review: bang restaurant, dublin 2

I have a list of restaurants I want to visit in Dublin, and also all across Ireland! Further afield too actually: Barcelona, London, Paris, Cape Town, Bruges, Amsterdam, New York, Copenhagen, Singapore, Bangkok...

Some are clearly more achievable than others, so I've taken the (sensible) decision to tackle the home-grown ones first.

One on my list is Bang, located close to St Stephen's Green on Merrion Row, and a recent voucher offer from MenuPages Deals meant that it was a step closer. Happy days!


Ms C and I nabbed a deal for the renowned 5-course tasting menu for 2 people at €69 - half the usual price of €69 each, and so we headed down with empty bellies one Friday evening recently.

We arrived in good time, were shown to our table straight away, and were offered drinks. We went for the recommended accompanying wines for the tasting menu (€29.95 per person), and I'm really glad we did, they turned out to be perfect matches. I've never been one for the whole 'drink this with this, eat that with that' thing, but I have to say I may be starting to convert. These were spot on so maybe there's something in that after all...

Ok so I'm just going to reel off the courses given to us, with a comment on each. Suffice to say this was one of the nicest meals I've eaten in a pretty long time. Apart from my own fantastic cooking of course ahem...

We started with an amuse bouche of soft goat's cheese, topped with beetroot and a few other bits & bobs. Really creamy, not too strong or salty, and a lovely way to get the appetite going. This was served with a glass of prosecco from Valdobbiadene in the Treviso province of Italy.

Next up was the fish course, which was house cured Clare Island salmon, served with avocado, radish, cucumber and a ponzu gel which was just tart enough to cut through the sweetness of the other components. Not a huge serving, very delicate and perfectly balanced. As a cheffy type cook, this played as much to my eyes as my palate, and I was left feeling inspired yet again as to how simple presentation is often the best; a feeling I'm getting a lot when dining out lately, such is the standard of Dublin restaurants these days. The wine here was a crisp Sauvignon Blanc (Blanc/Gros Manseng) from the Cotes de Gascogne region.

Meat was next, and time to start getting full! The menu described the dish as Hereford Beef with local celeriac, crispy onion, watercress and horseradish potato. Sounds nice enough, sure, but what Bang fail to mention on the menu is that the beef is slow cooked for around 14 hours. A small detail? I think not. Jeepers creepers, what a piece of meat; I couldn't stop smiling when I tried to cut into it and it just fell apart, and then actually tasting it... I'm drooling just thinking about it! So moist and full of flavour, and coupled with the creamy horseradish mash, a real delight. This was just a fantastic plate of food. Wine with the meat was a lovely full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux.

Cheeses followed, a hard and a soft (these can vary depending on when you're in), and they were served simply with biscuits, grapes and a fantastic truffled honey. The honey was amazing; I don't know what they did to it but I've never tasted anything so, erm, honey-ey! Absolutely ridiculous. The cheese course came with a lighter red, a Malbec from Argentina.

Finally it was dessert time, and although we'd already eaten four indulgent courses, we were eager to finish off with something just as nice as the previous dishes; expectations were high! Pud came in the form of a chocolate bar, accompanied by mango gel and a mango sorbet. Rich dark chocolate - not too bitter - and the sharpness of the fresh mango, this is a dessert to go on anyone's bucket list I reckon. The final wine was a sweet fruity red dessert wine, almost another part of the dish itself, so yet again a great match.

Service was impeccable throughout, with each dish and wine described in detail to us by the attentive staff. In short this was a great foody night out. Perfect food expertly presented and very well thought out, with each course complimenting the overall menu as a whole.

Now look, I realise €100 a head is a bit on the steep side for most pockets (mine included), but I feel it's worth it, and definitely a place to be recommended for a very special occasion. Or do as I did and keep your eyes peeled for the voucher offer - if you're into your food you won't regret it.

Bang Restaurant
11 Merrion Row
Dublin 2, Ireland
www.bangrestaurant.com
www.facebook.com/BangRestaurant
https://twitter.com/bangrestaurant1
info@bangrestaurant.com
+353 (1) 400 4229

pan-seared pigeon breast with roast apples, black pudding & cider reduction

Game season is under way again in Ireland and butchers are now starting to stock all of those richer meats we see in the Autumn & Winter months. Venison is back in town, as is pheasant, wild boar, partridge, quail... This dish uses pigeon; a lovely dark rich meat with virtually no fat, and cheap too; the 4 breasts I used here only set me back around €8!

This is a great starter, packed with flavour and leaving you wanting more every time!

Ingredients

• 4 pigeon breasts
• 100g black pudding, diced
• 1 Granny Smith apple, cored, peeled & cut into 8
• 200ml dry cider
• 2 tbsp duck fat
• 20g butter
• Salt & pepper

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180c / 160c (fan) / gas mark 4.
2. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat and add 1tbsp duck fat and the butter.
3. Season the apple pieces with salt & pepper & fry for 1 minute on each side until just starting to colour slightly.
4. Transfer the apple to a non-stick baking tray and place in the oven. Cook for 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, add the other half of the duck fat into the frying pan and fry the black pudding for 3 or 4 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper then place on a second baking tray and place in the oven for 7-8 minutes.
6. Season the pigeon breasts on both sides & fry for 1 minute, skin side down. Turn over, add the cider and cook for another 2 minutes.
7. Remove the breasts from the pan and set aside to rest.
8. Turn the heat up in the pan and reduce the cider by around half.
9. To serve, place the apple pieces in a bowl or on a plate of your choice. Slice the pigeon breasts into 5 or 6 pieces each and place on top of the apple. Sprinkle the black pudding over and spoon over the sauce.
10. I also finished mine off with some posh micro herbs; in this case it was red stem radish, but pea shoots would be lovely too.
11. Enjoy!

Serves 2

pan-fried sea bass with beurre blanc & roasted mediterranean vegetables

Hi everyone!

I know, I know; it's been soooo looooong since I last posted, and for this I apologise. No excuses, aside from to say I've kind of been out of commission for the last couple of months doing lots of cheffy, cooky things. Can't divulge too much about that just yet, but suffice to say it's VERY exciting stuff, and of course I'll be giving more details in due course!!

Vague enough? Yep thought so. On with the food...

Once again, I've tried to put a dish together with swanky-but-inexpensive in mind, with taste and flavour still sitting pretty in first position, as always. This is a lovely dish, very simple, full of flavour, healthy (well, ish - ignore the mountain of butter in the sauce), and won't break the bank. You can substitute the bass for most other fish too, such as pollock, hake or cod, and it also works extremely well with salmon or sea trout.

This recipe makes for a nice starter or a light lunch/supper, but if you want to ramp it up as a main, you could just sit the fish on some sautéed potatoes and increase the amount of vegetables you plonk on the plate. Easy!

Finally, one more shout out for my good buddies at Kish Fish in Smithfield for selling me the beautifully fresh sea bass.

Ingredients

For the bass

• 2 fillets of sea bass
• Salt
• Pepper

For the Mediterranean vegetables

• ¼ courgette, cut into bite-size pieces
• ¼ aubergine, cut into bite-size pieces
• ¼ red pepper, de-seeded & cut into bite-size pieces
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper

For the beurre blanc

• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 60ml white wine
• 60ml white wine vinegar
• 125g unsalted butter, cut into cubes

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180c / 160c (fan) / gas mark 4.
2. Place the vegetables in a small roasting tray and toss with the olive oil, salt & pepper, to coat.
3. Place in the oven and roast for around 30mins, until soft (but not mushy!).
4. For the beurre blanc, place the shallots, vinegar & wine in a small saucepan and heat over a medium heat until only around a quarter of the liquid remains.
5. Lower the heat to its lowest setting and whisk in the butter, one cube at a time until each one has been incorporated into the liquid. Keep warm.
6. For the bass, heat a non-stick saucepan until hot. Season the fillets lightly on both sides - do this the last minute before adding to the pan so you don't draw all of the moisture out of the fish.
7. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil and place the fish in the pan, skin side down. Hold down for a few seconds to prevent the fillets curling up (or - chef's tip - place a saucer on top of the fish for a minute or so to weight it down).
8. Once the skin is coloured and nice & crispy (approx. 3 minutes), turn of the heat & turn the fish onto the flesh side. Cook for a further minute (maximum) and remove to rest for around a minute.
9. To serve, place the fish in the middle of a plate, skin side up. Spoon the sauce all around and place the vegetable pieces around.
10. Take a photo, post it everywhere, wait for the ooh's and ahh's... Oh yep, and enjoy!

If you have some nice dry white wine, pour yourself a glass to have with this dish. If not - buy some!

Serves 2

pork belly with black pudding, scallops, fondant potatoes, oyster mushrooms and wild garlic

With the starter out of the way, next up was the main course; the main event of the meal, and expectations were high. Not that I was panicking or anything of course, but I started this dish at around 10am!

Preparation is the key here. The pork is cooked, cooled and cooked again, and there's a fair bit of last minute flying around before plating up, but thankfully the end result tastes like a little bit of heaven. I love all of these ingredients, and together they're just perfect. Loads of different flavours, half a dozen different textures, and a real showcase of a meal to impress even the in-law-est of in-laws!

Enjoy making this; you'll get a real sense of achievement as a cook and what you end up eating is guaranteed to be one of the nicest meals you've produced all year!

Ingredients

For the pork belly

• 1kg - 1.3kg pork belly, bones/ribs removed. skin scored
• Handful of fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 bulbs garlic, halved horizontally
• 350ml white wine
• 500ml warm chicken stock
• Olive oil
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the fondant potatoes

• 3-4 large potatoes, peeled & cut into 4cm cubes (2 cubes per person)
• 150g butter
• 75ml chicken stock
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed/broken slightly with a knife
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the rest!

• 8 slices black pudding
• 8 scallops, cleaned & patted dry
• Good handful of oyster mushrooms
• 2 tbsp butter, diced
• Olive oil
• Good handful of wild garlic
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. For the first stage of the pork belly, preheat the oven to 180c / 160c (fan) / gas mark 4.
2. Season the pork with salt & pepper on both sides and rub with a couple of good glugs of olive oil.
3. Place the garlic in a roasting pan, cut side up, and cover with the sprigs of thyme. Place the pork belly on top, skin side up, and pour around 250ml of the wine around the edges into the pan.
4. Cover loosely with tin foil, cook the pork for 2 hours before resting on a board for 10-15 minutes.
5. Place the pork in a clean tray or dish, with another on top. Weight it down (cans of food are good for this) and leave to cool for around 3-4 hours.
6. The gravy comes next! Place the original roasting tin on the stove top over a medium-high heat and deglaze with the remaining 100ml of wine. Reduce for 3-4 minutes then add the stock and reduce again by half, making sure you break the garlic & thyme down as much as possible with a wooden spoon to get all the flavour out.
7. Sieve the sauce into a jug and set to one side for reheating later when plating up.
8. When the pork is cooled (and a lot flatter), divide it into 8 equal portions and get the oven up to its highest setting (around 220c). When the oven is nice & hot, cook the pork skin side up on the top shelf until the skin crisps up (around 15 minutes or so).
9. In the meantime, you can deal with the fondant potatoes. Put the butter into a saucepan & heat until foaming. Place the potatoes in and cook for around 5 minutes, until they start to turn a nice golden brown. Turn over and cook for another 5 minutes before adding the stock, garlic and thyme sprigs. Cover & reduce the heat slightly, and simmer for another 5 minutes or so, until the potatoes are tender.
10. For the mushrooms, just fry in some olive oil with a little black pepper until cooked through & tender.
11. Next up is the black pudding. Heat a little olive oil in a non-stick pan, add the black pudding and fry for 2 minutes on each side until crispy. Remove from the pan & place to one side on a warm plate.
12. Season the scallops lightly with salt & pepper. In the same pan as you cooked the black pudding, add a little more oil and when nice & hot add the scallops and cook for 30s-60s on each side. The time will depend on the size of your scallops, but you're looking for a nice brown sear before turning.
13. Finally, sauté the wild garlic in a knob of butter until nicely wilted. You should also reheat your sauce at this stage - in a microwave will do, especially as you probably don't have any clean pans left by now!
14. To serve, place two pieces of pork belly on each plate, then two pieces of black pudding with a scallop on each, and two potatoes with a couple of the mushrooms on top. Place your wild garlic in the middle of the plate & pour the sauce into the gaps in between it all!
15. This is a fair bit of faffing around; I do understand that, but trust me, it's very much worth every second!

The dish is lovely served with pretty much any wine too! Red is great with the pork and black pudding, white is great with the potatoes, pork, scallops & black pudding, and rose is great with everything!

Enjoy!

Serves 4

pan fried sea bass with carrots, leeks & caper butter sauce

The outlaws were heading into town.

Wait, let me start that again...

My girlfriend's lovely parents were coming round for dinner.

Unfortunately for me, my cooking has been bigged up somewhat by my loved one (and admittedly, also by me), so I had quite a lot to live up to. As you know, I always try to come up with dishes that have the look, feel & taste of restaurant standard plates of food, but which don't break the bank, so this was my chance to go with that & give la familia something very special without having to use any ingredients that rhyme with 'mobster'.

Vegetables are always a good option. They're cheap, versatile, tasty, and good for us! So they were on the shopping list without a second thought. The nice people over at Kish Fish in Smithfield had also just sent me a text message informing me that sea bass fillets were on offer, so that also seemed like a no-brainer - who doesn't like fresh, simply-cooked fish, right?! And as we know, many people have the notion that fish is ridiculously difficult to cook - when in fact it's one of the simplest (shhh don't tell anyone!), so always a good one when trying to impress an Irish Mammy...

Then I just needed a sauce. Butter sauces are light, so great with fish dishes like this. The lemon is lovely with the bass, and the capers add a nice bit of zing against the sweet vegetables.

Try this dish out, and if you can't get hold of sea bass, go for whatever fish you can - trout, salmon, mackerel etc; they all work just as well.

Suffice to say, The Parents were suitably impressed, and loved the food. Phew! Ah but then there was the main course...

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 4 fillets sea bass, cut into 2 or 3 pieces each
• 4 medium carrots, peeled & cut into matchsticks
• 1 large leek (or 2 medium), cleaned & cut into matchsticks
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 150g butter, diced
• 2 tsp capers, drained
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• Small handful of samphire, to serve (optional)

Method

1. Heat a large sauté pan (or deep frying pan) over a medium-high heat, add 100g of the butter and throw in the leeks & carrots. Sauté for 5 minutes or so, until starting to soften. Lower the heat to keep warm & soften a little more, whilst you cook the fish.
2. Heat a separate non-stick frying pan until hot. Season the fish lightly on the flesh side with a little salt (not much), and add the oil to the pan.
3. Carefully place the fish in the pan, skin side down, being careful not to splash yourself with the hot oil (lay the fish away from you to prevent this).
4. Press the fillets down for a few seconds if necessary to stop them curling up and stay nice & flat - this helps give you a lovely crisp skin. If you're having the samphire, blanch this in boiling water now for around a minute or so until softened, then drain and put to one side.
5. When the skin has coloured and crisped up, turn the fish and cook for another minute or so on the flesh side, until cooked through. Remove and place on a warm plate.
6. In the same pan as you cooked the fish, add the remaining 50g of butter and add the capers. When the butter has melted, squeeze in the lemon juice and mix together gently to ensure all the capers have taken on the flavours.
7. To serve, spoon the carrot & leek mixture onto a plate and place the sea bass on top before spooning over the caper butter.
8. Finally, to finish off the samphire, just throw it into the remainders of the caper butter and stir around for a few seconds until warmed through. Place on top of the plate, and of course, don't forget to arrange pretentiously!

This is lovely with a nice big glass of cold, dry white wine - which is also useful for drowning your sorrows once you start wishing you'd have made more!

Serves 4

review: camden kitchen, dublin 8

One year. One whole year. That's how long it is since I first met my lovely lady. Thankfully I was allowed to give the knife a rest for one evening and head out for dinner to celebrate the occasion. I live in a great part of town, just south of the centre, surrounded by pubs, cafés, and of course restaurants. And so off we went to our favourite: Camden Kitchen.

The restaurant itself is a perfect mix of cool bistro and fine dining, with a comfortable atmosphere; not one of those places where you feel you shouldn't cut your food too loudly. The staff are friendly and attentive, but not overbearing, and are knowledgeable about the lovely food they professionally deliver to the hungry.

The wine list offers a good variety of reds, whites & sparkly stuff, with prices to suit all pockets too: for example, whites range from €23 to €49 a bottle, with most also served by the glass. If you can't choose, just speak to someone for a suggestion based on what you're going to be eating.

And that leads us to the food...

Head chef & owner Padraic Hayden and his small team offer up a veritable feast of what he describes as "Modern European" dishes, locally sourced where possible (including a bit of foraging, fair play), and always seasonal. Big flavours, perfect balances, and presented oh-so-prettily, this is serious food that just won't allow you to stop eating it!

We started off in true celebratory style with a couple of champagne cocktails whilst we mulled over the menu. A Kir Royal for me and a Bellini for her majesty. A bit of fizz is always good for getting the appetite going I reckon - not that we needed any encouragement! They went down veeery well...

We ordered food and water and started trying (unsuccessfully) not to eat all of the lovely bread. Wine was on its way too; a bottle of 2009 Sancerre, Domaine des Brosses, at €39.

Starters arrived and whilst I resisted the temptation to take photos (a personal first), I did resist the temptation to dive in all guns blazing. For around 2 seconds...

Miss Chefilepsy went for the natural smoked haddock croquette, which came served with smoked salmon & spring leaves. Pretty as a picture, and tasty as a very tasty thing indeed. Good job.

I opted for the special: gambas & chorizo with lemon, garlic, croutons & salad leaves. The smell was just amazing, and transported me back to my years living in Spain. And when I say gambas, we're not talking piddling little prawns here. These were serious monsters, served grilled in their shells, and came with a finger bowl for the clean up operation afterwards - good thinking guys! This was a huge portion (I think I counted 10 of these dudes, maybe more); a couple more and it would have made a substantial lunch dish! These beasts are light though so no complaints here. Moreish, full of flavour, and fresh as the proverbial daisy.

Smile planted firmly on my face, onto the main event. Organic salmon fillet, wild garlic gnocchi, clams & cauliflower tempura for me; dry-aged Maurice Kettyle beef rib eye served with ox cheek, potatoes & roasted shallot for the ladyfriend. We'll start with my salmon...

Beautifully just-cooked flesh, crispy skin; just wonderful. The wild garlic gnocchi was a revelation; bright green in colour and piped out like puréed potato with everything sitting atop, the taste was subtle with just enough garlic flavour so as to compliment - not dominate - the rest of the food. The cauliflower was crispy on the outside and cooked perfectly, with a delicate crunch to the vegetable. Overall a lovely, lovely plate of food.

Miss C's rib eye was a more robust looking dish, yet still with the refinement I've come to expect of these top eating joints. Wonderfully juicy and perfectly seasoned, the phrase 'hot knife though butter' comes to mind when it came to cutting a piece off. For those that have yet to try ox cheek, I'd definitely recommend it. It just tastes so... beefy! And tender as you like; this must have been cooked for hours! The dish went down well I think, or so says the lack of, well, anything left on the plate, once the course was over. Another success then.

Spotting our creaking and slight groans, it was suggested that we might want to take a little break before ordering desserts. Good call my man! More wine was sipped and eventually we bit the bullet and ordered.

The puds arrived within a few minutes and as soon as we smelled them, any thoughts of not being able to finish were quickly shown the door.

I often go for the dark chocolate fondant with homemade coconut ice cream & coffee froth, but bowed out this time, opting for the citrus crème brûlée with passion fruit sorbet. Mine turned out to be a great choice; rich yet light, and full of flavour, with the tart sorbet acting as the perfect palate cleanser.

Miss C did go for the fondant, having stared at mine jealously the last couple of times we've been here, and she wasn't disappointed. SO chocolately, this was a textbook fondant, with plenty of rich chocolate oozing out onto the plate. Clean plates all round for a third time.

Time to try and relax; coffee with a cheeky brandy for me, and the remainder of the wine for my better half. We must have still looked peckish somehow, as our server thought it necessary to drop a couple of complimentary lavender & honey Madeleines onto our table. These are one of the standard desserts on offer here so I'm guessing rather than throw them away, it was decided to give them a good home i.e. in our bellies! A nice touch nonetheless.

The bill came, we paid, tipped, and attempted to execute dignified waddling as we shuffled sideways out the door.

All in all this was, as always, a great gastronomical evening of dining. I can't urge you enough to try Camden Kitchen when trying to decide where to go for something just a little bit special; trust me, you'll never be disappointed. With a total spend of €132, this clearly isn't the cheapest bites you'll ever get, but when you think that covered six dishes (SIX!), champagne cocktails, wine (€39 alone, don't forget), coffee, brandy and water, I have to say, that price is a long way off being offensive.

And remember, if you pay Camden Kitchen anything at all, then you'll have just finished one of the best meals you'll have eaten all year. Worth every penny says I.

I'll be back before long I hope; I'm sure my lady & I can think of a good enough excuse, even if it's just that we're hungry...

Camden Kitchen
3A Camden Market
Grantham Street
Dublin 8, Ireland
www.camdenkitchen.ie
https://www.facebook.com/CamdenKitchen
+353 (1) 476 0125
info@camdenkitchen.ie

spaghetti with crab, lemon & chilli

We're all so busy these days, have you noticed? Too busy to call, too busy to relax, and certainly too busy to cook a meal. Thank The Lord that this dish only takes 10 minutes then!

Simple, tasty, healthy (and my god, moreish), this pasta meal only uses pasta & just a handful of other ingredients, plus the obligatory olive oil of course! Have it for supper, or pile it up as a main course; either way you'll make it again & again!

Ingredients

• 300g white crab meat
• Large handful of freshly chopped parsley
• 1 red chilli, de-seeded & finely chopped
• Zest & juice of 1 lemon
• Large clove of garlic, finely sliced
• 200g spaghetti
• 3 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente (around 8 minutes) and drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan (or sauté pan). Add the crab, parsley, chilli, garlic & lemon zest, and fry gently for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly to mix together & warm through.
3. Add the remainder of the oil and the lemon juice and cook for a further 2 minutes.
4. Add the pasta & mix well until coated with the crab sauce.
5. Serve, eat, say yum a few times...

Serves 2

seared tuna with tuna tartare, scallops and pak choi salad

When we talk about cooking with tuna, many of us think of the tinned stuff, in oil, or water, or (more trendy) olive oil. Now, that type of tuna is pretty cool in its own right of course; it's cheap, it's versatile, and it makes a great addition to a salad, stirred into a tomato pasta sauce, or just mixed with some mayonnaise and thrown on toast with tomato & cheese for a quick & comforting classic tuna melt.

For dinner however, the fresh option will give you a whole different experience. Full of essential nutrients, fresh tuna really is something else! The texture is just amazing (the fresher the better), and can even be eaten raw (think sashimi), and the fish lends itself brilliantly well to Asian flavours.

Price-wise, it clearly costs more than the tinned variety, but is worth every penny, and really won't break the bank - and why should it?! A little goes a long way, and I've designed this recipe to show off a couple of ways to make the most of tuna and its beautiful qualities. As a light lunch or a swanky starter, it's all good. Enjoy!

Ingredients

For the seared tuna

• 1 piece of fresh tuna (around 350g is plenty for 4 people)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp clear honey
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds

For the tuna tartare

• 150g fresh tuna, diced into very small pieces (the smaller the better)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp clear honey
• ½ lime, juice only
• 1 spring onion, finely chopped
• ½ green chilli, finely chopped
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper

For the scallops

• 8 scallops, corals removed
• 1 tbsp olive oil

For the pak choi salad

• 2 pak choi, cleaned and thinly sliced
• ½ lime, juice only
• Small handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ½ green chilli, finely chopped
• Handful of beansprouts
• 3 or 4 radishes, very finely sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
• 1 tbsp clear honey

Method

1. First make the marinade for the tuna. Whisk the soy sauce, honey & sesame oil together in a bowl and place the tuna in, ensuring it gets a good coating. Leave for at least 5 minutes to soak up the flavours.
2. Next make the dressing for the salad. Mix everything together apart from the pak choi (reserve a small amount of coriander for garnish). Set to one side.
3. For the tuna tartare, mix all the ingredients together, seasoning to taste.
4. To finish the seared tuna, remove from the marinade and coat in the sesame seeds. Heat a griddle pan (or non-stick frying pan) until hot, add a small amount of olive oil and carefully place the tuna in the pan. Sear on all sides and remove to rest for a couple of minutes. The whole cooking process there should only take around 2-3 minutes in total, and don't panic of some of the seeds  burn a little; they just add to the flavour & textures!
5. For the scallops, season lightly with salt & freshly ground black pepper. Heat the oil in a frying pan until hot and cook the scallops for 30 - 60 seconds on each side, until they colour & start to caramelise slightly.
6. Finish the salad by adding the pak choi to the dressing, making sure everything gets a good coating.
7. To serve, place a small pile of salad on a plate. Next, slice the tuna into pieces no more than 1cm thick and place on top of the salad. Put 2 good spoonfuls of the tuna tartare on the plate and place a scallop on top of each. Finally, spoon over a little of the salad dressing and sprinkle over some of the reserved coriander.
8. Take photos, eat, smile, wonder how you didn't make this earlier...

Serves 4.

Special mention once again to the guys at Kish Fish for supplying the tuna & scallops. You rock!

monkfish wrapped in prosciutto with scallops, wilted spinach and tomato & basil sauce

Easter was upon us last weekend, and that all kicked off with Good Friday. Now for me, Good Friday is a bit of a tale of two stories. On the one hand the pubs are closed and we can't get hold of a pint during a long weekend, which just seems plain unfair. On the other hand though, we can stick with tradition and eat fish! Thanks yet again to the guys at Kish Fish, and even more so actually, as monkfish was one of their weekly specials!

Monkfish is just great; one of my definite favourites, and lovely and meaty, so it can take a good roasting, yet is still light enough to handle a strong sauce. I wrapped mine in prosciutto ham, but you can use serrano, parma ham, or even good old streaky bacon.

Ingredients

• 200g piece of monkfish tail
• 3-4 slices prosciutto ham (or an alternative - see above)
• Olive oil
• 6 scallops, corals removed
• Knob of butter
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the spinach:

• 2 bags baby spinach
• Olive oil

For the sauce:

• 1 small punnet of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3-4 spring onions, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• Half a dozen fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C (fan 200C) / 425F / gas mark 7.
2. Carefully wrap the monkfish in the ham & season with black pepper.
3. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in an oven-proof frying pan until hot, add the fish and brown on all sides (around 1 minutes on each side should do it).
4. Transfer the pan to the middle shelf of the oven and roast the fish for around 8 minutes or so, until the fish is cooked all the way through.
5. Remove from the oven (be careful, it'll be very hot), place on a board and cover loosely with foil to rest for 5-7 minutes.
6. While the fish is resting, make the sauce. Heat the oil in a small frying pan over a medium high heat and add the garlic & spring onion. Fry for a couple of minutes until softened.
7. Add the cherry tomatoes and basil, and cook for around 3 minutes. The tomatoes will start to break down and go mushy.
8. That's the sauce done & can be served as it is, but I blitzed mine with a hand blender until smooth - entirely up to you!
9. Place the spinach & oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, place the lid on the pan and cook until wilted down, stirring every 30 seconds or so. Drain through a sieve or colander.
10. For the scallops, add 1 tbsp olive oil to a small frying pan along with a knob of butter, and heat until hot (but not smoking). Season your scallops with a little salt & freshly ground black pepper and add to the pan. Cook for 30 - 60 seconds, until they start to brown & caramelise, then turn and cook for the same time on the other side.
11. To serve, place the spinach in a neat pile in the centre of the plate, lay slices of the monkfish on top and drizzle a little sauce over. Put 3 more small dollops of sauce around the plate and sit the scallops on top.
12. Eat, smile, tell all your friends...

Serves 2.

prawn & asparagus risotto with seared scallops

I think we all feel a bit on the glum side at the moment, stuck in the midst of this ridiculous weather. Wet & windy is not what we want! It is, however, what we've got, so this weekend I went down the comfort food route, and made Ms Chefilepsy & I a risotto. Quick, simple, hearty, and tasty enough to take your mind off what's outside, just for a little while at least.

I got hold of some lovely peeled fresh prawns from the guys at Kish Fish on Saturday morning (as well as half a dozen scallops, but then I just can't resist scallops!), and had some asparagus kicking about, so that decided what was going in the dish for me! You can stick in pretty much anything you want; the basic risotto is usually the same each time, with your main ingredient of choice just being stirred in towards the end.

Ingredients

• 200g peeled prawns (cooked or raw - I used raw)
• 350g risotto rice, such as Arborio or Vialone Nano
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 1 glass dry white wine
• 2 litres warm chicken or vegetable stock (I went for a 50/50 split)
• 20 asparagus spears, blanched in boiling slated water for 4 minutes, drained & cut into 
• 12 scallops, corals removed (optional)
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• A few knobs of butter
• Handful of freshly chopped flat leaf parsley

Method

1. Heat a large saute pan over a medium heat and add 2 or 3 knobs of butter. Once melted, add the shallots & fry gently for 4-5 mins until softened.
2. Add the rice and stir to coat. Cook for around 3 minutes then add the wine.
3. Reduce down a little over 2 or 3 minutes then add the first 3 ladles of stock.
4. Stir gently (but constantly) with a wooden spoon until you can 'draw' a line in the rice without it filling up with liquid (think of Moses parting the sea!).
5. Keep adding the stock, a ladle or two at a time, and follow step 4 until the stock has all gone. It WILL all fit, trust me!
6. Before you add the last ladle of stock, stir in the prawns and asparagus, until the prawns are cooked & warmed through, which should only take a couple of minutes.
7. Season to taste with salt & pepper, take off the heat and stand with the lid on for 2-3 minutes.
8. The risotto should be lovely and creamy, not stiff & sticky, and you should stir in a few more knobs of butter at the end to increase the richness.
9. Finally stir in the parsley & serve, garnished with 2 or 3 additional asparagus spears and 3 scallops per serving if you have them.
10. If you've gone for the scallops option, just season them on both ends with salt & pepper, heat some butter in a pan until melted & hot (but not burnt), and fry the scallops on each end for around 1 minute, or until seared.

Serves 4.

scallops with pea & mint purée, black pudding & rocket salad

I just love scallops! Sweet, soft, indulgent-tasting flesh (not too 'fishy' for those of you who don't like fish to taste of fish!), and really good for you too! Not only that but this luxurious seafood has really come down in price recently, and finally, they're REALLY easy to cook, meaning you can have a swanky restaurant regular in your own home without too much trouble!

Paired with some thing meaty (but not too meaty!), the succulence of scallops is highlighted even more, for the ultimate surf 'n' turf. Great with pork belly (or the more expensive venison) for a main course, or as a starter with something lighter, such as the black pudding I've paired with it here. It's a classic combination, and for one good reason: it tastes fantastic!

Thanks again to my friends at Kish Fish for supplying the fantastic scallops!

Ingredients

• 6 scallops, cleaned & corals removed.
• 6 slices of black pudding, cut to approx. 1cm tick

For the pea purée:

• 200g/7oz frozen garden peas
• 2 sprigs of fresh mint
• Small knob of butter

For the rocket salad:

• Good handful of rocket leaves
• 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp runny honey
• 1 garlic clove, crushed (or chopped very finely)
• ½ lemon (juice only)
• Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Bring a small pan of water to the boil & add the peas & mint sprigs. Cook for around 3 minutes, until he peas have softened & are tender.
2. Drain the peas & mint, pick the mint leaves from the sprigs (careful, they may be hot!). Add to a blender with a knob of butter & blitz until smooth. Alternatively you can of course use a hand blender.
3. For the rocket salad, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl except the rocket and stir well until thoroughly mixed. Finally add the rocket leaves by hand and mix together until well coated.
4. Heat a little oil in a frying pan until hot and fry the black pudding for around 2 minutes on each side, until cooked through and crispy ion the outside. Remove from the pan and drain on kitchen paper.
5. Add a little more olive oil to the pan, heat again until hot. Season your scallops with a little salt & freshly ground black pepper and add to the pan. Cook for 30 - 60 seconds, until they start to brown & caramelise, then turn and cook for the same time on the other side. The timing will vary depending on the size of your scallops, but even the largest ones out there shouldn't take more than a minute on each side.
6. To serve, spoon 3 dollops of the pea purée onto a plate, then add a slice of black pudding, finally topping off with a scallop.
7. Dress the rest of the plate with some of the rocket salad, in any way that looks pretty!

Serves 2.

squid with lemon & chilli

This is a recipe I picked up when I was living in Spain and ticks all the boxes: It's fresh, it's cheap, it's healthy, and above all, it's tasty! And it smells fantastic when you're cooking it! Squid is low in calories and is high in nutrients such as Vitamin A, potassium and calcium. And at around only €8/kilo, it makes for an incredibly economical ingredient. So don't be scared by fresh squid, and give this a go. It's a much nicer alternative to deep fried, battered (rubbery) squid rings!

Ingredients

• 4 fresh squid, cleaned & prepared*
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 2 red chillis, de-seeded & sliced very thinly
• 500g new potatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• Juice of 2 lemons
• Large handful of fresh mint, chopped
• Large handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
• Olive oil
• 4 knobs of butter
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

*To prepare my squid, I usually put slices though it, but be careful not to go all the way across. To do this safely, just lay a large knife inside the squid, and slice across with a second knife, then repeat on the other side. The knife inside the squid will act as a barrier to stop you cutting all the way through and ending up with squid rings! This technique is great for getting all the other flavours into the squid, and looks professional too!

Method

1. Place the potatoes in boiling salted water & cook for around 8 minutes, until starting to get soft. Drain and leave to dry in their own steam in the colander.
2. When the potatoes have cooled slightly, heat 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 knobs of butter over a medium high heat in a large heavy frying pan, and add the potatoes, crushing down slightly with a wooden spoon or a masher.
3. When the potatoes are starting to colour nicely, make space in the pan and add a drop more olive oil, along with the red onion.
4. Cook until soft, then remove the potato & onion mixture and keep to one side in a warm dish.
5. Add a little glug of olive oil to the pan. Season the squid lightly on both sides and fry for around 2 minutes on each side; you should see the squid starting to lose it's opaque look.
6. Add another couple of knobs of butter to the pan along with another glug of olive oil and add the chilli, garlic and parsley. Toss around so all the flavours get into the squid. Pour over half the lemon juice, a little more seasoning to taste, and toss again to make sure everything gets a good coating.
7. Put the potatoes & onion back in the pan and again, toss around to make sure everything picks up the flavours of everything else.
8. To serve, place the potatoes on a large platter and lay the squid on top.
9. Finally, squeeze over the rest of the lemon juice and sprinkle with the fresh mint.

Serves 4.

toad in the hole

Toad in the hole is that British classic that everyone seems to like, and thankfully it's really quick (& really simple) to make, and with very few ingredients. Personally I can eat toad in the hole any time of the night or day to be honest; whether it's brunch, lunch, dinner or supper (and on occasion, breakfast, but that's a whole other story). This is comfort food at its best...

Ingredients

• 8 pork sausages (ideally Lincolnshire)
• 125g / 4½ oz plain flour
• 150ml / 5fl oz milk mixed with 150ml / 5fl oz water
• 2 fresh free-range eggs
• 1-2 tbps wholegrain mustard
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2-3 tbsp oil (or ideally lard)

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 220C (fan 200C) / 425F / gas mark 7
2. Put the oil (or lard) into a roasting tin and place in the oven to heat up.
3. For the batter, whisk together the flour, milk & water, eggs, mustard, salt & pepper until smooth and aerated, with no lumps. Leave to rest for 10-15 minutes
4. When the fat is smoking, carefully pour in the batter mixture (stand back, it may spit), then arrange the sausages in the batter with an even space around each one.
5. Place the tin back in the oven  and cook for 25 - 30 minutes, or until the Yorkshire pudding has risen well and the sausages look cooked through (NOTE: Don't keep opening the oven door to check the progress as this will cause the oven to cool down and your pudding won't rise).
6. Serve with around half a ton of mash & 2 or 3 gallons of onion gravy :o)

Serves 4.

lamb with mediterranean vegetables

Spring has finally sprung, or is at least starting to have a bit more of a boing about it, and what better food to get stuck into than lovely lamb?

The temperature out there still isn't up to our normal tropical Irish summer levels just yet though, so this dish offers a great combination of in-season meat with some warming, and ever-hopeful summer type vegetables from the Med, all cooked together in the oven to warm the belly and keep the comfort food cravings well in check.

If you don't have all of the vegetables listed, no problem! Just use whatever you have in. In the past I've done this using asparagus, green beans, carrots, red onions, butternut squash...

Ingredients

• 4 lamb chops or cutlets
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
• 2 tbsp fresh mint leaves
• 1 aubergine, sliced into 1cm thick slices
• 2 courgettes, sliced into 1cm thick slices
• 1 red pepper, cut into large pieces
• 1 yellow pepper, cut into large pieces
• 1 red onion, peeled & cut into large pieces
• 200g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 50g feta cheese
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C (fan 160C) / 350F / gas mark 4
2. Place the rosemary, mint & garlic into a pestle & mortar and pound until they're all mixed up to a fairly smooth consistency (not too smooth though - we like chunks!). Add the olive oil and mix together. Smear the mixture over the main 'eye' of the lamb chops & set to one side.
3. Lightly oil a large baking dish and add in the aubergine, courgette, peppers and red onion.
4. Drizzle a little olive oil over the vegetables, season with salt & pepper, and mix everything together to coat. Lay the lamb on top of the vegetables and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
5. Crumble the feta cheese and dot that around the lamb, scatter the cherry tomatoes around the dish and place back in the oven for a further 10 minutes (the cheese should start to brown very slightly).
6. Serve with fresh sliced ciabatta and a mixed leaf salad.
7. Finish off with a glass of your favourite wine too! Being lamb, this dish will go with most red, rose or dry white wines. Easy!

Serves 4.

review: green 19, dublin 2

Friday nights on Camden Street, just south of Dublin city centre, can be busy affairs, and stressful ones too. With so many eating & drinking holes to choose form in this buzzing part of town it's often a case of which pub to go to? And in which order? And where to eat?

Thankfully that last question doesn't take too much thinking about, thanks to the guys & gals at the uber-trendy Green 19. So popular is this cafe-cum-restaurant-cum-bistro-cum-gallery, that tables are always at a premium, whether it's funky Friday or mundane Monday.

Reservations can't be made after 6pm, so it tends to be a case of first-come first-served. No worries if you can't get in immediately though; service is fast & efficient (and friendly!), and turnover of covers is quick as a result.

We visited around 9pm, which I know from experience is one of the busiest times here. Not a bother though; an approximate waiting time of half an hour was given, names & numbers were taken, and we popped next door to Anseo for a glass of something suitably fizzy/dry/on the rocks whilst we waited. 15 minutes later the call came in, and we're told to "take your time - the table's yours whenever you need it". How great is it to hear that on a Friday night in Dublin when you haven't even booked a place?!

Specials Board - Green 19, Camden Street, Dublin

Having been here before, I know the portions are a good size, and will satisfy the hungriest of appetites, so we tried to play it safe with our starter. We went for the excellent sharing plate of cured meats at €8. A larger portion is available for €12 for those who haven't eaten for a couple of days.

The meats were tasty and reminded us of our recent trip to Barcelona - always a good thing! We had a good few slices of salami, chorizo, pastrami and Serrano ham; great with some bread, and a forkful of the accompanying dressed leaf salad. Incidentally, this all arrived (expertly draped across a wooden board), within around 3 minutes of ordering - fast as this may seem, it's a perfect example of the typical level of service you receive at Green 19, and always comes with a smile and an undoubted feeling of nothing being too much trouble.

Next up was the Mains event (see what I did there?)...

I opted for one of the specials of the night, the other being fish & chips, which had sadly sold out - not surprising; I've had it it the past and it seriously rocks. Instead I went for the round steak, which comes with chips and a Béarnaise sauce. I asked for it to be cooked rare, and rare it was - perfectly seared on the outside, perfectly red on the inside, and tender as you like, with my accompanying dagger sliding through it like the proverbial hot knife through butter; not easy to achieve with this particular cut of cow.

Her Majesty went for the veggie option, thinking it to be a safe bet for "not much". How wrong she was, and I could see her face recognise that fact when her Mexican Chilli Bean Burrito arrived. Falling off the edges of the plate, this also came with a more-than-generous serving of those marvellous hand cut chips. Fair play, she almost finished the lot, however had trouble speaking for a while afterwards, which isn't always a bad thing. After such a tasty meal I mean of course...

The wines we chose (white for the burrito, red for the cow) were brought towards the end of the starter as requested, with the white being crisp, dry, and cold as you like, and my Rioja at room temperature as is the standard these days. All very acceptable, and both very downed without a hint of a grimace.

Desserts were beckoning but sadly belts were busting so I settled for a small coffee whilst HRH stuck with the complimentary water. Shortly after that the bill came (with free mints woop!), we paid up, stood up (slowly), and waddled our way to the door.

All-in-all, a great meal in very cool and super-friendly surroundings. Head for Green 19 soon (and as often as you can), for perfect food, outstanding service and ridiculously low prices. What are you waiting for?

-

Our Starters

Selection of Cured Meats & Sausages (to share)

€8

Our Mains

Mexican Chilli Bean Burrito

€10

Round Steak, chips & Béarnaise sauce

€19

Our Plonk

Viña Bujanda, Rioja

€6

Bianco di Toscana Trebiano

€4.50

Our Afters

Espresso macchiato

€1.50

Our Bill

€49.00 + tip

-

Green 19
19 Camden Street Lower
Dublin 2, Ireland
www.green19.ie
+353 (1) 478 9626