Friday, August 28, 2009

Celeriac- the cinderalla of vegetables

Photo: Marion van Dijk
It is hard to believe that something so gnarly looking can taste so good. Talk about being underrated. Celeriac has to be the ugly duckling of the vegetable world yet once prepared becomes a culinary swan.

It is a type of celery, as the name suggests, and in its growing phase it produces a fan of stalks and leaves similar to the celery plant; however it is the bulbous root of celeriac that is consumed.

The bulb normally grows between 10cm and 20cm in diameter and has a knobbly, warty exterior. The outer surface belies what you find inside. Peel off the skin and you find a white, slightly rubbery flesh (rather like parsnip) that is surprisingly low in starch content, about 5 per cent by weight. It is also low in calories and high in dietary fibre and contains Vitamin B6, C and K as well as potassium.

Celeriac is related to carrots, parsnips, anise and parsley and in fact tastes like a combination of celery and parsley with a hint of parsnip and anise as well.

It works well in dishes where you are looking for these aromatics and flavours. My NMIT chef colleague James Perry tells me that celeriac is delicious with truffles, or even truffle oil. So it partners well with earthy flavours.

It can be eaten either raw or cooked and is a common ingredient in the cuisine of Europe although not so familiar here. It is a feature right now on the supermarket shelf of Fresh Choice in Collingwood St, Nelson, or Richmond Fresh Choice, or available from the Nelson Saturday Market.

Organic grower Brent Ferretti of Grown in Hope supplies the Nelson region with his organic celeriac. For 18 years Brent has been a regular at the market and he likes to grow unusual vegetables to liven the imagination of our local population.

He says celeriac is available through the winter where many vegetables are scarce. His soil is so rich that celeriac grows boldly and reaches sizes much greater than the normal 10-20cm - a celeriac of 2kg is not uncommon. It retails for about $9 a kg.

You will usually see a 2kg celeriac cut in half so consumers can buy smaller quantities. I would say be bold and buy the whole thing. It will last in the fridge for several weeks and is extremely versatile in its uses.

To prepare the celeriac, first peel it (except when baking whole). Use a paring knife to get around the knobbly bits. A good tip is, prior to use, drop into some cold water with lemon juice to stop it from discolouring.
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Use celeriac in soups or stews, grate it in a salad and mix it with florence fennel. The two flavours are brilliant together.

It can be substituted for potatoes as french fries, it can be roasted like parsnips and alongside them as well. It can even be baked whole in its skin, before scooping out the flesh and enjoying it with butter and salt and pepper - a simple way to enjoy its rich taste.

My Swiss French chef friend Serge Crottaz introduced me to celeriac remoulade, a common dish from his homeland. Serge recently commented to me that when people try this celeriac dish they should try it just by itself, unadulterated - not as an adornment for another dish. He told me that when he first came to New Zealand he was surprised by how much we complicate our food and that we should enjoy simple dishes for what they are - so let me recommend that you try the following recipe in its virgin form.
Photo: Marion van Dijk
CELERIAC REMOULADE

1 egg

1 Tbsp vegetable oil (not olive oil as the taste is too strong try rice bran oil instead)

1 tsp French mustard

Another cup of the oil

Process the egg, mustard and tablespoon of oil until well combined then slowly add the cup of oil - very slowly at first, faster towards the end. Add the juice of a lemon and salt and pepper to taste. You can also make the mayonnaise by hand with a whisk. If you use this method use two egg yolks instead of a whole egg.

Then grate 500g of raw celeriac and toss through the mayonnaise. Serve on a brightly coloured plate.

CELERIAC MASH

500g of celeriac peeled and cut into chunks

Milk to cover the celeriac

2 bayleaves

2 Tbsp butter

Salt and pepper

Place the peeled and cubed celeriac in a pot and cover with milk. Add bay leaves and simmer until celeriac is tender - about 20-30 minutes. Pour off milk and reserve.

Mash the celeriac either by hand or in a food processor, using as much of the reserved milk as is required to make a smooth mash. Add butter, salt and pepper.

This mash can be served in any situation where you would have mashed potato. It is excellent with seafood and beef and lamb.

CELERIAC, PARSNIP, FENNEL, RED ONION AND POTATO SOUP500g of celeriac bulb

3 parsnips

1 fennel bulb

1 red onion

2 agria potatoes

3 Tbsp olive oil

6 cups chicken or vegetable stock

2 bay leaves

1 tsp fennel seeds

A handful italian parsley

Peel and chop all the vegetables. Heat the olive oil and toss in the fennel seeds and bay leaves, saute for a few minutes then add the vegetables and saute for about five minutes longer.

Pour in the stock and simmer, covered for about 30-40 minutes.

Remove the bay leaves. Puree the soup and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with chopped italian parsley and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

The king of fish


Photo: marion van Dijk
The glistening deep apricot flesh of fresh salmon adorns every fish vendor's window throughout New Zealand. Supply is constant and we take it for granted. Salmon must be the most universally recognised and appreciated fish, but it wasn't always the case.

Thirty years ago, before salmon farming began in New Zealand, you either saw salmon in a can or you may have been lucky enough to know a fisherman who fished the mouth of a braided river on the South Island's east coast and who might bring you a prize.

Salmon tastes good, looks good and is great for the brain, skin and eyes. In fact, it has remarkable health benefits. It is an excellent source of protein and vitamins as well. The best thing is that it is a natural source of omega 3 - so essential in the human diet - which protects us against heart disease and builds our natural immunity. We should eat fatty fish twice a week to get the fatty acids we need to be healthy, so bring salmon into your diet if isn't there already.

Salmon comes in different guises depending on the species. Most of the world's supply of salmon (two million tonnes, I am told by Don Everitt of NZ King Salmon) is farmed Atlantic salmon and the majority of farmed salmon originates in Chile and Norway.

The species farmed in New Zealand is a Pacific salmon, the chinook or king salmon to be precise. King salmon is rightly named, according to those in the know; words like bigger, worthier and tastier, sensuous even, are attributed to the king, while the Atlantic salmon is described as duller, gluggy and fatty. Don Everitt explains that with king salmon, the lipids (fats) are expressed as oils, resulting in a superior texture.

King salmon is farmed in a number of places in New Zealand, from small family businesses to the largest company in the country, which produces 7000 tonnes a year - 60 per cent of the worldwide supply of farmed king salmon. The company is right here at the top of the south: NZ King Salmon.

From its hatchery at Waikoropupu Springs in Golden Bay to the six sea farms in the Marlborough Sounds and the processing plant in Tahunanui, it is a true top of the south affair, making the most of our fabulous natural environment.

The purest waters of Waikoropupu Springs supply the hatchery, then the fish are moved to the ideal growing conditions of the Marlborough Sounds: clear water, clean environment, uncrowded sea cages, excellent water temperatures and water flow. All conditions to produce the best, most delectable salmon.
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You can be pretty sure that if you are buying fresh salmon in the Nelson Marlborough region, you are buying the product of NZ King Salmon.

Their fresh salmon retails under the brand name Regal and smoked salmon and other value-added products under the Seasmoke and Southern Ocean brands.

Salmon is equally delicious fresh or smoked and the options we have for smoked salmon products in our region are vast, including such delights as the fresh smoked salmon of Mapua Nature Smoke.

Salmon is delectable cooked in many ways - simply steaming it is a great option, or wrapping a whole fish in foil and baking in a slow oven until just cooked through.

Grilling or baking and cooking until just rare, glazed with the glaze of your choice, is hard to beat. (Look at the olive story published in June to see the delights of combining with Villa Grove Lime Oil).
Photo: Marion van Dijk

If you haven't tried raw salmon yet, as sashimi, you must. It is a great way to educate your palate to eat salmon rare and never commit the sin of overcooking it again.

I consulted my good friend John Moore, of Sail Nelson and Wakefield Quay House, the wisest fish man I know, about how he prepares sashimi and he provides the following advice.

When you choose a piece of salmon it must be as fresh as possible; the flesh should gleam and have no fish smell. The colour is important - look for a darker fillet.

John says this is the tastiest and he even prefers a piece of a fillet that is close to the belly because it has greater flavour and that is where the fat is stored.

Run your fingers from tail to head to check for pin bones and remove them with a pair of eyebrow tweezers.

Check to see if there is any dark red meat and remove it (this would be stored blood).

Then slice the fish against the grain into pieces about 2mm thick. The thickness is also a matter of taste but thicker is in vogue these days.

Enjoy the salmon with wasabi - the tube variety is stronger - and soy sauce.

Collingwood St Fresh Choice is stocking a sashimi soy that John says is the best.

BAKED MARINATED SALMON
Photo: Marion van Dijk
800g of fresh salmon fillet (feeds 4 allow about 200g of salmon per person)
Marinade:
1/4 cup of soy sauce
2 Tbsp mirin
2 Tbsp oyster sauce (see note about other options)

Marinate the fish for about an hour. You can substitute chilli sauce for oyster sauce and add 2 or 3 chopped kaffir lime leaves.
You can change the mirin for white wine or use lime juice instead.
If you want a Mediterranean flavour, use 1/4 cup of combined vincotta and balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp of Dijon mustard , 1 Tbsp of brown sugar and chopped tarragon.
Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for about 8-10 minutes. The fish should not be cooked through.
Serve with a salad of steamed broccoli that is still crunchy, roasted red pepper cut into strips, lots of fresh chopped coriander in a dressing of lime juice, lime oil, red pepper flakes and sea salt.
If you are making the Mediterranean version, make a dressing with balsamic vinegar and substitute fresh basil for the fresh coriander.

HOT SMOKED SALMON SALAD
Use a fresh local hot smoked salmon for this dish. Serves 4.
400g of hot smoked salmon
Six slices of haloumi cheese
1/2 cup of toasted slivered almonds
A mixture of rocket and cos lettuce leaves
Half a red onion, finely sliced
Fresh basil, roughly chopped
A little salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper

Slice the haloumi into thick slices and place on a roasting tray. Bake at 200C until they turn golden. Turn and repeat the process. Cool.
Roast the almonds in the hot oven until golden. Cool.
In a salad bowl, make a dressing of 3 Tbsp of olive oil to 1 Tbsp of tarragon wine vinegar. Add pepper and a tsp of sea salt.
Add the lettuce and rocket, broken-up pieces of smoked salmon, red onion, basil, almonds and haloumi cheese, each piece cut in half.

Glorious nuts

Photo: marion van Dijk
A pantry without nuts is like a fridge without white wine chilling. A pantry needs a range of nuts: almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts, walnuts, cashews, and pecans, for starters.

A small supply of each, frequently replenished, or nuts in their shells harvested from your own trees or from a local source you can trust.

The nuts must always be stored in a cool, dark place and, if shelled, in airtight containers.

Once shelled, they are best stored with their skins on. Unfortunately, nuts easily become rancid, particularly pecans and walnuts, so beware of any sold in packages with their skins removed and stored for any length of time.

There are a number of producers in the Nelson-Marlborough region, so with little effort you can find suppliers of almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pine nuts and more.

In culinary terms, a nut is a large oily kernel found in a shell. Normally, nuts come from trees, but peanuts, for instance, come from a legume.

What you might not know is that research in the 1990s clearly told us that nuts are incredibly good for us. A Californian study declared that those who eat nuts daily are 60 per cent less likely to have a heart attack than those who eat them less than once a month, and further research identified that regular nut-eating showed benefits relating to strokes, diabetes, dementia and gallstones.

The more often nuts are eaten the better, and it seems that nuts generally, rather than a specific variety, are the key, so try them all.

Nuts contain low levels of saturated fats and high levels of unsaturated fats, and they are also a good source of fibre, vitamin E, folic acid, copper and magnesium, and the best dietary source of manganese.

Toasting or roasting nuts brings out the essential oils and aromatics and makes them taste wonderful. Always toast them unless you are using them for baking. Place them in a roasting dish at 180 degrees Celsius for about 10 minutes (less for pine nuts - they are smaller and paler, so burn easily). When they turn golden, remove them from the oven and cool before using.

You can also slow-roast them, at 150C for about 25 minutes. Peanuts are particularly good prepared this way.

Some people dry roast nuts in a pan, but they toast less uniformly using this method.

Apparently, Kiwis do not consume as many nuts as they could, and although some people (between one in 100 and one in 200) are allergic to them, for the rest of us the culinary opportunities they offer are vast and splendid. We should be adventurous and try as many different nuts as possible in different combinations in different dishes.
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Try simple things like this:

* Mix in a food processor some hazelnuts, breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese, a clove or two of garlic, plenty of black pepper mixed with some local extra-virgin olive oil and use this as a topping for some baked fish like hoki. Smother the fish with the topping and then put in a hot oven for about 10 minutes. You can also use almonds or pine nuts and the taste will change - but equally delicious.

* Toast a few nuts and sprinkle them on top of vegetables or legumes. Try lentils with goat cheese, extra virgin olive oil and toasted pine nuts; mix toasted peanuts with a salad of red cabbage, celery and red onions; mix cashews and chicken, walnuts with celery and roasted red peppers, slivered almonds with beans or peas - the list goes on.

* Use ground almonds in cakes and biscuits - they produce a moist, delicious and gluten-free alternative to cooking with flour.

Nuts are not cheap: almonds retail for $27 a kilogram, hazelnuts for $32/kg, and pine nuts for a whopping $104/kg - no wonder when you realise how complex they are to harvest. Pine nuts are either from the European stone pine tree, Pinus pinea, or the Korean pine, Pinus koraiensis. The trees produce cones that contain the nuts. Each cone can hold 50 to 100 nuts and when they are ready the nuts fall from the cones. The shell is extremely tough and the nuts are extracted commercially by using rollers. It is labour intensive, hence the price.

To familiarise yourself with the unique tastes of each nut, make nut butter. You can use this recipe with any nut.

NUT BUTTER

1 cup of nuts, shelled and toasted
1 Tbsp of oil
1/2 tsp salt

Place the nuts in a food processor, or use a mortar and pestle. Grind for several minutes until they form a paste, then slowly add the oil while still grinding. Season with salt and store in the refrigerator. Use oil to match the nut - for instance, a delicate oil for a delicate nut.

Here is a recipe for romesco sauce that uses lots of nuts. I generally use hazelnuts, but you can alternate the nuts and hence the flavours will change.

In the middle of winter, this sauce can be used to liven up a drab day and can be used as an accompaniment with fish, meat or vegetable dishes. It is equally divine with any of them.

ROMESCO SAUCE

2 red peppers
2 red chillis
4 tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic
3/4 cup of toasted hazelnuts with the skins removed (see recipe)
1 1/2 cups of coriander or parsley
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Slice the tomatoes in half and slow roast them in a moderate oven (150C) until they are soft and tender - about 45 minutes.

Roast the hazelnuts in the oven with the tomatoes until they are golden. Cool and remove the skins by rubbing the nuts in your hands.

Roast the red peppers by placing directly over a gas flame until they are charred all over. Peel immediately in cold running water (some people like to put the peppers in a plastic bag for 10 minutes as an alternative method). Break apart and get rid of the seeds and membranes. Set aside.

Do the same with the chillis - char quickly as the skins are thinner than the red pepper and they will disintegrate easily.

Cook the garlic until golden in the olive oil. Cool the oil and garlic.

Combine all the ingredients with the herbs in a food processor. Add the oil and garlic and season to taste.

This is my all-time favourite cake and is loved by many people who have tried it. It ages really well if it ever gets the opportunity and is simple to make.

Photo: Marion van Dijk
LIL'S CHOCOLATE DATE AND ALMOND TORTE
250g of almonds
250g of dates, pitted and sliced
250g of good-dark cooking chocolate
125g of caster sugar
6-7 egg whites

Chop the dates, almonds and chocolate into small chunks and then food-process in batches. The mixture should not be over mixed, but should still have a slight texture.

Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks, adding the caster sugar. Fold the chocolate, date and almond mixture into the egg whites.

Fold into a 25cm springform pan that has been lined with two pieces of baking paper. Bake at 180C for 45 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave the cake in the oven until completely cold.

Serve the cake with lots of whipped cream piled on top, shave chocolate over the cream and top with some slivered, toasted almonds.