Crispy Skinned Orange Duck al la Kylie Kwong
It was a bit of a nightmare getting to make this, I went to eight different places to find a whole duck and twice as many to find either blood plums or blood oranges. I ended up settling for standard oranges and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening wondering if the dish would still retain it’s quintessential tastiness. Luck won with a not as sweet, but with a nice piquancy the original blood plums didn’t have.
Orange Crispy Skinned Duck
Crispy Skinned Orange Duck - Serves 2
1 whole duck, approx. 1.5kg
1 tablespoons of sichuan pepper
3 tablespoons of sea salt
¼ cup plain flour
vegetable oil for frying
1 cup of water
1 cup of white sugar
250 grams of oranges, juiced (or blood plums)
⅔
cups of fish sauce
6 whole star anise
2 cinnamon quills
⅓ cups of lime juice
Trim away the excess fat from the cavity of the duck. Grind the
sichuan pepper and salt together and then rub all over the duck.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Boil some water in a wok or large saucepan and place a steamer
basket over, the duck inside, cover and leave for an hour and a
half. Take the now cooked duck out and leave it to cool.
Once the duck is cold enough to handle, slice it in half
lengthwise, from neck to tail. Gently pry the carcass out, leaving
the drumstick and wings intact. Cut each half into half again so
you have a wing and a leg piece.
To make the sauce, mix the water, sugar, oranges together and bring
to the boil in a saucepan, reduce the heat to a simmer and add the
fish sauce, star anise, cinnamon and lime juice. Simmer while you
fry the duck.
Heat the vegetable oil a wok or deep saucepan, cover the duck
pieces with flour and deep fry each piece separately until the skin
has gone a crisp golden colour. Drain the pieces after they’ve
cooked on paper towel. When their all cooked, cut the duck down
into bite-sized pieces, except for the bones.
Pile the duck on a serving platter and pour over enough sauce to
coat the duck.
Eat it with your hands and have a bowl of rice on the
side.
His Name Was Robert Paulson
Jack (Ed Norton) and Bob (Meat Loaf) at support group in Fight
Club
I was considering calling this post “My Meatloaf has Bitch Tits”
but that doesn’t really portray the damn fine tasty meatloaf that I
made tonight. I know it’s a bit of a tenuous link but Meat Loaf
played the character Robert Paulson, the guy with bitch tits that
Jack meets at his testicular cancer support group... With torn off
pieces of fresh buffalo mozzarella and sun-dried tomato this
meatloaf really is a notch above what you’ve probably ever
considered a meatloaf could be.
The original recipe for this meatloaf comes from Mario
Batali’s father (via Epicurious), which might explain Mario’s
own bitch tits. The entire loaf, if made as directed weighs in at
2-3 kg! I intended to make half of this but I wasn’t paying
attention when I went to buy the ingredients and bought enough to
make the full recipe, luckily meatloaf can be frozen well. Sort of
like Meat Loaf’s assets. I
cheated a little in this recipe, David Jones had some great looking
beef rissoles that had onion, carrot, parsley and a few other bits
already mixed through in what looked about the right proportion so
I bought that instead of just plain minced beef. For a little more
vegetable matter in a meal that will be almost entirely meat I made
some balsamic roast vegetables to go along side - just baby
carrots, red onion, parsnip etc tossed with some olive oil and a
splash of balsamic and roasted along side the meatloaf for the last
half hour.
Beef and Italian Sausage Meatloaf
with Sundried Tomatoes and Mozarella
Beef and Sausage Meatloaf - Serves 8 or
more
1kg of lean beef mince
500g of buffalo mozzarella, torn into pieces
500g of italian sausage, cases removed
2 cups of chopped fresh basil
2 cups of fresh breadcrumbs
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup of sliced sun-dried tomatoes
5 garlic cloves
1½ tablespoons of dried oregano
2 teaspoons of salt
2 × ½ cup of tomato sauce
3 eggs
½ cup of dry red wine
Pre-heat your oven to 190ºC. Thoroughly mix all of the ingredients
together in a bowl except one of the half cups of tomato sauce.
Mould into a loaf shape and place in a loaf tin and even out the
surface. Brush on the remaining tomato sauce. Bake in the oven for
about an hour and fifteen minutes or until a meat thermometer
reaches 70-75ºC at the centre of the loaf.
The Duke was Shot in the Back
Affie, as he was known by his family was so called because he was affable, easy to talk to and that sense really has been instilled at The Duke. Given it’s prime location meters away from the Enmore Theatre everyone comes here for a beer and a meal before a show ( The Presets drew me here Monday night). If you’re planning on eating get here early because the place fills up fast. On freezing cold nights like last night, the roaring open fire helps too!
I’ve been here a few times, and the place isn’t cheap but the food is good and usually pretty high quality with some very generous servings. I had the mixed grill this time around, sausages, minute steak, bacon and lamb cutlets on chips with sauce of your choice, pepper, mushroom etc, all for the princley sum (get it?) of $17.50. It is just pub food here, steaks, burgers and the good old chicken parma that a friend had, looking equally as delicious and priced.
Mixed Grill @ The Duke, Enmore
Food, 7/10 - Better
than most pubs and everything you’d expect on a classic pub menu
board
Service, 8/10 - For a pub, you can’t complain -
they were happy and friendly
Coffee, 10/10 - Because it was made with hopps and
barley and served by the pint
Value, 7/10 - Tough one, but for the location and
the generous servings it gets a couple extra points
Location, 9/10 - If you’re going to the Enmore
it’s ideal
The Duke of Edinburgh
148 Enmore Road, Enmore NSW 2042
P: 02 9519 1935
F: 02 9557 1381
W:
http://www.duke-hotel.com/
Beef and Broccoli Satay
The book itself is split between things you’ll find in the cupboard, fridge or freezer and is really well cross referenced eg: “Peanuts also used in recipes on pages, 18, 21, 36...”.
The curry, which I renamed a satay wasn’t bad but it could have used a bit of fresh lime juice over the top to give it the salty/sweet/sour flavour combination that thai cooking is famous for.
Beef and Broccoli
Satay
Beef and Broccoli Satay - Serves 2
500g Rump Steak, cut into strips across the grain
2 tablespoons of red curry paste
2 tablespoons of peanut butter
½ peanuts
1 tin of coconut milk (or cream thinned with water)
1 cup of broccoli foretts
1 cup of sliced red capsicum
1 lime cut into wedges
2 cups of cooked jasmine rice to serve
corriander to garnish (optional)
In a very hot wok, fry the beef in batches until it’s brown all
over and set it aside.
Add the red curry paste to the wok and fry for a minute until it
becomes fragrant. Keep stiring it or else it’ll burn. Add the
peanut butter, peanuts and the coconut milk and simmer until the
sauce has reduced by half. Add the broccoli and capsicum and simmer
until tender. Mix the beef back in and simmer for a minute until
the beef is hot again.
Serve over rice and with a wedge of lime on the side to help cut
through the thickness of the sauce and to give it a bit of an extra
tang.
Duck with Roast Fennel and Berry Sauce
Duck with Roast Fennel and Berry
Sauce
Duck with Roast Fennel and Berry Sauce -
Serves 2
2 duck marylands
2 sprigs of rosemary
1 tablespoon of salt
1 fennel bulb
1 zucchini
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Salt and Pepper
¼ cup of frozen berries
In a mortar and pestle grind the salt and rosemary until they’re
mixed well. Coat the duck marylands well and leave to sit lightly
covered with plastic wrap until it’s ready to cook.
Pre-heat the oven to 160ºC. Slice the zucchini in half and the
fennel into 5mm slices. Drizzel with olive oil and season with salt
and pepper and spread out on a roasting tray and roast in the oven
until the fennel is soft.
After the fennel has been in the oven for about 30 minutes, add a
little olive oil to a frying pan at medium heat. Add the duck skin
side down and fry until golden, turn over and fry until the other
side is golden. Finish the duck in the frying pan in the oven for
15 minutes.
Take the duck out of the oven and rest. While the duck is resting,
add the berries to the frying pan and simmer until reduced. Strain
out any pips. Put the veggies on the plate, then the duck and spoon
over the berry sauce.
Bills Chicken Club Sammich
Bills - 359 Crown Street, Surry
Hills
Bills second restaurant in Surry Hills
opened 12 years ago and has been going strong ever since, full to
the brim from opening till the end of brunch, easing off through
the day and picking up again for dinner. It’s a great place to come
despite it’s incredibly short menu, one of the shortest in Sydney
with usually ony a dozen items to choose from, most of which are
staples that are always there such as the sweetcorn fritters with
guacamole and the chicken club sandwich, which is what I had today.
Now this isn’t your typical three tier sandwich, it’s a chibata
roll with roast tomato, baked chicken thigh, roquett and a light
spread of dijonaise. It is delicious, but for $17.50 you’d want it
to be. Don’t count on the coffee, it’s always just a little
burnt.
Club Sandwich and Herbed Fries -
Bills, 359 Crown Street, Surry HIlls
If you’re after better coffee and cheaper sweet corn fritters (also
$17.50) try Lemon Twist a little further south on Crown
Street.
Roast Pork Loin with Dried Fruit
Roast Pork Loin with Dried
Fruit
Roast Pork Loin with Dried Fruit - Serves
4-6
1kg pork loin
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 large shallots, chopped
¾ cup diced dried apples
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup dried mixed berries
¼ cup dried wild figs
1½ cups low-salt chicken stock
½ cup dry white wine
Preheat oven to 220°C. Sprinkle pork with rosemary, salt, and
pepper.
Place pork in the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Lower the
temprature to 170ºC and continue to roast until thermometer
inserted into center registers 65°C to 75°C, about another 35-45
minutes. Transfer pork to platter; let stand 10 minutes.
Add apples, figs, cranberries and berries to the pan with the wine
and stock.; stir until fruit mixture is heated through, boil 1
minute, lower the heat, cover and simmer. If thicker sauce is
desired, boil until reduced enough to coat spoon. Season sauce to
taste with salt and pepper. Slice pork and spoon sauce over.
Corelli Sure Liked His Waffles
Corelli's Café - 352 King Street,
Newtown
Being
the heart of Newtown it manages to still have that feel of
Bohemia
about
it, which is odd because Arcangelo
Corelli was
Italian not Slavic; nor was he gypsy. In fact he was long dead
before the French even coined the phrase. The point though, is that
Corelli’s has that aire of real Newtown about it with it’s cramped
tables, mismatched paintwork and staff that will get around to
taking your order when they’ve stopped day-dreaming as they watch
the foot traffic.
As for the food, the menu seemed skewed towards breakfast, proven
by dinner there tonight with my pick of the menu being the bangers
and mash (not too bad but simple as it should be). For that
breakfast though John had the generously portioned eggs benedict
with an obviously not
store-bought hollandaise sauce.
You could tell it was made with fresh egg and
lemon.
Eggs Benedict @ Corelli's
Newtown
To
satisfy the need for sugar and fat though I couldn’t turn up the
made-to-order Belgian waffles with strawberry and rhubarb compote,
maple syrup and fresh cream. Good lord it hit the spot — then
stomped around on it for a while. The waffles themselves were light
and fluffy with just enough sugary-caramelised crispiness, balanced
with the sweet and tart compote and the lusciousness of the cream.
I think John’s arse clenched when he tasted some! Are you reading
this John? :P
Waffles with Rhubarb and Strawberry
Compote @ Corelli's Newtown
WTF is a Fricassee?
Roast Chicken and Winter Vegetable Fricassee
The ironing is delicious
Missed Train Croissant. Cold,
unmleted cheese. Damn.
Scoozi, la prima colazione?
This little black duck though had to walk for hours around the centre of Adelaide CBD to find somewhere that was open and serving breakfast.
Scoozi - Big Breakfast
Pearl Barley and Mushroom Ham Soup
UPDATE: This soup freezes very well, after two months frozen solid it was brilliant and the barley still had a great texture, as good as when it was first made.
Pearl
Barley and Mushroom Ham Soup
Pearl
Barley and Mushroom Ham Soup
Serves 4-8 depending on how much stock you add
250g pearl barley
40g butter or 2T of olive oil
200g onion, diced
3 cloves garlic
2 sprigs rosemary
3 springs thyme
3 dried porcini mushrooms (or dried chinese mushrooms)
100g shiitake mushrooms
200g swiss brown mushrooms
2 large ham bones (optional)
Boil the barley and ham bones in 1½L of water for an hour. While
that's on the go, chop everything else and fry the onion and garlic
until it's translucent then add the rest. When the barley is soft
take out the ham bones and chop off any left over meat. Add that
and the mushrooms into the pot with the stock and bring it all back
to the boil.
Season if needed and serve with some toasted sourdough.
Olivada Roast Chicken with Thyme Roasted Vegetables
Olivada Roast
Chicken
Olivada Roast Chicken with
Thyme Roast Vegetables - Serves 4-6
Olivada (can be made a day ahead)
1½ cups of kalamata olives
4 teaspoons of fresh chopped rosemary
2 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
Chicken
1½-2kg whole organic chicken
¼ cup of melted butter or olive oil
⅓
cup dry white wine
⅔
cup chicken stock
Vegetables
1kg of mixed roasting vegetables
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Salt and pepper
Fresh thyme
To make the olivada, pit the olives if they aren't already (press
down on them with the back of a kitchen knife is easiest), toss
them all in a blender and wizz until you've made a paste. Stir it
halfway through if the bits are clinging to the side. If you're
making this a day or two before, put in in an air-tight bowl and
and keep in the fridge until ready. Let it come back to room
temperature before cooking otherwise it will slow the chicken
getting to a safe temperature making it dry out.
For the chicken, pre-heat your oven 200ºC. While the oven is
heating rinse the chook under cool running water and dry it out
with either paper towel, or a hairdryer (no, really). Once that's
done place the chicken on your work surface with the neck facing
you and gently slip your fingers under the skin on the breast side.
Continue rummaging around the gap between the skin and flesh like
you're looking for your keys under the couch until the skin is
separated across the breasts, legs and most of the drumsticks. Take
a small handful of the olivada and insert it in the gap made
looking for your keys. Keep doing that until you've filled the gap
or run out of olivada. Massage the chicken to spread the olives
evenly.
If by the time your oven is up to temp and your chicken is room
temperature, place it on the roasting rack in your roasting tin,
brush it with the melted butter and roast until the chicken has
reached a safe temp 85ºC which should take about an hour and a
half. Otherwise let it warm up before roasting. Add the vegetables
to the bottom of the tin about half way through.
When your chook is looking like a retiree from Miami, take it out
and place the roasting rack and the vegetables on a chopping board
or somewhere else to rest, cover with foil to keep them warm. Put
the roasting tin on the stove across two burners on medium to low
and add the wine and enough chicken stock to make 1, swirl it
around and scrape off all the sticky bits on the bottom of the pan,
simmer and reduce to about ⅔
of a cup.