Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Food and Cookery Column with Carol Taylor – #Recipes Beef Stroganoff, Corned Beef, Thai Beef Salad ( Nam Doc Nua)

Welcome to Carol’s cookery column I have just discovered a lovely little shop which sell Thai/French beef…Now I am not a great beef eater at all but this beef has the best taste and I could quite easily have eaten so much more… I have my old, old recipe for Beef Stroganoff, a recipe I have been making for about 50 years and I have tried to remember where I got that recipe from with no success… I have trawled books and the internet and have found many versions none the same as mine…so I decided that even way back then I was experimenting…

My original recipe was sliced rump steak, onions, mushrooms, cream, white wine and lots of freshly ground black pepper.

Onions in the pan then the steak, quickly cooked, add the mushrooms, cream and wine , copious amounts of black pepper and served with rice.

Quick and easy it only took as long as the rice took to cook.

My updated recipe ( deconstructed) Beef Stroganoff…My way

Ingredients:

1 kilo of porterhouse steak..cooked just medium rare or cooked to your choice , rested and then sliced.

For the sauce:

• 250 gm ( or 500 gm – see comments) mushrooms, sliced
• 1 med brown onion sliced
• Double cream
• White wine…a non fruity one.
• Black pepper
• Butter and olive oil

N.B I apologise now for my vagueness over quantities but I just add some wine…and a bit more and then the cream…Then Taste.

To serve… Serve over rice with some steamed vegetables normally broccoli and cauliflower. The sauce is thin and we decided that we prefer it that way so I do not thicken it.

It is one recipe which I am pleased I updated as cooking the steak separately means you can choose how you prefer your beef cooked and with the char it tastes so much better than a lovely piece of steak stewed in the wine and cream…

This really is a tried tested and much loved recipe in this house and even hubby much preferred the updated recipe.

This is quick and easy to make I have also made it with Pork fillet and have replaced the wine with brandy just for a change…

Enjoy!

My next recipe was my dad’s favourite..Corned Beef and Cabbage.

But there is not a corn in sight in that beef…. The name originated from way back in history when large grains of salt were used to cure the beef which were known as ” corns ”

For the Brine:

• A Cup of salt
• A Cup of brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp of each coriander seeds, mustard seeds and black peppercorns.
• 1 1/2 tbsp All spice
• 4 sprigs Marjoram
• 4 sprigs Thyme

For the pot:

• 3 tbsp Olive Oil Extra virgin
• 1 onion halved
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 carrots coarsely chopped
• A head of garlic halved
• 1 head of celery chopped leaves and all.
• 3 sprigs of marjoram
• 1 cabbage cut into 6/8 wedges.
• 2 1/2- 3lb piece of beef brisket

For the brine:

Combine the brine ingredients except for the all spice, in a non metallic bowl . Add the brisket and rub with the spice mix. Pour cold water over the beef until the meat is just covered. You may need to put a small plate on top to weight the meat down whilst brining. Cover and refrigerate.

The meat can left overnight or for up to 10 days but the longer you leave it the more the meat is pickled ..I leave it 2/3 days.

When the meat is brined heat the olive oil in a large pan add the carrots, onion, celery, garlic, marjoram and bay leaves, cook gently for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.

Remove the meat from the brine and rinse well.

Put the meat on top of the softened vegetables and add just enough water to cover the meat. Bring to the boil and skim any foam which rises to the top. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes then add the cabbage wedges, cover and put in the oven and cook for 3 hours.

When the meat is cooked remove from the pan and cover with foil…allow the meat to rest for 20 minutes.

In the meantime cook some baby carrots, parsnips, turnips and scrubbed new potatoes in some olive oil and butter ( and a cup of water)this takes about 20 minutes.

To serve:

Trim any excess fat from the meat and slice the beef against the grain. Serve in a shallow bowl with the cabbage wedges and a little cooking water. You may want to thicken this slightly. Serve with a side of baby vegetables tossed in some herb butter.

Lovely! My mum used to cook this for my dad on high days and holidays and any leftovers made a lovely sandwich with lots of horseradish…

Lastly…Well I can’t go without using a chilli or two….Can I??

Our favourite Thai salad… Thai Beef Salad ( Nam Doc Nua)

Serves 2. Ingredients:

• 300gm Tenderloin Beef.
• 1 sm red Onion or 2/3 shallots.
• 2 Spring Onions.
• 2 medium tomatoes or 8/10 cherry toms.
• 1 sm cucumber.
• 2 sprigs mint.
• Big handful of Coriander.
• 2/3 birds eye chillies chopped.
• 1 lime.
• 2 tbsp Fish Sauce.

Let’s Cook!

Grill the tenderloin medium rare or however you prefer your steak.
While steak is cooking chop salad into small pieces and chop coriander including the stalks.

To prepare the Mint take leaves off stems.

When steak cooked to your liking slice into thin strips.

Mix gently into chopped salad then add the coriander, mint leaves and chillies.

Stir in fish sauce and squeeze in lime juice.Taste.

Taste as personally I like more fish sauce and chillies but as the taste of chillies can vary then it is better to add less, taste and adjust seasoning if required.

This can also be made with chicken or pork although beef is the preferred meat in our house and more so now I have discovered the Thai/French beef which has a far superior flavour.

Traditionally this salad is served with Thai sticky rice.

I hope you have enjoyed these Beef recipes and if you have any variations on these …like Beef Strogonoff we would love to hear about them.

Until next week xxx

Another amazingly varied post from Carol and as Beef stroganoff is one of my favourite dishes, I will be making this weekend. By the way I made the Brussel Sprout soup from last week’s column and it was delicious…..

The other posts in the series can be found in this directory: https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/carol-taylors-food-and-cookery-column-2018/

About Carol Taylor

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetables ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use have to improve our health and wellbeing.

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology:  https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

New additional Blog: http://myhealthyretirement.com/welcome-to-orienthailiving-my-first-post/

Blog: https://blondieaka.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

If you have missed previous posts in the Cook from Scratch series you can find them here: https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/cook-from-scratch-with-sally-and-carol-recipes/

Thank you for dropping in today and Carol would be delighted to answer any of your questions and we always enjoy your feedback. Thanks Sally