Christmas feasting (and the mother of all dinner parties)

And how was your Christmas?

For me, it involved two days of relentless (and totally selfless) gluttony. Two dinners were consumed on Christmas Eve, because I had to. First a casual affair at Mum's--leg ham, salads and roll-your-ownVietnamese goi cuon summer rolls.

At 10.30pm, I'm at cucina Veruca for a feast of glazed leg ham (ooh yum, that ginger marmalade glaze works a treat!), bo tai chanh raw beef salad, roast veggies and the bestest roast pork I've had this year. Made using a recipe by Karen Martini, the pork belly slab was simmered for 90 minutes, dried in the fridge for four hours and then roasted on high for an amazing pork crackling with meltingly tender fat-ribboned flesh.

11.30am Christmas Day: A family lunch of cold cuts, seafood and salad. I contribute my roast pumpkin salad with toasted almonds. After a frenzy of present unwrapping by impatient and very excited little 'uns, there's a decadent homemade chocolate tart of chocolate pastry and chocolate ganache filling (recipe by Serge Dansereau, execution by Mister Ed). We also manage a few iced gingerbread men and shortbread swirls (recipe to come) with cups of tea.

At 6pm, my digestive tract is treatening to go on strike by my eyes are wide with greed. I've managed to score an invite to Pig Flyin's Christmas dinner--he of orange souffle fame--and the sight in the kitchen is an amazing one indeed. One by one we watch he and K plate up dish after dish, a buffet table that is soon groaning with 16 (yes 16!) works of art.


Seared giant scallops paired with blood sausage or chorizo,
topped with hollandaise sauce and chervil

I'd always been sceptical about the pairing of scallops with blood sausage but this contrasting combination works wonderfully, the earthy heartiness of the blood sausage complementing the light and delicate sweetness of the scallop.


Homemade gravlax #1: salt-cured salmon with dill


Homemade gravlax #2: salt-cured salmon with lemongrass and chilli


Napkin-wrapped cutlery
(so very Donna Hay!)


Preparing the crab salad cornets


Cornets stuffed with hand-picked crab salad

The cornets were made by wrapping wonton sheets around cannoli horns
and then deep-frying until crisp. Such decadence! The crab was so sweet, the cornets were so crunchy and golden.


Stuffed cabbage rolls


Preparing the roast beef canapes


Crostini topped with rare roast beef slices, horseradish cream,
salted capers and grated lemon


Carving the Berkshire ham

A Berkshire ham! The G-man was a little confused about what this meant until I explained that Berkshire pigs, also known as Kurobuta pigs, are the wagyu of the pork world. Pig Flyin' took Veruca's tip and used ginger marmalade as the glaze and oh, what a masterful dish of perfection!


Berkshire pork glazed leg ham

The caramelised skin... ooh it was like a pork caramel lolly. Soft and chewy, it was salty, sweet and ooh so porky. If only they sold these wrapped in twists of paper by the bag! The pork itself was wonderfully moist and tender too with an amazing smoky flavour.


Le Creuset pots with homemade fruit chutneys

Chilled tomato soup with parmesan ice cream; and
almond milk with frozen white cherries

It's about this time that I start pinching myself to check I'm not dreaming. Tomato soup with parmesan ice cream? I could swear I'm in a dream about Iron Chef! But no, Pig Flyin' is dismissive of our gasps of wonder. "It's easy," he says, just melt the parmesan into cream, whisk in stiff egg whites and freeze." Uh-huh, I reply.

The chilled tomato soup is so cool and refreshing. There's also a parmesan biscuit (grated parmesan baked on Silpat sheets and then snapped into crackers) and the parmesan ice cream really does pack a frozen parmesan punch.

The almond milk was made by soaking blanched almonds in water, then blending to a pulp and squeezing out the juice. Thick and slightly tart, this was an aquired taste, although I did enjoy the frozen halves of white cherries at the bottom of the glass.


Confit of salmon dusted with ground Japanese mountain pepper
served on a bed of shaved fennel

Oh this looked very Tetsuya-style! The confit of salmon, cooked slowly in oil at a very low temperature, had a wonderfully firm texture. Pig Flyin' is a big fan of Japanese mountain pepper and I can see why. Sophisticatedly mild with nuances of lemon, there's none of the abrupt harshness one normally associates with traditional black pepper.


Greek salad, fresh beetroot salad and Israeli cous cous salad


Israeli cous cous salad (also known as mougrabieh)

This was the first time I'd tried mougrabieh, or Israeli cous cous. I loved its squeakiness, plump granules that felt like a cross between pasta and lentils.


Pan-frying calamari


Calamari ripieni - calamari stuffed with its own tentacles
served on a bed of French puy lentils
One word. Wow. I love calamari ripieni but could never fathom making my own. This was so tender, and I loved the toothsome texture of the puy lentils as well.


Buche creme citron framboise
Lemon curd, rasberry and italienne meringue log

The Buche de Noel was bought by X from Cafe Maison. This flavour is apparently the shop owner wife's favourite. X reports that the cafe is on Boundary St in Ruschcutters Bay/Darlinghurst, near the corner of Glenview St. The chocolate plaque was named with Saint-Germaine Patisserie.


Raspberry and white chocolate tiramisu

Pig Flyin' says he hasn't made much dessert--a raspberry and white chocolate tiramisu--and then he brings out homemade nougat! Cue gasps of shock and utter delight!


Homemade cranberry and pistachio nougat with ginger juice


Cranberry cupcakes with white chocolate icing

My cranberry cupcakes pale in comparison to Pig Flyin's efforts. But I don't care. I'm just so grateful I scored an invite!

And most impressive of all was the calm and peaceful state of the kitchen throughout the entire preparation time. Oh we're not worthy, Pig Flyin', but we're so very very glad we're your dinner party friends!


Related Grab Your Fork posts:
Stomachs Eleven Christmas - 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008

Christmas gingerbread

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

My kitchen certainly smelled a lot like Christmas this past week, with batches of gingerbread and shortbread filling the air with the gorgeous smell of ginger, golden syrup, lemon and butter.

A newly acquired icing kit finally got a workout on my gingerbread shapes, made using my usual tried-and-trusted gingerbread recipe. I think my royal icing was probably a little thicker than it should have been, but it was certainly fun decorating the gingerbread. In fact, I think the use of plain white icing is much more visually effective than our usual coloured icing efforts.

I made only a slight variation to the gingerbread recipe, reducing the brown sugar a little and replacing it with golden syrup to ensure extra crisp biscuits (my favourite!). For a triple batch of gingerbread (yes, I never bake by halves) I think you probably only need one egg white's worth of royal icing, maybe two but certainly not three (oops).



So as 2008 draws to a close, I wish you, dear reader, a wonderful Christmas that is spent with good friends and cherished family. May you celebrate with great food, great company and lots of laughter.


Related GrabYourFork posts:
Recipe: Gingerbread men
Making a gingerbread house

Al Aseel, Greenacre

So I've always had a soft spot for Lebanese food. I think it's the simplicity of the cuisine: charcoal meats, zingy salads and downy soft quarters of fluffy Lebanese bread. Perhaps the deep-fried falafel balls (mmm... deep-fried) also have something to do with it. And I love the creamy decadence of toum, the dip with a fiery garlic punch.

We head to Al Aseel in Greenacre to see if its reputation for good Lebanese food can possibly topple our long-time favourite, Jasmin in Lakemba.


Complimentary pickles

Al Aseel is quite a large eatery, huge glass windows offering a view of the laminate tables already filled with local families and friends. The floorstaff are young and female--daughters of the owner, we presume--dressed smartly in black polo shirts embroidered with the Al Aseel logo.

The ubiquitous plate of pickles (radish, jalapeno peppers, olives, pickles and tomato) is served promptly but we immediately notice the lack of onion and mint that is included at Jasmin. Missing also are the bowls of tahina and toum we usually receive at Jasmin. Yes, we're comparing everything today.


Fatteh $8.00
Chick peas, fried Lebanese bread, salt and yoghurt
topped with pinenuts and melted butter

Fatteh is Speedy's favourite dish, but we're disappointed by the one here. Lined on the bottom with a layer of deep-fried Lebanese bread, we find its oil gives an unpleasant residual film on the tongue, and the puree of chickpeas is simply that, not incorporated with yoghurt to a delicious creaminess like the one at Jasmin's.


Fattoush $7.00 (small)
Lettuce, tomato, eschallots, radish, parsley and
fried Lebanese bread with garlic dressed with grenadine and olive oil

Fattoush is a happier combination of fried Lebanese bread and lively fresh salad. We relish the crunchy chips contrasting with the slight bitterness of radish, the juiciness of cucumber and the crisp greenery of lettuce, eschallots and parsley.


Falafel $6.00
Chick peas and secret spices deep-fried in cotton seed oil
with tahini sauce (vegetarian)

Jasmin wins on the falafel too. Whilst golden on the outsides, the insides seem a little dry and crumbly, and not as vibrant green and moist as those at Jasmin's.


Laham mishwee (bbq lamb skewers) $13.00
3 skewers* of delicious bbq lamb
served on a bed of onions and garlic dip
(*the last skewer was served a few minutes later)

And then the meat arrives and things get very tricky.

The lamb. Wow. It's amazing. I've always tended the find the lamb at Jasmin is a little gamey and a touch on the chewy side. Here, it's amazingly tender. Veruca Salt and I fight over the barbecued onion wedges, grilled over charcoal until caramelised and sweet.

We're relieved to finally receive our cherish pot of toum too, although it seems a little stronger in garlic here, a harsh heat that means between the four of us we don't even manage to finish this tiny pot (usually at Jasmin we finish at least one refill).


Chicken breast lemon garlic (House Specialty) $15.00
3 skewered bbq marinated chicken breast
tossed in special garlic sauce served on a bed of onions

I'd been swayed by the words "House Specialty" to order the chicken breast lemon garlic, and boy I'm glad I did. Again the meat is meltingly tender, so much so I have to double-check with everyone that yes, we really are eating chicken breast! Usually I avoid chicken breast like the plague, having encountered so many dry ruins, but here its soft and juicy, bathed generously in a garlicky yoghurt sauce.

Verdict? Torn.

I want the toum, fatteh and falafel of Jasmin, and the lamb and chicken from Al Aseel.

So hard to choose!




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Al Aseel Lebanese Restaurant
4/173 Waterloo Road, Greenacre, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9758 6744

Open 7 days
Sunday to Thursday 9am-9pm
Friday and Saturday 9am-10pm
Public holidays 9am-10pm

Related GrabYourFork posts:
Lebanese--El-Manara
Lebanese--Emma's on Liberty
Lebanese--Jasmin, Lakemba
Lebanese--Jasmin I, Punchbowl
Lebanese--Rowda Ya Habibi (Mar07) and (Jul04)

Tokyo Ramen, Hornsby

Okonomiyaki pancake $4.50

We're on a search for good ramen. K and M have been eating their way through a list of Top 15 Ramen Dishes in Sydney--printed recently in a Japanese local mag--and now we're at Tokyo Ramen in the bustling Westfield Shopping Centre at Hornsby.

Tokyo Ramen is doing brisk business as well. In addition to the constant queue of people at the takeaway counter, there's a high rotation of noodle slurpers eating in, either perched on stools at the counter or huddled around the high-demand square tables.

Directly opposite is sister establishment, Tokyo Sushi, an island of rice and nori amidst the tides of shoppers, trolleys and dawdling children. The sushi looks good too, made fresh on site using a clever sushi machine that creates ready mats of rice that get handflipped onto nori sheets and then filled and rolled by the multi-tasking sushi staff.


Negimiso ramen $11.50 plus extra half-egg
Roast pork and shallots with a little chilli

But we're here for ramen. Most of us go for the negimiso ramen, a roast pork and shallot combination in a thick miso soup. We're surprised to find the porkstir-fried in a garlicky and spicy sauce, its residual oil a bit rich and heavy on the palate. Negi means leek, although in this case we end up with plenty of shallots. The stock is thick and almost opaque. It's quite spicy too with a heat that builds up as you near the bottom of the bowl.

We'd also ordered half a boiled egg as an extra, anticipating a delightful buttery moist egg yolk that the Japanese usually do so well. Today it's slightly overcooked, with a disappointing grey ring around the yolk.


Miso butter corn ramen $9.50
Roast pork and corn kernels with butter

M goes for something different with the miso butter corn ramen. The Japanese seem to love butter and corn, particularly on ramen. You can smell the butter as soon as the bowl hits the table. It's a Exxon-Valdez slick of melted butter that advances relentlessly toward anything in its path.

"Is it like drinking melted butter?" I ask. He nods slowly and reluctantly, a slight grimace on his face. This one's for hard core butter fans only.

The G-man orders the okonomiyaki pancake as an extra side dish. We dutifully help him finish it. It's been sitting in the hot display cabinet so it's a little thick and stodgy, although it goes down easily with the brown sauce and blob of mayo.



And my new trick for the day: watching M fold all the disposable chopstick sleeves into miniature chopstick rests. It's something I've never seen before although everyone else assures me this is soooooo what everyone does. I will do, from now on!

Final verdict? Ryo's Noodles still ahead by a slurp or two.


Are you a ramen fan? Where do you head when you're starvin' for ramen?




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Tokyo Ramen
Shop 1042
Hornsby Westfield Shopping Centre
236 Pacific Highway, Hornsby, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9987 2688

Related GrabYourFork posts:
Japanese ramen -- Ajisen Ramen, Haymarket
Japanese ramen -- Ichi Ban Boshi, Sydney (Feb08) and (Aug05)
Japanese ramen -- Menya Japan Noodle Bar, Haymarket
Japanese ramen -- Ramen Kan, Haymarket (Aug 05), (Nov 04)
Japanese ramen -- Ryo's Noodles, Crows Nest (Mar08), (Aug07) and (Jul07)
Japanese ramen -- Tokyo Ramen, Hornsby
Japanese ramen -- Zenya Noodle Bar, Eastwood