A fresh slant on main meat dishes

Press, 14 September 1981, Page 12

A fresh slant on main meat dishes

Main meat dishes, all of them with a difference; have been selected this week. They are shoulder of mutton or hogget cooked Italianstyle and similar to a pot roast; a steak casserole with a flavour that is unusual; a rather novel method of cooking lambs’ fry as a casserole; and a southern American chicken dish. I hope that from among them you will find one that pleases. Mutton or hogget, Italian style I don’t claim this to be a genuine Italian recipe, but it is in the Italian style of flavouring and I find the result very enjoyable. It is most suitable lor mutton as the method of cooking is tenderising and the additional flavour of the mutton is an advantage. For four or five servings you need: Shoulder of mutton or hogget or lamb 1 level teaspoon salt ■a teaspoon cinnamon (optional) ’z teaspoon cayenne pepper 425 g can peeled tomatoes 4 tablespoons vinegar ‘z cup water Sprig of rosemary or "z teaspoon dried Method: Combine salt, cinnamon and cayenne and rub this well into the meat on all sides. Place in roasting pan. Mix tomatoes and liquid with the water and vinegar and pour over meat; add

COOKING with

Celia Timms

rosemary and cover dish with lid or foil. Bake at 200 C for an hour then reduce heat to 180 C and continue cooking until meat is very tender, basting frequently with the tomato mixture in pan. When cooked, a richly flavoured brown gravy will surround the joint and this can be thinned with additional water, or thickened with a little flour, according to taste. Serve in a sauceboat with meat. Steak and prune casserole This dish might not have universal appeal as there are those who do not enjoy meat cooked with fruit. The combination of prunes and orange juice gives it an unusual and for me, a most enjoyable flavour — in fact, it is one of my favourite steak casseroleb. For four persons you need: 450 g blade steak 1 cup water I cup fresh orange juice 24 dessert prunes 1 rasher bacon 125 g ox kidney (or lamb’s) 3 tablespoons flour Salt and pepper Method: Remove any fat from steak and cut in fairly large pieces; remove all trace of core from kidney and slice thinly; remove rind from bacon and cut to about the same size pieces as the kidney. Mix flour with, seasoning of salt and pepper and toss the cut up meat in this — in a plastic bag is the easiest method. Turn into a lightly greased casserole and add the prunes (without

stones). Pour over combined water and orange juice and stir contents. Cover dish tightly and cook at 160 C for 2 1 ™ to 3 hours or until meat is tender. Taste for seasoning before serving. Baked lamb’s fry and bacon rolls This recipe was evolved in an attempt to make liver or fry more palatable for those people who do not enjoy the .flavour of this meat. Pieces 'of liver are wrapped in bacon and cooked with onion and tomato in a rich gravy so that the liver flavour is not dominant. For four or more servings you need: Lamb’s fry 4 rashers lean bacon 2 tablespoons flour Salt and pepper; ‘i teaspoon dry mustard Oil or bacon fat 1 large, onion 2 firm ripe tomatoes 1 cup stock or beef stock cube dissolved in hot water Dash of soy sauce Method: Soak fry for half an hour in salted water; remove skin and membranes. Cut in small long pieces . suitable for rolling in pieces of bacon; dry on paper towel. Remove rind from bacon and cut into pieces large enough to enclose pieces of liver; secure with toothpicks or thread. Toss in flour mixed with salt, pepper and .mustard. covering each roll well in this mixture. Brown on all sides in hot oil or fat; remove to casserole. Add chopped onion to pan and brown lightly. Drain off fat and add skinned and chopped tomatoes and the stock. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and a dash of soy sauce;. pour over rolls and bake at 180 C for one and a half hours. Lift rolls on to hot serving • dish and pour over gravy which can be thickened with a z littld flour if necessary or desired.

Country captain In the deep South of America this traditional dish, which is truly Southern, has an interesting legend about its origin. Georgians claim that a sea captain gave his Savannah hosts the East Indian recipe in gratitude for their hospitality to him, and that the name was originally- “ Curried Capon” which over the years became distorted to “Country Captain” — but it is a good recipe, and many Southern Americans must be grateful to the captain. To serve four you will need: A chicken of about I.skg 2 tablespoons bacon fat 2 tablespoons butter 1 large onion 1 green pepper 2 cloves garlic l‘/z teaspoons curry powder, or more according to taste 425 g can peeled tomatoes IVz teaspoons salt; 1 teaspoon white pepper l’z teaspoons dried thyme; 2 tablespoons currants ‘.4 cup toasted sliced almonds; l’z tablespoons chopped parsley Method: Chicken pieces can be used for this dish or joint the whole chicken reserving back, neck, wingtips etcetera for soup or stock. Brown pieces well in the bacon fat and set aside. Add butter to pan making sure that the fat has not burned, if it has, rinse pan before adding butter. Saute thinly sliced onion, the pepper cut into strips and add the curry powder. Cook for a minute or two, stirring. Add tomatoes and juice, salt, pepper and thyme and simmer, uncovered for 10- minutes. Combine with the chicken in a casserole, cover and put into a 130 C oven for about 30 minutes taking care not to over cook. During the last ten minutes of cooking add the well rinsed currants. Just before serving sprinkle over almonds- and parsley and serve with freshly boiled rice and chutrtev.