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Showing posts with label Salads. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Salads. Show all posts

Caesar Salad

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Posted on Tuesday, 16 August 2011 09:45 | By: Tony

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Caesar salad must be one of the most popular salads in the world; it is a great salad if made with a little care and good ingredients. Buy good parmesan and good quality anchovies as this will make all the difference to the end result. The recipe for the dressing will make more than is needed but it will keep for a week in the fridge and is handy to have on hand.
I find it works very well a spoonful stirred into lightly crushed new season potatoes served with pan fried cod and some crispy streaky bacon.

Ingredients;

2 egg yolks
1 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 anchovies, drained
1tsp Dijon mustard
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Juice of half a lemon
500ml of olive oil
50ml anchovy oil
100g grated parmesan
Cracked black pepper

1 large cos lettuce
A day old baguette, crust removed and thinly sliced
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2tblsp butter
8 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained
8 slices of streaky bacon, baked until crispy and chopped, reserve any oil left from cooking
4 soft boiled quail eggs, each cut in half
50g shaved parmesan

Method;

For the salad;

Discard any bruised leaves from the lettuce, wash the remaining leaves and dry thoroughly and set aside. Melt the butter in an oven tray with the garlic. Once melted, drizzle the melted butter over the slices of bread, transfer to an oven and cook at 160c until golden, 10-15mins, keep checking the croutons to prevent them from burning. Drain on absorbent paper and set aside.

For the dressing;

Place the egg, garlic, anchovies, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice into a blender and blend. Mix the oils together (including the bacon oil if using, it adds a wonderful flavour), and with the motor still running in the blender, slowly trickle in the oils until a thick creamy sauce is achieved. Stir in the parmesan and the pepper, and check to see if a little salt is needed.

To complete the dish;

Rip the cos into large pieces and place into a bowl, add a generous amount of dressing and mix to coat the leaves. Add the croutons, anchovies and cooked bacon, mix well and place into a large serving bowl top two quail egg halves and shaved parmesan and serve.

Waldorf salad Apple, celery & walnut salad, watercress & Crozier blue cheese

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Posted on Tuesday, 19 July 2011 09:35 | By: Tony

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Ingredients;

For the candied walnuts;

100ml stock syrup
100g walnuts roasted and peeled                             

For the dressing;

100g Crozier blue cheese   
2-3tblsp boiling water  
100ml mayonnaise     
Seasoning to taste

For the salad;

3 sticks of celery cut into 1cm dice      
200g watercress  
1 granny smith apple, peeled and cut into 1cm dice and tossed in lemon juice to prevent discolouring 
50g Crozier blue cheese, cut into 1cm dice                                                               

To serve;

Deep fried celery leaves

Method;

Bring the stock syrup to the boil, remove from the heat and add the nuts, allow the nuts to cool in the syrup. When cool place in the fridge and leave the nuts to sit in the syrup for 2 days.
Crumble the cheese into a bowl and whisk in the boiling water until the cheese is creamy and smooth.  Stir in the mayonnaise and season to taste.
Place all of the salad ingredients into a bowl and toss everything together.
Place the candied walnuts onto a tray and place under the grill; the nuts are ready when they are golden and caramelised 2-3mins.
Spoon the Crozier dressing onto service plates and arrange the salad neatly on top, scatter over the candied walnuts and garnish with deep fried celery leaves.

Verjuice-poached chicken salad with basil salad cream

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Posted on Thursday, 7 July 2011 12:59 | By: Tony

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This is a very simple summer salad using one of my favourite ingredients, Verjuice!!
But what is verjuice?
Verjuice is a seasoning made by pressing unripe fruit. It has a very tart flavour thanks to a high acid content and it can be used like vinegar or lemon juice in a variety of recipes. Traditionally, verjuice is made from unripened grapes, but it can also be made from apples and other fruits. If a recipe calls for verjuice and none is available, people can use other tart ingredients as a substitute.
This seasoning became extremely popular during the medieval era, and was seen in numerous recipes during this period. Unlike lemon juice and vinegar, it will not alter the perception of flavors in the wines served with food, and may be recommended as a seasoning for meals that will be served with wine so that the wine and food pairings do not clash. It can be used in dressings and sauces, as well as to deglaze pans and add a tart flavour to marinades and a variety of dishes ranging from fish to red meats.
Do try to find verjuice, It is available in some Sainsbury store and a good delicatessen should also stock, if they don't ask them if it would be possible to order some in for you. It is a very versitle store cupboard ingredient and well worth seeking out.

Serves 4;

Ingredients;


750ml  
verjuice
2  
fresh bay leaves
4  
black peppercorns
3  
sprigs thyme
3  
sprigs flat-leaf parsley
3  
chicken breast fillets
100g  
baby endive leaves
100g  
baby rocket leaves
1  
baby cos lettuce, trimmed, washed, dried and torn into bite-sized pieces
2tbsp  
extra-virgin olive oil
2tsp  
white wine vinegar
1 
8 
avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and cut into 1cm-thick slices
Cherry tomatoes cut in halves 

Basil salad cream;

200ml  
pouring cream
150ml  
sour cream
1tsp  
Dijon mustard
1tsp  
lemon juice, or to taste
¼ cup  
coarsely chopped basil


Method;


Place verjuice, bay leaves, peppercorns and herbs in a large, deep frying pan and bring to the boil, then simmer for 3 minutes. Add chicken and simmer over very low heat for 10 minutes or until chicken is just tender. Remove pan from heat and stand, covered, for 12 minutes. Remove chicken with a slotted spoon, discard cooking liquid, then cool slightly and tear into bite-sized pieces.


For basil salad cream, combine creams, mustard and lemon juice in a small bowl, season to taste and whisk to combine. Cover closely with cling film and refrigerate until required. Just before serving, stir in chopped basil. Makes about ¾ cup.


Place salad leaves in a large, shallow bowl, add olive oil and vinegar, season to taste and toss to combine. Place the salad between 4 plates, then top with avocado, cherry tomatoes and chicken. Drizzle with a little basil salad cream and serve, with remaining basil salad cream passed separately.


Thai salad of roast pork belly, scallop and mango

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Posted on Monday, 13 June 2011 17:32 | By: Tony

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This would have to be one of my all time favourite salads. The perfect balance of salty, spicy, sweet and sour are in perfect harmony in this refreshing salad, making it very Moorish. 
Salads are very important to the Thai’s. The word for salad in Thai dialect is yam and basically means toss together. Salads in Thailand are very different to that of western cuisine. Where we would associate a salad of a selection of greens leaves with mellow vinaigrette, the Thai yam would be an assortment of ingredients tossed in a very pungent dressing, and most of the times there are no leaves present at all. All Thai salads are famed for their distinctive flavours that tantalises and cleanse the palate during a banquette of dishes that would be served at a Thai meal.

Ingredients;

For the nam jim dressing;
4 cloves of garlic, peeled
Coriander steams or roots
4 white peppercorns
1 tsp sea salt
8 green birds eye chillies
2tblsp palm sugar
40ml fish sauce
80ml fresh lime juice
3 red shallots thinly sliced

For the pork and scallops;
Pork belly salted and roasted
4tblsp palm sugar
2tblsp fish sauce
3 scallops, coral trimmed
Seasoning

To finish and serve;
1 mango peeled and sliced
Cucumber peeled, seeded and diced
4 cherry tomatoes cut into quarters
1 baby gem lettuce, ripped
1 shallot thinly sliced
8 small mint leaves
6 coriander leaves

Method;
Place the garlic, coriander, peppercorns and salt into a mortar and bash with a pestle until well crushed, but not reduced to a paste. Add the chillies and crush lightly. The more you crush the chillies the hotter the sauce will become, so be careful. Mix in the palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and shallots. The longer the dressing sits the more intense the flavour becomes so try to make the dressing as close to the time as you need it so that it taste very fresh.

Trim the pork belly into neat squares and place in a pan skin side down and roast for 8mins until very crisp. Put a small pot with a little water and the palm sugar onto the stove and cook until caramelised. Pour in the fish sauce and cook for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat. Remove the pork from the oven and cut into thin slices. Pour the sauce over the pork.

Place a pan onto high heat with a little oil, cut the scallops in half and season the cut side. When the pan is almost smoking add the scallops. It is very important to have the pan at high heat so they seal properly and don’t stew in the pan. They should have a firm crust but still be slightly rare inside. Remove from the pan.

Place all of the salad ingredients into a bowl and add enough of the dressing to coat. Mix well and arrange in the centre of a serving plate. Place the pork belly on top of the salad and arrange the scallops around the salad. Serve at once.

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