Tag: red wine

Vefa Alexiadou’s Pork Chops in Wine

.Reading time 1 minute.

Serves: 4

Another excellent and simple Greek dinner from Vefa Alexiadou’s ‘Greek Cookbook’.

We were after a quick Monday dinner and this totally hit the spot.

Alongside a green salad and some pan-fried potatoes with oregano and feta, this is how you celebrate beating Monday.

Plus now that you have an open bottle of red or white wine, well, you know…

Ingredients

4 large pork chops, 1.5cm thick
Salt and pepper
4 tbsp olive oil
2/3 c dry white or red wine
4 lemon wedges
Fried potatoes and greens, to serve

Method

  1. Season the chops with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a skillet or frying pan large enough to hold the chops in a single layer. Add the chops and cook over medium heat for 2 – 3 minutes on each side, until lightly browned.
  2. Pour in half the wine and cook for a few minutes until the alcohol has evaporated, then pour in 5 tbsp water, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until cooked through.
  3. Increase the heat and let the chops sizzle. Pour in the remaining wine and cook for 1 – 2 minutes, until the alcohol has evaporated. Serve immediately on warmed plates with 1 – 2 tbsp of the wine sauce, garnished with lemon wedges and accompanied by fried potatoes and greens.

Claudia Roden’s Provençale Daube

.Reading time 3 minutes.

Serves: 6 – 8

Red wine. Beef juices. Garlic, Orange peel. Herbs and spices. And hours of time in the oven or on the stove.

Nothing to assume this isn’t a marvellous winter lunch party dish.

Served with a Parmesan polenta, braised mushrooms and green beans, this was comfort dialed up.

We lit the fire pit, turned up the music and wow, didn’t this make for a great afternoon.

Skip breakfast and thank me later.

Ingredients

4 tbsp olive oil
1.5kg beef, cut into large pieces*
2 large onions, each cut into 6 wedges
125gm unsmoked pancetta or diced streaky bacon
5 garlic cloves, peeled
500gm carrots, cut into 1.5cm slices
1 bottle of red wine
2 bay leaves
4 – 5 thyme sprigs
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground allspice
3 – 4 cloves
2 – 3 tsp sugar
Strips of peel from 1 orange
3 – 4 tbsp cognac or grappa (optional)
Salt and black pepper

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pan or casserole over medium heat, put in the meat and cook, turning the pieces to brown all over.
  2. Remove the meat to a plate and put the onions and pancetta into the pan. Sauté for about 6 minutes, stirring until the onions are lightly coloured and the pancetta releases its fat. Add the garlic for the last minute or so, then the carrots, and season.
  3. Return the meat to the pan, pour in the wine and add the herbs and spices, sugar and orange peel. Add water to cover, bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to low, cover the pan, and simmer very gently for 2 – 3 hours, keeping the meat submerged, until it is so tender, you can cut it with a spoon. Towards the end of the cooking time, remove the orange peel and if you like, add the cognac.**

* My brother-in-law Sean really dropped in a cracking rump cap a week ago. He is a master of the BBQ and we share notes, ideas and recipes. We even once had a reverse-sear vs sous vide rib eye bone in challenge (he won ever so slightly, though a win is a win). Anyway, he would never have done a rump cap in a 6 hour braise, though my reading was that it was a perfect cut and indeed… it was.

If you can get a rump cap, trim it and this will be perfect.

** I did the main cooking time in the oven at 160c. After 2 hours, I removed the lid and cooked down the liquid for another hour or two. Would do it again.

Spaghetti and Meatballs with Tomato Sauce

.Reading time 3 minutes.

Serves: 6 – 8

I originally found this recipe in the New York Times and dialled it up over the weekend as a meal for the three boys: doubled the quantity of meatballs, added fresh tomato to the sauce as well as a cup of red wine and a handful of oregano.

It smashed it out of the park.

The sort of dinner kids – and adults – die for on a Saturday night before a movie, popcorn and ice cream.

The meatballs are the cracker here, with handfuls of Parmesan, extra breadcrumbs, eggs and parsley, additions I added and have reflected below.

Slow cook the tomato sauce, throw in the browned meatballs and boom.

This is definitely worth coming home to.

Ingredients

Salt
Freshly ground pepper
4 tbsp olive oil
1 kg beef mince
3 cups, grated Parmesan
1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
1 breadcrumbs
3 eggs
1 large onion
3 garlic cloves
3 cans crushed tomatoes
2 tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped
3 bay leaves
1 cup red wine
Handful of fresh oregano leaves
500gm spaghetti

Method

  1. Heat the 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Sauté the onions for 10 minutes until starting to golden; mince the garlic and add, cooking for a few minutes.
  2. Add the tomatoes, bay leaves and the cup of red wine. Bring to the boil and then slowly simmer until the sauce is thickened; an hour or so.
  3. Meanwhile, combine the mince, 2 cups of the Parmesan (setting aside the remaining cup), the parsley, breadcrumbs, eggs and a good pinch or two of salt and freshly cracked pepper. Gently mix until it is combined.
  4. Shape the meatballs so that they are golfball in size.
  5. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in a heavy skillet over a medium heat. Add the meatballs, cooking them on all sides until browned.
  6. Remove the bay leaves from the sauce and add the oregano leaves. Season well with salt and pepper.
  7. Add the meatballs, ensuring that they do not break up. Simmer on a low heat.
  8. Heat water in large sauce pan until boiling and cook the spaghetti until cooked through.
  9. Add the spaghetti to the sauce and meatballs, combining gently.
  10. Serve with plenty of Parmesan cheese on top.

Greek Butterflied Leg of Lamb

.Reading time 1 minute.

Serves: 6 – 8

My mother used to serve us this leg of lamb – at least three times a year – BBQed by my father. The smell of it cooking is a smell I’ve never gotten over.

I’ve cooked it plenty of time too.

Nat loves it and the boys love it.

Max turns one this weekend and we’re having a picnic to celebrate.

A picnic with crusty, buttered rolls, plenty of rocket and egg mayo… and a slices of warm, slow-rotisseried leg of lamb.

Good Lord.

Happy first birthday or whatever you cook this super simple, always amazing lamb for.

Ingredients

Leg of lamb, butterflied
1 cup red wine
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp salt
Pepper
1 tsp oregano

Method

  1. Combine all the ingredients except the lamb and pour into a large ziplock bag.
  2. Add the lamb and marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
  3. BBQ, basting liberally with the marinade until cooked medium.