Although, I have had my new steam oven for over three months, I have to admit that I’ve only used it three times! Not for lack of interest but very simply, we have just not been home ! Away with family and it looks like half the world came to party!
What I have cooked though has been fish! We eat a lot of fish, salmon and halibut being the favourites for me and add smoked haddock and mackerel for Himself.
So this certainly not an in depth guide, but it is a start. I heated the oven, after checking the water level. It heated up very quickly and pinged to say it was ready. I chopped some vegetables and herbs and placed them ( first test run) on the perforated metal tray …. This sits on a non perforated tray). On top of the herbs and vegetables I placed 2 skinless salmon fillets, poured a small amount of oil over the mixture, popped into the oven and a mere ten minutes later , it pinged again to say READY ! And it was ! A meal for two ready in under 20 minutes from chopping to serving to eating. And very little mess! By my training, I always clear, wash,wipe down during the cooking process, insomuch that Himself, who always clears after dinner, does not have oodles to do. I repeated this method a couple of time using different fish and vegetables but altered somethings such as I used a China dish for cooking, as guess what with the perforated dish, the juices run out. I also didn’t necessarily realise that steam residue ( ie water) ends up to some extent on the bottom of the oven! Hence one should remember to leave the bottom tray in place to collect this! All a Learning curve , and yes I am learning.
Meanwhile, I had intended cooking the mackerel in the Steam Oven, and just finishing the skin with a quick flash in a frying pan pan,however I hadn’t reckoned on the size of my mackerel, which were frozen. Once defrosted and filleted ( and yes I can do that) they were on the small side and decided that it wouldn’t be any quicker to cook them in the Steam Oven. Up to now, I have usually used my microwave to steam cook vegetables, so this time around the mackerel were dusted and fried ( skin side down) and the vegetables in microwave steam basket, in the microwave. Himself was pleased with the result. ( look up Lékué and check out what they have for use in the microwave!)
The following evening , dinner was discombobulated by an event ( can’t remember what) and so plans rapidly had to change. Again, Fish ! I had defrosted, three Tuna steaks so Tuna it was going to be, but question remained what form it was going to take ! Well Tuna Tartare popped to mind! I had everything I needed, so perfect !
- For 2
- 2 Tuna steaks cut into small chunks
- 2 Medium red onions chopped
- 1 lemon or lime both zest and juice
- Handful of coriander leaves chopped
- 2 ripe avocados smushed
- Slug of good olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- A couple of small ripe tomatoes cut into small chunks
- 1 jalapeño , de seeded and cut into small bits ( omit if you don’t like piquant.
Put the chunked tuna, half of the lemon juice / zest, along with some salt and pepper, half of the chopped red onion, a good slug of olive oil, and half of the chopped coriander into a bowl. Mix well and refrigerate.
Then for the Guacamole, smush the avocados ( I do it with a fork) along with the chopped jalapeño, remaining lemon/ lime/coriander/ chopped red onion. Taste and add salt and pepper according to taste. I would recommend using straight away, as of course the avocado could turn an unattractive brown.
To serve, either just place some guacamole on a plate or using a ring mold be a bit smarter, place some guacamole inside the mold, get a nice shape. Top with the tuna mix, and decorate with some salad leaves or even a couple of edible flowers! And to be super special, put the mix in some two shells ( small ones would be nice)
An alternative to the guacamole, is to smush a couple of precooked beetroot (beets) with, a tablespoon of creamed horseradish sauce along with a tablespoon of sour cream. Mix well, place this on a plate or a bed of leaves and top with the tuna tartare.
For those of you who say “ I don’t like beetroot ( beets), I would have put myself in that category as a child or a not so young adult. Simply growing up, beetroot was only served from a jar of vinegar, and served on a bed of salad with maybe tomatoes and cucumber with some tinned tuna, a cold boiled egg, or even a piece of cold chicken. Consequently, the unimaginable boring salad, not only tasted of vinegar but was also stained red! Therefore it is only in relatively recent times that beetroot has become precooked and vacuum packed, and that has changed the face of beetroot!
To make for yourself some beetroot ice cream it is very simple.
For the Ice Cream Base you will need:-
- 500 mls thick cream
- 500 mls plain full fat yoghurt
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
- 3 large eggs
- A packet of cooked beetroot
- A jar of creamed horseradish
To make the base, whisk the eggs together until thick and fluffy. Add the sugar. Add the cream and the yoghurt and mix well together.Add the beetroot and horseradish.As always I do this all in a food processor ( it saves on washing up). Put to freeze, either in an ice cream machine or simply in the freezer. The colour of this ice cream is amazing, a beautiful shade of pink and likewise the taste is something else! Serve maybe with a mint leaf, that will then totally fox your guest ! Have a go! A really fun dessert!
Until next time, I will continue to play! Bon Appetite!
oystersandchampagne 