In anticipation we cracked open one of our remaining 5 bottles of our medal winning  Chateau Rousselle 2004 Cru Bourgeois 2004 Cotes de Bourg, purchased at the vineyard on our last trip some 3 years ago.  It had been a long daytrip down to just north of Bordeaux from our base near Cognac, made arduous by an inability to find an eating establishment en route.  I seem to recall we ended up with a Mars Bar lunch from the emergency travelling stash.

We arrived at a seemingly deserted Chateau Rousselle just as the traditional French long lunchtime ended.  Thinking we were out of luck we were just setting off again to look for another vineyard from our list when there was a hurried wave from inside the grounds.  The friendly welcome was obviously genuine and we were given a thoroughly enjoyable tour of the premises by the winemaker Vincent Lemaitre and his assistant.

Spotless would be a good description of the winery buildings.  You could have eaten lunch off the floor.  There was a distinct feeling of attention to detail.  Inside the “chai” the steel tanks gleamed in the strong Bordeaux sunlight that streamed in through the big doorway leading from the courtyard, creating sharp reflections on their faceted surfaces.  Humorously, each of the vessels was named after one of Snow White’s seven dwarves.

We’ve toured a few wine producing establishments and it never ceases to amaze me how much we forget by the time we get back home.  Never mind…always gives us an excuse to tour another one, eh!

Back to the opened bottle.  We are divided on this one.  While J is uncertain as to its qualities, I reckon it’s maturing well.  I wouldn’t rave about it’s bouquet but it has lots of long dark tastes which do linger well after the mouthful has long disappeared.  Sadly I’m totally unable to differentiate my hints of violets and tobacco from my plums and mouse droppings but I’d say this wine was still maturing and developing character with no sign of thinning out.  A few years to go yet I think.

I think we’ll be buying in the Bergerac area this trip…so I’m off to read up on vineyards to visit and to dream of days of unaccustomed warm sunshine.

Verdure Fritte

The next day it was back to normal – 11C and cloudy. 

The sign for the cooking demos said “…appearing in Ring 2“.  We did think it unusual that  chefs of some celebrity would be doing their cookery demos in a “ring” – but hey, we were north of Aberdeen…and they do things differently up here in the north east.  The austere concrete corridor leading to the demonstration area smelled distinctly… “agricultural”.  The penny dropped!

We had assumed that the Thainstone Centre was some sort of agricultural training college or administration building.   The distinctive  pungent aroma wafting up the nostrils told us we were in a livestock market…and being herded straight into the sale ring.  Thankfully Ring 2 smelled less of animal than did the corridor.  Ironically it was a perfectly sized auditorium for a cookery demo.

Inside "Ring 2"

If you have the opportunity to see Simon Rimmer cook – take it – great entertainment.  The cooking definitely came second to the talking, so much so that I can barely remember what his second dish was…although I do vaguely remember his first was the Italian desert – Zucotta…something I am now expected to reproduce in the kitchen back home.

Simon Rimmer (second from left)

Half an hour later we were forcing our way back into the throngs around the stalls in the main building.  We’d only 15 minutes before we would be trooping back into see Jean-Christophe Novelli work his magic.  It was now 1.30pm and we were mightily hungry.  I stood in the queue and J went of in search of edibles.  It seemed somewhat perverse that, here in the place where the north east’s major food producers had gathered to show off their wares, we were having to settle for hurried bags of crisps and tubs of ice cream.

Minutes later we were setting back off down the same austere concrete lined corridor as before.  Only this time the smell was different.  It seemed somehow fitting that, as we approached the door to the demonstration to see a Frenchman cook, the earlier “agricultural” smell had been replaced by one of frying garlic.

A jealous husband decides to bring Jean-Christophes career to a messy end.

M. Novelli has for a number of years been a ladies’ favourite.  I suggested we sit near the back to avoid the cascade of undergarments associated with such adoration.   I did struggle at times to make out Jean-Christophe’s soft French accent but did learn a few important things.  Such as…

1)     always cut the little core out of garlic, shallots and onions as this is the part that creates all the gastric hassles from bad breath to galloping wind.

2)     Rapeseed oil has only 2% saturated fat and is high in omega 3 – so is a lot better for you than other oils.

3)     Even an ex Michelin star chef can burn a pan!

We’ve holidayed in Cornwall the past 2 summers and eaten at Nathan’s previous Michelin starred restaurant at Fowey and then last year at his new establishment at Rock.  At that time he’d no stars at all, so getting 2 straight off is some achievement.  Really pleased because on both occasions the food was superb and we were treated very well by the superb staff.  Both dinners have been our top 2 favourites of all time.

Well done Nathan and staff!

A very brief review from last years visit

Sigh.  Every time we go into a wine shop we hit the same problem.  “Red and wet” is generally our best attempt at an answer.  Maybe it would be better if we could be more precise.  You can almost taste the sense of despair coming from the shop owner as we appear to contradict ourselves every time we open our mouths.  Even when they drop to the ultimate fallback, “…any particular country?” they’re met with fixed smiles and shrugs.

The only time we drink wine is with food – so what we drink depends on what is in the pot.  As my cooking tends to involve big tastes, most of the time we don’t need to worry about the wine overpowering the food.   Learning the subtleties of matching hints of fruit, spice, tobacco and plastic bin liners with the various components of my dishes has never been a priority.  Wet and red!

“Umm…eh….”

Having been met with chronic indecision Eduardo, a recent addition to the staff, had a flash of inspiration and opted for another tack.

“Would you like to taste a couple of wines?”

That’s more like it!  With a bit of luck we’d like one of the wines and thus put an end our embarrassment and poor Eduardo’s singular misfortune.  Shame the Rioja (in our opinion) tasted awful – I could sense Eduardo might be looking for another room to be in.

“Maybe it’s been open too long?”

“No…”  he assured us.  “…it was opened earlier today.”

“Hmm.”

Then a flash of inspiration…

“What about something different…a taste we’re not going to find in a supermarket?”

A relieved Eduardo was now up and running.

We put the brakes on…”…and under £10 please.”

Knowing that we were going to be mean with our money helped Eduardo enormously in terms of the much smaller selection of wines he had now to choose from.

It was at this point the harassed co-owner had had enough.  Whether it was to give Eduardo a break from the philistines or a more self-serving gesture on her part – Eduardo was asked to go and make her a cuppa.  Preparing for the struggle to come she straightened, focussed…

“…and what type of wine do you like?”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

As usual it proved to be an education and, hats off to Eduardo, one of the owner’s choices was the same as her assistant’s.

We came away with:

1 bottle            Borsao – a young Spanish red from southeast of Rioja.

http://www.bodegasborsao.com/en/producto.html?id=17

Borsao

1 bottle            Torus – a red from southwest France

http://www.brumont.fr/vins.php?idCat=3&id=0&langue=fr

Torus

All for the sum of £18.  We’ll let you know if we struck lucky.  Oh yes…my thanks to all at WoodWinters for persevering under extreme circumstances…but there is bad news…we’ll be back!

That being the case I’d better push on with the writing before the novelty wears off.

For the first time in many years I’ve been to a restaurant in Falkirk and come away with a smile on my face.  Having aspired to undemanding culinary mediocrity for many years Falkirk has inadvertently produced what I consider to be a wee gem…albeit with a few qualifications.

This recently opened, family run, eatery maybe hasn’t pushed the boat out in terms of decor and up market furniture but it is spotless, fresh and obviously willing to give its best shot.

Armed with a couple of Chang Beers J and I perused the unfamiliar menu.

Chang Beer

As we ran down the list of interesting sounding starters I couldn’t help but think it was odd that, after so many years of eating out, we’d never bothered to  explore Thai food.  If chef could produce what the menu hinted at I reckoned we’d be giving ourselves a severe telling off for accidentally avoiding it for so long.

Resisting the urge to overload we restricted ourselves to just two starters.  Both turned out to be good choices.  The Thai fishcakes were meaty and aromatically seasoned with each bite leaving a fresh, herby aftertaste.    Covered in a light crispy batter our other choice, the sweet potato fritters, didn’t have the same complexity of flavours but when matched with the sweet chilli and sesame seed dipping sauce proved to be a good second choice.  While we enjoyed both  sauces, they tended to be a bit on the sweet side and would have benefitted from a wee bit of sharpness for contrast.

Thai Fish Cakes and Sweet Potato Fritters

I was all for bringing back the menu to try a couple more…but I’m probably 30 years too late for that sort of stunt.

J likes her curries on the mild side so we opted for the Gaeng phed ped yang,  roast duck with red curry .  While I thought the dish was very good – the roast duck was aromatic and the flavourings were good – the food critic in me wasn’t wild about addition of pineapple and small green grapes.  In fairness a Google search confirmed that some recipes indeed use grapes and pineapple…but other recipes leave it out.  I think I’m in the latter camp.  So no criticism of the chef on account of the fruit.

Our second choice was chargrilled butterfly prawns.  3 big, beefy, monster prawns arrived basted with a yellow curry sauce.   Tasted great…but unfortunately the prawns had been chargrilled far too long and as a result were tough.   A major flaw at £14.  However the sauce tasted fresh and was a perfect complement for the dish.

Cargrilled Butterfly Prawns

Sticky Rice…oh yes!  Great stuff.  Took me a while to get around to the concept, having strived for decades to cook un-sticky rice, but am now hooked.  I can see sticky rice appearing at home in the very near future!  A side dish of fairly non-descript noodles completed our order – they were good but maybe a tad on the soft side.  A minute or so less in the pot would have been better.

So…overall we really enjoyed the meal and would have no hesitation going back.  The food tasted freshly made and the variety of the various flavourings were greater than I had expected given the emphasis on red and green curry sauces which seem to dominate Thai cooking.  Personally, I would steer away from the expensive prawn dishes as the chargrilling could be a bit hit or miss.

Our 2 starters, 2 mains, sticky rice, noodles, 2 jasmine teas and  2 beers came to £47.  Replace the prawns with a normal priced dish and you would be down to £43.  Not bad value.

Sadly, quality eateries in Falkirk have a habit of not lasting – goodness knows why.  We arrived at 6.30 on a Friday evening (to get the chef to ourselves) but by 8.00pm there was only one other table occupied.  Please…not again!

Go on - pay a visit.

I thought a recipe would be in order at this point in the proceedings so here’s one I discovered for the roast duck and red curry – complete with pineapple and grapes!

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Roast duck with red curry (Gaeng phed ped yang)

Roast duck with red curry (Gaeng phed ped yang)

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) coconut milk
• 1/3 cup basic Thai red curry paste (see related recipe)
• 1/2 cup (125ml) coconut cream
• 3 kaffir lime leaves, torn
• 4 Thai apple eggplant, cut in half
• 1/2 roast duck*, cut into bite-size pieces
• 200g pineapple, cut into 2cm pieces
• 10 grape tomatoes
• 1/3 cup red seedless grapes
• 1 cup Thai basil leaves
• 2 tbs fish sauce
• 1 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tbs caster sugar
• 1 tbs grated palm sugar
• Steamed jasmine rice, to serve

1. Heat 1/4 cup coconut milk in a wok over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes or until oil starts to separate from milk. Add curry paste and stir for 2-3 minutes or until roasted and fragrant. Add remaining coconut milk and cream and bring to the boil, then add lime leaves and eggplant. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until eggplant starts to soften.
2. Add remaining ingredients to wok and cook for a further 3 minutes or until heated through. Serve immediately with steamed rice.

Notes

• * Roast duck is available from Chinese barbecue shops.

http://www.templeofthai.com/recipes/duck_curry.php

As I scan web page after web page of food blogs, twitter links and Facebook pages, my stomach tells my brain that a lot more should be happening on the consumption front.  Somewhat unconvincingly my brain responds by telling my stomach to stop being such a wimp and to get on with digesting material for the blog.  The stomach, somewhat piqued by the brain’s apparent lack of sympathy, responds by claiming that the lack of food is having a detrimental effect on blog inspiration.

Eventually a compromise is reached.  I’ve booked a table for tomorrow evening at Krua Thai, Falkirk’s new Thai Restaurant.  Stomach and brain are reconciled.

Eating out in Falkirk always fills me with a sense of dread as the local eating experience has, through the years, proved to be one of disappointing mediocrity.

Krua Thai claim that everything is freshly cooked and have placed on their advert a statement that they do not use msg – which is an odd thing to do – but I’m not going to criticise.  Hopefully it’s a statement of real intent by the owners.   Attention to detail…that’s what we want to see.

I’ve booked a 6.30 table, giving us every chance to have the chef’s undivided attention before the Friday evening crowds appear.

Fingers crossed.

Making a Fresh Start

A quick search of my decaying memory banks reminded me that I used to do such things as make bread, jam, paté, wafer paper prawns, oyster sauce bean curd roll, the list goes on…but it’s a long while since I attempted to do much by way of serious cooking or baking and as a result my dubious culinary talents have been stagnating. 

In my defence the fundamental one dish dinner has continued to evolve over the years but, it has to be said, somewhat ponderously.  My culinary evolution, an incredibly speedy process in its early stages in the late 70’s, slowly but steadily, slipped back into the primordial ooze of gastronomic mediocrity in the intervening decades.

I’ve almost forgotten how to construct a 3 course meal (not that I ever did the puddy course), in fact taking this up as a serious hobby again is quite a daunting prospect.  The spectacular 16 course Chinese banquets of the 1980’s are now but a faint memory, engendering complete bafflement as to how I ever managed to cook such extravagant meals in the first place.

Undeterred I headed off to the kitchen to make a fresh start…

————————————————————————————–

…There was much grunting and cursing as the kitchen cupboards, long deprived of human attention, found their deepest recesses invaded as I attempted to determine what culinary gadgetry lurked within that was still of some use.

Whispered messages spread rapidly between astonished drawers and shelves…

”The Master has returned!”

Ancient grease coated appliances, their use long forgotten, spilled onto the kitchen tiles blinking dozily in the unaccustomed light of day prayed for a glimpse of their near-forgotten God.

“Urrgghhh!….” I thought as I surveyed the distinctly unhygienic chaos littering the floor.

A few redeemable souls found salvation in a sink of fairy liquid and hot water; the others…the eternal slumber of the local midden.

A few hours later…

Knives sharpened to “lethal”; the food processor scrubbed removing most of the harmful bacteria; my tenderising hammer re-discovered and fumigated; me and my kitchen are now ready for action.  I can now slice, chop and generally beat the wozit out of any godforsaken ingredient!

A new era begins…

I don’t get it.

Sadly, my lifetime experience of Scottish fish and chip shops has never turned up anything approaching decent quality.  In fact the only time I’ve had an outstanding “fish supper” take-away was from a semi-permanent mobile fish and chip van in a wee town called Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada, where everything was cooked to order.  Our meal of halibut and chips and a portion of prawns still lingers favourably in the memory.   

As far as I can see all that is needed to make a decent product is quality fish, a good batter mix and decent oil or fat.  And I mean decent…not earth shatteringly wonderful…just decent.  This is not skilled cooking.  So…why did someone create an award for the “Best Fish and Chip Shop”?  Is it really necessary to reward the marginally above the mundane?

We visited such an award winning establishment in Fife and stood in a queue for 30+ minutes (it’s that popular) waiting to be served.  Ironically we were able to order breaded prawns (langoustines) and halibut with, of course, the mandatory chips.

Half an hour later I discovered I was not running down the street proclaiming the second coming while praising the Almighty for restoring my faith in Scotland’s staple takeaway.  Everything was well overcooked and well overpriced…even the chips.  The langoustines were small and sadly lacking in flavour.  Below its batter coating the halibut had decayed to a dry, tasteless, mush.  It was altogether a poor effort.

So much for the award for “Best Fish and Chip Shop”!  That being the best, I had grave concerns for the rest of the country.  Maybe I should have stuck to the deep fried Mars bars.

If you want outstandingly superb fish, chips and mushy peas head for the restaurant in the Dakota Hotel at North Queensferry (menu).  It may be just a tad more formal than your average chippy, but it’s well worth it.

Barra Gallega con Salsas Spanish rustic bread with 4 dips, romesco, aioli, aubergine & pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Gambas a la Plancha Whole king prawns cooked in chilli and lemon juice. : Patatas Bravas Fried potatoes in smoked paprika sauce and mayonnaise. : Montaditos de Morcilla con Vieras - Signature Dish Spanish black pudding and fresh scallops drizzled with coral oil and topped with fried ham.

Never yet had a bad dish and we’ve been a good few times.  Perfectly cooked scallops topped with Spanish black pudding and crispy ham has to be our favourite – so far.  Here’s a look at the Tapas menu.

J liked the Cava based sangria (in the top photo)…but I prefer my cava unadulterated.