Fermented beetroot juice

 

I tried before to make the East European fermented beetroot juice, beet kvass, easy to make and the taste is fine, but there is a sliminess that is not pleasant.

 

This year the beetroot harvest has been good, and very sweet too, so need to find ways to use them up. With many other veg to eat, I thought of this fermented beetroot juice again.

 

This time, instead of just adding salt and water, I also added couple spoonful of honey to kick start fermentation. After a day or two at room temperature with small bubbles formed, I add raw cider vinegar to acidify the liquid. Then leave for another 2 days, and start drinking it, no sliminess, deep red liquid with a rich sweet sour flavor, it is amazing how much colour can be extracted from beetroot. 

Red yeast rice wine sauce

 

fermented red yeast rice in rice wine

blended red yeast rice wine sauce

一向都有發酵釀造米酒，煮餸醃肉可以用得爽手，香氣好又用得安心，且平易。

年中在亞洲超市買得紅麴米，切開米粒見紅到入心，不光在外頭，可安心用也。

查看資料試做紅酒糟，以同等份量，混入已經開始發酵的米粒一齊釀製。

存放六個月，顏色紅艷，酒香濃郁，把米粒打細成糊，就是紅酒糟。

即刻醃豬肉炒吃，色彩鮮艷有其風味，成功學做傳統醬料，好滿足。

 

 

Steak with rosemary fragrance

 

 

The rosemary bush is doing very well, so big that I have to prune it shorter. I think of how to use the herb, but actually find it hard to really get the flavor into meat by marinating.

While searing steak, I just put some branches of rosemary in the pan around the edge, to let it warm in the oil. Surprisingly there is a nice aroma of the herb in the steak, the most effective way to get the fragrance!  

Castleloch hike

 

終於下降至單位數字的溫度，過去多星期雲多晴空少，改為今天陽光普照大藍天，溫度低些完全不是問題。

穿上厚衣到湖畔樹林走走，－面走－面說今年氣溫暖和多了，到現在樹葉未全落光，且仍有不少綠葉。

回家查看照片，去年十－月中亦曾到這樹林走走，拍下的照片，差不多－模一樣，記憶何其不準確！

End of growing season

 

End of growing season

 

With cold weather on the way, harvested all veg from the outdoor beds. Laid compost on top, cover with straw, and a permeable cloth, to reduce water soaking in. 

Time for the soil to have a rest, done a good job this year.

French toast

 

French toast

French toast

 

Last Sunday morning, a bit gloomy outside, the thought of French toast came to mind. Very easy to prepare, just make a sandwich with nut butter in the middle, cut into 4 pieces. This will speed up the absorption of egg, and being smaller, easier to manage in frying pan. Served with butter and honey, they are hot and delicious.

Wild venison leg

Wild venison leg

 

A hunter friend gave us the thigh of wild deer, I separated into pieces of muscles, removing all tendons. Venison is very lean and have to be cooked very lightly, quick sear and long resting to get a tender juicy result. Have to said this is the most tender venison I have eaten.

 

1. Cut venison into 2cm slices, season with salt, black pepper, 5 spices powder, olive oil and brandy.

 

2. In a hot pan, sear venison with some finely cut ginger around, when both sides golden but still very soft in the middle, remove from heat, keep warm in the pan, turning over every minutes.

 

3. After 5 minutes, remove venison from pan, add a little water and soy sauce into remaining marinate, bring to boil in the pan and pour on top of venison.

Prawn with celery

 

Prawn with celery

 

Ordered live Connemara prawn and got invited for dinner, so decided to blanch cooked them, peel and keep to use the next day.

Quick sweat celery and mix in prawn to warm up, still firm sweet meat, with a bright celery fragrance.

Pork with young leek

 

Pork with young leek and black bean chili paste

 

Like the dark green and rich taste of young leek leaves, will use them up instead of letting them grow big. This pork dish with fermented black bean chili paste is easy to make and very tasty.

 

1. Cut pork shoulder into pieces, season with salt, rice wine, black pepper, 5 spices powder, olive oil and a little cornstarch.

 

2. Cut young leek into pieces, sweat until soft, put aside and sear pork until golden both sides.

 

3. Add black bean chili paste and mix pork with leek.

Pumpkin flour

 

meshed cooked pumpkin Crown Prince

Pumpkin flour

Pumpkin flour

 

After giving away a number of them, still have quite a lot to use up or to store. Other than baked and store in freezer, found another way to preserve pumpkin, dry into flour. Far less volume, 1 big Crown Prince turned into a small jar of flour. It can be used in soup, or mix with other flour when making dessert or bread.

1. Baked pumpkin until soft, mesh up very well.

2. Spread on drier shelves, dry at 55˚C, around 10 hours. Use a blender to break the bigger lumps.

Fresh ginger pickle in honey

 

Fresh ginger pickle in honey

home grown ginger

 

Planted 2 pieces of ginger in April inside green house, grew slowly into a few tall leaves. When leaves turned yellow I dug out the harvest, not a lot, but still good to know that it can be grown.

 

To enjoy the not that spicy and not that fibrous fresh ginger, decided to pickle in honey. I can use the sweetened ginger in baking, or as snack, and have ginger syrup to use.

Pumpkin sticky rice dumpling

 最新廚具玩意，Bruno cookware, 靚且方便好用。最近做南瓜糯米黑芝麻餡湯圓，用小丸子鍋炸至金黃香脆，不用開一大鑊油，好快煮好，只做幾隻都好方便。

 

 

Razor clam with young leek

Planted a lot of leek seedlings and they are now medium size like scallion with thicker leaves. The dark green leaves are very tasty after cooking, like it better than the fat white part when fully grown. Anyway take too long to grow to that fat size, and in the mean time, nice to have tasty dark green leaves to eat. 

 

Razor clam with young leek

1. Quick blanch razor clam, remove from shell and cut away sac of sand.

2. Cut young leeks into pieces, sweat slowly in olive oil until soft, move to edge of the pan

3. In medium high heat, place razor clams in the middle of pan, sear to warm up, mix with leek.

Tagliatelle with surf clam and scallion

 

 

surf clam

Blanched Irish surf clams, homemade tagliatelle, home grown scallion, and freshly pressed Croatian olive oil, great combination.

Oyster and Tavel Rose

 

 

又到吃蠔的季節，這是東北岸Carlingford 湖的養殖蠔，貼鄰海洋，每天有潮水漲退出入，蠔的食糧充足，水也清潔，是本地的上等產地之一。

配 Tavel Rose wine, 剛從法國超市找到的好酒，味道充足，相信是近年陽光猛，法國的白酒和玫瑰酒也開始見到有十四度酒精（一般是十二度左右），知道葡萄在充足陽光下成熟，味道才能如此，且用有機方法種植，喝得安樂，歐羅單位數字一瓶，物有所值！

Many ways to enjoy Pumpkin

 

pumpkin Baby Bear

Pumpkin Crown Prince after baking and removing skin

Pumpkin Crown Prince after baking

Pumpkin Crown Prince after baking

 

Very good harvest of pumpkin means a lot to eat, so have been busy preparing pumpkin dishes. The small orange red one is Baby Bear, good yield, 5 per plants, mild sweet taste and not enough floury. The bigger one is Crown Prince, first time to grow this pumpkin, 1-2 per plant,  sweet, nutty floury, very good quality.

 

I like to cut pumpkin into halves, scrape seeds away, cut side down and bake at 180˚ C until soft, around 45 minutes depending on size. Very easy to remove skin when cold, keep in the fridge ready to use.

 

pumpkin chorizo basil stew

pumpkin mesh

pumpkin soup

Turn into pumpkin soup, or seasoned as mesh, cut in cubes season with vinaigrette as salad, cook with pepper, chorizo and basil as hot dish, add egg and flour to make pancake, add sticky rice flour to make dumplings. 

 

pumpkin pancake

pumpkin with black sesame dumpling, before cooking

pumpkin with black sesame dumpling, deep fried in Bruno

pumpkin with black sesame dumpling, deep fried in Bruno