Meat pie

The Shepherd's pie is a traditional British dish consisting of a layer of ground lamb and covered with mashed potato and optionally a layer of cheese. It is a favorite of cooks from institutions that have to feed large groups of people. The bite is traditionally lamb although many people prefer the bite of beef. The shepherd's pie cooked with beef cottage called the foot.

Ingredients

Shepherd's pie

• 2 tbsp olive oil


• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


• 500g minced lean lamb


• 1 large onion, finely grated


• 1 large carrot, finely grated


• 2 cloves garlic


• 1-2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce


• 1 tbsp tomato puree


• Handful of thyme sprigs, leaves picked


• 1 sprig of rosemary, needles chopped


• 250ml red wine


• 300ml chicken stock


• 1kg Desiree potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks


• 50g butter


• 2 egg yolks


• Parmesan, for grating

Pan-roasted carrots

• 2 sprigs of rosemary


• Small handful of thyme sprigs


• 1 garlic clove


• 500g medium sized carrots, peeled and trimmed


• 2 tbsp olive oil


• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


• Few knobs of butter
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180˚C/gas 4 -and get prepped by watching prepare this shepherd's pie.

2. Heat the oil in a large pan until hot. Season the mince and fry in the oil over moderate to high heat for 2-3 minutes. Stir the onions and carrot into the mince then grate the garlic in as well. Add the Worcestershire sauce, tomato puree and herbs and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in the red wine and reduce until almost completely evaporated. Add the chicken stock, bring to the boil and simmer until the sauce has thickened

3. Meanwhile, cook the potatoes in boiling salted water until tender. Drain then return to the hot pan over low heat to dry out briefly. Pass them through a potato ricer then beat in the egg yolks, followed by about 2 tbsp grated Parmesan. Check for seasoning

4. Spoon the mince into the bottom of a large ovenproof dish. Using a large spoon, layer the mashed potato generously on top of the mince, starting from the outside and working your way into the middle. Grate some extra Parmesan over and season. Fluff up the mash potato with a fork to make rough peaks. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown

5. For the carrots bring a pan of water to the boil with the rosemary, thyme and garlic. Boil the carrots in the water for 3 minutes to soften slightly, then drain and pat dry. Heat the oil in a large non-stick sauté pan then add the carrots and some seasoning. Brown the carrots all over until just tender, adding the butter towards the end of cooking

Fish and Chips

In the United Kingdom, fish and chips became a cheap food popular among the working classes with the rapid development of trawl fishing in the North Sea in the second half of the nineteenth century. In 1860, the first fish and chip shop was opened in London by Jewish proprietor Joseph Malin who married together "fish fried in the Jewish fashion" with chips. Deep-fried "chips" (slices or pieces of potato) as a dish, may have first appeared in Britain in about the same period: the OED notes as its earliest usage of "chips" in this sense the mention in Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities (published in 1859): "Husky chips of potatoes, fried with some reluctant drops of oil". (Note that Belgian tradition, as recorded in a manuscript of 1781, dates the frying of potatoes carved into the shape of fish back at least as far as 1680.) Even so still very much alive some of the dishes, such as fish and chips ", that being the first course in food marketed as" take away "has become the most popular English dish. This dish is not rather than battered and fried hake and chips fried seasoned with salt and vinegar (the latter is optional).

Ingredients

For the fries:
• 1 gallon safflower oil
• 4 large Russet potatoes
• Kosher salt

For the batter:
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• Dash Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 bottle brown beer, cold
• 1 1/2 pounds firm-fleshed whitefish (tilapia, pollock, cod), cut into 1-ounce strips
• Cornstarch, for dredging

Directions

Heat oven to 200 degrees F. Heat the safflower oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven over high heat until it reaches 320 degrees. Using a V-slicer with a wide blade, slice the potatoes with the skin on. Place in a large bowl with cold water. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne pepper, and Old Bay seasoning. Whisk in the beer until the batter is completely smooth and free of any lumps. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Note: The batter can be made up to 1 hour ahead of time. Drain potatoes thoroughly, removing any excess water. When oil reaches 320 degrees, submerge the potatoes in the oil. Working in small batches, fry for 2 to 3 minutes until they are pale and floppy. Remove from oil, drain, and cool to room temperature. Increase the temperature of the oil to 375 degrees. Re-immerse fries and cook until crisp and golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and drain on roasting rack. Season with kosher salt while hot and hold in the oven. Allow oil to return to 350 degrees. Lightly dredge fish strips in cornstarch. Working in small batches, dip the fish into batter and immerse into hot oil. When the batter is set, turn the pieces of fish over and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain the fish on the roasting rack. Serve with malt vinegar.

Welcome to our blog about British food. Our names are Zaida and Ainoha. This blog is a project for the subject of Touristic English. In the blog you can find: recipes, videos and some history of typical British food. We hope you like it ; )
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