While the delicious. team are testing recipes, they’re often debating the best ways to do things
as well as answering cooking questions that arise in the test kitchen. What do you do if you’ve over-
whipped your cream? Why do chefs whisk butter into risottos at the end? What’s a hassle-free way
to make hasselback potatoes? And what fish and seafood are in season at this time of year? It’s the
kind of information you won’t find anywhere else, and it will help take your cooking to the next level.
THIS MONTH IN THE delicious. KITCHEN...
MAKE THE BOUNTY LAST
JERSEY ROYAL POTATOES
BY XANTHE CLAY
New potatoes are one of the first
joys of spring, sometimes
overlooked in favour of their more
pushy fellow spring vegetable,
asparagus. A freshly dug new
potato has a fine flavour that’s worth preserving
FREEZE New potatoes don’t freeze brilliantly, as they
can go watery or mealy. Really small, waxy specimens
fare best as they have a lower water content. Cut
them into olive-size chunks and boil for five minutes
in salted water until just tender, then toss in butter
and freeze in bags for up to 3 months.
PRESERVE There are wonderful Indian potato pickles,
such as aloo achaar, but none that lasts more than a
few days in the fridge. For longer-term storage, try
dryingtheminstead.Slicesmallwaxynewpotatoes
1 2mm thick (a mandoline will help here) Boil in salted
When chopping soft herbs such as
basil and mint, lay 6-10 leaves one
another to make a pile, then roll up
with a sharp knife. This is called ‘chBARNSLEY CHOP A double-sided loin chop on the bone. Shaped like a droopy
moustache, each side of the chop contains some under-fillet as well as loin.
How to cook it Best griddled, grilled or pan-fried.
NECK FILLET A long, thin, boneless cut from the eye of meat that runs through
the neck. It has a bit of fat, so lends itself well to braising but it can also
be cut into cubes for kebabs or butterflied lengthways for a lamb steak.
How to cook it If trimmed and from a young animal, you can roast it: sear it
first, then give it 10 minutes at 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Rest before slicing.
SCRAG END Inexpensive neck cut with lots of bone and connective tissue.
How to cook it It can be braised whole with veg, herbs and wine, or cut into
chops for hotpots. Not the prettiest of cuts but lots of flavour.
BREAST A fatty cut (it’s like pork belly), breast is often boned, stuffed with
a breadcrumb filling and rolled before slow roasting. It also makes good
broth and can be cut into ribs that turn crisp when fiercely roasted.
How to cook it Try rubbing with punchy North African or Chinese spice
blends. Or poach the meat, press it and chill, then coat in breadcrumbs
and fry it. Delicious with mayonnaise flavoured with capers or anchovy.
RUMP/CHUMP A cut taken from the pad of meat just before the rear legs.
How to cook it It’s often cut into chops or sliced for steaks but it can also be
cooked as a mini roast. Brown it well, then cook fo
at 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7 and rest well before slicThinking about spring
lamb? Look beyond
roast leg and slow-
cooked shoulder with our
guide to some lesser-used
cuts. This month British lamb is
likely to be from animals born in
winter or year-old lamb – called
hogget. Younger lamb is
imported from New Zealand.BUTCHER’SCUTSLOIN
RUMP/
CHUMPSHOULDER
RIB
LEG
SCRAG
ENDHIND
SHANKFORE
SHANKNECK
FILLETCHEEKBREAST
1- 2mm thick (a mandoline will help here). Boil in salted
water for3 minutes or until barelytender. Drain well,
then spread out on oven trays lined with
non-stick baking paper.Dryat60°C(orin
awarming drawer) for 5-10 hours until
the slices are crispbut not coloured.
Packinto bags orjars and store
somewhere cool and dry for up
to 2 months. Eat as they
are,fry in oilfor
extra-crisp crisps
orsoak inwater
overnight and use
in soups, stews
gratins and
Spanish-
style
tortillas.
COOK’S
TIPontop of
and slice hionade’.or15- 20 minutes
cing.