Simple Suppers

One of regular contributors is freelance chef, David Mason. David's recipies can help you to prepare simple, tasty suppers for yourselves or your guests.

SIMPLE SUPPERS

By

David Mason

Welcome to a new column, offering simple supper ideas designed to give your food the edge over other places around! Offering an evening menu (at notice if need be) can be a great enticer for that guest who arrives late and hungry, and if cooked well I’m sure they’ll be back!

I think the humble burger gets quite a beating as a substandard meal probably due to all those high street venues serving a sub par standard. At it’s best; the burger can compete against any steak in terms of value and taste. This burger recipe using pork and sage gets combined with pan-roasted apples for a distinctive combination and the potato wedges provide a great accompaniment. This meal is ideal if you want to prepare the burgers in advance, ready for cooking, buon appetitio…

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 burger buns
455g Minced Pork
1tbsp Grain Mustard
6 sage leaves, finely chopped
1 tbsp flour
1 egg yolk
1 Apple
1 tbsp White Sugar
4 large potatoes
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp paprika
Salt and Pepper

Method

Heat Oven to 170’c.
Combine mince, mustard, sage, flour, egg yolk and seasonings in a bowl
Combine into 4 patties and refrigerate until needed
Put a pan of boiling water on for the potatoes
Peel the apples and cut into wedges
Heat a dash of olive oil and a small amount of butter in a pan and cook the apples with the sugar until golden, leave to cool
Cut potato into wedges and boil for 5 minutes to soften
Drain the potato wedges being careful not break the wedges and immediately mix with the oil and paprika
Place into hot oven until cooked and soft (15mins)
Heat a large pan until hot, pour in 2 tbsp of olive oil and wait to heat up (20 seconds) and place patties in the pan, cook on each side for 4 minutes
Rest the burgers for 2 minutes, toast the burger buns
Place burger on a toasted bun, top with some roasted apples and serve with wedges and a side salad

Ask anyone to name their favourite fish and the vast majority of people will say, ‘Cod’. This is either because they have not tried any other fish or simply because they love it served in a crisp batter with chips -fried in beef dripping!

Unfortunately we’ve been greedy for cod; between 1960 and 1990 the population of cod had decreased by 90%. So it is time to leave cod alone for a while and therefore I suggest instead, his ‘cousin’ - Pollock. The Marine Conservation Society is adamant we should be eating more Pollock and rightly so; it is a good contender against cod and is sustainable.

This dish is a perfect ‘no fuss supper’ as it is ideal to serve either straight from the oven or at room temperature. The combination of the curried fish with the coriander is most certainly, refreshing. Serve with a green salad, tomatoes and a fresh farmhouse crusty roll.

Ingredients:

1 Savoury Pastry Tart
400g Pollack Fillets
50g of local mature cheese, grated
1 Handful of Coriander, lightly chopped
2 tbsp Mild Curry Powder
1 Mild Red Chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp Lemon Zest
300ml Double Cream
2 Eggs, gently beaten
2 Egg Yolks
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Method

Preheat the Oven to 150’C
Rinse and pat-dry the Pollack with kitchen roll. Season the skin side with the curry powder and some salt and pepper finally finishing with a light coating of olive oil
Heat the grill to maximum and place the Pollack on a baking tray (skin side up) and cook for 8-10 minutes then leave the fish to ‘rest’ for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, in a non-stick pan, heat the cheese, cream, eggs and yolks for 10 minutes, being careful not to scramble the mixture
Flake the Pollack into the pastry tart along with the chilli, lemon zest and coriander.
Pour the warm egg mixture over the fish.
Cook for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.