Our attitude to food has changed dramatically in the last 15 years, and unarguably for the better. Back then, we cooked less and, I think, tended to opt for style over substance. Now, however, when we eat out, the restaurants that are in vogue are the neighbourhood ones that cook simpler food that feels more homely, while on the domestic front we’re finally learning to embrace leftovers again. Both of today’s recipes remind me of the food I grew up with: simple, good ingredients transformed by giving them a little time and effort. In the first dish, ’nduja, the deliciously spicy Calabrian sausagemeat that’s now widely available online and in larger supermarkets, adds a touch of heat to a plate of chickpeas and a fried egg; it makes a cracking breakfast or light evening meal. The second recipe is a homage to the new potato, pairing it with sweet, delicate crab in a rich and bold-flavoured hash.
Sage and ’nduja fried eggs with creamy smashed chickpeas and braised spinach
To make this vegetarian, ditch the ’nduja and crumble some goat’s cheese or feta over the plated dish, and sprinkle with lots of shredded basil. Serves four.
40g butter
400g large leaf spinach, washed and drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
⅛th nutmeg, freshly grated
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely sliced
1 small bunch thyme, leaves stripped
50g ’nduja
450g cooked chickpeas (if using tinned, I favour the Napolina brand)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tbsp red-wine vinegar
1 small bunch sage, leaves picked and finely shredded
8 free-range eggs
1 lemon, cut into wedges
In a large pan, melt half the butter over a high heat, add the spinach, cover and cook for five minutes, stirring a few times, until wilted. Drain, season with salt, pepper and all the nutmeg, and set aside.
Heat the same pan on a medium-high flame, add the oil, onion, thyme and ’nduja, and season generously. Saute for 15-20 minutes, until the onions are soft and silky, then add the chickpeas and garlic, and cook for another few minutes. Add the vinegar and two tablespoons of cold water, heat through, then roughly crush the chickpeas with a potato masher, leaving half of them more or less intact. Add the spinach and remaining olive oil to the pot, and check for seasoning.
Melt the remaining butter in a wide frying pan and fry the sage until crisp, a few minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, then fry the eggs in batches, until crisp at the edges. Divide the chickpea and spinach mix between four plates and top each portion with two eggs. Scatter over the crisp sage and serve with lemon wedges.
Leek, jersey royal and crab hash with paprika and parsley
This gutsy, brown crab meat hash isdressed with a light and lemony white crab and watercress salad. Serves four to six.
600g jersey royal potatoes, larger ones cut inhalf
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
40g butter
1 large leek, washed and finely sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 ½ tsp sweet paprika, plus a little extra, to finish
150g brown crab meat
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, picked and roughly chopped
2 lemons, 1 zested and juiced, the other cut into wedges, to serve
100g creme fraiche
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
150g white crab meat
50g watercress, to serve
Put the potatoes in a pan of cold salted water and bring to a boil. Cook for 10-15 minutes, until tender, then drain and leave uncovered to steam dry.
Meanwhile, melt half the butter in a large frying pan, add the sliced leek and season with a few pinches of salt. Saute until soft and sweet, about five minutes, then transfer to a bowl and wipe out the pan with a clean, damp cloth.
Melt the remaining butter and the olive oil in the same pan, then fry the potatoes for eight to 10 minutes, breaking them up a bit with a wooden spoon, until they are golden and starting to crisp. Stir in the leeks, paprika, brown crab meat and parsley, and stir inhalf the lemon juice. Season to taste, then add a little more lemon juice if you think it needs it.
Stir the lemon zest, creme fraiche and extra-virgin olive oil into the white crab meat, and season with salt and pepper.
Transfer the crab hash to plates and spoon over the white crab and creme fraiche mix. Sprinkle with adusting of extra sweet paprika anserve with a big handful of watercress and a wedge of lemon.
And for the rest of the week…
Areader recently wrote to me with agreat tip for chickpeas, provided youhave access to a pressure cooker: soak dried chickpeas in boiling water for an hour, then pressure cook them for 10 minutes, or until tender. Bag, seal and store inthe freezer, then use whenever the need arises, much as you would frozen peas. When buying crab, Ialways get mine from our local market, not least because it’s much cheaper than any fishmonger. Whenever I’m a bit greedy and buy too much, I love to dress any excess with nam jim, ahot, sour and sweet Thai dipping sauce that’s heady with pounded (orblitzed) chilli, ginger, garlic, sugar, lime, coriander and fish sauce (look online for a recipe; my version is in my 10 January 2015 column). And if you have asurfeit ofcreme fraiche, use it as an excuse to make a cake (as if you really need one); failing that, mix it with freshly grated horseradish to make a creamy but sharp condiment for roast beef and cold cuts.
