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Posts Tagged ‘Spanish’

Catalan-style turkey

Posted in Food, Spanish, tagged , , , , , on 18 March 2012| 1 Comment »

We, like most people, usually only eat turkey at Christmas. This is silly as it’s a really tasty meat (much superior to chicken in our opinion) and is also really cheap. We picked some turkey legs up in a supermarket for just a few euros. You need to soak the fruit for 12 hours before you cook the turkey.

Catalan-style turkey – to serve 2

  • 30g raisins
  • 40g pitted prunes
  • 6 tbsp vino rancio or dry sherry
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 turkey drumsticks
  • 1½ tbsp olive oil
  • 100g chopped tomatoes (we used some from a tin)
  • 240ml water
  • 2 tsp pine nuts

Put the raisins and prunes in a bowl and pour over the vino rancio or sherry. Leave to soak for 12 hours.

Thinly slice the onion and season the turkey legs with salt and pepper.

Heat a wide pan over a medium heat and add most of the oil. Brown the turkey for about 10 minutes or until its golden all over, then add the onions. Fry the onions and turkey for another 10 minutes, stirring often, until the onions caramelise and turn dark golden brown.

Drain the vino rancio or sherry from the fruit and add to the pan. When most of it has evaporated, add the chopped tomato and cook until everything is well caramelised.

Pour in the water, turn down the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add the raisins and prunes. Cover the pan and leave to cook for another hour, or until the turkey is really tender and the sauce is thick and delicious.

Meanwhile, heat the rest of the oil in a frying pan and cook the pine nuts over a low heat until golden.

Lift the turkey onto a serving dish, cover with the sauce and sprinkle with the pine nuts.

Wine Suggestion: Stick to the Spanish theme here we think. You could always have another glass of Sherry or try a Spanish red. We had a fantastic wine called Bráo made by a producer called Acustic from Montsant (which is beside the better known region of Priorat), just south of Barcelona. Pick one up in Bubble Brothers while they still have some left!!

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Rice with Monkfish, Saffron and Red Peppers

Posted in Fish, Food, Spanish, tagged , , , , , , on 10 December 2011| 2 Comments »

We have loved every recipe we have tried from Rick Stein’s Spain. This is a really nice rice dish from Valencia which we’ll definitely be doing again. It tastes similar to paella but requires fewer ingredients. Delicious and easy!

Arroz de rape, azafrán y pimientos – to serve 6

  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 75g finely chopped shallot
  • 1 small head of garlic, cloves separated, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1/2 tsp pimentón dulce (smoked sweet Spanish paprika), plus a bit extra for seasoning the fish
  • a pinch of crushed dried chillies
  • 200g vine ripened beef tomatoes, halved
  • 1 litre Fish stock
  • 1/2 tsp loosely packed saffron strands
  • 400g short-grained paella rice such as Calasperra
  • 1 large roasted red pepper or 3 jarred pimientos
  • 500g monkfish fillet, trimmed of membrane then cut across into 1 cm thick slices
  • Aioli to serve

Grate the tomatoes using a coarse grater. You will be left with the skin which you can discard. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a 28-30cm cazuela or shallow flameproof casserole, add the shallot and fry gently for 10 minutes or until soft but not browned. Add the garlic, pimentón and chillies and fry for another 2 minutes, then stir in the tomatoes and cook until they have broken down into a sauce.

Stir in the fish stock, saffron and 1 1/2 tsp of salt and bring to the boil, stirring. Sprinkle in the rice, stir once, then leave to simmer vigorously over a medium-high heat for 6 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the roasted red pepper or jarred pimientos into 1cm-wide strips, removing any skin and seeds. Sprinkle over the top of the rice and shake briefly so they sink in a bit. Lower the heat and leave to simmer gently for another 12 minutes. At the end the liquid should all have absorbed and the rice should have small holes on the surface.

Before the rice is ready, pat the monkfish pieces dry and season well with salt and a little pimentón. Heat 2tbsp olil in a non-stick frying pan. Add the monkfish slices in batches and fry over a high heat for 1 minute on each side until very lightly coloured and almost cooked.

Lay the fish on top of the rice, turn off the heat and cover with a lid or clean cloth. Leave to rest for 5 minutes to allow the monkfish to finish cooking through.

Serve with alioli.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Spain, BBC Books, 2011)

Wine Suggestion: The best match would be something with a the joy of youth and fruitiness like a joven (young) Tempranillo or a light Garnacha.

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It’s beginning to feel a lot like Autumn

Posted in Food, Oxtail, Spanish, Wine of the Week, tagged , , , , , , , on 5 October 2011| 4 Comments »

Perfect as the nights close in and the seasons change. This is our second recipe from Rick Stein’s Spain and another success. It takes two days to make but is so straightforward that it’s not a chore at all. As we had torrential rain in Dublin on Saturday and Sunday we could not have picked a better weekend to try it!

P.S. you have to like sucking on bones!

Oxtail and Red Wine Stew from Pamplona – Rabo de torro de Pamplona – to serve 6

  • 2kg oxtail, cut across into 5cm thick pieces
  • 50g plain flour, seasoned
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 200g carrots, sliced
  • 175g leeks, thickly sliced
  • 4 tbsp brandy
  • 500ml red wine
  • 500ml dark beef stock
  • A bouquet garni of bay leaves, parsley stalks and thyme sprigs
  • 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

Trim the excess fat off your oxtail pieces and season well with salt and pepper. Toss in the seasoned flour and knock off the excess, keep the remaining seasoned flour. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large flameproof casserole over a medium-high heat, add the oxtail pieces in batches and fry until well browned. Lift them onto a plate as they are done.

Add the rest of the oil to the pan with the garlic, onions, carrots and leeks and fry for about 10 minutes or until browned.

Pour the brandy over and set alight. Once the flames have died stir in the remaining seasoned flour, then gradually stir in the red wine and bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer for 3 minutes, then stir in the oxtail, the beef stock, bouquet garni, 1/2 tsp of salt and lots of black pepper. Cover and simmer gently for 2 1/2 – 3 hours, until the oxtail is tender but not falling apart yet. Remove from the heat, leave to cool, then cover and chilli overnight.

The next day, scrape the layer of fat off the top of the casserole. Gently reheat, then lift the oxtail into a bowl. Pass the sauce through a fine seive into a clean pan, pressing out as much sauce as you can with the back of a ladle. Discard what’s left in the sieve. Return to the heat and simmer vigorously for 5-10 minutes until the sauce is reduced and is well flavoured. Return the oxtail, season and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through. Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Nice with steamed or mashed potatoes and broccoli.

Wine Suggestion: Pick a medium bodied red wine based on Tempranillo and maybe with a dollop of Garnacha to give it extra juiciness. We drank a Sierra Cantabria Cuvée which had some good age in the bottle and 18 months in oak which softens and rounds the tannins. Anything heavier or more tannic will feel a bit too much with this rich dish.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Spain, BBC Books, 2011)

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Rick Stein’s Spain: Beef in White Wine

Posted in Beef, Food, Spanish, tagged , , , , , , on 14 September 2011| 2 Comments »

This is the  first recipe we’ve tried from Rick Stein’s Spain. Unusually made with white wine, this beef stew is a bit lighter but still rich and full-flavoured. Leftovers are particularly good the next day too. It takes a while to cook but is really easy and there are very few ingredients needed.

Rick says the Spanish serve this with patatas fritas but in an attempt to be not quite so unhealthy we did some roasted slices of potato instead.

Beef in White Wine, Oviedo-Style (Carne gobernada) – to serve 6

  • 1.5kg chuck or blade steak
  • 7 tbsp olive oil
  • 600g onions, chopped into 1cm pieces
  • 10 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 6 fresh bay leaves
  • 300ml dry white wine
  • 300g small carrots, cut into 5 cm lengths
  • salt and pepper
Trim the meat and cut it into bite-sized chunks. Season well with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large flameproof casserole and fry the beef in batches until nicely browned. Set aside on a plate.

Add the rest of the olive oil and the onions, garlic, bay leaves and a half tsp of salt to the pan, then cook very gently for about 30 minutes or until the onions are soft and golden.

Add the beef back to the pan, add the wine, bring to the boil and season with another half tsp of salt and some pepper. Cover and leave to simmer gently for 2 hours, stir it now and again.

Add the carrots, cover again and cook for another 30 minutes or until the wine and meat juice have combined to make a rich sauce and meet is really tender. Adjust the seasoning and serve with some potatoes.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Spain, published by

Wine Suggestion: Despite being a stew this dish is not heavy, so avoid big, full-fruited wines when trying to pick something to match this. We went around to O’Briens to find a medium bodied Spanish with not too much oak and really struggled as nothing really matched this brief. Our choice in the end was a Sierra Cantabria Crianza from Rioja which went well, but it would have been better with a Mencia from Bierzo or even a Doa from Portugal where the acidity is naturally a little higher and the use of oak normally much less dominant. You could also search for a joven or roble made from tempranillo and/or garnacha where the  wine is younger, fruitier and made for early drinking – just like the Spanish like it!

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Multi-vegetable paella

Posted in Food, Uncategorized, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 5 July 2011| 5 Comments »

Another recipe from our favourite veggie cookbook, Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi. This is easy-peasy with fantastic results. A long list of ingredients but you may have some of the spices in the cupboard already and the vegetables are all in season so you should be able to pick them up for relatively cheap. We thought the olives weren’t really necessary so if you don’t have any you could leave them out.

Multi-veg paella – to serve 2 generously (but you’ll manage it)

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • half a Spanish onion, finely chopped
  • 1 small red and 1 small yellow pepper, cut into strips
  • half a fennel bulb (we just used the whole fennel bulb), cut into strips
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 15og Calasparra rice (or another paella rice – or if you’re stuck long-grain rice will do)
  • 100ml good-quality medium Sherry (we never go by Lustau)
  • 1 tsp saffron threads
  • 450ml boiling vegetable stock
  • 200g shelled broad beans (fresh or frozen)
  • 12 mini plum tomatoes, halved
  • 5 small grilled artichokes in oil from a jar, drained
  • 15 pitted Kalamata olives, crushed or halved
  • 2 tbsp roughly chopped parsley
  • 4 lemon wedges

Heat the olive oil in a paella pan, or large shallow frying pan, and gently fry the onion for 5 minutes. Add the peppers and fennel and continue frying on a medium heat for about 6 minutes, or until soft and golden. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the bay leaves, paprika, turmeric and cayenne to the vegetables and stir well. Then add the rice and stir for 2 minutes before adding the sherry and saffron. Boil down for a minute, then add the stock and 1/2 tsp salt. Reduce the heat to the minimum and simmer very gently for about 20 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Don’t cover the pan and don’t stir it.

Meanwhile, pour plenty of boiling water over the broad beans in a bowl and leave for a minute, then drain and leave to cool down. Squeeze each bean gently to remove the skin.

Take the paella pan off the heat. Taste and add more salt if needed but still try not to stir it too much. Scatter the tomatoes, artichokes and broad beans over the rice and cover tightly with foil. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.

Take the foil off. Scatter the olives on top and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with the lemon wedges.

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Spanish chickpea, chorizo & spinach stew

Posted in Food, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on 11 June 2011| Leave a Comment »

Yes we do know that it’s June but our weather has been much more suitable for stew than salad in the last few weeks – it’s freezing! If we weren’t so stingy we’d turn the heating back on. As central heating in June is against our principles we’ve had to resort to stew instead. It’s kind of a summery stew as it’s full of spinach which is in season now and is also very good for you.

Hopefully we’ve convinced you that it’s ok to eat stew in June.

Spanish chickpea, chorizo & spinach stew – to feed 4

  • 3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, finely diced
  • 1 celery stick, finely diced
  • few sprigs of thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 200g chorizo, diced
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp hot smoked paprika (it’s more common to find the sweet (dulce) one here so just add a bit of chilli powder as well)
  • 2 tins of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1-2 tbsp Sherry vinegar
  • 400g spinach leaves, washed and drained
  1. Heat the oil in a big pan, then gently fry the onion for 3-4 minutes until it starts to soften. Stir in the carrot, celery, thyme and bay leaves. Season and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring now and then. Add the garlic, chorizo, cinnamon and smoked paprika. Fry gently until the vegetables soften and the chorizo starts to crisp up and release its oils.
  2. Stir in the chickpeas, vinegar and 150ml of water, then bring to a simmer for 1-2 minutes until the chickpeas have heated up. Add the spinach, then stir through the chickpeas until it wilts a bit – it will all fit in just be patient!
  3. Season and serve with some crusty bread to mop up juice.
Wine Suggestion: A spanish red would be good – try a Joven (young), fruity Rioja or  do like the Spanish and have a glass of Sherry.
(Original recipe by Thomasina Myers for BBC Good Food)

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Movida’s Adobo de Pollo

Posted in Barbecue, Chicken, Food, Sherry, tagged , , , , , , , on 25 February 2011| Leave a Comment »

Movida is the best Spanish restaurant in Melbourne. We were there last June and just got a table by the skin of our teeth as it is massively popular. It’s up a little cobbled street and if you didn’t know better you would walk right by which would be a big mistake as the tapas are fandabbydosey. They also have a crackin wine list and great staff – our idea of heaven. So book your table before you go!!

Jono’s sister Rachel sent us Movida Rustica for Christmas, the second cookbook to come out of this restaurant and we’ve been dying to get stuck into the recipes.

These barbecue kebabs have a delicious herby flavour with a massive oomph from the smoked paprika and they give off a fabulous sweet smoke when they’re cooking. So if you’re not going to Melbourne or indeed Spain any time soon we suggest you try these.

P.S. M&S are at last doing skinless, boneless chicken thighs but they are in the casserole section rather than the chicken section.

P.P.S. You’re supposed to marinade the chicken overnight but we forgot and just marinated for 1 hour and it was still great.

Adobo de Pollo (or Chicken skewers with paprika and oregano to us Irish folk) – makes 12 tapas

  • 1kg skinless chicken thigh meat, cut into 2.5 cm chunks
  • 2 tbsp smoked sweet paprika
  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds, roasted and ground
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp finely chopped parsley
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp saffron threads
  • 1 tsp fine sea salt
  • 125ml extra virgin olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients in a big bowl, cover with cling film and marinate overnight in the fridge (or for as long as you’ve got).

Thread the chicken onto 12 metal skewers.

Heat the barbecue to high and cook the skewers for 5 minutes, or until cooked through, turning often.

Let them cool slightly and serve – we had ours with some herby lemon couscous.

Wine suggestion: Do like the Spanish and drink Sherry – we had a glass of Lustau VORS (Very Old Rare Sherry) dry Oloroso which is exceptionally special but any dry Oloroso or Amontillado will serve you well. Chin chin!

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