How to be a whizz in the kitchen

The three basics you need to master to open up a host of dishes

I know I already posted today but, I’m doing a course (ahem, see earlier post) and as part of it we’re asked to post the piece we write. I was being all “I’m not doing THAT!?!?! I already posted today!” And then I thought, surely you’ll all forgive me - right?

And with that, I gotta say - maybe check quantities, particularly re the flour to butter ratio in the white sauce as I whizzed this out off the top of my head!

What’s for supper Susie?

I’m always being asked what I’m cooking for supper, people look to me for inspiration for their day in/day out cooking. I’m not sure why because my cooking is often rather OTT. Nevertheless, it got me thinking, perhaps I could create a roadmap for the reticent cook that would mean they would always be able to rustle something tasty up, be it for supper, a brunch with friends, or a fancy dinner to impress.

Be confident, be bold, be delicious.

The first thing you need to know is this, you need to use more fat and more salt that you feel comfortable using – that’s why food in restaurants is so tasty (I mean, there’s more to it than that, obvs). But really, be generous – salt your ingredients, use salt during cooking, and salt afterwards with a gorgeous ‘finishing salt’ – otherwise known as, sea salt flakes (or similar). And then fat, whether you use oil or butter, or sometimes both – however much you add to the pan, add a little more, for me. You’ll thank me.

You’ll also do well to add a bit of acid, a tiny dash of vinegar, a squeeze of lemon, a tomato and sometimes heat – that can come from chillis, mustard, cinnamon, black pepper (ground on at the end).

But, I slightly get ahead of myself.

The first basic - a good stock

You need to arm yourself with a good stock – my favoured is a ‘brown’ stock of chicken bones roasted in the oven and then left to cool. Then added to a pan of cold water, enough to more than cover, along with some peppercorns, bay leaves, and vegetable peelings (whatever you have but go easy on things like broccoli and kale as they can make your stock bitter) – carrots are always good, maybe a tomato – raid your fridge and throw in whatever needs using. Bring to the boil over a high heat and then turn the heat down and simmer for an absolute age.

What you’ve got there is liquid gold. And also the basis for soups – just add to vegetables, lentils, tomatoes, throw in some tinned chickpeas (jarred would be even better) and a few bits of pasta, add a bit of lemon zest, perhaps a finely sliced chilli, some chopped bacon. Serve with grated parmesan.

Or, just stick with the veg – maybe a cauliflower, cooked until soft and then blitzed in a blender. Put back on the heat with a slosh of cream, a knob of butter, a chunk of blue cheese or maybe a handful of grated cheddar, a tiny bit of nutmeg, a crack of black pepper.

You get the idea.

Vegetable soup

The second basic, and my often go-to - a good tomato sauce

And then, You need a tomato sauce. Honestly, a good tomato sauce – olive oil, fresh tomatoes, oregano, cooked slowly over a low heat until the tomatoes break down and release their sweetness – that’s food fit for a champion. Throw in some fresh basil, spoon over pasta, drench with parmesan, close your eyes as the first forkful enters your mouth and just savour it.

But from here you can go to so many places. Add in chopped carrots and celery before the tomatoes, maybe some cubed pancetta, some slices mushrooms, or peas, straight from the freezer. Perhaps you have some mince, a mix of beef and pork would be nice, add a handful of breadcrumbs to the mince, another of parmesan, some salt, some lemon zest and shape into balls. Fry in some olive oil, browning all over, remove from the pan and continue your tomato sauce. Once the sauce is bubbling away, add your meatballs back in and allow to simmer away for 20 minutes of so.

Or why not cook the sauce in a frying pan, until slightly thickened and then make a couple of holes and crack an egg into the holes, cover with a lid and cook over a medium heat until the eggs are cooked. Serve with warmed bread, maybe a dollop of yoghurt and some fresh parsley.

You’ve also got the basis for a chilli, a Bolognese, a lasagne, a cannelloni (you’ll need your final sauce for these two), – just fry off your meat first (as with the meatballs) and then add in the tomatoes.

If you use tinned tomatoes you might want to add a tiny bit of sugar to take the acidity down a notch.

Tomato sauce, gnocchi, mozarella and parmesan, baked in a moderate oven for 20 minutes or so.

The third basic - a good white sauce

And then – the final sauce – a white sauce, a béchamel, from which you can make macaroni cheese, lasagne or cannelloni, fish pie, chicken pie, cauliflower cheese, how about a broccoli and stilton pasta sauce? Or, a camembert and mushroom filling for a pancake (think Findus but actually delicious).

For this you’ll need a good couple of tablespoons of butter, melted over a low to medium heat. Add in enough plain flour to make a paste (don’t go overboard) – a couple of tablespoons should do. Stir for a couple of minutes, making sure the mixture doesn’t catch (start to burn) and then add in a good bit of milk, slowly at first, to make sure there aren’t any lumps – keep stirring as you add in the milk, and then add in more freely. Don’t add to much, you’re not making a soup. But you can afford for it to be reasonably loose/liquidy as it will thicken up slightly as you continue to cook it. I always allow mine to bubble a bit before taking off the heat.

You might want to add a bit of mustard, particularly good with powdered mustard, to the paste, before adding the milk. This is great with a sauch destined for macaroni or cauliflower cheese. Or, you could add some nutmeg. Maybe slice some leeks and fry them gently in the butter before adding the flour – that would be good spread over a sheet of puff pastry, dotted with cheese, and baked in the oven.

Seriously, you could go anywhere with these three basics. Change things up in the tomato sauce by using butter instead of oil, make a veg stock using the same method of roasting (carrots, parsnips etc) first, substitute some of the milk in your white sauce with cream and throw in a bay leaf, some peppercorns.

Just experiment. And have fun.

Let me know if this has helped or inspired you – or maybe shown you just how easy it is to be a whizz in the kitchen.