RABBIT
A wonderfully versatile meat, blending equally well with red or white wine in sauces, with herbs and spices, and with mushrooms and prunes.
Once denigrated in Australia as ‘underground mutton’, rabbit has nonetheless remained popular. It represents good value, and, since it is very lean, rabbit is valuable in diets where cholesterol content should be minimised. A whole rabbit usually weighs around 1 kg (2 lb) and will serve 4–5 persons. Very small, young rabbits are sometimes available in spring; these have a milder flavour and are very tender. Some shops sell rabbit pieces, so that you can buy the choicest part of the rabbit, the loin section, and avoid the bony rib section.
Rabbit flesh does tend to be dry, so it is best cooked with liquid, such as wine or stock. The cooking time will depend on the age of the rabbit; older rabbits may need up to 1½ hours of cooking, while young rabbits will be cooked in less than 30 minutes.
Many recipes call for a rabbit to be jointed. Cutting up a rabbit is similar to cutting up a chicken; separate the rabbit at leg joints, to give 2 thighs; cut the loin into 1 or 2 sections through the backbone and cut the rib cage section in 2, along the backbone.
SAUTÉ OF RABBIT WITH HERBS
1 rabbit, jointed
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion or golden shallot
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Herbes de Provence (see Note)
½ cup white wine
Slowly brown rabbit pieces on all sides in oil in a flameproof casserole. Add onion or shallot and cook for 1 minute longer. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle over herbs and add wine. Bring to the boil, stirring, then cover and simmer for about 1–1½ hours or until rabbit is tender. Add more wine or stock during cooking if necessary. Adjust seasoning before serving. Serves 4.
NOTE: Herbes de Provence is a mixture of dried thyme, rosemary, marjoram, fennel seeds and savory.
SAUTÉ OF RABBIT WITH RED WINE
2 rabbits, jointed
seasoned flour
1 tablespoon oil
30 g (1 oz) butter
125 g (4 oz) bacon, rind removed, cut into small strips
¾ cup red wine
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons tomato purée
salt and freshly ground black pepper
chopped fresh parsley
Lightly dust rabbit pieces with seasoned flour, then brown all over in oil and butter in a flameproof casserole. Remove rabbit from pan. Add bacon and fry for 2 minutes. Add wine, bring to the boil and reduce a little. Stir in garlic and tomato purée, season with salt and pepper and return rabbit to pan. Simmer, covered, for about 1–1½ hours or until rabbit is tender. Adjust seasoning, and sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving. Serves 6.
RABBIT WITH MUSTARD
1 rabbit, jointed
seasoned flour
6 small onions, quartered
1 tablespoon oil
30 g (1 oz) butter
125 g (4 oz) streaky bacon, rind removed, diced
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons French mustard
1 bouquet garni
½ cup cream
chopped fresh parsley
Lightly dust rabbit pieces with seasoned flour. Cook onions in oil and butter in a flameproof casserole for 3 minutes. Remove and add rabbit and bacon. Brown rabbit on all sides. Pour in stock, season with salt and pepper and add mustard and bouquet garni. Return onions to pan and simmer, covered, for about 1–1½ hours or until rabbit is tender. Remove rabbit to heated dish. Discard bouquet garni; reduce sauce by fast boiling if necessary. Add cream and parsley, and adjust seasoning. Pour sauce over rabbit and serve with boiled or mashed potatoes. Serves 4.
RABBIT AND PISTACHIO TERRINE
You will need 2 large or 3 small rabbits to obtain the amount of meat required – or you may be lucky enough to live near a butcher or delicatessen that stocks rabbit fillets.
750 g (1½ lb) boneless rabbit meat, minced
500 g (1 lb) sausage mince
4 rashers bacon, rind removed, finely chopped
2½ cups fresh white breadcrumbs
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons Pernod
1 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
½ cup chopped, shelled pistachio nuts or walnuts
250 g (8 oz) rashers streaky bacon, rind removed
Place rabbit meat in a large bowl with sausage mince, chopped bacon and breadcrumbs. Add remaining ingredients, except bacon rashers, and blend together thoroughly with a wooden spoon. Line a 10-cup terrine or loaf tin with bacon rashers, covering bottom and sides. Spoon rabbit mixture into tin and level top. Cut remaining bacon rashers into thin strips and arrange on top of mixture in a lattice design. Cover tightly with foil or a lid. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 1½ hours. Take from oven, remove lid and place a weight on top. Leave until cool then refrigerate until required. Allow to mellow for 30 minutes at room temperature before serving. Serve in slices with tiny gherkins and crunchy French bread. Serves 10–12.
NOTE: Pernod gives a subtle aniseed flavour to the loaf, and is available in quarter-bottles from liquor stores. Otherwise, you may substitute a pinch ground aniseed and 1 tablespoon sherry or gin.
RABBIT WITH GREEN OLIVES
1 tablespoon olive oil
125 g (4 oz) pickled (salt) pork, diced
3 onions, thickly sliced
2 sticks celery, thickly sliced
1 rabbit, jointed
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups hot chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh rosemary, or ½ teaspoon dried
salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 green olives, stoned
1 tablespoon capers (optional)
Put oil, pork, onions and celery into a large flameproof casserole and heat gently, stirring occasionally, until fat runs from pork. Add rabbit and fry gently, turning, for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned on all sides. Sprinkle with flour and stir for 1 minute. Stir in hot stock, bay leaf, rosemary, salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then cover tightly and simmer for 45–90 minutes or until rabbit is tender. Add olives and capers, and simmer for a further 10 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Serves 4.
RADICCHIO
Radicchio is a member of the chicory family, a beautiful deep red with creamy streaks. It has a bitterness and crispness that are particularly good in salads. It is also good braised, grilled, shredded or added to quickly made pasta sauces. Its cousin, treviso, can be used in the same ways.
RADICCHIO, BEETROOT AND PEAR SALAD
1 small French stick or baguette
oil for frying
1 bunch baby beetroots
2 radicchios
1 endive (witlof), base trimmed
2 firm pears
Dressing
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cut the baguette across into thin slices. Heat the oil in a shallow frying pan and fry the bread slices quickly until lightly golden on both sides. Drain on crumpled paper towels and set aside. If making ahead, store airtight. Cut off the tops about 1 cm (
in) above the beetroots, keeping only the tiny young leaves for the salad. Wash, leave whole and do not peel. Cover with cold water in a large saucepan. Cook, covered, for 15 minutes or until tender. Drain, cool slightly and slip off the skins. Halve if large.
Wash radicchio and endive and remove any discoloured outer leaves. Quarter, core and slice the pears. In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard and oil. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. To serve, toss the beetroot and leaves, radicchio, endive, pears and croûtons with the dressing. Season with freshly cracked black pepper and serve. Serves 4.
RADISH
One of the delights of spring is a bowl of rosy-pink radishes, fresh and crisp, to be eaten simply with butter, salt and crusty bread, in the French manner. Offer them at the start of a meal, since they are said to stimulate the appetite. Sliced radishes are often added to mixed salads, and small whole radishes make an attractive garnish, cut decoratively or simply trimmed.
Radishes are best eaten when very young; older ones and those which have grown too slowly are sometimes too hot-tasting to enjoy. Growing your own is the best way to ensure your radishes are fresh, and they are, perhaps, the easiest of all vegetables to grow. Although the small red radish, long or round, is the most common variety, there are many others, including the long white radish (mooli) often used in Oriental cookery.
To make radish roses: Wash small round radishes, remove all but the smallest leaf and trim off the roots. Using a sharp, thin-bladed vegetable knife, cut a small slice from root and then cut 4 slices around radish from root and almost to stem. Chill in iced water until ‘petals’ open.
To make radish fans: Wash radishes and trim off leaves and root. Put each radish into a wooden spoon and, holding it firmly on the work surface, cut across into thin slices – the sides of the spoon will stop the knife from going all the way through. Chill in iced water until slices open into a fan.
RADISH AND ZUCCHINI SALAD
1 bunch radishes, cut into small matchsticks
125 g (4 oz) small zucchini, cut into small matchsticks
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup Vinaigrette Dressing
1 tablespoon very finely chopped fresh dill or parsley
Season radishes and zucchini lightly with salt and pepper, then toss with vinaigrette and dill or parsley. Serve chilled. Serves 4–6.
RAGOÛT
The French term ragoût usually describes a dish of meat, fish or poultry cooked with vegetables and liquid, although a dish of spring vegetables, such as peas, carrots, onions and potatoes, can also be called a ragoût.
The similar Italian term ragù usually describes the rich tomato and meat sauce, namely ragù alla Bolognese, that is served with piping hot pasta.
RAGOÛT OF LAMB WITH TURNIPS
2 tablespoons oil
1 kg (2 lb) lamb shoulder, boned and cubed
1 tablespoon flour
4 onions, quartered
1 bouquet garni
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 cup stock (lamb or vegetable) or water
500 g (1 lb) small white turnips, peeled and quartered
30 g (1 oz) butter
salt and freshly ground black pepper
6–8 small potatoes, peeled
Heat oil in a frying pan and brown lamb cubes all over. Transfer to a flameproof casserole. Sprinkle flour over lamb and cook, stirring, until lightly browned. Add onions, bouquet garni, garlic and stock or water and bring rapidly to the boil, stirring. Cover and leave to simmer gently. Meanwhile, slowly brown turnips in butter in same frying pan as used for lamb. Add to casserole, and season with salt and pepper. Continue to simmer, covered, over gentle heat, or cook in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/ 350°F), for about 1¼ hours. Add potatoes and cook for a further 20–30 minutes or until potatoes and lamb are tender. Remove bouquet garni before serving. Serves 6.
RAISINS
Dried grapes of different varieties; they are dried in the sun or artificially, which makes their skins wrinkle, the flavour change and the sugar content increase.
Raisins make nutritious snacks eaten on their own; they are indispensable in fruit cakes, Christmas puddings and mincemeat, delicious in breads or biscuits and cakes, in a sauce to accompany some meats such as ham or in a stuffing for poultry, veal or pork. Raisins dried on the vine are superb eaten with cream cheese or fresh plain yogurt to finish a meal.
When using raisins in a cake batter, dust them lightly with some of the flour specified in the recipe, then fold them into the batter, scattering well. The flour helps prevent them clumping together.
Raisins may be plumped if necessary, by soaking in hot water for 10 minutes or overnight in fruit juice in the refrigerator. Drain well and use according to your recipe.
Do not buy raisins in large quantities; it is best to keep a small stock on hand, stored in an airtight container – in the refrigerator or freezer. The seedless white raisins of USA are those we recognise as Sultanas.
RAISIN SAUCE
cup raisins
2 cups water
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1½ tablespoons cornflour
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
Simmer raisins in water for 5 minutes. Combine brown sugar, cornflour, ginger and vinegar, add to pan and cook, stirring, until thickened. Serve hot or cold with ham steaks or tongue. Makes about 2½ cups.
RAISIN HAM WITH CHEESE SAUCE
An excellent way to use up leftover cooked ham. Serve with a tossed salad.
½ cup raisins
½ cup water
1 tablespoon horseradish relish
8 thin slices cooked ham
1½ cups cooked rice
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
½ teaspoon salt
pinch cayenne
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
parsley to garnish
Bring raisins and water to the boil in a covered saucepan. Simmer for 10 minutes, then cool. Drain raisins and chop finely. Mix with half the horseradish and spread over each ham slice. Roll up. Spread rice in a greased shallow ovenproof dish and arrange ham rolls on top. Melt butter in a saucepan, stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes without browning. Gradually stir in milk and bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer until thickened. Add salt, cayenne, remaining horseradish and grated cheese. Stir until cheese melts, then pour sauce over ham rolls. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 20 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with parsley. Serves 4.
RAISIN AND NUT STUFFING
3 cups fresh breadcrumbs
½ cup raisins cup chopped nuts
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
60–75 g (2–2½ oz) butter, softened
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg
Mix all ingredients together well and use as a stuffing for poultry, veal or pork. Makes about 4 cups.
RAISIN AND WALNUT LOAF
A beautiful loaf that keeps fresh for days if stored in an airtight container. Leave for 12 hours before cutting and serve sliced, with butter if liked.
2 cups self-raising flour
pinch salt
60 g (2 oz) butter
¼ cup sugar cup raisins, roughly chopped
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon golden syrup
½ cup buttermilk
Topping
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
little buttermilk
Sift flour and salt into a mixing bowl. Rub in butter, then add sugar, raisins, walnuts and egg and mix well until combined. Stir golden syrup into buttermilk. Add to dry ingredients and beat well. Spoon into a greased 21 × 11 cm (8 × 4½ in) loaf tin. Level top with a spatula.
To make topping, mix sugar and walnuts. Brush loaf with buttermilk, and sprinkle sugar and nuts over top. Press gently with a spatula to make sure topping sticks to loaf. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 45–50 minutes or until quite firm to touch. Cool in tin for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
RAISIN MARMALADE CAKE
2 cups self-raising flour
125 g (4 oz) butter
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup raisins
2 eggs, beaten
6 tablespoons thick-cut marmalade
Sift flour into a bowl and rub in butter. Add sugar and raisins and mix well. Gradually add eggs and beat well. The mixture should be fairly stiff, but if necessary add 1 tablespoon milk. Put two-thirds of mixture into a greased and lined 15 cm (6 in) square cake tin. Smooth top and spread 2 tablespoons marmalade over it. Spread over half the remaining cake mixture, add another 2 tablespoons marmalade and then rest of cake mixture. Top with remaining marmalade. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 1 hour 25 minutes or until golden-brown and well risen. Turn out onto a wire rack and cool. When cold, cut cake into squares to serve.
VEAL WITH RAISINS
90 g (3 oz) butter
1.5 kg (3 lb) breast of veal, boned and cubed
3 tablespoons hot dry sherry or vermouth
½ cup raisins
125 g (4 oz) mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3 tablespoons flour
1½ cups beef stock
1 bay leaf
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon redcurrant jelly
salt
pinch cayenne
1 teaspoon ground coriander
Melt butter over moderate heat in a flameproof casserole and brown meat quickly. Pour hot sherry or vermouth over meat. Add raisins and cook briskly for 2–3 minutes, stirring. Mix in mushrooms, tomato paste and flour. When well blended pour on stock, and add bay leaf. Stir until boiling. Cover, reduce heat and cook gently for about 1 hour or until veal is tender. Remove veal using a slotted spoon and keep warm. Whisk sour cream into cooking liquid with redcurrant jelly, salt, cayenne and coriander. Return veal and simmer very gently for 10–15 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Serve with buttered noodles and a tossed salad. Serves 6.
RASPBERRY
Raspberries can be the most elusive of summer fruits. They arrive with the first of the summer fruits, the apricots and cherries, then all too quickly disappear during the very hot months, only to return when we had all but forgotten them, at the start of autumn. Fortunately, frozen raspberries can be found throughout the year, and although their appearance and flavour might not equal those of the fresh fruits, they can be profitably used in a raspberry sauce (sieve them to remove the tiny seeds).
Fresh raspberries can be served simply with sugar, cream, or a soft, creamy, fresh cheese such as mascarpone, but they combine superbly with other fruits, either fresh or cooked. Fill small melon halves with raspberries, or a pineapple shell with pineapple chunks and raspberries; toss sliced peaches or pears, fresh or cooked, with raspberries.
If you have an excess of raspberries, they may be made into jam or jelly (unlike strawberry jam, raspberry jam sets well). Alternatively, freeze whole or make into purée and freeze in small containers. Frozen purée can be kept for about 6 months. It should be thawed in the refrigerator and stirred well before use.
RASPBERRY SAUCE
A versatile sauce that can be poured over ice cream, yogurt or fresh cream cheese; pour over orange segments, sliced poached pears or peaches; serve as sauce with lemon ice cream; use to make a raspberry bavarois; serve with a cream-filled sponge cake or roll; drizzle over a trifle; spread on crêpes before rolling; combine with thick cream for a raspberry fool or use in Pêche Melba.
250 g (8 oz) raspberries
¼ –½ cup sugar
squeeze lemon juice
Purée raspberries with sugar in blender, then strain through sieve to remove seeds. Or push fruit through sieve to purée and stir in caster sugar to taste. Add lemon juice to sharpen flavour. Makes about 1½ cups.
CLEAR RASPBERRY SAUCE
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
¾ cup water
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cornflour dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
Place raspberries in a saucepan with water and sugar and bring to the boil. Add cornflour paste and cook the sauce, stirring, until it thickens. Push through a sieve and allow to cool. Makes 1½ cups.
NOTE: If fresh or frozen raspberries are not available, use canned raspberries with their juice instead of water and sugar.
CLASSIC RASPBERRY MOUSSE
½ cup sugar
¾ cup water
500 g (1 lb) raspberries
1 tablespoon powdered gelatine
2 tablespoons orange juice
½ cup cream, whipped
3 egg whites
Dissolve sugar in water in a saucepan. Add raspberries and cook gently for about 3 minutes or until juice is starting to run out. Press through sieve, and allow purée to cool. Soften gelatine in orange juice, then dissolve over low heat. Stir into purée, then fold in whipped cream. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold lightly into raspberry mixture. Pour into serving bowl and chill until set. Serve with additional whipped cream, if desired. Serves 6.
RASPBERRY SORBET
500 g (1 lb) raspberries
juice 2 oranges
juice 1 lemon
1½ cups caster sugar
Place raspberries in blender with juices and blend to a purée. (Alternatively, push through sieve.) Sieve purée to remove seeds, then add sugar and whisk until sugar has dissolved. If desired, sharpen taste with a little more lemon juice. Pour into container of sorbetière and freeze (or freeze in a shallow dish or ice cream trays and whisk frequently).Allow sorbet to soften in refrigerator for 30 minutes or so before serving. Serves 6–8.
RATATOUILLE
Summer vegetables were never combined better than in this colourful French medley so popular in Provence. Even when you have a surfeit of tomatoes, peppers and zucchini in salads, these same vegetables cooked in a ratatouille will tempt the most jaded appetite.
Ratatouille is a most versatile dish. It may be eaten cold, with cold meats or hard-boiled eggs, or simply with bread, as a dip. Or it may be eaten hot, as an accompaniment to grilled or roast lamb, pork chops or steaks (although lamb seems best suited to the accompaniment of this robust, garlicky flavour). A plain omelette is enhanced by ratatouille; a quick and easy lunch or supper dish is made by breaking eggs into hollows in a pan of hot ratatouille, and covering the pan until the eggs are set.
To prepare: The easy way to make ratatouille is simply to layer the prepared vegetables in a pan, starting with sliced onions, then eggplants, peppers, zucchinis and tomatoes. Season each layer with salt and pepper and drizzle of olive oil, tuck a few whole garlic cloves between the layers and cook over low heat for about 1 hour. Remove lid towards the end of cooking to allow excess liquid to evaporate. Proportions of each vegetable are not too important in this method; nor does it matter if there are no zucchinis, but there must be tomatoes.
RATATOUILLE
This recipe is a little more time-consuming than the simple method, but it gives an even better result as the vegetables retain their fresh taste and texture.
2 medium eggplants, cubed
coarse salt
2 large onions, finely chopped
½ cup olive oil
2 peppers, cored, seeded and cut into fine strips
4 zucchinis, cut into ½ cm (¼ in) slices
2 cloves garlic
freshly ground black pepper
4 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and quartered
finely chopped parsley
Place eggplant cubes in a colander, sprinkle with coarse salt and leave for 30 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towels. Cook onions in oil in a large saucepan until soft and golden. Add eggplant cubes, and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add peppers, zucchini and garlic, season with pepper, cover and cook gently for about 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes longer. Serve warm or chilled, sprinkled with finely chopped parsley. Ratatouille keeps well in the refrigerator for 3–4 days. Store covered. Serves 4–6.
RED CABBAGE
See Cabbage.
REDCURRANT
A fruit that seems to be even more elusive than raspberries, but there is some consolation in the knowledge that frozen redcurrants are not too difficult to find, and that their delicious, tangy flavour can be preserved in redcurrant jelly. Redcurrants are often combined with other summer berry fruits such as raspberries, in fruit salads, compotes and in Summer Pudding. Cooked in syrup, redcurrants can flavour a plain yogurt or accompany fresh cream cheese.
Redcurrant jelly is one of the most useful ingredients of any pantry. It can be melted and used to glaze red fruits in tarts or on cakes. Many sauces, especially those for game, call for redcurrant jelly, which also gives a touch of piquancy to Cumberland Sauce.
REDCURRANTS WITH RASPBERRY JUICE
2 cups redcurrants
½ cup raspberries
½ cup vanilla sugar
juice ½ lemon
Place redcurrants in serving dish. Sieve raspberries, or purée in a blender and then sieve to remove seeds. Pour over redcurrants. Sprinkle with sugar, then lemon juice. Allow to macerate for at least 3 hours. Serve chilled. Serves 2–3.
REDCURRANT JELLY
This jelly is not as firm as most commercial jellies, but is very good for making Cumberland and other sauces. Redcurrant jelly should be melted over gentle heat, or in a bowl over hot water, before mixing with other ingredients for a sauce. It is sometimes necessary to sieve the melted jelly to remove any remaining jelly globules.
1 kg (2 lb) redcurrants
4 cups caster sugar
Place fruit in large saucepan and mix with sugar. Bring to the boil and boil, stirring constantly, for 8 minutes, carefully removing all scum as it rises. Strain through a fine sieve. Spoon resulting jelly into small sterilised jars. Seal when cold. Makes about 4 cups.
NOTE: For sterilising jars and storing preserves see Jams.
REDCURRANT SAUCE
A good accompaniment to duck or goose.
2 tablespoons redcurrant jelly
2 tablespoons mustard
pinch cayenne
juice 1 lemon
¼ cup port
Melt redcurrant jelly, and sieve if necessary to remove lumps. Add remaining ingredients and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Serve immediately. Makes about ½ cup.
RÉMOULADE SAUCE
This classic, mayonnaise-based sauce is served with cold seafood, particularly lobster and crab, with poultry and cold meats.
See Mayonnaise for recipe.
RHUBARB
This is available all year round, although it is most plentiful in the autumn.
Rhubarb is always eaten cooked, and can also be used for jams and jellies, either on its own or mixed with other fruits. It blends beautifully with other fruits, particularly apples and strawberries. It is also delicious with citrus flavourings, and with spices, especially ginger.
A simple compote of rhubarb mixed with plain yogurt makes a light, refreshing dessert or easily prepared breakfast dish.
Basic preparation: Simply remove and discard the leaves, trim the root end and cut the stalks into convenient-size pieces.
To cook: Cook rhubarb on top of the stove or in the oven, but use very little water, since the rhubarb will give out moisture and shrink as it cooks. Take care not to overcook, or the rhubarb will lose its bright red colour.
Cooked rhubarb may be puréed and used in the same way as strawberry or raspberry purée, or combined with thick cream or custard to make a rhubarb fool.
RHUBARB CRUMBLE
1 cup sugar
½ cup water
4 cups rhubarb, cut into short pieces
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
Crumble topping
1 cup flour
60 g (2 oz) butter
¼ cup sugar
pinch cinnamon
Dissolve sugar in water over heat to make a syrup. Bring to the boil, then add rhubarb and orange rind. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until rhubarb is tender but not mushy. Turn into greased ovenproof dish. To make the crumble topping, sift flour into a bowl and rub in butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Mix in sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle topping over fruit. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 30 minutes or until crumble is golden-brown. Serves 6.
VARIATIONS
Substitute 2 cups sliced apple for 2 cups rhubarb, or add a little sliced preserved ginger to the rhubarb for extra flavour.
BAKED RHUBARB AND ORANGE SPONGE
1 bunch rhubarb, trimmed and chopped
¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated orange rind
3 tablespoons warmed honey
60 g (2 oz) butter
¼ cup caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
¾ cup self-raising flour
¼ cup milk
Place rhubarb in buttered ovenproof dish, sprinkle with brown sugar and half the orange rind, and pour over honey. Cream butter with remaining sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, then fold in sifted flour alternately with milk. Spread over rhubarb. Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven (190°C/375°F) for about 40 minutes or until golden. Serve hot, with custard or cream. Serves 6.
RHUBARB FOOL
1 bunch rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 5 cm (2 in) lengths cup firmly packed brown sugar
grated rind 1 orange
1 cup cream
2 teaspoons Pernod (optional)
Place rhubarb in saucepan with sugar, orange rind and a little water and simmer gently until just tender. Drain, then push through a sieve or purée in a blender. Cool. Lightly whip cream and fold into cooled purée with Pernod, if using. Serve cold in individual dishes, with sponge fingers or thin, crisp biscuits. Serves 4.
RICE
Learn to cook this great staple perfectly and you have the base for hundreds of splendid hot or cold savoury dishes, sustaining puddings and interesting accompaniments to meat, seafood and poultry.
There are many varieties of rice and it is important to choose the right kind for your purpose.
Types of grain: Rice may be short-, medium- or long-grain.
Short-grain rice: Best for puddings because it clings together when cooked to give a creamy texture. Short- or medium-grain rice is also the traditional choice for Chinese fried rice or other dishes, since clinging grains are best for eating with chopsticks, although long-grain rice can be used.
The Italian rices such as Arborio, carnaroli or vialone nano are short- to medium-grain varieties, with large, round grains; available at Italian groceries and delicatessens, they are often labelled risotto rice. These rices are able to absorb liquid and stand up to long, slow cooking without becoming soft and mushy. Look for Calasparra for paella. If not available use one of the Italian rice varieties.
Medium-grain rice: Suitable for savoury dishes where the rice should be in distinct grains but holding together – for example rice rings, moulds and croquettes. If medium-grain is not available, use long-grain for rice rings and moulds, short-grain for croquettes.
Long-grain rice: Cooks to give the separate, fluffy grains required for plain boiled rice and for most savoury dishes, stuffings and rice salads.
Basmati rice from Pakistan is a superb, light-textured long-grain rice, with a wonderful aromatic flavour. It is expensive, but worth it for dishes like Indian ghee rice, pilaf, pilau and Biryani. Other fragrant rices to look for are jasmine, used in many Southeast Asian recipes, and Thai white rice, a slightly sticky rice with a distinctive aroma.
Types of rice:
White (polished) rice: This has been hulled and had the bran coating removed. It is tender and easily digested, and is remarkable in its ability to complement, contrast or provide a vehicle for the flavours and textures of many other foods.
Brown rice: This has been hulled but has not lost its bran coating. It is more nutritious and rather more filling than white rice, and has a nutty taste and slightly chewy texture. Brown rice is particularly good in vegetable dishes or used as a stuffing, and is an excellent binder for meat loaves. It takes longer to cook than white rice (about 40 minutes).
Parboiled rice: Long-grain polished rice which has been treated before milling with a steam pressure process; this forces some of the bran’s nutrients into the grain so that it retains more food value than ordinary white rice. It is not washed before cooking as the steam process has removed surface starch. Since the steam has also hardened it, it takes longer to cook than ordinary white rice (20–25 minutes) and absorbs more liquid (2½ parts water to 1 part rice). Apart from its nutritive value, the advantage of parboiled rice is that it is almost foolproof in giving beautifully fluffy, separate grains and it has a good nutty flavour.
Quick-cooking or ‘instant’ rice: This has been cooked, then dehydrated. It usually needs only 4–6 minutes’ heating in boiling water; follow directions on the pack.
Wild rice: The seed of a grass related to the rice family. It is very expensive but a great treat – its rare, nutty flavour is the perfect complement to poultry and game. For economy, cooked wild rice can be combined with cooked brown or white rice.
Buying, storing and reheating rice: Buy only as much as you expect to use within a month. It may develop weevils if held for too long. Store all rice airtight in a cool, dry place.
Servings: One cup of raw rice weighs about 200 g (7 oz), and will swell to about 3 cups when cooked, enough for 6–7 servings of plain boiled rice as an accompaniment.
Cooked rice will remain in good condition in a covered container in the refrigerator for 5–6 days. To reheat, place in a sieve or colander and run hot water through it, then stand colander over a saucepan about one-third full of boiling water, cover with a cloth and steam for 10–15 minutes. Or spread out in a baking dish, sprinkle with a little milk and dot with butter, cover with a cloth, or foil with a few holes poked in it, and place in a preheated very slow oven (120°C/250°F) until heated through.
Rice can be frozen, although this changes the texture a little and is seldom worthwhile since it is almost as quick to cook rice freshly as to thaw it. Thaw by placing in a sieve and running hot water through it, then steaming over boiling water as described above. Do not freeze rice in liquid, such as a soup, as it goes mushy.
BOILED RICE
1 cup rice
8 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
1 slice lemon (optional)
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear. Bring measured water to the boil in a large saucepan and add salt. Lemon slice may be added to help keep rice white. Slowly sprinkle in rice through your fingers so that water does not go off the boil. Stir once, then cook uncovered, keeping water at a brisk boil, until rice is tender but still firm. Test by lifting out a grain or two and biting it. The rice is cooked when it is soft but slightly resistant to the teeth; this is called al dente. Basmati rice will take 7–10 minutes, other long-grain rice about 12 minutes, short-grain rice a little longer. Start testing a few minutes ahead of time. Drain rice in a sieve or colander and run cold, then hot, water through it to separate grains and wash out any remaining starch.
For very dry, fluffy grains, boil a little water in the saucepan, place colander of boiled rice over it, cover with a cloth and leave to steam for 5–10 minutes; or spread rice out in a baking dish, dot with butter, cover dish with a cloth, or foil with a few holes in it, and place in a preheated very slow oven (120°C/250°F) for 10–15 minutes. Makes 3 cups.
NOTE: If not required immediately, rice can be kept hot by steaming. Alternatively, place on a baking sheet, dot with butter, cover and keep warm in the oven.
VARIATION
BOILED BROWN RICE: If possible soak brown rice in cold water for 20 minutes before cooking as above. Brown rice will take 40 minutes or longer to cook.
STEAMED RICE
This method retains the flavour of the rice.
1 cup rice
2 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear. Bring measured water and salt to the boil in a heavy saucepan. Slowly sprinkle in rice through your fingers so that water does not go off the boil. Stir once, then cover with a well-fitting lid and turn heat very low. Do not lift lid until last few minutes of cooking. Cook very gently for about 10–15 minutes or until a test grain is tender but still firm when bitten. Remove from heat and fork up lightly. For very dry, fluffy grains, set the rice aside, still covered, for 5 minutes before forking up. Makes 3 cups.
VARIATION
STEAMED BROWN RICE: Follow recipe above but if possible soak brown rice in cold water for 20 minutes before cooking. It will take 40 minutes or more to cook.
CHINESE-STYLE RICE
For Chinese fried rice cooked this way, follow this recipe then spread it out in a shallow dish, cover and refrigerate overnight before using.
2 cups short-grain rice
½ teaspoon salt
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear. Place rice in a heavy saucepan and add salt and enough water to come about 2 cm (¾ in) above level of rice. Bring to the boil, then lower heat to medium and continue cooking until water has almost evaporated and steam holes appear in rice. Reduce heat to very low, cover with tight-fitting lid and steam for 15–20 minutes or until rice is tender. Do not lift lid until last few minutes of cooking. Set aside, still covered, for 5 minutes, then fork up lightly. Makes about 6 cups.
WILD RICE
1 cup wild rice
salt
Cover rice with cold salted water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, skim any foreign particles from top and drain. Bring 3 cups fresh water to the boil, add 1 teaspoon salt and stir in rice slowly. Cook without stirring for about 30 minutes or until grains are tender, adding a little more boiling water if necessary. Fluff up with a fork before serving. Makes about 3 cups.
RICE RING OR MOULD
butter
Boiled or Steamed Rice
Generously butter a ring mould, dariole or other individual moulds. Drain boiled rice well but do not run water through it. Pack hot rice firmly into moulds, rest in a warm place for 3–4 minutes, then place a heated serving plate over each mould and invert it and plate together. Rap sharply on table to release rice and lift mould off carefully.
INDIAN GHEE RICE
Serve with a curry, grilled spiced chicken or pork, lamb or chicken satays. To get the best flavour, onions must be allowed to cook gently for a long time.
60 g (2 oz) ghee, or ¼ cup oil
1 onion, finely sliced
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups long-grain rice, preferably basmati
3½ cup boiling chicken stock
8 black peppercorns
2 whole cloves
4 cardamom pods
1 teaspoon salt
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup hot cooked peas
Heat ghee or oil in a heavy saucepan, add half the onion and fry gently until golden-brown. Make sure onion is well cooked but do not allow to burn. Add turmeric and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add rice and fry for 5–10 minutes, stirring constantly, until it is golden. Add boiling stock with peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, salt, cinnamon and remaining onion. Bring to the boil, stirring from time to time, then turn heat down very low, cover pan tightly and cook gently without stirring for 10–20 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Turn off heat and leave covered until serving time, then remove lid and fluff rice up with a fork. Serve garnished with peas. Serves 4–6.
VARIATION
CURRIED RICE: Follow recipe for Indian Ghee Rice, adding 2 teaspoons curry powder with the turmeric.
BASIC RICE PILAF
Pilaf can be an accompaniment, or can be a whole meal with fish, poultry, meat and vegetables added.
2 cups long-grain rice
30 g (1 oz) butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups boiling chicken or lamb stock
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until water runs clear. Drain thoroughly. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan, add onion and cook gently until soft and golden. Stir in rice, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until rice become translucent. Pour in boiling stock and bring to the boil again, then lower heat, cover tightly and cook very gently for about 20 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender (small holes will appear on the surface). Remove lid and cooked uncovered for 1–2 minutes. Fluff up with fork before serving. Serves 8–10 as an accompaniment.
VARIATIONS
CASHEW AND SULTANA PILAF: Follow recipe for Basic Rice Pilaf. Fry 60 g (2 oz) cashew nuts and 60 g (2 oz) sultanas in a little ghee or butter until golden. Fork through finished pilaf.
MUSHROOM PILAF: Follow recipe for Basic Rice Pilaf, but add 1 cup mushrooms, sautéed in 30 g (1 oz) butter, to the pilaf with the stock.
MAIN-DISH PILAF: Follow recipe for Basic Rice Pilaf and fold through the finished pilaf 1 cup diced cooked chicken, flaked fish, shellfish, roast lamb or other meat, 1 cup cooked or raw vegetables and 2 tablespoons toasted almond halves. For vegetables, use sliced sautéed mushrooms, diced celery or pepper, diced cooked carrot, lightly cooked cauliflower or broccoli florets, cooked peas or beans. Serves 4–6.
TURKISH PILAF: Follow recipe for Basic Rice Pilaf but add 1 bay leaf, a 5 cm (2 in) piece cinnamon stick broken into 2 or 3 pieces, ½ cup raisins and ½ cup diced dried apricots with the stock. Serve with curries or lamb.
FRIED RICE
Try to get Chinese rice wine – the best is shaosing, a yellow rice wine. It is available from good Chinese supply shops. It really does give the authentic taste to fried rice.
8–10 dried Chinese mushrooms
salt
6 tablespoons oil
3 eggs
6 spring onions, chopped
125 g (4 oz) barbecued pork or ham, cut into small slices
1 cup small cooked prawns, shelled
4 cups cooked Chinese-style Rice, refrigerated overnight
½ cup cooked peas
Seasoning
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
¼ cup chicken stock
2 teaspoons soy sauce
Soak mushrooms in water to cover for 30 minutes, then drain. Simmer gently in salted water for 5 minutes. Drain. Remove stalks, slice mushrooms thinly and set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wok or frying pan. Beat eggs with a pinch of salt and add to pan. Cook until firm, stirring so that cooked egg is broken into small pieces. Remove from pan and set aside.
Heat wok or pan and add remaining oil. When hot add spring onions, meat, prawns and mushrooms. Fry for a few seconds, then add rice, tossing constantly to mix and heat through. Season with salt, and add peas and cooked egg. Combine seasoning ingredients and sprinkle over rice. Mix well and serve. Serves 6.
NOTE: The Chinese often used dried shrimp for this dish. Simply soak ½ cup dried shrimp in water for about 30 minutes or until softened.
SAFFRON RICE
This superb rice is one of the most useful of all recipes. It makes a simple but stylish accompaniment to poultry, meat or seafood that is spicy – Indian, Southeast Asian, etc. Saffron is expensive but makes the subtle difference. Use a heavy saucepan or an iron casserole for absolutely carefree cooking.
½ teaspoon crumbled saffron
1½ cups basmati or other long-grain rice
15 g (½ oz) butter
1 tablespoon oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cups boiling chicken stock or water
salt
Soak saffron in enough warm water barely to cover. Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until water runs clear. Drain thoroughly. Heat butter and oil in a deep saucepan and cook onion until soft without colouring. Add rice and cook for a further few minutes, stirring all the time until rice is well coated with butter and oil. Pour on stock or water, and add saffron with water in which it was soaked and a large pinch of salt (or less if your stock is salty). Stir once, then cover tightly and cook gently for 15–20 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed. Remove lid and stand for a few minutes to let steam escape. Fluff up with a fork and serve. Serves 8.
HAM RICE SALAD
Good for picnics and summer lunches. The salad can be varied by using chicken, seafood, salami or other cold meat instead of ham, and other vegetables such as sliced celery, pepper or radish.
6 cups Steamed Rice, cooled to room temperature
250 g (8 oz) cooked ham, sliced 1 cm (½ in) thick and diced
1 cup cooked peas
1 cup chopped parsley
1 cup finely chopped spring onions, including green stalks
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup Mayonnaise
Dressing
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup good vinegar
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Beat dressing ingredients together well, or shake in a jar. Mix rice with dressing, then add ham, peas, parsley and spring onions, and season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Lastly, add mayonnaise. Serves 8.
NOTE: Make ahead and store in refrigerator.
SHRIMP (PRAWN) JAMBALAYA
This colourful Creole dish derives from Spanish paella (New Orleans was ruled by Spain in the eighteenth century). Like paella, it is a meal in itself.
1 cup long-grain rice
2 thick rashers streaky bacon, rind removed, cut into strips
1 tablespoon oil or butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tender sticks celery, sliced
1 large green pepper, cored, seeded and cut into strips
1½ –2 cups boiling chicken stock
1 cup drained canned tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, or ½ teaspoon dried
pinch cayenne
125 g (4 oz) cooked ham, thickly sliced, and cut into small strips
salt and freshly ground black pepper
500 g (1 lb) medium green prawns, shelled and de-veined
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water until water runs clear. Drain well. Fry bacon in a large, flameproof casserole until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add oil or butter to bacon fat in pan and gently cook onion and garlic until soft but not brown. Add celery and green pepper and cook for about 2 minutes or until slightly wilted. Add rice and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes or until rice becomes translucent. Add 1½ cups boiling stock with tomatoes, thyme, cayenne, ham, salt and pepper. (Remember that ham may make mixture a little saltier as it cooks.)
Bring to the boil and stir once, then cover tightly and place in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F). Cook for 10 minutes. Add prawns, pushing them down beneath the surface. Cover again and cook for a further 10–15 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Check once or twice during this time and if rice appears dry, add a few more spoonfuls of boiling stock. Add parsley and fork through. Serve jambalaya from the casserole or pile it onto a large, heated serving dish. Serves 6.
VARIATION
CHICKEN JAMBALAYA: Follow recipe for Shrimp Jambalaya, but substitute 3 chicken fillets (skinned, boned half-breasts), each cut crossways in half and sautéed for 5 minutes in a little butter, for the prawns.
BROWN RICE PUDDING
A pudding so nourishing and satisfying that it would take only soup and a side salad to complete the meal.
3 cups Boiled Brown Rice
3 cups milk
3 eggs, beaten
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ teaspoon mixed spice
½ cup mixed dried fruit
brown sugar and sour cream to serve
Mix rice with remaining ingredients. Spoon pudding into a greased shallow ovenproof dish. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle a little more brown sugar evenly over top. Return to oven and bake for 10 minutes more. Serve warm with sour cream slightly sweetened with brown sugar. Serves 6–8.
SAFFRON PILAU
A marvellous dish for a party, barbecue or large lunch. It goes beautifully with cold roast beef or other meats, hot or cold chicken or grilled meat. It is good hot or cold and looks magnificent piled into a big dish. It is also excellent heaped into tomato cases, or moulded into a ring and filled with a savoury mixture. It is a failproof recipe – adding the liquid in 3 parts ensures that the rice will not go soggy.
3 tablespoons oil
2 onions, finely sliced
½ teaspoon crumbled saffron
2 cups long-grain rice
3½ cups boiling chicken or vegetable stock
8 black peppercorns
2 whole cloves
4 cardamom pods, bruised
1 cinnamon stick
2 teaspoons salt
½ cup sultanas or raisins
½ cup halved, toasted almonds
6 hard-boiled eggs, halved (optional)
Heat oil in a heavy saucepan and gently fry onions until a pale golden colour. Make sure onions are soft but do not allow to burn; this will take quite a while. Add saffron and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Add rice and fry gently, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes or until all rice is coated with oil and golden. Add 1¾ cups boiling stock, with peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and salt (reduce if stock is salty). Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer gently for 20–25 minutes or until rice is tender, adding more stock as it is absorbed. Add sultanas or raisins, cover and allow to plump. Turn off heat and keep covered until ready to serve. A few minutes before serving, uncover pan to allow steam to escape, fluff up rice with a fork and add almonds. Turn onto a large heated serving dish. For a main dish, garnish with eggs. Serves 8–10.
NOTE: 1 teaspoon turmeric may be substituted for the saffron. It gives good colour but not the same flavour.
VARIATIONS
PILAU-STUFFED TOMATOES: Peel 12 firm tomatoes, scoop out centres with a teaspoon, salt inside and turn upside-down on paper towels for 10 minutes to drain. Brush tomatoes lightly with oil, then pile hot Saffron Pilau into the centres and place in a baking dish. Heat in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 10 minutes.
PILAU RING: Pack Saffron Pilau firmly into an oiled 7-cup ring mould. Rest in a warm place for 3–4 minutes, then put a heated platter over the mould and invert. Tap mould to release rice, and remove mould. If liked, fill centre with cooked mushrooms and peas, sautéed chicken livers tossed in a little cream or any other savoury filling.
SAFFRON RICE SALAD: Prepare Saffron Pilau. Combine 2 tablespoons vinegar, 2 teaspoons mustard (Dijon is best) and 6 tablespoons oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste and beat with a fork until thick. Toss through rice. To this basic rice salad you can add 1 cup diced cooked chicken; ½ cup chopped green peppers and some chopped parsley. Shelled prawns and sliced canned water chestnuts for a crispy contrast make another good combination. For a creamy salad, fold a little Mayonnaise through the rice.
GREEN RICE
Rice combined with fresh green herbs and vegetables, cream and cheese makes a colourful and complete accompaniment to meats or fish, or it could be an interesting part of a meatless meal.
½ cup olive oil
½ cup chopped green pepper
3 cups Boiled or Steamed Rice
3 cups chopped cooked spinach
¾ cup chopped parsley
½ cup snipped chives
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup cream
2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
Heat oil in a large saucepan and sauté green pepper for 5 minutes. Sir in rice, spinach, parsley, chives, salt and pepper and toss together until hot. Remove from heat and toss with cream and 1 cup cheese. Turn into a heated serving dish and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Serves 8.
BUTTERED RICE
This is a good way of using leftover cooked rice. It can be an accompaniment or a meal in itself, depending on what you add to the basic recipe.
60 g (2 oz) butter
2 cups Steamed Rice
flavouring (see below)
Melt butter in a heavy saucepan, stir in rice and mix well, tossing lightly over gentle heat. Or place in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F), shaking dish occasionally, until thoroughly heated through. After buttering rice and before heating, any of the following may be added: sliced mushrooms; strips of canned pimiento; diced celery or pepper; any cooked vegetables; cooked prawns, scallops or mussels; chopped parsley or mixed herbs; Pesto alla Genovese ; chopped shallot; desiccated coconut and grated fresh ginger. Serves 4.
KHICHRI
An Indian dish of split peas and rice, a combination which produces a good-quality protein essential for a vegetarian meal.
2 cups long-grain rice
¼ cup oil
4 small onions, sliced
½ cup yellow split peas, soaked overnight and drained
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 cm (½ in) slice fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
3½ cups water
Soak rice in water to cover for 3 minutes, then drain well. Heat oil in a heavy saucepan and add half the onions. Cook over a moderate heat for 5–10 minutes or until crisp and golden. Lift out onions and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Add remaining onions to oil and cook gently until soft. Add rice, split peas, salt, cumin, garam masala, garlic and ginger. Reduce heat to moderately slow and cook the mixture, stirring constantly, for 7–10 minutes or until rice and peas are coated with oil. Add water. Bring to the boil and cook over moderate heat, stirring, for 4 minutes. Cover pan with foil and tight-fitting lid and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Serve on a heated serving dish, garnished with reserved fried onions. Serves 4–6.
RICE PAPER SHEETS (BANH TRANG)
Packets of dried rice paper wrappers are sold in good Asian food stores and delicatessens. They are brittle and can take a few attempts to master rolling without breaking. The Vietnamese in particular use them for their fresh spring rolls (cha gio). Once they are softened with warm water they become pliable and can be used to wrap delicious salad fillings.
PRAWN RICE PAPER ROLLS
There are many versions of these deliciously different fresh spring rolls.
8–10 small round rice paper sheets (banh trang)
1 red chilli, seeded and sliced
2 teaspoons Thai fish sauce (nam pla)
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
8–10 cooked prawns, shelled and de-veined
1 medium carrot
4 spring onions
½ cup bean sprouts
small handful each Thai basil, Thai mint and coriander leaves
Clear dipping sauce
4 tablespoons sugar
½ cup cold water
2 tablespoons fish sauce
finely sliced red or green chilli
1 tablespoon lime juice
Brush a rice paper sheet with warm water or quickly dip into a bowl of warm water. Lay on a flat surface on kitchen paper towels until softened. Place another dampened sheet on top and repeat until all of the sheets have been moistened. Take care not to over-wet the sheets; they should be soft enough to handle without tearing and becoming soggy, and should not stick together.
In a small bowl add the chilli, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar and mix together. Cut the prawns in half lengthways. Peel and cut the carrot into fine shreds with the spring onions, including some of the green tops. Trim off the straggly brown tails from the bean sprouts.
Place a half-prawn on one side of the rice paper. Cover with a basil, mint or coriander leaf. Add the shredded carrot and spring onions and a few bean sprouts. Sprinkle over with a little of the chilli mixture. Bring the ends of the rice paper up and roll up, enclosing the filling firmly, the basil leaf showing through on top and the seam underneath. If the rice paper tears, start again with a new sheet.
Cover the spring rolls with dampened paper towels or plastic wrap as you go. Serve piled on a plate with clear dipping sauce.
To make sauce, stir the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves, then add the fish sauce, chilli and lime juice. This gives a very clear, glossy sauce.
RILLETTES
Better known in English as potted pork, this French dish is basically a pork spread flavoured with herbs, spices, pepper and garlic. Rillettes are most commonly made with pork, but may also be made with goose, rabbit, turkey or duck, although each of these will include some pork.
Pork rillettes are made from belly pork, one of the most economical of pork cuts, but also one of the most fatty. The fat is essential to the rillettes, so don’t be dismayed by the quantity.
Rillettes are eaten with plain (unbuttered) bread or toast, often accompanied by pickled gherkins. They may be served as a first course, or simply as something to nibble on with drinks.
RILLETTES
1 kg (2 lb) boneless belly pork, rind removed, cut into small cubes
1 large clove garlic, bruised
1 sprig fresh thyme
salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup water
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Place pork cubes in large, heavy saucepan with garlic, thyme and a little salt and pepper. Add water to prevent mixture sticking. Cook over very gentle heat for about 2 hours or until pork is extremely tender. Drain in a sieve. Discard garlic and thyme, and set fat aside. Using 2 forks, tear pork into shreds. Taste and season as desired with salt, pepper and spices; rillettes should be well seasoned. Return pork mixture to saucepan with a little of the reserved fat and heat, stirring well to mix seasonings through meat. Pack into small pots. Cover surface of each with layer of pork fat then cover with foil. Store in refrigerator. Remove 1–2 hours before serving. Covered with fat, rillettes will keep in the refrigerator for several weeks. Serves 4–6.
RISOTTO
A rice-based dish from the northern provinces of Italy; rice is to the people of northern Italy what pasta is to those of the south.
Risotto should be made with either Arborio, carnaroli, vialone nano, Roma or Baldo rice, most of which are grown along the Po River Valley in Italy’s north. These rices can absorb liquid and stand up to long, slow cooking without becoming soft and mushy. The perfect risotto should be a creamy mass, with each grain having a slightly resistant core to the bite. It can be served plain, flavoured simply with butter and cheese, or more elaborately with such ingredients as mushrooms, tomatoes, meat, poultry, seafood or chicken livers, to name a few.
Risotto is usually served as a dish on its own with grated Parmesan cheese passed separately. One exception to this rule is risotto Milanese, which is served as an accompaniment to osso buco Milanese.
RISOTTO MILANESE
The rice in this dish should be cooked to a melting creaminess with a little ‘bite’ still left in each grain.
125 g (4 oz) butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
30 g (1 oz) beef marrow, sliced (optional)
2 cups Italian risotto rice or short-grain rice
½ cup dry white wine
4–5 cups hot chicken stock
¼ teaspoon saffron powder or threads dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Melt 60 g (2 oz) of the butter in a heavy saucepan and fry onion gently until soft. Add beef marrow, if using. Stir in rice until it is well coated with butter. Pour in wine and cook over medium heat until wine has nearly evaporated. Stir in 1 cup hot stock. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes and gradually add about 2 cups more stock. Continue to simmer, stirring, for a further 5–10 minutes, gradually adding remaining stock, by which time the rice should have absorbed all the liquid. Do not let rice dry out. Stir in dissolved saffron and add remaining butter and Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately as an accompaniment to osso buco Milanese or on its own with extra butter and grated Parmesan cheese. Serves 4.
RISOTTO
125 g (4 oz) butter
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
3 cups Arborio rice
8 cups boiling chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4–6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
extra grated Parmesan cheese to serve
Melt 60 g (2 oz) butter in a heavy saucepan and sauté onion and whole garlic clove. When onion is soft and golden add parsley. Cook over a low heat for a few minutes, then discard garlic and add rice. Fry for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, then add 1 cup boiling stock and cook gently until it is absorbed. Continue cooking gently, adding stock a cupful at a time and stirring occasionally, for 20–30 minutes or until rice is tender and all liquid is absorbed. Season with salt and pepper, stir in remaining butter and the cheese and leave risotto over low heat for a few minutes before serving. Serve with plenty of extra grated Parmesan cheese handed separately. Serves 6.
VARIATIONS
RISOTTO WITH MUSHROOMS: Make Risotto, adding 2 rashers bacon, rind removed, finely chopped, with the onion, and 250 g (8 oz) mushrooms, sliced, with the parsley. Use only 60 g (2 oz) butter for frying the onion: do not add more with the cheese.
NOTE: Risotto may be prepared in this way using other vegetables such as tomatoes or zucchini. Shelled prawns, mussels, chicken meat or chopped sautéed chicken livers may also be added with the mushrooms.
RISOTTO WITH PRAWNS: Make Risotto and keep hot. Melt 90 g (3 oz) butter in a frying pan and sauté 1 clove garlic and 1 kg (2 lb) green prawns, shelled and de-veined, for 5–8 minutes or until prawns are cooked. Discard garlic, then season prawns with salt and pepper. Add to risotto and fold together.
RISSOLE
Strictly speaking, rissoles ought to be made with finely minced meat, fish or poultry wrapped in thin shortcrust or puff pastry to form little turnovers, before being deep-fried. Or the pastry might be coated with egg and breadcrumbs or crushed vermicelli before frying. They should then be served hot, often to accompany cocktails.
Today rissoles have become more informal; the pastry coating is usually omitted and egg and breadcrumbs used instead. They are larger and more likely to be served at lunch or family meals. Nevertheless, they remain a delicious way of stretching the budget.
CHICKEN RISSOLES
1 × 375 g (12 oz) packet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 quantity Chicken Croquette mixture
1 egg, beaten
oil for deep-frying
parsley sprigs to garnish
Roll out pastry dough to about 3 mm (
in) thick. Cut it into 6 cm (2½ in) rounds or squares. Place 1 teaspoon of croquette mixture in centre of each pastry round or square. Brush edges lightly with water and fold dough over, pressing edges together. Be careful not to fill pastries too much, and seal edges firmly so that none of the filling escapes. Brush tops with beaten eggs. Deep-fry in hot oil for 1–2 minutes or until golden-brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley sprigs. Makes about 24.
RISSOLES WITH MUSHROOMS
Rissoles
4 tablespoons oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 slices bread, cubed
4 tablespoons milk
750 g (1½ lb) minced steak
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons tomato paste
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
½ cup flour
dry breadcrumbs
Sauce
45 g (1½ oz) butter
6–8 mushrooms, finely sliced
2 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons paprika
1 cup beef stock
½ cup sour cream
To make rissoles, heat 2 tablespoons oil and gently fry onion until soft. Soak bread cubes in milk for 10 minutes. Put steak, 1 egg, tomato paste, salt and pepper in a bowl and blend well together. Add onion and soaked bread cubes and blend again. Shape the mixture into 8 rissoles. Dip in flour, then in remaining egg, and coat with breadcrumbs. Heat remaining oil and fry rissoles until well browned on each side. Drain and keep warm.
To make sauce, melt butter in a saucepan and gently fry mushrooms for 2 minutes. Blend in flour and paprika, then stir in stock. Cook gently until boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in sour cream and serve immediately with rissoles. Serves 4.
COOKED MEAT RISSOLES
250 g (8 oz) cooked meat, minced
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
½ teaspoon dried thyme
salt and freshly ground black pepper cup beef or chicken stock
1 egg, beaten
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
oil for frying
In a saucepan mix together minced meat, 2 tablespoons flour, fresh breadcrumbs, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper and stock. Stir over gentle heat until mixture becomes thick. Allow to cool. Shape into flat cakes. Dip in remaining flour, then beaten egg, and coat with breadcrumbs. Shallow-fry in hot oil until golden-brown on both sides. Serves 2.
NOTE: Use leftover roast beef, lamb or chicken, corned beef, cooked ham, or well-drained and flaked canned tuna or salmon.
ROCK CAKES
A batch of rock cakes is quickly and easily made and a family favourite for picnics, lunch-boxes or as a quick snack with morning coffee or afternoon tea. Eat them warm or cold, buttered or plain.
ROCK CAKES
2 cups self-raising flour
90 g (3 oz) butter
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon mixed spice
2 tablespoons currants
2 tablespoons sultanas
2 tablespoons chopped mixed candied peel
1 egg
4–5 tablespoons milk
Sift flour into a bowl and rub in butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Add sugar, spice and fruits and mix in well. Beat egg and add milk. Mix with dry ingredients to a stiff dough. Place tablespoons of mixture in little rough heaps on lightly greased baking trays. Bake in a preheated hot oven (200°C/400°F) for 10–15 minutes or until golden-brown. Makes about 25.
ROCKEFELLER OYSTERS
This recipe was created at Antoine’s, one of the long-established and famous restaurants of New Orleans.
ROCKEFELLER OYSTERS
125 g (4 oz) butter
6 tablespoons finely chopped fresh spinach
3 tablespoons finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
3 tablespoons finely chopped celery
5 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
dash Tabasco sauce
about ½ teaspoon salt
36 freshly opened oysters, on the half-shell
rock salt
Melt butter in a saucepan and add all ingredients except oysters and rock salt. Cook, stirring constantly, for 15 minutes or until soft. Press through sieve or purée in blender. Cool. Place a layer of rock salt in shallow ovenproof dishes and arrange oysters in half-shells on top. Place a spoonful of sauce on top of each oyster. Cook under a preheated medium grill until sauce begins to brown. Serve immediately. Serves 6.
ROCKMELON (CANTALOUPE)
See Melon.
ROE
Both the milt (soft roe) of male fish and the eggs (hard roe) of female fish are delicacies. Soft roes on toast, once a popular savoury course for the end of a formal dinner, make a splendid snack. Smoked roe is served like pâté with toast or brown bread and butter, and the salted, dried, pressed roe of the grey mullet, known in Greece as tarama, is used to make Taramasalata.
The salted roe of the sturgeon is, of course, that great luxury, caviar; red salmon roe (keta), also costly, is used in the same way. Salted lumpfish roe, coloured orange or black, is a less expensive substitute and is commonly available.
SOFT ROES ON TOAST
250 g (8 oz) fresh or canned soft roes
seasoned flour
60 g (2 oz) butter
salt and freshly ground black pepper
pinch cayenne
lemon juice
2 slices hot buttered toast
lemon wedges to serve
If using fresh roes, poach gently in salted water to cover for 3–4 minutes. Drain fresh or canned roes and remove any dark vein. Dry roes well and dust with seasoned flour. Heat butter and, when foaming, add roes. Brown on both sides, then season with salt, pepper, cayenne and a little lemon juice. Arrange roes on toast, pour seasoned butter over and serve very hot, with lemon wedges. Serves 2.
ROLLMOP
See Herring.
ROSEMARY
The herb of remembrance, which grows wild in the countries of southern Europe but is cultivated in the north and in other parts of the world. It grows quite happily in pots in a warm dry place in many gardens.
A sprig of rosemary or its crushed leaves impart a unique aromatic fragrance reminiscent of dry summer hillsides around the Mediterranean shores. The special flavour of rosemary has a great affinity with lamb, veal and pork.
Place a sprig under the rack when roasting or grilling, or insert a few leaves with some slivers of garlic under the skin before roasting meat. Scent butter with rosemary and in it quickly sauté some tomatoes or mushrooms, or use to toss new potatoes, zucchini or patty pan squash.
Rosemary is best used fresh but dried rosemary is especially good to flavour sugar for an unusual touch in puddings and creams, or sprinkled over plain butter cakes.
ROSEMARY BUTTER
Delicious with boiled new potatoes, patty pan squash, zucchini, on grilled lamb chops or pork steaks, and spread on hot breads.
125 g (4 oz) butter
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cream butter until softened, then beat in lemon juice. Add rosemary, beat well and season with salt and pepper. Shape into a long roll, chill and slice as required. Makes 125 g (4 oz).
VEAL ROSEMARY
2 tablespoons oil
30 g (1 oz) butter
750 g (1½ lb) boned veal shoulder, cubed
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
2 cups peeled and chopped tomatoes
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
125 g (4 oz) mushrooms, sliced
Heat oil and butter in a flameproof casserole, add veal and onion and cook until browned (do this in 2 batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding pan). Stir in flour and rosemary and cook until flour coats meat. Add tomatoes, wine and stock, and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms. Cover and cook in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F) for 1 hour or until veal is tender. Serve with buttered rice or creamy mashed potatoes and a green salad. Serves 4–6.
ROSEMARY CHICKEN IN CREAM
¼ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
4 large half-breasts of chicken
2 cups cream
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Season flour with salt, pepper and rosemary and use to coat chicken pieces. Put in a lightly buttered shallow baking dish and carefully pour over cream. Bake in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F) for 30–40 minutes or until chicken is tender, turning after first 15–20 minutes of cooking. Remove pieces to a serving platter and keep warm. Reheat cream sauce, thinning if necessary with a little extra cream or hot milk. Pour over chicken and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with Poppy Seed Noodles and a crisp green salad. Serves 4.
ROSEMARY SODA BREAD
2 cups wholemeal flour
2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
¾ teaspoon baking powder
90 g (3 oz) butter
½ cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon snipped chives
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
2 cups buttermilk
Sift flours, salt, sugar, soda and baking powder into a large bowl. Rub in butter until mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in herbs, then buttermilk until dough forms a ball. Knead very lightly until smooth. Place on a greased baking tray and form into a 20 cm (8 in) round. Using a sharp, floured knife cut a cross 1 cm (½ in) deep in the top. Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven (190°C/375°F) for 40–50 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped on bottom. Serve warm or at room temperature, sliced, with plenty of butter and a sharp Cheddar, if liked.
ROSEMARY SUGAR
2 cups sugar, crystal or caster
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, or 2 teaspoons dried
Combine sugar and rosemary in an airtight jar and shake well. Leave for 24 hours. Shake again and store for at least 1 week before using. Delicious used in puddings, creams or sprinkled over hot cakes or biscuits. Makes 2 cups.
SPINACH ROSEMARY
500 g (1 lb) spinach
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
4 spring onions, finely chopped
60 g (2 oz) butter
salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 sprig fresh rosemary, or ½ teaspoon dried
Place spinach in a large heavy saucepan and add parsley, spring onions, butter, salt, pepper and rosemary. Cover pan and cook over a low heat for 5–10 minutes. Shake pan occasionally to prevent spinach sticking. Serves 4.
ROSE WATER
A fragrant essence distilled from rose petals, with a history as romantic as its name. Rose water has been used for thousands of years in countries of the Middle East, India and the Balkans, not only in the kitchen but also as a cosmetic ingredient and as purification water during religious ceremonies.
Rose water may be used as a flavouring instead of vanilla or almond essence, and lends its exotic perfume to many creams, sweet dishes and drinks. It can be purchased from health food shops, specialty delicatessens or at some chemists. Rose essence is also available from the same outlets and is highly concentrated. Use only a few drops if substituting for rose water.
ROSE WATER SYRUP
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
strained juice ½ lemon
few drops pink food colouring cup rose water
Put sugar and water in a heavy saucepan and stir over gentle heat until sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and add lemon juice. Boil, without stirring, for 10 minutes, skimming when necessary. Add enough food colouring to syrup to tint it a deep pink. Stir in rose water and boil for a further 3 minutes. Cool, then bottle and seal. Serve over cracked ice, using 2–3 tablespoons per glass. Top each serving with iced water and float a rose petal on top. Makes about 2½ cups syrup.
PERSIAN CREAM
1 tablespoon powdered gelatine
¼ cup cold water
1½ cups milk cup sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 tablespoon rose water
To serve
2 cups partially frozen or well-chilled fresh berry fruits
whipped cream
2 teaspoons rose water
Sprinkle gelatine over cold water and allow to soften. Heat milk and sugar in a heavy saucepan or top of a double saucepan. Beat egg yolks and add to warm milk and sugar, off the heat. Stir over very low heat, or over hot water, until custard begins to thicken. Add softened gelatine and stir until dissolved. Allow to cool, then stir in rose water. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into custard mixture. Chill for at least 4 hours. Serve with berry fruits, and whipped cream flavoured with rose water. Serves 6.
GULAB JAMUN
A delicately flavoured sweetmeat from India soaked in rose water syrup.
4 tablespoons full-cream milk powder
1½ tablespoons self-raising flour
pinch bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
15 g (½ oz) ghee or softened butter
about 2 tablespoons water
ghee or oil for frying
Syrup
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
3 cardamom pods, bruised
3 tablespoons rose water
Sift milk powder, flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground cardamom into a large bowl. Rub in butter or ghee, and add sufficient water to make a firm but pliable dough. Shape into balls the size of small walnuts. Fry slowly over gentle heat in hot ghee or oil, turning until well browned. Drain on paper towels. To make syrup, in a large heavy saucepan combine sugar, water and cardamom pods and heat until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Put fried gulab jamun into syrup and simmer for 30 minutes or until almost doubled in size and soft and spongy. Cool slightly, then add rose water and cool completely. Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled. Makes about 10.
ALMOND CREAM
¼ cup ground rice
3 cups milk
pinch salt
¼ cup sugar
¾ cup ground almonds
2 tablespoons rose water
Decoration
toasted slivered almonds
pomegranate seeds (optional)
Make a thin paste from ground rice and ¼ cup milk. Place remaining milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Stir in ground rice paste, salt and sugar. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until mixture begins to bubble. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often. Stir in ground almonds, blending well. Remove from heat and allow to cool a little, stirring occasionally. Stir in rose water and pour into serving dish. Chill for at least 3 hours. Serve decorated with toasted slivered almonds and pomegranate seeds. Serves 6.
ICED MELON AND PEACHES
1 large, ripe honeydew melon
½ cup caster sugar
4 ripe peaches, peeled, stoned and sliced
juice 1 lemon
3 tablespoons rose water
shaved or crushed ice to serve
Halve melon, remove seeds and dice flesh or scoop into balls. Sprinkle with sugar. Coat peach slices in lemon juice to prevent discoloration. Add peaches and lemon juice to melon balls, stirring gently. Mix in rose water. Cover bowl and chill for 3 hours. Serve piled into individual glasses and topped with ice. Serves 6–8.
ROUGH PUFF PASTRY
See Pastry.
ROUILLE
This peppery-hot sauce is a traditional accompaniment to Bouillabaisse and other fish soups of the Mediterranean region. It may be thickened with either bread or a potato, cooked in the soup.
ROUILLE
2 cloves garlic
1 red pepper, skinned, cored, seeded and roughly chopped
1 dried red chilli, soaked in warm water until soft
1 × 5 cm (2 in) slice French bread, soaked in water or Fish Stock and squeezed to remove excess liquid
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup hot Fish Stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Pound garlic, pepper, chilli and bread to a smooth paste in a mortar with a pestle. Gradually add olive oil, blending until thick and smooth. Stir in hot fish stock, and season with salt and pepper. Serve separately with fish soups and stews. Rouille may also be made using a blender; add extra 2 tablespoons water or stock when blending garlic, peppers and bread. Makes about 1 cup.
ROULADE
The French word for ‘roll’ applies to different cuts of meat or minced meat mixtures rolled around a filling, to a galantine when shaped as a roll, and to thin slices of bread or pastry when rolled around a filling.
Deliciously light roulades can be made from a soufflé-type mixture that is cooked in a Swiss roll tin, spread with a filling either savoury or sweet, rolled and served hot or cold. They can be made in advance and reheated – perfect for entertaining.
Some roulades, such as smoked mackerel, smoked salmon or prawn, can be served as hors d’oeuvre or for any course of a meal, or try a Chocolate Roll with coffee.
Method for soufflé-type mixture:
Preparing the tin: Choose a Swiss roll tin 25 × 38 × 2.5 cm (10 × 15 × 1 in). Oil the tin lightly and line with greaseproof paper, leaving an overhang of 5 cm (2 in) at each end. Grease the paper, dust lightly with sifted flour and shake out excess. Add mixture and spread evenly.
To test when cooked: The top should be golden-brown and firm, and a fine skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.
Turning out: Have ready a slightly dampened, clean tea-towel, covered with greaseproof paper. Quickly turn out the roulade from the tin onto the lined tea-towel. Immediately and carefully peel the paper lining from the roulade, trim the crusty ends, fill and roll up, or roll up and allow to cool before filling, according to your recipe.
Filling and rolling: Spread the prepared filling quickly and lightly over the surface. Immediately roll up as for a Swiss roll, using the tea-towel as a guide. Grasp the corners of the edge nearest you, lift the paper and cloth and the roulade will fall into a roll as you lift and remove them. Roll onto a serving platter, seam side down, and serve hot or cold as directed.
MUSHROOM ROULADE
Serve this superb roulade as a first course at a dinner party. It can be made ahead and reheated: make the roulade, cool and store in refrigerator covered loosely with oiled foil. Remove from refrigerator 1½ hours before serving time and heat in a preheated slow oven (150°C/300°F) for 30 minutes, removing foil for last 5 minutes.
90 g (3 oz) butter
½ cup flour
2 cups warm milk
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon sour cream
4 eggs, separated
parsley sprigs to garnish
Mushroom filling
125 g (4 oz) butter
250 (8 oz) button mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons flour
1 cup warm milk
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ cup cream
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Prepare and line a Swiss roll tin 25 × 38 × 2.5 cm (10 × 15 × 1 in) (see Preparing the Tin). Melt butter in a heavy saucepan, blend in flour over low heat and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat, cool a little and add warm milk all at once, stirring until smooth. Return to moderate heat and stir constantly until boiling. Remove from heat, cool a little and add warm milk all at once, stirring until smooth. Return to moderate heat and stir constantly until boiling. Remove from heat and stir in salt, pepper, brandy and sour cream. Whisk in egg yolks one at a time. Beat egg whites until they stand in soft peaks, and fold into egg yolk mixture. Spoon into prepared tin, spreading evenly with a spatula. Bake in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F) for about 40 minutes or until golden on top.
To make mushroom filling, melt half the butter in a saucepan, add mushrooms and sauté quickly. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Remove mushrooms with a slotted spoon. Melt remaining butter in same saucepan, stir in flour and cook over low heat for 1 minute. Remove from heat, cool a little, then add milk all at once and stir, off heat, until smooth. Return to medium heat and stir constantly until boiling. Stir in salt, pepper, nutmeg, cream and parsley. Reserve 6–8 mushroom slices for garnish, and add remainder to saucepan. Cover pan and keep warm over gentle heat until roulade is ready. Turn out roulade. Gently peel off lining paper and trim crusty edges. Spread with hot filling. Roll up (see Filling and Rolling) and transfer to an ovenproof platter. Reheat in a moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 5–10 minutes. Garnish with reserved mushroom slices and parsley sprigs. Serve sliced. Serves 6.
RED CAVIAR ROULADE
This light, tender roll is not difficult to make for a party because, unlike the classic high soufflé, a roulade can be prepared in advance.
90 g (3 oz) butter
½ cup flour
2 cups warm milk
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon sour cream
4 eggs, separated
Caviar filling
125 g (4 oz) Philadelphia cream cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons sour cream
freshly ground black pepper
½ cup cream, whipped
1 × 100 g jar red caviar or salmon roe
Garnish
sour cream
caviar
Prepare and line a Swiss roll tin 25 × 38 × 2.5 cm (10 × 15 × 1 in) (see Preparing the Tin). Melt butter in a large heavy saucepan, blend in flour over low heat and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Remove from heat, cool a little, and add milk all at once. Stir until smooth, then return to a medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce boils. Remove from heat and stir in salt, pepper, brandy and sour cream. Whisk in egg yolks, one at a time. Beat egg whites until they stand in soft peaks, and fold into yolk mixture. Spoon into prepared tin, spreading evenly with spatula. Bake in a preheated moderately slow oven (160°C/325°F) for 30–35 minutes or until golden on top. Turn out roulade (see Turning Out) and allow to cool.
To make caviar filling, soften cream cheese and beat in lemon juice and sour cream. Season with pepper and fold in whipped cream and caviar. At serving time, unroll roulade, spread with filling and roll up again (see Filling and Rolling). Serve cut in thin slices, each garnished with a spoonful of sour cream and a teaspoon of caviar. Serves 8.
STUFFED BEEF ROLL
500–750 g (1–1½ lb) topside, or round steak, cut as 1 slice about 1 cm (½ in) thick
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 thin slices cooked ham
3 small hard-boiled eggs
30 g (1 oz) butter
2 tablespoons oil
2 leaves fresh sage, or ½ teaspoon dried
½ cup dry white wine
Flatten meat using a meat mallet or broad side of a cleaver. Season well with salt and pepper. Place ham slices, slightly overlapping, down centre, then top with whole hard-boiled eggs. Carefully roll up meat, tucking in ends. Tie securely with white string. Heat butter and oil in a flameproof casserole dish just large enough to hold roll without leaving too much space around it. Brown roll all over. Add sage and wine. Cover and simmer very gently for 2–2½ hours or until meat is tender. Remove string. Serve sliced with pan juices poured over. Accompany beef roll with a selection of vegetables. Serves 6.
NOTE: This dish is also good cold, in which case the sauce should be poured off and left to cool separately so that the fat can be taken off the top when it solidifies.
HAM-STUFFED BEEF ROLLS
6 thin slices topside or round steak, halved to give 12 pieces
12 thin slices cooked ham
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
1 small carrot, finely chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup flour
60 g (2 oz) ham or bacon fat, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons oil
½ cup dry white wine
2 × 425 g cans tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 whole clove
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Flatten steak pieces as thinly as possible. Top each with a slice of ham and sprinkle with half the celery and the carrot. Season with salt and pepper. Roll up slices and tie each little roll with white string. Dust lightly with flour. Combine ham or bacon fat, remaining celery, garlic and onion. Heat oil in a flameproof casserole wide enough to take rolls in one layer. Add chopped mixture and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add beef rolls and brown quickly on all sides. Pour in wine and stir over medium heat until it has almost evaporated. Add tomatoes, bay leaf, clove, salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer over very gentle heat for about 1 hour or until beef is tender. Stir occasionally. Transfer rolls to a heated serving platter, remove string and pour sauce over through a sieve. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serves 6.
POLPETTONE (MEAT ROLL)
An excellent Italian dish, equally good hot or cold.
1 kg (2 lb) very finely minced veal, beef or pork, or a combination of these
4 eggs
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, minced
½ cup finely chopped parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
60 g (2 oz) cooked ham, chopped
60 g (2 oz) Gruyère cheese, grated
about ½ cup water or chicken stock
Combine meat, eggs, garlic, onion, parsley, salt and pepper and mix well. Knead mixture until it adheres well together. Flour your hands and a board. Turn mixture onto board and knead again, then flatten mixture into a rectangle. Put hard-boiled eggs, ham and cheese down centre, then carefully roll meat into a large sausage shape. Place on a well-greased baking dish and cover roll with greased greaseproof paper. Cook in a preheated slow oven (150°C/ 300°F) for about 1½ hours. Add a little stock or water during cooking if necessary to keep roll moist. Serves 8.
SMOKED MACKEREL ROULADES
1 × 500 g (1 lb) smoked mackerel, skinned and boned
½ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons Horseradish Cream
juice ½ lemon
freshly ground black pepper
12 very thin slices buttered brown bread, crusts removed
watercress to garnish
Flake mackerel and mix with sour cream, horseradish cream, lemon juice and pepper. Cover and chill for several hours. Spread mixture thinly over bread slices and roll up firmly, securing with toothpicks if necessary. Cover and chill for 1 hour before serving, garnished with watercress sprigs. Makes 12.
VARIATIONS
SMOKED SALMON ROULADES: Use 125 g (4 oz) chopped smoked salmon instead of the mackerel and mix with ½ cup sour cream, lemon juice and black pepper. Add some finely chopped white pickled onions, if liked. Proceed as above.
PRAWN ROULADES: Combine 250 g (8 oz) cooked prawns, shelled, de-veined and chopped, 4 tablespoons thick cream or Mayonnaise, 2 drops Tabasco sauce, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and freshly ground black pepper. Proceed as above.
WALNUT ROLL
3 tablespoons fine cake crumbs or fresh breadcrumbs
3 eggs, separated
½ cup caster sugar
½ cup ground walnuts
¼ cup self-raising flour
1 cup cream, whipped and sweetened with 1 tablespoon icing sugar
extra sifted icing sugar
Butter a Swiss roll tin 25 × 38 × 2.5 cm (10 × 15 × 1 in) and line with buttered greaseproof paper allowing 5 cm (2 in) overhang at each end. Sprinkle with the cake crumbs or breadcrumbs, coating surface evenly, then tip out any excess crumbs. Beat egg whites until holding stiff peaks. Beat yolks with caster sugar until mixture is light and creamy. Gently fold walnuts and sifted flour alternately with stiffly beaten egg whites into yolk mixture. Spread in prepared tin. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for about 15 minutes or until cake springs back when centre is lightly touched. Turn out onto a clean tea-towel sprinkled with caster sugar, remove paper, trim cake and roll up (see Filling and Rolling), and allow to cool. Unroll the cake, spread with sweetened whipped cream and re-roll. Roll onto a serving platter seam side down and dust lightly with icing sugar. Serve sliced. Serves 8.
RUM
This distilled spirit is one of the products of the sugar industry. In the kitchen its use is mainly in desserts, although it may also be used in meat dishes, especially those of Caribbean origin or inspiration.
Light rum – whether clear or caramel-coloured – is preferred in cooking. Overproof (OP) rum has a much higher alcohol content, and is more expensive, but for Christmas cakes, for example, a little OP rum could be added to the prepared fruits.
In French cooking, rum is a very common ingredient of desserts. A rum syrup may be brushed over a sponge before filling; babas and savarins are steeped in rum syrup. Fruits, such as pineapples, bananas and apples, take nicely to a touch of rum, and rum can alternate with brandy in flambé desserts. A sweet soufflé omelette may be flavoured with rum, or a rum sabayon spooned over carefully poached fruits.
Chocolate is one of the best partners to rum, whether as a chocolate cake with a rum cream filling, chocolate truffles with a hint of rum, or rich rum balls to serve with after-dinner coffee.
BAKED STUFFED APPLES
6 large cooking apples, peeled and cored
½ cup chopped glacé fruit (apricots, cherries, pineapple)
¼ cup sultanas
¼ cup rum
1 tablespoon sugar
30 g (1 oz) butter
Extract some of the inside of the apples and chop. Mix with glacé fruit, sultanas and rum. Fill apples with this mixture, sprinkle with sugar and dot with butter. Bake in a preheated hot oven (200°C/400°F) for about 35 minutes, sprinkling with water from time to time. Serve warm, with cream if desired. Serves 6.
RICOTTA CHEESE WITH SUGAR AND RUM
500 g (1 lb) ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons sour cream
½ cup caster sugar
4 eggs, separated
6 tablespoons rum
Almond Macaroons to serve
Beat ricotta with sour cream, then mix in sugar. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating until mixture is light and creamy, then stir in rum. Beat egg whites until stiff, and fold into mixture. Spoon into 6 individual glasses. Chill for several hours before serving accompanied by almond macaroons. Serves 6.
BANANAS WITH RUM
6 bananas
½ cup rum
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
60 g (2 oz) butter
3 tablespoons redcurrant jelly
Macerate bananas in rum for 1 hour. Drain, reserving rum. Roll bananas in breadcrumbs and fry in butter until golden. Meanwhile, heat rum with redcurrant jelly, stirring until thick and smooth. Spoon sauce over bananas to serve. Serves 4.
RUM BALLS
1 cup stale cake crumbs
4 tablespoons caster sugar
1 cup ground almonds
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2–3 tablespoons rum
grated chocolate or chocolate sprinkles
Combine cake crumbs, sugar, ground almonds, cocoa and enough rum to bind mixture together. Form into small balls, roll in grated chocolate or chocolate sprinkles and place in tiny paper cases. Serve with after-dinner coffee. Makes about 50 × 2.5 cm (1 in) balls.
RUM MOUSSE
3 egg yolks
½ cup caster sugar
2 teaspoons powdered gelatine
¼ cup water
1 cup cream
½ cup rum
grated chocolate
Beat egg yolks with sugar until light. Sprinkle gelatine over water and leave to soften, then dissolve over hot water. Add dissolved gelatine to the egg mixture and beat well. Whip cream until stiff and fold into egg mixture. Stir in rum. Pour into serving bowl and sprinkle with grated chocolate. Chill thoroughly before serving, with additional whipped cream if desired. Serves 6.
RUM BABA
See Baba (au Rhum).
RUSKS
Pieces of bread which have been dried out in the oven, a process which produces a good nutty flavour as well as a crisp texture, transforming stale bread into something quite desirable. One of Italy’s favourite nibbles, remembered with nostalgia by many travellers, consists of oven-dried slices of an especially made, slightly sweet, anise-flavoured bread. Another type of rusk, produced commercially for teething babies, is made by slowly baking fingers of bread dough until they are hard; grissini, the thin, crisp Italian-style bread sticks, are made in the same way.
To bake: Cut sliced, crustless bread of any kind into fingers or other shapes such as small triangles, rounds or squares. Arrange in one layer on an un-greased baking tray and place in a preheated slow oven (150°C/300°F) until they are completely dried, crisp and several shades deeper in colour. The time needed will depend on the type and thickness of the bread. Check frequently, turning the pieces over when the upper side is crisp and rearranging them as necessary to colour evenly. Do not allow to become too dark or the flavour will be spoiled. Rusks may curl as they dry; if you want to keep them flat, put a wire rack upside-down on top of them. Cool on a rack and store in an airtight container.
Use, cold or slightly rewarmed, within a week or two; after that, the rusks will gradually get a ‘tired’ flavour.
You can use rusks in most of the ways you would use bread or toast. Serve them buttered or with peanut butter or honey or as snacks for hungry children. Or serve with soup, savoury mince or any other dish with a sauce or gravy; use to scoop up a dip, or as bases for hot or cold canapés. Sprinkle rusks generously with cheese, put 2 or 3 in the bottom of individual soup bowls and ladle hot onion soup over.
PANE D’ANISE (ANISE BREAD)
These nutty rusks, gently anise-flavoured, are traditionally dipped into a glass of red or rosé wine. They’re lovely with coffee, too. Serve plain, buttered or with cheese.
125 g (4 oz) butter
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons Pernod
1 teaspoon crushed aniseed
1½ tablespoons brandy or whisky
3 eggs
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped almonds, walnuts or pecans
Cream butter with sugar until fluffy, then beat in Pernod, aniseed and brandy or whisky followed by eggs, one at a time. Sift flour and baking powder together and fold into egg mixture with nuts. Scrape mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap, wrap and chill for 2 hours. Divide dough into 4 and keep each piece chilled until ready to shape (the dough will be sticky). Put one piece of dough onto one-half of a well-greased baking tray and, with wet hands, shape it into a long loaf 5 cm (2 in) wide and 1 cm (½ in) thick. Form remaining pieces of dough into loaves in same manner, putting 2 loaves on each tray. Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven (190°C/375°F) for 20 minutes or until pale gold. Cool on trays. Cut loaves diagonally into 2 cm (¾ in) slices. Arrange slices, flat and close together, in one layer on baking trays. Toast in a preheated moderately hot oven (190°C/375°F) for about 10 minutes until they are dry. Cool on wire racks and store in airtight container. Makes about 48.
CRISP WHOLEMEAL STICKS
Serve these with drinks or as a snack at any time. They’re good for a packed lunch, too – add cheese, radishes and celery sticks.
6 × 2 cm (¾ in) thick slices day-old wholemeal bread, crusts removed
1 clove garlic, crushed
1½ tablespoons oil
salt
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
Cut each slice of bread into 4 fingers. Mix garlic into oil, brush over bread sticks and sprinkle lightly on all sides with salt, then poppy seeds. Arrange, well apart, on baking trays. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 20–25 minutes, turning once or twice to brown evenly. Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container. Serve cold or warm. Makes 24.
VARIATION
HERBED WHOLEMEAL STICKS: Omit garlic and use melted butter instead of oil. Mix butter with ½ spring onion, very finely chopped, and 1 tablespoon chopped, fresh, mixed herbs, or 1 teaspoon dried herbs chopped with 1 tablespoon parsley. Sprinkle with sesame seeds instead of poppy seeds.
CRISP BREAD SHELLS
A variation on the rusk theme, these easy and economical little shells can be filled with any hot savoury mixture to serve as appetisers and are an alternative to Croustades.
Use sliced fresh white or wholemeal bread, shaping it into tiny bite-size cases.
sliced fresh bread, crusts removed
oil or melted butter
To shape shells, brush one side of each bread slice with oil or melted butter. Press, oiled side down, into patty pans. Press well down to fit pans, and corners of bread will sit up to form a pretty shell. Bake in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F) for 15–20 minutes or until crisp and golden. Remove from pans, cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container.
When appetisers are required, fill shells with any hot, savoury mixture (see suggestions in Hors d’Oeuvre: Hot Filled Hors d’Oeuvre). Place on baking trays and heat through for 10–15 minutes in a preheated moderate oven (180°C/350°F).
RUTABAGA
See Turnip.