Recipe: Scrambled Eggs w/ Soft Yolks (no bother Hollandaise)

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

Nothing beats a nice relaxed Sunday brunch, with the papers.  Especially when it’s a gorgeous, bright, crisp sunny day! Perfect to pop out somewhere to have it made for you! Well that’s all true but on this particular occasion I thought I’d take advantage of the nice weather to go for a spin on my bike, and when I got back I was in the mood for a solid brunch! 

I fancied something along the lines of a fry up but healthier. I had some smoked salmon and eggs but there was absolutely no way I was making a hollandaise sauce : /

Solution: Salmon with scrambled eggs with soft egg yolks. Add a little toast and soft cheese et voila!

ingredients (serves 2)

for the scrambled eggs w/ soft yolks

5 eggs

30g butter (or garlic butter)

30g cream (or creme fraiche or soured cream)

2 spring onions / 10g chives (chopped)

seasoning

for the accompaniments 

smoked salmon 

cream cheese 

buttered toast

for the garnish

spring onion

lemon (for salmon - zest & cut into wedges)

sea salt 

fresh ground black pepper

method

accompaniments

Put some plates on to heat and get the accompaniments ready before hand. 

Make the toast as you make the scrambled eggs!! After all who like cold toast or cold eggs!!

scrambled eggs w/ soft yolks

Separate 4 of the yolks from the eggs, keeping the yolks in their shells so they don’t break.

Add the butter, egg and egg white to a pan on a medium heat. Stir them occasionally to mix in the yolk the butter. I like mine to have a little substance so I let chunks form and then stir a little.

Put 500ml of boiling water into a bowl and add the egg yolks, this will just cook the white and make a thin cooked outer.

Chop the greens and mix them into the egg white and butter. 30 seconds later add the cream and seasoning serve onto toast or a warm plate. Making an indent in the middle to hold the yolks!!

Remove the egg yolks from the water with a slotted spoon - tapping them on some kitchen towel on the way to release excess water - and place them in the centre of the scrambled eggs. 

Add accompaniments and serve immediately!!

Recipe: Arepas

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

Just recently I’ve been getting into my street food, London has a vibrant street food scene, Camden, Street Feast (various), Portobello road, the list is endless. I’ve I’ve tried in one form or another most of the offerings so it’s nice to try something new. 

Now this can be a risk, a lot of people like the familiar, burger, fried chicken, pizza, curry, safety init. Arepas were something I’d not tried and so when I saw a stand offering them I went in! First at mini feast in Shepherds Bush then again at Camden. Both times I got a pretty respectable bite to eat, so you can imagine my delight when I was offered one for breakfast on Saturday morning! I took the opportunity to learn how to make them taught by a cute Venezuelan teacher by the name of Valentina!

So with me and her boyfriend as sous chefs we cracked on!

Worth noting: The important thing is that you’ve got to eat them fresh, soon as they’re ready. The dough will keep in the fridge so you can keep what you don’t use for later.

Make sure they’re crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle. Don’t make them too thick (more than half centimetre) or they’ll be a bit too stodgy in the middle!

This isn’t a purist recipe, I just watched, took notes and learned how to make some great food courtesy of Venezuela.

ingredients (serves 5 - 2 each)

for the arepas

650g coarse grain maize meal (pre-cooked)

750ml water

30ml vegetable oil

5g salt (lightly salted)

for the avocado chicken

1 onion

1 clove garlic

2 avocado

400g roast chicken

2 tbsp mayo

for the tuna (NB tuna is an endangered species -  best to stick to sustainable fish)

200g tuna

1 tbsp veg oil

for the scrambled eggs

1 onion (fine chopped)

2 tomatoes

2 eggs (whites only)

for the refried beans (quick style - original style)

1 onion (medium dice)

30g butter

250g black beans (1 tin, drained)

for the cheese

8 slices cheese (gouda, or emental, whatever you prefer)

some soft cheese ([p something])

for the garnish

Some spring onions, chopped chives if you like.

arepas

Couldn’t be easier, mix the corn flour and the water and the veg oil and a little salt until they make a “smooth masa” (a kind of dough mix), not sure I’d call it a dough. It's a kind of mash potato consistency.

Let it sit and soak up the water while you (or your sous chefs / helpers) make the rest of the fillings.

Once all the fillings are ready get a large frying pan or two, and run them up to “half fire”, take a handful of dough, bit bigger than a ping pong ball and flatten it in your hands and place it into the pan. 

Repeat until you fill the pans with flat breads.

Now it’s a patience game: cook 15mins, turning once. 

avocado chicken

Cut the avocado in half around the length. Twist it around the stone to separate the two halves.

To remove the stone using a heavy blade, hit the stone so the blade sticks into the stone then turn the blade to rotate the stone and remove it - it will be stuck to the knife!

Use the knife to cut a criss cross into the flesh, then scoop the contents out of he skin.

Tear the roast chicken into shreds and mix with the avocado pieces, and a touch of seasoning.

Add the mayo and mash it up with a potato masher.

Thats basically ready!

tuna

Empty tin, add a little oil (if it’s brined) and a squeeze of lemon, mix. Or instead of eating endangered species, you could use, flaked river cobbler, pollock, or sardines instead of tuna.

scrambled eggs

OK, so new one on me, sweat off the onions with a little oil, add a touch of butter, let it melt and add the chopped tomato, cook it out a little, then add the egg whites and mix them through until they’re cooked.

refried beans (short cut)

No excuses here, these aren’t classic refried beans but they do have the same flavour profile, with a different texture, no shame. Fry off some onions, add a little seasoning and the drained beans, leave on a low heat until everything else is ready.

what could go wrong? (notes)

You could get some uptight type giving you grief about the refried beans!

to serve

Put all the ingredients on the table, and let folk assemble what ever they fancy, take what you want to make your own crispy outer and beautifully filled arepa.

R E S U L T !!

AWESOME!!

Yeah . . . I know!! ; )

variations

Pulled pork is popular at the moment, maybe corn and ndugya, there’s plenty of scope!

That evening I made us a paella mixta with is always great the next day, some arepa dough and leftover paella & lettuce filling!! : )

Comfort Recipe: Smokey Linguini - Vegetarian (works w/ Spaghetti, why not add Chorizo!)

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

When I’m feeling like something that’s going to satisfy me, and not be a giant pain in the arse to make this really hits the spot!!

It does have one shortcut which is the garlic and onion reduction, I usually make a batch and store it in the fridge in an old mayo jar - one of the big ones!! Then I don’t have to chop onions or garlic or mess about at all!! Recipe for the garlic onion reduction is here (it’s basically lob ingredients into a pot and reduce it for a couple of hours).

This one’s just as simple!!

ingredients (serves 2-4)

for the linguini

200g linguini 

1 tsp salt

1.5L water

for the smokey flavour

2 tbsp garlic onion reduction (recipe)

1 tsp smoked paprika

10g picked thyme (optional but really nice)

slug of olive oil

for the garnish

chives or spring onions (chopped)

apparatus / equipment

colander

boiling pot

method

for the linguini

Bring 1.5L water to the boil (use kettle for high speed results!) 

Add the water to a boiling pot with the salt, dissolve the salt and add the pasta.

Cook for ~9-11mins depending how you like it. (9min al dente - 11min sooooft)

Then strain it, keeping the water to add a little to the sauce.

smokey flavour

First make sure you get hold of some decent smoked paprika: I use La Chinata - it has a great smokey flavour much better than most of the generic ‘smoked’ paprika you get in a lot of places. (you can get it at the supermarket too!!)

OK that said, dust a healthy tsp of smoked paprika over a medium hot dry frying pan. As soon as it starts to change colour and start giving off a smokey aroma (which will be 5-10seconds) add 2 tbsp of garlic reduction, a slug of olive oil and the thyme and mix well! Add the pasta and a 1/2 ladle of pasta water and toss the pasta with a couple of wooden forks. 

to serve

Serve on hot plates dusting with chives or spring onion.

thinking ahead

Now the pasta purists out there would probably have me shot, but this is just as good the next day and microwaves pretty well so it’s great to load up a takeaway box and have it for lunch the next day!

variations

Make it meaty!! Dice 100g chorizo and cook until browned on the outside, add the picked thyme, cook for 2 more minutes then put aside. Use the same pan for more flavour and add the paprika etc and follow recipe above, adding the cooked chorizo just before the pasta!Makes for a nice meaty variant!! 

Recipe: Zero Fat Salmon & Pork Wonton Soup

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

A friend of mine came round to lend a hand with hanging a door, a bit of sawing cutting varnishing that kind of thing. As a thanks for lending a hand I knocked this recipe up for a late lunch. I’m not gonna lie, it would have gone down exceptionally well accompanied by an ice cold beer! Unfortunately no beer allowed today - booooo! - watching that there waistline : /

Not bad for a bit of lunch - to be fair we'd earned it!!

Salmon is optional!! : )

Cucumber noodles

This recipe is a great recipe because you can have it with carbs or as a carb-less cucumber version!! Aye! So really good if you’re cooking for others while watching your own intake. Oh the sneakiness!! : )

It’s also quick and simplicity to make!

ingredients (serves 2 hungry people)

for the noodle soup

500g fresh noodles

1 chicken stock cube

1 tsp yellow bean paste (soya bean paste)

1L boiling water

1 medium red onion (finely sliced)

2 small green chillies (cut into rings, keep seeds)

1tbsp fish sauce (season to taste)

for the pork wontons

10 pork wontons (recipe post coming soon)

for the cucumber noodles

Mint & Sweet Basil

1/3 cucumber (mandolin to noodles)

1 tsp soy

for the salmon

300g salmon (cut into 2 pieces)

olive oil

salt

Ready for action!!

for the topping ~ garnish

2 tbsp cucumber noodles

10g sweet basil (stalks removed, torn)

10g mint (stalks removed, torn)

10g coriander (stalks removed, torn)

2 spring onions (cut into strips and then thirds)

~

2 spring onions (fine sliced into rings)

sweet basil (picked)

crispy fried onion

1 lime (sliced into 1/4’s)

apparatus / equipment

mandolin

method

for the noodle soup

Put the yellow bean paste and chicken stock cube in a pot, dissolve in the boiling water.

Add the green chillies, 1/2 of the red onion and the wontons, bring to the boil then set to simmer.

Add the spring onions just before serving. (or to the noodles, either will do)

for the cucumber noodles

Run the cucumber through the mandolin. Add a touch of soy if you fancy it!

Simple and fast! WARNING: Be so sooo careful with your fingers on the mandolin!!

Cook it 90% skin side down!! (Don't forget to de-scale it!)

for the salmon

I like my salmon ‘mit cuit’ but that’s a lot of ****ing about for lunch, so a nice quick alternative is to literally half cook it!

Quickly sear the remaining sides

Pat the salmon dry and coat it in olive oil. Salt the skin side to give a really nice crispy skin, and put it into pan on a medium high heat, skin side down. Leave it for 5mins until crisp and golden. the sear the remaining sides to finish. The centre should warm and still pink! If you’re using the skirt of the salmon, which is a lot thinner and fattier (and really nice) use a hot pan on a high heat for a shorter time.

for the pork wontons

I grabbed these out of the freezer!! I’ll put up a post on how to make them soon!

to serve

Unpack the noodles then loosen them and put them in a bowl. Microwave them so the broth stays warm when you pour it in.

Dress the noodles with herbs, cucumber noodles, spring onion and the red onion and pour in the broth. Sprinkle with round spring onion slices, crispy fried onion and chillies. Pop the salmon on top and serve with a slice of lime.

variations

If you’re making the cucumber noodle version replace 250g noodles with 2/3 of a cucumber that’s been sliced into noodles!

Video Recipe: Orange Couscous - Perfect Summer BBQ Accompaniment

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

This recipe is simple and fast to make and with its fresh orange flavour it is a nice surprise on the plate. The most complex step is the almonds, and you can skip the egg coating. Simply roast them add a touch of salt and oil and they'll work perfectly with this recipe:

video post

How To Cook Couscous

This is the first recipe video I was ever in please forgive the green : )

ingredients (serves 4)

for the couscous

Rather than pause and copy things down you can get a list of ingredients from a previous post here.

We all learn as we go - life would be pretty boring otherwise - and since this video was made I've adapted this recipe a little to make it lighter. Instead of adding the O.J. to the onion and fruit mix, put it in a large, shallow pan that has a lid, then add the couscous, making sure it's evenly spread, then cover with a lid or cling film. Leave to soak 15mins. Mix everything together once the couscous is ready. The ratio of OJ to couscous should be 1.25 : 1 NOT 2 : 1

My version . . . .   : )

Mum's looks a lot nicer!!! (of course)

in the lab

How much water do I need to use to cook a cup of dry couscous?

Test done with 2 types of couscous: Belazu barley and Sainsburies semolina

So what's the ratio required to avoid sloppy couscous! 

Short answer 1:1.25 - semolina 1:1.75 - barley (by weight)

I know what you might think but I don't care - this kind of thing bugs me, and it really does make a difference to the final result!

After a couple of tests these are the conclusions that I came to:

RATIO grain : liquid	1:1	1:1.5	1:2
Barley	Too Dry	Passable Dry	Passable Wet
Semolina	Passable Dry	Passable Wet	Too Wet

general rules to remember . . .

Ratio of couscous to liquid should be  1 couscous : 1.25  boiling stock/juice.

If using a barley couscous 1:1.75.

When leaving the couscous to absorb the stock, favour a wide shallow vessel to a tall narrow one. This will give you more even absorption and texture.

apparatus / equipment

Kettle or saucepan,

Frying pan

Scibblings in the lab . . . 

thinking ahead

You can eat this hot or at room temp. Once made, store in the fridge covered with cling film. Remove from the fridge and let it warm up to room temp for an hour before you need it, then remove the cling film and serve to the delight of you guests!

what could go wrong? 

Why is my couscous rather dry and hard in places, and soggy in others? Mix the couscous gently half way through he soaking period at about 7mins!

variations

Given the absorbing nature of couscous it's open to being flavoured in all sorts of ways, roast veg in the winter, to fruit, tomatoes, basil and mint in the summer!!

Behind the scenes!!

The set @ferdiesfoodlab

Recipe: Ensaladilla Rusa (Russian Salad / Salad Olivier)

by ferdie, in partnership with Unearthed for Action Against Hunger

This is one of the staples of tapas houses all over the Iberian peninsula and into France!! What I find though is that it's rare that you get served a good one. In fact, the number of places that serve truly appalling potato salad is a bit depressing. Usually substandard ingredients with little variety, thin mayonnaise and undercooked potatoes - so disappointing because this is truly one of the kings of comfort foods. I often get a portion before ordering anything else to gauge if the rest of the tapas will be up to par. I do get excited if it's a good one cos when this is made with love it's fantastic and there's a good chance the other tapas have been made with love too : )

Ensaladilla Rusa by wiki accounts was first created in 1860 by Lucien Olivier of the Hermitage restaurant in Moscow. Me thinks the original - which apparently used venison and cray fish amongst other things - has gone through a few Chinese whispers to reach it's current incarnation.

Whenever we went to visit my grandparents in their remote little mountain village for a big old family reunion, this dish would always make it onto the feast menu. Usually in the first or second round served with fresh French stick! That aside, this is how my auntie showed me how to make it, with some small adjustments of my own.

Ingredients (makes 12 large portions or 24 small)
2.5kg  Maris Piper potatoes  (cut into 1-2cm cubes and boiled)
400g   tinned peas  (drained)
400g   tinned artichokes or from deli counter  (drained and diced)
4         carrots  (diced and boiled)
6         spring onions  (sliced - small rings)
18       boiled quails eggs peeled  (6 garnish) or 6 medium eggs hard boiled
24       garlic and chilli flavoured olives  (pitted and sliced)
6         pickled picante peppers  (finely chopped)
3         whole roast peppers  (coarsely chopped - keep 1/2 for garnish)
4         gherkins  (chopped)
750g   mayo  (150g for garnish)
100g   cured tuna  (for garnish optional - or anchovies)

I did this one so that it was vegetarian friendly (simply don't garnish with tuna or anchovy) but more often than not tuna is added to the mix, as are prawns, which I prefer. In fact a friend who was eating with us that night said it was perfect but was rather upset about the lack of prawns! Can't please everyone although this one come close.

Method
Prepare the ingredients as per the ingredients list. The important thing is to use tinned peas, not fresh or frozen, as they contribute to the texture of the mix, use fresh boiled carrots, and raw spring onions finely chopped into small rings.

If you've got the time to roast peppers then that's great but the ones that come in glass jars do a nice job too. You can also do the peppers in a heavy based pan with a lid and some extra virgin olive oil on a medium heat the way my mum does them, turn up the heat just at the end to blacken those sweet little babies off.

But the most important thing is how you cut and cook the potatoes. The secret to a good potato salad is not just nicely cooked small(ish) potato but also the gloop that binds the whole ensemble together and no! that gloop isn't just mayonnaise. It's juice and flavour from the peppers and other ingredients mixed with light mashed mayo potato hmmm : )

Question is how do you get that and it's very simple. Firstly don't cut the potatoes up larger than 2cm, 1cm - 2cm is perfect. Smaller than  that and you're potatoes will quickly turn to mush. Larger than 2cm and you end up with bits of potatoes too large to eat and the balance of potato to lovely gloop is too potatoey. Put the potatoes into the water and add salt. When the water starts to boil, set your timer for 7 minutes, when it goes off they should be perfect. But check them with a knife to be sure, I usually check them at 6 minutes just in case. Then drain them in a colander for a couple of minutes. At this point you need to fluff the potatoes. Once drained pour them back into the pot, season with salt and pepper, get a large fork, and roughly stir up the potatoes until they're kinda fluffy around the edges.

Put the eggs you're going to use as garnish aside, then roughly chop up (or grate) the remaining eggs and add them along with the rest of ingredients that aren't to be used as garnish to the potatoes and mix all together until it's evenly mixed. Check for seasoning and adjust as required.

We garnished our with cured tuna, quails egg and piquant pepper.

This is a version we did in partnership with Unearthed for Action Against Hunger
The course was Pork Meatballs in Chipotle Sauce w/ Ensaladilla Rusa
We used Unearthed pork meatballs and garnished the salad manzanilla olives and sun dried tomatoes and prosciutto. You can find the whole 8 course menu we served here.

As you can see you can present this in all sorts of ways only limited by you imagination!!

Of course if you're a Spaniard or a foodie there's a good chance you'll want to make the mayo yourself so here's how!

Tips: You can cook the potatoes with a stock cube for added flavour, this works well if you're doing a really simple potato salad, with, for example just the green part of spring onions. Which is ultra quick and quite tasty.

When you put love into you're food people will notice!!!!

Imitation is the highest for of flatery: Bong Lau Soup

My introduction to Vietnamese food was at the Viet Garden on Liverpool Road, Islington. I tried their "Bong Lau" soup and loved it immediately. There's quite a few things on their menu that are really good! I went home and scribbled some notes down, following weekend I went shopping and had a crack at it, I was really quite pleased with my first attempt, years later I made one for Uyen and it immediately found it's way on to the next Fernandez and Leluu menu! Can't be bad if you can impress a Vietnamese person with Vietnamese food!! Uyens write up and lessons from her mum are here.