Another one from the slow cooker, this time the dull-named ‘savoury pork casserole’ which takes it’s inspiring title from the 1986 Russell Hobbs manual from which it came. I can’t even bring myself to write out a full recipe as it was so achingly boring, but it was pork, onions, peppers, button mushrooms, thyme and tinned tomatoes slow cooked together for about 7 hours. I managed to revive some last minute interest by adding a dash of creme fraiche and some worcestershire sauce, but it was too late. Yawn.
This was another test for the slow cooker – a sturdy bolognese recipe. This one is lifted from this month’s Delicious magazine. It’s much more complicated than my personal favourite recipe but they both have merit. The results were very good – it was missing something, perhaps a little acidity – but very satisfying for something left alone for 7 hours.
I made enough for ten here, so I have two future dinners perfectly preserved 🙂
Bolognese:
1kg beef mince
1 onion, finely diced
2 celery stalks, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 tin tomatoes
100ml whole milk
300ml beef stock
200ml red wine
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons tomato puree
Brown the mince in a hot pan to develop a lovely brown crust.
Put the mince along with all the other ingredients in a slow cooker on high for 6 – 7 hours.
Check for seasoning and serve with the pasta of your choice – I’m a sucker for the wide, flat chewiness of tagliatelle. Top with parmesan.
I made another omelette (though with pancetta instead of chorizo this time, all smoky and perfumed) and wanted some sort of side salad to balance it out. I hit upon the idea of juicy tomatoes paired with sharp raw shallot. I didn’t want the onion too raw so I allowed them to break down a little in vinegar for a little while to take the edge. I used a combination of vinegars here, the rice one for a subtle acidity without too strong a flavour to itself, and balsamic for a sweet richness. The harsh onions paired with sweet tomatoes hit all the right buttons as a side to a rich dinner.
Tomato and shallot salad:
2 tomatoes, sliced
4 shallots, sliced
1 teaspoon parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Place the shallots in a bowl and cover with the rice vinegar. Allow to marinate for 20 – 30 minutes to tenderise.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Season to taste.
Lasagne recipes are like admitting you’re Spartacus. “I’m the definitive lasagne recipe!” “I’m the definitive lasagne recipe!” To that end, I’m not even sure I’ve cooked it exactly the same way twice. It’s one of those things I’ve been cooking forever and therefore patch the method from time to time. Today was no different.
I went bechamel rather than cheese sauce, and used beef stock over a stock cube (a standard step-skipper in my mince recipes). I also tried to overcome my carnivorous lust of piling everything into one layer, and instead went down the traditional route of many layers of pasta.
A word on the bechamel here: I find it’s always unfairly pasted as a difficult thing to do, but it really isn’t. Melt butter, add flour and allow to cook out a little, until it’s the dullest beige. Add milk slowly, allowing it to absorb each time (much like risotto). Keep going until it reaches the desired consistency. If things look awful, turn up the heat and whisk like mad. At this point it’s ready to take on all the flavours that you want. In this case, grated nutmeg, a smear of English mustard, black pepper and smoked sea salt. I also had some mascarpone left over in the fridge so I doled that out into it to lend a slightly tart, creamy edge.
There’s so mush to adore about lasagne (I suppose this is technially lasagne al forno, but this is the dish all English people picture when you say ‘lasagne’): tender yet chewy pasta, engorged with flavours from above and below, sweet and savoury meaty sauce, creamy and slick white sauce, and crunchy and tangy cheese crust.
Below I’ve detailed what I did this time, though it will be different next time… and the time after that… and the time after that… I’ve yet to try Carmela Soprano’s one, with an additional layer of basil leaves… yum.
Lasagne:
For the beef ragu:
450g beef mince
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic
2 tins/cartons chopped tomatoes
500ml beef stock
250ml red wine (pinot noir in this case)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
For the bechamel:
75g butter
Plain flour
Milk
2 tablespoons mascarpone
Nutmeg
Smoked sea salt
Black pepper
1/2 teaspoon English mustard
For the final dish:
12 dried lasagne sheets
Grated parmesan
Grated cheddar
In a large casserole pan, fry the onion and garlic on a low heat until soft and translucent, about ten minutes.
Turn the heat up, add the mince and fry until browned.
Add the stock and bring to the boil, then add the tomatoes.
Lower the heat, add the other ingredients and leave to simmer while you prepare the bechamel. Pre-heat the oven to 180C.
In another pan, melt the butter. Add enough flour until you get a chalky, plasticiney consistency. Continue pushing this round the pan until you get a pale nut colour. (this calms the floury taste down)
Gradually add milk until it is absorbed. Add the bay at this point too.
Keep adding milk until it reaches a custardy texture.
Add the other bechamel ingredients and continue to stir.
Now take a large ceramic oven dish and start to layer the ingredients. I went for: pasta, mince, white sauce, pasta, mince, pasta, white sauce.
Top with cheese, and decorate with tomato slices and basil leaves. Put in the oven.
Cook until bubbling on top.
For best results, allow to sit for a couple of minutes before serving. The white sauce and cheese will set slightly, and making cutting through it much easier.
