I hope you are all well this cold festive afternoon. Hows the Christmas preparations going? you got all your presents wrapped? no? me neither!
We have provided you all with some great Christmas treats and recipes now we thought we would let you into a few little secrets and tips about what to keep in your larder and what to look for when buying your food all thanks to Heathcotes Outsides. When it comes to food, Heathcotes Outside is the master. The man behind the culinary music is the former double-starred Michelin chef, Paul Heathcote, who loves nothing more than creating delicious flavours from the finest ingredients, cooked to perfection and served in style.
So grab a drink, sit back and enjoy!
Your Larder
Sea Salt
Flavour is everything. The quality of your seasoning is essential. Wet the tip of your finger and dip it in ordinary table salt; the offensive taste is additives. Now do the same with pure sea salt and taste the difference.
Freshly milled pepper
Pepper straight from the grinder is worlds away from ground. ideally have two mills: white peppercorns in one and black in the other. Use white on light coloured food such as fish, potatoes and cream based dishes, and black for meat, tomatoes and more robust ingredients.
Virgin Olive Oil
Heating oil changes its flavour, so its a waste to cook with good oil. use the cheaper olive oil or vegetable oil to cook with, and keep the expensive stuff for dressings.
Vegetable Oil
Vegetable oil is a neutral flavour and has a much higher heat resistance so it is great fro frying and also good for light dressings. If olive oil isn't your taste, use it in the same quantities. Experiment with walnut, peanut & grapeseed oils too.
Butter
All butter in recipes is unsalted unless stipulated. Salted butter is very obvious in desserts and butter based sauces.
Milk & Cream
Generally we recommend using whole milk in cooking; skimmed and semi-skimmed don't heat well and split easily. You cant whip or boil single cream, there is not enough fat in it; use whipping and double cream.
Chocolate
The better the chocolate, the better the taste. Buy a good quality couveture (dark chocolate) with 70% cocoa solids.
Eggs
Use eggs at room temperature (straight from the fridge will take longer to start cooking). Buy free-range or organic, not 'farm' or 'barn' eggs.
Lemons
Great for sauce making, when the sauce still lacks just a little something, a few drops of lemon juice can make all the difference. With a dash of olive oil, the best salad dressing.
Vanilla
Use pods, not bottled essence where possible. Scrape the seeds for recipes. Keep pods, stick them in the sugar pot for wonderful flavour; and boil them for five mins in syrup for fruit salads.
Garlic
Tip for peeling: cut of the root and squash the bulb a bit - lean on it with the flat of the knife. The skin almost drops off.
Herbs
Keep pots int eh kitchen windowsill: parsley, chives, coriander, basil. When picking, leave one or two heads on each stem to let them grow back. Thyme, mint, rosemary, bay are hardy and better grown outside.
Mustard
French (mild), Dijon (medium), English (hot). So many brands and flavours to choose from - pick good quality. any mustard will work to cook with - have fun experimenting.
Greek Yoghurt
Full fat - instead of cream or sour cream. Good to mix with mayonnaise for sharper flavour. Cook with strained cow's milk Greek yoghurt, which doesn't separate so easily.
For more tips and treats why not see our facebook page.
