Netherton Foundry Shropshire

Netherton Foundry Shropshire
Classic cookware, made in England

Sunday 28 September 2014

A trip to India

This summer we were lucky enough to travel to India - an amazing experience and one which I would love to be able to repeat.
We flew into Delhi, where we had less than 24 hours before heading north to Ladakh and the Himalayas.
However, you don't go all that way and miss out on the chance of a good look round.
Fortunately, we were recommended a walking tour of Old Delhi, by our friends at Creative Cookware in Edinburgh. Update: Creative Cookware has now closed, but you can still buy Netherton cookware in Edinburgh - head to Marchmont Hardware 
And what a recommendation!!

If you ever get the chance to visit Delhi, book a tour with Dhruv  http://www.masterjikeehaveli.com/, who took us on a walking tour of Old Delhi, up on rooftops, to the very best street food vendors, the back rooms of shops and finally back to his own home, an old style Delhi haweli, where his wife and daughter prepared us a fabulous dinner.  This was a view of the city we would not otherwise have seen, accompanied by a local resident passionate about his home city, its past and its future.


  

We also got to meet a jeweller and visited his workshops - we always like to meet other people who are making things, and who share our passion for raw materials and craftsmanship......... in this case the raw materials were Sri Lankan sapphires!
He makes a beautiful diamond ring for a jeweller in London, who sells them exclusively and whilst we could see the ring we were not allowed to know the name of the jeweller, nor the store it is sold in.  All we did know was that the mark up between Delhi and London is x 30!!

                                           

After  the blistering heat of Delhi 36ºC, we transferred to relatively temperate climate of Leh in the Ladakh region.  Another assault on all the senses and a challenge to one's views on poverty, affluence, happiness........
Life here is so very different from our own and it certainly takes an open mind to appreciate everything that is thrown at you.



This is principally a Buddhist region, with beautiful gompas (monasteries) scattered around the countryside and the Buddhist philosophies certainly appear to be imbued in every day life, without being thrust upon you.



As you can imagine the food was wonderful and I bought a local cook book

I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, there is always that worry that it will taste nothing like it should do when you try and recreate it in an English kitchen.


One thing I will not be trying is the local homebrew beer - we did try some, but it is certainly an "acquired taste"


The whole point of the trip was to go trekking - with OH and the kids also tackling Stok Kangri a 6000m Himalayan peak.  Here they are on the top - check out their personal icicles!




The trekking involved camping in remote and beautiful locations and was certainly different from scout camp.

Our meal were served in a dining tent, with a tablecloth and, on one occasion, a paper napkin carefully cut to create a doyley!




As the kit was packed away on the last day, we enjoyed some al fresco dining
We had the most delicious cooked breakfasts and 3 course dinners.
We were also treated to "bed tea" - woken every morning at around 6:30am with a cup of tea brought to our tents!


  


Whilst the other 3 tackled their mountain, I returned to Leh and stayed in a family run guest house, with the most beautiful garden.

                                     


The return home was via Delhi and we couldn't leave without scheduling a visit to the Taj Mahal; it seemed criminal to travel so far and not make the effort to add a detour to see one of the Wonders of the World.




Nothing prepares you for the astonishing beauty of this place - we have all seen so many photos and TV images, but the reality is jaw dropping.  And, after the brown and grey hues of the Ladakhi traditional dress, the vibrant colours of the clothes, worn by the Indian visitors were equally stunning.



The return to Delhi from Agra was by train - an interesting experience.  We stood in the blistering heat on the paltform at Agra station, pestered by beggars and watching the rats running between the rails and wondered what the 2 hour journey would be like.

First impressions were not promising.  The carriage was old and shabby, but at least the air conditioning was working.  Then we were give a bottle of ice cold water,  a meal of vegetable curry, dahl, rice and paratha, followed by ice cream and helped ourselves to a serving of paan.  Several notches up from the infamous "British rail" sandwich and to be honest, considerably better than a lot of airline catering!

There was also a glossy magazine, Railbhandu  - and if you look closely you will see that I have been naughty,as it specifically asks you not to remove it from the train.





The reason I kept it was the article on cooking eggs, which has given me the inspiration to create the following recipe. 




So, with apologies to Indian Railways, here is my version of Bagara Egg Masala

1 large onion

12 root ginger, peeled
3 cloves garlic, peeled
100ml water
2 dessertspoons ground cumin seeds
1 dessertspoon ground fenugreek seeds
2 teaspoon tamarind, soaked in 450ml boiling water
2 tblsp dessicated coconut
1 tblsp sesame seeds
2 tsp turmeric
4 hard boiled eggs
10 runner beans
1 tsp salt
2 tsp brown sugar

Put half the onion, peeled and roughly chopped in a blender with the ginger, garlic and water.

Blend to a smooth paste

Put your cast iron casserole on a medium heat and add 2 tblsp oil.

Slice the other half of the onion and add to the dish.  Fry until just turning brown, then add the onion paste.
Fry for 3 minutes.
Add the cumin, fenugreek and turmeric and fry for a further 2 minutes.

In a separate pan - one of our frying pans is ideal - dry fry the coconut, and sesame seeds, until the coconut starts to turn colour.




Add to the onion and spice mix.
Stir thoroughly.
Add the hard boiled eggs and sliced green beans. Stir well to coat with the spice mix.
Strain the tamarind water and add to the pan, with the salt and sugar.

Simmer for 40 minutes and serve with rice.

This is the same sauce with paneer in place of the eggs for a friend, who can't/won't eat eggs.



© Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2015




Sunday 7 September 2014

Damson custard crumble - a gluten free pudding

Another Autumn favourite - fruit crumble. 

We are fortunate not only to have damson trees in the garden, but also to live in an area of the country where they grow abundantly in the hedgerows.  So this time of year is a particularly purple hued season for us.


                                          

This recipe was inspired by a demonstration at the 2013 Ludlow Food Festival by our friend, Marcus Bean and has been modified as a gluten free version of a traditional favourite.

I have used my own damsons, but any plum variety would work just as well.  I can gather cherry plums, bullaces, Marjorie Seedlings and damsons between home at the Workshops.


400g damsons

320ml single cream
3 egg yolks
100g sugar

200g chestnut flour

100g pistachios
120g butter
70g  sugar


Poach damsons in 100ml water until just soft.



Leave to cool, remove the stones and sweeten to taste - they will be added to a sweet custard, so retain a little bit of sharpness for contrast.

Pour the cream into a milk pan and heat gently.

Meanwhile whisk the egg yolks and sugar together and add 1 tsp vanilla extract.
Whisk in the hot cream, return to the pan and stir continuously until the sugar has dissolved.



Place the stoned damsons in an ovenproof dish and strain the custard over the top.
Cook in a low oven, 170ºC for around 30 minutes - until the custard is just set, a little wobble is a good thing.



Chop the pistachios very finely and put into a mixing bowl with the chestnut flour.
Chop the butter, add to the flour and rub in until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
Stir in the sugar.

Tip the mixture into an oven proof frying pan or prospector pan





When the custard is cooked, remove from the oven and turn up the heat to 200ºC
Put the crumble mix in the oven,  after 10 minutes cooking, give it a stir and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes.

 To serve, dish up the custard onto a pudding plate and surround with crumble mix.



© Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2015
www.netherton-foundry.co.uk


Monday 1 September 2014

The Lichfield Oink

We were very privileged to be asked to attend the Lichfield Food Festival by the lovely crew at the Kitchen Shop, Lichfield and in honour of the occasion, decided to create some special recipes, just for them, to demonstrate the range and versatility of our wares.
After a rather dubious conversation, which propriety prevents me from including here, the combination of Staffordshire pork products that formed the heart of the dish resulted in the delightful name of the Lichfield oink being coined for the main dish.



If you are in the beautiful city of Lichfield, please go and visit their gorgeous shop, I can't guarantee they'll have any Oink to taste - Joe will have eaten it all - but they may have Netherton Foundry products and a wide range of kitchen goodies to offer.

We were also delighted that Tamara from Street Food Sat Down came along to help out - I couldn't have managed without her.  It has to be admitted that Tam is just a little bit obsessed by good kitchen ware, so her high opinion of our pans is much appreciated by all of us here at the Workshops.


                                          


I was also rather embarrassed when she described the food we served up as the "most appreciated recipe she had ever seen" - only wish we could have captured the expressions on the faces of the numerous tasters - some of the staff at the George Hotel, where we were based seemed to alter their route in order to pass by our table more times than was strictly necessary.

We had the Town Crier ringing his bell and declaring the Lichfield Oink a joy to be savoured, and I seem to have ended up being unofficially "married" to the lovely Natalie from I.O. Shen Knives, based on feeding her nibbles of the Oink throughout the day. 






 So here we go - the recipes, with quantities scaled down for a meal at home, rather than the "feeding of the (almost) five thousand at the Food Festival

Lichfield Oink


500g minced pork

200g good quality pork sausagemeat - the best you can lay hands on
I used pork and leek sausages and "extruded" the meat from the sausage skins
100g bread, soaked in water - this is a great way to use up stale bread*
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp ground cinnamon
Ground black pepper
4 rashers bacon, optional
2 tblsp oil
200ml sherry
500ml chicken or vegetable stock

*be warned, soaking white sliced in water will simply give you wallpaper paste 


Drain the bread and squeeze out as much water as possible.

Place in a large mixing bowl.
Add the pork, sausagemeat, fennel, cinnamon and pepper.
You shouldn't need any additional salt, as there is generally enough in the sausagemeat.
Mix together thoroughly - the easiest way is to use your hands!!

Place the cast iron slow cooker bowl on the hob and add the oil.

Heat until hot.  
Meanwhile, lay out the bacon on a board and using the back of a spoon stretch it as thinly as possible.
Lay the rashers side by side, with each one just overlapping its neighbour.
Place the meatloaf mix on top and roll the bacon round to form a parcel.
You can omit the bacon and simply form the mixture into a loaf if preferred.  If you have made the sauce in advance, you can spread a little on the bacon before rolling.



Place the loaf into the hot oil and cook for 4 minutes.
Turn the loaf over and cook for a further 4 minutes to create a brown crust.

Pour in the sherry and the stock and cover with a lid.


Place the bowl onto the heater base and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.




This can be served as we did at Lichfield - described below - or with mashed potato, the residual gravy and kale; left go cold and sliced with salad and pickles, pickled red cabbage would be wonderful; stuffed into pitta breads................ 

We created a devilshy delicious damson sauce and served the Oink and sauce on pan fried flatbreads, both as mini morsels and pizza style.




                                     



Damson sauce



200g damsons
1cm ginger, peeled and grated
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tblsp soy sauce
1 tblsp soft brown sugar.

Place the damsons in a pan and add just enough water to cover the base of the pan.

Cover and cook on a gentle heat until soft.
Balance a sieve over a bowl and pour the damsons into it.
Push the fruit flesh through the sieve using a wooden spoon.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the fruit puree and return the mix to the pan.

Heat through gently to dissolve the sugar.
Leave to cool.


Flatbreads


Most bread recipes need to be precise to give good and consistent results, but this is particularly forgiving.


450g unbleached white bread flour

15g fresh yeast (or dried yeast as per the instructions on the pack - I have used 1 dessertspoon fast acting yeast with good results)
1 heaped tsp salt
250ml water
2 tblsp natural yogurt
Olive oil

Pour 100ml of the water into a bowl and add the yeast.

Leave for 15 minutes.
Add all the other ingredients, except the olive oil and bring together, either by hand, with a wooden spoon or in your food mixer/processor.
Add enough olive oil to make a soft, but not over wet dough and knead well.
Cover with cling film, a damp tea towel or the lid of your processor and leave to rise for at least 2 hours - I left mine overnight.

At the festival we cooked these in a crepe pan on a Kitchen Companion base, demonstrating the versatility of this lovely piece of kit.  Tam has now added this to her wish list, not just for herself, but also for Street Food Sat Down - a perfect piece of equipment for a catering company.



    


Place the pan on the base and turn the heat to MAX.
Take a piece of dough, roughly the size of the  palm of your hand - I have small hands!
Either roll it out on a floured board or oil your hands and work the dough into a round, pizza making style.

Add a very small amount of oil to the pan - just enough to coat the surface and add the bread round.

Cook for approx 2 minutes - do not be tempted to turn it, poke it, prod it....
When you see the bubbles rising, check the edge of the bread and if the underside is cooked, flip it over and cook the other side.

We served some of the breads whole - to Natalie - and some we cut into small canape sized portions.

These were topped with a piece of the Lichfield Oink, a drizzle of damson sauce and sliced spring onions.

Inspired by our friend Chris Burt , Tam also created these little fried dumplings by wrapping some Oink and sauce in the dough and gently frying them. 





Hope you enjoy these! 


© Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2015
www.netherton-foundry.co.uk