What Dad Cooked is a collection of our dad’s recipes, thoughts, tips and cooking hacks that simply need to be shared with all you foodies!
This is a spin on Escoffier’s white asparagus with sauce maltaise. The two are often served as an accompaniment for a white fish such as turbot. Here the fish is plaice rolled around asparagus and a maltaise mousse and served as a canape.
This is a classic Japanese way with soba and tempura. Strickly speaking the asparagus tempura is kaki-age, made like a tempura fritter rather than individual spears coated in tempura. But such academic details seem trivial when it comes to tempura – any tempura is amazing – especially asparagus!
The exact constituent parts of an authentic Niçoise salad is a matter of contentious debate. There must be as many points of view as there are cooks. So I am throwing my hat into the ring and offer up Niçoise with asparagus!!
Like sesame sauce, miso ends up in sauces and dressing for many classic Japanese salads. Here I’ve combined miso with asparagus to make a rather exotic salad – wasabi on the side adds piquancy and a touch of jeopardy to the dish.
It’s a Japanese way to mix sesame sauces in with food – I suspect the reason is because the sauce is so good it can’t help being slipped into all sorts of dishes. Here, I’ve married the sauce with asparagus and tuna. In some respects, it reminds me of the filling of a tuna fish and asparagus sandwhich filling, so good, you want start eating it before it gets anywhere near a slice of bread…
Asparagus and nuts have an affinity – I’ve used hazelnuts and seen recipes with pistachios, so sesame should – and does – marry well. Avocado and tofu work well together, and asparagus eats well with avocado. This recipe brings all these flavour combination together in a Japanese style dish.
Well, what do you know, here’s a taste combination from out of the blue! Asparagus and dolci Gorgonzola. Add grilled polenta and well-paired wine and you will be in Italian food heaven.
This recipe uses a vignarola recipe but combines with pasta. A very good combination…
This is an Italian stew made from spring vegetables including artichokes, broad beans, peas. My version includes asparagus, which shares the sweet earthy taste of main ingredients. In some versions the vegetables are deliverately overcooked. However, here they are cooked till tender and arranged over grilled polenta.
Asparagus and shellfish have an affinity with one another – prawns and crab are known as being particularly good partners. It occurred to me that the small brown shrimp form Morecombe Bay are ‘potted’ in butter, and we know that asparagus and butter go together – so here’s my asparagus and shellfish combination, and very fine it is too.
Most cooks agree that when you have an amazing ingredient it is best to prepare it as simply as possible. And they are not wrong: this must be the very best way to eat asparagus. Steamed and presented in a big stack to share. Butter, salt and lemon are optional extras…
Asparagus goes well with Parmesan cheese. Asparagus also goes well with Taleggio and Gruyèr. It seems we can assume that asparagus works with cheese generally – so why not a fondue?
No dipping necessary – I’ve placed the spears in a luscious pool of fondue and tossed croutons over the top. Eat as a starter with a knife and fork.
This recipe matches asparagus with a deconstructed puttanesca sauce. Surprisingly, this really works – the asparagus stands up well to the robust pizza flavours.
In San Joaquin County, at Stockton California they stage an Asparagus Festival in April. Stockton is the centre of asparagus growing in California so it makes sense to celebrate the crop. I’ve always been fascinated by the huge spears and takeaway fairground style of eating. I reckon these are as near as your going to get to the Stockton real McCoys. Eat al fresco!
Most asparagus bruschetta recipes use goats cheese. I tried this and it’s okay but unremarkable, so I made a artichoke and cannellini bean puree to replace the cheese – it’s much better.
This is an asparagus spin on a pea and potato samosa. I’ve held back on some of the spices to allow the asparagus to shine through.
These little quiches are full of spring vegetables, served with a salad they would make a brilliant lunch or light supper.
Spring rolls never fail to impress or delight. These rolls are designed to celebrate the asparagus season and although they taste deliciously Asian, you really can taste the asparagus. It works a treat.
Asian asparagus salad in a rice paper wrap – not your usual way with asparagus – but well worth the effort.
Fresh asparagus is full of flavour and goodness – the perfect vegetable to celebrate the arrival of spring. Dairy, eggs, potatoes, Parmesan and parsley all marry well with tasty asparagus and come together to create this delicious frittata recipe.
Three asparagus and pastry recipes. Choose from goats cheese and spinach, Taleggio and mushroom, or Gruyère. All are quite simple and ideal for a light lunch or supper – or make in advance for a party or a picnic.
Here is the simplest way to enjoy the flavour combination of asparagus and Parma ham – side-by-side.
It’s the British asparagus season – make the most of it with this very simple combination: fresh asparagus from local fields and fresh peas from a pod, boiled and then quickly braised in butter, with lemon herbs and hazlenuts and kasha for a bit of crunch.
This is not really a recipe, more a method for grilling or griddling your asparagus.
A great flavour combination and presented here as a main meal salad or antipasto.
I found a bunch of super thin asparagus and thought they might go well with linguine. It’s such a simple combination and a great way to enjoy asparagus.
A really easy and tasty starter or light lunch or supper. Make during summer when home-grown asparagus might still be available.
The boys are not keen on quiche – but I cannot see what is not to like. Besides putting asparagus in a quiche is a good way to enjoy the asparagus season.
Here’s a really easy way with gnocchi. Add to a quick cheese sauce made with Gorgonzola, add a few chives and that’s it. Use a good Gorgonzola (I’ve used the excellent cheese made by Tosi),
This is the dish you can find at Seins’ Kingston branch called: Schweinebraten mit Kartoffelknödel und Rotkraut. I had if for my birthday meal with family and friends: it was a perfeect meal, in wonderful company.
One source indicates there are at least 43 categories of German sausage – and who knows how many further vatiations… I’m familiar with about 5. One of these is new for me – weisswurst – and well worth seeking out at your local German deli.
This is a standard Soho trattatoria fare of the 70’s. Bresaola, rocket and Parmesan is still popular so the avocado element seems to have fallen out of favour. Put it back in – it’s a good combo!
Leo and his partner took Mr and Mrs WDC to Brasserie Zédel. As so many people have commented, the hightlight is the steak haché. Here’s my version.
The Italian tricolor? A caprese salad? But it’s not mozzarella – it’s tofu. Tofu and avocado are a match made in heaven – so can the partnership be more inclusive ? Absolutely.
This recipe is all about tofu and how well it partners avocado, spinach, sesame and ponzu dressing. I’ve been rather fastidious in presentation – but don’t let that put you off. Just try the combo, however its presented.
There’s a big culinary issue at stake here. Is pork belly skin and fat best when it;s crispy or when it is soft and unctuous? I like it both ways – here’s how to do soft and unctuous.
A côte de boeuf is a basically a monster steak with a bone in, or a French version of a rib of beef. But however you want to describe it, it is a wonderful piece of beef. Cook it simply and serve with chips and salad – and my no-split, light and easy béarnaise sauce.
This is the style of pork that you see hanging from the windows of Cantonese restaurants.
Bao buns seem to be the latest thing. But don’t just make them to be trendy – they’re fun and good to eat.
RT @Bevansbutchers: Some of you may have noticed that we had a little photo shoot outside of the shop this morning, well we couldn’t be mor…
