Chimichurri

Following on from my previous post, I thought I’d write about Chimichurri.
Chimichurri is the condiment that is traditionally served with beef asado and chorizo in Argentina and Uruguay. Sometimes it is used to marinate pork and chicken before grilling, but it is more commonly used as a condiment for barbequed meats.

The closest equivalent to Chimichurri that I can think of is Italy’s Salsa Verde. The proportions are slightly different however. Chimichurri is more assertive than Salsa Verde, the vinegar dominating somewhat, which is important as many of the traditional meats used for asado are rather fatty. The sharpness of Chimichurri balances the greasiness of the barbequed meat and chorizo.
I use a Spanish sherry vinegar- it is incredibly sharp and does the job superbly. You can use red wine vinegar but you will need to adjust the quantities to get the right balance of flavours. Garlic is crucial too, but I use less than my grandmother or mother would both use. I’m not particularly fond of raw garlic. I can think of many other things I would rather smell of (Chanel, Dior or Gaultier). But by all means, if you like garlic odours seeping from your bodily pores, add as much as you like! At least you will keep the vampires from attacking during the night…

Components
250ml extra virgin olive oil (use a soft grassy oil, rather than an assertive peppery oil)
60ml Spanish sherry vinegar (more or less)
60ml water
1 tsp Spanish paprika (sweet, not smoked)
1 tsp ground cumin
A pinch ground chili
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 tsp dried Greek oregano
1 large bunch parsley, leaves only, finely chopped
1 tsp sugar
Sea salt
Fresh black and white pepper

Process
Combine all the ingredients.

Check the flavours, adding more vinegar, garlic etc to suit your palate.
Allow to sit for at least an hour to allow the flavours to blend.

Chimichurri keeps well, refrigerated, stored in a glass jar. Just remember to shake the mixture before serving, as it has a tendency to separate upon standing. Chimichurri is best at room temperature before serving.

Rabbit Escabeche

My grandmother recently sent me a handwritten notebook containing family recipes. One of the recipes in that book was for Rabbit Escabeche. For those who don’t know, escabeche is chicken or rabbit (or fish) braised in vinegar and served at room temperature. It is one of those old dishes from when refrigerators did not exist, and people had clever ways of preparing food to keep for later.
Strictly speaking this is not an escabeche, but the flavours comes close. I have played around with the original recipe slightly (I hope my grandmother doesn’t mind). I have kept the aromatics whole, whereas my grandmother cuts them into julienne. I have also changed the cooking technique; my grandmother does the whole thing over the stove, I slow cook mine in a covered dish in the oven. Obviously the stovetop version is quicker but I’m keeping that to do with boneless chicken thighs for a speedy, summer meal.
I must say I am extremely fussy when it comes to vinegar. Vinegars are not all the same, and the only way to find a good one is by trial and error. I’d heard people rave about a certain Spanish wine vinegar, which I reluctantly tried, thinking to myself that it was rather expensive for vinegar. Up until then I’d thought all vinegars where the same, but I now know better, and I now have 13 types of vinegar sitting in the pantry.
The accompanying rice dish is one from Chile. My mother had many Chilean girlfriends when I was a small boy. They were always popping around to have a chat in their native language Spanish. This particular dish was introduced to my mother’s repertoire by one of those friends, and I find it addictive. It is a very simple dish- white rice infused with garlic and green peppers, all cooked in the rice cooker. So simple, but so good. I had become nostalgic when I read about the recipe on Vida's blog the other day, and I just had to make it that night to serve with my braised rabbit.

Components
4 rabbit legs
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
2 carrots, peeled and cut in two pieces.
1 brown onion, peeled and quartered
50ml excellent red wine
50ml excellent white wine vinegar.
1 tsp sugar
Extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
4 small fresh bay leaves

For the rice
1 cup white, long grain rice
Sea salt
1 garlic clove, crushed but whole
1 green pepper, cut into large chunks
Extra virgin olive oil

Process
Heat the oven to 150c.
Season the rabbit legs with salt and pepper.
Place the rabbit pieces, carrots and onion into a small ceramic baking dish with a lid.
Pour over the wine vinegars and sugar.
Top each rabbit piece with a bay leaf and a piece of garlic. All should be in one layer and fit rather tightly.
Drizzle over a generous amount of olive oil. The oil will help balance the vinegar, and it will lubricate the lean rabbit.
Cover the dish with the lid and place in the oven for about 2 hours, or until the rabbit is tender and lightly golden.
Discard the onion and garlic. Allow to cool in the dish.
Rinse the rice until the water is clear(ish) and place it in the rice cooker.
Add an equal amount of water and a drizzle of oil. Season with salt.
Lay the garlic clove and green pepper pieces on the rice- they should sit on the rice and infuse it with their fragrance as it cooks.
Serve the rabbit and the carrots at room temperature, accompanied by the warm rice and green peppers. Serves 4.

Honey and Mustard Fruits

I don’t very often make my own preserves and pickles. However once in a blue moon, I don’t mind. Amusement more than anything is usually the reason, as opposed to abundance of an ingredient, which was the motivation for making such concoctions in past times.
This one is based on Italy’s famous “mustard fruits” and I found the recipe in Stephanie Alexander’s multi-coloured striped cookery bible: "The Cook's Companion".
The flavour and texture are different to the commercially available product. It’s a pleasant balance of sweet, sour and pungent components.
I know it is probably the wrong time of year to be posting this recipe (late winter here in Australia). I had actually made this a few months ago, and I had forgotten all about it. Readers in the northern hemisphere may find it of use though. Better late than never.
This bizarre condiment goes well with roasted game meats, pork, and sausages. It is also a good accompaniment to a simple and lovely boiled dinner.

Components
130g dried apricots
130g dried figs
1 cup honey
250ml mild white wine vinegar
1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp mustard powder
½ tsp salt

Process
Cover both fruits with boiling water. Allow to soften and cool for 1 hour. Strain the water from the fruits and keep 60ml. Discard the remaining liquid.
Place the honey, vinegar, mustard, salt and reserved liquid into a saucepan. Simmer gently for 5 minutes.
Add the fruits, cover and simmer until the fruits are soft, about 15 minutes.
Ladle into a hot sterilized jar and store in a cool and dark cupboard.
Leave it for a few weeks for the flavours to infuse and develop. Refrigerate after opening.

Wild Rabbit Braised with Vinegar and Thyme

Do you ever have days when you simply do not have any idea what you wish to cook or eat? Yesterday was one of those days for me. As I wondered the market place rather aimlessly, I finally decided on rabbit legs, to braise slowly. And when I say rabbit, I mean “wild” rabbit. Oh how I adore wild game meat! And of course winter is the perfect time for all things wild of the culinary nature.
Now wild rabbit isn’t exactly what I would describe as tender meat. The farmed variety is, but not its wild relative. However where it lacks in tenderness, it makes up for in flavour. People, I think, are too obsessed with having tender meat all the time- boring veal and intensely farmed chicken. Leave those meats to infants and the geriatrics! I don’t mind meat to be on the firm side as long as it has a good flavour. Of course, I don’t want to eat meat with the texture of leather boots, but a little chew factor I am absolutely fine with. After all, that’s why God gave us teeth. Use them!

Ingredients
700g wild rabbit legs, back only
20g unsalted cultured butter
20 duck fat
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp fresh chopped thyme
1 tbsp brown sugar
50ml vinegar (I used balsamic)
Rich brown stock- 1 or 2 ladles
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper

Method
Ask the butcher nicely, to cut each leg in two pieces.
Rinse the rabbit and pat dry.
Melt the butter and duck fat over a medium heat and sear the pieces of rabbit, until lightly golden.
Add the garlic cloves, thyme and sugar.
Splash in the vinegar and a ladle of stock.
Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and braise very slowly for 1 hour. Check from time to time the juices are not drying out. Add a ladle of stock if need be.
At the end of the hour the rabbit will be well done, but still firm. This is the nature of the beast.
Check the seasoning and enjoy it with parsnip puree to which you have added sour cream and nutmeg.
Serves 2 on a cold winters night.

Figs, Balsamic, and Parmesan Oil

As today is Valentines Day, I thought a recipe starring figs would be appropriate. Perhaps I have a naughty mind, but I can’t help to think of Adam and Eve, frolicking in the Garden of Eden, wearing nothing but fig leaves.
Biblical banter aside, there is something definitely erotic about figs (in the culinary sense, please!) I love how the soft flesh and sticky seeds combines with fragrant and sweet “Aceto Balsamico”. Serve this simple dish with a plate of fresh goats cheese, thin slices of prosciutto, and crusty bread. A bottle of Pinot noir will complete this gastronomic love affair.
For anyone out there who has found themselves dateless tonight, do yourself a favour- prepare yourself this meal and all feelings of desperation will vanish. The flavours are so divine, you will forget all about your broken heart. I promise. And if that doesn’t satisfy you, then drink the wine until you pass out….

Ingredients
Black figs
Aged Balsamic vinegar (see note below)
Parmesan oil (see note below)
Fresh black pepper

Method
Choose figs which are soft, but not mushy.
Slice them in half and arrange attractively on a plate.
Drizzle over with parmesan oil. Spoon over balsamic vinegar, making sure you get some of the fragrant vinegar in the centre of each fig.
Grind over some pepper and serve immediately. Accompany with a fresh goats cheese and a plate of prosciutto

Note- True Aceto Balsamico is expensive and by Italian law must carry a stamp of approval from the “consorzio”. Prices can fetch up to almost $500 for a bottle aged 100 years. I have tasted such vinegars and the complex flavours bear little resemblance to those vinegars which are sold in supermarkets. I use the authentic product for uncooked dishes and the fake version for cooking. I realize most people would not be able to afford such a luxury condiment, so here is a little trick I learned a few years ago. Dissolve equal amounts of supermarket balsamic with sticky brown sugar. The sugar will add complexity and viscosity to what would otherwise be a flat and lacklustre vinegar.
To make Parmesan oil, steep the rinds of Parmagiano Reggiano in extra virgin olive oil(I cannot bear to throw out any part of this cheese, it is too expensive!) The cheese will scent the oil delicately and it is wonderful to drizzle over finished dishes. If you cannot be bothered with this step, substitute with plain extra virgin olive oil.

Pork Sausages with Cider Vinegar and Herbs

As you might have guessed from earlier posts, I love discovering and using fine ingredients. I am currently obsessed with vinegar. Vinegar should provide acidity as well as flavour, and my favourite at the moment is an apple cider vinegar from Limoges, France. It is clean, sharp and fruity. This particular vinegar is beautifully balanced and compliments the richnes of pork.
I used an Italian style sausage for this recipe. My butcher sells them under the name of Sicilian sausage. These pork sausages are dense, coarse and flavoured with garlic, peppercorns and fennel seeds. Duck or a Tolouse style sausage would make an excellent alternative. Avoid those sausages with funny names, like whiskey & fennel, or teriyaki & pineapple (do people actually eat these?), or with strange fillers and dubious extenders.

Ingredients
500g Italian sausages with fennel seeds (6 sausages)
1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh sage
4 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
75ml extra virgin olive oil
25ml cider vinegar
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper
Fresh white pepper

Preheat the oven to 200c. Prick the sausages all over with a sharp implement, so they don’t explode whilst cooking. Roast them for about 45 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
Mix together all the remaining ingredients to form a condiment. Serve with the sausages, either drizzled over or on the side. A very easy and comforting dinner. Serves 2.
Note- New potatoes and baby onions make a wonderful addition roasted along with the sausages. Have lots of bread to mop up the sticky juices left over in the roasting pan!