Moussaka

This recipe is from our friend James Whetlor’s book Goat. He knows an awful lot about goat. He worked for Riverside Cottage for a few years before launching Cabrito Goat. A by-product of the goats cheese and milk industry is billy goats, which in the industry are often euthanised at birth. James was given a few goats which he kept for the summer and planned to eat himself. He put one on the menu at Riverside and that night the goat outsold the beef. Within a year he quit Riverside and started selling goat to London restaurants full time. This is his sisters recipe and its a really good one. If you can’t get goat it could be cooked with beef or lamb.

Moussaka

  • Prep Time1 hr 45 min
  • Cook Time45 min
  • Total Time2 hr 30 min
  • Yield4 Servings
  • Cuisine
    • Mediterranean
  • Course
  • Cooking Method
    • In-Direct

Ingredients

  • 1 large aubergine
  • 4 tbs olive oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 450 gms minced goat
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 2tsp oregano
  • salt and pepper

For the Topping

  • 250gms greek yogurt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbs cornflour
  • 120gms feta
  • 30gms parmesan
  • freshly grated nutmeg
  • salt and pepper

Method

1

Preheat the bbq to 180°C  and put the deflector plates in for a ceramic or prepare for indirect cooking on a kettle bbq.

2

Cut the aubergine into rounds toss with 2 tbs oil and season with some salt

3

Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 mins until softened and slightly coloured. Remove and set aside

4

Heat the remaining oil in a pan, add onion and fry for about 10 mins until softened. Add the garlic and spice and cook for 1 minute

5

Add the minced goat and cook until it is dry and starting to colour. Add the tomatoes and most of the oregano.

6

Bring to the boil, season then put on bbq for 30 mins unitl the sauce is concentrated and thick.

7

While the sauce is cooking whisk the yoghurt with the eggs and cornflour, crumble in the feta with plenty of pepper and nutmeg to taste

8

Oil the bottom of a baking dish, place a third of the aubergine on the base, to with half the meat and tomato sauce. Repeat finishing with a layer of aubergine

9

Top with the yogurt sauce and sprinkle the Parmesan and remaining oregano

10

Bake in the bbq for about 45 mins until the top is golden and its bubbling at the edges with brown patches.

11

Remove from oven and rest for 10 mins before service. Serve with garlic bread, salad or wedges

James Whetlor’s book Goat is available from all good book shops Winner of the James Beard Foundation Cookbook Award for the single subject book 2019. Winner of The Guild of Food Writers Best Specialist/Single Subject Book Award 2019 Publisher: Quadrille Publishing Ltd (5 April 2018) ISBN-10: 1787131181 ISBN-13: 978-1787131187

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Moussaka

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Lennox Hastie – Red Mullet Esabeche

Lennox Hastie – Red Mullet Esabeche

  • Prep Time30 min
  • Cook Time10 min
  • Total Time40 min
  • Yield4 Servings

Ingredients

  • 8 red mullet
  • zest and juice of 8 oranges
  • zest and juice of 2 limes
  • 1 lemongrass stem, bruised and chopped finely
  • ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 bunch baby carrots, peeled and finely sliced
  • 3 baby fennel bulbs, outer layers peeled and finely sliced
  • sea salt
  • 4 spring onions (scallions), finely chopped
  • 100 ml (3½ fl oz) olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
  • ½ bunch fennel fronds, picked
  • 1 head fennel flowers

Method

1

The grill should be hot around 250°C/480°F+

2

Scale and gut the fish, and remove the gills. Rinse quickly and dry well.

3

Butterfly the fish. Use a sharp knife to make an incision along the skin on the back of the fish to one side of the dorsal fin. Following this line, run the knife horizontally from the head to the tail, going halfway to the backbone. Move the knife through to the underside of the fish, then run the knife along the whole fillet. Turn the fish over and repeat on the other side.

4

With a pair of scissors, carefully cut the backbone free behind the head and in front of the tail. This will enable you to easily remove the backbone while retaining the head and tail, which hold the fish together during grilling.

5

Trim the belly. Locate the bones running along the middle of the top half of the fillet and carefully remove them using tweezers.

6

Prepare the escabeche vegetables. In a small saucepan, combine the zest and juice of the oranges and limes, the lemongrass and the fennel seeds. Bring to the boil and simmer until reduced to approximately 200 ml (7 fl oz) of liquid. Pass through a fine-mesh sieve and, while warm, pour over the sliced carrots and fennel. Leave for 40 minutes to macerate.

7

Season the flesh of the fish with sea salt, and grill in an enclosed grill rack over intense embers for 2 minutes, skin side down, until beautifully caramelised.

8

Meanwhile, drain the carrot and fennel (reserving the liquid) and grill for 2 minutes with the spring onions until lightly charred. Season, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with half of the fresh fennel fronds.

9

Transfer the fish to a clean tray, add the reserved escabeche liquid and allow to rest for 1 minute, during which time the acidity will finish cooking the fish.

10

Gently heat the olive oil in a small saucepan and pour it over the red mullet. Strain all the liquid back into the saucepan, whisking continuously and allowing a light emulsion to form.

11

Place the pickled and grilled vegetables on a plate, top with the fish and pour the emulsion over. Finish with the remaining fresh fennel fronds and the flowers. Serve immediately.

Incorrectly classed in the UK as mullet, red mullet is actually a member of the goatfish family and a favoured part of the Mediterranean diet. I worked with red mullet for years in Europe and it was only when I came to Australia, where they are often sold under the Greek nomenclature barbounia, that I realised the fish was not a true mullet. They were so valued in ancient Rome that they sold for their weight in silver. Though small, red mullet has a sweet and delicately flavoured flesh, and fine oil running under the skin that crisps up beautifully on the grill. In this recipe, the escabeche refers to the pickled vegetables; the acidity completes the cooking of the mullet as it comes off the grill. The vibrant combination provides a taste of sunshine no matter what the weather.

Recipe kindly supplied by Lennox Hastie from Finding Fire: Cooking at its most elemental (Hardie and Grant £30)

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Mushroom and Chestnut Bourguignon

Mushroom and Chestnut Bourguignon

  • Prep Time30 min
  • Cook Time1 hr 20 min
  • Total Time1 hr 50 min
  • Yield6 Servings
  • Course
  • Cooking Method
    • Indirect/Direct in Griddle Pan

Ingredients

  • A little oil for browning
  • 450g small chestnut mushrooms or button mushrooms, left whole
  • 175 g cooked chestnuts, sliced in half
  • 300g Chantonnay carrots (or regular carrots chopped into large chunks)
  • 24 small shallots, peeled and left whole
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
  • 300 ml hot vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp Marmite (or Vegemite).
  • 1/2 tsp brown miso paste
  • 400ml red burgundy wine (you can substitute another red wine)
  • 2 heaped tbsp tomato purée
  • 4 tbsp brandy
  • 2-3 tsp unrefined sugar
  • 4 heaped tsp cornflour mixed to a slurry with a few drops of water
  • A bunch of thyme tied with string
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1

Clean the mushrooms and place in a bowl. Pour over the wine and leave to stand overnight or for a few hours, giving them a stir once or twice (marinating the mushrooms is optional).

2

Set up your BBQ to have direct and indirect zones. Prepare your carrots and pop them in a bowl. Add a tiny bit of oil, salt and pepper and massage the carrots to coat. Place on a baking tray and roast indirectly in the BBQ using some fruit wood chips or chunks for smoke for 20-25 minutes until cooked and set aside.

3

Using the Weber GBS Dutch Oven or a heatproof saucepan suitable for the BBQ, brown the shallots over a high heat (direct zone) using a little oil. You’re just looking for colour on them here, you don’t need to cook them through. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

4

Remove the mushrooms from the wine (reserve the wine for later), pat them dry with kitchen paper and then add to the hot pan. Fry off the mushrooms for a few minutes and while this is happening dissolve the marmite and miso paste in the hot stock.

5

Add the shallots to the mushrooms along with the garlic and caraway seeds and fry gently for another minute. Now add the chestnuts, stock, brandy, thyme and 200ml of the wine marinade. Bring to the boil and then move to the indirect side of the BBQ, close the lid and simmer until the shallots are tender. You can cover the pan or leave it uncovered if you want to infuse more smoke into the casserole.

6

Add more of the wine and a little water if you think it needs it, but remember that the wine will need to cook out, so check this early on.

7

Add the carrots to the pan and taste for seasoning, adding a good grinding of black pepper and salt if needed. Stir in the cornflour slurry and simmer until the sauce has thickened.

8

Serve with greens and creamy mashed potatoes.

Recipe by Kelly Bramill of Chickpeas and Charcoal

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Mushroom and Chestnut Bourguignon

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Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff

  • Prep Time10 min
  • Cook Time30 min
  • Total Time40 min
  • Yield4 Servings

Ingredients

  • 675g/1½ lb beef fillet, preferably cut from the tail end (It can be made with Sirloin which will make the dish cheaper
  • 65g/2½oz unsalted butter
  • 1½ tbsp paprika (hot Hungarian, if you like a little subtle heat)
  • 1 large onion, very thinly sliced
  • 350g/12oz button mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 3 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 300ml/10fl oz soured cream
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • small handful of parsley leaves, finely chopped
  • salt
  • freshly ground black pepper

Method

1

Cut the steak into 1cm strips

2

Melt the butter in the griddle, add the paprika and onion and cook slowly until onion is soft but not browned.

3

Add the mushrooms and fry gently for three minutes, transfer to a plate and keep warm.

4

Using the same pan heat the sunflower oil until very hot

5

Add the fillet and fry quickly seasoning and turning as you do for around a minute. You do not want to overcook the steak. Transfer to a plate.

6

Return the onion/mushroom mixture to the pan add the sour cream and bring to the boil, simmer for a minute until thickened

7

Return the steak to the pan and heat gently for one minute. The beef should not be cooked any further.

8

Stir in the lemon juice and parsley

9

Serve with buttered noodles or rice

Recipe by Christine Dale of Chillin n’ Grillin

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