I recently took a trip to Gordon Ramsay’s Street Pizza in St Paul’s. They offer a bottomless pizza option where the pizza is cooked constantly and is then brought round. Grab a slice of what you like!
The pizzas were all great. Even the ham and pineapple was a step above – shredded gammon, strips of pineapple but the fresh pecorino was the finishing touch.
However the one I loved was chicken and chorizo, with a sweetcorn puree base. It was a perfect combo! So much so, I had to make it myself:
To make the pizza dough, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and then turn out on to a worktop. Knead thoroughly for 10 minutes until stretchy and elastic. Form into 2-3 balls and put into an oiled bowl. Cover with a teatowel and leave to rise in a warm place for 90 minutes.
Meanwhile make the puree. Blitz all the ingredients together and season with salt and pepper. Push through a sieve to remove the skins and keep refrigerated until needed.
After 90 minutes, preheat the oven as high as it will go with a pizza stone in. Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Add the sweetcorn puree and add the other toppings to taste. Cook for 4-5 minutes until golden and risen. Serve immediately.
As World Cup fever threatens to take over the globe, people like me think about one thing: what food can I use to celebrate and keep people happy. Things in bowls where people help themselves are always going to work. Aldi asked me for my best ideas, looking to the Brazil v Switzerland game for inspiration. And the former host nation from 2014 Brazil has plenty of ideas, and are also most likely to win according to FiveThirtyEight. Here’s a way of feeding a crowd and keeping with the Latin American theme: barbecue beef feijoada, made with brisket.
South American food is on the rise so couldn’t be more trendy. I’ve eaten feijoada (it’s pronounced “fezz-wah-dah”, by the way) a few times and always enjoyed it. But what’s in it? I consulted a Brazilian friend of mine in order to get a few ideas but like many ‘national’ favourites, everyone has a different view on what it should contain. Like shepherd’s pie, chilli con carne or lasagne al forno everybody has their own take in their house that defines the dish. A few patterns emerge: definitely pork, possibly beef, certainly black beans… other than that it’s fair game. Tomatoes or not? Paprika?
I went down a route I’ve trodden often, based on Jewish comfort food cholent. I started with a brisket, rubbed with herbs and spices, then stewed for several hours. The meat is sliced and finished on the barbecue for a charred and smoky flavour. It’s a bold plate of food, and I can see it going down really well at a party where people can spoon it into corn tortillas with pickled vegetables, or served in little pots with a dollop of sour cream. Make sure everyone can tuck in and help themselves, and serve up refreshing, cooling drinks.
I’m not sure how authentic this is – I say that about a lot of my cooking – but it got my São Paulo-based friend excited! Try my barbecue beef feijoada, and let me know what you think!
If you want to stock up for this recipe, check the great value of Aldi’s range, the variety on offer in store and remember Aldi has great value deals on Meats and fruit & veg every week as part of their Super 6 deals.
Classic Brazilian beef stew. Perfect for parties and gatherings!
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Brazilian
Prep Time 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 7 hourshours
Total Time 13 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Servings 8people
Author Gary @ BigSpud
Ingredients
For the beef:
1kgbeef brisketrolled and tied
5gMaldon sea salt
1tablespoonsmoked paprika
1/2tablespoondried oregano
1/2tablespoondried thyme
1/2tablespoongarlic powder
1/2tablespoonbrown sugar
1teaspooncumin seeds
To serve:
200mlcreme fraiche
Hot sauceI like Frank's
Lime wedges
For the stew:
2onionspeeled and sliced
3carrotsdiced
2red peppers
1tintomatoes
1litrebeef stockI used Knorr beef stock pots
250gsmoked pork sausagesliced
140gdried black turtle beanssoaked overnight (any dried pulses you like here would work)
For the sweetcorn:
1cobsweetcornper person
Large knob of butter
Pinchsalt
Pinchcayenne pepper
1/2teaspoonsmoked paprika
Instructions
Make sure you've soaked your dried beans overnight before getting started.
Get a frying on a very high heat with a dash of oil. In a pestle and mortar bash the rub ingredients together until you have a fiery terracotta dust. Rub this all over the beef, as thoroughly as you can.
Sear the beef on all sides, building up a lovely colour. Put to one side when done.
In a large casserole dish, gently dry the onions, peppers and carrots in a little oil until softened, then add the remaining stew ingredients and stir until combined. Add the beef and add water as required until just a little of the brisket is peeping out. Cover loosely and simmer for 5 - 6 hours until the brisket is tender - when you put a fork into it it should slide back out easily. Leave covered for 30 minutes to rest. You can light your barbecue and prepare your corn in this time.
Parboil your corn in simmering water for 5 or so minutes. At the barbecue, take a small pan, your brisket and the nearly cooked sweetcorn. Slice your brisket in 1cm slices and place on the barbecue to char on both sides.
Melt the butter in the small pan and add the salt, paprika, and cayenne. Pop the sweetcorn on the grill and turn occasionally, brushing on the spiced butter. Cook until you have lovely black bits.
Swirl your creme fraiche with hot sauce. Serve the stew, beef and sweetcorn with some lime wedges on the side. Maybe serve with tortillas or tacos if you like. Most importantly, start eating!
For Mrs. Spud’s birthday and the weather hitting decent heights at last, I wanted to come up with a BBQ featuring some special treats. I thought about cooking a whole chicken and grilling some sweetcorn.
Steven Raichlen’s Barbecue Bible
Thankfully experimenting with the barbecue is really taking off in this country. We’ve always lacked the predictable weather and sustained dry spells to really explore but we’re gradually catching on. The explosion of diner-style and burger / rib joints, with even Jamie Oliver getting in on the act is further proof of the growing interest. In particular it’s worth listening to our American cousins who pretty much have nailed down this cuisine as their own. With dozens of regional variations in cut, technique, rub, baste and flavouring there’s plenty to study. If you want to know more about American BBQ I recommend checking out Steven Raichlen, and I strongly recommend his Barbecue Bible book which is packed with great inspiration. It’s from this book that my chicken recipe started to take shape.
all rubbed, ready for the fridge
I’ve had fun with dry-brining before. The meat juices are drawn out by the salt element, the flavourings dissolve in the liquid that breaks down muscle proteins and get reasorbed back into the meat. The repetition of this process leaves the meat wonderfully seasoned and keeps it juicy, so I was definitely going to use something similar here. Pulling together some of my favourite spices to combine into a rub I left the chicken overnight. In honour of my corner of the country I’ve called it Southeast style. Spatchcocked to cook reasonably quickly and evenly, and allowed to scorch on the BBQ it gave a smoky, sweet flavour with spicy depth. Really tasty. And my top tip for grilling white meat? Get one of those spray bottles from a garden centre. Fill it with apple juice, and with one squirt you can cool off flare-ups and leave behind a sweet glaze into the bargain.
I paired it with some grilled and braised sweetcorn. With undertones of Bourbon and meaty to boot, my first attempt at barbecuing corn was one I’ll be doing again.
Southeast spatchcock chook with booze-braised sweetcorn (serves 4 with plenty of leftover chicken):
1 medium chicken
For the rub:
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ tablespoon dried oregano
½ tablespoon smoked paprika
Grated zest of ½ a lemon
For the sweetcorn gravy:
500ml chicken stock
1 tablespoon BBQ sauce
10g butter
20ml Southern Comfort
4 corn-on-the-cob
Free the chicken from its packaging, remove any string and open the chicken out. Turn it over so the breast is face-down, and use a strong pair of scissors to cut down the spine. You can then turn the chicken back over the other way and press down firmly on the breastbone until you hear a sickening crunch. Use two skewers, each corner to corner to hold it open. Combine all the salt ingredients and rub all over the bird. Leave in the fridge uncovered overnight.
The next day, light your barbecue and once the flames die down and the charcoal is covered with white ash place your chicken over the grill. Turn and rotate often to cook evenly. It will take between 40 – 60 minutes to cook depending on about a hundred variables. You can only be sure if it’s done with a meat thermometer reading 75°C. I recommend the Heston branded one, but any will do.
While the chicken cooks make your sweetcorn gravy. Combine all the ingredients and bring to a simmer (you may find this quicker and easier to get this started on a regular hob). Dip your sweetcorn in the gravy and transfer the corn and your pan to a hot BBQ. As it starts to char and pop you’ll want to turn it, but just before you do give it a dip in your gravy and then back on the grill. Repeat until charred on all sides, then place them in your gravy pan and cover for 5 minutes to cook through. Strain off the liquor to serve on the side, carve the chicken and serve with a panzanella and potato salad.
This was completely inspired to the ideas I’d been absorbing from Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals. Keeping a few pans on the go, everything cooked separately and brought together, powerful spices to give the flavours a kick… It’s exactly in keeping with the way some of the Jamie recipes work.
I do have one ingredient in there I’m not convinced Jamie would approve of… frozen mince and onion. But I can’t ignore the time-saving this offers me.
If’ I’d have had coriander leaf to scatter on top, it would’ve been perfect. But I was happy enough.
Keema chana curry (serves 2):
250g frozen mince and onion
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 red onion
1 clove garlic
1 tin tomatoes
1 teaspoon nigella seeds
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 tin chickpeas, drained
2 sweetcorn cob halves
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
Get two frying pans and a saucepan on pretty hot. Get the kettle on to boil.
Add a dash of oil to one of the pans and add the cumin seeds and turmeric. After a minute add the mince and onion and stir often.
Get your blender ready, and whizz up the onion, garlic, tomatoes, nigella and garam masala with a pinch of salt until liquid. Add to the other pan and allow to bubble. After a couple of minutes add the chickpeas.
Fill the sauce pan with boiling water and add the sweetcorn. Simmer for 10 minutes until tender, then drain. Return to the pan and add a knob of butter, a pinch of smoked sea salt and paprika. Pop the lid on and toss well.
Serve the mince on top of the tomatoey chickpeas with the sweetcorn on the side.
