Salmon Fishcakes and Pilsner Urquell

 

Most of my Christmas dishes were accompanied with wine which is why this blog comes a couple of days late. On the big day myself and the Beautiful Wife had Roast duck on the big day accompanied by a beautiful 1999 Pavilion Rouge (Chateau Margaux's second wine) if you are interested.

There is time during the "in between period" for simple food which brings comfort and sustenance without testing the recipient or the cook. It is also a time for using leftovers and not wasting anything that can be saved.

Salmon fishcakes (recipe per person)

• 150 gms mashed potatoes (must be cold and as dry as possible)
• 100 - 150 gms cold cooked salmon (or any other cooked flaked fish)
• 1 egg beaten with a splash of milk
• 50 gms of flour
• A handful of breadcrumbs
• Vegetable oil for frying

Roughly mix the potato and fish with your hands and form into two or three thick patties. Coat them in the flour and then put them in the egg wash to make a glue. Finally drop them into the breadcrumbs to form and even coating. pop some oil in a frying pan, a depth of about 5 mm should be fine. Heat up the oil and fry the fishcakes on both sides, gently splashing a little of the oil up the sides to give and even fry. Serve with chips or just a nicely dressed salad.

A couple of additions, if you fancy: You could add a few sesame seeds to the breadcrumbs, you could change some of the fish for smoked salmon off cuts, you could also add in some dill or parsley to the mix, etc.

The Match

Pilsner Urquell literally translates as "Original Pilsner" it was the first lagered beers of this type to use pale malt and thus, in many ways invented the idea of the modern lager. It is, without doubt, a classic beer. A grassy, herby nose gives way to a soft malt body on the palate ending with a dry crisp finish. A measured bitterness means that this beer is perfect with the richer oily fish. The Breadcrumbs are perfectly echoed in the malty body of the beer. If you had not tried Pilsner Urquell yet I strongly urge you to do so, it may be the start of an education of lagers beyond the usual macro brewery fare.       

  

    

Bangers and Mash with Timothy Taylor Landlord

 Bangers and mash comes squarely from the Pub Grub school of cooking. It is filling, tasty and rich whilst being simple enough to be produced in quantity. Incidentally, this simplicity allows the cook to add their own twist elevating it to the level of "Gastro pub" food. 

The name "bangers" comes from a time when there was too much water added to the sausage meat mix. (The other ingredients are: Minced meat, spicing and bread or rusk all popped into a natural hog casing). More water meant a greater weight and thus more profit. This was certainly done during the rationing of the second world war, but may well have been happening both before and after. This meant that when the sausages were heated in a frying pan the steam meant that they were very likely to blow up in the pan. This lead to the mistaken dogma of pricking the sausages with a fork before cooking. Please do not do this, all the fat will run out, leaving you with a dry sausage with the texture of cous cous.

Buy the best sausages you can afford, a decent butcher will take pride in their traditional sausage. Start them in a frying pan with a little oil to get a little brown on them. Then put them in a medium oven for about 25 minutes, they should still have a distinct snap as you bite through the skin.     

I served the sausages with buttery mash and an onion gravy. Peas, as a vegetable, just seemed right. 

The Match

For many years, Landlord has been the last word in classic English Bitter. It is consistently good, one of the most reliably good beers in the UK. This example was from the bottle and was delicious, however, if you can find some from the cask in a pub, you are in for a real treat! The balance between hops, yeast and malt is nearly perfect. It drinks very easily with just a hint of fruit, a smart but balanced lick of hops and all based out with malt. Needless to say, it was an excellent match to the bangers and mash. The only problem with Landlord is that it is far too easy to drink - one pint is never enough!

Crab croquettes and Brewgooder New England IPA

I am a huge fan of crab. In truth, I think I prefer it to lobster. It is expensive but nearly always worth it. As with a lot of food, the more you pay the better the product. I tend to go with UK caught, unfrozen crab for most dishes. A crab contains two types of "meat": The Brown and The White. White crab meat is mild and sweet and turns into tiny flakes, the brown is more liquid and full of rich crabby flavour. This recipe uses both. If you are buying a whole crab then you will need to follow instructions from the many offerings online and split it into the two types of meat. Alternatively just buy them separately or buy a dressed crab and break it down.

These croquettes are a bit of a hybrid but perfect for a starter or a light lunch.

• 150 gms Plain flour
• 50 gms Butter
• 50 - 150 ml milk
• 120 gms white crab meat
• 120 gms brown crab meat
• a handful of btreadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 2 tblsp mayonnaise
• 1/2 tsp of Old bay spice or paprika 
• 500ml vegetable oil.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan until it just starts to foam, add 50 gms of the flour and mix to form a roux. slowly add about 50-100 mls of the milk to form a very stiff paste. Place a sheet of cling film on a small baking tray and spread the paste on it. Place another piece of cling film on top. allow this to cool and then place in the fridge to chill.

Mix all of the white meat with 2 tblsp of the brown crab meat and pop in the fridge. Mix the remaining brown meat with all of the mayonnaise and pop in the fridge too

After about an hour place three bowls on the work surface. In the first bowl place the remaining flour, in the second break the egss, add the milk and beat to create an egg wash. The third bowl is for the breadcrumbs.

Take the white meat and the paste out of the fridge and mix them, this should form a very thick paste.

Here comes the tricky bit. split the paste into 6 equal lumps. With slightly damp hands form one of the lumps into a barrel shape. (You will have to work quickly but without hurrying) Pop your first croquette into the flour and make sure it is totally coated. (This is a good chance to ensure the shape is perfect). Move the Croquette into the egg wash, again ensuring an even coating. Finally roll the croquette in the breadcrumbs to coat. When they are all done put them back in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.

Heat the oil in a large pan. (The oil should not be more than one third of the way up the inside of the pan). It should be hot enough so a small piece of bread fizzes on the surface and brown in about 90 seconds.

Fry the croquettes in the oil for a couple of minutes and lift out onto kitchen paper. Retrieve the brown meat mayo from the fridge and smear a generous amount across two plates. Place the croquettes on top of the brown meat mayo and serve with a wedge of lemon and a sprinkling of old bay or paprika.   

The Match

Brewgooder is a brewery that is determined to make the world a better, fairer place. They have B-Corp status and they are involved in many projects around the world, they also brew really lovely beers! This dish calls out for a dash of citrus and this beer definitely provides it. It is a classic sessionable New England IPA. It feels like a very drinkable beer with no real harshness on the finish. There is just a hint of malt to stand alongside the breadcrumbs. However, it is those lovely citrus notes that win the day in this match. 

 

   

Chicken thighs with garlic and thyme butter with Northern Rock Faith

It is said that we all "stand on the shoulders of giants" and this is never more true than when looking at cooking. Those of us who take ourselves a little too seriously in the kitchen find ourselves looking at the same gods and goddesses of the culinary arts for inspiration. If you are a Brit of a certain age who likes to cook its hard to find yourself going much beyond the genius that is Nigel Slater.

The dish below is very firmly based on one of his earlier acts of genius. This is not a  perfectly produced copy of what Mr Slater wrote but it is so close that I am not taking any credit for its invention.

• Chicken thighs (enough for two each, make sure you have the skin on)
• Butter
• Crushed garlic
• Dried thyme

The first thing to do is to take the bone out of the thighs. This takes a bit of practice but pretty soon one becomes quite good at it! You should now have lovely flat pieces of meat with skin on one side. heat a tiny bit of the butter in a frying pan. When the butter is foaming add the thighs, skin side down. Fry until golden and crisp then turn over. In the mean time, mash up the rest of the butter with the crushed garlic and thyme. Make sure that the chicken is cooked through then pop on a plate smothered in the butter. 

I served it with dauphinoise potatoes and Brussel sprouts with bacon and chestnuts. These will appear in later matches around Christmas and New Year.

The Match

Northern Monk produce great beer. Faith is one of their classic brews. It is a genuine Hazy IPA coming in at 5.4%. It matched the, garlic heavy, dinner beautifully. With a solid malty spine topped off with an American hop finish it made all the ingredients sing a little. Its rich mouthfeel even worked well with the buttery fattiness of the dish.

Just as an aside, Northern Monk produce a superb lower alcohol IPA called Striding Edge (2.8% alcohol). It's perfect for a midweek beer followed by a morning with no consequences.