Haddock Friday

On Good Friday the sun shone for what seemed like the first time in a couple of weeks, I was off work after a long week of fulfillment and new light through old windows. I also had insurrection to deal with at the charity of which I am President for part of this year. I, as I do when I have challenges to face and overcome, took a long walk with my dog in the sun which lasted nearly five hours and was around ten miles long.

The walk cleared my head and after utilising a trick popularised for me, at least as far as the sleeping part is concerned, by my octagenarian grandad who is also my role model, I had an afternoon nap while listening to the Allman Brothers' Band's wonderful 1972 epic album "Eat A Peach". After walking on the problem earlier in the day and then sleeping on it I was about ready to deal with it. Although first I needed a big meal.

As it was the Easter weekend coming up I had decided to get some fish in during the week. The fish was a smoked haddock fillet and it had been defrosting in my fridge during the course of the day.

I first pre-heated the oven at Gas Mark 4 and once it was warmed up I put the haddock in wrapped in a foil parcel and covered it in rapeseed oil on a baking tray. The haddock was to be cooked for around 22-25 minutes.

In the meantime I set to work frying in my Le Cresceut a leek I had sliced lengthways with some diced onion. I fried it lightly for around fifteen minutes in some rapeseed oil with a hint of squeezed mustard. I then added some fresh cress as well to garnish this element of the meal.

I also steamed for about twenty-five minutes some white potatoes I had cubed several weeks earlier and then frozen to keep them fresh so they could be put straight into my steamer when they were ready to use. I steamed them with some frozen peas that I added to the steaming potatoes after about twenty minutes of steaming.

After the potatoes and peas were cooked I added them with two tablespoons of chopped mint and two of milk to the blender. I then blended them until they resembled the consistency of mushy peas as sampled from one of the many great local chippys in the area. The milk was crucial in the blending as without it the blender struggled to cut through the potato pieces despite the steamer doing an efficient and economic job of cooking them.

After the potatoes and peas were blended I put them in a serving bowl while the other ingredients were still being prepared.

I made a dressing for the dish by putting three tablespoons of honey in a saucepan with four sprigs of fresh Thyme, two tablespoons of dried Tarragon, some Rapeseed Oil and the juice and zest of one lemon. I stirred these ingredients together and warmed them through in the pan before putting them in a serving bowl.

Once the dish was all ready to serve I added the Haddock, some of the dressing, some of the peas and the leek, cress and onion to a plate as shown in the picture. With the Cocteau Twins' charming offering Heaven or Las Vegas playing loudly, I sat down to tea.

There was a real mix of flavours in the meal although not enough to spoil it. The smoked haddock contrasted well with the sweet and sour of the dressing and the freshness of the mint puree seemed all the more appropriate in the sunny weather. Definitely a dish for the end of an exacting week when the sun shone.

Here is the dish ready to eat with a presentation that attempts to give local restaurants a run for their money.

Our Laksma

The 23rd January was a Saturday and it involved a walk in the crisp winter sun in the local wood and exploring the large network of streams in the wood; mainly due to my dog's love of water and my need to get her clean after she found almost every muddy patch of ground possible on our walk.

The day before that I had found time to visit the winter gardens in my local city of Sheffield for a cup of tea with an old schoolfriend to end an exciting week on a high.

When I got home I stuck on the MP3 player Love's string laden and warped masterpiece Forever Changes which was followed by R.E.M's Green which saw them cross over with an album that is at least half successful in terms of creativity.

Following recent exposures to Oriental Culture through various sources I decided to make a dish known as Laksma. The method and the recipe of it from the version I made are as follows:

1. I created a paste that I put through my blender before frying- it as you will see I did later on in the recipe. The paste had in it the following:

1 diced onion.
2 diced garlic cloves.
1 teaspoon turmeric.
1 teaspoon ginger.
1 teaspoon coriander.
2 diced green chilli peppers.
1 tablespoon olive oil.

A close colleague and friend of mine at work swears by making her pastes from scratch rather than buying ready made ones from the shops. I have to say that I totally agree with her, there is certainly something more authentic and flavoursome about making your own paste from scratch even if it takes longer.

2.After leaving the paste on one side I then grilled a salmon steak I had found I my freezer for a period of twenty-five minutes.

3. While the salmon was cooking under the grill I boiled some noodles in a pan of water on the stove for  fifteen minutes.

4. While the noodles boiled and the salmon was cooking I fried the paste in my wok with some light soy sauce, fish sauce, one and a half cups of chicken stock and one and a half cups of coconut milk as well. I fried it for around five minutes until it was warmed through and kept it warm on a light heat while the noodles and salmon were cooking.

5. Once the Salmon and the noodles were ready I combined them in the wok with the paste and served the dish. This is one of those dishes that feels it does you nothing but good and also tastes delicious too. The Salmon and noodles give it plenty of protein while the texture and taste of the paste help increase your intake of fresh vegetables.

I also served it with some spinach which took the edge off the spices in the paste to give the food a more rounded flavour.

The meal definitely helped motivate me to seek out more types of Oriental Recipes which you'll see on the blog in the coming weeks.

Like a lot of Oriental dishes this is best off being served in a bowl because of the liquid content.