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Rustic Oat-Crusted Herring

If you’re looking for hearty peasant food rather than something elegant, consider this tasty Scottish recipe. Small fish such as herring or sardines are perfect for making this dish, or you could even try mackerel, croakers, dabs or similar. If you make friends with your local fishmonger, perhaps he will remove the bones for you. If you have to do it yourself, cut along the underside and hit the backbone a few times. Next, pull the backbone out along with as many of the bones as you can. Now scrape the scales off using a knife, and discard the heads and tails. It’s easy to fillet herrings, I promise you!

The flavour is really nice, and you will find the mustard cuts through the richness of the fish. The oats make me think of cosy autumn or winter. The traditional Scottish way of serving oat-crusted herring is mashed or boiled potatoes or thick slices of bread and butter, although modern cookbooks featuring this recipe suggest lemon and parsley, or even crispy bacon (yum, we like that idea!)

My family loves creamy mashed potatoes on the side, and plenty of them, but sometimes bread and butter is good too. You don’t need many ingredients for this tasty Scottish recipe so you can rustle it up quickly when you want something hot and tasty to eat for lunch or dinner. The herring fillets are covered in salt then soaked in a creamy mustard mixture. They are then coated in oats and pan-fried until crispy. Herring and oats are both Scottish staples, so it makes sense to combine them and make this wonderful rustic dish. Give it a try and see how it compares to your family’s usual crispy fish dinner. I bet you’re going to love it! This recipe serves 2 people but it’s easy to make more if you’re feeding a crowd. Continue reading

Lemon and Garlic Chicken Bake

Although many people believe British food to be plain and simple, there is plenty of variation these days. A heavy amount of spice is typically not used, unless British fusion food (perhaps with Indian influences) is being made, or if English mustard features in the dish (this condiment can be very hot and spicy!) However, aromatic seasonings like citrus, garlic and herbs are often added to poultry dishes to complement the flavour. Boiled or mashed potatoes would be a typical side dish for this recipe, while asparagus or green beans would also go well with this easy yet delicious baked chicken dish.

You will need boneless, skinless chicken breasts to make this recipe, along with lemon, garlic, rosemary and parsley to add light, aromatic flavours. Some cherry tomatoes will add a splash of colour to the dish but can be omitted if you prefer. You might like to add some vegetables to the dish so they cook with the chicken, or even some potatoes on top (thinly sliced so they cook through).

If you want to make the dish more browned on top, you can put it under the grill (broiler) for a couple of minutes to brown both the chicken and the lemon slices for visual appeal. Feel free to double or triple the recipe if you are feeding a crowd or want to make extra to have later in the week. A pound of chicken will take about half an hour to bake in the oven, but if you are increasing the quantities, it might take up to an hour to bake through. Once there is no pink left in the centre of the chicken it is done. It should be 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) in the middle to be safe to eat.

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Roasted Topside of Beef

Topside comes from innermost cattle thigh muscle. It is quite tender and lean, which makes it a good cut of beef for roasting. Butchers often leave a layer of fat on top which will baste the beef while it cooks. You can cut this off and discard it after cooking if you do not want to eat it. You can get topside in small or large cuts depending how much you need. Along with the beef you just need olive oil, salt and pepper. The topside is roasted in a hot and then warm oven until done to your liking, and you can serve it with potatoes, vegetables and gravy. This makes a wonderful family meal for Sunday lunchtime.

Topside can be carved into lean slices, another reason it is so good for roasting. It can also be used to make a pot roast or you can braise it on a bed of vegetables and beef bouillon. However you cook this cut of beef, you should let it rest for 20 minutes before serving so the juices can redistribute and settle. Silverside beef is similar but it needs to be braised else it will dry out in the oven.

Consider a topside mini-joint which is ideal for a 2 or 3-person household. Such a small cut of beef will be cooked in less than an hour. You will often get extra fat with these mini-joints which you can take off before you serve the meat. A joint is the British word for a meat roast. Enjoy this with Yorkshire puddings and perhaps roasted potatoes and vegetables. Mashed potatoes is also wonderful with beef topside, and do not forget the homemade gravy. Continue reading

Traditional Glamorgan Sausages

Glamorgan sausages are famous in Wales, and they are very tasty. These sausages are vegetarian (not vegan because they have eggs and milk in them) and mainly made with leek and cheese. Caerphilly cheese is the classic, traditional choice, although you might not be able to get it where you live, so if you cannot find it, use mild cheddar instead. If you cannot get leek, or do not want to use it, use the white parts of green onions (spring onions) or else regular yellow or white onion instead. Another substitution is switching the dried mixed herbs for a tablespoon of fresh parsley and ½ teaspoon of thyme.

All you need to do to make these is combine the ingredients, shape the sausages and pan fry them in oil and/or butter. Because these sausages are vegetarian, they have a very short cooking time. Serve them with salad or vegetables. If you usually only have meat sausages, why not try these? They certainly make a change of pace from regular pork or beef sausages, and the flavour is refreshing and deliciously different.

Glamorgan sausages are traditional Welsh sausages which were originally made with Glamorgan cheese. This particular variety is no longer made because sadly the Glamorgan cattle used to make it are near-extinct. Caerphilly cheese is usually used in its place. This is a descendent of Glamorgan cheese and offers a very similar flavour and texture. Mild cheddar is a bit different, but will work if you cannot get Welsh cheese. Continue reading

Mustard and Maple Gammon Joint

A gammon joint is always good at Christmas or, in fact, any festive occasion. In the UK you can get gammon steaks (single slices of gammon which you can pan fry) or a gammon ‘joint’, which is the British term for gammon roast. Christmas and Thanksgiving are big holidays in the US for ham, as we call it, and a sizeable ham is a great choice for my family, especially since the boys are growing up so fast and so are their appetites – grab a nice, big juicy gammon joint and you will find it keeps for up to 5 days, making lots of salads and sandwiches for everyone! This meat is just as good served chilled as it is hot, so it is pretty versatile.

Gammon is not just for the big occasions either. You can serve it during picnic season or enjoy it for a birthday or even New Year’s Eve. If you are wondering what exactly a ‘gammon joint’ is, the main description is gammon is similar to ham but it is raw while ham is ready-to-eat. Also, gammon has been cured like bacon (ham is either cooked or dry-cured). So yes, cooked gammon is technically… ham! Talk about two nations separated by a common language.

My parents and grandparents would have soaked the gammon in water first, to get rid of the excess salt, but these days gammon joints are usually pre- soaked – go ahead and ask the butcher or check the label to make sure. Last time I made this recipe, I saved the liquid I cooked the meat in, and I found it made a great base for soup. I used it for pea and ham soup or you could choose something nice and meaty like that – just label and freeze the liquid if you are not ready to start making soup just yet. Continue reading

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Christine Szalay-Kudra

Hi, my name is Christine and I would like to welcome you to TeaTime Recipes. Tea has always been a favourite of mine and I adore the tradition of serving this wonderful beverage with all kinds of little snacks both sweet and savoury. Read More

Christine

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