I love Nigel Slater. Not least because he's a good cook, not least because he's from the same neck of the woods as me and used to pass my childhood home on his school bus every day (according to his autobiography, Toast), but mainly because he cooks like I do and now he's got a programme all to his lovely self passing on all his brilliant tips.
He's not a slavishly follow a recipe man, just as I'm not that sort of woman. Who ever has all the ingredients to exactly follow a recipe? I don't and I'm sure most other people don't either. He cooks instinctively: What's in the garden? What's in the fridge? What's about to go off? What's just perfect for now? And then he wings it.
Tonight I wung it as usual. I was faced with a hungry man who wanted 'chicken, but tender' on a plate, and two equally hungry children, one of which has been clamouring for mashed potato for weeks. I ignored the latter (she hadn't been digging new steps in the garden) and I made up a chicken thing using a punnet of chicken thighs from (dratted) Tesco, the tail end of a chorizo from Narberth's glorious Spanish deli Ultracomeda, a couple of fabulous onions (proper boo-hooers these) and some nice maincrop spuds. Into the mix went some black olives and a jolly good glug of Taffy Apples cider, made in Wales and absolutely delicious (though it pains me to admit liking Welsh cider, being a Worcesetershire girl.) I remembered the lovely Nige and headed out into the garden for its contribution: A big handful of broadleaved thyme seemed to fit the bill.
I sizzled the chorizo, then added the chopped onions and cubed spuds. The thighs were already skinless and boneless so I snipped those into cubes with a pair of kitchen scissors (I find that much easier than using a knife) and added those to the pan. I then shared the Taffy Apples between the pan, the hungry husband and me (it was a 500 ml bottle), popped in the olives and the thyme and slapped on a lid. It was done, I decided, when the chicken was tender and the potatoes had gone soft and thickened the sauce a bit. I peppered it, but not salt as the chorizo is quite salty already.
While the chicken thing simmered I tackled a bowlful of mixed plums (Victoria, greengage, damson) that was slowly turning to honeyed mush. These I halved and tossed in a pan for a while with a tablespoon of butter and two of caster sugar. Result: thick, sweet, chunky plum sauce the colour of unicorns' eyes (which is a deep ruby red, by the way).
The chicken thing was lovely in bowls with steamed broccoli, the plums were beautiful as well as delicious with vanilla ice cream.
It was a simple, cheap, autumnal supper. I think the lovely Nigel would have been proud of me!
7 comments:
I do like Nigel's sensible approach to using what you've got.
God, I'm salivating, that was just lovely. It's vaguely similar to something I had at a friend's last night, I think hers was based on Delia's summer version of her chicken basque, featuring chick peas and olives and something else. Delicious, anyway.
Sounds fab. Taffy Apples; very good too.
And as for Ultracomidia ... I could do a whole blog post on that place; I'd go there for free samples alone. There's one in Aberystwyth too.
Can't get Nigel in Canada, but your blog seems interesting. As I am just starting to become a bit more creative in my cooking, I'll be checking back.
That sounds good - glad I've just eaten or I'd have a slobbery keyboard. Taffy Apples is FAR too good to cook with though!
Well, I have got to find out more about this Slater bloke (cannot be connected with some distant memory of Eastenders ... I Do Knot It Cannot.)
I love the idea of wung it.
Your meal sounds so good, it makes me sorry not to have had a chair at that table.
How I do love to cook and to mess about with basics. How sad I am that I just don't have time for this fun.
Thank you for keeping me inspired. xo
That sounds like the very best kind of cooking - for family or company. Drooling over the keyboard here!
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