What's everyone cooking this week? 2

[Earthmaiden Profile]

That looks really delicious Amber. There are some new things on my shopping list!

[WWordsworth Profile]

Which Heston recipe do you like/use, WW

Hairy Bikers, not Heston.
Apols for not being clear.

[scullion Profile]

nettle soup.

[WWordsworth Profile]

Tonight's planned dinner was coriander baked sea bass with Cornish potatoes and asparagus.
However I took smoked haddock out of the freezer by mistake.

The good news is it didn't thaw so it went back in.

The revised menu was asparagus risotto, which was delicious.

Sea bass is thawing gently in the fridge for tomorrow.

[jeral Profile]

Talking of fish and freezer, my having said previously that Tesco frozen tuna is my supermarket choice, the smelly rotters have started packing the steaks as two's so you have to defrost both at once. Grr... So tuna tonight with Asian flavours, pak choi and mushrooms.

Guess what's for tomorrow? Unless... does anyone know if I could hot sear all outer edges and refreeze the spare tuna steak? Would that be enough heat to deem it cooked so re-freezable, to be cooked through once next defrosted? Ta.

[karadekoolaid Profile]

I may be wrong ( Call Sue!!), but when I did a course on food conservation (Health Ministry obligation), I seem to remember that the person directing the course said that bacteria begin to evolve at 8° C. It could be less.
So, to answer your question, Jeral. If you take the tuna steaks out of the fridge to defrost, the moment you can actually prise one from the other... they´re still basically frozen.
Grab the one you dont want to use and put it back in the fridge. No cooking, no problem.

[herbidacious Profile]

Was the nettle soup good, Scully? Does it have a distinctive flavour? That would have been a good thing to do while I was on holiday (lots of polllution free foraging opportunities.) My father, who never cooked anything more ambitious than mushrooms on toast, in my lifetime, bizarrely had a recipe for nettle gnocchi.

I have not cooked (properly) for a few weeks. I need inspiration...

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I may be wrong ( Call Sue!!), but when I did a course on food conservation (Health Ministry obligation), I seem to remember that the person directing the course said that bacteria begin to evolve at 8° C. It could be less.
So, to answer your question, Jeral. If you take the tuna steaks out of the fridge to defrost, the moment you can actually prise one from the other... they´re still basically frozen.
Grab the one you dont want to use and put it back in the fridge. No cooking, no problem.

I think “evolve” might be a slight mistranslation, but bacteria take a while to get growing when they’ve been stopped by being frozen

The USDA (department of agriculture did some work and found that most foods are fine thawed at room temperature then cooked as soon as they are thawed, which is what you’d expect as most of the food is very cold for most of the time, and it’s clean to start with.

I’ve never heard the 8°C figure but it sounds about right when you think that spoilage organisms don’t grow significantly in a fridge at 4°C

I have been known to separate items packed in pairs and pop one back, but it depends on how they are packed and how you do it, hard to say if it’s safe done in specific circumstances. Usually they have been frozen separately and only paired as they are packed, so the ice is not an unbroken lump. My rule of thumb is that as bacteria take at least 20 minutes to double in number under ideal conditions (37°C, plenty of water) anything that probably allows less than doubling doesn’t worry me, but that rule is my own, not an official one

[liketocook Profile]

I'd be less worried about it's safety and more the texture after the second cooking.

I've not much by way of cooking planned for today apart from putting together a batch of smoked mackerel pate for lunch and making dip and salad to go with bought southern fried chicken thighs later.

[scullion Profile]

Was the nettle soup good, Scully? Does it have a distinctive flavour?

yes, it is good - even better when sat outside next to where some are growing - a sort of warning.
it has a taste with a hint of mint but not mint - if you see what i mean. a strong green soup.
worth making.

[WWordsworth Profile]

Tonight is tagliatelle with smoked salmon, chives, a few peas and a spoonful of creme fraiche.
Maybe a touch of garlic.

[OneMoreCheekyOne Profile]

We have been eating very well! Lots of it not cooked by me!
Beach paella and lobster dogs, crab salads, crab bisque, loads of antipasti and sharing boards. Tonight I had seared sea trout with crab bonbon, asparagus and a rich hollandaise sauce. Dessert was an almost savoury Seville orange, chocolate and some kind of herby thing going on. Delicious and unusual.

Breakfast will be salmon, eggs and wild garlic if we can find any, on thick slabs of buttery toast.

[WolfGirl Profile]

Wow, OMCO.

You always seem to have lovely sounding food but that lot sounds amazing.

Would that be your normal bank holiday weekend intake or are you away?

[Earthmaiden Profile]

Sounds like amazing holiday food to me! WW's sounds good too, onevof my favourites.

I created a 'bowl' last night. The trend for them does make me smile a bit, you can't get away from the fact that they're all bits and pieces you might have anyway when turning out the fridge - served in a photogenic bowl. Mine had avocado, tomato, cucumber, hariciot beans, cucumber, red pepper, cheddar cheese and a one egg herby omelette in strips.

[liketocook Profile]

Oh wow OMCO that all sounds marvellous .
Love the sound of your pasta WW.
Lol EM yes what I would call "fridge gravel" salad is very in just now.
Lamb jalfrezi with rice and naan for us this evening. I have paste spare from last week so what to use before it gets "lost" in the fridge as these things seem to do in my house.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I think of a hipster “bowl” more as rice (or quinoa or couscous) topped with a variety of things, like a bibimbap, though of course there are salad bowls too

Having a bit of trouble finding things that taste good at the moment but made an asparagus carbonara last nigh which hit the spot. Really should do something with the aubergine in the fridge and various other bits and bobs

[liketocook Profile]

Yes salad was probably not the best description though "fridge gravel" may still apply in my case, bits and bobs of leftover grains or noodles, cooked and/or raw veg, leftover roast meat or fish, a dressing of some sort and usually a poached, fried or soft boiled egg tends to form the basis of my favourite "bowls".
Asparagus carbonara sounds good Sue. My son makes a lovely salad of griddled thinly sliced aubergines that have been smeared with oil, allowed to cool then mixed with a garlicky oil/vinegar dressing, any juices that have gathered, some oregano, halved cherry tomatoes, rocket and feta. The aubergine really makes the dish.

[KeenCook2 Profile]

We had a delicious roasted salmon fillet with a crusted pecorino and pesto topping - it was fantastic! One of those recipes you suddenly remember because you happen to have both the salmon and the h-m pesto in the fridge!

A friend gave it to me after she served it to us 15 or so years ago!

No link, I'm afraid, but will attempt to copy and paste off the old Word doc if anyone would like it

[Amyw Profile]

That sounds lovely , I like salmon and pesto together

[KeenCook2 Profile]

Ah, it worked! Here it is, Amyw. We didn't have any pecorino so used grana padano. And rocket and basil pesto.

Roasted Salmon Fillets with a Crusted Pecorino and Pesto Topping

This recipe, invented by my good friend Lin Cooper, started life under the grill, but now, in my attempt to more or less eliminate the grill, I'm happy to say that it cooks very happily and easily in a high oven.
One word of warning, though: it works much better with fresh pesto sauce from supermarkets than it does with the bottled kind.

Serves 2

Ingredients
2 x 5-6 oz (150-175 g) salmon fillets, about ¾ inch (2 cm) thick, skinned
1 rounded tablespoon finely grated Pecorino cheese
2 level tablespoons fresh pesto sauce
juice ½ lemon
2 level tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
salt and freshly milled black pepper
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 8, 450°F (230°C).
Equipment
You will also need a baking tray measuring 10 x 14 inches (25.5 x 35 cm), covered in foil and lightly oiled.

Method
Begin by trimming the fillets if needed, and run your hand over the surface of the fish to check that there aren't any stray bones lurking. Now place the fish on the prepared baking tray and give each one a good squeeze of lemon juice and a seasoning of salt and pepper.

Next, give the pesto a good stir and measure 2 tablespoons into a small bowl, mix one-third of the breadcrumbs with it to form a paste and spread this over both fish fillets.
Then, mix half the cheese with the remaining breadcrumbs and scatter this over the pesto, then finish off with the remaining cheese.
Now place the baking tray on the middle shelf of the oven and cook for 10 minutes, by which time the top should be golden brown and crispy and the salmon just cooked and moist.

Serve with steamed new potatoes.