What is the indirect method of cooking on a barbecue?
To do this you need to have a barbecue that has a lid.
Indirect cooking is done by creating a space in your barbecue where there is no direct heat.

In my diagram you can see that charcoal is heaped on either side leaving the center empty.
In the center place a disposable aluminium (roasting) tray beneath the grill bars, this will act as a drip tray to prevent any flare-up.

Light your charcoal and when the coals are tempered enough (after about 45 minutes) then you can cook food on the center, In fact you can roast a whole chicken or a joint of meat. And by closing the lid of your barbecue you are in effect turning your BBQ into an oven.

I usually marinate a chicken, with olive oil; garlic, citrus fruits, coriander and chilli then roast it, basting the meat from time to time just as you would in a regular oven. Together with the slight smokiness from the grill this will produce a wonderful roasted chicken. I call this South American Roast Chicken.

Turning your barbecue into a oven gives you lots more scope in your out door cooking, indeed I have even baked a cheese cake on a BBQ during cooking demonstrations just to make a dramatic point of what was possible. The important thing to become good at cooking outdoors is to find a way to control the heat. Indirect cooking can also be done on a round barbecue grill as long as it has a lid and that you create a no direct heat zone in the middle.

P.s I will be posting my South American Roast Chicken recipe here sometime in the next couple of weeks.

There’s a chance, just a chance mind you that Jean-Christophe Novelli might come and browse this blog sometime today. I’m not getting to the whys and where fore’s but I can say that we met and chatted briefly during the BBC Good Food Show in 2004 and I found him to be a most charming man.

Perhaps you’ve tried polenta at a restaurant and been somewhat disappointed by the
rubbery disk on your plate. In itself polenta has very little taste, so it’s important what is added to the polenta to makes it tasty. The first time I saw polenta served was back in 1986 by a famous American chef named John Ash, to see his love of cooking was quite inspirational. With that in mind I thought I’d show you a different way to serve polenta you see the Italians also serve polenta similarly like we serve mashed potatoes. It’s rich, creamy & tasty!!

Mushroom Ragout (serves 4 as a starter or 2 as a main course)
3 large field mushrooms
150 ml (5 fluid oz)Red wine
75 g (2.5 oz) Shitake mushrooms
30 grams (1 oz) Plain Flour
200g (5 oz) Chestnut mushrooms
120 grams (4 oz) Butter
250g ( 8oz) Oyster mushrooms
1 small sprig of Thyme
25g Dried Porcini
3-4 sage leaves
1 Medium diced Onions
2 level tablespoons of Tomato puree
2 Cloves peeled garlic
500ml (1 pint) Brown vegetable or chicken stock
1 small bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon Gravy browning (optional)

1. Peel the field mushroom and cut them into 1/4’s (put the peelings into the stock).
2. Place the dried porcini mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with cold water.
3. Cut the chestnut mushrooms in 1/2’s or 1/4’s if they are really big.
4. Tear each oyster mushroom into 2-3 pieces depending on their size. Put any woody part of the stalks into the stock.
5. Remove the stalks from the shitake mushrooms (put the stalks into the stock)
6. Rinse off the mushrooms, but don’t let them get too wet, then drain them on paper towel.
7. Heat up the brown stock adding the tomato puree & red wine and simmer gently.
8. Add the thyme, peeled garlic, bay leaf & sage to the stock.
9. In a separate thick-bottomed saucepan melt 1oz butter, then gradually stir in the flour and turn down the heat to medium. Cook the flour out until it is quite brown stirring occasionally.
10. Gradually ladle in the stock, stirring well to avoid lumps, allow to simmer on a low gas.
11. Sauté all the mushrooms except the porcini in 3oz butter until they are golden brown.
12. Add the now soft porcini mushrooms and the liquid (strain the liquid to remove any grit).
13. Cook the mushrooms until the liquid is absorbed into them.
14. Strain the brown sauce onto the mushrooms and cook on a very low gas for a further 5 minutes, just to marry the flavours, then season with salt & pepper.

Parmesan Polenta Mash
120 grams (4 oz) Polenta corn
250ml water
250ml milk
8-10 Basil leaves chopped
30 grams (1 oz) Butter
30 grams (1 oz) Grated mozzarella
60 grams (2 oz) Grated fresh Parmesan
1 level teaspoon sea salt
3o g (1oz) Parmesan curls or shavings(optional)

1. Bring the water, milk and sea salt to boil in a heavy based saucepan.
2. Reduce heat to a simmer and slowly add the polenta, stirring with a wooden spoon until it is completely blended. The polenta needs to be cooked for about 40 minutes with regular stirring until it falls away from the side of the pan. Then stir in the butter followed by the cheeses & chopped basil. When serving polenta mash it should the same consistency to mash potatoes, so add a little extra milk or cream if needed.

Chef’s Tips
Remember to keep the mushroom pieces quite large,as they will shrink a lot during cooking
If your brown sauce isn’t a nice rich brown colour then add a few drops of gravy browning.
Of course if you’re a chef and you have a veal reduction handy then use this as a base for your sauce instead of the brown stock and roux. A roux is the French name we give to the flour and butter mix that thickens some sauces. In my photo you’ll see that I made quenelle shape with the polenta. A quenelle is the French name for any food that is shaped between two spoons. The spoon size most often used are dessertspoons. To make a quenelle of polenta put the spoons into a mug of hot water. Shake off the water then gather a portion of polenta on one spoon. Now shape it by passing the polenta backwards and forwards between the 2 spoons. Like any other skill making a quenelle just takes practice.

The great thing about cooking, if you pay attention to the results even bad ones can teach you something, that perhaps you can use later. Some years ago I tried experimenting smoking fish with various types of teas, but unfortunately I wasn’t happy with the results. Then recently whilst visiting Paris I was sitting with friends drinking tea, Lapsang Souchong to be precise which you drink without milk and has a delicious smoky flavour. Eureka! This and only this is the tea to smoke food with.

Thai Dressing
3 tablespoon Oyster sauce
2 red chilies *deseeded & finely chopped
1 Tablespoon finely chopped ginger 60 ml vegetable oil
Juice of 1 lemon & 1 lime
1 coconut
2 heaped Tbsp coriander chopped

Salad
1 bag of mixed leaves (washed)
4 Spring Onions cut in thin strips
1/2 bag bean sprouts

Soy Marinade
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 Tblesp light brown sugar
Black pepper

70 grams of Lapsang Tea
*ginger trimmings
4 x 175 gram sea trout fillets
Chili seeds & trimmings
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1. Split the coconut carefully and reserve & strain the milk.
2. Break off a 40-gram piece of coconut and peel the brown skin off it.
3. Place the peeled coconut meat, oyster sauce, ginger into a food processor and puree.
4. Add the vegetable oil slowly, then the coconut milk, citrus juice & zest.
5. Marinate the fish in the soy marinade for 1 hour turning once in a while.
6. Line a wok with tin foil then add the tea, *ginger trimmings & chili seeds
7. Make sure your extraction fan is on and have your kitchen window open.
8. Find a wire rack or a steamer rack that fits inside your wok.
9. Heat the wok on a medium high heat until it begins to smoke. Turn the heat down to low & place the fish skin side up on the rack.
10. Cover with a lid and smoke for 30 minutes then turn off the heat
11. Mix salad ingredients then add 35 grams of thinly cut coconut strips, (you can use a sharp peeler to first remove the skin then cut the coconut).
12. In a non stick frying pan flash fry the sea trout in the vegetable oil for 4 minutes each side on a medium to low heat, then allow to rest for several minutes.
13. Stir the coriander & chili’s into the Thai dressing then toss the salad with 1-2 Tbsp of it,reserving the rest to serve on the side.
14. Place a small mound of tossed salad on each plate then top with the trout.

Chef’s Tips
You can serve jasmine rice with this dish if you wish.
If your not keen on smoked fish this recipe works just as well without smoking, just allow a little more cooking time. Be careful when flash frying the fish because the soy marinade will make it brown quickly. If you can’t buy sea trout use salmon or even a rainbow trout. Did you know you can peel fresh ginger with a teaspoon?....really...give a try, just scrap with a spoon and lose a lot less ginger than conventional peeling methods.
© Kevin Ashton 2005

You may not think an English chef would be a good source for information about cooking on a barbecue...but your not taking into account the fact that I lived and worked in Washington DC area for along time.

So I will pose the question then give you the answer, hopefully some of you will take up the challenge. When I give you the answer I will also include a diagram.

What is the indirect cooking method on a barbecue?

The clock is ticking...I will post the answer in 24 hours. In the meantime I will be posting a recipe today seeya

The Irish are great at it, as are other nations…. but we English are usually very slow to celebrate our national day…indeed we barely acknowledge it at all. No all day parties in the pubs, parks or streets…..no none of that. If you took a straw poll, lots of people would be hard pressed to tell you the correct date of St George's day. Well’s it’s April 23rd and since the red rose is our flower symbol we should endeavour to wear one.

It’s suggested that St George protested to Roman Emperor Diocesan about his persecution of Christians and for this our patron saint was beheaded on April 23rd in 303 AD. By around 900 AD George was universally regarded as a saint for being a defender of the poor and defenceless. The banner of St George, the red cross of a martyr on a white background, was adopted for the uniform of English soldiers possibly in the reign of Richard 1, and later became the flag of England and the White Ensign of the Royal Navy. In a seal of Lyme Regis dating from 1284 a ship is depicted bearing a flag with a cross on a plain background. St George didn’t slay any dragons to the best of my knowledge because long afterwards my ex-mother–in-law was still breathing fire.

I will be celebrating St George’s Day this year by joining the food blog effort to promote England’s national day. Posh & Beck’s site together with Monkey Gland of Jamfaced have come up with a great idea to make English people pay more attention to their own day.

So look out for my unveiling on the Sunday April 23rd and come and check out my pud and help us raise the profile of St. George’s Day.

Tagged with: What's For Pud? and St George's Day

25 years ago a vegetarian customer trying to eat in a non-vegetarian restaurant was at best treated like an inconvenience and even worse in some places. It was quite some while before interesting and tasty vegetarian dishes began to appear.

Today that unspoken pariah status has moved to customers who have food allergies or intolerance’s. It’s estimated that by 2015 up to 40% of the population will suffer from a food intolerance or food allergy. If that unfortunate prediction becomes a reality then restaurants will need to completely rethink how they operate and accommodate people who have to be so careful what they eat.

The forward thinkers out there will get a jump on their competition by approaching the problem as a business opportunity. That said as a chef I know that we in the kitchen will be given even more job responsibilities without any extra staff or pay (as usual).

There are lots of difficult scenario’s that could be detrimental to mainstream restaurants. If owner’s ban the use of certain ingredients (such as nuts) for fear of legal/financial comebacks. Or the focus on ingredient information (in the case of bought in foods) or the handling/storage and seperation of ingredients become so intense that it lessens the focus on the quality of the cooking. Perhaps if extra staff is needed it might push up the cost of eating out?

We need to look at the other end of the problem...and find out why the numbers of allergy sufferers continues to grow and ask the question.… Can we reverse the trend if the food is free of pesticides, E numbers, hormones and growth enhancers?

Last year I managed to get my hands on a copy of a book called the Allergy Catering Manual by Michelle Berriedale-Johnson. Both allergy sufferers and restaurateurs will find the book full of useful information. Though I thought some of the advice was impractical, other parts were imminently sensible and would help both the customer and the restaurant. You can find more info at www.allergycateringmanual.com

What’s in a name?

On a slightly less serious note, some years ago whilst living in the US I dated a very nice lady by the name of Susan. Originally, Susan worked in the retail business but decided to change profession (in retrospect perhaps to work similar hours to make it easier for us to see each other)….but I was too young and immersed in my own work at *The Hay Adams to really notice her sacrifice.

After taking several management courses Susan took the position of assistant manager at a pizza restaurant. At the time of her joining the restaurant it was one of five successful area restaurants owned by a group of partners. A few months into her new job the partnership decided to split up. Two partners kept 3 of the pizza restaurants; the other 2 restaurants (including the one Susan worked at) were retained by the other partner, Joe.

The original concept of all five restaurants was simple but had proved very successful. You collect your raw pizza base from a counter go to the topping bar

(just like a salad bar) where the customers could top their own pizza with anything they liked. You then handed you pizza back in at the counter and it was cooked and brought to your table.

Joe had kept the 2 prime locations in return he had to change his recipes and come up with a new name. Joe spared no expense and hired a top Washington PR Company to come up with a new name and logo. Wanting the re-launch to be a media event Joe really pushed the boat out by hiring a big name daytime soap star to headline a day of activities, which included autograph signing, get photographed next to your local sports star and freebie bags & balloons for kids.

It was all so carefully planned and the local TV news & radio teams turned up to give the re-launched restaurants maximum publicity. On top of all the expense of the re-launch day Joe paid $100,000 dollars for the new name the PR Company came up with.

When Susan told me the planned new name, I could not believe my ears or that such an astute businessman had paid $100,000 for that! As the soap star attempted to unveil the new name the material got snagged on the neon letters. As this minor problem was sorted out and the name revealed, a child shouted …look Mom…Pizza Poison. The unfortunate misreading of the new name seemed to ring around the place, and was even captured by the news cameramen. Pizza PiesON was in fact the new name but it was soon called by all Pizza Poison.

The PR whiz explained that the PiesOn part referred to the fact you built your own pizza pie, I told him if you had to explain the name to people, perhaps it wasn’t the best choice.

18 months later the doors closed for good on Joe’s 2 restaurants, for some reason people didn’t want to buy their pizzas anymore……go figure?

P.s The TV star played the part of a doctor in the long running day time soap General Hospital another one of life’s little ironies.

*The Hay Adams in a top rated hotel just across the road from the White House

*My Weekly Newspaper Recipe Column
If you live in the Midlands (UK), you can follow my weekly recipe column in the Birmingham Sunday Mercury

Fishywayz
When dining out……….I never buy fish on a Monday because chances are its left over from the weekend….even if it was delivered that morning, it has probably sat on ice in a wholesaler’s warehouse over the weekend.

Don’t forget the waitrons
If the food and service were good, I always leave a cash tip rather than add it to a credit card bill for several reasons. Some restaurants can take days even weeks to divvy up the tips…2-4 days is acceptable because often it takes that long for the restaurant to get his/her money from the credit card company. Trouble is most waiters don’t keep their own records of how much in tips they made on a particular day/night so they are very dependant on the owner/manager to be honest with them often days later. I have in one case quit a job because as Head Chef I became aware that the owner was skimming the credit card tips to bolster his profits. I often think we Brits are still slow at tipping for good service and food; the minimum should be 10% and 15%-20% if the dining experience was very good or better. And tipping can be a great chance for those guests who would like to contribute to the cost of the meal in some way …to do just that.

Without doubt...
Without doubt the worst case of cheapness I have witnessed was at a rather swanky golf and country club about 5 years ago. The kitchen was running a series of gourmet theme dinner nights to boast midweek business. The captain of this particular club had booked a table of 10. The head chef was also the owner of the food franchise so the cash register for food was located in the kitchen. He often encouraged members to “pop in and pay” so he could also make sure they were happy with the food & service. So after a delicious 6-course meal the captain collected up the money from his guests and came into the kitchen to pay. Counting out the money the captain found that the tips were large enough to actually cover the cost of his own meal….so he put his own money back in his pocket and gave the waitress her tip from the chance he was due…..which was 5 pence!!!!!(about 8 cents) She was so incensed by his outrageous meanness that she threw it back at him. He threatened to have her fired for that act of defiance, but backed down when we hinted that various committees would want to investigate what was the cause of her rash behaviour.

Don’t inflict...
Don’t inflict your ill-behaved offspring on others.Being the proud parent of a 3-year daughter I am acutely aware of my responsibilities when I take her out to eat. Having taught her good table manners from the beginning, and gotten her use to eating her meals in family groups…not alone infront of the TV! She is bless………. No problem to take out, indeed many fellow guests fawn over her cuteness & good manners, particularly when dad has put her hair in pigtails (yes men can do this..if in their earlier days they wore a ponytail (a la David Seaman).Though I can’t speak for David I can confess that in my case I wore long hair for 4-5 years during my thirties as if to slow the march of time…..but it did not. Anyway back to kids and eating out, guests should not inflict their ill-behaved spawn on other dinners, they should if the child gets cranky take them outside and there try solving the problem before either returning or going home. Managers who are too lily livered to quietly request that corrective action be taken by the parent,should be forced to baby-sit the miscreant once a week until they are 18.

*My Weekly Newspaper Recipe Column
If you live in the Midlands (UK), you can follow my weekly recipe column in the Birmingham Sunday Mercury

This old saying comes from the fact that food is more easily swallowed if taken with a small amount of salt. So before believing ever august word printed or uttered in our media we would be wise to remember that unfortunately some media types don’t let truth to get in the way of a good story. Sometimes in my experience famous people are quite different to the image portrayed in the media. For instance Alexander Haig a former Secretary of State for Ronald Reagan was often written about in bad light and the media never feel obligated to “balance the books” and paint a more complete true picture of the person.

I was helping with a series of dinner parties on the Enterprise V, a 168ft motor yacht in 1993 (Enterprise V is still in the top 50 largest yachts in the world). Each evening’s cruise down the Potomac river brought a guest list of the movers and shakers of Washington D.C. On one such cruise Mr Haig was befriended by a young girl who’s parents were taking no notice of her, she was obviously bored being the only child at this swanky do. For the whole cruise this very important man took on the role of Grandpa, and showed great delight in being “adopted”.
For my part, it was great to see the human side of Alexander Haig, so different to the image painted by the media.
© Kevin Ashton 2006
*My Weekly Newspaper Recipe Column
If you live in the Midlands (UK), you can follow my weekly recipe column in the Birmingham Sunday Mercury

Technorati Profile

Black pudding has re-emerged as a popular British dish in the last 10 years, and yet its versatility is still mainly untapped. Too often overcooked or of poor quality to do it justice. George Stafford in Derbyshire makes one of the best, but if your not lucky enough to live in Stanley Common then source your black pudding from a good local butcher. Don’t be afraid to ask for a sample to taste, particularly if your a regular customer.

(recipes serves 2)
2x 175 gram chicken breasts (skin on)
10 grams tarragon
100 grams quality black pudding
4 large pitted prunes
200 ml chicken stock
125 ml whipping cream
1.5 teaspoon grain mustard
10 lightly toasted walnut halves
1 Tbsp olive oil

1. Remove the fillets from the chicken breasts & place between two pieces of cling film.

2. Use a rolling pin or meat hammer to gently bat out the fillets until they are double in size, set aside.

3. Trim off approximately 20 grams (3/4 oz) of meat from the sides of each breast, whilst keeping it’s original shape.

4. Roughly cut up the black pudding removing the skin and put the chunks into a food processor, add the prunes and puree until smooth. Pour in 25 ml of whipping cream, the chicken meat you have trimmed from each breast and mix for a further 2-3 minutes.

5. Remove the tarragon leaves from the branches and and reserve 3/4 for the sauce, taste. Finely chopped the remaining 1/4 and stir into the black pudding stuffing and season.

6. Carefully cut a 10 cm (3.75 inches) pocket or flap along the longest side of each breast. The pocket should go in about 5 cm, but try to keep your knife flat so that you don’t cut a hole in the breast.

7. Stuff each pocket with half of the mix (don’t worry if you have a little mix left you can always fry as a fritter along side the breasts). Now place a flattened fillet over edge to seal it, then refrigerate.

8. Simmer the chicken stock down until it has reduced by half, then add the rest of the cream and the grain mustard and the reserved tarragon leaves.

9. Preheat the oven 190 C (gas mark 5) & season both sides of the chicken with salt & pepper.

10. Heat a non-stick frying pan then add the olive oil and the chicken breasts and cook on a medium high heat for 6-7 minutes, making sure both side are golden brown.

11. Transfer the chicken to the oven and cook for a further 7-8 minutes until cooked through.

To Serve
Carefully slice each chicken breast into 2-3 and arrange on warm plates then pour some of the sauce around the plate and sprinkle on the walnuts.

Chef’s Tips
Any kind of green beans would go well with this dish and I like to boil a few diced baking potatoes with their skins on and a couple of garlic cloves in the water. Then drain well and mash with a little butter.

© Kevin Ashton 2005

*It's been pointed out to me that not every one reading this will know what black pudding is so I am going to post a link below which will take readers to the free on-line encylopidia wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_pudding

Sometimes….when you are cooking for famous people your too busy in the kitchen to get your hands on memorabilia such as menus, that’s usually snapped up by the wait staff and even the other guests. Luckily this time I did manage to get a signed photo that reads…

“To Kevin Ashton, best wishes from Ronald Reagan”.

Whenever I have rubbed elbows with anyone famous from celebrity chefs all the way to American Presidents, I have always found them to be polite and gracious.
On the other hand my sister-in-law who used to be in the catering “biz” has one or two humorous tails of famous people being rude.

She told me about the American singer Andy Williams stay at The Grand Hotel in Birmingham. He spent several days being as rude as he could to all the staff before getting his comeuppance. You see Mr Williams liked to leave his shoes outside his room at night so the night porter could polish them….then the next morning he would pick them up together with his newspaper off his doorstep. This particular morning however the bedroom suite door blew shut, leaving Andy locked out and worse he was only wearing a hotel bath towel! A fellow guest raised the alarm but due to the rudeness of the singer for the past several days, the staff took over an hour to rescue him.
© Kevin Ashton 2006

When I started writing a newspaper recipe column almost 3 years ago it was an education, a learning process of writing down recipes in a way that made them hopefully user friendly. By that I mean they should be easy to follow, not too complicated and strike a balance because the readers will be a mixture of novice’s and experienced cooks…after all being a good chef does not automatically make you a good recipe writer.

It seems simple enough to write the recipe once you have the quantities…right?

I re-read my recipes and spell check them to hopefully catch most mistakes, never the less being a real working chef sometimes between the cooking and the writing my day can become very long.

I some times ask others to read them prior to publishing if I am trying to explain certain techniques. I prefer non-chefs for this to gauge how well the recipe is understood.

I used to write my recipes in both metric and imperial but then about 18 months ago decided it was time to just use metric and see if I got any adverse feed back
(I did not).

I always write a preamble to entice the reader in, though sometimes in the Birmingham Sunday Mercury these are edited, or even cut out due to lack of space.

I try to write a mixture of recipes to cover all courses, cuisines and seasons of the year.

Though I don’t have an army of assistants like my more famous colleagues, I physically make each dish myself before publishing to ensure that it works.

Avoid using ingredients that are not generally available to the public, what’s the point of me writing a recipe with foie gras for instance if the vast majority of readers can not either source or afford it?

I also tone down the presentation of the finished dish to hopefully make the end result achievable.
Occasionally I get fed back from the readers of my column, which I enjoy very much,
I always make a point of writing a reply thanking them.

At the end of the day writing good easy to understand recipes is my goal. Striving to strike a balance between enough information so the reader understands the process and too much information which can give the impression that the recipe is too complex to attempt.
The Art of Recipe Writing © Kevin Ashton 2006

The choice and quality of domestic pots and pans has greatly improved over the last 10-15 years, though from a chef’s point of view there is still room for improvement..
Lots of saucepans suffer from various design shortcomings, either because of cost or the designers didn’t ask any chefs their opinion. Even manufacturers that have it right ....can then get it wrong. Recently I bought a wonderful Circulon frying pan for my sister who is a great cook. The frying pan is 30 cm, which is bigger than average thus you can cook 4 portions of most foods in one go. Unfortunately Circulon are now selling a newer range called Circulon 2 that has plastic handles rather than the all metal handles on the version I bought. I don’t know whether the pans with all metal handles will be phased out by Circulon but I hope not.

Buying Tips
Steer clear of pans that have screw on wooden or plastic handles. They always come loose and eventually the wood or plastic burns or cracks and falls off. Buy all metal handles and use a tea towel. Not only will the pan last longer but you can transfer it to the oven rather than move the food onto something else (less washing up!) Certain brands now say their plastic type handles are oven safe up to 180 C, but what's the point since many recipes call for higher temperatures? Heavy duty metal handles that are riveted to the pan will last the longest.

Try to buy pans that have heavy bottoms, which lessens the chances of burning the food. Lots of modern saucepans have sandwich bases, which are layers of aluminum, stainless steel and copper for better heat conduction.

Stainless Steel
The upside of stainless steel is it’s hardwearing and easy to keep clean. The down side is that some handles that are welded on can fall off. So when browsing the domestic saucepans I tend to go for handles that are riveted on. Of course you could buy professional stainless steel pans made by Bourgeat who use an unbreakable annular weld. Either way try to make sure you buy 18/10 gauge stainless steel which is the heaviest gauge.

Non-stick
Generally speaking the longevity of non-stick saucepans/frying pans has improved on the more expensive items. Using a non-stick pan is very healthy because you can cut down the amount of oil or butter that is used. To increase the life of your non-stick surfaces use a rubber or soft plastic spatula to stir with.

Anodised Aluminium
Less porous than ordinary aluminium and pans made from this type of metal conduct heat more evenly. My favourite anodised sauté pan made by Calphalon is still going strong after 15 years, so expensive can work out cheap in the long run.

Copper
Technology has made copper pots & pans obsolete. Years ago chefs would make copper pans their first choice because they are number 1 when it comes to heat conduction. Traditionally the pans would be lined with tin, which wears out after several years and then the pans need re- tinning. In the last 10 years a more modern version lined with stainless steel has appeared in shops but unless you are planning on hanging your pans on display I wouldn’t bother with them.

Cast iron
Not very popular because of their weight, but they have 3 plus points. They will last a lifetime, which is no small feat in this day and age. If used just for frying they develop a non-stick surface, which is as good as any non-stick surface you can buy. Thirdly, being cast all in one piece the handles can’t fall off.

Traditional non-stick
You can create your own non-stick surface on black steel, anodised aluminium and cast iron frying pans by “seasoning the pan” and below I will explain how you can do this. Keep in mind that when you add a sauce to a seasoned pan you are destroying the non-stick surface so its better to keep seasoned pans for just frying. When washing a seasoned pan up, don’t scrub it, use a soft dishcloth. Don’t leave them in soak because this will also have deleterious effect on the seasoning. If you have to scrub them to get the frying pan clean then it is time to re-season them.

Seasoning
1. Add enough salt to your pan to give a 4-5 mm (1/4 “) depth.
2. Heat on a medium high heat for 15 minutes, without moving the salt around.
3. Tip out the salt into the sink and allow to cool slightly before wiping with a clean thick tea towel.
4. Pour enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan, and then swill the oil around so as to make sure the inner sides of the pan have been covered too.
5. Cook on a low heat for 30 minutes or more. If the oil begins to smoke you have the heat up too high.
6. Allow to cool then pour out the oil out and rub dry with a paper towel.

*It may take several attempts before the seasoned pan builds up a non- stick surface.

Do you want to know were I buy my equipment from?
Lots of enthusiastic cooks buy good quality equipment at retail high street stores, or more recently online. I don’t buy from these normal retail channels because they are mostly overpriced. I buy from professional catering supply companies like Russums who are located in Rotherham but also have a web site. You can also occasionally get a bargain at food shows but only if you know the real retail price and if that original price was inflated or not?
The very best make of professional saucepans in the world (though it pains me lol to say it) are made by a French company called Bourgeat and when ever I buy equipment for a restaurant that is my number one choice, they will genuinely last you for 20 years and can be used on all heat sources including induction.

Lifting the Lid On Pots and Pans © Kevin Ashton 2004

If you live in the Midlands (UK), you can follow my weekly recipe column in the Birmingham Sunday Mercury.

Spinach Roularde with Tomato Basil Sauce© Kevin Ashton 2003

When hosting a dinner party often the guest list includes vegetarians, which for non vegetarians cooks can be a scary prospect or lead to some thing very safe and boring.
Here is a great dish that is easy to prepare and even easier to serve.
Don’t be scared by the name.....just think of a savoury swiss roll made of spinach and filled with cream cheese & mushrooms.

Spinach Roularde with Tomato Basil Sauce© Kevin Ashton 2003

One bag of fresh spinach (300grams) well washed
I packet of dried porcini mushrooms (optional)
250 grams Cream cheese
227grams of Chestnut mushrooms (washed & sliced)
1-2 cloves of garlic (peeled but don’t chop)
6 large organic eggs (carefully seperate yolks from whites)
30grams melted butter
pinch of plain flour
1 swiss roll pan (approx 9 inch x 13)

Method

1. Reconstitute the dried mushrooms and let sit for 30 minutes before going to the next step.
2. Gently fry the sliced chestnut mushrooms in half the melted butter together with the garlic.
3. When golden brown add the porcini mushrooms and half the water you’ve soaked them in and continue to cook on a low heat until all the liquid has evaporated, then remove from the heat and cool, then refridgerate.
4. Wilt spinach in a stainless steel saucepan (there should be enough moisture from washing the spinach to make adding any unnecessary) then drainwell pressing out the water, season with salt, pepper & cool down.
5. Brush the swiss roll tin well with melted butter then line with baking parchment, then brush again with butter and dust with plain flour.
6. Put cold spinach in a food processer and chop well.
7. Whisk egg yolks until they turn pale yellow & stiff, then fold into chopped spinach.
8. In a seperate clean bowl whisk the egg whites into a stiff “meringue”, then gently fold into the mix.
9. Spread mix onto the lined swiss roll tin evenly using a palette knife.
10. Bake in a hot oven (gas mark 6) for about 8-12 minutes until firm to the touch but not brown.
11. Turn cooled roularde out onto a clean tea towel, gently removing paper then gently turn over the roularde again.
12. Pick out the garlic cloves from the cold mushroom mix then stir into the cream cheese and season if necessary with salt & pepper.
13. Spread the cream cheese mix onto the roularde gently making it as even as possible.
14. Roll up the roularde, starting fairly tightly and keep an even thickness, then wrap in the tea towel. Let the roularde “set” for one hour before slicing.
15. Cut 2 one inch slices and gently warm & serve with a tomato & basil sauce.

*Chef’s Tip
If you’ve always wanted to know how to make a really great tomato sauce then look for next Sunday’s recipe!!

Spinach Roularde with Tomato Basil Sauce© Kevin Ashton 2003

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Crisp Chinese Roast Pork with spicy Shrimp Broth serves 4 © Kevin Ashton 2005

I first demonstrated this dish at BBC's Good Food Show 2005 which held every year at the NEC in Birmingham. Chinese food is not always about stir fried vegetables, in this recipe I have created a wonderful contrast between the crispy yet succulent pork belly and the spicy shrimp. This dish I

1 kilo belly of pork
1 pack of straight to the wok noodles
2 teaspoon five spice
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon Szechuan peppers
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon caster sugar
100 grams shitake mushroom
100 grams pak choi, sliced lengthwise
50 grams trimmed sugar snap peas
3 cloves garlic chopped
20 grams ginger finely chopped
1/2 large red pepper sliced
1 litre chicken stock
2 Tbsp oyster sauce.
20 raw tiger shrimp
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 red chili deseeded, finely diced

1. Using a pestle & mortar grind up the Szechuan & black peppers and the mustard seeds until the mix is fine then add the five spice & sugar.
2. Spike the skin of the pork belly well with a metal skewer, then pour a kettle of boiling water over it. Leave it to drain and then dry well with paper towels.
3. Turn the pork belly meat side up and rub the dry spice mix into the meat well.
4. Preheat oven to 200 C (gas mark 6), then place the pork belly on a