Delicious Australia - (08August 2020

I LOVE...

THRIFTY

COOKING

I’VEBEENWRITINGaboutminimisingkitchenwastefora
decade.Thebasicrules,however,remainthesame:(1)buyonly
whatyouneed,(2)cookonlywhatyou’lleat,and(3)loveleftovers

• whetherofdishesoringredients(butif youfollowthefirsttwo
  rulesthesewillbeminimalandyou’llsavemoremoney).
  We’vebecomea lotsmarteraboutusingalltheingredient,
  whetherthat’sa nose-to-tailorroot-to-leafapproach.Human
  ingenuityis a marvellousthing.Here’sjustsomeofwhatI’ve
  gatheredovertheyearsforreducinghouseholdwaste.
  POTATOSKINSPotatoskinscanbefriedorroasted,withresults
  varyingaccordingtothestarchlevelofthevariety.Myfavourite,
  however,is tocookthecleanskinsin themilkyou’llusein mash.
  Themilkgetsa boostofpotatoflavouranda satinytexturefrom
  thestarchinessthatreducesthedesiretoaddcream.Aftermaking
  potato,sweetpotatoorpumpkingnocchi,turntheleftoverskins
  into‘po-tacos’.Fillthemwithwhateveryoulike.Currently,leftover
  bologneseorchilliwithcheese,anddicedsmokedchickenwith
  crispchillisauce,corianderandKewpiemayoarethewinners.
  BANANA-PEELBACONWeallknowaboutblack-bananaice
  creamandbananabreadmadewitholdbananas,buthowabout
  takingthepeeloffreshbananasandturning it into vegan ‘bacon’?
  (Seemyguideat delicious.com.au.)
  RAMINESTRONESoupis a greatplacetoloseoruseorphaned
  ingredients.Insteadoftheobviousminestroneorribollita,throw
  thelikesoftiredlettuce,cabbageandmushroomsintoremainder
  ramenorleftoverlaksa.Afteryournextfreezerclear-out,usethe
  scrawnyendsofpacketsofcornorpeasaswellasoneofthe
  proteinsyou’llundoubtedlyfind,likethosetwochickenbreasts
  interredtogetherorthatpackofporkmince.I reckonsmall
  meatballsfortheramenis thewaytogowiththat.
  RINDSParmesanrindsandpigskinaren’tparticularlyappetising
  at firstglance,butI keepbothin thefreezertothrowin dishesfor
  anumamihit,suchasbologneseorold-schoolstewsorbraises.
  JUICERREFUSEThepulpfromcarrotandginger,orbeetroot
  andceleryjuiceis thebulkfora greatcake,burgerorrissole,
  orsoup.There’sstillbothflavourandbodyin there.
  BASEACTSI’vegotbothceleryandrhubarb growing in the
  vegiepatchfromthereplantedbases.
  STOCKHACKThere’sa lotofflavourleftin those‘finished’jars.
  Pourhotwaterorstockin oldVegemite,Dijonmustardorpeanut
  butterjarsandshaketogeta tastyliquidtoaddtobeefbraises,
  chicken-pie filling or Ghanaian sweet potato stew, respectively.

Gettingsmarterin thekitchenhassometasty

pay-offs.Matt Preston has the lowdown. STALEBREAD SOUP WITH FRIED BONE MARROW
SERVES 4
Begin this recipe 1 day ahead.

4 x 10cm(400g)centre-cutfemurbeefbones, halved lengthwise

(askyourbutchertodothisforyou)

2 cups(140g)coarsestalesourdough breadcrumbs

120gunsaltedbutter,chopped

4 cups(1L)good-qualitybeef stock

2 tbsextravirginoliveoil

150gbuttonmushrooms,quartered

(^1) / 2 cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
FRIEDBONEMARROW
8 x 10cm(800g)centre-cutfemurbeefbones, halved lengthwise
(askyourbutchertodo this for you)
(^1) / 2 cup(75g)cornflour
40g unsalted butter
Placebothquantitiesofbonesin separatelargebowls,coverwith
coldsaltedwaterandleavefor 24 hours,changingthesaltedwater
threetimes.Drainandremovethemarrowfromthebones(reserve
bonesforstock).Finelychopthesmalleramountofmarrow.
Cutthelargeramountinto1cmpieces.Setbothaside.
Heata deepsaucepanovermediumheat.Addthebreadcrumbs
andtossfor3-4minutesuntiltoasted.Setaside.Wipethepan
cleanandreturntomediumheat.Addbutterandfinelychopped
marrowandcook,stirringfrequently,for1-2minutesuntilmelted.
Addtoastedbreadcrumbs,reduceheattomedium-low and cook,
tossingfrequently,for2-3minutesuntilgolden.
Stirin^1 / 2 cup(125ml)stockandstirslowlyfor15-20minutes
untilstockis absorbed.Stirin another^1 / 2 cupstockandrepeat4-5
timeswithremainingstockuntilbreadcrumbsaresaturated(you
maynotneedallthestock).Seasontotasteandkeepwarm.
Forthefriedbonemarrow,placethemarrowina bowlwith
thecornflourandtosstocombine.Meltthebutterina frypan
overmedium-highheat.Addthemarrowmixtureandcook,
tossingfrequently,for2-3minutesuntilgolden.Transfertopaper
towel,seasontotasteandsetasideuntilreadytoserve.
Heatoilin a mediumfrypanoverhighheat.Addthemushrooms
andcook,tossingoccasionally, for 4-5 minutes until golden and
cooked.Seasontotaste.
Dividesoupamongbowlsandscatterwithmushrooms, parsley
and fried bone marrow. Serve immediately.
STALEBREADOldpitas,sourdough,buns– I freakinglovestale
bread.There’ssomuchyoucandowithit thatthere’sa whole
columnonourwebsitepackedwithideas,fromsaladsand
crunchytoppingstosaucesandsoups.Themostout-therehas
tobemixingfreshlymadebreadcrumbsoverheatwithstock
tomakea Veronesepolenta-likesaucecalledpearà. Addmore
stockandfriedbonemarrowandbuttertomakethemost
extraordinary stale bread soup – the recipe for which follows.
62 delicious.com.au
I’M LOVING.