March, 2014 | One Man's Meat

Fried chicken. The Colonel and his friends have a bit of explaining to do.

America is a great place. There are 49 states and one independent country (Texas). We Europeans often sneer at the gastronomic endeavours of “them over there”. I don’t really subscribe to the “They all eat nothing but burgers and tacos” school of thought. However, of the 49 states, the one with that has some culinary questions to answer is Kentucky. I have done my research. Kentucky has more elk, deer and wild turkeys than you could shake a bottle of bourbon at. But, they are not famed for cooking any of them. Those good old bluegrass lovin’ Louisville folk are famed for sending buckets, yes buckets, of spiced, fried chicken to all points of the globe.

25th March 2014

Conor Bofin

73 Comments

Salt Cod Fishcakes – About as much fun as keeping goldfish.

Baccala. It seems that the entire Iberian peninsula lives on the stuff. Every Spaniard or Portuguese that I know holds it in very high regard. Graham and Lisa from the fish shop sing its praises too. It looks pretty dire. Dried out salted cod, what could be less inspiring? The truth is that I found myself looking blankly at the array of fresh fish in Georges Fish Shop, without a thought as to what I could prepare from the bounty of the sea. Lisa suggested “Have you ever tried salt cod?” This brought me back to reality. The thought of the cod did nothing for me but, I had to give it a go, if only to be one ahead of most Irish people and able to say that I had cooked the noxious stuff.

18th March 2014

Conor Bofin

60 Comments

Hazelnut, Thyme and Lemon Wrapped Beef Fillet. Am I pushing my luck?

“Only a fool would mess with such a beautiful piece of beef.”

“Pepper it, salt it, fry it.”

“Are you sure you want to experiment with that? It must have cost more than the national debt!”

My expected guests were all of similar minds “Don’t mess with the beef.” seemed to be the unanimous theme. Like the late Margaret Thatcher, I was not for turning. Unlike the late MT, I was not wearing a blue dress. I was cogitating a new recipe for beef fillet.

11th March 2014

Conor Bofin

67 Comments

Craft V Science – Spiced Leg of Lamb.

Let me set out my stall nice and early here. I subscribe to the ‘Craft’ school of cookery. Please don’t confuse this with the similarly named conglomerate, I don’t subscribe to them. My ‘subscription’ to craft rather than science is based on my own laziness rather than any dark art that I have evolved or inherited over the years. As any regular reader will know, I tend to throw things together based on what I think should work. The results are not always perfect. In fact, the results are often pretty disappointing. My supportive family sits around the table lying to me. “No, it really is pretty good.” “I love the chewy texture of the meat.” “Actually, I like my vegetables nice and watery.”