Author: PK

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  Pancetta

  Pancetta is a cured meat product made from the pork belly cut. It is produced in two forms, rolled or flat. Bacon can also be made from this cut so what is the difference between pancetta and bacon?

  

  Bacon is salt cured (by brining) and then smoked to preserve it. Pancetta is cured using salt, pepper and sugar and then hung to dry. If it is smoked it is only lightly done and for flavour only.

  Preserving meat via various curing techniques was the only way before refrigeration to extend the times of year that meat was available.

  It is perfect in pasta dishes, pizza, salads, tasting plates and the list goes on. You just need to remove the rind and cut it to size.  It is chewier than bacon and although salty, you can taste the herbs and spices the manufacturer used. There are some with a hefty pepper and chilli punch.

  

  Pancetta is a must have Italian cooking ingredient and as such I have started making my own using a ‘River Cottage‘ recipe. It is early days but I will post how it turns out soon though. 🙂

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more posts about salumi and Italian cusine:

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  October 17, 2019

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  Pasta: Maccheroni, Macaroni

  Macaroni is a short, hollow pasta shape. The curved version is also know as elbow pasta outside Italy. It is great in soups, salads and pairs well with both heavy and light sauces.

  It is primarily sold dried (pasta secca) but I like to make it using my Philips Pasta And Noodle Maker.

  

  Like most people, I love ‘mac and cheese’ and you can see my recipe here.

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more pasta shape and pasta recipe posts. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  October 4, 2019

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  Pasta: Penne

  Penne, Italian for pens, is a relatively new pasta shape but is popular world-wide. They are tubular in shape and hold sauce like no other. 

  It is primarily sold dried (pasta secca) and available everywhere.

  

  Here I am making Penne al Baffo. It is a saucy delight of cream and tomato paste.

  

  

  Enjoy and sorry if it gets in your moustache (hehehehe),

  PK

  Here are some more pasta shape and pasta recipe posts. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  September 24, 2019

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  Pasta: Conchigliette, Conchiglie and Conchiglioni

  I find conchigliette (aka small shell pasta) perfect for thin sauces/emulsions, soups and salads. This includes light meat sauces such as the slow cooked lamb shank and vegetable broth I show below.

  Their ridges and shell shape grip and hold the sauce for that perfect mouthful. 

  The next size up is called conchiglie and is great for heavier sauces.

  Last but not least, the jumbo shells are called Conchiglioni and are perfect for stuffing with vegetables, cheese and meats. 

  Dried conchigliette:

  

  Here I have served the shells with a a light lamb shank broth, shaved Parmesan and sage: 

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more pasta shape and pasta recipe posts. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  September 19, 2019

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  Ham Hock And Cabbage Soup Pressure Cooker

  I recently posted a slow cooker version of this ham and cabbage soup. It takes about 6 hours but it is well worth the wait. 

  If you don’t have that long or like me you have gone a bit ‘pressure cooker mad’, you might want to try this version. Once the cooker is up to pressure it takes just 20 minutes.

  

  Steps

  1. Preparing the vegetables
  2. Pressure cooking (20 mins)
  3. Pulling the ham
  4. Serving

  Equipment

  • 1 chefs knife
  • 1 vegetable peeler
  • 1 pressure cooker

  Ingredients

  • 1 ham hock
  • 1 brown onion, diced
  • 1 carrot, sliced
  • 3 celery stalks, diced
  • A handful of celery leaves, torn
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium cabbage, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
  • 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock (or less if your pressure cooker is smaller)
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

  Preparing the vegetables

  This is always the fun bit for me. 🙂

  Prepare the following ingredients and add them to the pressure cooker: 

  • 1 brown onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 3 celery stalks
  • A handful of celery leaves
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium cabbage
  • 2 garlic cloves

  Just look at the colours:

  

  

  Add the 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock and pop the ham hock on top.

  Note: check your pressure cooker can handle that much liquid. 

  

  Pressure cooking (~20 mins)

  Put on the lid and set your pressure cooker to 20 minutes. Let the pressure dissipate passively if you have the time.

  

  Pulling the ham

  By now the meat should be falling off the bone. Pull the whole hock out in one go, if you can, to avoid losing any small bits of bone in the soup.

  Pull and chop the ham and add it back to the soup. Mix everything gently then add pepper and salt to taste.

  

  Serving

  Serve piping hot with garnish of choice and perhaps some crusty bread.

  

  This soup freezes well and I take it to work for the perfect snack or lunch.

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are a few soup posts and I thought you might like to see a few pork posts too. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  September 14, 2019

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  Ham Hock And Cabbage Soup Slow Cooker

  I love a ham hock soup and growing up, Pea And Ham Soup was a regular treat.

  Did you know you can make a mean ham soup using cabbage instead of split peas? I have been making it this winter and wanted to share the recipe with you. 

  I have a pressure cooker variant but here I present the slow cooker version that you can start in the morning for dinner (6 to 8 hrs on low).  

  

  Steps

  1. Preparing the vegetables
  2. Slow cooking (~6hrs)
  3. Pulling the ham
  4. Serving

  Equipment

  • 1 chefs knife
  • 1 vegetable peeler
  • 1 slow cooker

  Ingredients

  • 1 ham hock
  • 1 brown onion, diced
  • 1 carrot, sliced
  • 3 celery stalks, diced
  • A handful of celery leaves, torn
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium cabbage, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
  • 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

  Preparing the vegetables

  This is always the fun bit for me. 🙂

  Prepare the following ingredients and add them to the slowcooker: 

  • 1 brown onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 3 celery stalks
  • A handful of celery leaves
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium cabbage
  • 2 garlic cloves

  Add the 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock and pop the ham hock on top.

  

  Slow cooking (~6hrs)

  Put on the lid and then cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

  

  Pulling the ham

  By now the meat should be falling off the bone. Pull the whole hock out in one go, if you can, to avoid losing any small bits of bone in the soup.

  Pull and chop the ham and add it back to the soup. Mix everything gently then add pepper and salt to taste.

  

  Serving

  Serve piping hot with garnish of choice and perhaps some crusty bread.

  

  This soup freezes well and I take it to work for the perfect snack or lunch.

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are a few soup posts and I thought you might like to see a few pork posts too. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  September 1, 2019

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  Welchy’s Chicken Wontons

  Last night I made wontons using Welchy’s Wontons step by step guide. 

  They turned out amazing and are so much fun to make.  

  Whilst I used her recipe, I doubled the amount of mince and used chicken instead of pork. I got 40 wontons instead of 20 due to the extra mince. We ate 20 that night and froze the rest.

  Steps

  

  Spoon a small amount into the centre of each wonton, wet the edges with water and fold into a triangle.

  

  Press down on the edge of the triangle to get a good seal.

  Serving

  Like Welchy, we had some with the broth they were cooked in but I couldn’t resist frying some of them too.

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are a few soup ideas and Asian dishes for you. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  August 15, 2019

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  The Weber Trivet Turns Your Weber Q Into An Oven

  I have a Weber Q 2000 and it is the best gas BBQ I have ever owned. 

  Did you know you can transform your Weber 1000, 2000 or 3000 into a roasting oven? I highly recommend the Weber Q Roasting Pack (not a paid recommendation).

  

  The pack contains two foil convections trays and a stainless steel trivet. 

  The weber website shows you how to make your own trays using aluminium foil but the ones in the pack have little flaps that help you position the tray for the best drainage of fat and air circulation. 

  

  

  You then place the trivet (there are three sizes so make sure you get the one that matches your Weber Q) on the foil tray.

  

  My test roast was a harissa and garlic crusted Australian lamb rack. I think it turned out pretty well. 🙂

  

  

  

  Clean up was a dream as the trivet is stainless steel and just needed a wipe down with a soapy sponge. 

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some equipment reviews and posts about roasting meat and vegetables for you.

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  August 10, 2019

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  Harissa Spice Blend

  Harissa is a spice blend of Moroccan origin. Generally, it features cumin, chilli, salt, ground coriander seeds, garlic, paprika and caraway seeds.  

  

  This warm, earthy tasting blend is perfect for rubbing on any meat and making marinades.

  Here is an example straight from my BBQ. Lamb rack rubbed in harissa and garlic.

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more ingredient and moroccan posts for you.

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  August 6, 2019

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  Thai Red Curry Beef In Your Pressure Cooker

  I recently bought my first pressure cooker (the Phillips Slow Fast Cooker) and it came with an amazing cookbook. This is their Thai red curry with beef and pumpkin adapted to use potatoes. 

  

  INGREDIENTS

  • 1 to 1.5kg beef chuck steak, cubed
  • Plain flour to coat beef cubes
  • A good slug of peanut oil
  • 1/2 cup red curry paste
  • 400ml coconut milk
  • 500g potatoes, peeled, quartered
  • 2 kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 lemon grass stalk, bruised
  • 1 -2 coriander roots

  STEPS

  1. Browning the beef
  2. Mixing in the remaining ingredients
  3. Pressure cooking (30 mins)
  4. Serving

  EQUIPMENT

  • 1 chefs knife
  • 1 chopping board
  • A pressure cooker

  ---

  Browning the beef

  The modern pressure cookers with a sauté function make true one pot cooking a reality. All you need to do is chuck a slug of oil into the pot and set it to high sauté. 

  Then coat the beef cubes in flour and cook them until browned. Give the cubes a gentle mix every now and again so they don’t burn on one side.

  Mixing in the rest of the ingredients

  Throw in and gently mix the:

  • 1/2 cup red curry paste
  • 400ml coconut milk
  • 500g potatoes, peeled, quartered
  • 2 kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 lemon grass stalk
  • 1 -2 coriander roots

  Pressure cooking

  Set your pressure cooker timer to 30 minutes. If you have time, let the pressure release naturally at then end.

  Serving

  We had some corn cobs and broccoli that need using so we served the curry alongside them. Each person got some rice, peanuts and sriracha hot sauce. 

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are a few pressure cooker and curry posts to tide you over. 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  July 25, 2019