Alex's Tips - How to cook it
Our cook Alex is here to answer any questions you may have, to ask your question click here.
Q. I try to avoid wheat flour. Have you any tricks for avoiding it, e.g. recipes for using polenta in its place?
A. Often when we talk about a substitute for something, it is never as simple as adding one for one in the same quantities. For example I have sometimes been asked to use cornflour or rice flour in place of wheat flour but it never really works as they do quite different things and to be very honest they often work best in combination with wheat flour.
With all of this in mind it is hard to give a general answer. I have worked out a basic savory recipe that works well. Once you’ve got this basic recipe you can then add all sorts of other things to it.
See the full recipe here.
Q. Sometimes a recipe calls for dried pulses and I want to use tinned ones, or vice versa. How do I convert the quantities from one to the other?
A. It does vary from pulse to pulse, but as a general rule, the drained weight of a tin of a cooked pulse will be the equivalent to half its weight in an uncooked, dried pulse.
For example, if a recipe lists 100g of dried lentils you will need 200g of tinned cooked lentils. However, they are not always interchangeable as sometimes the point of using a dried pulse is that they soak up and become flavoured by the cooking liquor. Just as a related tip because I cook with our lentils all of the time, when I cook the dried lentils, I often cook the whole box and then freeze what I don’t eat for another day.
Q. Can you suggest a way of using porcini mushrooms with steak other than grilling or frying?
A. One very lovely way is to make a broth with a little beef stock, porcini, soy sauce ginger and garlic. You can then poach a mixture of one or more from carrots, leeks, turnips, spring onions, in the broth. Then finally poach your steak in the broth, making sure that the liquid never boils for roughly the time you would have fried the steak for to cook it to the degree you prefer. Lift out the steak, let it rest for a few minutes then serve with the broth and vegetables.
You can also make a broth with just porcini, water and a little salt. This you can use for poaching the steak instead of frying it to serve with vegetables and potatoes. You can then sauté the porcini with a little garlic and parsley to serve on top. The broth can be reduced to taste and then thickened with a touch of butter or dilute cornflour to make a sauce.
Q. Can you tell me how to make Mont Blanc? It is a desert my Mum used to make with chocolate and chestnuts. I want to make one that would keep (or freeze) for three days. The only recipe I can find says "it only lasts a few hours".
A. Mont Blanc is one of my wife’s favourite puds, I’ve not actually got a tested recipe but you can pretty much buy everything you need, prepare it all in advance (3 days fine for everything except the whipped cream) then just assemble it to serve.
For 8 you’ll need:
- 8 meringue nests
- 435g tin of Chestnut Puree whisked until smooth then sweetened to taste with icing sugar and the seeds of one vanilla pod. You can also add a touch of rum or brandy if you like. If it is too firm add a little cream
- 1 litre tub best quality vanilla ice cream
- About 400ml cream, whipped and lightly sweetened - you can also add vanilla seeds or extract to this (If you want to do this a long time in advance mix 1/2 cream and 1/2 mascarpone)
You then fill the meringue nests with the chestnut puree, top with the ice cream and then spoon the whipped cream over the top. I’ve not had it with chocolate, but feel free to grate some over the top or even better and easier, swirl over some of our Dulce de Leche Chocolate Toffee.
If you want to assemble these in advance and then put them in the freezer you can, but it would probably be more messy than just getting everything ready in advance and not as nice. However, if you really want to it is possible, you could also make one big one like a pavlova which would be easier to get into the freezer.
For an easier version just leave out the meringue and serve it all in knickerbocker glory glasses!!
Q. I have been given some superb small squashes, about five inches wide. How do I roast them, skins and all or just cut the inside out and use it?
A. You can actually do either, depending on what you want to use it for. If you roast the squash first of all with a bit of butter or oil and some salt and pepper, you can then a scoop out the flesh once it is cooked. Little ones like that will probably be ready in half an hour or so at 200c. They are lovely to stuff too, especially with pulses, I do a great mixture of Puy lentils, caramelised onions and mascarpone cheese. They are also great in a warm salad with rocket and chilli or roquito peppers and ricotta.
You can also peel and roast them. But rather than trying to cut out the flesh, peel it with a Y shaped vegetable peeler, I saw this on TV and it works a treat. You can then roast the squash in wedges. Or to try something different, grill them, then dress with olive oil and thick balsamic vinegar. It’s also lovely in cous cous with dried apricots, lemon and pine nuts.
That should get you started!
Q. I have just returned from a two week holiday in Scotland, and whilst there I was given a whole halibut. Of course, I had to freeze it whole to get it home (lack of sharp knives!), but can you please give me some ideas on cooking it either whole, or in fillets (tips please on filleting - it is quite a whopper!)
A. I love cooking flat fish whole, a rule of thumb is 15 minutes at 180c per 500g. In this case make sure it is sparkly clean before you cook it, with no traces of guts or gills. You then need to rest it for at least 10 minutes before serving. I would then go for either Mediterranean with polenta, peppers and a SunBlush tomato, lemon, basil and olive oil salsa, or with a lemon butter sauce, steamed potatoes and green beans. These will work if you cook it either way.
With regards to filleting, you need a sharp flexible knife. Cut down the centre from head to tail. Then press the knife against the bones working outwards. Sliding your knife down from top to tail each time. This is pretty much the same technique whether you do it with the raw fish or a cooked one. There is just one difference, with the raw fish, once you have taken the filets off the top, you flip the fish over and do the same thing with the filets underneath. With the cooked fish once you have slid the top filets off, all you need to do is lift out the skeleton from tail to head and it'll just fall away from the fish filets.
Q. Can I put Puy Lentils straight into soup once rinsed or do I have to cook them?
A. You don’t need to cook the lentils before you put them into soup, but they will need to be cooked once they are in there. A little tip to make your lentil soup creamy without adding cream, take a quarter of the cooked lentils and soup ingredients (except any meat you may have in there) puree them until smooth then stir into the remainder of the soup, then you have the best of both worlds; divine. I make a lovely Puy lentil, bacon and onion soup and I always make much more than I need and freeze some so I’ve got a bowl of comforting warmth when I fancy it but don’t fancy cooking.
Q. I have been given some beetroot from a neighbours allotment, and was wondering if once I have cooked them, is it possible to freeze them, as I would hate to waste them and have to throw them away please could you advise me thanks?
A. I am overrun with beetroot myself at the moment and that is exactly what I am going to do. I recommend that you cook them completely and then peel and slice or cut into wedges before freezing. This way they’ll be easier to store and once you defrost them they’ll be ready to use. This way you also get all the mess out of the way in one go! For a delightful salad that’ll perk you up all year round, try roasting some of the cooked beetroot for about 10 minutes at 200, just enough to caramelise the edges a bit. Then serve with SunBlush Tomatoes, or sun-dried tomatoes in oil, soft goat’s cheese and a splash of balsamic vinegar.
Q. How would you use Good King Henry?
A. I have to confess that I’ve never used it and I thought you were asking about the potatoes! But I’ve looked it up and it sounds like a handy and tasty plant so I’ll have so try and grow some next year. From what I understand you have to leave the plants to grow for a year before harvesting; then almost all of it can be eaten. From about April to June, you harvest the growing shoots to cook in the same way as asparagus. After June leave the shoots to develop, then you can eat the young leaves in salads. The flowers can be eaten too, a bit like sprouting broccoli. Then as the leaves get larger you can cook them as spinach. I like to wilt spinach, in a hot wok, with a clove of garlic cut in half and a splash of olive oil, to make it a little more exciting, stir in some chopped sun-dried tomatoes and olives, or a give it an Asian twist with some ginger, a splash of soy sauce and sesame oil. If you have too much Good King Henry and want to freeze some, cook it first. I did this with my excess Swiss Chard this year and it worked very well. I hope this helps, I’ll search some out and give it a try.
Q. I have heard that for best results you should boil sausages first before grilling or frying as it keeps them firm but tender? what is your advice?
A. You can do this but you should poach rather than boil the sausages as it is not so much the technique but the high temperature that makes them tough. If you imagine a sausage is your fist, clench it tightly and that is the tough sausage at too high a heat. Loosen it a little and that is a more tender sausage at a lower heat. So you can fry or grill at a slightly lower heat and get excellent results or poach and then fry or grill at a high heat just long enough to brown the skins. I would really recommend poaching them before a barbeque, this way they’re cooked through and kissed with the charcoal rather than burnt. I have just been working on a lovely dish with sausages poached with Puy lentils, red wine and garlic, we will be filming it in a couple of weeks to go on the website. So watch this space.
Q. How do I cook the perfect roast dinner – should the meat be covered?
A. Depends entirely on what you are roasting. The key to red meat is to make sure you allow plenty of time to rest it so that the heat gets to the centre and the meat is evenly roasted and moist all of the way through. This also means you aren’t in a rush to serve it the minute it comes from the oven. It is best not to cover a large roast joint at any stage as this will make the lovely crisp exterior go soft.
Q. How long do lentils need to be soaked for? Is overnight best?
A. Merchant Gourmet’s lentils do not need to be soaked at all, delicious and convenient, they’ve got it all. I really like just looking at them as well, but that’s just the way I am with my favourite ingredients.
Q. Can I re-hydrate dried mushrooms while cooking my risotto rice?
A. Yes, you can re-hydrate the mushrooms in rice, casseroles and stews as they cook, this also adds their intense flavour to the rice sauce or gravy. I like them in warm salad dressings with bits of bacon as well.
Q. What is the best way to cook a duck breast?
A. To get a perfect, crisp skinned and perfect pink duck breast, start skin side down in a cold, ovenproof pan. Then fry gently for 10 minutes over medium heat. After 10 minutes on top, drain the fat, (keep it for spuds and mushrooms) then put the pan in an oven at 200c/Fan 180c/Gas 6 for 8 minutes, still skin side down. Turn the oven off. Remove the breasts, roll in their roasting juices, lift them onto a rack over a plate and let them rest for 10 minutes, skin side up in the turned off oven with the door slightly open.
Q. I like to use my own pizza toppings, but how do I make a good pizza base?
A. I use my fougasse recipe from Cooking In Provence: 250g white flour, 8g (1 sachet) fast action yeast, 150ml lukewarm water, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 4g salt and 6g sugar. Just mix it all together, knead for 5 minutes. Leave to rest for 15 minutes so that you can roll it out easily, then roll out, add your toppings and bake.
Q. How can I make the best roast potatoes?
A. Pre-boil the potatoes, then drain and shake in a colander. Get them into hot dripping or goose/duck fat, roast and then eat as soon as they are crisp.
Q. I use polenta in my meals as it is gluten free, but how can I give it a bit more flavour?
A. Improve your polenta's flavour by adding grated Parmesan, fresh herbs, pesto or chopped sun dried tomatoes as it cooks. You can also make the polenta with stock instead of water.
