Skirlie

This recipe puts me in mind of a traditional Scottish kind of gomasio. A crunchy and salty topping and snack food with plenty of flavor. It's good on all sorts of things but lends itself particularly well to Rumpledethumps.

¼ cup (2oz/58gr) butter (or bacon fat or beef suet)

1 onion (6oz/170gr) finely chopped

4 oz pinhead (synonyms: medium or steel cut) oats 

¼  to ½ tsp salt, or to taste

Pepper, to taste

1. Melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the onion until lightly browned.
2. Add the oatmeal and stir slowly until all the fat is absorbed; the onion should become dark and just crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Rumbledethumps

A very starchy, fatty dish with vegetables, therefore it's good for you. Nah, I'm not like that. If you have ingredients that are grown naturally and with care, it's all good for you. And this traditional English recipe is particularly good when served with the superlative Scottish condiment, Skirlie. In fact, the recipe below includes when to start the Skirlie so it's ready in time to eat with the Rumbledethumps. If nothing else, I get a kick of announcing that we're having Rumbledethumps with Skirlie for dinner!

4-5 servings

2lbs potatoes, cooked and mashed

20oz turnip or rutabaga or kohlrabi, cooked and mashed

⅓ cup (5oz/76gr) butter

24oz cabbage or Kale, sliced very thin

1 tsp salt 

Pepper to taste

3 oz cheddar cheese

1 recipe of Skirlie

1. Preheat the oven to around 350°F. 
2. If you have to boil the potato and turnip to make this, boil them together.
3. Melt all the butter in a frying pan and braise the cabbage or kale until softened (do not brown). 
4. Add the mashed potato and turnip to the cooked veg and combine thoroughly to incorporate all the browning and butter from the pan. 
5. Put the mash in an oven-proof baking tray, cover with a lid or aluminum foil and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes or until heated through and bubbling. 
6. While baking, make the Skirlie.
7. Remove the lid, sprinkle the cheese on top and cook until golden brown, another 15 minutes.
8. Serve with Skirlie on the side for each diner to sprinkle on top as needed.

How To Boil A Ham

Boiling a raw smoked ham makes for a delicious meal, or is the first step to making a glazed roast. I've adopted tips from Dorothy Hartley's History of Food in England for some olde timey ideas on how to improve a ham. If you have leftovers, so much the better because there are recipes that require bits of cooked smoked ham to extend the pleasure and gratitude for this food. There are loads of special Notes for this recipe, so make sure to read them to make sure you're getting the result you're looking for.

1 smoked raw ham, no matter the weight (picnic/shoulder hams are more flavorful)

• If the ham is not salted or is raw, try this brining recipe

1 large whole onion, skin and all, rough chop

2 carrots, rough chop

2 branches celery, rough chop (or a pinch of celery seed)

2 to 4 bay leaves

Small handful of whole peppercorns, about 1 Tbsp

NOTE: For best results, cook separately from a meal - the ham should cool in its own cooking water before use, which means boiling it the day before. HOWEVER, it can be used as soon as cooked all on its own and still hot as an excellent protein for a meal ('specially with roast root veg). 

NOTE: Put to soak the night before cooking.

1. Weigh the ham and calculate the cooking time (before the soak) at 15 minutes per lb.
2. Good hams are preserved with salt, which makes them very salty unless you soak them and boil the salts out of them. Soak the ham in plenty of cold water (therefore in a large pot) for a minimum of 6 hours, but preferably overnight. 
3. Drain the water, and replace with fresh cold water. Put the pot on your heat source but note, the water should not boil for any extended period - boiling will make the ham tough! Bring the water to a gentle simmer, and cook like this for about an hour for the first boil, regardless of the size of your ham. If you have a small ham, the timing for your second boil will depend on the internal temperature of the ham, outlined in step #6. 
4. Meanwhile, get the vegetables ready.
5. After the hour is up, drain the water, refill with cold water again, throw in the vegetables and spices, and set it to very gently simmer (again being careful not to let the water boil). From the calculations you made in Step 1, subtract the hour it has already simmered, and start the count-down. For the ham to be completely cooked, the internal temperature should read 155 to 160°F.
6. Once your ham is cooked, SAVE THE COOKING WATER to make soup! Leave the cooking water to cool completely and scoop off the congealed fat to use in flavoring dishes that usually use bacon for flavoring like quiches or soups. 
7. If not to eat right away, leave the ham in its cooking water to cool down completely. The flavorful cooking water will hydrate the ham to make it more succulent. The cold ham can be used to make baked ham, or its leftovers used in other dishes.

Good served with: Cabbage Braised in Milk 

Pork or Lamb Dhansak

On our journey to food sovereignty we have lived on a sheep farm, and currently we are raising pigs. There were no pigs on the sheep farm, nor are there any sheep on our current farm. While living on the sheep farm I was developing recipes that use lamb and/or mutton, but having that source of carbon dry up and be replaced by pork, I felt like I had lost a lot of time and energy. But, lo and behold, pork can substitute lamb in some instances. Ergo, this recipe is very good with either lamb or pork.

2+1 Tbsps mild oil

1 kg/2lb 4oz diced lamb or pork (or pork steaks) shoulder or leg, or a mixture of both

2 onions (12oz/340gr) chopped

25g/1oz fresh root ginger, finely grated

4 garlic cloves, pressed

2 red chillies, seeds removed, finely chopped

1 green cardamom pod, finely ground

1½ Tbsp ground cumin

1½ Tbsp ground coriander

½ Tbsp ground turmeric

1 x 400g/14oz can chopped tomatoes or the equivalent in fresh chopped tomato

200ml/7fl oz beef stock

75g/2½oz red lentils

2 Tbsps honey or maple syrup

1 tsp salt 

½ tsp pepper

To serve

Savoury Rice

Steamed pumpkin pieces

• NOTE: this can prepared in the oven or in the slow cooker. Refer to points 8 and 9 in the instructions for the type of cooking you choose to use.

1. Heat two Tbsps of oil in a large frying pan. Sear the meat until it is browned on all sides. Put in the cooking pot.
2. Add the remaining oil to the pan. Add the onion and fry for 4 to 5 minutes, or until beginning to soften.
3. Meanwhile, combine the ginger, garlic and chilli.
4. Remove the cardamom seeds from their husks and grind them to a fine powder in a pestle and mortar. 
5. Add the garlic and ginger mixture to the pan along with ground cardamom and the remaining spices.
6. Add the tomatoes and beef stock to the pan and deglaze. When all the good browned bits are loose from the bottom, pour into the cooking pot.
7. Mix in the honey or maple syrup and the red lentils. 
8. SLOW COOKER METHOD: Turn the slow cooker on High and cook for 3 hours or until tender. 
9. BAKED METHOD: Preheat the oven to 300°F. Use a casserole and cover to cook for 1½ hours or until the meat is fall-apart tender.
10. Check the seasoning and serve with rice and steamed pumpkin.

Barley Kichadi

Number of portions: 6
Serving size: ~345 g per portion
Calories per serving: ~360 kcal
Speed: Everyday Dish (moderate hands-on, simmering long enough to tenderize)
Experienced cook (active time): 25–30 min
Novice cook (active time): 35–45 min
Total elapsed time: 1hr 30 min
LHSS Score: 9.0 / 10

1 cup pearl barley  (soaked for an hour then drained)

½ cup yellow mung dal OR red lentils

2 Tbsps mild veg oil or ghee 

½ tsp mustard seeds 

½ tsp cumin seeds  

1 onion (6oz/170gr) finely chopped 

Zest from 1 lime OR fresh lemon balm OR curry leaves

A pinch of asafoetida (aka hing)

½ inch fresh ginger, grated or chopped finely

3 to 4 green chillies, chopped finely

¼ tsp turmeric powder 

2 tomatoes (10 to 15 oz) finely chopped (or 14oz/398mL canned)

1 medium carrot (~4 oz/115 g), peeled and diced small

3 cups water 

1 tsp+ of salt, to taste

Chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

4 oz (115 g) chard, roughly chopped

2 Tbsps. lemon or lime juice 

Optional topping: 1 tsp toasted pumpkin seeds per serving (~6 tsp total)

1. Soak barley and pulses for at least 1 hour in plenty of water. Drain before using. 
2. Heat ghee in a large saucepan over medium flame.
3. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When they pop, add chopped onions and sauté.
4. Add lime zest or other option, along with hing, ginger, green chillies and turmeric. Stir fry for up to 2 minutes, or until onions become translucent.
5. Add chopped tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes have broken down and the oil begins to separate slightly from the mixture.
6. Add the soaked barley and pulse of choice and mix well. 
7. Add 3 to 4 cups of water and the salt. Allow the water to come to a nice boil.
8. Lower the heat and cover to cook.
9. Cook for 50 minutes to an hour or until the barley is well cooked and the water is fully absorbed.
10. Add the chard and cook another 10 minutes.
11. Add more water if required, if you feel the barley is not cooked enough. 
12. Remove from heat and serve, sprinkled with lime or lemon juice and garnished with chopped coriander leaves.
13. Serve barley khichdi with yogurt or as it is.

Pork Carnitas - Slow cooked pulled pork

Equal parts savory crunchy bits and lovely tender bits, it is an ode to pork.

3 to 5 lb pork shoulder, bone in (also pork chops in a pinch, so probably pork loin roast)

The Rub

3 tsps salt

1 tsp pepper

1 Tbsp dried oregano

2 tsps ground cumin

½ tsp cayenne pepper

2 Tbsps chilli powder

¼ tsp cinnamon

Scant pinch of ground cloves

Aromatics

1 large onion, cut into wedges

5 cloves garlic, smashed

2 limes, juiced

2 Tbsps brown sugar

2 bay leaves

Serve with any of the following:

Sliced avocado

Sliced radishes

Thinly sliced cabbage

Warm tortillas, corn or flour

Fresh squeezed lime juice

Salsa

Refried beans

Red Rice

1. Rinse and dry the pork shoulder, rub in the salt and pepper.
2. Combine the rub ingredients then rub all over the pork as much as possible; use ALL of it. 
3. Place the pork in a slow cooker with the fat cap up. Surround it with the onion, crushed garlic and lime juice, tucking the bay leaves at either end.
4. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or on high for 6 hours.
5. The meat should be tender and falling off the bone. Remove from the slow cooker and set aside only long enough to finish the next step.
6. Pour juices in the slow cooker into a glass measuring cup and skim off and discard the fat. If more than 1½ to 2 cups of juice is left, reduce it in a wide pan until you have less than 2 cups. The liquid will be SALTY, and should only be used as indicated in the following steps.
7. Shred the pork using a couple of forks.

To Serve

1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large non stick pan over high heat, then reduce to medium high. Place shredded pork into the pan, drizzle over some juices. Wait until the juices evaporate and the bottom side is golden brown and crusty. Turn and just briefly sear the other side - you don't want to make it brown all over because then it's too crispy, and the tender juicy bits get lost.
2. Repeat in batches (takes me a couple of batches) - don't crowd the pan.
3. If you are reheating the carnitas, then flip and cook the other side briefly just to warm through. I really recommend only making one side crusty and leaving the other side juicy and moist.

Buckwheat pancakes (Galettes de sarrazin) - Plain

Food of my people immortalized by the character Séraphin Poudrier in Claude-Henri Grignon's "Un homme et son péché", published in 1933. Séraphin's beleaguered child-bride Donalda was forced to only eat these with molasses to satisfy her husband's avarice. Myself, I quite like them but, then again, I choose to eat them. They can be eaten with sweet toppings or there are classic savory versions that are equally delicious. This is the basic recipe for the pancake.

1 cup (120g) buckwheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

Pinch of salt

1 cup+ (250 ml+) milk of choice

2 eggs

Butter for frying

1. Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk until uniform.
2. Let the batter rest for 30 to 40 minutes.
3. Beat again before using. 
4. The batter will likely be a bit thick. Add more milk until you get the consistency of light cream.
5. Heat an empty 8 to 10" fry pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until it's very hot.
6. Melt some butter and pour in ⅓ cup of batter, swirling the pan to get an even distribution; you may also use a palette knife or pastry scraper to smooth it out with a deft turn of the wrist. The bottom of the pan should be completely covered.
7. When the bubbles pop and the surface dries out a bit, flip to cook the other side; this should happen within 30 to 60 seconds, if not, adjust the heat. The bottom should be a light golden colour, not too dark since the galette will be re-heated with the filling of your choice.