and chilli, with the shallots.

[snowychap]

Had a very nice supper, earlier.

Roast loin of pork, roast potatoes, roast chantenay carrots and a roast leek (not difficult, I know, but bloody lubberly and pretty inexpensive as I've got a couple of days cold loin of pork for sarnies, too).

[peterms]

Had a very nice supper, earlier.

Roast loin of pork, roast potatoes, roast chantenay carrots and a roast leek (not difficult, I know, but bloody lubberly and pretty inexpensive as I've got a couple of days cold loin of pork for sarnies, too).

Very similar to what I had yesterday. Roast belly of pork, potatoes roasted in duck fat, leeks braised in butter and lemon juice, cavolo nero sauteed in olive oil and lemon, apple sauce with chilli and allspice, gravy from the sediment in the pan, pork crackling done to perfection - used to hate crackling when I was younger, now I really like it, when it's dry and crisp. It's a bit of a fatty lardarse dinner, but it's winter and it's cold. I'll have some sprouted mung beans in a day or two. Possibly.

[snowychap]

Crackling is truly a gift from the gods.

[peterms]

Crackling is truly a gift from the gods.

Since I've only recently discovered I like it, I've also only recently discovered how to do it, ie take it off the joint, strip all the fat off it, and bake it briefly on its own until it's crisp and wonderful. I read many recipes which claim to make crackling with the stuff still on the joint, but not a single one of them have ever worked for me.

[snowychap]

Crackling is truly a gift from the gods.

Since I've only recently discovered I like it, I've also only recently discovered how to do it, ie take it off the joint, strip all the fat off it, and bake it briefly on its own until it's crisp and wonderful. I read many recipes which claim to make crackling with the stuff still on the joint, but not a single one of them have ever worked for me.

Ah, I am getting better at it (decent scoring, salt in the scores and a high temperature for the first half an hour of cooking - and, possibly for the last bit).

It's still not an exact thing for me, though.

[soprano]

Make sure it's completely dry then rub plenty of salt into the scores. Start on a high heat then reduce after about 30 mins. Crackin cracklin.

[soprano]

While we're on the subject of crackling, does anyone buy the scratchings they sell outside the Holte. There is so much fat on each piece it's virtually inedible.

[BOF]

Made a lovely madras yesterday but also made a lime, mint & coriander chutney and some chana dal to go with it. All very tasty and particularly the dal (lentils) which was gorgeous and might even replace the rice in future curries. There is an unfortunate side effect to it though. Just stay up-wind. Perhaps that's where the asafoetida comes in...

[Shillzz]

Made a lovely madras yesterday but also made a lime, mint & coriander chutney and some chana dal to go with it. All very tasty and particularly the dal (lentils) which was gorgeous and might even replace the rice in future curries. There is an unfortunate side effect to it though. Just stay up-wind. Perhaps that's where the asafoetida comes in...

Did you go for the Coconut milk madras style curry, or the kind that would be more familiar to the British punters.

I've read about a thousand different ways of making them, with the more authentic ones proclaiming it to be a south Indian curry that needs to be hot with Coconut milk.

[BOF]

Oh it was the coconut milk one. Went easy on the chillies cuz the missus needed to eat it too.

[Shillzz]

Oh it was the coconut milk one. Went easy on the chillies cuz the missus needed to eat it too.

Good man.

I have that problem too, to the extent that if i try and make a proper Vindaloo then I have to substitute in some red or bell peppers for chillis.

Which means it is no longer a 'proper' vinaloo.