23rd March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
The GREAT British Sunday Lunch po Polsku
The GREAT British Sunday Lunch po Polsku
Well I’m just back from a mega week long culinary trip round the UK and you know what I had a GREAT time tasting some pretty cool food. What matters is the ingredients and how you cook them. It’s not good enough to dismiss the Brits as having a heavy, fatty cuisine with a mish mash of everything on the plate.
It’s all about the raw materials where they come from and moreover how you introduce them to each other which makes a top class experience. So here we go the menu for a spankingly dobre British Polish Sunday Lunch fresh in my mind and just back from the GREAT British Polish Food Tour 2014:
Appetiser
As an Appetiser I’ve made thin slivers of warm Oscypek dipped in a Just Oil balsamic dipping oil. This is a base rapeseed oil which is rich in Omega and high in vitamin e with less than half the saturated fat of standard olive oil
Amouse Bouche
Cream of cauliflower and Shropshire Cheddar soup – bringing the best out of a Zamość cauliflower and a young flaky cheddar which crumbles like Cheshire cheese
Starter
Polish Rydze en croute bathing in a Shropshire Blue Cheese Sauce accompanied by an ice cold shot of Dębowa – tangy blue rydze accompagne par le voodecka you may say
Fish Course
Extremely delicate, chubby, succulent and juicy Menai Straits Pedigree Mussels bathed in Mazury butter and served with a sprinkling of the crumbliest Wensleydale cheese – a big thanks to my mate James in Wales who gave them to me instead of sending them to Paris
Main
This is where I really get excited. I managed to import a leg of GREAT Welsh Saltmarsh Lamb – it grew up on the salt marshes of the Atlantic which has an amazing effect on the quality and succulence of the meat. Cooked to a delicate rose in a sous vide and burnt off in a pan for no more than 3 minutes. Served with parsnips, potatoes and carrots from Lublin, Poland’s market garden – the micro climate bringing out a superlative taste. A kaleidoscope of colours on my plate accompanied by a delicate Elderflower beer from the Moose Brewery in Portmadog. Don’t forget the famous British Mint sauce blended with a Polish originated gravy. Smacznego
Dessert
Mazovian apple, sultana and cinnamon crumble served mith Mikes Homemade blackcurrant preserve and orange crème anglaise. A little nalewka with this dish – you know which one you like but Żurawina goes pretty well
Cheeseboard
A selection of GREAT English cheeses straight out of my suitcase at room temperature – Anstey’s Berkswell cheese, Croome Cuisine’s Hereford Hop, Simon Weaver Cotswold Blue and a wonderful matured Shropshire Blue from the Eyre’s family farm in Oswestry – all served with Franks Thins oat biscuits and Kit’s Kitchen red onion and orange chutney
A big thank you to Mark Riding Executive Chef at Origins in Shrewsbury for his GREAT creativity and advice. Most appreciated.
My friends really enjoyed it. Amazing what you can do by introducing products from both countries together. A fine tapestry of elegant tastes, high quality materials cooked in the best British Polish way – smacznego. Must go for a quick nap!