Rhubarb and strawberry compote

Rhubarb and strawberry compote

Just read this Swiss recipe, in making a trifle like cake. I findd the combination interesting as I have rhubarb and strawberries in the garden ready to harvest, just that the strawberries are not very sweet in this not very sunny spring, and all my "friends" in the garden have a good tasting while I was not looking. So this compote is a good way to use up these second rate fruit. I add ginger and lemon zest to enrich the flavor of the compote.

 

Rhubarb and strawberry compote

1. Peel rhubarb and cut into cubes, cut strawberry into halves, ginger into fine cubes and prepare lemon zest.

2. Cook rhubarb with ginger, lemon zest, brown sugar and a pinch of salt until just turn soft, 1 to 2 minutes. 

Rhubarb and strawberry compote

3. Add strawberry into hot compote to soften, I like my fruit to be not too soft and still have some shape and texture.

4. Serve on yogurt or simply enjoy as such.

Roast lamb rib

 lamb rib

Just purchased half a lamb, 9kg, and cut up into portions the way I like to cook. As it is still a relatively small lamb, the rib meat is not very big, I like to remove the whole piece of meat off the rib cage (or rib eye as in beef). The rib cage and backbone is left with a bit of meat attached to it, too wasteful to be used as bones to make stock, so I roast it instead.

 

Roast lamb rib

1. Mix a handful of thyme with juice of half a lemon, salt, pepper and olive oil, rub all over ribs.

2. Preheat oven to 200˚C, place lamb inside and reduce heat to 110˚C, roast for 2 hours.

The meat is juicy, tender and falls off the bones easily, have to eat with fingers though.

Flooded muddy rivers

maize

This spring there has been a lot of rainy, cloudy, cool days, the sun rarely shines. With the delayed warmth, farmers have to delay sowing seeds by at least 2 to 3 weeks, like maize, wheat and soybean, are only just germinated.

Flooded muddy rivers

Then there was this huge rainstorm last week, more tropical like than the usual drizzle here, so the herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers used in the fields before sowing were, together with the soil, washed down to the rivers.

beech forest

Just had a walk that passed through forest, farm fields and rivers, nice walk, but sad to see the rivers level very high and all muddy. 

beech forest

Shad, 鰣魚, for 2 meals

shad

My fisherman caught a male shad in the river, a treat far better than the more famous salmon or trout.

Shad lives in the sea and comes to the river to spawn. It is an oil fish famous for having a lot of bones, which is why it is not popular (its good fate). The fish is also known for smelling bad very fast, so cannot be transported far away before cooking, another life saving point.

shad

The scale is left on, salt generously the outside and a little inside. Bake at 200˚C for 20 minutes (~1kg fish), rest with oven door ajar for another 10 minutes.

The skin is fried in its only oil and turned light golden, the oil shines under the skin and the flesh is soft and juicy. 

 

shad

Half is eaten over lunch, the flesh from the other side is removed and made into pate. Season with salt, pepper, lemon juice, olive oil, place in a jar with a thin layer of olive oil on the surface, to keep in good condition for the next meal.

A different flavor and still very good soft texture. 

Broad bean storage

Broad bean

Broad beans are growing well and I have been harvesting everyday since mid April, it is close to the end of its growing period, they are being attacked by aphids and have black spots on leaves due to the wet weather, there is very little I could do.

Broad bean blanched and frozen

By now the harvest is more than I could eat, and have to start storing them for later use.

Skin are peeled from bigger broad beans, stir-fried in oil and salt

Blanching in boiling water for a minute or cooked briefly in some oil and salt, help to denature enzyme that powers the decay process, even when being kept in the freezer.

Banana flower

Banana flower

It is easy to see banana trees growing well in warm corners of gardens in this part of France, but I have not seen any one flower yet. 

 

Banana flower

So it is with great happiness to see my banana tree, grown from a seedling, has been there in that south corner near a wall to keep warm for 4 years, develops the first flower, especially when this has been an exceptionally cold spring.

Restaurant Le Cordon Bleu, London

Restaurant Le Cordon Bleu, London

This is the chef teaching school, in the middle of London, and open to the public to have afternoon tea, simple lunch or dessert, inside or in the courtyard. Sort of a secret place, the food is always of good quality and well presented.

Parks in London

St James Park

Every time I come to London, I make an effort to wander in a couple of the many parks there.

St James Park

This time I not just walked in Green Park and St James Park, as the weather is really beautiful, sunny blue sky, I lied down on the grass like many other visitors, a memorable experience.

Design Museum

On the way to visit the new Design Museum, I walked through Holland Park, which to my amazement, is more like a mini forest then a park. There is more trees than lawn, unlike most other parks. 

Holland Park

Restaurant Core by Claire Smyth, London

amuse bouche-eel jelly, foie gras, pea gougere, duck wing

Another talented chef, using good ingredients coupled with excellent cooking skill, a meal for the eyes and palette.

However, just a little bit over the top with decoration, prefer more the style at Roganic. 

scallop

fish roes and potato

skate and shrimp

carrot and lamb

venison and bacon

apple mouse

wild strawberry & verveine

chocolate mouse tart, white & red wine jelly

Restaurant Roganic, London

amuse bouche - beetroot, raspberry, goat cheese

Using seasonal ingredients, all locally sourced, including items like elderberry and broad bean flowers, green strawberry etc, every dish is packed full of flavor, different textures and pleasing colours, this is a truly memorable tasting menu. All dishes were small, but enough to have a good taste and not over eaten at the end. 

trout eggs

squid ink and chicken

asparagus & smoked mustard

  

pea & ox tongue

raw mackerel & green strawberry

crispy chicken skin & crab meat

  

monk fish & seaweed mouse

lamb & zucchini mouose

dessert

 

Cooking dried zucchini

zucchini crisp

Zucchini that has been left (missed) to grow big is actually tastier then the usual small/medium size sold in shops. It is great to turn them into dried crisps, either eat as snack or to use in cooking. Once dried, zucchini crisp will not re-inflate in cooking to its previous self, but it is firm, has more texture and flavor.

dried zucchini with carrot, endive and semi-dried tomato

Cook garlic and carrot first, when garlic browned, add endive (or other veg), dried zucchini and semi-dried tomato, season with salt, pepper and curry powder, add a cup of water. Stir-fry until veg cooked and sauce thicken.

Roast pork with thyme

In the 5kg package of pork that I ordered a few times a year from the organic farm, there is this piece of rolled shoulder that needs a bit of advance preparation in order to cook it well. Roasting bring out the best of this cut, with the outside browned but the inside juicy tender. 

pork rolled shoulder

1. A day before cooking, season rolled shoulder with salt, 5 spices powder, white pepper and brown sugar (for flavor and to make the meat brown faster). 

seared pork rolled shoulder

2. Sear meat until all sides brown, place in baking dish with thyme below and above, some liqueur, soy sauce, half lemon juice and some brown sugar to make a rich sauce. 

Roast pork with thyme

3. Cover with baking paper and bake at 180˚, 15 minutes for every 1/2 kg plus 15 minutes more, then rest for another 15 minutes, for a just cooked result. 

Roast pork with thyme

Broad bean dishes

Broad bean

This year's broad bean harvest has been good, picking a basket everyday since a week ago. After simple stir-fry in olive oil and cooking in soup, I have to start coming up with different ways of cooking to make it interesting, as there will be many more broad bean meals to come.

Broad bean with goat cheese and rocket

 

Broad bean with goat cheese and rocket

1. Place broad bean in baking dish, add a cup of water, season with salt and pepper, bake at 200˚C for 10 minutes.

2. Add fresh goat cheese on top and bake for another 10 minutes.

3. Serve with rocket leaves for extra colour and flavor.

Broad bean with shitake mushroom

Broad bean with shitake mushroom

At medium heat, sweat thinly sliced onion until golden, add broad beans and shitake mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, stir-fry until beans are soft, around 10 minutes.