Saturday 20 February 2016

GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Summer is a perfect time to eat this luxurious and sensual fruit.  Apart from their delicious taste, figs are so versatile and could be eaten as a fruit or as a savoury item.  As much as I enjoy eating them as they are, I also like to impress my guests by serving them as an entrée.

GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

The combination of the piquant taste of cheese combined with the sweet aroma of figs, further highlighted by the spiciness of basturma (a highly seasoned air-dried beef, traditionally attributed to the Turkish cuisine), delivers an absolutely divine taste to the final dish. 

Each of these ingredients is unique in its flavour and does not require long and heavy cooking to develop the flavours, which is what I like about this recipe.

To serve it to 4 people you need:
8 ripe figs
100 gr of blue cheese crumbled
8 thinly sliced pieces of basturma (available at a deli shop)
6 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
A bunch of rocket or watercress leaves for garnish

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 160C and set it up for grilling.

GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Place the figs on a cutting board and gently slice cross-ways half way down the fruit, press lightly with your finger to open the figs up and gently push a few pieces of blue cheese into the opening.

GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Wrap a piece of basturma around each fig and secure with a tooth pick.  If the slices are not long enough, you can cut each piece of basturma in half lengthwise, wrap the basturma around the fig and then secure the slices of basturma with a tooth pick.
 GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Add olive oil to the pan and then place the figs into the pan in an upright position.  If they tend to fall onto their side, scrunch a small piece of foil to make a stand for the fig.  Splash balsamic vinegar over the figs and pour the remaining balsamic vinegar into the pan and place under the grill for about 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
 GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Remove from the oven, scatter some rocket or watercress leaves over the plate and sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil, place two figs on top of the rocket or watercress and drizzle the pan juices over the figs and around the plate like a real pro.

GRILLED FIGS + BLUE CHEESE WRAPPED IN BASTURMA

Enjoy!!!




Monday 8 February 2016

CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA

Traditionally, this dish has been tied up with Georgian cuisine, however, where we used to live (Odessa, Ukraine) this dish was on the menu of almost every eating establishment, large or small.

We most probably didn’t have all those aromatic spices that were growing on the slopes of the Georgian mountains, however we got the gist of it, i.e. the chicken needs to be pan-fried under heavy weight for the bird to be cooked through and also to achieve the maximum crispiness of the skin.
CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA
You might have heard about a recipe called “Chicken under the brick” which is an English interpretation of this quite unusual name, since “Tabaka” and tobacco has the same root.

However, the name is not that important since the final result is delicious juicy meat covered in crispy finger leaking skin.

Here is how I do it
You need:
1.5 kg free range corn fed chicken
Baking or sandwich paper
1 brick wrapped in foil
2 tbsp olive oil for frying
1 lime quartered to serve
1 tsp of fennel seeds, lightly toasted and crushed
1 tsp of smoked paprika

For the marinade:
3 tbsp olive oil
5 tbs soy sauce
3 tbsp fish sauce
5 garlic gloves peeled and crushed
3-5 kaffir lime leaves
Juice of half a lime
1 small red chili, lightly chopped, seeds removed
2 tsp coriander seeds, lightly fried and crushed

Method:
In order to get the maximum crispiness of the skin, you need first to spatchcock the chicken, in other words remove the backbone.  It might sound a bit scary but it’s quite easy thing to do. 

Place the bird breast on a chopping board breast side down. Using a sharp knife or kitchen scissors, starting at the neck, run it all along the bone on both sides all the way down.  Discard the bone. Flip the chicken over and place the palm of your hand firmly over the breastbone until you hear a crack, which is exactly what you need. The chicken is now flat and ready for the next step.  Rinse the cavity under cold water and pat dry.

Prepare the marinade by combining all of the ingredients in a big enough bowl to accommodate the chicken and check for seasoning.  It is quite important that the marinade has strong taste as it needs to penetrate the meat but by all means adjust it to your liking.  Submerge the bird in the marinade and place in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, turn the bird over to get it marinated evenly.

Remove the chicken from the fridge about half an hour before cooking.  Take it out of the marinade, pat dry, rub with olive oil, paprika and fennel seeds.

CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA

Pre-heat the pan on medium-high heat and add olive oil.  Once hot, gently lower the chicken skin side down, into the pan, tear off a piece of baking paper to loosely cover the pan so as to avoid splattering, cover it with a big flat plate or lid and place a brick wrapped in foil on top of it.  Cook the chicken on high heat for about 10 minutes, then drop the temperature to medium- low and continue cooking for about 20 minutes.

CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA

Then remove the brick, plate and the paper and gently turn the chicken over.  Continue cooking on low heat for another 20 minutes, then insert a skewer into the thickest part of the leg and if the juices come out clean, remove the chicken from the pan, cover loosely with foil and rest in warm place for about 10 minutes.  I find that the microwave oven is a perfect place for the job.

CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA
Arrange the chicken on a serving platter and bring to the table for everyone to see.  Slice at the table and serve with some lime wedges and Watermelon and Basil Salsa on the side.
CHICKEN "TABAKA" WITH WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA


Enjoy!!!


WATERMELON AND BASIL SALSA

Sweet, savoury and crunchy this watermelon salsa is a perfect accompaniment to any grilled meat or chicken. 

Watermelon + basil salsa
It reminds me of a hot Sydney summer and I love to eat it chilled.  I think it goes especially well with my Chicken Tabaka, the sweetness and crunchiness of the watermelon enhances the crispiness of the chicken skin and the aroma of basil highlights the flavours of the meat.

To make a salsa you need:
600 gm watermelon flesh
Half a cup of tightly packed basil leaves
½ of a red chili, seeds removed
1 small red onion finely chopped
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Cut the watermelon into pieces of similar thickness and then slice them into thin long strips.  Holding it all together, turn the whole lot around by 90 degrees and again slice into thin strips.  You will end up with a very evenly, finely sliced little cubes of watermelon which is what salsa is all about.  
Watermelon + basil salsa

Watermelon + basil salsa

Watermelon + basil salsa
Add finely chopped red onion, chilies and torn basil leaves, pour in the extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Mix the salsa gently and give it a taste.  The saltiness should be in perfect balance with the sweetness, you should also taste some salt and the aroma of the basil leaves.  Adjust the seasoning to your liking and serve as an accompaniment to “Chicken Tabaka” or other grilled meat.

Enjoy!!!