February #awnmondays

A good non-stick and cast iron pan can be the start of many great meals. A well-seasoned cast iron pan is functional for so many things from roasting meat, to baking off flatbreads, to making the perfect sauce. A good non-stick pan is great for anything eggy - fried eggs, omelettes, scrambled eggs and so much more. A cast iron pan will last a life time of cared for well, rub gently with oil after each use before storing and re-season them as needed. I use Lodge cast iron in my kitchen. For the non-stick, spend a bit of money, buy one with an oven-proof handle, and be mindful of the tools you’re using on them. As soon as you start to see the non stick finish degrade they shouldn’t be used anymore. As I said, my non-stick pan is six years old and gets used for both home and business use – a well-loved pan. The brand is Eva Trio, it’s from a shop in London called David Mellor (they do ship - I’ll warn you though, visit their website at your own risk!). Closer to home, Le Creuset makes a great one.

The trick to the best mashed potatoes - good floury potatoes (like a russet), chopped into even sized pieces (key to even cooking!), boiled in well salted water until tender but not falling apart to the point of absorbing water, hot milk, seasoned properly... oh and butter, lots of butter. I went to cooking school in Ireland and although I get cross when people joke the Irish don’t know good food, I’ll give their reputation this – they take spuds seriously (boiling them in the skin in sea water (yes, sea water!), peeling while smoking hot (without burning yourself!), served with loads of grass-fed butter)! So back to the best mashed potatoes – hot milk is key to fluffy mash, add it in bits, not all potatoes will take the same amount of milk - don’t make soupy mash, taste and season as you go, and be greedy with the amount of butter you add in. It’s a simple tip this week, but try it out, I promise you’ll see a difference.

Roux – an ingredient you’ve probably made even if you don’t know what it is. Equal parts butter and flour (by weight), something better than the sum of its parts, I suppose. How to make it? Melt butter (I use unsalted) in a small saucepan over low heat, add in an equal amount of all purpose flour (I use Highwood Crossing Foods Ltd., of course), stir well and cook for 3 – 5 minutes over a low heat to get rid of the “raw” flour flavour. Pop into a jar, leave to cool and store in the fridge. This will store in your fridge for up to six weeks. Now why would you want a jar of this rather unattractive looking stuff in your fridge? It’s the beginning of many great things – use it to thicken soups, stews, and sauces. The trick – the liquid must first be boiling before the roux will do its job, so start slow, add in small bits to whatever you are trying to thicken, you don’t want to end up with sludge. The result, a deliciously rich dish – have you ever made a white sauce? Cheese sauce? Gravy? Thickened the base of a stew, soup or savoury pie? You’ve likely made roux using fat that was already in the dish and flour to thicken. I find it to be such a handy ingredient to have in the fridge to pull out, break a piece off and use – it saves time. Next week… I’ll be sharing a recipe that uses roux.

A recipe to use the jar of roux you made last week! Gravy - a serious thing in the Whittaker kitchen. Do you like it thick or thin or somewhere in the middle? To me the perfect gravy is thin enough that it’s pourable but not so thin it doesn’t sit well on whatever it’s being poured onto. Best served piping hot and must be seasoned perfectly. If you’re my niece and nephew you get your own small jug, and if the adults turn their heads they just might slurp up the last bit straight from the jug! No need for a package, just drippings from a joint of good quality meat, homemade stock, roux, salt and pepper. Deglaze the roasting pan using 500-750ml of homemade stock (recipes on the blog), by bringing the stock to the boil in the roasting tin and whisking to catch all of the bits on the pan that are full of flavour. Pour the liquid through a fine sieve into a small saucepan, you can now remove any excess fat, should there be any, with a spoon. Bring to the boil and start to add roux bit by bit whisking all the time until the gravy is the consistency you’re looking for. Keeping in mind it will take some time between each addition of roux for it to thicken. Season with salt and pepper (homemade stock shouldn’t be seasoned before use so you’ll need to season the gravy well), taste and season again. Leftover gravy freezes quite well to bulk up the next batch. If you’re roasting meat and not making gravy, always deglaze the pan and freeze the drippings - it’s liquid gold and can be added into the next batch of gravy to make extra, or thrown into a soup or stew to add flavour!