Garden Chef

Braai, more video

Who would have thought that there were quite so many people prepared to put time and energy into making the definitive braai video?

Braai - how not to

Having solicited friends for some original content I was sent this masterpiece. Clearly a mistake asking for help in the first place...

Rump Espetada

Perhaps not a purists rendition, but tried my hand at a Portuguese espetada last weekend.

Large chunks of rump steak interspersed with flat mushrooms and peppers threaded on to long flat skewers. What really fuelled my enthusiasm for the dish was the thought of hanging the skewers inside the smoker, but without the water pan, making sure the heat gets way up. Of course if you don't have a tall smoker like bbq within which to hang these beauties they could just go straight on the braai.

For these I used:

• 1 Kg inch thick rump steak cut into roughly inch by inch cubes
• Two or three green and red peppers
• 8 flat mushrooms
• Olive oil
• An excessive amount of chopped garlic (almost a whole bulb)
• 250g butter

Marinaded the steak chunks in most of the garlic and some olive oil over night. Threaded the skewers as the coals were burning down. Hung them within the smoker using the fish hooks, closed the lid. Put the left over garlic in a small bowl with the butter, melted down to a consistency thin enough to dab on to the skewers with a food brush while they cooked. The coals need to be at their hottest so that vegetables and steak get a little of that seared around the edges look. Took about 15 mins all in, perhaps closer to 8-10 if you did this directly over the coals laid flat on the bbq.

This will probably serve six if you have people around and they have something to go with it,  or four blokes with just beer.

Quick chicken breast with chilli, honey and rosemary glaze

After a week of rain, much like Wimbledon, the sun has come out and its time to get out on centre court.

Saturday, desperately tired after a long week so just a quick one, but what a winner. You will need:

• 4 Chicken breasts, bone in and skin on.
• Black pepper, two or three teaspoons ground
• Paprika
• Salt (the kind you can grind)
• A few tablespoons of Honey
• One red chlli
• A handfull of fresh rosemary
• Olive oil

Preparation:

Prepare the bbq for indirect cooking, while the coals are getting themselves ready there's more than enough time to do all the prep below. 

Set aside 3-4 tablespoons of honey and a helathy glug of olive oil in a small mixing bowl. Finely chop the chilli and rosemary, adding to the honey/oil mix.

Grind the salt and pepper in a mortar and pestle, mix in a few shakes of the Paprika. Slash the chicken breasts diagonally across the skin and rub the pepper, salt and paprika mix into the cuts and over the skin.

Once the coals are ready pop the chicken on to the bbq, close the lid and leave for approx 7-10 mins depending on the size of the chicken breasts. Lift the lid and paint some of the honey glaze on to the chicken, lid down again and repeat after a few minutes, perhaps about 5. The chicken skin should start to darken and even blacken slightly as the honey catches. I'd usually keep a close eye on things at this stage to make sure the breasts dont burn.

Served this with a green salad and some excellent Springfield 'Life From Stone' Sauv. Blanc.

Rain delay, previous highlights: Fillet

In lieu of current bbq activity, I thought it best to raise the spirits with the memories of a proper SA braai from earlier in the year. First off a fillet or two for the extended family - here's one in close up:

Most would say that fillet is not as tasy as other beef steak cuts, but when seared whole with an olive oil, mustard and black pepper baste, served rare, the discovery of fire makes a whole lot more sense. 

Grilled and roasted Pork Loin

Two weeks of rain, every minute of every day. At least that what it's felt like. Saturday didn't look like it would provide enough time for a fully fledged three hour outside cooking experience, so I opted for a recipe that involves finishing the main dish off in the oven. Of course, thats a cop out for which I will no doubt have to do penance, particularly since the weather did hold, and it could all have been finished off outside without a drop of rain falling.

By the by, we have Jamie Oliver to thank for this recipe. Its an Italian recipe known as maiale alla griglia e arrosto. (you can either read the rest here or flick over to Jamie's Italy where I got this..)

You will need:

• A couple of heaped tablespoons of fennel seeds
• 2 or 3 red chillies
• 1x2kg/4 1/2lb pork loin
• Olive oil
• Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 10 Tablespoons good quality red win vinegar
• a bunch of fresh rosemary

In brief, score the fatty side of the pork in a criss cross fashion. Smash/grind up the fennel seed, chillies and a good bit of salt and black pepper. Rub the pork with Olive oil and then rub in the ground mixture of spices into the fatty side of the pork.

Having got the bbq going about half hour before, make sure the coals are hot. Charcoal probably best for this, unless your gas bbq can get really hot.

Whack the pork on skin side down and watch the fun begin! As you can see below the fat really generates some heat so be careful to turn quickly to avoid incinerating the joint.

Once both sides have had the benefit of the bbq for about 10-15 minutes, enough to have acquired an authentic bbq look, transfer the joint to the tray it was originally marinaded in.

Put it in the oven at about 200C/400F for about an hour. After the first 30 mins add the vinegar and rosemary leaves, making sure all the meat is basted with the combination. Put back in the oven for another 20 mins and then take out to rest for the last 10 mins. It looked like this when done:

   

In keeping with the Italian theme of the evening we began with Prosecco. The bottle or two we shared around between the guests cost less than a fiver, as did the wine we served with the main course. Both excellent dinner party value.

The main was served with:

Followed by:

Which perhaps we should have served first. It was fuller than the Pinotage Cinsault, in fact quite a bit more going on. I need to get some more.

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention, there was roast veg and salad for the vegetarians...

Kids stuff: Lamb chops & Marshmallows

Hadn't done this for years myself, but the kids grabbed some marshmallows and made good use of the fading coals of a quick post-work lamb chop bbq:

 

Used this for rub:

But the fun stuff was really the kids fighting over the few hot spots left to toast the marshmallows once we were done with the lamb:

Left me drinking yet another glass of Glen Carlou's 2004 Syrah, and reflecting that the bbq doesn't just have to be about the meat...

Lamb stuffed with halloumi, rosemary and olives

Normally I prefer to put my own stuffings and marinades together but more than occasionally can be tempted by something that looks really good. The guys at Blue Rock butchers in Bisley put this together:

Lamb, stuffed with some Halloumi cheese, rosemary and olives. Coriander crust. Did this on the weber, indirect with lid on for about 25 - 30 mins. It was truly fantastic, what a great idea - wish I'd come up with it.

Put it in foil to rest and grilled some asparagus basted in lemon juice and olive oil. Just done until  starting to blacken but  still  slightly crunchy. I loved the dish and will definitely  do it again, probably with a  bit of garlic thrown in - either stuffed in the  lamb, or  with the asparagus.

All this finished off with a green salad and a bottle of South African pinot noir. Excellent  stuff.

Steak and sausages for the kids

Old favourite this one , and really quick. Using the Weber to grill/roast this time..

The steak

First off pop off to the local butchers and ask whats good today (we're lucky to live in a village where the local butcher will cut steaks to order, and even better than that they're just across the road! A good butcher makes all the difference - questions about quality and provenance should be welcomed). Result: three thick cut sirloin steaks. Marinaded for about an hour or so in teriyaki sauce and coarse ground black pepper, the sauce caramelises and sweetens on the bbq and tastes great.

Once the coals are ready, white and still fairly hot, whip the steaks on. I prefer them rare so did them for about 1.5 minute a side. Any longer than that and they will quickly cook to medium - and even when taken off they will continue to cook, so I always take the steak off before I think its done (this time around I probably over did it a bit and they weren't quite as bloody as they should have been).

None the less they went down a treat. 

The Chicken

One whole large organic chicken, cut into bbq sized pieces. If you cut them up yourself you can decide exactly how large each piece can be. When cooking for two small I just cut a small chicken in half, flatten it out, bbq it and serve half each.

Slash the chicken across the meatier parts of the flesh to speed up cooking time and help the marinade. Then marinaded in Mary Berry's All Season Sauce (www.maryberry.co.uk) for about 2 hours, cooked indirectly, coals on one side of the kettle, lid on for about 25mins, then finished off directly over the coals to make sure everything is browned (blackened) up well.

The Sausages

Merguez and Pork and Leek from across the road. Half way into the chicken cooking time, nestled these in between the chicken pieces. Kept the lid on as with the chicken above and then finished off directly over the coals.

Neglected to mention that steak only goes on once both chicken and sausages done. This was a really quick bbq, but more than enough for teenage triplets and three adults. Who needs an oven when its not raining?