Ian Parmenter Cookbook (working Title)

By Ian Parmenter

Ian Parmenter's love of food is infectious. In All-Consuming Passions he gathers together his favourite recipes, collected from around the world, from watching the great chefs and from cooking for the people he loves.
Bon vivant and ABC tV personality, the gregarious Ian Parmenter takes a delight in good food and wine - in cooking the former and making the latter, as well as in eating and drinking both - so it's no wonder his long-running television series was titled Consuming Passions. In this new cookbook, Parmenter brings together 235 of his favourite recipes, including entrees, mains and desserts, which rely on his trademarks of simplicity and fresh ingredients. He shares his kitchen tips, dispenses sensible advice on food preparation and storage, and of course he provides some of his 'most requested' - like his recipe for Ego Noodles, a favourite dish of his friend and colleague, Poh Ling Yeow.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Australia
• Release date: May 1, 2012
• ISBN: 9780730496946

Ian Parmenter

Ian started Consuming Passions in 1992, his first on-camera appearance. He completed 10 series - 450 shows - which screened in Australia and several other countries, including the UK, Singapore and Ireland. He has produced 11 recipe collections and three 'serious' books, Cooking with Passion and Consuming Passions (ABC Books) and Sheer Bottled Bliss: A Margaret River Memoir (HarperCollins), which won an Australian Award for Literary Excellence in 2004.

Book preview

SOUPS AND STOCKS

ASIAN STOCK

This great all-purpose stock made with chicken carcasses and necks keeps well in the freezer.

Makes about 1L

2kg chicken bits (carcasses and necks)

1 small knob of ginger, peeled and cut into large chunks

2 tablespoons dried Chinese mushrooms (or pieces)

1 large onion, roughly chopped

1 leek, roughly chopped

2 or 3 cloves garlic, crushed or minced

1 star anise

2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 dried bay leaves

2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander stalks and roots (optional)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 or 3 strips of mandarin (or orange) zest

In a large saucepan, combine 3 or 4L water with all the stock ingredients. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes or so. (If cooked too long, the stock may become bitter.)

Skim off any fat that appears on the surface. Strain into a large, wide bowl. Alternatively, you could refrigerate the stock overnight and, the next day, scrape off the solidified fat.

Return liquid to saucepan and cook until mixture reduces to about 1L. Adjust seasoning.

BEETROOT BONANZA

This is my take on the classic soup, borscht.

Serves 6 to 8

1kg oxtail, cut into pieces

1 tablespoon butter or oil

2 medium onions, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

2 medium parsnips, chopped

1kg beetroot, peeled or scrubbed with steel wool, washed and chopped into small pieces

1 or 2 teaspoons wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

½ medium cabbage, outer leaves removed

2 dried bay leaves

1 small bunch fresh dill

1 small bunch fresh parsley

100ml sour cream

Make stock by placing the oxtail pieces in a large pot or saucepan, cover with water, and bring to the boil. Skim off any fat that comes to the surface, reduce heat to low and simmer oxtail for at least an hour and a half. Use paper towel to remove any more fat from the surface. Strain, reserving liquid, meat and bones.

In same saucepan, heat butter or oil on medium heat, and sauté onion, carrot and parsnip for 4 or 5 minutes. Add beetroot and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Finally, return the reserved oxtail stock to the saucepan, add vinegar, sugar and cabbage. Tie the bay leaves, dill and parsley together with kitchen string and add to the saucepan. Simmer for 40–45 minutes. If you require a smoother texture, purée the soup using a blender or food processor.

Just before serving, remove the meat from the oxtail bones and add to the soup. Remove the bay leaves, parsley and dill. Top soup with a dollop of sour cream and chopped dill.

CHICKEN AND SILVERBEET SOUP

More than just a soup, this is one of those simple and quickly prepared dishes that makes a perfect lunch.

Serves 4

1.5L good-quality chicken stock (preferably salt-reduced)

1 tablespoon kecap manis (sweet Indonesian soy sauce)

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 cups finely shredded silverbeet leaves

100g Asian-style thin wheat noodles

1 chicken breast fillet, finely sliced

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander leaves

2 tablespoons deep-fried shallots (optional)

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

In a large saucepan on medium heat, bring stock to the boil. Add kecap manis, sesame oil and silverbeet leaves. Cook for 3 minutes.

Add noodles and cook for a further 3 minutes. Add chicken and cook on low heat for just a minute.

Serve in individual bowls topped with coriander, deep-fried shallots (if using) and black pepper.

PORK DIM SUM

This is a recipe for little parcels of pork, vegetables and spices steamed over chicken stock and then served in it.

Serves 6

300g minced pork

½ cup grated carrot

½ cup grated Chinese cabbage

1 tablespoon finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

½ teaspoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh coriander leaves

pepper, to taste

2 egg whites

24 wonton wrappers

1L chicken stock

1 spring onion, chopped

1 capsicum, finely sliced

In a large bowl combine the pork, carrot, cabbage, onion, garlic, oil and coriander. Season with pepper.

In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold two-thirds of the egg white into the meat mixture, reserving the remaining egg white for sealing the parcels.

Spread out 12 wonton wrappers on a clean, flat surface, floured work bench or tea towel. Brush each one lightly with egg white. Put a teaspoon of the meat mixture in centre of each wonton. Bring up sides and squeeze together to seal into little parcels. Repeat with remaining wonton wrappers and meat mixture.

In a large saucepan or pot, bring chicken stock to the boil.

Place cabbage leaf or piece of baking paper in the base of a steamer. Place a few wontons at a time in steamer and steam for 15 minutes over the chicken stock. Make sure they’re not touching.

Serve dim sum in chicken stock, garnished with spring onion and capsicum.

FISH STOCK

This is the only recipe which has ever made my partner Ann leave home. The problem was that I was making it on a hot summer’s night and the vent from the stove was under the bedroom windows … I suggest making it in the cool of the day, or outdoors!

Makes about 600ml, reduced

1 onion, chopped

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 dried bay leaves

about 10 peppercorns

2 or 3 parsley sprigs

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2kg fish bones, heads, and seafood shells

In a large saucepan on medium heat, cook onion in the oil until softened. Add remaining ingredients and cover with water.

Cook on low heat, uncovered, for approximately 15 minutes — cooking for more than 20 minutes will extract a bitter flavour from the bones and render the stock unpalatable.

Strain, reserving liquid and discarding solids. Return the liquid to the pan and cook on low heat until stock is reduced to about a third of the original quantity.

GAZPACHO

A cool recipe for when it’s HOT!

Serves 4

2 or 3 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped

2 tablespoons finely chopped Spanish (red) onion

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

1 medium capsicum, seeded and chopped

½ teaspoon crushed garlic

1L tomato juice or vegetable stock

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 or 3 slices good-quality Italian bread, such as ciabatta, chopped into small cubes

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

pinch salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 hard-boiled egg, chopped into quarters (optional)

4 fresh basil leaves, to garnish

In a large bowl, thoroughly combine all ingredients except egg and basil. Mix well and refrigerate an hour or so.

To serve, place equal portions of the gazpacho in chilled soup bowls. Add egg (if using) and basil as garnish.

ONION SOUP

The best version of this soup I ever made was with Tasmanian onions, grown slowly in the volcanic soils in the north of the island. Based on the traditional French onion soup, this delight makes the perfect winter lunch. The original version would have used butter, but Australians watching their intake of saturated fats might prefer to use margarine.

Serves 6

1kg onions, thinly sliced

50g margarine or butter

1 teaspoon sugar

200ml red wine

1L stock (veal, chicken or vegetable)

¼ teaspoon pepper

French bread, such as baguette

2 teaspoons margarine or butter, extra

250g soft-ripened cheese (such as brie or camembert), rind left on, cut into bite-sized pieces

In a large saucepan on low heat, cook onion with margarine (or butter) and sugar for a few minutes until onion starts to brown. Stir in wine. Cook for a further 10 minutes. Add stock and pepper and simmer on low heat for 45 minutes.

Before serving, cut slices of French bread, spread with margarine (or butter) and put in a hot (220°C) oven or under a grill for 2 or 3 minutes to brown.

To serve, put a couple of pieces of toasted bread into each individual serving bowl, pour over soup, top with soft-ripened cheese.

Put individual bowls under grill to brown the cheese. (Make sure the bowls are ovenproof!).

ORIENTAL DUCK SOUP

Duck has a very poor meat-to-everything-else ratio, meaning that you need quite a big bird to feed a small number of people. The up-side is that there are plenty of leftover bits to make stock and soup. The basic stock I begin with serves for a number of Asian-style dishes and is best made the day before it’s needed.

Serves 4

STOCK

1 duck carcass and leftover meat (approximately 1kg total)

1L chicken stock

2 tablespoons soy sauce (light or kecap manis)

2 tablespoons mirin

1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

1 stick cinnamon

1 whole star anise

1 teaspoon Sichuan pepper

SOUP

3 or 4 spring onions, finely sliced

1 tablespoon Thai-style sweet chilli sauce

5cm piece peeled ginger, cut lengthways into very thin strips

1 cup bean sprouts

2 cups cooked noodles (such as hokkien)

100g canned button mushrooms, drained

To make the stock, chop the carcass into 5 or 6 pieces. Put in a large pot or saucepan with remaining stock ingredients. Add enough water to cover ingredients. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer gently for around 45 minutes.

Drain, reserve stock and discard all solids except for duck carcass. Shred and reserve any meat left on the carcass. Discard the bones. Heat stock on medium heat for 15 minutes until it reduces. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Refrigerate stock overnight. When cold, skim off fat and the stock is ready for use.

To make the soup, bring stock to the boil. Reduce heat and stir in spring onions, chilli sauce, ginger, bean sprouts, noodles, mushrooms and duck meat. Cook until warmed through. Season to taste and serve.

SPICY PARSNIP SOUP

Inspired by my mother, this is a delicious and inexpensive soup when parsnips are in season.

Serves 6

4 or 5 medium parsnips, diced

2 tablespoons chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

80g butter

3 heaped teaspoons curry powder

30g plain flour

1.5L chicken or vegetable stock, warmed

200g bacon, cubed (optional)

3 slices stale bread, cut into 3cm cubes

1 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves or chopped parsley

120ml cream

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a saucepan on medium heat, sweat the parsnips, onion and garlic in butter for 10 minutes. Add curry powder and stir for 1 minute. Add flour and cook for 3 minutes,