1. The Best Produce
Take your time to choose the right ingredients this Christmas, sourcing the right turkey, the right sprouts, the right smoked salmon, or whatever you’re looking for. I will be buying local free range birds from right here on Merseyside, and sprouts from a local farm plus smoked salmon from our local market supplier. Local, seasonal and fresh is best and it helps the economy and the environment too!
2. The Best Stuffing
Ask the butcher to bone out the turkey legs and mince them for you to make a great chestnut stuffing and also keep the bones to roast and make gravy from.
Method – Mix the minced leg with chopped onion, garlic and rosemary with chopped dried apricots, black pepper, pink peppecorns and cooked chestnuts (I love using fresh but the pre-cooked vac pack ones work fine.) Mix together in a bowl with one egg and some sea salt. Roll in foil (cylinder shape) and cook for 30 mins in a 175 oven.
3. The Best Sprouts
Don’t be put off by soggy overcooked sprouts with no flavour. Fly the flag for really interesting tasty sprouts and follow my recipe.
4. The Best Gravy
When roasting your turkey put it on a bed of vegetables and herbs (leek, onions, carrot, celery and twigs of rosemary with sea salt and pepper). Site the “bird” on the top of the trivet and then oil and season the skin and cook as you normally would. When ready remove the bird from the tray and allow to rest before carving. Put the tray of vegetables and beautiful meat juices back on the heat and add 1/3 of a bottle of white wine and some stock made from the leg bones and giblets (or a cube if you prefer). Bring back to the boil, strain, take of any fat and reduce by half – Delicious! Some people prefer to thicken but I think Au Natural is perfect!
5. For and Alternative Christmas Dinner my final top tip is Venison
It’s absolutely spot on this year and if you want something healthy, delicious and sustainable it really fits the bill. I won’t say it’s not too dear (that old joke) but it’s worth the extra few pennies if you’ve got them - (it’s about the same price as good beef).
The Final Word
All cooks work hard over the festive season and it’s a wonderful time of year but once the sandwiches, curry and soup from the turkey have all been exhausted, for whoever has done the cooking this Christmas, take them out in January as a ‘Thank You’ to the restaurants of Liverpool. We have a great dining scene and January will have lots of promotions and specials to look forward to. So support your local businesses and look after those beloved Christmas Cooks.
Have a very merry Christmas and a healthy, wealthy and happy 2012
Best Wishes, Paul Askew
Paul’s Supplier Details:
Turkey – Callum Edge, New Ferry, Wirral
Sprout Stalks – Claremont Farm, Higher Bebington,Wirral
Smoked Salmon – Wards, Birkenhead
Venison – Wards, Birkenhead