OK, What's For Lunch or Tea Today?

[Marco]

Looks like a great meal, right up my street. The peppers dish looks like a riot of good Med flavour.

Love Belly Pork as long as the fat has been rendered and it isn’t just a slab of crackling floating on a sea of fat, that dish looks spot on.

I’d happily hoover-up all of that (especially the Jadot)

Lol - thought it might've been your thang, Tony, as ya lurves yer med flavours! Just a different type of cooking - often I find typical British food a bit dry and bland in comparison. Yes, and the Jadot was fab

Marco.

[struth]

not into fat either tbh .. bad feel in mouth for a start.. looked good tho marco..

[Marco]

I used to do a pork and apricot casserole as a student. Belly pork was dirt cheap, and I would always cut away the fat afterwards.

The peppers look great, unfortunately I find anchovies far too salty, even after soaking them in milk beforehand.

Cheers, Barry. You're right about tinned anchovies [although fresh ones are totally different], but they were used more for seasoning than anything else, and sparingly, just to add a salty hint, which definitely wasn't overpowering, and with the sharpness of the balsamic cutting nicely though the olive oil.

Hard to describe in words, of course, but it worked! Where I find tinned anchovies WAY too overpowering is on pizzas! That's total 'salt city', as when they're heated up, the salt really comes to the fore...

As Tony and you probably know, it's common in the med to have veg or fish marinated or preserved 'under' olive oil, with herbs and spices. A favourite of mine, and back again to anchovies, is a Tuscan classic called Acciughe Marinate, see here: https://www.intavoliamo.it/Info/prod...iughe-marinate



Basically, lovely fresh anchovies soaked/marinated in good quality extra-virgin olive oil, with LOTS of fresh parsley and dried chillies... Totally non-salty and absolutely delicious, mopped up with some crusty Italian bread, and washed down with a lovely chilled Pinot Grigio!

Plus also what's called Vegetali sott'olio (translated as 'vegetables under oil'), commonly found as part of a good (authentic) Italian antipasto:



...some nice 'oily peppers' in there too, and which taste absolutely gorgeous!

Marco.

[Marco]

not into fat either tbh .. bad feel in mouth for a start.. looked good tho marco..

Cheers, matey. I know, it's a texture thing with fat. In that respect, for me, it's all about rendering it down and making it crispy, just like you do with it on bacon [nothing worse than sloppy, greasy fat], which is why I prefer a good streaky type to most others, as long as it's cooked right!

Any food I eat is all about MAXIMISING FLAVOUR! I don't 'do' bland. Tasty food is the only food worth eating

Marco.

[User211]

Belly pork done right is amazing.

Fact.

[Roy S]

Belly pork done right is amazing.

Fact.

True dat

[User211]

Cheers, Barry. You're right about tinned anchovies [although fresh ones are totally different], but they were used more for seasoning than anything else, and sparingly, just to add a salty hint, which definitely wasn't overpowering, and with the sharpness of the balsamic cutting nicely though the olive oil.

Hard to describe in words, of course, but it worked! Where I find tinned anchovies WAY too overpowering is on pizzas! That's total 'salt city', as when they're heated up, the salt really comes to the fore...

As Tony and you probably know, it's common in the med to have veg or fish marinated or preserved 'under' olive oil, with herbs and spices. A favourite of mine, and back again to anchovies, is a Tuscan classic called Acciughe Marinate, see here: https://www.intavoliamo.it/Info/prod...iughe-marinate



Basically, lovely fresh anchovies soaked/marinated in good quality extra-virgin olive oil, with LOTS of fresh parsley and dried chillies... Totally non-salty and absolutely delicious, mopped up with some crusty Italian bread, and washed down with a lovely chilled Pinot Grigio!

Plus also what's called Vegetali sott'olio (translated as 'vegetables under oil'), commonly found as part of a good (authentic) Italian antipasto:



...some nice 'oily peppers' in there too, and which taste absolutely gorgeous!

Marco.

Waitrose do fresh anchovies in olive oil and herbs etc.

I bought some and threw them away. Just didn't like 'em and there's very few dish I don't like.

I was surprised.

[Marco]

Anchovies are an acquired taste, dude. Do you normally enjoy them in any form? Fresh ones though, need to be super-fresh, so best got from a good deli than a supermarket, or even better make your own.

Things like peppers, artichokes, chillies, olives, etc, in oil are quite different in oil, and as I said often feature in Italian antipastos, plus are enjoyed with meals in many other hot countries abroad

Marco.

[struth]

ghastly things

[Marco]

Lol - I feel exactly the same about black pudding [major heave]

Marco.