Kane's Kitchen - 20th December 2011 - Spiced Pork Belly with Honeyed Carrots, Celeriac Mash and a Pinot Noir Reduction

Spiced Pork Belly with Honeyed Carrots, Celeriac Mash, Pak Choy and Pinot Noir Reduction

Serves:  6    

Prep Time:  15 mins

Cook Time:  4 hours

What You’ll Need:

• 1.5kg pork belly, rind scored finely, ribs removed
• Sea salt
• 1 tsp whole black pepper
• 1 tbsp Sichuan pepper, ground and toasted
• 2 tbsp Chinese five spice, toasted
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 cups chicken stock, cold
• Oil
• 4 pak choy, blanched, for plating

Celeriac Mash

• 500g Celeriac, peeled and cubed
• 300g Potatoes, peeled and cubed
• ¼ cup of thickened cream
• 2 tbsp butter

Honeyed Carrots

• 8 Dutch carrots, cleaned but not peeled
• 1 tbsp honey

Pinot Noir Reduction

• 1 shallot sliced thinly
• 200mL pinot noir
• 1 cup Chicken Stock and drippings from pork belly
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1tsp oil

What You’ll Need To Do:

1.        Using a pestle and mortar grind up the salt Sichuan and black peppers until the mix is fine and then add the five spice and sugar.

2.        Pour boiling water over the pork belly rind. Leave it to drain and dry well with paper towels.

3.        Place pork belly rind side down and rub spice mixture into the meat. Turn it over and rub 1 tsp of sea salt into the rind.

4.        Preheat the oven to 120c and then place the pork belly on a wire rack skin side up and sit that over a roasting tray half filled with cold chicken stock. Roast for 4 hours. Finish crackling off under a hot grill, careful not to burn the skin. If skin is a little charred, scrape off with a serrated knife. You should be able to hear the skin crackling.

5.        Whilst pork belly is in the oven, prepare the celeriac mash. Cook celeriac in large saucepan of boiling salted water 15 minutes. Add potato and boil until celeriac and potato are very tender, about 15 minutes longer. Drain. Return to same saucepan; stir over medium-high heat until any excess liquid in pan evaporates, about 2 minutes. Add cream and butter; mash until mixture is almost smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6.        For the honeyed carrots, roast the whole dutch carrots for about an hour.  Spoon on honey just before serving. 

7.        For the pinot noir reduction, heat oil in saucepan and fry off shallots until they’re soft. Add pinot noir and bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer till liquid has reduced by half. Add chicken stock and pork drippings from oven to the reduction and simmer til sauce has reduced and slightly thickened.  Strain sauce. 

8.        Plate by laying the pak choy on the plate with a serve of the celeriac mash in the middle. Rest pork belly on top and lay carrots on the side. Top with a generous amount of the pinot noir reduction.  

Kane's Kitchen - 6th December 2011 - Gingerbread Men / Women / Trees / Stars

Gingerbread Men / Women / Trees / Stars

Makes:  20   

Prep Time:  20 mins

Cook Time:  10 mins

What You’ll Need:

• 125g butter, chopped, at room temperature
• ½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
• ½ cup golden syrup
• 1 egg, separated (use the yolk for the gingerbread and the white for the icing)
• 2½ cups plain flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• Smarties, M&Ms, lollies, to decorate
• Gingerbread men / women / tree / star cutters

 Royal Icing

·         1 eggwhite

·         1¼ cups pure icing sugar, sifted

·         ½ tsp lemon juice

·         Food colourings, if desired

What You’ll Need To Do:

1.        Preheat oven to 180C.  Sift the flour, ginger, mixed spice and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl.

2.        Use an electric beater to beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy.  Add the golden syrup and egg yolk and beat until well combined. Stir in the flour mixture and combine.

3.        Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth.  Press the dough into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 30 mins to rest (over 1 hour is preferable).

4.        Meanwhile, place the egg white in a clean bowl and use an electric beater to beat until soft peaks form.  Gradually add the icing sugar and lemon juice and beat until stiff.  Divide icing among three bowls and add desired food colourings.  Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge.

5.        Grease two baking trays.  Place the rested dough between two sheets of baking paper and roll out until 5mm thick.   Use a 9cm gingerbread cutter (or whatever cutter you prefer) to cut the dough into shapes.  Place on greased trays 3cm apart. 

6.        Bake in oven for 10 minutes or until brown.  Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to finish the cooling process. 

7.        Using a piping bag (or small plastic bags with a hole cut in the corner of each bag), pipe icing onto gingerbread men to decorate.  Finish with smarties / lollies.