We've now tried quite a few recipes in the oven and they've all turned out delicious!
A Claudia Roden Lamb Tagine for two cooked beautifully using a relatively cheap lamb neck fillet.
We had a girls pizza night which was great fun although we need a little practice with the dough. I cheated and used the bread machine to make the dough, it looked OK when I first rolled it into portions but they looked more like implants once they had expanded!!
A Hairy Bikers stew of sausages, squash and lentils was very interesting with 3 different types of sausage to keep all the diners happy.
Roasted squash for a vegan friend was gorgeous.
The next step is Christmas dinner - I'm thinking goose :)
Thursday 8 November 2012
Slow Cooking
We have also tried slow cooking in the oven with varying degrees of success. The first attempt was on the one really hot weekend we had at the end of August.
With family to stay, we cooked a spatchcock chicken with lemon and garlic with roast potatoes on the Saturday night. The chicken took about 40 minutes under foil and then about 15 minutes uncovered to brown. It was absolutely gorgeous! This time we par-boiled the roast potatoes first. I can honestly say that every roast potato I have had out of an ordinary oven since has been really disappointing.
After we finished cooking we kept the fire going until about 10pm and then put the door on. Following a Claudia Roden recipe for Stifado, we had braising steak marinating overnight and when we put the assembled casserole in the oven the next morning it was still just over 100C. We were cooking from raw so left the pot in the oven from about 9am to 6pm. To our complete surprise it was hot, cooked and tasted great!
The next time was also for guests. Again we kept the fire going the night before but this time we started the French inspired beef casserole off on the hob first. I think it tasted a little better and also didn't take so long to cook, only about 6 hours.
Our last attempt wasn't so successful............ We think the oven wasn't hot enough when we closed it and the weather was distinctly colder and damper than on the previous attempts.
I think we'll leave it until Spring to try again!
With family to stay, we cooked a spatchcock chicken with lemon and garlic with roast potatoes on the Saturday night. The chicken took about 40 minutes under foil and then about 15 minutes uncovered to brown. It was absolutely gorgeous! This time we par-boiled the roast potatoes first. I can honestly say that every roast potato I have had out of an ordinary oven since has been really disappointing.
After we finished cooking we kept the fire going until about 10pm and then put the door on. Following a Claudia Roden recipe for Stifado, we had braising steak marinating overnight and when we put the assembled casserole in the oven the next morning it was still just over 100C. We were cooking from raw so left the pot in the oven from about 9am to 6pm. To our complete surprise it was hot, cooked and tasted great!
The next time was also for guests. Again we kept the fire going the night before but this time we started the French inspired beef casserole off on the hob first. I think it tasted a little better and also didn't take so long to cook, only about 6 hours.
Our last attempt wasn't so successful............ We think the oven wasn't hot enough when we closed it and the weather was distinctly colder and damper than on the previous attempts.
I think we'll leave it until Spring to try again!
The Cookware
After our first meal we got a little bit cocky.
The plan was for tandoori chicken legs with spiced potatoes. All was going well until we moved the dish containing the potatoes............. with an ear splitting bang it smashed into hundreds of small pieces of glass. No one had told us not to use Pyrex dishes.
As we scraped the glass out of the oven into a plastic box it was hotter than we thought and started to melt through the bottom of the box! Standing well back, we used the hose to fill the box with water with much fizzing, bubbling and steam. Lesson two, DON'T use Pyrex dishes!!
After taking advice from Bryan, we have now visited our local Chinese and Indian supermarkets and bought cheap aluminium trays, woks and a casserole dish. They are brilliant and wash up like new. Lesson three, don't buy expensive cookware.
The plan was for tandoori chicken legs with spiced potatoes. All was going well until we moved the dish containing the potatoes............. with an ear splitting bang it smashed into hundreds of small pieces of glass. No one had told us not to use Pyrex dishes.
As we scraped the glass out of the oven into a plastic box it was hotter than we thought and started to melt through the bottom of the box! Standing well back, we used the hose to fill the box with water with much fizzing, bubbling and steam. Lesson two, DON'T use Pyrex dishes!!
After taking advice from Bryan, we have now visited our local Chinese and Indian supermarkets and bought cheap aluminium trays, woks and a casserole dish. They are brilliant and wash up like new. Lesson three, don't buy expensive cookware.
The First Proper Meal
After being successful with a crumble when we finally learned to light a fire, the first proper meal we cooked was a roast.
The chicken pieces were seasoned in a little olive oil, lemon juice and salt and then baked in the hottest part of the oven covered with tin foil for about half an hour. We cooked the roast potatoes from raw and the vegetables had a little water in the bottom of the pan and were covered with a lid to steam.
It was absolutely delicious!
The Rookie Firestarters
Well it's been a while, let's catch up with the story................
The oven was finished at the end of August and we thought, "this is easy, let's have a fire!" How wrong we were....
To start with, we experimented with a boy scout type fire, you know, a pile of newspaper with kindling arranged on top. Oh dear :( It turns out that a "Jenga" style pile works much better. Lesson one learned.
So we got a fire started but as soon as we pushed it back in the oven it went out. Smoke everywhere, guaranteed to annoy the neighbours! Sheepishly we called Alan to see what we were doing wrong and it turns out we were pushing the fire back too soon. The inside of the oven is cold and airless and you need a BIG fire before you push it back.
We've finally got the hang of it and can even control the temperature now. Onwards and upwards!
The oven was finished at the end of August and we thought, "this is easy, let's have a fire!" How wrong we were....
To start with, we experimented with a boy scout type fire, you know, a pile of newspaper with kindling arranged on top. Oh dear :( It turns out that a "Jenga" style pile works much better. Lesson one learned.
So we got a fire started but as soon as we pushed it back in the oven it went out. Smoke everywhere, guaranteed to annoy the neighbours! Sheepishly we called Alan to see what we were doing wrong and it turns out we were pushing the fire back too soon. The inside of the oven is cold and airless and you need a BIG fire before you push it back.
We've finally got the hang of it and can even control the temperature now. Onwards and upwards!
Tuesday 10 July 2012
The extra mile
The difference between the Real Garden Oven People and other garden oven companies is that they want you to love your oven as much as they do.
It's the extra little touches that make each oven unique and special. Our proving oven is being lined with 100 year old terracotta tiles that Bryan just "happened to have lying around". Yesterday Alan tried an experiment to cut a circular slab into quarters to make the chimney shelves. They didn't quite fit so he'll try something else. We are involved in every decision and it's a collaborative process to get exactly what you want. If you are going to look at something out of your kitchen window for years to come, the last thing you want is to think "oh, I wish we had done that bit differently....."
I do already but I can guarantee I will be looking out of my kitchen window for years to come thinking "I love my garden oven!"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)