A taste of Japan

We both happened to have a day off today, and weren't quite sure what to do with it. We then discovered that today is Sea Day, a national holiday in Japan to give thanks to the ocean - and so what better occasion than to use that sushi kit we got for Christmas!

We used two cups of sushi rice to two cups of water, which was massively overcatering for two people - this would have fed four for lunch or 6-8 as a starter. Carefully rinsing the rice before cooking is really important, as is leaving the rice to steam with the heat turned off for at least ten minutes after 10-15 minutes cooking over a low flame.

We chose to use Earl Grey smoked sea trout for the fish option, and bought ourselves a great piece of rump steak from the lovely folks at Mr Pickles, which was seared for 7 seconds on each side before being left to cool in the freezer for one hour, which allowed it to be sliced perfectly thinly. We went for cucumber, red pepper, courgette and spring onions too, which were all carefully cut to a uniform size.

We made maki (traditional rolls where the filling and rice is wrapped in seaweed) in veggie, fish and meat options, as well as temaki (the cone-shaped pieces), nigiri (sliced meat or fish on a bed of seasoned rice) and California rolls (where the rice forms the outside of the sushi).

As total novices who had never made sushi before, and having read a number of instructions implying it's pretty tricky, we did not have high hopes for how our little rolls would turn out. Imagine our surprise when they looked more than passable!

Garnishes and seasoning were wasabi paste, a dressing made from soy and garlic sriracha hot sauce, and home-pickled ginger.

Alongside a dram of Nikka from the Barrel, I feel we successfully paid homage to a little slice of Japanese culture.

Kanpai!

J&L

French dip salt beef sandwich

As you may have noticed through many a previous post, I am a little bit of a fan of salt beef and pastrami, so when LoveSaltBeef asked me if I thought a variation on the classic French dip sandwich would work, there was only one thing for it: to the butchers!

Essentially a French dip sandwich comprises roast beef, with the bread dipped into a thin but delicious stock or gravy. The difference I took at this point is that instead of a plain stock I felt that the salted meat needed a bit of contrast in the form of mustard heat and a little hint of vinegar sourness.

While I won't go into the creation of salt beef this time (my recipes for which can be found here and here) I will instead show you my take on the gravy and construction of the sandwich.

This recipe makes two hearty sandwiches.

The gravy

1 medium onion
1/2 stick celery
Olive oil for frying
2 large teaspoons mustard (to taste - I used a wholegrain variety with chilli)
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
Half a pint of good quality beef stock

Fry off the onion and celery until they become limp on a low heat, then turn the heat up and add the mustard. Fry for about 30 seconds, or until the mustard burns the top of your nose, at which point add the vinegar and cook off some of the intensity, again for around another 30 seconds.

To this pungent blend add the stock and bring to a simmer for around 10 minutes. This will allow the vegetables to finish softening and will reduce the mixture slightly. During this time, slice the meat into thick juicy slices and add to the gravy for the last minute or so, with the heat turned low.

As the meat is slowly warming in the gravy, prep the bread. For this I used soft white breadcakes. This is where personal choice comes in, with the amount of liquid you want on your sandwich. Starting with a little dip of just the lid of the sandwich (my wife's choice) to the whole ensemble being served in a Turkish bath of steaming hot meat gravy. Or simply grab the full meaty arrangement in some tongs and plunge it into the pan of meat juices and serve.

As a Yorkshireman this combination of bread and gravy is perfection, normally reserved for the last wonderful moments on a Sunday roast, but which can now be appreciated in full blown sandwich form.

Enjoy,

Jim

Slow Beef Stroganoff

Traditionally, a stroganoff is a quick dish to make, however as most recipes advocate the use of fillet steak it is also quite expensive. Whilst this cut does have a lot of flavour, you can still get excellent results from a cheaper stewing steak, with just a little more patience.

Ingredients:
500g diced stewing beef
250g mushrooms
Vegetable oil (for frying)
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon tomato puree
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Pinch chilli powder (depending on tastes)
1 glass of red wine
500ml beef/chicken stock
125ml sour cream
Big splash of Henderson's Relish (or Lea and Perrins if you aren't lucky enough to live in Sheffield!)
Salt and pepper

Pre-heat your oven to 180°C and boil the kettle for stock.

The first thing to think about is achieving a tender meat, so firstly place the cubes of beef evenly across a plastic board. Cover with cling film, and using a rolling pin attack the meat with stress reliving whack after thwack, then dust the severely tenderised pieces in plain flour ready for browning.


Use a heavy set casserole dish to brown the meat, making sure you do this in batches as you want a good colour on the beef. The pan should be hot enough so that a good sizzle emanates from the beef but also not so hot that it burns. Remove the meat to a bowl, then on to the mushrooms. Chop them in half so that they are about a similar size to the pieces of meat.  Make sure the pan is still hot, so that the mushrooms brown without releasing their juices. The mushrooms will start to pick up some of the singed beefy bits off the bottom of the pan, and turn golden on their edges - at this point remove them and set aside with the meat.

Next, in the same pan, but on a slightly lower heat, fry the onion and garlic with a little oil and the tomato puree until softened, adding the spices around 5 minutes in.

When the onions are softened, add in all the the meat and mushies, stir and add a glass of red wine. Give the bottom of the pan a gentle scrape to release any meat relics left behind from the previous steps. Add enough stock to cover the meat and bring to the boil, then when everything is up to temperature put the whole lot in the oven for around 1 hour and 20 minutes (although you could leave even longer if you wish).

The meat will now be nice and tender. To finish, remove the meat and mushrooms from the pan and bring the sauce to the boil. As this begins to thicken, slowly add a paste of flour and hot water to the sauce and stir continually until the flour is integrated. Add the sour cream and reduce the heat then taste for seasoning, adding a splash of Henderson's Relish as well as salt and pepper.

Bring everything together and heat to a simmer. Serve with boiled rice and fresh chopped parsley.

This dish would also work well cooked the day before and reheated on the hob.

Enjoy,

Jim