Change of season brings about many changes. People dress warmly, people stay indoors more. Some even acquire new partners. Time for change.
The change from summer into autumn was a confusing one for me, and that probably explains my inactivity on the blog. Everything is uncertain in autumn, even the brain. I doubt a lot of marriage proposals are made during this period. Needless to say, it’s my least favourite season
Back to my topic, winter and comfort food. Winter is good food season. Summer is all about braais and eating al fresco. Lets be honest, it’s the ambiance we enjoy at braais and not really the food. How many times have you been to a braai, only to receive half a chop of mutton and still conclude that the braai was good? Or you sit outside at a restaurant and eat luke warm pasta with sand particles and still smile at the world passing by?
Winter is the exact opposite. Good food, no pretensions. It is recipes that have outlived generations. Take an oxtail stew for example. It’s been there since time immemorial, and the whole experience of making it, checking every half an hour how things are going. The disintegration of the onion and celery. Heaven in a pot! Some might argue that oxtail is not comfort food, as it is not as easy to prepare as the classic comfort meal, bangers and mash. Comfort and simplicity differ from person to person.
Yes, oxtail is simple to make if you ask me. Dust oxtail with a mix of four, salt and pepper. Brown, then remove. In same pot, fry garlic, celery and onion. Return the oxtail; add rosemary and some bay leaves, half a bottle of good wine, and some stock. Season and allow cooking for a couple of hours. Its little variations that make the difference, like adding a can on cannellini beans towards the end, or a spoon of whole grain mustard.
Winter is also the time when you miss your mom’s cooking the most. You don’t miss the restaurant you went to for your company’s end year function. You miss food that is cooked from the heart.
My comfort food top three ……..
Oxtail with mash
Tripe eaten with steamed bread
Roast lamb and potatoes
With the current economic woes, let’s dig for old recipes, and get some comfort and loving in the kitchen.
The change from summer into autumn was a confusing one for me, and that probably explains my inactivity on the blog. Everything is uncertain in autumn, even the brain. I doubt a lot of marriage proposals are made during this period. Needless to say, it’s my least favourite season
Back to my topic, winter and comfort food. Winter is good food season. Summer is all about braais and eating al fresco. Lets be honest, it’s the ambiance we enjoy at braais and not really the food. How many times have you been to a braai, only to receive half a chop of mutton and still conclude that the braai was good? Or you sit outside at a restaurant and eat luke warm pasta with sand particles and still smile at the world passing by?
Winter is the exact opposite. Good food, no pretensions. It is recipes that have outlived generations. Take an oxtail stew for example. It’s been there since time immemorial, and the whole experience of making it, checking every half an hour how things are going. The disintegration of the onion and celery. Heaven in a pot! Some might argue that oxtail is not comfort food, as it is not as easy to prepare as the classic comfort meal, bangers and mash. Comfort and simplicity differ from person to person.
Yes, oxtail is simple to make if you ask me. Dust oxtail with a mix of four, salt and pepper. Brown, then remove. In same pot, fry garlic, celery and onion. Return the oxtail; add rosemary and some bay leaves, half a bottle of good wine, and some stock. Season and allow cooking for a couple of hours. Its little variations that make the difference, like adding a can on cannellini beans towards the end, or a spoon of whole grain mustard.
Winter is also the time when you miss your mom’s cooking the most. You don’t miss the restaurant you went to for your company’s end year function. You miss food that is cooked from the heart.
My comfort food top three ……..
Oxtail with mash
Tripe eaten with steamed bread
Roast lamb and potatoes
With the current economic woes, let’s dig for old recipes, and get some comfort and loving in the kitchen.
3 comments:
my top 3 (no order ) :
-Tripe and samp (lots of intestine, I dont like the towel texture of the stomach much, and the white elastic lining.... I know,baffles my mom each time)
-Pork something (anything)
-Sheep liver with lots of onion and soya sauce (also with samp) but not fully cooked or else it hardens
-vetkoek with mince and cheese (extra matured cheddar otherwise you battle to taste it),
ok so anything fattening .
I once saw beef tripe being prepared, never had the heart (and suspect the teeth) to try it.
PS. The picture should belong to the site : ftp://picturesthatmakeyouhungry.com
maybe you should try igwinya with gorgonzola. ha ha ha
once tried liver with onions and balsamic vinegar. very nice.
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