Eat

Whitstabubble Cooking - What's in? October

Put your bikinis away and get your brollies out: Autumn is upon us. Well, except for the  rollicking sunshine that's warmly embracing the country in its comforting glow...

This is always a funny time of year for the kitchen, not quite cold enough for hearty winter meals but a little sombre for the sunny taste of summer. It's all too easy to stick to your staples this time of year and save your creativity for the more defined cuisine of the other seasons but if anything you should be relishing the ambiguity. Autumn is the perfect time to mix the fresh fruitiness of Summer and Spring with the strength of Winter. This first dish does just that.

“Fried pork belly with a rocket salad, poached pears, apple sauce and an onion compote”

What it would be called at a posh restaurant: “A trio of seasons with fried pork belly, served on a bed of rocket”

Technical difficulty: 3/5

Complexity: 4/5

Preparation time (cooking time): 1h30-2h (40 mins)

This is a fairly ambitious dish that's perfect for special occasions or dinner parties. The trio of seasons consists of three condiments: the fresh, zingy apple represents Spring, the warmth of the poached pear Summer and the golden, sticky onion compote encapsulates the beauty of Autumn leaves. Or, if you're serving it to someone who doesn't appreciate more than a slight smattering of pretension, it's a dish that pairs the central flavour of the sweet, fatty pork  with a number of complimentary sauces.

This dish also works beautifully with just a single sauce and it's much quicker that way. The sauces all work well on their own, although I would recommend adding a touch of ginger and star anise to the pears' poaching liquid if you're serving them solo: it adds a mouthwatering oriental burst to the pork that's hard to beat.

Ingredients (for 3):

There's a fair number of components in this dish so the method and ingredients for each one is listed separately. It's fine to serve any of the condiments warm but the fattiness of the pork dictates that it has to be hot, so I would advise cooking in roughly this order.

(1)               Onions

(2)              Pears

(3)              Apples

(4)              Pork

Pork

400g Pork Belly

A splash of olive oil

1. Slice the pork belly in fairly small cubes.

2. Heat a pan to a medium heat and coat the bottom as thinly as possible with olive oil. This is to prevent the meat from sticking not to fry the meat in: adding more oil will just make the pork greasy so don't give in to temptation.

3. Fry the pork for 10-15 mins, being careful to brown all sides. When done, the cubes should be golden brown on all sides.

4. Scatter the pork over the bed of rocket.

Salad

. 2 tablespoon Olive Oil

. Enough rocket to make lightly cover 3 plates.

. 1 tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar

. Juice of quarter of a lemon.

1. Mix the vinegar, lemon juice, remaining olive oil and any orange you have left from the apple sauce together.

2. Dress the rocket liberally shortly before serving. Don't forget, dressing a salad too early will make it soggy.

Onion compote

. 75g unsalted butter

. 4 Shallots

. 2 Tablespoons brown sugar

. 1 Tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar

. 1-2 glasses of dry white wine

. 500ml Chicken Stock

1. Slice 3 of the shallots finely, and chop the other one fairly roughly.

2. Heat a large pan to a low heat.

3. Melt the butter in the pan

4. Add the onions and fry for 15 minutes until golden brown and very soft.

5. If you are making the stock with cubes or jellified stock, replace some 200ml of the water with white wine.

6. If you're using pre-prepared stock, you will only need 300ml: top up to 500 with wine.

7. Mix the vinegar, sugar and stock.

8. Add the mixture to the onions and cook over a low heat for 30/40 mins or until the mixture has reduced and taken on a thick, slightly syrupy texture.

9. Scoop the mixture into a small pot and serve.

Apple and orange sauce

1 Large cooking apple, peeled and cut into fine pieces

Most of the juice from a large orange

Juice of quarter of a lemon

1 cup of water

2 tablespoons of granulated white sugar

1. Cover with lemon juice. This will also stop the fruit spoiling if you prepare the apple before cooking.

2. Add the water to medium sized pan and heat over a low heat. Add the sugar and stir occasionally until dissolved.

3. Add the apple, orange juice and remaining lemon juice(if any)

4. Continue to cook over a low heat for 10/15 minutes or until the apples are very soft and most of the liquid is gone.

5. Blend the mixture until fine.

Poached Pears

4/5 ripe pears, peeled and cored (If you want to serve the pears whole, be careful to leave the stems intact)

2 glasses dry white wine

1 glass of water

A small knob of ginger

Juice of half a lemon

6 tablespoons granulated white sugar

1. If you want to serve the pears whole, be careful to leave the stems intact when peeling them.

2. Add the wine to a large pan and mix with the water.

3. Heat and bring to a gentle boil.

4. Add the sugar and stir occasionally until dissolved.

5. Add the lemon juice and ginger.

6. Place the pears in the mixture and simmer for 8 minutes

7. Turn the pears and simmer for another 8 mins or until the flesh is  very soft.

8. Drain the poaching fluid and leave the pears to rest for 2/3 mins until warm but not hot.

9. If serving whole, that's it. If you're adding them to the salad, slice to taste (anything from thin to about a cm thick works well) and scatter across the rocket.

Either serve with the pork and pears scattered across the salad and the onions and apple in pots or with the pork resting on the rocket and the condiments on the side. The whole thing looks pretty as punch served in the second way on slate, especially if you can get little individuals pots like these for everyone.

Damson Vodka

What it would be called at a posh restaurant: “Vodka infused with the sweet nectarous liqueur of wild Damson.”

Technical difficulty: 1/5

Complexity:  2/5

The perfumed, acidic damson is just starting to come into season. Beneath it's rather plain, plummy skin lurks an aromatic delight and although the fruit is a little tart on its own, that natural tanginess lends it self beautifully to damson pies, jams and spirits. Here we look at making that timeless tipple: Damson Vodka.

Preparation time (cooking time): 3om-1h (3-12 months)

Ingredients

Per 750ml of vodka
-450g of washed damsons
-6 ozs of granulated white sugar
-Clean and sterilised le parfait jar or sealable bottle. You want a bottle that can comfortably hold the mixture but doesn't have too much air, as this can cause spoilage. You also want one with a fairly wide neck or your going to have trouble getting the damsons in.

(Note on the Vodka: any quality will do, although middle of the road vodka is recommended. Cheap brands tend to be a little too sharp and the clarity of the more expensive ones is largely wasted when flavoured)

Instructions:
1. Wash the damsons and sort for any damaged or overripe fruit.

2.         Gently prick the damsons with a fork.

3.                  Place the fruit into your bottle.

4.                  Add the sugar.

5.                  Add vodka (again, try to leave too much air)

6.                  Find a cool, dark, dry place to store it (a pantry, if you have one, is prefect)

7.                  Leave for a bare minimum of 3-4 months. Leaving it for 9-10 months really will pay off though...

8.                 Give it a taste.

9.                  If it's strong enough for you then go to step 11. If not, leave to mature for another month.

10.              If you've been patient enough to leave it for a whole year then strain it: any longer & you run the risk of spoilage.

11.               Pour the vodka into a bowl through muslin, straining the fruit.

12.              Rebottle.

13.              Begin the process again because it's going to disappear quickly.

Whitstabubble Feature - The Krishna 

At first glance there's nothing remarkable about this Indian restaurant tucked behind the train station. The exterior is simple, the interior quaint and clean but standard curry house fair. It certainly doesn't look as welcoming as the rustic Sportsman or as elegant as Birdies, where the crisp white sheets and crystal wineglasses are as timeless as the French cuisine. All in all, the impression is of a restaurant that will be solid but nothing special.

Until you taste something. Before your meal your taste buds are woken with a jolt by a amuse bouche: a little shot glass filled with rich curry sauce. It's vastly superior to the usual lemony palette cleaner and by the time that this spicy cocktail has hit the back of your throat you'll be eager to start eating. And so you should be, because the food at The Krishna doesn't disappoint.

Before you can order your starter though, you'll  be teased by platters of perfumed meat, delicate pastries and mouthwatering paneer zipping by your table on their way to other diners. It's rather hard to know what to order because it all looks and smells so delicious. To avoid disappointment, I'd be sure to come at least 9 times a week so you can try out all the dishes, hell you might have to try squeeze in a 10^th visit if you need one last hit of Mogo Masala.  I eventually plumped for the Nawabu Lamb Kebab, a hearty and aromatic blend of herbs, spices, lamb mince and cottage cheese,  and it melted in my mouth with an explosion of robust flavours. The saltiness of the cheese works beautiful with the richer tones of the spiced lamb and, despite a generous portion, the whole thing left me wanting more.

For my main, I ordered a Kesri Chicken Korma. It blew me away. I can say without reservation that this is the best curry that has ever passed my lips. The sauce- a delicate aromatic blend of saffron, spice, onion, cashew nut- is divine. It's sweet and deliciously moorish without once flirting with the cloying sickliness that tends to dominate many kormas. In fact, the sweetness of the sauce perfectly complements and bolsters the chicken's naturally dulcet tones. The dish is subtle enough to infuse new life into what many people consider a bland meat and the delicate balance of flavours in the sauce are a true testament to the quality of the cooking at The Krishna. Excellent Indian cuisine is marked by strong, spicy flavours that complement one another, yet  still remain distinct, something this korma accomplishes effortlessly.

I also tried (on a return visit, I'm not that greedy), the Raan: a lamb shank cooked over a slow fire. Lamb is a natural partner for strong curry sauces as it possesses a robust flavour that can match the potency of ingrediants like chili and cloves. Slow cooked, the shank becomes succulent and juicy, enriched with ginger and poppy seed so that when it finally emerges from the oven, it practically melts around your fork. The flavours here are stronger and more savoury, but the spices are still not overpowering: they enrich and accentuate the meat to bring out its natural gamey flavours.

I finished my meal with a peshwari naan. Strictly speaking this isn't a dessert, but the sweet coconut and current filled bread was a gentle yet flavoursome way to finish my evening.

You might be expecting some pretty high prices, given the quality of the food. If you tasted it with a blindfold on, you'd certainly be clutching your wallet because that kind of excellence doesn't come cheap. Except, in this case, it does. A meal at the Krishna will set you back no more than one at any bland chain restaurant. Infact, it might be a little cheaper.

I wasn't surprised to see that the Krishna has been voted the best restaurant in Whitstable. To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if it was voted the best restaurant in Kent. The cooking is subtle, silky and skillful; every sauce a work of art, blending spices into vivid mouthwatering bursts of colour and excitement. Even the lager tastes cooler and more refreshing, although I'm not sure whether that's because of the rollercoaster ride that your taste buds are on or if it's just another part of the spell that the Krishna seems to work on everything it touches. One thing is for sure, this is gobsmackingly good food.

Oh, and it does takeaways...

The Krishna -01227 282639  -www.krishnarestaurant.co.uk