GAUCHO CHIMICHURRI

This is amazing the Gaucho Cowboys do know how to cook meat and serve with a fabulous vinegar and olive oil dressing that sets of the flavour of the meat this is now my mums favourite sauce with roast lamb, no more mint sauce, its Chimichurri all the way, well until I find make up or another new recipe!

Making time 5 minutes 

Ingredients 

(Serves 4)

1 bunch flat leaf parsley chopped

4 tbsp fresh chopped oregano

2 cloves garlic grated

150ml olive oil cold pressed

50ml white, red, apple or balsamic wine vinegar 

Pinch sea salt

Pinch black pepper

You can blitz this in a food processor which is easier for me to push a button but I much prefer to get my mum to hand chop really finely as I feel there is a better flavour and texture than a blitzed texture, this is so good on meats and fresh salads too.

VINDALOO VINDALOO VINDALOO

Sunday is often curry day in my family home and this Sunday I wanted to cook Vindaloo, a family favourite, this is a traditional Goa recipe and is nothing like restaurant vindaloo, this is AWESOME!  Because of my Exec Chef status I get to shop for and inspect the ingredients we need, give the cooking instruction orders to my mum and keep my eye on the whole cook and if it's not up to standard it won't make the pass!  😜

Prep time 30 minutes / Overnight marinating / Cooking time 3 hrs un-attended

Ingredients 

(Serves 4-6)

THE MARINADE 

1kg pork loin diced

1 onion rough chopped

8 cloves garlic

1 tbsp fresh ginger

1 tsp black peppercorns 

2 cloves

15 cardamom pods seeds only 

1 tsp cumin seeds

1tsp turmeric powder

1tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder

1 tsp hot chilli powder

1 1/2 tsp sea salt 

1 tsp sugar

3 tbsp tamarind pulp and water

(Make your own)

5tbsp white wine vinegar

TO COOK THE VINDALOO

3 tbsp ghee

1/2 stick cinnamon

1 small onion chopped

4 tomatoes quartered

3 green chillies sliced

500ml water or stock

 

First make the marinade, in a old coffee grinder or pestle and mortar, I can never remember which is the pestle and which is the mortar!  Grind the black peppercorns, cardamom seeds, cloves, cumin seeds and place in a food food processor along with the onion, garlic, ginger, sales, sugar, chilli, turmeric and vinegar and blitz in to a paste, pour over the pork and mix in well, leave to marinate in the fridge for up to 24 hrs.

Heat a skillet or large pan medium hot, add the ghee and onions fry until golden around 8 minutes, add the pork and marinade and sear the pork until you have added some colour and extra depth of flavour, then add the water or stock, tomatoes and chillis, pop on a lid and leave to gently simmer for around 2 hrs until the pork is tender.  If your sauce needs thickening remove the pork with a slotted spoon and reserve to one side, crank up the heat and reduce the sauce until consistency required, add back the pork.

That's it!  Serve family style with a large bowl of fluffy rice, a stack of tear and share flatbreads and some cooling mint yogurt drizzle.