Freshly caught mackerel with golden beetroot

freshly caught mackerels

Fisherman caught mackerels, looked great with shinny skin and bright eyes.

I season them with salt, bake at 220˚C for 15 minutes, a simple way to enjoy the freshness.

 

Freshly caught mackerel with golden beetroot

Since I pulled out some golden beetroots as they are getting crowded, I cut the bulb into wedges and place them next to mackerel to benefit from the fish oil during cooking.  

golden beetroot

When the fish is out, I place the leaves (cut up into pieces) in a dish with a little water at the bottom. The residual heat is enough to cook the leaves, around 5 minutes.

Season with salt and olive oil, a good meal can be this easy. 

Squid noodle

squid noodle dish at restaurant

I was really interested in this dish at Restaurant Zuberoa, Oairtzun, Spain, pretty, tasty and such a WOW effect to find out what it is.

Found in fish market a big thick squid that is just right for the job. 

squid

Cutting squid into super thin slices is not an easy job, as it slides and moves. So have to hold the edge with the back of a heavy chopper, then using fish filleting knife, carefully cut off thin strips. 

squid cut into thin slices

squid cut into thin slices

The cooking must be fast, in small portions, in a simple broth season with salt, pepper and herbs. I found that cooking in boiling broth just a second is enough to curl up and tighten the squid noodle. 

squid slices cooked in boiling broth

So let the water cool to around 70˚C, then put small portion inside for 2-3 seconds is just right for a semi-cooked effect. The squid noodle stay straight, translucent and tender. Serve on its own and not in the broth to avoid overcooking, can add a drizzle of olive oil for a shinny look and fragrant. 

squid slice cooked in warm broth

This is another way to enjoy squid, slowly, for its texture and flavor, very presentable to serve in a dinner party. 

Fish of the season

Went to San Sebastian for a day out and come back with a few seasonal fish, the market there is wonderful, lots of choice.

Turbot

turbot before cooking

It is the easiest to cook, and for me, the most delicious of white flesh fish. 

turbot after baking

Simply season with salt on both sides of fish for half a day, bake at 200˚C for 12 minutes, rest with oven door ajar for 5 minutes (for a 1kg fish).

Anchovy

anchovy

This is the fattest I have ever seen, the store owner removes guts and back bones. I decided to have them semi raw, lovely firm and meaty. 

anchovy after removing gut, head and backbone

Season with salt and pepper for at least half a day, quick rinse with rice wine to remove the slight fishy smell, then quick rinse with lemon juice to sterilize the surfaces without cooking too much and leaving a sour taste. 

anchovy semi raw

Dry the fish, arrange on plate and drizzle olive oil on top before serving.

Little flat fish

little flat fish

A tiny flat fish, and according to store owner, this is their final size. 

little flat fish with head and skin removed

They cut the head off and pull away the black skin, really great service. 

fried little flat fish

Season with salt for at least half a day, shallow fry until golden, they are great with a glass of white wine.

Restaurant Zuberoa, Oiartzun, Spain

A satisfying experience at this one star restaurant, runs by the same family for 4 generations. 

The tasting menu is well executed in terms of flavor, colour, texture, cooking degree, and also the amount served. 

This last point is important, as some restaurants tend to serve just a tiny mouthful for each of the starters. Here there are a few mouthfuls for each dish for a good tasting, just right and not too full at the end of the meal.

crab meat and eggplant

scallop in citrus foam

green pea with pork chin fat

squid noodle with crispy onion

pea puree with foie gras and yolk

hake with crispy quinoa

roasted piegon

  

lamb chop

seasonal fresh fruits

Pruning apricot, again

apricot

This young tree is loaded with a lot of fruit this year, I removed a basket already in April to lighten its load, turned the fruits into Japanese style Ume (salted plum). 

split apricots

During the last 2 weeks of wet cold weather, the fruits drank too much water, swell up fast and split. So I have to painfully remove yet another basket of good size fruits, wish the sun comes soon to ripen them up.

Radish in Umeboshi fermented rice puree

radish

Pulled a few radishes, leaves look good, normally I will not use them as they are not juicy tender like other cooking green leaves. But after reading the Preserve the Japanese way book, I got the recipe for pickling the leaves in salt to wilt it, I decided to try it out, with my umeboshi with fermented rice puree.

Radish in Umeboshi fermented rice puree

Simply cut radish into pieces and leaves into suitable length, mix in umeboshi sauce, after half an hour the leaves will soften. A good dish for flavor, texture and colour, with the radish juicy crunchy and the leaves soft.

Radish and 苘蒿 in Umeboshi fermented rice puree

Can also mix in, just before serving, 苘蒿 or salad leaves to bulk up the dish and for a milder taste.

Citrus tree flowering and fruiting

In the sheltered courtyard, I kept a few pots of citrus trees that need to be protected during winter. I am very pleased to see, all of them, flowering and fruits forming now, fingers' crossed that the fruits will hang on, it will be many months before they reach maturity. 

Clementine

bergamot

 

lime

finger lime

kaffir lime

 

buddha's hand

Menton lemon

pomelo

 

Tree tomato from Ecuador

 

Tree tomato from Ecuador

Cherry harvest

 

Cherry harvest

In this super fruit year, I could harvest a bowl of cherries, the first since I planted the trees 7 years ago. There is obviously enough for the birds to eat that they can spare some for me.  

Spring green, Crown Daisy 苘蒿

Spring green, Crown Daisy 苘蒿

My first time to grow this Chinese vegetable, it has a special fragrance, a bit metallic and very nutritious. Sowed in early spring, super easy to germinate. 

When picked young, they are very crispy, excellent raw as salad to enjoy the crunch and flavor, equally good quickly dipped in broth for a slightly cooked version.

Tuna fish cake with kaffir lime leaves

Tuna fish cake

Another trial to make fish cake from tuna, this time I added yogurt to soften the texture, and add herbs for colour and flavor. The taste is very good especially after searing.

Tuna fish cake before steaming

1. Blend tuna with half its volume of yogurt, season with salt and white pepper. Add chopped chives and thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves.

2. Scoop fish paste into oiled dish, steam until cooked, around 15 minutes.

3. Sear both side golden brown.

Wild rose syrup

Rosa Rugosa

The small hedge of wild rose  (Rosa Rugosa) is producing a handful of petals everyday, they are very fragrant and should not be wasted. I have to think of different ways to use them, one of them is marinating in honey lemon to make rose syrup. When diluted with warm water, the smell of wild rose comes back to life. 

wild rose syrup

 

Half fill a jar with a mild tasting honey, dilute with juice of lemon to make it less thick. The acidity of lemon helps to draw colour out of rose petals, otherwise the syrup will not have the beautiful rosy hue. 

Wild rose syrup being boiled

Add petals in syrup, stir to mix well, keep in a cool dark place. When the jar is full, pour into a pan, bring to boil and cool down, sieve out rose petal.

Salted plum with fermented rice puree

I bought some salted plums (Umeboshi) when traveling in Japan earlier, unfortunately are really very salty and hard to use. So while making fermented rice, I thought of adding fermented rice to these salted plums, to add sweetness and bulk to form a puree. 

Salted plum with fermented rice puree

At the end I need to add a lot of fermented rice (3 times the volume of salted plum, to reduce the saltiness in order to use as a savory sour, umami pickling/seasoning ingredient.  

Salted plum, fermented rice puree with khol rabi and raddish

Then this salted plum with fermented rice puree is very easy to use, just mix with cut up vegetables, marinate for half an hour to soften, and is delicious to eat. 

Salted plum, fermented rice puree with fennel, raddish and Calendula petals