Mustard With Mutton

Apr 30, 2014
mustardwithmutton

Larb – Laotian Minced Meat & Herb Salad

I’ve been making various versions of larb for a long time. It’s an amazingly delicious and healthy salad of minced meat (your choice of pork, chicken, beef or even duck) loaded with fresh herbs and finished off with a punchy lime and fish sauce dressing. If you use lean meat it’s virtually fat free and let me tell you there aren’t too many meals that pack this much flavour with so few calories. Most people think larb is a Thai dish but it actually originated in Laos, it’s certainly popular in Thailand and it’s a common dish on most Thai menus here in Sydney. I usually make chicken larb but decided to used lean minced pork for a change. I also added bean thread noodles which bulk the salad up a bit and add a nice textural contrast. You can make this as spicy or as mild as you like and if I’m serving it to a mixed crowd of adults and children I leave the chillies out and serve them on the side. I highly recommend going through the effort of making roasted rice powder. The finishing touch of sprinkling the larb with the rice powder makes a big difference to the overall taste, aroma and texture of the dish and elevates home made larb to restaurant level. I served this as a part of an Asian dinner alongside some soy braised beef ribs but it’s substantial enough to serve as a meal on it’s own with just some steamed jasmine rice on the side.

Ingredients – Serves 4 as part of a shared meal

Dressing
⅓ cup fresh lime juice
⅓ cup fish sauce
¼ teaspoon chilli powder – optional
1 tablespoon grated palm sugar

Salad
50g bean thread noodles
400g minced pork or chicken – free range or organic if possible. You can also use turkey, beef or duck
½ a medium red onion, finely sliced – in this instance I used spring onions as that’s all I had on hand but red onions or shallots work best
1 small bunch of mint, leaves removed and large ones torn in half
1 bunch coriander, leaves removed
1 large red chilli, seeded and sliced – you can leave this out and serve on the side if you prefer
1 Lebanese cucumber, sliced thinly

Roasted Rice (makes more than you will need but stores well)
½ cup gelatinous rice

Method

To make the dressing place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Taste and adjust with more lime juice, fish sauce or sugar to get a good balance.

Soak the bean thread noodles in cold water for 30 minutes, then drain and set aside. To make the roasted rice, place the rice in a small dry skillet over medium heat and cook stirring until the grains of rice have turned golden brown. Place into a clean coffee grinder and grind until it forms a fine powder. You can also grind it in a mortar and pestle.

In a wok or saucepan bring abut 1/3 cup of water to the boil and add the minced meat. Stir fry and cook until the water has evaporated and the meat is cooked through, breaking up the mince with your spoon as you cook it. Turn off the heat and add the noodles and mix them with the meat. Place the mince and noodles in a large bowl and let them cool slightly. Add all the other ingredients and mix together with the dressing. Place on a serving platter and sprinkle generously with the roasted rice powder.

Apr 23, 2014
mustardwithmutton

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Pasta with Tomatoes, Sausage & Cream

I know this sounds like an obscenely rich combination but funnily enough it doesn’t strike you that way when you eat it. The cream does add a lovely luxurious richness to the the dish but some of that heaviness is alleviated by the acidity of the tomatoes. In any case it’s just plain delicious and a real crowd pleaser. Kids love this pasta sauce especially if you use sausages that are a little on the mild side – when I make it for the family I use organic beef sausages but for a more adult flavour I like to use Italian pork and fennel sausages. The best pasta shape for this sauce is a short pasta like penne, rigatoni, or as pictured, fusilli. For a fantastic Italian feast all you need to accompany the pasta is a green salad, some garlic bread, a bottle of chianti (dripping wax candle optional) and Dean Martin crooning in the background.

Ingredients – serves 4 – 6 Adapted from Joanne Weir’s “You Say Tomato” Cook book

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
750g Italian style sausages – you can substitute with any good quality sausage, beef or pork
1 large red onion, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
Pinch of red chilli flakes
1 cup red wine
2 x 400g tins diced Italian tomatoes
1 cup cream
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
500g dried penne, riagatoni or fusilli

Method

Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan over medium heat. Take the sausages out of the casing and crumble them into the pan. You don’t want the pieces too big or too small – about 1cm chucks is best. Cook the sausages until the fat has rendered and the juices have evaporated, about 8 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, bay leaves, sage, rosemary, chilli flakes and a generous pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally until the onion is golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Turn the heat up to high and add the red wine and boil until it has almost all evaporated. Add the tomatoes and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer covered until the sauce thickens, about 30-40 minutes. Remove the bay leaves and discard.

Add the cream and half the parmesan to the sauce and stir together. Season to taste with salt and pepper. In the meantime bring a large pot of well salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta, put it back in the pot and toss with the sauce, reserving about a quarter of it. Place on a platter or serve on individual plates topping with the reserved sauce and the remaining parmesan, serve immediately.

Apr 16, 2014
mustardwithmutton

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Pork Tinga – The Tastiest Taco Filling Ever

Taco’s make a great mid-week meal and if you stick to the basic minced beef filling you can have a tasty meal on the table in no time. But if you want to take things up a notch this pork tinga recipe elevates the taco to a new level. Pork tinga is a Mexican stew of slow cooked pork which is shredded and then braised in a tomato and chorizo sauce that’s spiked with smoky chipotle peppers. I can’t tell you how good this is and it actually tastes like “real” Mexican food and not the imitation packaged flavours that were used to. This stew is so full flavoured that it’s best to keep the taco sides simple. I like to use shredded lettuce, avocado, sour cream and some lightly pickled red onions, roll this up in a soft tortilla and you’ll be in taco heaven! Tacos no longer need to be kept solely for quick weekday dinners – made with this pork tinga filling they’re good enough for any occasion.

Ingredients – Serves 4
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
750g pork neck or shoulder, cut into large chunks – about 2 inches
1 onion, quartered
1 clove garlic
A few sprigs of fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
Water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
300g chorizo sausage (about 2 sausages), casings removed and finely diced or crumbled
2 onions, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 x 400g tin diced tomatoes
2 chipotle chilies in adobo, chopped
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons cider vinegar

Method

Season the pork with salt and pepper. Heat the first measure of oil in a heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat, when the oil is hot add the pork and lightly brown on all sides. Add the first measure of onion, garlic, thyme sprigs, bay leaves and enough water to cover the pork. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the pork is tender, depending on the cut and size of the pork it should take about an hour or slightly longer.

When the pork is cooked remove it to a board and shred it using a couple of forks and reserve the broth. Heat the second measure of oil in pan over medium heat, add the chorizo and cook until the oils have released and it’s starting to get crispy. Remove and set aside leaving as much of the oil in the pan as possible. Add the onion and a large pinch of salt and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.

Add the shredded pork back to the pan along with 1½ cups of the reserved pork broth, the chorizo, tomatoes, chipotle chilies, oregano, smoked paprika and thyme and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes or until the stew has reduced to a nice thick consistency, keep in mind you’ll be using this as a taco filling so there shouldn’t be too much liquid. Season with salt and paper then stir through the vinegar. Remove from heat and serve with warm tortillas and your choice of taco sides (see note above).

Apr 9, 2014
mustardwithmutton

6 comments

Coconut & Nutella Swirl Loaf

My sister has recently started baking something sweet once a week to put in her children’s lunch box. Whilst it’s nice to provide a sweet treat it can be a struggle to find something wholesome. Home baking means that you can provide the occasional treat and have the peace of mind of knowing exactly what’s gone into it. So when my sister told me she’d been baking up a storm of banana breads and muffins I decided to get in on the act – I can now bake and give away the proceeds and not have any tempting cakes lurking in the pantry, perfect! My first contribution was this coconut and nutella loaf. My nieces loved it! I didn’t get to try any but my husband sneaked a piece and confirmed their opinion. It’s an easy recipe to whip up making it perfect for a last minute baking project. All the ingredients are mixed together in bowl and no heavy machinery is required. The only point to note is there’s not much batter so when it comes to layering the batter and the nutella, be sparing with the batter – you need just a small amount in each layer with the bottom and top layers being the most important.

Ingredients Adapted from Noble Pig Blog

2 cups plain flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 cup coconut milk
⅓ cup melted butter
1 cup coconut flakes – not desiccated coconut
1 cup Nutella, slightly warmed until easily spreadable

Method

Preheat oven to 180C. Butter and flour a 9 x 5 x 2.75 (correct size is important) loaf tin.

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another bowl beat egg with a fork and stir in melted butter and coconut milk. Combine well. Pour egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir just enough to combine. Fold in coconut. Spoon one third of the batter into the bottom of the loaf pan – be as sparing as possible with the batter otherwise you may run short (see note above). Add half the Nutella, covering the batter as best you can without mixing the two together. Add another third of the batter and cover Nutella completely. Finish with the other half of the Nutella and then more batter to top it off.

Use a table knife and stick it down, all the way through the batter at one end of the loaf pan. Work your way from one side of the pan to the other in a zigzag motion. Make just one pass for the swirl effect.
Bake 55-65 minutes until done. Because the Nutella is melty a toothpick to test doneness is not the best method. Instead press on bread and if it feels springy to the touch it is likely finished baking. Let cool for 20 minutes in pan before flipping over and letting cool completely.

Apr 2, 2014
mustardwithmutton

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Asian Beef Short Ribs Braised in Soy & Beer

Beef short ribs are a wonderful cut for long slow braising and up until now the main way I’ve cooked them is in a standard braise of red wine along with the usual vegetable suspects of carrots, onions and tomatoes – totally delicious and wonderful paired with pasta, polenta or mash. But beef ribs are also a popular cut in Asian dishes, some of which aren’t slow cooked, like Korean grilled beef ribs (kalbi), where the marinated ribs are cut thinly across the grain so all that’s required is a quick blast on the grill to yield tender ribs. In this Asian inspired recipe however the ribs are slowly braised in a wonderful aromatic broth of soy, star anise and dark wheat beer. The beer lending a wonderful earthy aroma to the dish. I couldn’t find dark wheat beer so I substituted half light wheat beer and half dark stout. I cooked the ribs long enough for them to be falling off the bone which makes for amazing flavour but you do compromise a little in presentation. If you can find a butcher that will cut your ribs in longer lengths this would be better but the smaller lengths that I could find made it hard to serve the ribs intact and on the bone. I served this as part of an Asian dinner with plenty of steamed rice to soak up the juices – it was a totally delicious, lip smacking meal and the recipe will definitely be going in my make-again file!

Ingredients – Serves 4 Adapted from Chris Badenoch

1.5 kg beef short ribs
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
3 tablespoons peanut oil, or other vegetable oil – not olive oil
1 large head of garlic, cloves separated
1 stick cinnamon
3 star anise
80 ml light soy sauce
40 grams grated palm sugar
750 ml Franziskaner Dunkel – which is a dark wheat beer, f you can’t find this replace with half light wheat beer and half dark stout

Method

Place the beef and dark soy in a non-reactive dish and marinate covered in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, or overnight if you can.

Heat the oil in a deep heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat and fry the garlic for 1 minute. Add the cinnamon and star anise and fry for another minute. Remove the garlic and spices from the pan and set aside. Add the beef and brown on all sides, you want a high level of caramelisation and you may need to do this in a couple of batches. When all the ribs are browned, return the garlic and spices to the pan and add the light soy, sugar and beer. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce the heat to low and simmer very gently for 30 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally.

Cover and simmer for a further 3 hours or until the meat is literally meat falling off the bone. Remove the beef from the pan carefully with a slotted spoon, aiming to keep the pieces intact and simmer the cooking liquid over high heat until reduced and thickened. Return the beef to the pan and heat through.

Serve with the garlic cloves, drizzled with sauce and steamed jasmine rice on the side.

Mar 26, 2014
mustardwithmutton

2 comments

Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic, Gorgonzola & Herbs

It’s been a hot summer in Sydney and even though we’re a few weeks into autumn there are still a lot of lovely tomatoes available at the markets so I’ve been making the most of them while they last. This super tasty recipe is from Giada de Laurentis and it makes a wonderful side dish to a steak dinner. In the summertime I usually make a steakhouse-style fresh tomato salad with red onions and dress it with a sauce that’s similar to steak sauce but with a bit of a vinegar kick (if you’ve ever ordered a tomato salad at a New York steakhouse you’ll know the kind of salad I mean). But the last time we were grilling some steaks I felt like a change and these little roma tomatoes stuffed with blue cheese and breadcrumbs didn’t disappoint. Next time I’ll make extra as they would be awesome chopped up and added to warm pasta. In fact, I did have a few left over and a couple of nights later when I was making spaghetti and meatballs I added them to my meat mixture and those meatballs were some of my best yet. This is an easy and quick side dish to make and can be prepared ahead of time and baked just before serving. Giada serves these as a canapé which is a great idea, just make sure you pass out a lot of napkins as they may be a tad on the messy side for finger food.

Ingredients – Serves 4 as a side dish Adapted from Giada de Laurentis

12 small Roma tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra for drizzling
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup plain store bought bread crumbs
¼ cup fresh bread crumbs
¾ cup finely crumbled Gorgonzola
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C. Using a teaspoon remove the seeds from the tomatoes, leaving the cavity completely empty. Place the tomato halves, cut side down, on paper towels to drain for about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, mix together the 2 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Using clean hands, gently toss the drained tomato halves in the oil mixture until coated. Marinate the tomatoes for 10 minutes.

In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs, gorgonzola, parmesan and parsley. Place the marinated tomato halves, cut side up, on a parchment lined baking sheet. Fill each tomato half with the bread crumb filling. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 25 – 30 minutes until slightly softened and the bread crumbing topping is golden brown. Arrange the cooked tomatoes on a serving platter and serve while hot.

Mar 19, 2014
mustardwithmutton

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Palak Paneer – Indian Spinach & Cheese Side Dish

This might not be the prettiest dish in the world but it sure is one of the tastiest. I can’t resist ordering palak paneer anytime we go to an Indian restaurant and if it’s not on the menu, chances are I won’t return. I always imagined that palak paneer would be a difficult dish to recreate at home – one of those Indian meals that would be hard to make “restaurant style”. I was happy to learn that’s not the case at all and this recipe for palak paneer is not only easy but exactly the same as the restaurant versions I’ve tried. Now I can have palak paneer whenever I want. I sometimes don’t even serve it as a side dish to a curry but give it a starring role, as in the picture below, where I served it with simply grilled salmon fillets and some naan bread. Paneer, the Indian cheese used in this recipe is quite easy to make at home but fortunately supermarkets are now stocking it which makes the process even easier. It looks in it’s packaging like a block of fetta but the taste and texture are very different and much milder. The “palak” part of the recipe refers to spinach, which in the case of this dish, is pureed and used as the main ingredient in a mild curry based sauce. Sometimes this dish is also called saag paneer but if only spinach is being used then palak is the correct term to use – saag refers to a mixture of different greens including spinach and mustard leaves. This is a must try dish whether as an accompaniment to your next curry or on it’s own with naan and some grilled meat or fish.

Ingredients – Serves 4 as a side dish

2 large bunches English spinach, leaves picked
3 tablespoons neutral flavoured vegetable oil or ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 green chilli, sliced – remove seeds if you want less heat
1 inch piece of ginger, grated
6 garlic cloves grated or put through a garlic press
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
Salt
225 g paneer, cut into 1 cm cubes – available in the cheese section of most supermarkets
1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons cream

Method

Wash the spinach well and place it in boiling water for 3–4 minutes, then refresh in cold water. Drain and squeeze out the excess water. Puree in a food processor of blender until smooth. Heat the oil in a heavy-based saucepan. Add the cumin seeds to the hot oil and when they start to splutter add the onions and green chilli and fry until golden brown. Add the ginger, garlic and ground coriander and cook for a further few minutes.

Add the tomatoes and let it cook until they have broken down, about 5-6 minutes. Stir in the pureed spinach and season well with salt. Add the dried fenugreek leaves, garam masala and cream and mix to combine. To finish add the cubed paneer cheese, stirring them gently through the sauce, and cook until heated through.

Mar 12, 2014
mustardwithmutton

2 comments

Panzanella – Rustic Italian Bread & Tomato Salad

This is the perfect salad to make during the long summer months or towards the end of summer when there’s plenty of naturally ripened juicy tomatoes available. If you’re a stickler for not throwing out bread this is also a great way of using up a stale loaf, in fact the staler the better. There’s no doubt that the final result is based solely on the quality of these two ingredients. Using tasteless tomatoes will result in a tasteless salad and more importantly using bread that’s too soft and processed will leave you with a sodden lumpy mess. You need to use good quality rustic bread that has a course crumb, a good quality wood fired ciabatta or an artisanal sourdough are best, preferably bought from an Italian delicatessen or a bakery and not from the supermarket. A lot of bread that’s labeled as ciabatta and sourdough in supermarkets look the business but I find them to be too soft and pappy in texture. There are a lot of different methods for making panzanella, some recipes call for the bread to be doused in a little vinegar to soften it or splashed with some water. I prefer to sprinkle the chopped tomatoes with salt and basil and let the juices extrude for a while and then use this as the softening liquid for the bread. Purists may not add anything extra to their panzanella but I love the addition of finely sliced red onions and black olives. This is one of my favourite salads, so much so that I sometimes buy a loaf of bread and leave it sitting on the counter for a couple of days just to make it. Panzanella pairs beautifully with grilled meats and sausages and on warm nights makes a satisfying light dinner on it’s own.

Ingredients – Serves 4 as a side dish

750g tomatoes chopped, the ripest and juiciest you can lay your hands on
1 clove of garlic, finely minced
1 small bunch basil, leaves removed and torn
1 loaf stale white bread, wood fired is best – see note above
1 red onion, finely sliced
2-3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup pitted black olives, halved
Italian parmesan, shaved with a potato peeler
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Method

Salt the tomatoes well and leave to stand for an hour with the garlic and half the torn basil. Tear the bread into pieces, discarding the crust. You don’t want the pieces too big or too small – about 1-1½ inches is best. Mash the tomatoes up a little bit with your hands and add to the bread with the onions. Mix with your hands until all the bread is coated in the tomato juices. Add the red wine vinegar, a little bit at a time until the bread is nicely softened. How much you will need depends on the bread you used and how juicy your tomatoes were.

At this point even if my bread is soft enough I still add a little bit of vinegar as I like the flavour it imparts to the salad. Add the olives and the rest of the basil leaves and give the salad a gentle toss through, again using your hands is best. Sprinkle over the olive oil and add a few grindings of black pepper. Taste for salt and adjust if necessary – you would be surprised how much seasoning this salad can take. Top with the shaved parmesan and serve.

Mar 5, 2014
mustardwithmutton

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Jamie Oliver’s Lamb Shank & Tomato Tagine

You’ve probably noticed by now that my family loves lamb in any shape or form so I’m always on the lookout for new recipes, especially ones that can feed a crowd with minimum fuss. Lamb shanks are always a good choice for large gatherings and this recipe from Jamie Oliver pairs the lamb with lovely Moroccan spices, fresh tomatoes, dried apricots and unusually, baby potatoes. This is a simple meal to whip up but as usual with lamb shanks, long slow braising is required. If you want to make this for a mid week meal you can cook it on the weekend and easily reheat it with the flavours developing as it sits. This meal is made extra easy as the lamb shanks don’t need to be fried before being added to the braise – yay, no messy stove to clean up afterwards! As usual Jamie’s recipes are pretty spot on but I did find that the cooking time of 3 hours wasn’t quite long enough and cooked mine for closer to 4 hours but I really do like my lamb shanks to be literally falling off the bone. I served this with a simple side of cous cous and the herbed yogurt that’s included in the recipe.

Ingredients – Serves 6 Adapted from Jamie Magazine

6 lamb shanks, French trimmed
Olive oil
1 garlic blub, cloves separated and peeled
1 red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, bashed
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, bashed
1 heaped tablespoon ras al hanout
1.5kg of ripe red tomatoes
1 cup dried apricots
500g small potatoes – the smaller the better
½ bunch each of mint and coriander, leaves picked and finely chopped
2 cups Greek-style yoghurt
Couscous and toasted flatbreads, to serve

Method

Preheat oven to 160C. Season the shanks generously with salt and pepper. Place the onions, garlic and spices into a food processor and blitz into a paste. Heat a large ovenproof pan (you’ll need one with a lid) over medium heat, add a generous splash of oil and the spice paste and fry for about 5 minutes until fragrant. Add your shanks to the spice paste with the bony ends sticking up. Blitz the tomatoes and apricots in a food processor to a thick mixture.

Pour this over the shanks, add the potatoes and place on the lid and bake for 2½ – 3 hours, until the shanks are almost falling off the bone, then remove the lid and cook for another 45 minutes – 1 hour. Meanwhile combine the mint and coriander with the yoghurt, and season. Serve bowls of lamb with the tomatoey juices, topped with dollops of herby yoghurt, the toasted flatbread and simple cooked couscous.

Feb 26, 2014
mustardwithmutton

3 comments

Marea’s Fusilli with Octopus & Bone Marrow

I know what you’re thinking – octopus and bone marrow shouldn’t even appear in the same sentence let alone on the same plate but bare with me as you’re wrong, very wrong. Marea is an amazing Italian seafood restaurant in New York and this is their signature dish created by chef owner Michael White. I first saw the dish on an Anthony Bourdain episode of No Reservations, aptly titled Food Porn. In the program Anthony Bourdain hand picks a few dishes he deems worthy of the title and this was one of them. After his first mouthful he stated it was the best pasta he’s ever tasted. That was all I needed to hear to know I had to try and recreate this dish. I’ve unfortunately never eaten at Marea but I urged my husband to dine there on his next trip to New York and to order this dish. He did and called from the restaurant to confirm Mr Bourdain was correct and that this was indeed the best pasta he’s ever tasted. I was able to cobble together a recipe from some kitchen footage in the No Reservations episode and Serious Eats. According to my husband (who has since been to Marea on a number of occasions) it’s pretty darn close. I have nothing to compare it to but that’s okay because it’s truly delicious so I’m happy. The pasta Michael White uses at Marea is long strands of hand made fusilli, I used a dried variety but fresh or dried it’s definitely the best shape for the sauce. The baby octopus is slowly braised in red wine and tomatoes and just before serving, bone marrow that has been flash fried in butter with thyme and garlic is stirred into the sauce – the taste is totally luxurious, kind of like finishing a sauce with foie gras. Trust me, try this and you won’t be disappointed. If you have squeamish friends, don’t even tell them about the bone marrow – they’ll never know and will just wonder what an earth that certain something is that makes this sauce taste so amazing.

Ingredients – Serves 2-3

Olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, crushed in a garlic press or finely minced
500g baby octopus, cleaned and trimmed and cut into halves or quarters
1 cup full bodied red wine
1 x 400g tin of Italian peeled plum tomatoes, San Marzano if possible, placed in bowl and crushed by hand
Salt
Chilli flakes
¼ cup best quality beef stock
2 teaspoons sugar
1 heaped tablespoon tomato paste
Handful of fresh basil leaves
250g bone marrow, this can be purchased from your butcher but may require pre-ordering, chopped into 1.5cm pieces
3 extra cloves of garlic, crushed in a garlic press or finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon butter

Method

Place a large skillet, which has a lid, over medium-high heat and add a generous splash of olive oil. When the oil is hot add the octopus and flash fry for a couple of minutes . Add the first measure of garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and a pinch of chilli flakes. Cook for a minute more then add the red wine. Bring to the boil and let it reduce by half. Add the basil, tomatoes, beef stock and sugar. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Lower heat, cover and cook for one hour. Remove the lid and let it cook for a further 20 minutes. At this point the sauce should be quite thick. Check for seasoning and adjust if required.

Towards the end of the cooking time place a small fry pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and when bubbling add the garlic and thyme, cook for a couple of minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Increase the heat and add the chopped bone marrow and quickly fry it basting the marrow with the garlic and thyme infused butter. You only want to fry the marrow on high heat for a few minutes, any longer and it will disintegrate and melt. Add all the ingredients in the marrow pan to the sauce and gently stir it through. Bring a large pot of well salted water to the boil and cook the pasta until al dente. When the pasta is cooked drain it well and add it to the sauce and mix it through the sauce until the pasta is evenly coated. Serve immediately.

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