Scottish Fayre

Celebrating the Scottish pantry

It is Scottish Food Fortnight - 31 August to 15 September - a celebration of Scottish food and drink and the people who grow, make, cook and sell it.

Celebrity chef, Tom Kitchin, extols the virtues of seasonal Scottish produce from his fourth restaurant in Edinburgh - 'Southside Scran'.

His culinary 'from nature to plate' philosophy uses local ingredients to create traditional Scottish fayre with a modern 'French-influenced' twist.

In our own doffed cap tribute, we're looking at three traditional Scottish plates with a tasty Stokensian twist.

Take this beautiful plate of poached lemon sole on a bed of buttered leeks with a twist of smoked salmon on top. Simple, Scottish ingredients with Stokes Bloody Mary Rose Sauce. For the sauce, combine equal parts of Stokes Real Mayonnaise and Stokes Bloody Mary Ketchup - sensational.

 
Leig a ithe - let's eat

Cock-a-leekie twist

Cooked and served as a kebab this version of a recipe from Scotland.org looks as good as it tastes.

You'll need:

• 3 or 4 skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• A 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
• 3 tbsp of Stokes Chipotle Ketchup
• The juice of 1 lime
• 200 ml of plain yogurt
• 2 leeks
• 1 packet of pitted prunes

Here's how:

Mix the ketchup, garlic, ginger, lime juice and yogurt to make a marinade for the chicken. Add the chicken pieces, coat well and marinate overnight if possible.

Whilst the chicken is coming back to room temperature, cut the leeks into 1 inch pieces and blanch them for 2 minutes in boiling water.

Now, assemble the skewers - prune, leek, chicken etc. Grill the kebabs on a medium heat for 10 minutes (checking that the meat is cooked through), turning two or three times.

Serve your cock-a-leekie kebabs with a spicy smoked dipping sauce of equal parts: Stokes Real Mayonnaise, Stokes Brown Sauce and Stokes Chipotle Sauce.

Haggis, neeps & tatties

Associated with Burns Night celebrations but eaten often as a wonderful warmer on a chilly Autumn eve. We won't pretend to teach you how to cook it, but offer these two tasty twists - one for the tatties and the other for that 'special Scottish gravy' !

Try this:

Whilst you are mashing your potatoes, hopefully with lots of butter and a touch of milk, try adding a couple of spoons of Stokes Creamed Horseradish Sauce. We make this with half & half wild and cultivated horseradish. This intensifies the flavour to delight discerning palates.

For a veritable cocktail of a gravy, while your rich beef stock is reducing, add a desert spoon of Stokes Chilli Jam and the same amount of Stokes Cranberry Sauce and blend them into the gravy with a wee (though not insignificant) dram of whisky.

Finally, grate a little dark, high cocoa content chocolate into the gravy to further enrich the flavours.

Haddock & Crab Gratin

Both of these Scottish ingredients are very much in season right now. The combination of sweet crab meat and smoked haddock with a little chilli and lots of bubbling cheese is wonderful. Serve it with 'tatties' (as above) and wilted spinach.

You'll need:

• 200 g of smoked haddock, cut into pieces
• 100 g of white crab meat
• 1 red onion, finely diced
• 1 leek, sliced
• 2 tsp of Stokes Chilli Jam (more if you like it hotter)
• 1 tbsp of Stokes Dijon Mustard
• 150 ml of double cream
• 100 g of Cheddar cheese, grated

Here's how:

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6.

Soften the leeks in boiling water for 5 minutes, drain and set aside.

In a large bowl, gently combine the smoked haddock, crab, onion, leek, mustard and chilli jam and season using more black pepper than you might usually.

Spoon the mixture into an ovenproof dish and pour over the cream.

Once this has settled down, sprinkle your grated cheese over the top and bake in the oven for 15 minutes until the cheese begins to brown and bubble.

September Sensations - just add Stokes

More foodie thoughts for the week:





Pepper Perfection - 
greenhouses are awash with peppers, tomatoes and chillis so these juicy recipes are a timely treat - here.




 

Some like it Hot - 
our Summer Sizzlers Collection is for those who like a bit of heat on the inside, as well as out. Enjoy these - here.








Down to the Sea again - 
DFDS Tweeted about thier Field to Ferry Campaign. For the video and more - click here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

FOOD MADE BETTER 
www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150