Archive for August, 2009
As we enter the last week of August, we can look back at the busy period and think, “yeah! it´s over!”, 
Only joking 
of course. We enjoy being busy, proves that we must be doing something right!.
Small plates with “snacks and bites” are very welcome in the summer, and we have been serving an array of these.
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Fresh Spring Rolls are always a favourite, especially when filled with King Prawns.
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Buns have risen and are ready for steaming.
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We have stopped filling the buns before cooking, choosing instead to fill them afterwards with different fillings ranging from Red Roasted Pork and Hoisin, Shredded Peking Duck, Pâté and Homemade Pork “Yhor” with Pickled Carrots etc..
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I have often posted about (and get emails about) our chilled Clear Tomato Soup which we use as an “amuse bouche”.
When the dish is first presented on the table as “Chilled Tomato Soup”, there are glances of bewilderment on our guests faces, these glances of confusion soon turn to surprised acknowledgment when the summery taste of garden tomatoes hits the palate.
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INGREDIENTS:
This is really a simple, yet flavour packed recipe.
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Ripe Tomatoes. We often use Cherry Tomatoes too, which results is a clearer finished product. The type of tomatoes is up to you, (Tomatoes on Vine are a good choice) 3kg´s will normally give you just under 1½ litres of soup.
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A bunch of fresh Basil. You could also use Coriander, but the flavour of Basil and Tomatoes is one of the oldest culinary partnerships.
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Sucking Pig, more commonly known as Suckling Pig is a milk fed piglet that has been slaughtered between the ages of 2 to 5 weeks. The Spanish city of Segovia is famous for its “Cochinillo Asado” or “Roast Suckling Pig”. Segovian chefs take great pride in their roasts, which are usually cut with the edge of a plate, to show how tender the meat is.
The prized gelatinous texture of the piglet is due to the amount of collagen found in its meat. A good roasted piglet should have a crispy skin, giving way to a soft meltingly subtle and juicy meat.
Our piglets are cooked “sous vide” to ensure that no moisture is lost during the roasting, which results in a more juicy cut. Juicy meat! Lovely.
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These six cuts are a whole piglet, two front legs, two back legs and two sides of ribs. (The head was roasted for the staff dinner! 
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The pieces were cooked for 12 hours at 62ºC.
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