I adore this dish—it is the Italian equivalent of chicken noodle soup and soothes away life’s stresses and strains. I formed my attachment to this soup at the tender age of II, when my parents took a gastronomic tour of Italy. We whizzed around hairpin bends from Milan to Rome, eating on terraces overlooking fields of wild flowers, and in piazzas with gurgling fountains. Unfortunately, the speedy driving and rich meals took their toll. So I discovered the soothing qualities of pasta in broth and, to my poor father’s dismay, ate it for lunch and dinner for the rest of the trip, adoring every mouthful with its little parcels of loveliness.
TO SERVE FOUR TO SIX
1.5 litres/21/2 pints excellent beef stock
(see page 184) made with the addition of 3 chicken drumsticks and a small piece of Parmesan rind (odd, but traditional)
250g/9oz tortellini
freshly grated Parmesan (optional)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Reduce the stock by about one-third and season until it is nectar. Refrigerate the stock overnight. By the next day it will have set like jelly and the fat will have formed a crust on the top. This is beef dripping and can be used for frying, or binned if you don’t like the look of it and it makes you a bit queasy.
Ladle 1 litre/13/4 pints of stock into a pan and bring to the boil, taste and season with salt. Drop in the tortellini and cook for the time stated on the packet. Serve with the Parmesan sprinkled on top if you wish.
Curry is a big part of the British culinary psyche and I have not been immune. I love grinding my own spices—there seems to be something very satisfying on a primitive level about pounding a few sticks and seeds together to produce some wonderful aromatic flavouring.
TO SERVE FOUR
2 tbsp olive oil
600g/1lb 5oz chuck steak trimmed and cut into 3cm/11/4 inch cubes
50g/2oz butter
1 large Spanish onion peeled and sliced
1 walnut-sized piece of fresh root ginger peeled and chopped
300ml/10fl oz tomato passata
500ml-1 litre/18fl oz-13/4 pints beef or chicken
stock (see pages 184 and 185) or water
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the curry paste
1 medium-hot dried smoked chilli
3 cardamom pods crushed and with husks removed
1 heaped tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp each ground turmeric and cumin
1 pinch of sea salt
3 cloves of garlic peeled and roughly chopped
1 pinch of dried curry leaves a few grinds of black pepper
Grind all the ingredients for the curry paste together in a pestle and mortar or spice grinder. Heat the oil in a large pan over a high heat. Season the steak with salt and pepper, drop into the pan and cook until browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep aside. Reduce the heat, drop the butter into the pan and gently fry the onion and ginger together until the onion is soft. Stir in the curry paste and fry for about 10 minutes, giving it a gentle poke and stir around from time to time.
Glug in the passata and 500ml/18fl oz of stock or water. Return the meat to the pan, stir through and leave to gently simmer for 2 hours. Check that it isn’t burning or sticking from time to time and add a little more stock or water if it looks like it is drying out.
I like to serve this curry with basmati rice cooked in stock and tossed with butter, and a dish of spinach that has been briefly boiled then tossed in a pan with cream and a little nutmeg.
BEEF, BEER AND MUSHROOM STEW WITH CHEESY DUMPLINGS
My lovely mum is a fabulous cookery writer and as kids we were her happy guinea pigs. A couple of her books were on British cooking and I have the fondest memories of dumplings with lots of gravy. My version has the addition of baking powder to make them very light and fluffy; if you prefer a more solid dumpling, you can omit it from the recipe.
TO SERVE SIX
600g/1lb 5oz stewing steak cubed
2 tbsp plain flour seasoned with salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil or beef dripping
50g/2oz butter
1 red onion peeled and chopped
2 ribs of celery cleaned, trimmed and chopped
2 carrots peeled and chopped
350g/12oz brown mushrooms trimmed, quartered
2 leeks cleaned, trimmed and chopped
1 tsp paprika
500ml/18fl oz light beer or lager freshly ground black pepper
For the dumplings
100g/4oz self-raising flour
50g/2oz prepared suet
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp mustard powder
75g/3oz strong grated Cheddar cheese
1 handful of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 egg beaten
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Roll the meat in the seasoned flour until coated. Heat the oil or dripping in a large pot with a lid and brown the meat in two batches. Pop the meat in a bowl until needed. Reduce the heat and plop the butter into the pot, throw in all the vegetables, the paprika and a good grind of black pepper and give it a proper stir. Gently fry for about 25 minutes until soft, keeping an eye on them and stirring every few minutes, as you don’t want them to burn. Return the meat to the pot. Glug in the beer or lager and enough water to just cover the meat, stir through, pop the lid on the pot and place in the oven for 13/4 hours.
Meanwhile, make the dumplings. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Using a fork, briskly mix in the egg and enough water to make a sticky dough but do not over-mix. Form into dumplings the size of walnuts and pop on top of the stew at the end of the cooking time, cover the pot and cook for a further 15 minutes. Serve with a salad on the side if you like, but it is a whole meal on its own.
Jane Grigson called boeuf à la bourguignon (beef in the Burgundy style), ‘The stew of stews.’ This rich, delicious dish is worthy of a good-quality red wine.
TO SERVE SIX
1.5kg/3lb 15oz chuck stewing or braising steak cut into