Chef! What to Make and How to Make it.

What to make and how to make it--direct from the kitchens of our favorite foodies.

Fry Another Day

The Pig has just released a book, and we snatched this corker of a recipe by James Goulding from its pages, almost before the ink was dry...

Known for its picturesque locations and tastefully styled interiors, hotel and restaurant group The Pig – which has a cracking venue in Gittisham, on the edge of the East Devon AONB – has branched out into cookbook writing.

From the hot-off-the-press tome comes this recipe. It uses meat that’s wild and abundant, and was created by The Pig’s chef director, James Goulding.

This unusual but brilliant dish started life as a way of encouraging more people to eat rabbit, James writes. Our grandparents would have been used to it, but the appeal seems to have been lost now. We’ve got lots of good game around – top-quality lean meat such as rabbit, pigeon, partridge and pheasant – that we’re not using, which is crazy. So we came up with this recipe, and it’s proved really popular at all the festivals.

Ask your butcher to joint the rabbits into shoulders, loins, legs and thighs, removing the bones from the thighs.

FESTIVAL FRIED RABBIT

SERVES 4

2 rabbits, butchered as above

3 eggs, beaten

rapeseed oil, for deep frying

For the brine:

4 ltrs water

600g salt

520g sugar

4 sprigs rosemary

2 garlic bulbs, cut in half

20g black peppercorns

For the spicy flour mix:

500g flour

70g celery salt

70g paprika

pinch cayenne pepper

1 First, put all the brine ingredients in a pan, bring to a simmer, then allow to cool.

2 Place the rabbit in the brine for 20 minutes and, while it’s soaking, make the spicy flour mix by sifting all the dry ingredients into a bowl.

3 Remove the rabbit from the brine, rinse and pat dry with a clean tea towel or kitchen paper.

4 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.

5 Fill a deep-fat fryer with oil, or half-fill a large saucepan and heat to 190C, or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds. Coat the rabbit by dipping the pieces in the beaten egg then the flour, and then repeat the process so that they’re evenly coated. Fry in the hot oil for 3 minutes until golden.

6 Transfer to the oven and cook for 10 minutes, then allow to rest for 5 minutes. This recipe can be made in advance, in which case, recoat the rabbit and fry for a further 2 minutes to crisp up.

TIP: The taste of rabbit is somewhere between chicken and pheasant. If your children like fried chicken but they’re a bit unsure about rabbit, this is a great way to get them to try something a bit different. Kids love it!

Recipe taken from The Pig: Tales and Recipes From the Kitchen Garden and Beyond (Octopus Publishing, £30) by Robin Hutson, Gill Morgan, Paul Croughton and The Pig team; photographs by Emli Bendixen

Smells like Bean Spirit

Neglecting the side dishes at big meaty feasts is not something Marcus Davey has ever been accused of…

Marcus is known as the ‘Food Dude’ at Devonian cured meat specialist Good Game and its sister restaurant, The Pig and Pallet in Topsham. This dish combines his favourite Good Game product – the Devon Dog – and Pig and Pallet’s ‘Big Jim’s BBQ Sauce’.

Regularly cooked up as a special at The Pig and Pallet, this is a hearty side dish that will take any barbecue to the next level.

“It’s also a banging way to use up any barbecued or roasted meat, or other leftovers, and is great served up ‘family’ style, with everyone getting involved,” says Marcus.

COW BEANZ

SERVES 12(ISH) AS A SIDE

knob butter

2 tbsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp chipotle powder

6 x smoked frankfurters, chopped into bitesized chunks

250ml bourbon 750ml

Coca-Cola 2 x

400g tins chopped tomatoes

3 x 400g tins borlotti beans

3 x 400g tins cannellini beans

barbecue sauce, to taste

crusty bread, to serve

1. Warm the butter in a heavy-based pan on the barbecue or stovetop, then mix in the paprika and chipotle powder. Cook for 1-2 minutes.

2. Chuck in the diced up frankfurters and cook until they gain a bit of colour, although for no more than 2-3 minutes.

3. Add the bourbon-- being sure to try some first!-- and the cola. Cook until the liquid has reduced by half.

4. Add in the chopped tomatoes and bring to the boil, stirring so it doesn't catch on the bottom of the pot. Strain and rinse the beans then add those too, along with the barbecue sauce, to taste.

5. Cook at a simmer for a further 30 minutes. (meanwhile, finish off the bourbon and, in the words of the master Keither Floyd, "When the bourbon is gone the food is ready") Serve with warm crusty bread.

The Pig and Pallet, Topsham Quay, Topsham EX3 0JB; 01392 668129; pigandpallet.co.uk

Salmon Like You

This simple but effective dish by Reuben Johnson can be whipped up in a matter of minutes.

You’ll find Reuben behind the pass at The Leaping Salmon – a Horrabridge inn, sat on the edge of Dartmoor.

“This is a real classic,” he says. “We use fresh mackerel, caught just down the road in the Plymouth Sound, with beetroot and horseradish from our own veg garden. We pair this dish with a delicious organic white wine, Fedele Cataratto Sicilian Pinot Grigio, which we source from Ben’s Farm Shop in South Devon.

“If the British weather is on your side, this recipe is also perfect for a barbecue with family and friends!”

WHOLE GRILLED MACKEREL WITH BEETROOT, WATERCRESS AND HORSERADISH

SERVES 4

2 tbsp crème fraîche

1 tbsp fresh horseradish, finely grated

4 whole mackerel, gutted

150g organic watercress

1 shallot, finely sliced handful capers

1 tbsp dill, chopped

4 beetroot, cooked, peeled and sliced

olive oil

1 ½ lemons

1 Preheat the grill to high.

2 Prepare the horseradish sauce by combining the crème fraîche with the grated horseradish in a bowl. Season to taste with sea salt and leave to chill in the fridge.

3 Next, use a sharp knife to lightly score the mackerel several times across each side. Season with olive oil and sea salt, and grill on a high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side until the skin becomes golden and starts to blister. Once cooked, leave to rest while you prepare the salad.

4 Combine the watercress, shallot, capers, dill and beetroot in a large bowl and dress with a slug of olive oil and the juice from ½ a lemon. Mix carefully to coat the watercress thoroughly in the dressing.

5 Cut the remaining lemon into wedges. Squeeze over the mackerel with a drizzle of olive oil as you plate it up, then add the salad and horseradish crème fraîche.

The Leaping Salmon, Whitchurch Road, Horrabridge, Tavistock PL20 7TP; 01822 851541; theleapingsalmon.co.uk

Coasting

Lewis Edwards makes the most of the local coastal bounty in his Japanese-style food – like this make-at-home sashimi…

Lewis is the guy behind Koto, a pop-up kitchen and catering company that specialises in Asian-inspired cooking and fresh sushi.

“Located in Kingsbridge on the south coast, we’re lucky to have amazingly fresh fish on our doorstep – and mackerel is one of the best,” says Lewis. “This dish makes the most of (and even enhances) its freshness, while giving a Japanese classic a bit of Devon style.”

Lewis worked in kitchens all over the country before settling in Devon and establishing his own business. He makes all his food fresh on the morning it is to be served, and shops in local stores, using as much native produce as possible.

“I’m lucky enough that we still have a fishmonger in Kingsbridge that is thriving, and I work closely with them to get me the freshest, local product. Often I’m in the shop at 6am, choosing my ingredients for the day.”

CURED MACKEREL SASHIMI

SERVES 4

4 fresh mackerel fillets

30g salt

200ml rice wine vinegar

large handful mixed salad leaves

190g sushi rice

For the pickled onion:

500ml pickling vinegar

1g seaweed flakes

4 peppercorns

¼ cinnamon stick

4 red onions

For the miso mayo:

2 tsp white miso paste

6 tbs mayonnaise

2g black sesame seeds, ground

2 tsp rice wine vinegar

1 Start with the pickled onions. Put the vinegar, seaweed, peppercorns and cinnamon stick into a pan and bring to the boil. Once boiling, remove from the heat and leave to infuse.

2 Thinly slice the onions and place in a colander. Pour boiling water over them from the kettle to lightly blanch them, then place on a clean kitchen towel and pat dry.

3 Pour the pickling liquid into a jar or other container and add the onions. Seal and leave to pickle for 24 hours, for best results (although they can be served after 2 hours).

4 Pin-bone the mackerel fillets and coat all over with salt. Place in a flat dish, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.

5 After 2 hours, carefully rinse the fish with fresh water and pat dry with kitchen cloth. Once dry, lay the mackerel in a container and cover with the rice wine vinegar. Refrigerate for a further hour.

6 Remove the fish from the vinegar and pat dry once again. Thinly slice against the grain with a sharp knife.

7 For the miso mayo, add the miso, mayonnaise, black sesame and rice wine vinegar to a small mixing bowl with a pinch of black pepper. Combine thoroughly.

8 Place the sushi rice in a mixing bowl and soak in water for 5 minutes. Once soaked, use your hand as a whisk to gently mix the rice until the water turns cloudy, then drain and rinse until the water runs clear.

9 Place the rice with 200ml water in a heavy-bottomed bottom pan with a lid. Bring to the boil and then turn off the heat and leave to rest for 10 minutes before removing the lid.

10 To serve, place a bed of sushi rice, a bunch of washed leaves and some pickled onions on small serving plates. Lay the mackerel on the rice and add a dollop of miso mayo. We top the fish with crispy shallots.

Koto, instagram.com/koto_devon; photography by Christie Brown, instagram.com/brahmastudios