Good Morning.
It is supposed to rain this time of the year, but we had a whopper of a snowstorm over the weekend with another mess expected later this week. I am just plain disgusted and since I associate drizzly gray weather with England, I will offer some classic British dishes. I chose the title of the blog deliberately: it is UK slang for nonsense or the more plebeian version I shall not mention here. The Brits are the only people in the entire world who can cuss and make it sound elegant. I believe it's the bloody accent.
We begin with Fish and Chips. This popular combo used to be wrapped in newspaper for serving, but the custom was banned
several years ago, even though publishers insisted that the ink added a certain something to the dish.
4 large russet potatoes, peeled
Vegetable oil
Sea Salt
2 tbsp. flour
More sea salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups dried white bread crumbs
1 large egg
4 cod or haddock fillets, about 5 ounces each, skin removed
More vegetable oil
Cut the potatoes lengthwise into sticks about 1/4 inch thick. Place them in a bowl of icy cold water and set aside to soak for 20 minutes. Spread the flour on a plate and mix with a sprinkle of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Beat the egg in a shallow bowl and season also. Coat each fillet in flour, then dip in the egg, then into the bread crumbs. Press the crumbs onto all sides. Pour 4 inches of oil into a large pot. Heat to 325 degrees using a deep fry thermometer. Drain the potato sticks and pat dry with paper towel. Working in batches, fry the potatoes until golden and crisp but not brown, maybe 4 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towel. Pour in enough oil to generously cover the bottom of a large skillet and set over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the fillets and cook until golden, about 4 minutes. Turn and cook the other side about 4 minutes. Watch carefully. Transfer the fish to paper towel to drain. Arrange the fillets and potatoes on individual plates and provide a wedge of lemon. Or wrap them in newspaper formed in a cone shape and who cares about the ink. My choice will be The New York Times but suit yourself. The Wall Street Journal would also make an interesting cone.
Bangers and Mash
2 pounds pork sausage, the fatter the better
1 tbsp. sunflower oil
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup whole milk
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
For the gravy:
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 red onions, finely sliced
1 1/2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. red wine vinegar
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
Salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the sausage in a roasting pan, sprinkle with sunflower oil, toss to coat, and spread in a single layer. Bake, turning after 15 minutes, for a total of half an hour. Place the potato chunks in a saucepan with water to cover, add some salt, and bring to a boil. Continue to cook on medium heat until potatoes are tender, maybe 25 minutes.
Drain well, cover with a towel, and let them dry. Place the potatoes in a bowl, add the milk and butter, and mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. To make the gravy, melt the butter and oil in a saucepan, add the onions and cook about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking the onions for 20 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook 2 minutes.
Add the vinegar, wine, and broth, raise the heat to medium, bring the gravy to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. Place the sausage and potatoes on plates and spoon the gravy over everything.
Cornish Pasties
1 pound flour
5 oz. butter
Salt
Water
1 pound sirloin
1 pound potatoes
1 white onion
1 oz. butter
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the butter into the flour, add a bit of salt, then enough water to bind into a dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for half an hour. Cut the meat and potatoes into really small pieces. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured board and cut into 6 inch circles. Use a sharp knife and guess. Top each circle with some meat and potato pieces, dot with butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover the filling with another circle, dampen the edges, seal with your thumb and index finger, and crimp with the tines of a dinner fork. Place the pasties on a non-stick baking pan and bake for 40 minutes until golden brown.
I did not omit the R in the word pasties and they're pronounced with a short rather than a long A, like past rather than paste, for those of you who have patronized certain entertainment establishments.
Moving right along, we have a very famous dish with another interesting name, Bubble and Squeak.
3 to 4 potatoes, peeled, cooked, and roughly mashed
1 small head cabbage, chopped up and cooked
Salt and pepper
4 tbsp. butter
1 small white onion, chopped
Mix the mashed potatoes and cooked cabbage in a bowl and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Saute the onions until translucent. Stir in the potatoes and cabbage and press down with the back of a large
spoon onto the bottom of the skillet. Reduce the heat and cook until the bottom is brown about 10 minutes. Flip with a spatula and brown the other side.
This dish is so named because of the cooking sounds associated with it and I'll leave it at that.
And finally we have Shepherd's Pie, kind of sad actually considering it uses the lamb that the shepherd was supposed to be tending.
1 pound leftover lamb, minced
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium white onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
8 oz. white button mushrooms, wiped clean with oil and chopped
1 sprig of fresh rosemary - leaves removed and chopped
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. tomato paste
16 fluid oz. chicken broth
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled, cooked, and mashed with 2 tbsp. butter and a bit of milk or cream
Cook the onion and carrots in the olive oil until soft. Stir in the flour, cook for a minute, then add the tomato paste,
rosemary, and chicken broth. Stir well and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes. Stir in the lamb. Place this mixture in a glass pie dish and spread the mashed potatoes on top. Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered until the top is nicely brown.
Use leftover roast beef if desired but lamb is traditional. You can also add peas, but probably not in my family.
You will notice that all these British dishes use a lot of potatoes, yet those folks don't seem to be any fatter than
anyone else. This is because they walk their dogs and do a lot of serious gardening. In my world the combination is magic:
potatoes, dogs, and flowers.
Best regards,
Elisabeth
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