Food

Meat thermometer in true golf club style my ovens have them integrated.

People are banging out pork belly in air fryers that looks incredible in about an hour; seems to be the perfect tool for it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbexfy7j7mY

I did a pork shoulder in the air fryer last weekend and it was awesome. Ridiculously easy - https://www.cookitrealgood.com/air-fryer-roast-pork/

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looks good - however i don't have an air fryer.

maybe deep fat frying would work - like the deep fried turkey technique?

2:25 "the size is for a family of 3-4 people".

Judgey fucker, aren't you m8.

Any good wild garlic pesto recipes? Would be looking to freeze some to use later.
Have a few big patches near me that are ripe for picking.

wild garlic, hazelnuts, pine nuts, lemon zest, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, pecorino or parmesan

No recipe as such as I do it all by eye but just blitz nuts (pistachios, cashews or pine nuts) with wild garlic, olive oil, parmesan and salt and pepper. Easier to go with lower quantities of the nuts to start with and then add more if needed as if you use too many nuts initially and then find you haven't got enough wild garlic you're a bit stuck. I also avoid lemon unless I'm blanching the wild garlic leaves as you lose some of the vibrant colour if you add lemon juice.

I make several kilos this time if year and freeze it in jars, normally just about gets me through the year.

I noticed that the early wild garlic is pretty punchy and the later leaves can get a bit insipid.

So if you pick now, you may need less.
Cheaper alternatives to pine nuts (or any nuts for that matter) are sunflower seeds

Have plenty of cashews (stock up at Lidl) so will try those and maybe some pine kernels.
Will add zest but will go easy when adding the juice as don’t want to kill it.
Will give it a go this weekend or next.

I did mine with walnuts earlier this week, you can use anything really

First hot cross bun of the season from Dusty Knuckle - bit underwhelming, would have liked more fruit

Pophams this weekend - expensive but in the bougie world it is elite

I made a vegan riff on this recently with my haul and it was delicious:

https://www.finefoodspecialist.co.uk/drogos-kitchen/wild-garlic-spanakopita

Just wondering what dark arts are required to turn out good eggs in a stainless steel frying pan? (not non stick).

Having just bought a couple of brand new pans I've been enjoying using them except for my first attempt at an omelette which I used to be fairly proficient at in the old non stick pan these ones replaced.

Get it hot before you put any oil in, you want the oil to bead and dance around like water on a waterproof jacket. Then again wait for the oil to get properly hot before putting the eggs in. Works for me

More butter. Makes all cooking better.

Yeah as mentioned you need to get the pan hot enough so that a drop of water just runs around in little beads rather than evaporating. Then let it cool a little and add oil

Any go to bolognese recipes? I feel it is something where I should have a decent recipe but the internet has a lot of opinions on ingredients.

Didn't someone post something a few days ago?

Basic would be onion, garlic, tomato, some sort of protein, maybe some liquid like stock / wine, herbs if you want.

The method is always going to be pretty similar - sweat the veg, maillard the meat, deglaze the pan, simmer as you like.

Other veg could be carrot, fennel, aubergine. Parsley, basil for herbs. And sort of meat for mince.

Basic Jamie Oliver sauce I always have bags of in the freezer

500g each of fatty pork and beef mince pre-roasted in the oven for 20 minutes
Frozen sofrito mix fried till golden then add some tom puree
2 cans of tomato product (plum, chopped, polpa all work)
1 can of water
Some wine
Some dried herbs
Seasoning to taste

Combine and simmer for c. 1.5-2 hours till it's a consistency you like.

I've said it before on here, but to my mind the most important thing is buying proper aged beef mince from a good butcher. You want somewhere that specialises in fancy long-aged steaks, because the mince is then made with all the offcuts and trimmings of that, which means it has intensely beefy flavour and this massively elevates any bolognese recipe (and any other mince recipe, to be honest). I'm sure there are plenty of good butchers, but the two i can vouch for the mince from are Turner and George in Angel and Proud Sow in Crofton Park.

Jacob Kenedy (Bocca di Lupo) had a recipe in his book geometry of pasta that came out a while ago that has been very reliable for me over the years, available here

You could replace the low simmer with a low oven which would probably be easier

Ragù bolognese
Serves 8

minced pork 500g
minced veal (or beef) 500g
chicken livers 100g, finely chopped (optional)
carrot 1 (200g)
celery 2 sticks (200g)
onion 1, medium (200g)
garlic cloves 4
butter 100g
extra virgin olive oil 60ml
pancetta 100g, not smoked, cut in strips
white wine 375ml
milk 600ml
chopped tinned tomatoes 400g
beef or chicken stock 250ml (optional, otherwise 250ml more milk)

It is worth having a butcher mince the meats coarsely (8mm), for the improved texture.

Peel and dice the carrot, dice the celery, chop the onion and slice the garlic. Take a very wide frying pan (30cm), and melt the butter in the oil over a medium heat. Add the vegetables and pancetta along with a good pinch of salt and sauté for 10-15 minutes until softened.

Increase the heat to high and add the meat in four or five additions, allowing time for any water to evaporate, stirring and breaking up any lumps with a spoon. After the last addition, wait until the pan starts to splutter slightly, then decrease the heat to medium and fry, stirring occasionally, until the meat has browned with a fair proportion of crispy bits – about 15-20 minutes.

Deglaze with the wine, then transfer to a saucepan along with the milk, tomatoes and stock as well as a good grinding of pepper and more salt to taste.

Cook at a very gentle simmer, uncovered, for about 4 hours until the sauce is thick, more oil- than water-based (add a little stock or water if it dries too much or too quickly). When ready, the liquor will be as thick as double cream and, stirred up, the whole should be somewhat porridgy. Adjust the seasoning one last time.

The addition of bay and/or dried chilli flakes along with the meat is heretical, but not displeasing.

The best meat sauce I ever made contained beef, pork and veal mince, pureed tinned tomatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper, that was it. Just a good long, super slow cook (3-4hrs) to get it all jammy and bring out that meaty flavour. Always great with a couple of shin bones thrown in as well.

the most important thing is buying proper aged beef mince from a good butcher.

This, and a glass of whole milk in there too.

Parsley on top to serve.

Marcella Hazan recipe. It's the best. But takes ages. I always make big batches and then freeze.
https://theirreverentkitchen.com/2016/02/28/the-classic-bolognese-sauce-marcella-hazans/
Plus add some chopped rosemary and lemon zest to your parmesan.