Not HP, Not Daddies, No Way, Never, No More

I have always been disposed to try the 'basic' ranges. I am generally skeptical that premium brands are any better, like for like, in most cases. I used to use the example of aspirin when giving presentations on the power of marketing (I've since discovered that John Hegarty uses the same case study) where the power of the brand means that people pay 5 or 6 times more for what is exactly the same active ingredient. Anadin's ad campaign, Nothing Acts Faster, was brilliant - nothings acts slower, either, of course.

Of course, this nonsense applies to food as well. The worst outcomes are with fresh veg, where we'll never have the pleasure of comically mis-shaped carrots in the supermarket because the buying public apparently won't buy anything that doesn't look like it's been preformed in a carrot factory. Muppets. We are wasting so much of the harvest due to this silliness. I can't fix that, but we can start moving away from ludicrously priced branded products to the cheaper versions.

On to brown sauce. Was it just me that felt that the recipes of HP and Daddies changed when they went to Holland or wherever it is that they're made now? More vinegary? I switched my allegiance away from them sometime ago - not due to financial constraints but to taste alone. I found that the Aldi brown sauce, Bramwell's, was just as good as the big brands. Recently, though, I've not been over to Aldi and have been experimenting with other, even cheaper sauces.

Top of the list is the Sainsbury's Basic - no longer in the glass bottle pictured as it's just been changed to a squeezy plastic bottle. It costs only 25p! That's 6p per 100g compared to about 40p for HP.

I like the taste, I have to say. It doesn't contain any E numbers and it's amber on the bizarre scale of badness for sugar and salt whereas most brown sauce is red. Perfect for the traditional Dunkley breakfast of sausages and tomatoes.

If this anoraky tale of bargain brown sauce leaves you wanting more, I found an almost perfect fan site out there, http://www.tablesauce.co.uk - who would have though that there'd be a site dedicated to the bottled elixir? Perplexing that they only have a brief mention of OK sauce (a past favourite - fruity brown sauce that is, apparently, still in production) and nothing at all on Ideal Sauce. Still work to do out there....

Piri Paprika Roast Pork

This is an easy way to get some real flavour out of a joint of pork. 

All you need is some piri piri mix and smoked paprika - both bought from the nut & spice stall in Coventry Market. 

I used a cast iron casserole pan, in which I heated some bacon fat. I cut the skin and fat off the pork, for crackling, and then put the pork into the hot fat. 

I sprinkled the spices generously over the pork, turned it and did the same to the underneath. All you need to do then is keep turning it in the fat so it's well coated in the flavours. Then pop it into a pre-heated oven. 

The crackling is also straightforward. Cut some deep grooves in the skin and coat with oil and salt. I also applied some piri piri and some smoked paprika. Put it on a grill and over the pork. Cook per the size of pork and until the crackling is ready to go. 

Nicest pork I've tasted for ages. 

Food at The Pod

I'm going to be cooking at The Pod this Wednesday, with other foodies. There's a food themed evening, starting at 4:30. My bit of the menu, subject to confirmation, is:


Tortilla

Champinones al ajillo

Ensalada Rusa

Pan con Tomate

Manchego y Dulce de Membrillo

Paella con pollo

Should be rather nice - especially the chicken paella, which will involve a whole roasted chicken and its juices, with roasted vegetables, included in the paella.

Food Waste...

The latest report on food waste suggests that UK families are throwing away the equivalent of six meals a week. The BBC report can be found here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24846612

My view is that throwing food out is immoral. I love eating meat, but I can't abide the lack of respect that wasting meat represents when that animal has been slaughtered for our pleasure.  

At the risk of teaching folks how to suck eggs (thus avoiding waste of surplus eggs) here are a few thoughts...

BUY LESS!!

We all know that we should do it, but never get round to it - make a shopping list. Only deviate for real bargains. I only buy canned tuna when the multipacks are on sale. Do not buy reduced meat, fish, veg or bread unless you're going to use it or freeze it. 

Better still, only buy the stuff from supermarkets that they're really good at - cupboard essentials. Move to buying fresh food when you need it from local stores or the market. You'll waste a lot less if you're not buying from supermarkets and, even if they're cheaper for some things they're certainly not cheaper if you've bought a load of crap you're going to throw in the bin. They are really good at selling you crap you don't need. If you still think supermarkets are cheaper, have a look at my previous post where my £5 spent at Coventry Market would have cost £13 at Tesco.

It is pointless buying food that you're not going to eat. I know people that maintain a fruit bowl for decoration only. Diet tip:  If you eat fruit rather than eating pasties you'll lose weight. If you buy fruit, eat the pasties and then throw the fruit away then you're only going to lose money. 

USE IT!

Leftovers are good. They're quicker - and cheaper - than take aways. Just one example: bubble & squeak is magnificent and doesn't need to be restricted to breakfast. 

Fruit on the way out can be used in cooking. My current obsession with adding apples to all manner of dishes (liver, bacon & apple - delicious) shows the way. Squishy tomatoes are fantastic fried. Stale bread works for toast and bread & butter pudding. 

Stocks and soups are fabulous for avoiding waste. I even keep peelings in the freezer for making stock. 

If you can't use it - freeze it!

BEST BEFORE

The three saddest things in food? 

1. Children that don't know what a carrot is. 

2. People that think that fruit on trees and in hedgerows is 'dirty'

3. People that pay any attention to best before dates

I'd say that you can easily tell when almost any food is off. Be careful with pork, chicken and seafood - but even these are pretty obvious. 

If you're throwing cheese out, I despair. Use it in a nice cheese sauce. 

I could rant on and on about this but I'll sign off with a great tip from Callie. No normal person can eat a portion of chips from the chippie. Well, keep them in the fridge and refry them the following day. When you think about it, good chips should be double-cooked, and some places triple-cook them - so Callie is taking frugality into gourmet territory. 

Liver, Bacon & Apple with Potato & Leek Cakes

I know - another strange apple recipe. Delicious, though, and we should really make full use of the harvest.

Ingredients

400g ox liver - use whatever you prefer
1 tbsp veg oil
6 shallots
125g bacon
2 apples, cored and chopped. Dessert or cookers!
1 ham stock cube - use beef if you don't have the ham
500ml boiled water - use the water from the veg (we had sprouts) if you can
1 teaspoon garlic powder (or fresh cloves)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon chilli powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Potatoes:
500g potatoes, diced
50g butter
1/2 leeks, sliced
1 tbsp sunflower oil
Cheddar cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Peel and chop the potatoes. Boil them and, when nice and soft, mash them.

Meanwhile, chop the shallots and fry in the oil. Chop the liver and the bacon and add them to the pan. As they brown, add the apple, chilli, garlic and smoked paprika. Once browned add the stock cube and the water. That's really all there is to it.

Whilst all that's going on chop the leeks finely and fry in the butter. Once soft add the mashed potato to the pan and give it a good stir. Form into whatever shape you fancy and fry in the oil. Turn over and try to not lose the crispy bit on the bottom. As you fry the second side put some grated Cheddar cheese on the top. When you've crisped the bottoms, stick them in the grill to melt the cheese.