Super Easy Overnight oats, make the perfect lazy breakfast. Packed with goodness they are one of the most versatile breakfast options around. Very little, is any cooking is required and the simplest versions can be made in minutes.
This Easy Thai Salmon Burger brings all the flavours of the east and marries them with the traditional burger, and a healthy one at that. We are using salmon instead of beef to produce a lighter version of a burger that is packed with flavour.
This Simple Duck Confit is both rustic and refined. The process of curing and cooking the meat in fat produces a flavour unobtainable buy any other method. And I love it! I’m serving the confit with a Lentil, Bacon, and Chestnuts Stew, a great winter warmer.
This method of cooking meat originated with the need to preserve meat before the days of refrigeration. The general method of cooking the meat is similar to Rillettes but in this case the meat is cured then cooked slowly in fat. The cooked meat would have then been stored in jars covered with the cooking fat to exclude the air. This would have allowed the meat to be kept for several months. Of course the whole portioned bird would have been cooked but to day as we have no need to store the meat its generally the legs which are cooked. The breast been fried or roasted. Cooking the meat in this way produces a flavour unobtainable by any other method. And the gentle cooking renders a tender moist meat falling off the bone.
Chop the juniper berries and garlic cloves and add to the salt. Coarsely crush the peppercorns and stir into the salt along with the thyme leaves.
Using a sharp knife, make a cut down to the bone around the ‘ankle’ of each leg and trim off any excess fat. Don’t throw the fat away we will add it to the cooking fat to gain flavour.
Place the legs skin side down in a glass or stainless steel shallow dish and sprinkle with the salt cure. Rub the slat well into the meat using all the cure. Cover the dish and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and a maximum of 12 hours for the flavours to penetrate the flesh.
Have a look at our Food Files page Astonishing Salt to get a better understanding on how salt works and how to use it.
Remove the legs from the dish, (some brine will have developed around the duck). Brush off the excess cure and rise under running water for 5 seconds, do not leave the legs sitting in water. Dab with a clean towel to remove any traces of moisture.
Set the legs into the casserole and pour the fat over, enough to cover the meat.
Add the thyme and bay leaf, then bruise the garlic with the back of a knife and add to the pan (do not season).
Bring the mixture up to almost a simmer, if the fat gets too hot the meat will start to fry and dry out. Place on the lid and cook in a very low oven for 2 to 3 hours. It’s very difficult to give an exact cooking time according to the thickness of the legs.
When the legs are cooked allow them to cool in the fat. When cool carefully lift the legs from the casserole onto a clean tray. Once completely cold cover and refrigerate until needed, )they should be good for about three to five days in the fridge.
Be sure to keep the cooking fat. Strain it into a heatproof bowl and cool completely. The fat can now be lifted from the meat jelly below and frozen until needed again. its also great for making the best roast potatoes possible. The jelly can also be frozen and used in making stews and sauces. Use it with care as it will be a little salty,
Heat the pan and add the oil. Tip the lardons into the pan and begin to fry. Don’t allow the pan to become too hot and burn the bacon. After 3 – 4 minutes reduce the heat slightly and add the shallots. Peel and slice the garlic and add to the shallots with the diced celery and carrot.
Cook carefully for another 3 minutes or so. Watch out you don’t burn the garlic as it’s a flavour that can’t be masked and will spoil the dish. If you are unlucky enough to burn it – start again, its not worth carrying on! Mix in the tomato puree followed by the stock, and sage, then bring to the simmer.
Rinse the lentils under running water checking from small stones. Add the lentils to the pan mixing well, don’t season yet. Bring the pan to a bear simmer, pop on the lid and cook for 40 minutes. Check the pan every 15 minutes stirring to avoid the lentils sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Turn on the oven and set it at 200˚c – 180˚c fan then remove the cooked duck from the fridge. The knuckle end of the leg should pull off easily due to the cut we made before cooking. This gives a clean end of bone which presents well.
Lay the legs skin side up on a tinfoil lined baking tray with a gap between them. Pop the legs into the oven and cook until heated through (83˚c if you’re using your probe thermometer) and the skin is golden and crispy. When ready brush with runny honey and keep warm
On your last check of the pan, slice the mushrooms and stir into the lentils with half the chopped parsley. When the lentils are cooked pull the pan to one side and heat four deep plates.
Remove the rosemary then ladle the stew between the plates. Place a duck leg on each plate and garnish with chopped parsley.
Enjoy life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
These Chocolate Custard Cookies are so easy to make, which is a good job as they don’t last long when people start tucking in. They are great just served as a cookie adults and children both love them.
This Thai Chicken and Prawn Soup for me sums up the joy of Thai cooking. Been both fresh and light yet with plenty of substance in the flavour department.
Making your own Exotic Flavoured Gin at Home. If you are a lover of long cool drinks, then this is for you. They are easy to make and all you really need is some space to store the gin while it is steeping and the patience not to get stuck in too quickly. I always fill some 250ml bottles to use as Christmas presents, always welcome gifts. If you are interested in Scottish Gin production look up the Scottish Gin Distillers Map. or our local distillery Pixel Spirits in Ballachulish.
This is another one of my late Summer /Autumn jobs to take advantage of the abundance of wild and cultivated fruit available. And don’t just stick to my suggestions, experiment by using different fruits and spices added to the spirit.
As for the gin itself, don’t use the very best as any subtle flavours will be masked by the fruit. But likewise, don’t use very cheap harsh gin, any middle of the road brand will do.
Quite simply the aim is to extract the flavour and juices of the fruit and flavourings into the base gin. Where you are dealing with a skin on the fruit such as sloes it is necessary to pierce the skin to allow the flavours to escape the fruit into the spirit. Make sure all the bottles and jars you use are clean and sterile. If you’re not sure how to do this look up our information on Home Preserving, The golden rules.
Sugar is normally added to sweeten the gin and counter any bitterness from the fruit. I like to use the sugar in some of my recipes to extract more flavour. By mixing the fruit with the sugar. Then leaving it to stand in the storage jar before adding the liquid natural curing will take place. The sugar will draw liquid from the fruit, and I believe produce more flavour.
The gin is now added to the fruit and sugar. Seal the jar and turn the jar back and forth three or four times to mix all the ingredients together. Don’t worry if all the sugar hasn’t dissolved it will in time. Every day for the next week, take the jar from the cupboard and turn it a couple of times to give it a mix. By the end of the week all the sugar should have disappeared. Don’t be tempted to mix the contents with a spoon as this will break up the fruit too much.
Leave the jars in a cool dark place for at least five weeks, I like to give mine about 8-9 weeks.
When ready we need to strain off the gin. The best way to do this is to use a double thickness of muslin cloth supported in a sieve. Gently decant the contents of the jar into the sieve and let the liquid drip down into a clean bowl. A gentil shake of the cloth from time to time will assist the liquid in draining through.
When recipes ask for muslin to be used to strain a liquid, they never explain how to use it. Well, here’s how. Always buy more muslin than you think you need and don’t cut it into small sections. Bear in mind that you may be using it doubled over and it has to line your container plus have plenty to work with as an overlap.
Now here’s the key. Don’t use the muslin from new. The weave of the cloth will be too coarse to be effective. Give the cloth a hot wash, followed by a tumble dry. This is the one instance in life where we want our cloth to shrink. This will not only clean the cloth but tighten up the weave giving better filtering of liquid passed through it.
When finished give the cloth a hot wash and dry completely before storing to use again.
Follow the process above, taking care to remove any mouldy fruit before you start. Leave the fruit and sugar to cure for 30 minutes then add the gin. I cheat a bit here and when straining the gin. I lightly press the fruit in the muslin. This gets very bit of fruit juice into the finished gin. Try this with Raspberries as well, great as a summer cooler.
Wash the rhubarb and thinly slice across the stalk. Add to a jar with the sliced ginger and sugar then add the gin. Then proceed as per the process above.
Wash the fruit then with the point of a small knife stab though the skin all over. Cut each plum in half and remove the stone. Mix the fruit ginger and sugar in a jar and leave 30 minutes before adding the gin.
A more complex slightly spiced gin.
Wash the fruit and stab each one about 15 to 20 times with the point of a small sharp knife.
Pack the fruit and flavourings into sterile preserving jar and add the sugar.
Give the jar a shake and leave to stand a couple of hours.
Add the gin, seal the lid then shake again to dissolve the sugar.
A real classic
This is one to make in front of the television. Wash the sloes then using a needle prick each fruit at least five times. Add the fruit to a jar with the sugar and shake well.
Leave the jar to stand for at least two hours before adding the gin then follow the standard procedure shown above.
Serve the gin with your favourite mixer, I tend to go for ether Tonic water or lemonade. Both the Sloe and Bramble gins are great served neat as a winter warning tipple. Although watch out, they are stronger than you think !!
No not at all, in fact freezing the fruit breaks down the cell structure releasing the flavours. You may find the gin has some sediment from the fruit, but this is easily filtered out before bottling.
As we have added fruit juices to the spirit. I like to look at a year as a maximum storage time. So, I’m making my gin now to drink next year. Kept longer than that you may find some change in colour, but is should still be drinkable. If you see and fermentation (bubbles) in the gin, don’t drink it!
Enjoy Life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Astonishing salt, no other ingredient I know has had a greater effect on cooking and the kitchen. We need it to live, but an excess is bad for us and may even kill us!
So why do we have a love affair with it? And what does it actually do? Read on and I’ll do my best to explain.
Baking your own Bread at home can be a puzzle, let us help you answer your questions. All you need to know to bake great bread at home is here.
8 Easy Summertime Fruit Drinks for all the family. If you are having a barbeque or just lying back enjoying the summer sun, there is nothing better than having a long cool drink on hand. Perhaps that’s going to be a glass or wine or cold beer. But that’s not suitable for the whole family (or the designated driver) So here is a selection of cooling drinks suitable for everybody. Of course, there is nothing to stop you adding a bit of the hard stuff….
These coolers are always popular with the children. They are also a great way of sneaking fresh fruit into their diet without a struggle.
Have a look below and choose for favourite flavour, or of course just try all of them
The only piece of special equipment you need is a blender. For the Mango, Peach, and Watermelon a hand blender will be enough. For the Raspberry and Pineapple versions a tabletop jug blender will be needed.
And what if you don’t own ether type? Try ether the Iced Fruit Tea, Elderflower, Apple and Mint Fizz, or Lemon Barley Water recipes.
Rather than add crystal sugar into the recipes I prefer to use a syrup base to provide the sweetness. Different flavours can be used in making the syrup. And many a Cocktail maker will have a more intense version on hand under the bar.
This is a staple ingredient of the pastry kitchen which can be made in different strengths according to needs. The basic syrup will keep for a couple of weeks, covered in a refrigerator. The lemon juice in the recipe adds a little flavour and prevents crystallization.
Pour the water into a saucepan and add the lemon juice. Bring to the simmer and as the water heats up stir in the sugar making sure it completely dissolves. Lift off any scum that forms on the surface of the syrup then transfer it into a suitable container and refrigerate as soon as cool enough.
The syrup can be made in different strengths according to use. However, a 50/50 blend is the best to work with.
Now I have wetted your appetite Have a look below and choose your favourite summer cooldown drink.
Enjoy Life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
This Elderflower, Apple, and Mint Fizz is the easiest of all our summertime drink recipes. No special equipment needed and only takes a couple of minutes to make. So, it’s a great standby if friends turn up unexpectedly and need a quick cooling drink.
Classic Fruity Iced Tea, the flavour of tea with a hint of citrus to cool you down. The infusion is made the day before, then allowed to chill overnight.
This Coconut and Pineapple Cooler works in a similar way to our Creamy Mango Milkshake. The sharpness of the Pineapple and lime is offset with the richness of the coconut milk and sweetness of the syrup.
We are using rich (full fat) coconut milk, so this is not exactly a diet option. But look on the bright side and focus on all that fresh fruit you are having……
Don’t try the recipe with the low fat (light) coconut milk, it will be disappointingly thin and sharp.
And don’t forget to look up our home page on Easy Summertime Coolers for more summertime drinks.
Firstly, make sure you have a ripe pineapple. if you are not sure if the pineapple on offer is ripe, give it a stiff. If you don’t get that sweet rich pineapple smell, it’s not ripe. However, you may not want to be seen sniffing a pineapple in the shop. No Problem, try pulling out one of the smaller leaves in the crown of the fruit. If it comes out easily it’s probably ok. Keep these leaves to garnish the glasses later.
Peel the pineapple, keeping back some slices to garnish the glasses. Cut the rest of the fruit into small chunks and place into the blender. Add the ice cubes then grate the zest of the limes over the top and squeeze out the juice.
Pour the coconut milk and syrup on top of the fruit and pop on the lid. Before you start the machine, it’s a good idea to place a tea towel and your hand on the lid.
Apply a little downward pressure as you start the machine. This will prevent the lid flying off and you wearing, rather than drinking the cooler.
Blend for a minute or two when you should have a thickened slush. Don’t worry if there are some small pieces of pineapple still showing.
It’s a a good idea to pass the blended cooler through a fine sieve. The fibre of the fruit will still be intact spoiling the smoothness of the drink. Use the back of a small ladle to rub the liquid through the sieve. This is the best way to get as much of the smooth liquid through the sieve as possible.
Pour into glasses and garnish with some thin slices of pineapple, one or two leaves from the crown and a sprig of mint.
Enjoy Life !
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Drinking Chilled Watermelon Lemonade brings back memories of sitting back in the sun, eating chilled watermelon slices.
As with most of these cooler recipes the base can be made in advance and finished later. We are adding soda water and stock syrup to the watermelon juice to add sweetness and fizz. If that’s not to your liking try using a good quality lemonade to mix with the watermelon juice.
This Easy Creamy Mango Milkshake is a guaranteed hit with the kids, and who doesn’t like a milkshake?