Recipe: Sweet Potato Tortilla (Spanish Omelette)

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

The first time I remember making this was for some friends, and my new flatmates, my flat mates didn't know what to expect, and I didn't really have any idea what they liked so I decided to makes tapas. Tapas are a great option when you're unsure what folk like because they can pick and choose what they like. I'll never forget my flatmate's boyfriend's face when he tried this recipe. First he munched then fairly quickly a huge grin of approval appeared on his face, followed by nodding and hmmmm-ing!! Then he went in for seconds with the best "happy days" expression I have ever seen!! That's always very rewarding! This recipe has been on the menu for the last 5 years, and none has ever come back! 

So here it is for you to try . . . .  in both video format, and written!

How To: Cooking Sweet Potatoes

In this picture we served it with Oyster Mushrooms Noisette and pea shoots!

ingredients (serves 6 - starter / tapa)

for the tortilla

400g sweet potato

400g onions (150-200g / med-large onion)

3-4 eggs

s&p

veg oil for frying

apparatus / equipment

deep fat fryer (optional)

frying pan

plate for turning

tortilla

Add enough oil to a frying pan to shallow fry the vegetables.

Peel the sweet potato and cut it into slices the thickness of a chip.

Peel onions and cut them into 1cm dice, than add both to the oil and fry gently until the sweet potatoes are soft.

Remove with a slotted spoon and put on kitchen towel to remove the excess fat.

Crack all the eggs into a mixing bowl and beat until the yolks are mixed in.

Add the fried veggies to the eggs. Season with salt and a touch of pepper and mix thoroughly.

Remove the oil from the pan leaving a thin coat. 

Add the potato mixture to the pan and fry it gently until it's almost cooked all the way through, then turn it out onto the plate. 

Add a touch of oil to the pan and return the tortilla to the pan uncooked side down to finish it off.

NB If using a deep fat fryer, deep fry onions and potatoes for 6-8m @ 140C, or until the sweet potatoes are soft, then drain.

thinking ahead

The tortilla can be made in the afternoon and reheated under the grill (or a microwave) or eaten at room temperature!!

what could go wrong? (notes)

My tortilla is stuck to the pan, and it's fallen to bits when I try and get it out!!

Well, best advice is use a good non stick pan! 

Failing that make sure that the oil is hot when you put the mix into the pan.

Draw the tortilla mix from the edge to the centre bringing the cooed mix to the centre and replacing it with raw mix.

Jiggle the pan each time you do this to stop it sticking to the bottom - took me years to work that out!!

to serve

Turn out onto a clean plate and cut into even slices to the delight of the kids, the vegetarians, basically anyone who likes food!!

We serve it with a spicy fried tomato sauce and some aioli!

variations

Some folk don't like onions! They can be left out to make a simple sweet potato tortilla (omelette)

Enjoy!! : )

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

Video Recipe: Roasting a Ribeye Joint of Beef to Perfection

by Simon Fernandez of ferdiesfoodlab

This is a beautiful cut of beef, personally I think a good ribeye steak is pretty hard to beat!! (Wistfully dreams of all the different cuts of beef and ways of preparing it hmmmmm, post on roasting fore rib, bone in cooing soon!)

Here's my video of how to roast a ribeye joint (by the way 3kg will easily feed 12 people):

Roasting a Ribeye Rare - Video

How To Cook A Rib Eye Roast Rare

And the moral of the story is??? Never do a video shoot the day after a stag do . . . . . . bad idea!!

Anyhoo here are a few more details that aren't explained in the video:

At ferdiesfoodlab we actually rest it from 15 minutes to 30 minutes while it's sat on top of the oven to keep the joint up to temperature. The purpose of resting the meat is two fold, to give an even distribution of moisture (juices) and an even distribution of temperature. That is to say the juice from the centre of the joint travels to the outer more roasted less moist part of the joint, making it juicier, and the heat travels to the cooler centre giving a more even temperature throughout the joint.

ingredients (serves 10 - 12)

"The best roast beef I've EVER eaten" - James (Camera man)

for the beef
3kg joint of ribeye beef
olive oil
salt

apparatus / equipment
Temperature probe.

beef (180C / 40m-55m)
This has to be the simplest recipe I've ever posted. Good quality ingredients are key, we use a 28 matured ribeye.

Coat the beef in oil and salt and, using a hot frying pan, (or in the roasting dish - even better) brown the outside of the beef.
Place into a preheated oven for 40 - 55 minutes. I always probe the joint after 40minutes. Variation in the size of the joint means that they all cook at different speeds. At ferdiesfoodlab we aim for medium rare, 45C at the centre. Don't forget it will continue to cook a little once you've taken it out. 45C = Rare, 55C = Medium, 65C = Sacrilege. I mean well done ; )


what could go wrong?
Overcooked it!! Arse! Keep an eye on the core temperature of the joint with a thermometer, the smaller the joint the faster it will cook so check it after 20 minutes if using a 1.5kg joint for example.

The probe said 65C but when I carved the joint it wasn't cooked in the middle?? When probing for temperature make sure the tip of your probe is in the centre of the beef and that it hasn't gone all the way through to the other side where the meat will be a higher temperature giving you the impression that the joint is more cooked than it is!!

to serve
Make sure your plates are hot, plate roasties or chips then veg, then the beef and jus/sauce.
We serve this with Liquorice Salt and White Tomato Emulsion to accompany the beef and roast potatoes with ginger carrots. It's a real crowd pleaser!

 
variations
A friend of mine Ramirez, does a nice variation. He likes to add about 4 cloves of garlic into the roasting tray and with a 10g of thyme and about half a bottle of red wine. He also coats the beef with anchovy fillets, which gives it a nice salty crust! When the beef is finished cooking put it to one side to rest. Just before you serve, add a touch more wine to the baking tray and bring it to the boil scraping all the crusty bits off the side to make a tasty sauce, pass it through a sieve, then back to the tray. Take 50g of butter cut into cubes and stir it in to give you a sumptuous sauce to pour over the beef. Result!

links
One of the great things about roast beef is leftovers!! You can use the leftovers for the obvious beef sandwich, or for any number of recipes, maybe one of these if you fancy:

Cambodian beef salad and chips




                                     Herefordian beef pho