Christmas Special Edition


The Recycled Cook

By Adrian Sleeman

Christmas leftovers

If there was ever a perfect time to make leftover food into new and exciting culinary ideas then surely Christmas is the ideal time.


We all buy far more food than we need, cook enough meat and vegetables to feed a small army and always end up wondering what on earth to do with the Christmas leftovers.
 
For me the opportunities are amazing, whether you had turkey, duck, goose, pork, lamb or beef, the possibilities are endless. That of course without all of the all the wonderful vegetables (cooked and uncooked) that never got used.

 I suppose the logical place to start is with the poultry carcass or joint of meat.
We have already spent more than enough time on making stock from the carcass so I will assume that, once you have removed as much meat as possible from the bones you will do this without a second thought. 


 Curries are a great idea at this time of year but think outside the box, don't just opt for the usual jar of madras sauce, try Thai red or green curry paste with a tin of coconut milk, some fresh chopped red chillies (de-seeded of course), a bunch of coriander leaves, lime juice and some Thai 7 spice powder.

The one ingredient that immediately makes oriental food authentic is Fish sauce (Nam Pla) although not to everyone's taste, without it, for me at least, the balance is never quite right.


 Shred the meat by hand it gives a much better texture to the curry than cubes of meat and feel a lot ore authentic too. In Thailand curries are usually made from pre-cooked meat so this is ideal.


Another great option is to make a "Tagine", use whatever spices take your fancy and any dried fruit you have left over from making the Christmas cake (Currents Sultanas, apricots, figs or prunes). To give it that authentic North African taste add some "Ras Al Hanout" (literally top of the shop) pre-mixed Moroccan spice which you can buy in most supermarkets. Add some whole or sliced almonds for extra texture. I will come back to Tagines on another blog in more detail as it really is an extremely versatile dish.

So what else can we do with the leftover meat? Try shredding the meat finely into a bowl, season well with salt and black pepper and pack into ramakin dishes, top with some duck fat or clarified butter and you have great little "Rillets" that make wonderful snacks, serve with some crusty fresh bread.

 Mix it up, try different meat combinations, Turkey and ham, Pork and beef, 
or just simply duck on its on. To add another dimension, place a spoonful of cranberry sauce in the ramakin first before adding the meat.

So what about the vegetables? Well you can of course add some to the dishes we have mentioned but if you re going to add cooked vegetables to curries or Tagines only do so at the end or they will turn to mush.

How about blitzing the cooked vegetables with some seasoning layering them into a rectangular baking tin, lined with cling film. Pack in well and chill in the fridge for 24 hours. Turn this out and you have a delicious vegetable Terrine. You can of course add layers of meat to the Terrine as well if you like.

 To make your terrine look even more professional, lay some cooked cabbage leaves all around the mould before filling with the vegetable layers (remove any thick stalks). Wrap them over the base before chilling.


Chef's tip: Leftover drumsticks are ideal for turning into confit

Disclaimer: The suggestions and tips on these blog pages are meant to be used in conjunction with common sense. Keeping your family healthy is the priority. Do not use food that is unfit for human consumption and always follow sensible food hygiene guidelines. http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/homehygiene/Pages/food-leftovers-safety.aspx



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