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Kassler, sauerkraut and Quark were the order of the day when two chefs at a Surrey pub used German ingredients in our latest challenge. Alison Baker reports
German ingredients were the focus for our two chefs from the Wheatsheaf in Grayswood, Surrey, taking part in this month's battle.
Head chef Chris Bicknell and second chef Adam Robinson were challenged to use a variety of German ingredients to devise dishes.
The ingredients were supplied by sponsor CMA. It promotes German food and drink in the UK.
The challenge
Each chef is given a box of mystery ingredients and challenged to create a main course and dessert in 50 minutes. One item from each box can be rejected, but all others must be incorporated somewhere in the two dishes.
The chefs can also use their own stock cupboard ingredients such as flour, butter, milk and herbs. The German products used in this month's battle are kassler (a type of pork loin), sauerkraut, marzipan and Quark (soft cheese similar to fromage frais), Black Forest ham, sweet mustard, Piesporter wine and cambazola cheese.
Preparing for battle
The two chefs nervously await the competition. Chris has finished a busy Monday lunchtime service, while Adam accepted the challenge on his day off. Adam's brother, Paul, is on hand to offer moral support.
The head and second chefs are friends, but today the gloves are off as their competitive spirit takes hold.
If either of them is confident, they're playing their cards close to their chests as both sit on the fence regarding the battle's likely victor. "I'll sabotage Adam's dishes if necessary," jokes head chef Chris. The chefs draw lots to decide which box of ingredients they will receive.
Chris is first to view his ingredients and doesn't look happy. As Joachim Oertel, director of sponsor CMA, explains how the German products can be used, Chris seems to be racking his brain for inspiration. Glancing at Adam's ingredients, he obviously prefers his opponent's box. "You lucky so and so," he says to a nervous Adam, as he retires to the kitchen for some deliberating. At last it's time to put Adam out of his misery. "This is like going to the dentist," he says, as his ingredients are revealed. Adam visibly relaxes as he surveys his allocation: "I've definitely got the better box," he says.
After 10 minutes planning, Chris rejects the marzipan while Adam gets rid of his red wine. "I'm going to stuff the kassler with the chestnuts, wrap it in bacon and serve with a sauerkraut and potato rosti, and parsley sauce," explains Chris. For dessert, he opts to make a plum tarte Tatin with an orange and Piesporter zabaglione. Adam chooses to serve honey-and-mustard-glazed chicken stuffed with cambazola cheese and Black Forest ham; with a tomato, garlic, basil and olive oil confit. For dessert he decides to make a redcurrant cheesecake using the Quark, served with pan-fried macadamia nuts and cranberries.
Battle commences
50 minutes to go: Chris peels and grates the potatoes for his rosti, while Adam crushes the Amaretti biscuits for the cheesecake base, combining them with melted butter, before putting the mixture into individual moulds and refrigerating them. Chris has not worked with kassler before: a hotsmoked pork loin that can be eaten raw.
45 minutes to go: Adam purées the redcurrants and whisks them with the Quark, double cream and caster sugar before sieving and placing the topping inside the moulds. Again, Quark is an unfamiliar ingredient to the second chef but it seems to be working well in his cheesecake. Chris turns his attention to the unusual potato and sauerkraut rosti. Sauerkraut is a fermented white cabbage with a distinctive sour flavour. Joachim advises him to wash the sauerkraut to remove some of the sourness. Chris mixes the grated potato with the sauerkraut and eggs, seasoning and cornflour.
40 minutes to go: Chris prepares some breadcrumbs for his stuffing and then preps the chestnuts while Adam checks on his cheesecakes. "I might have to put them in the freezer at the end to make sure they've set properly," he says. Both chefs are focused on their respective tasks but find time to keep the banter flowing. "How do you pronounce kassler?" asks Adams. "How do you cook it?" says Chris.
35 minutes to go: Under the watchful eye of owner Ken, Adam chops the tomatoes for his confit and dices the ham, before lightly frying it for the stuffing mix. "I'd have rejected these chestnuts if I'd realised how long they'd take to prep," says Chris. "If you can't stand the heat..." says Adam, "get out of the kitchen," adds Chris.
30 minutes to go: Chris grates the orange zest for his zabaglione while Adam mixes the fried ham with the cambazola cheese for his stuffing. Adam cuts openings into the chicken breasts and fills them with the stuffing before skewering them with cocktail sticks to hold the ingredients in place. Chris roasts the chestnuts and combines them with lemon juice, thyme, onion, garlic and breadcrumbs for his chestnut stuffing. He slices the kassler, and sandwiches the stuffing between two slices, before wrapping bacon around it and holding it in place with cocktail sticks.
25 minutes to go: Adam mixes honey with the German sweet mustard in order to make a glaze for the chicken. "It's a really good, sweet mustard. You only need a small amount," he explains. Chris fries the rostis in individual pans before placing them in the oven. He turns his attention to the plums, chopping them for his tarte Tatin.
20 minutes to go: Adam reclaims his red wine to reduce down and make a sauce for the cheesecake. "You can have your marzipan back if you want," Adam says to Chris. "That's fine - when you're as experienced as I am it doesn't matter," says Chris.
15 minutes to go: Chris arranges the sliced plums in individual pans with butter while Adam reduces down the red wine for his sauce.
10 minutes to go: Adam pan-fries the cranberries and macadamia nuts, then glazes the chicken with honey and sweet mustard. His rival makes the parsley sauce for his main course, then adds the puff pastry to the plums for the tarte Tatins before placing them in the oven.
5 minutes to go: After pan-frying the kassler and finishing it in the oven, Chris slices the meat and arranges it on top of the potato and sauerkraut rostis before adding the parsley sauce. He whisks the zabaglione mixture over the heat, gradually adding a small amount of the Piesporter, before serving. Adam chills his cheesecakes in the freezer and checks they are set.
Time's up: Adam completes his chicken main course in plenty of time and finishes off with the cheesecakes by adding a redcurrant garnish and the pan-fried cranberries. Slightly behind schedule, Chris arranges the stuffed kassler and edges it with the parsley sauce. He removes the plum tarte Tatins from the oven, plates up and adds the zabaglione.
The judges
The judges for this month's battle were Wheatsheaf customers, retired teachers John and Patricia Bayston; CMA (the marketing board for German foods) director Joachim Oertel; and PubChef editor Jo Bruce. Patricia and John live in nearby Haslemere and have been regulars at the Wheatsheaf for the past seven years.
The judges' assessed each dish on taste and presentation, and creative use of ingredients. First out is Chris's stuffed kassler with potato and sauerkraut rosti. Kassler, available from stockists such as Lidl and specialist suppliers, was invented in Berlin when a butcher smoked and salted a loin of pork. The dish scores highly with the judges who are impressed with the innovative use of the sauerkraut, which gives the rosti more bite.
Next, it's Adam's chicken stuffed with Black Forest ham and cambazola. The judges praise the colour and presentation of this main course and say the smoked ham, blue cheese and chicken make an excellent combination. Adam leads by four points but there's still everything to play for as the judges move to the desserts. Chris's plum tarte Tatin with orange and Piesporter zabaglio
