+++SCOFF! - The free email newsletter on good food and drink. - ISSUE THREE, OCTOBER 2004. For a printable colour version of this newsletter (in a ‘pdf’ file), see: http://www.gastronomail.com/archive.htm . Please forward to all your friends and colleagues so they can register to receive their own copy each month by email, at: http://www.gastronomail.com . We never pass on email addresses. Further information at the end of this issue. ++Issue Three Contents: 01: An A-Z of Scoff: the alphabet of food wisdom - ‘C’ is for ‘Calves’. Is it OK to eat veal now? +02: Reader offer: Meals on reels - Film nights at Arthurs Restaurant, Twickenham, West London. 03: Slow Food antidote to bad habits - Web site review: Slowfood.com, the global movement for ‘eco- gastronomes’. 04: Recipe: All-year-round chutney - by Elizabeth Ray. 05: The drink spot: Italian renegade finds the perfect French match - a sommelier’s life, by Roberto Della Pietra. 06: Titbits and crumbs: National Association of Farmers’ Markets; Buy Me a Beer - send a friend a drink by mobile phone; The Food Commission - non-profit lobbyist. 07: The food spot: Underwater life – the best of British fish - by Hattie Ellis 08: How to: How to: Avoid that boring Christmas turkey - by Rosemary Perkins. [Contents ends]. +01: An A-Z of Scoff: the alphabet of food wisdom - ‘C’ is for ‘Calves’. A mass refusal by UK citizens to eat veal was one of the first consumer campaigns driven by animal welfare concerns to surface in this country, around two decades ago. Since then, the habit has largely stuck. But does it still make sense? The practice that led to the uproar about veal was the use of small wooden crates to confine calves in tiny spaces to prevent them bruising themselves; with a restricted diet lacking in iron, to make their flesh white; and with excessive medicines to help them survive such unnatural conditions. Other concerns include unease at the fact that unwanted calves are produced as ‘by-products’ of the dairy industry, which only keeps some females born. In 1990, Britain became the first country in Europe to ban the close confinement veal crate and its associated dietary regime. Schedule four of the Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2000 (www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2000/20001870.htm) further specifies that “each calf shall be able to stand up, turn around, lie down, rest and groom itself without hindrance”. The EU eventually followed suit with laws against confinement, though these are still not as stringent and do not come into full force until the end of 2006. Concerns remain, therefore, about calves being exported to the continent. Possible alternatives to traditional methods are suggested by Eastbrook Farms Organic Meat, run by Helen Browning (www.helenbrowningorganics.co.uk). Eastbrook uses ‘nurse cows’ to raise their calves, and feed them a full diet, creating ‘rose veal’, not the unnaturally pale meat of crated veal. Browning also suggests that farmers might eventually be allowed to access technologies that would let them choose the sex of their calves, so that unwanted dairy males would never be born. +02: Autumn offer: Meals on reels at Arthurs. Arthurs Restaurant in Twickenham, West London, is pioneering a fun, multimedia taste experience: Sunday nights there are Film Nights. These evenings start at 7pm with a two-course dinner, based as far as possible on the subject of the film to be shown. At about 8.30pm they show the film. During the film, they serve tubs of home-made ice cream and coffee afterwards. The price for the meal and film is £25 per person. Drinks are extra, but Scoff! readers can also claim a complimentary glass of house wine per person or a bottle for a party of four just by mentioning the newsletter when you make your booking. Films scheduled between now and Christmas are, 7 Nov: Spirit of the Beehive; 14 Nov: A Matter of Life and Death; 21 Nov: Les Apprentis; 28 Nov: Nine Queens; 5 Dec: Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert; 12 Dec: Whale Rider; Sun 19 Dec: Calendar Girls. For more details plus news of a Beaujolais Nouveau Supper on 18 November, contact Adrienne Rowe on 020 8893 3995 or email arthurs@dircon.co.uk. Don’t forget to mention Scoff! +03: Slow Food antidote to bad habits - Web site review: www.Slowfood.com, the global movement for ‘eco- gastronomes’. “Our century, which began and has developed under the insignia of industrial civilization, first invented the machine and then took it as its life model. We are enslaved by speed and have all succumbed to the same insidious virus: Fast Life, which disrupts our habits, pervades the privacy of our homes and forces us to eat Fast Foods. To be worthy of the name, Homo Sapiens should rid himself of speed . . . Our defence should begin at the table with Slow Food. Let us rediscover the flavours and savours of regional cooking and banish the degrading effects of Fast Food.” This call to arms is taken from the Slow Food Manifesto, drawn up by the eponymous association which was born in Italy in 1986 and has since extended to more than 100 countries worldwide. Preaching sustainability, egalitarianism and regional production, it is a movement of ‘eco-gastronomes’ whose time has surely come. The group has been receiving extensive media coverage recently for its enormous ‘Terra Madre’ conference in Turin with small food producers flown in from 128 countries; and the work is continued through local grassroots offices or ‘convivia’ in each member country which preside over local events and initiatives. In the UK, there are 23 convivia, from Aberdeenshire to Yorkshire: and two UK cities have pledged themselves as fully fledged ‘Slow cities’. The first was Ludlow (see www.slowfoodludlow.org.uk/), and Aylsham in Norfolk has now followed suit (for a Guardian article on this see http://fastlink.headstar.com/guard1). Other projects launched by this vast, ambitious movement include a series of publications including free online guides to Italian food and drink; and the ‘Ark of Taste’, an online resource which aims to identify and catalogue food products that are in danger of becoming extinct. The association even funds campaigns pledged to saving Ark products, which range from the Italian Valchiavenna goat to Dorset Blue Vinny cheese. +04:Recipe: All-year-round chutney - by Elizabeth Ray. This is a useful chutney, really easy to make since it requires no cooking at all. Apart from onions and apples, it uses only dried fruits and so can be made at any time of the year. 450g (1lb) skinned onions 450 g (1lb) cored apples 450g (1lb) sultanas 450g (1lb) stoned dates 450g (1lb) soft dark brown sugar 5ml (level teaspoon) each of ground ginger, ground allspice, mustard seed, mild paprika. 15ml (level tablespoon) salt Black pepper to taste 600ml (1 pint) cider vinegar Mince the onions and apples together with the sultanas and dates. Put into a large bowl, stir in the sugar and seasonings and then pour in the vinegar. Stir well and leave for 24 hours, stirring from time to time so that the flavours get well blended. Put into jars and cover. The fruit and/or spices can be altered at will. Dried apricots or prunes can be used instead of half the amount of dates, grated ginger instead of ground, and coriander or cumin can be used. In fact, once the basic ingredients are there, you can do what you like. If the dates, for instance, are very hard, it is sometimes easier to make the mixture, leave it and then mince or chop when it is softer. The apples can be skinned or not, as you like, and garlic added . . . anything goes. +05: The drink spot: Italian renegade finds the perfect French match - by Roberto Della Pietra. Wine has been a passion of mine since I was 15. In Italy, it is quite hard to miss it: 365 days a year, a bottle of Barbera or Dolcetto on the table during both lunch and dinner is a must. I have been a sommelier in Michelin-starred restaurants such as L’Ortolan, John Burton-Race at the Landmark and currently at Roussillon in London. Some of my Italian colleagues probably think of me as some sort of renegade, since I have only worked in French restaurants. But working at Roussillon gives me the opportunity to discover a regional French, more Mediterranean, cuisine. Therefore, my wine list is focused on wines from Roussillon (obviously!), Languedoc, Southwest, Provence and also from other Mediterranean countries such as Italy (my Italian colleagues may give me a break when they see me getting closer to my origins), Spain and Greece. At L’Ortolan and John Burton-Race at the Landmark, I had verticals (multiple vintages) of the greatest wines back to the 1960s such as Château Lafite, Château Latour, Petrus, Hermitage “La Chapelle”, Romanée Conti, La Tache and so on, giving me the opportunity to taste these world-class wines on a regular basis. It was brilliant! But it is brilliant now, too, to have the chance to list the most unusual, unknown, characteristic wines from France such as Collioure in Roussillon, Pécharmant and Irouléguy in the Southwest, and Vin de Pays de l’Hérault Mas de Daumas Gassac, known as the “Château Lafite of Languedoc”, to mention just a few. In almost three years at Roussillon I have built a great relation and trust with our customers. I can say that the best compliment a sommelier can receive is when a guest leaves the restaurant with a smile, but keeps coming back with an even greater smile, asking me to choose his or her wines without even looking at the wine list. I have always believed in sharing my knowledge rather than imposing it, and making sure people do not feel intimidated by me: after all, I need to remember I am still a waiter and not some kind of God. I love to pair wines to food, being able to cook helps me to understand it better, I try all the times to find original wines. I am concerned first in what wine they actually enjoy most, that is always my approach. It is not the point to find the perfect match with a wine they do not like. I usually break down the structure of the dish and the wine finding the common elements and flavours. I remember once I was criticised by a couple of members of a culinary organisation when I selected for them a Pineau des Charentes Blanc Château Montifaud to accompany a terrine of duck foie gras. Pineau des Charentes is a fantastic example of liquor wine made from unfermented grape juice blended with Cognac and put in a cask for three years. Most people who tried this combination loved it, giving me credit for making such a brave match. But when someone asked these people why they thought the match was not good, the answer was: “Pineau des Charentes is an aperitive!” My natural answer to them would have been: “And?” I was amazed to hear that from someone I thought should have an open mind on food and wine. My greatest regret was to mention to them what they were drinking. Is not the first time I selected Pineau des Charentes with food. Once I served it to a lady who was having Saint Maure de Touraine and Pouligny Saint Pierre, strong goat cheeses from the Loire Valley, and I did not tell her what it was until she tried it. When I went back to the table to find out if she enjoyed it her comment was: “That was orgasmic!” and her lady friend asked me: “Do you have a magnum of that wine to take home?”. I was hugely flattered. Roberto Della Pietra is Chef Sommelier at Roussillon, 16 St Barnabas St, Pimlico, London. www.roussillon.co.uk +06: Titbits and crumbs. - National Association of Farmers’ Markets How to find your local market where the stall holders have grown, bred, caught, pickled, brewed, smoked or baked the goods themselves: www.farmersmarkets.net - Buy Me a Beer Buymeabeer.com lets you send a friend a drink by mobile phone. You pay for the drink on the internet, and it sends the recipient a text message code which they take to the bar and exchange for a drink. So far the service only works at London’s Corney & Barrow wine bars but it is set to expand - you saw it here first: www.buymeabeer.com - The Food Commission The commission is a national non-profit organisation campaigning for the right to safe, wholesome food. It campaigns on many issues, from additives to irradiation: www.foodcomm.org.uk NOTE: Scoff! is giving away books on food and wine to readers who send in their favourite link, if published. Email to: dan@gastronomail.com. +07: The food spot: Underwater life – the best of British fish - by Hattie Ellis. On recent forays around the British coast for a forthcoming book on fish, Best of British Fish, I asked chefs, fishmongers and fishermen for their tips for the most under-rated species. They were always full of enthusiasm for various bargains. Yet, when pushed, there generally turned out to be a ‘but’ that lay behind a relatively low price-tag. Grey mullet is a fish many recommend – but only if it has been caught in open waters, not if it has fed in the harbour and tastes murky. Others love dab – but they are small and fiddly. Ling is much praised — but it swims on rocky ground so you are more likely to get line-caught fish (a more environmentally and gastronomically sound method than trawling), and this means it is harder to find on the fishmonger’s slab. Crustacean dealers can’t understand why spider crabs are so under- rated (most are exported to Spain), but they have a low meat-yield in their long, Julia Robert-style legs, and these legs will reach out to nip your nipples if you don’t get them in the pot sharpish. I’m just about to cook one myself, with some trepidation. Pollack is heading up the popularity stakes as an alternative to cod (perhaps its ‘but’ is that it isn’t quite as good — though the French love it). A good tip is to salt pollack, cod and other similar white fish for 20 minutes or so, then wash off the salt and the texture will be much improved. We’ve sadly lost the taste for a fish that used to be a staple to the point it founded the fortunes of some of Britain’s main fishing ports: herring. Like other oily fish, it declines rapidly and rancidly once caught. Yet catch a ‘silver darling’ at its best and you never forget it. A recent book, Herring by Mike Smylie, is an inspirational read on the subject. For other species, the only ‘but’ is the price. ‘Turbot is tops’ is the general consensus for many fish-folk — and you pay top whack for it, too. Their gelatinous bones make for beautifully textured flesh and sauces. Rowley Leigh even deep fries the frill and gives it a good suck like you would a chicken wing. Other fishermen think John Dory to be ‘the finest fish that swims’ (but its low yield of flesh makes it expensive, and you need to get a fishmonger to get rid of its nasty spikes). Wild sea bass is another chef’s darling. All these details reinforce the fact that fish shopping and cookery is simple but requires a degree of precision and knowledge. Practice — and a good fishmonger — are what’s required. Of all the pieces of advice on fish cookery I gathered, one stands out as a general principle. Steve Harris, who runs the excellent gastropub ‘The Sportsman’ just outside Whitstable, likens fish cookery to putting on your brakes in a car. You want to start to stop before you need to stop. Get used to knowing when the fish is almost cooked, then take it off the heat and it will continue cooking for a short time until you have perfection. Texture is a crucial part of the pleasure of eating fish and this principle helps preserve the different qualities of their pearly flesh. The serious issues about conserving fish stocks, and pollution in the sea, should not mean we drop this special food from our diets. A better way forward is to regard fish as people do meat: treat it with the respect it deserves, paying more if necessary; explore a fuller range of types, and take more interest in the detail of how it gets from the sea to the plate, looking out for line-caught and day-boat fish, for example. A small amount of effort is amply repaid in this endlessly fascinating branch of cooking and eating. 08: How to: Avoid that boring Christmas turkey - by Rosemary Perkins. Why not cook a wonderful big rib of beef instead, with all the trimmings? Buy top quality meat, and make sure you have all the right accompaniments, such as horseradish sauce and freshly mixed English mustard, roast potatoes and Yorkshire puddings. My tips are: 1: Make sure the beef starts at room temperature, taking it out of the fridge in good time. 2: The night before, peel the potatoes and leave in cold water, and prepare the Yorkshire pudding batter by putting 4 oz plain flour, good pinch each salt and sugar, tablespoon vegetable oil, 2 large eggs, scant 1/2 pint milk into food processor. Whiz in the processor, strain and keep overnight in fridge. This quantity will fill a 12-hole tin. 3: Dry beef with kitchen paper and season the outside fat with salt, pepper and dry mustard. Put into roasting tin with chunks of onion and carrot, which will caramelise and help flavour the gravy. Start beef in a hot oven, 230C for 15 minutes, then turn heat down to 170C for about 17 minutes per lb (450g) approximately but test with a meat thermometer. Temperatures should be about 60C for rare, or 70C for medium. However, the beef will continue to cook during the resting period, so take it out just before it reaches the desired temperature. Put the potatoes in the oven for the last 1.5 hours. 4: Remove the beef to a cutting board, sitting in a tray to catch any juices that run out. Cover lightly with foil, and keep in a warm place for 15 - 30 mins. Immediately turn oven up to 220 C, to cook Yorkshire puddings. 5: Put the pudding tins in to the hot oven with a little dripping or oil in each until smoking hot. Stir the batter, pour in and cook for about 20 minutes. Use the time to make your favourite gravy with the lovely sticky stuff in the bottom of the roasting tin. ++End notes. +HOW TO RECEIVE YOUR REGULAR ‘SCOFF!’ To subscribe to this free monthly bulletin, Send a blank email to scoff-subscribe@gastronomail.com Please encourage your friends and colleagues to subscribe! To unsubscribe at any time, email: scoff-unsubscribe@gastronomail.com For further information on subscription see: http://www.gastronomail.com . +ACCESSIBILITY NOTE: This newsletter conforms to the accessible Text Email Newsletter (TEN) Standard, which makes email publications easier to access for people with impaired vision using text-to-speech devices. For details see: http://www.headstar.com/ten . +COPYRIGHT 2004 Gastronomail Ltd. If you would like to reproduce stories from this newsletter, we generally allow this as long as a full credit is included, with our web address and a description of our newsletter. For permission please email jo@gastronomail.com . +PERSONNEL: Food Editor - Dan Jellinek dan@gastronomail.com Drinks editor – Johnny Ray johnny@gastronomail.com Consultant Editor – Hattie Ellis hattie@gastronomail.com Marketing Director – Jo Weatherall jo@gastronomail.com [Issue ends.]