Not so Hungry Games- Lamb Stew with Prunes

If we’re in the middle of discussing...I don’t know, the pros and cons about aquiculture for example, and all of a sudden you ask me: Come on, quickly, name one Hunger Games food, I’d say, without doubt: Lamb stew with prunes. Katniss’ favourite, and also Caesar Flickerman’s (whom will always be for me Julia Child’s husband, sorry)

Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci as Julia and Paul Child in Julie&Julia 

So, lamb stew...after having tried Irish Stew, which is mutton (old lamb) cooked with spuds, carrots and onion for hours (absolutely not similar to the “If Maria- that’s me-was Irish” stew), didn’t sound very inspiring, because even I do like roasted gigot (lamb leg), or grilled lamb ribs, I don’t like at all boiled lamb. Just can’t bear the taste. Much more if it’s served with overboiled potatos, carrots out of a can and without any seasoning at all. Imagine being presented with a plate of something quite lumpy and completely unapetizing.

Irish Stew, this one actually looks a lot better than the one I had

I was at a crossroad: Should I take the challenge and try to make something delicious, even if I’m not convinced of the result, or should I make a beef or pork dish, that would be undoubtedly lovely, but not accurate with the idea?
Ha, it has the word challenge in there, right? So you already knew that without a doubt, I’d go for the challenge, because let’s face it, as a friend told me in Inishmore, when I was a bit afraid of looking over the cliffs of Dún Aengus “No risk, no fun”.

My camera kind of died when I was here, so I've borrowed Rayco's one. Inishowen, Ireland

Don’t be afraid, really, and trust me in this, the stew is absolutely delicious, and it wont taste of lamb at all once is cooked. We were totally amazed by the results and we clean off the plates, which, I have to say, was an historic achievement, because we just gorged ourselves with a decadent goat cheese and apple tart and Peeta’s bread right before I served it, so, was really good. Wicked, even.

First of all, make sure you have plenty of time ahead, this recipe can’t be rushed, in fact, any stew should be rushed, it has to be cooked gently, over a low fire, with the broth simmering slowly, all the flavours mingling and filling your whole house with homey smells.

CAPITOL STYLE LAMB STEW WITH PRUNES OVER A BED OF WILD RICE

Ingredients: (I know, I know, they're quite a lot, but it's the pinch of this and splash of that what makes the stew so unique and flavourful)

3/4 kg of lamb for stewing already minced (don’t be a lazy ass and go to a proper butchery to buy it, because they can mince it for you, and believe me, is a huge pain in the ass to mince it at home, I tried- and I do have a Thermomix- and I won’t do it again if I can help it. Ever.)
3 medium onions, peeled and cut roughly
250 gr of dried and boned prunes
1 small glass of Brandy
2 cloves of garlic
1 pinch of salt and black pepper
1 teaspoon of cinnamon (Could Cinna be a short for Cinnamon? It would suit him well, right? Because he’s warm, and sweetly spicy but not overwhelmingly sugary...)
1 tablespoon of dried tyme
1 handful of fresh parsely, chopped finely
1 egg
2 tablespoons of fine dried breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon and a half of gravy granules
2 tablespoons of tomato sauce (any you have in a tin open, or even grated raw tomatos will do)
1 tiny winy pinch of ground cumin
2 bayleaves (it doesn’t mind if its dried or fresh)1 knob of butter and a glob of seed oil (olive oil-not a virgin one-, sunflower, canola...) 

300 gr wild rice mixed with basmati

Procedure

- Crush one garlic clove, add half the tyme, a pinch of the cinnamon, the cumin, salt, pepper, the egg, breadcrumbs, chopped parsley and the meat. Mix it well with your fingers and leave it aside.

- In a heavy bottom saucepan, dollop the butter and the oil and in a low heat and crush the other garlic, when all the butter is melted and you can smell the garlic, pour in the tomato and give it a quick stir.

- Add the onions and salt a bit, as the salt helps the water contained by the onions to sweat, and they’ll cook a bit quicker. Crush a bit with your fingers the bayleaves and drop them into the pan. Put the lid on, letting the onions cook slowly, they’ll become lovely translucent and the sugar in them will start to caramelize. Yum!

- Spice your base with the rest of the cinnamon, and add the prunes. You don’t need to chop them.

- We’re going to make a wee bit of a fancy trick, and if you don’t feel confident with it, just skip it, but I think it’ll help to enhance the rich flavour of your stew: Warm the brandy slightly on the ladle over the flames, and with the saucepan far from your smoke extractor, light it and pour the liquid on fire over your onions, just like Katniss’ and Peeta’s outfits, the flames will get off in a bit.

- Put the saucepan over the heat again and cover with water. Think about a glass per person. Bring it to a broiling boil on a high heat and try it to adjust the seasoning. My advice is to start being quite scrooge with the salt and pepper, and go adding more bit by bit until it reaches your taste. Because you can always add, but never remove.

- With your hands slightly greased, take your minced lamb and shape it into meatballs (around two educated person bites size). One you have one, drop it into the broth.

- Once you have them all done, lower the heat and let the stew simmer gently with the lid a bit lopsided for about 30 minutes. Stir from time to time to make sure nothing is adhering to the bottom.

- Disolve your gravy granules following tha package instructions and pour the mixture in the stew. Stir it and let it thicken the sauce.

- Cook the rice as the package recomends, but this usually is in huge saucepan with an abundancy of salty boiling water for about 18 minutes. Drain well.

- Serve your stew with about three or four meatballs over a ladle or two of wild rice.

Yummy!

It’s absolutely out of this world.

Hope you have enjoyed and try it soon!!!

Not so Hungry Games-1 of an unkown many

After finishing Dance with Dragons, which seemed more like Neverending Story, I asked my best friend for something lighter to read, something mesmerizing, that could get me all hooked up in the reading, and she suggested The Hunger Games, by Suzzane Collins.

She was absolutely right. I took my Kindle everywhere, even to work (and it’s not like I work in an office, no, I work in a fishmonger!), because I couldn’t stop reading, and every moment I could take the e-reader out, I did. I read all three books in a bit more than a week. I was missing so much the feeling of being absorbed by the story, like I did with Harry Potter or the first three books of A Song of Ice and Fire, that I let myself fall into Panem and read avidly the misadventures of Katniss and Peeta, and everyone else.

As a foodie, I was shocked by the importance the food has in the story, how she describes flavours and textures and never ceases to enumerate all the dishes and meals. And as a chef...I just had to give it a go.

With the movie premiere here in Spain, I decided it to re-read the books and inspire myself into a thematic dinner. So, the only thing left was decide what to make. I went for a first book menu, and I wanted to share it with you, because it wasn’t just fun to eat it, it was amazing to plan it and also to cook it. But you all know I’m a sucker for challenges, specially culinary ones.

As it will be a long way (because, my gods, there are so many dishes I want to try!!), I’ll make different posts with the recipes, as I don’t want to overload you all with information, as it seems I can’t keep myself stuck to the facts and I’ll end up writing a lot of stupid details and personal opinions about absolutely everything.

Let’s start with the first thing that comes with the story, bread.

PEETA’S BREAD

(Not the same thing as Pita Bread...talking about that, fancy name for your kid, owning a bakery and all that jazz...parents at books...just crazy if you ask me, don’t even let me get started with Remus Lupin parents, I mean, seriously?)

I choose it because is the one Peeta gives to Katniss when she’s starving after her dad’s death, and just shows how sweet he is.

“We ate an entire loaf, slice by slice. It was a good hearty bread, filled with raisins and nuts”- The Hunger Games, chapter 2

Ingredients:

560 gr strong white flour (have at hand the bag, as you might need to add some more)

125 gr toasted walnuts

125 gr raisins (not important if they’re sultanas or moscatel)

25 gr fresh yeast

380 mL warm milk (it’s better if it’s whole, but if you have semi-skimmed or skimmed, it’s alright)

1 squidge of honey

1 generous tsp of salt

About 12 ice cubes

Procedure:

- Disolve the yeast in the warm milk (make sure it’s lukewarm and not hot, because it’ll kill the yeast and you’ll end up with a tough mess) and add the squidge of honey.

If you’re a lucky one and likes to play with toys, like I do, you might have a stand mixer, if you’re not...welcome to the bakers hard work, darling!

Stand Mixer:

- With the hook attachment, mix in the dry ingredients and add the milk mixture, mix it first on low speed, as you don’t want the flour coming up in your face.

- Increase the speed to medium and keep it going for as long as it needs for the dough to stop sticking to the bowl.

- Flour lightly a clean and dry work surface and empty your bowl there.

- With just one hand (your dominant one), because you want to keep one hand clean, work the dough, until you press a floured finger into the dough, and it springs back almost all the way.

By Hand (or why bakers have such beautiful arms):

- Mix your dry ingredients in a big bowl.

- Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and add the milk mixture.

- With just two fingers, and making swirling movements, combine the ingredients, until you end with a sticky dough.

- Flour lightly a clean and dry work surface and empty your bowl. Flour the dough surface and start kneading it. It will be quite sticky for a while, but be patient, as you keep working the dough, the gluten contained in the flour develops and “absorbs” the humidity. It will take about fifteen minutes of hard work.

- Knead it until you press your floured finger into the dough and springs back almost all the way.

Common process (aw, don’t make that face, kitchen geek, getting your hands dirty is part to enjoy the bread making):

- Put it in an oiled bowl and cover it loosely but airtight with clingfilm (remember: You must cover babies, doughs and old people, for them not to be cold). Leave it to rise in a warm place for about an hour (it should double its volume)

- Now you have some lovely time to sit on your hands or start cleaning all the stuff you used.

- Oil your baking tray, or maybe two loaf tins and flour lightly your work surface.

- Uncover your dough and put it on your work surface. Push it firmly but gently until you knock out most of the air.

- Divide your dough in two if your going to use the loaf tins, or in as many pieces as guests you have. If you are quite picky, you can weight your dough and do it precisely, I’d just eyeball it.

- Knead each piece of dough and place it in the loaf tin or in the baking tray. Once you have them all, cover them and let them rise. Yes, again.

- Put a baking tray at the bottom of your oven and preheat it at 200ºC.

- Just before putting the bread in the oven, drop the ice cubes on the bottom tray. It’ll create a humid environment for your bread to be able to develop itself and rise beautifully.

- Make a cross with a sharp knife in your buns or a slash in your loaves and put them into the oven, around your medium rack, but closer to the bottom.

- Bake for about 30 minutes, or until its golden brown.

- Carefully, using a dry teatowel or an oven glove, remove the nearest bun and tap the base, if it sounds hollow, it’s done!! Yaaaaay! . If not, leave it for another five minutes and check again.

- Leave it to cool for about ten minutes and eat it viciously.

Paco's mockingjay and a lovely bun

I hope it seems as easy as it is and you give it a go. I’m sure you’d enjoy doing it as much as eating it later. Making bread is not easy, and can go wrong, but don’t worry, sometimes bad bread happens to good people.

See you soon!