Tamarind Glazed Spare Ribs

Ingredients:

For the Dry Rub:

2 racks pork spare ribs, about 1Kg each

2.5ml fennel seeds

2.5ml cumin seeds

1 dried chilli

30ml brown sugar

30ml paprika

30ml sea salt

For the Glaze:

50ml sunflower or peanut oil

2.5ml coursely ground black pepper

125ml finely chopped shallots

30ml chopped garlic

30ml grated fresh ginger

60ml whiskey

125ml water

30ml tamarind paste

50ml soy sauce

30ml tomato sauce

Method:

The day before the ribs are required, line a baking sheet with some heavy duty aluminium foil and set a cooling rack on the sheet. Wash the rib racks and pat them dry thoroughly with kitchen towel. Place the ribs on the rack.

To make the dry rub:

Set a small skillet over medium heat. Add the fennel seeds, cumin seeds and chilli and dry roast the spices, shaking the pan often, until the seeds begin to darken and a fragrant aroma begins to be released. Pour the seeds  and chilli into a spice grinder and grind until fine. Put the ground spices in a bowl and add the brown sugar, paprika and 30ml salt and stir to combine, smoothing out any lumps in the sugar.

Sprinkle half the rub over the ribs and massage into the meat evenly. Flip the ribs over and massage the rest of the rub into the other side. Cover the ribs tightly with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge over night.

To make the glaze:

In a medium saucepan over a medium- high heat, warm the oil until shimmering. Add the pepper and cook for 30 seconds. Add the shallots, garlic and ginger. Cook about 5 minutes until the shallots soften and begin to turn golden.

Remove from the heat and add the whiskey. Return to the heat and simmer until the whiskey has evaporated. Add 125ml water, the tamarind, soy sauce and tomato sauce. Stir together and reduce the heat until the mixture is simmering. Simmer about 10 minutes until thickened slightly. Set aside.

Whe you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 180  C. Take the ribs from the fridge and leave at room temperature until the oven comes to heat. Remove the plastic wrap from the ribs. Roast the ribs for about 90 minutes until the meat is tender, rotating the pan halfway through to ensure even cooking.

Take the ribs from the oven and turn up the oven temperature to 220 C. Brush the ribs on both sides with the tamarind glaze and return them to the oven for about 10 minutes. Brush them with glaze one more time and serve. Be sure to have plenty of paper serviettes available fr sticky fingers!

Tamarind and Miso Onglet Steak

Onglet steak is an inexpensive cut that is full of flavour. In France this is a classic bistro and brasserie steak. In this country, we tend not to use it as a steak cut; sadly, it goes into the stewing and mincing bin, along with other similarly tasty cuts of beef. It is, however, slowly starting to gain recognition over here and some gastro-pubs are using it as their steak of choice.

In the US it is referred to as a hanger steak because it hangs from the diaphragm, which comprises the skirt - a cut we are vaguely familiar with but which we often stew. If butchers got a bit more clever with their knives they would break down some of these muscles like they do in France and sell them as prime cuts instead of stewing steak.

Because you get only about 4-6 onglet steaks per animal it may not be commercially viable, but it's worth it because it has such a unique flavour, being next to the kidney on the beast.

If you have a good butcher, he'll know what you are talking about because this cut is sometimes referred to as butcher's steak - the butcher would traditionally keep it for his family as a bit of a treat. You could ask him for a bavette or flank steak which has similar eating qualities, but they need to be trimmed of all muscles and sinew.

Try it with Asian flavours in this delicious recipe.

Ingredients:
For the den miso:
100ml sake
100ml mirin
600g white miso
300g caster sugar

For the steak:
125g tamarind paste
75ml den miso (see recipe above)
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
5ml chopped fresh thyme
6 x 150-175g onglet steaks, trimmed
50ml olive oil

For the watercress salad:
15ml pomegranate molasses
30ml cider vinegar
75ml extra virgin olive oil
2 bunches watercress

Method:
For the den miso, place all the ingredients into a saucepan and whisk over a medium heat until the sugar and miso have dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

For the steak, mix the tamarind paste, den miso, garlic and thyme in a bowl until well combined. Add the steaks, make sure they are well coated in the marinade and set aside to marinate for at least three hours, preferably overnight.

Heat a griddle or a heavy-based frying pan over a high heat until hot but not smoking - if the pan is too hot, the outside of the meat will burn before it has cooked enough.

Brush the steaks with the oil and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cook for 2-4 minutes on each side, or until cooked to your liking.

Transfer the steaks from the pan to a rack, cover with foil and set aside to rest in a warm place for up to 10 minutes - this helps the meat to ‘relax’ and maximises taste and tenderness.

For the watercress salad, whisk the pomegranate molasses, vinegar and olive oil together in a bowl until well combined, then season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Coat the watercress with the dressing.

To serve, place the steak onto serving plates with the watercress alongside.

Brinjal or Aubergine Chutney with Tamarind

With the sweetness of brinjal and the tang of tamarind, this chutney makes a great accompaniment to almost any curry. Give it a whirl with your next Indian meal.

Ingredients:
1 large brinjal (aubergine), peeled and cubed
15ml mustard oil
15ml vegetable oil
15ml salt
1 medium onion, chopped
30ml tamarind paste
30ml granulated brown sugar
2 dried red chillies
2 long thin green chillies, chopped
a small handful of fresh coriander leaves chopped

Method:

Put the chopped brinjal in a bowl and toss with the mustard oil and vegetable oil. Sprinkle with salt. Cook the brinjal in a large frying pan over medium to high heat until the brinjal is soft. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

Add the onion, tamarind paste, sugar, dried red chillies and brinjal to a food processor and blend to a chunky paste. Add the chopped green chillies and coriander and stir into the mixture. serve as an accompaniment to an Indian meal.