As I was saying yesterday, we have been inundated with all things 'cookery': from books, to TV programmes and food blogs, which is fine if like me you're an utter foodie who would gladly sit and watch re-runs of Master chef back to back!
But there is more to life than being tied to the kitchen sink! I know from experience most women want to feed their families nutritious meals but time is always against them. Modern woman may be better educated, have a better job and earn more money than her grandmother ever dreamt of, but in one way her life remains the same-eight out of ten women still do the household chores, one of which is cooking.
My misson is to try out recipes that suit modern busy women (and men of course) recipes which are easy to make, economical to buy and delicious to eat! One such recipe is Normandy pork casserole. I had bought some diced pork recently and put it in the freezer as I was uninspired as to what to make with it. I sat and leafed through various cookbooks and thought I'd hit the jackpot with a recipe for a chilli pork stew. However, whilst my family are very keen on hot and spicy food, I realised that my wider audience are probably not, especially if they are catering for a family with young children. Anyway, having wrestled myself away from the chilli stew recipe I started preparing my casserole.
I can't tell you how delicious this was! Given that I had real misgivings about making this recipe, foolishly imagining it might be bland. As you know, I make a big pot of stew/casserole/curry and have leftovers for the next day, this casserole was so moreish we all had second helpings leaving the pot dry.
Because I like the ethos of slow, low energy, economical cooking I use my slow cooker whenever I make a stew or casserole or indeed when I want to make the most of budget ingredients. Added to which, slow cookers are designed to do their own thing, no fear of liquid evaporating or ingredients burning even if you've left your slow cooker on all day whilst at work.
As always I tweaked the original recipe and if you're quite a confident cook there is no reason why you cant add or subtract certain ingredients, make this 'your' casserole! For example I threw in a whole clementine as I often do to sweeten a stew, I removed it at the end by which time some of the lovely juice had been extracted. Regarding the mustard in the recipe you can use dijon for a milder flavour or English mustard for more depth. And lastly, I used ginger wine as my choice of alcohol however, cider or white wine would work equally well.
Normandy pork casserole
Recipe
Serves 6
1kg free range pork, cubed
50g butter
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 leeks, sliced
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
1 swede, peeled and chopped
2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
6 small potatoes, chopped
300ml ginger wine or cider
2 tablespoons mustard, dijon or English
2 tablespoons dried tarragon
300ml chicken stock
Heat slow cooker
Heat butter in a pan, add pork, season and fry for 10 minutes until browned
Remove pork and fry vegetables in the same pan for 5 minutes to colour and soften
Combine pork and vegetables in slow cooker, pour over ginger wine and stock, add tarragon and mustard, give everything a good stir, cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours
Serve with creamy mash, crusty bread or dumplings
Unlike a beef stew which can be rich and heavy, this was light and aromatic, an ideal casserole for spring.
'This is my invariable advice to people: learn how to cook- try new recipes. Learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!'
-Julia Child
Love Donna
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