Oranges & cake

Oranges

By Michael O Meara

The fresh sweet / sour taste of a ripe orange on a hot summer’s day (or a cold winter’s day for that matter) is always a worthwhile and healthy treat. One of the consolations of global warming may be that we in Ireland might eventually be able to grow our own fresh oranges in the years ahead. Fresh orange blossoms with their pungent perfume would undoubtedly make a wonderful addition to many a garden, in particular because this is a tree the blooms at the same time that it bears fruit giving a truly stunning display.
The orange (citrus sinensis or C. sinensis being both sweet and bitter in their respective order) originated in China where it is recorded as far back as 2,400 BC. There are a great many sub-varieties of orange with most of the world’s crop originating in Brazil and the United states which account for more than two thirds of the global crop. The most important variety of orange is called the ‘Valencia’ which although thought to be of Spanish origin is more likely to have originated in Portugal. Other orange varieties include blood oranges such as the ‘Sanguinello’, Navel oranges which have a small and rudimentary baby fruit imbedded in its apex and are also sweet and juicy, and the versatile ‘seville orange’ which is mainly used in the production of marmalade. The small oranges such as the mandarin are for the most part hybrids between oranges and other citrus fruits.

Orange cake

225 g caster sugar
225 g butter
Grated zest of one orange
4 organic eggs
225g plan white flour
1 tbsp baking powder
15 ml fresh orange juice

Pre heat oven two 180°C
Grease and flour a 12 inch cake tin
1. Cream butter with the sugar, beating till soft and pale in colour. Add the zest and the eggs one by one beating all the time. Sieve in the flour and baking powder and gently stir in, then add the orange juice.
2. Pour the mixture into the baking tin with the centre hollowed out a little. Bake for around 30-40 minutes or until cooked.
3. Turn out and cool on a wire tray.

Garnish with a fresh orange icing and candied orange peel.

Octopus is next!

Octopus

Often associated with warm climates such as that of the Mediterranean Sea, octopus is a delicious cephalopod. Indeed the octopus is categorised as a mollusc which has evolved to loose its shell and is closely related to the snail. The octopus has a short life spam with the predominant species found in Irish waters being the Curled Octopus (Eledone cirrosa). This species is easily distinguished by having only one row of suckers on each tentacle. There are a number of methods used to fish for this smart cephalopod and one effective way to catch an Octopus is to lower a white pot (apparently they seem attracted to the colour white) into the sea with a few stones inside. The octopus on finding this potential house will clean out the stones and take up residence allowing the pot to be raised with the catch in inside.
The Spanish are the largest consumers of Octopus in Europe but as is the case with much of the world’s seafood it is the Japanese who are the largest consumers. The octopus, especially when large can be tough and may need to be tenderised. Methods used include bashing the octopus on rocks. The Japanese also are known to boil the octopus in two ways, one being very lightly or alternatively nimono which is boiling the octopus for a long period of time with vegetables to make it tender.

To prepare octopus
Under running water remove the stomach, ink sack, eyes from the head then remove the beak. Turn the body inside out and rinse well.
Blanch the octopus in boiling water for about ten minutes then cool under cold water, rub off most of the dark membrane at this point.
Quickly boiling the octopus in a pressure cooker with water will tenderise the octopus a little more.
To finish
Cut off the tentacles and slice the head into strips. Toss in a little olive oil, garlic and lemon then season with sea salt and black pepper. Grill on a barbeque very quickly and serve with a tasty marinated tomato salad.

Marshmallow

This weeks ADVERTISER PIC featured Elish Cribbin and a good number of Marshmallows

Halibut, the biggest and best flat fish

Halibut
By Michael O’Meara the chef at Oscars bistro

The Atlantic Halibut is an impressive fish which also holds the title of being the biggest of all the flat fish. Atlantic Halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) are larger than the pacific Halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis) and is an opportunistic hunter that will consume just about any prey which comes into range of its mouth. Indeed this is a big fish and can reach a weight of 350KG and length of 2.5 metres. Although a big monster sized Halibut is incredibly impressive to see on a fish mongers stall, in fact the smaller specimens tend to be far superior for the table. The bigger fish develop a course texture. Halibut have a distinctive white flesh which is vary flavourful and dense in texture but also a little dry which is explained by the extremely low fat content of the fish. Due to this it is a common error among cooks to over-cook the fish. But when halibut are in prime condition and cooked well, this is seafood which can compete with the finest of the seas bounty. Halibut is a prime fish and is expensive to buy, but when available is well worth trying.

A great accompaniment to go with just about any fish is marsh samphire also know as glasswort which is a salty sea vegetable and available from good fish mongers.

Halibut steaks with samphire, cockles and pistachio pesto
Serves 2
2 X 170gram Halibut steak per person
150 gram marsh samphire
10 fresh cockles washed and in their shells.
A little clarified butter to fry the fish


For pesto which can be made in advance
40gram pistachio nuts
40 gram flat leaf parsley
Juice from one lemon
50 ml extra virgin olive oil
Blend all the ingredients in a liquidiser until smooth

1. Season the halibut
2. Heat a thick based pan, add a little clarified butter, and then place the fish on to the pan with the skin side down. Allow cook for 4 minutes, then turn and add the cockles. Cover the pan with a little baking parchment to allow steam lightly. Cook for around 4 more minutes then remove the pan from the heat and allow the fish rest in the hot pan without heat to complete the cookery process.
3. Remove the cooked halibut from the pan and hold hot. Add the samphire to the pan with the cockles and cook lightly.
To serve simply place the fish on to an appropriate plate and decorate with the cockles, samphire and pesto, serve straight away.

Greater Forked Beard (Sweaty Betty)

There are a good number of great fish for the table which we don't see very much off. The Greater Forked Beard also know as the 'Sweaty Betty" is one of the best fish in Irish waters and is well worth trying

The Greater fork-beard

Even people with a passing interest in the best of local foods should really try to make it to the local markets for the best possible regional fair. Bord Bia lists 15 farmers markets in Galway which cover just about every corner of the county and these are also the places which many of our up and coming food businesses will be seeded, so you could almost argue that its our patriotic duty to support the markets of Galway. The Moycullen market held from 1-6.00pm on Fridays has additionally been awarded the Bord Bia ‘Good practice for farmers markets accreditation’ ensuring that around 50% of the foods sold at the market are sourced locally.
A couple of weeks ago Gannet fish mongers in the Galway market had an intriguingly named fish ‘Sweaty Betty’. This is in fact a locally caught fish which required a bit of research. Correctly named the ‘Greater fork-beard’ (Phycis blennoides) or the European forked hake and is closely related to the Tadpole fish and lesser forked beard, the Sweaty Betty is indeed a superb fish for the table and far superior to many premium type species, although I was unable to find the origin of the name ‘Sweaty Betty’ so if any readers would care to enlighten me it would be greatly appreciated. The flesh of the fish is firm and flavourful as well as being easily cooked both on and off the bone.
As we are now in barbeque season a simple way to cook Sweaty Betty is simply wrapped in tinfoil and on the coals of a barbeque.
Allow a 180 gram fillet per person
Butter a sheet of tinfoil generously then add a ripe vine tomato cut into slices atop the foil. Place the fork beard onto the tomato. Place one leaf of kafer lime onto the fish along with a small amount of chilli pepper sliced very thinly. Sprinkle a little chopped scallion onto the fish and season with salt and black pepper. Finally add a knob of butter onto the fish and squeeze the juice of a ¼ lemon, wrap the tin foil. To cook simply place onto a hot grill, the tomato will protect the base of the fish allowing it to steam in the foil package. The fish will take about 12-15 minutes to cook and is ready when the flakes of the fish are easily separated. Alternatively the fish could be simply pan fried and served on a bed of pasta possibly enriched with a delicate mushroom cream.

Barbeque, tasty but safety is important

Its BBQ season and this tuna made a great meal with fresh corn on the cob but safety is important.


Barbeque

BBQ nice, but BE SAFE!!


A hot sunny day, a few cold beers and some great company, yes its BBQ season. There really is something special about cooking up a really great barbeque, but before getting down to the business of cooking up a storm there are a few safety considerations which we all really have to take into account.

First make sure you work clean.

• Make sure all work surfaces are sanitised when preparing your food.
• Wash your hands., often with anti bacterial soup
• Only healthy individuals should prepare and serve food
• Make sure your grill is well cleaned with no rust.
• Avoid cross contamination of raw foods with cooked.
• Make sure that raw food is stored cold, below 4°C and around 1°C for fish
• Use disposable dishes; it saves on the washing up as well.
• Don’t handle money and then food.
• Don’t use the same ice to cool beverages as you use to serve drinks.
• Change service clothes every 30 minutes, they can become the most dangerous thing of all.
• Keep food covered and be aware of insects.


For the Grilling

• Be safe a BBQ is an open fire BE AWARE OF KIDS RUNNING AROUND and even make an exclusion zone around the grill.
• Make sure the coals are hot and ready for cooking.
• Use separate utensils for raw and cooked foods and keep raw and cooked away from each other on the grill.
• Don’t go mad with lighter fluid.
• Don’t sample the food when partially cooked, wait till its cooked properly
• A meat thermometer is a great tool for checking the internal temperature of foods; cook all foods till they get to 75°C at their thickest point. Rare steaks should be handled with caution ensure the outer meat is completely seared. Wipe the thermometer with an alcohol wipe in between each use.
• Only baste sauces onto cooked meat, as not to contaminate the sauces.
• Serve all cooked foods within 20 minutes
• Make sure plates used to serve food are clean and sanitised

Watch the salads
• Salads in particular when made with mayonnaise can become very dangerous very quickly. Make sure they’re stored cold 4°C.
• Make sure any frozen food being used has been completely defrosted in the refrigerator over night, not quickly under cold running water.
• Keep it simple, enjoy your BBQ


To cook tuna steak on the grill simply season with salt and black pepper, then rub liberally with olive oil. Place onto the hot grill for 4 minutes then turn and cook the opposite side. If using a basting sauce ensure the sauce caramelises but don’t let it burn. Fish such as tuna is great served pink.