Meatballs!

Not the most adventurous home-cooked meal but I'm on a tight budget this week...

It's obviously pretty straightforward, but everyone's recipe differs. Mine differs every time I make it, depending on what I have in the kitchen!

Tomato Pasta Sauce
Sliced Onion
Garlic
Ripe Tomatoes
Tinned Tomatoes
Tomato Paste
Capsicum (Roasted and peeled, if you can be bothered)
Mixed Herbs (Today I used Basil, Parsley and Thyme)
Salt & Pepper
Tabasco
Worcestershire Sauce

Sweat the onions, then add everything else and simmer... Sometimes I puree it, sometimes I leave it pretty rustic.

Sauce, pureed.

Meat, balled.

Meatballs
1kg Beef Mince
500g Pork Mince
Diced Onion
Chopped Chilli
Chopped Garlic
Chopped Parsley
Salt & Pepper

Sweat the onion, chilli and garlic slowly, then allow to cool before mixing into the meat and rest for half an hour. Shape into balls, about 50g/the size of a ping-pong ball. Seal the balls in hot oil, then pour over the tomato sauce and simmer gently for... a while.

Ideally, serve on top of spaghetti or linguini, garnish with finely chopped parsley and grated parmesan. Eat.

This batch wasn't bad, not fantastic. I like having capsicum in the sauce too, not really traditional (I don't think), but it adds a bit of extra depth.

Argentina = Steak!

I don't think I've ever had such brilliant steak as I did in Argentina. My first long-awaited sample was in Salta, where I chose Bife de Chorizo (taken from the fattest part of the Bife Angosto - nothing to do with the spicy Spanish sausage!), which was covered with sweet semi-dried tomatoes and melted mozzarella, as well as sharing a fantastic bottle of local Malbec. Or three. Absolutely divine, served with perfect chips - crispy on the outside and soft like mash on the inside.

Later in Argentina, specifically Mendoza, I toured the vineyards by bicycle, rented from the slightly eccentric but absolutely legendary Mr Hugo. Mendoza is the home of the Malbec grape, and the free tastings at the dozens of cellar doors here were excellent; I think to this day Malbec is probably my favourite red wine. Our first stop was probably the best, at the Bodega Familia di Tommaso, where we had a tour of the buildings courtesy of a stunning Argentinian, followed by fabulous tastings and while I didn't eat there, the food is supposed to be incredible too.

 Stunning views across the vineyard to the Andes

Weeks later, in Buenos Aires, I twice visited La Cabrera, an amazing Argentinian Parilla (Steak House) in the Palermo Viejo district. The steak is simply the best I have ever had. And they're insanely huge. Perfectly cooked. Comes with a heap of small side dishes, included in the very reasonable price. If you're ever in Buenos Aires, you'd be a fool not to pay La Cabrera a visit. Unless you're vegetarian. Then probably just don't go to Argentina.

These two photos, courtesy of La Cabrera - More tasty photos here!

 

Some seriously good steak.

Yes, I ate this all to myself.

Huanchaco, Peru: BBQ, Cabrito, Chocolate Bananas and Beef Heart!

On the way to some Incan ruins in Huanchaco, Northern Peru, we stopped at a typical restaurant serving the local specialities. I opted for Cabrito a la norteña (Northern-Style Baby Goat), which had been slowly braised and was beautifully tender.

Another speciality of the region was Pato (Wild Duck), which was also good, but nothing new - seared duck breast served with a typical spicy pickled salad and rice.
                      

Cabrito a la Norteña 
Image Courtesy of Buen Provecho

That evening, back poolside at the hostel, we had a huge BBQ in honour of Lia's 25th Birthday. Sylvana, our Peruvian guide, made Beef Heart kebabs, which had been marinated in chilli, garlic and cumin. They were awesome, and surprisingly tender but few people would even try it - all the more for me! I also barbecued corn on the cob, sweet chilli chicken thighs, garlic prawns (not garlicky enough!), beef ribs, and "fish en papillote". The sweet chilli sauce/marinade I made myself, simply by dicing fresh chilli and simmering in a sugar syrup until sticky. So simple yet so good. The Ribs I just seasoned with salt and pepper, while the fish I steamed in a foil papillote with a splash of white wine, plenty of lime juice, fresh sliced chilli, some ginger and garlic. No idea what fish it was but it turned out pretty fantastically.

Everyone seemed happy enough although when I made chocolate stuffed bananas on the remaining embers, everyone was delighted - I was amazed at the amount of people that had never tried it before. Simply make a long incision halfway through an unpeeled banana, stuff as much chocolate as you can in there, and wrap tightly in foil. Throw it onto the cooling BBQ (or in a warm oven) until the flesh is soft and the chocolate melted.

 Image courtesy of On Food and Wine

As well as the masses of food, we were also drinking well - Sylvana making delicious Pisco Sours. Pisco is a distilled wine from the region, and is blended with lime juice, sugar syrup, egg whites, and ice for a delicious cocktail, similar in a way to Caipirinha. If you can get hold of Pisco, it's definitely worth trying - put three shots pisco, two shots lime juice, one shot sugar syrup, and one egg white in a blender with plenty of ice and blitz until frothy. Good Stuff. 

Image Courtesy of theworldwidegourmet.com

South America

It's been a while since I travelled South America, but I still clearly remember some of the fantastic foods I tried there.

My first stop was Ecuador, where Cuy (Guinea Pig) is a delicacy. Me being me, I tried it on my first day in a frankly dingy-looking restaurant in central Quito. As a starter, I had Caldo de Pata, which I knew from my very limited Spanish was some kind of soup. It turned out to be a creamy broth containing boiled cow hooves, lots of soft herbs and quinoa; it was surprisingly delicious, and extremely filling. Apparently, Ecuadorian men believe it to increase virility, I can't say I noticed any difference though!

Caldo de Pata

Image courtesy of Street Gourmet LA

My main course, the guinea pig, was much more disappointing. It had been breaded and deep fried, and it was barely distinguishable from a KFC. In taste, it was fairly close to rabbit, only much fattier. I can't go into much more detail because there really isn't anything else to say. It wasn't offensive, but it was a long way from being good. Fortunately, I blamed the method of cooking and the quality of restaurant, and tried guinea pig a few times across Ecuador, and it did improve elsewhere.


A few days later, still in Quito, I tried another Ecuadorean speciality, Ceviche. I love ceviche, I'd had it a couple of times in England, and this first time trying it in it's native country I opted for the Ceviche de Concha (black clams). I wasn't really a fan of the clams, however, as they were very inky, but the ceviche I had elsewhere in Ecuador and Peru was always fantastic (only I didn't order the Concha again!).

Prawn Ceviche

Image courtesy of Picasa Web

Ecuadorean ceviche is different from the (slightly inferior) Peruvian edition in that it is more like a soup. In both cases, the fish is served in lime juice with heaps of chilli, shallot and chopped coriander, but in Ecuador it is traditiionally in a thin gazpacho-type tomato broth, which adds that extra bit of colour and flavour to the dish.

After my ceviche, I had the most tender beef tongue you can possibly imagine; it was divine, seared and served slightly pink with a simple parsley cream sauce and rice.