Winning ways
Leading pub chefs share recipes and ideas to liven up your menu
Roast partridge, smoked Old Spot bacon, potato, leek and mushrooms
Our newly-crowned Pub Chef of the Year 2007 and game category winner Mark Levy, head chef at the Russell in Ellesborough, near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, shares his winning game recipe.
Cost per portion: approx 79pMenu price: £14.95GP: 70%Makes: four
Four grey or red-legged partridgeEight rashers of streaky Gloucester Old Spot bacon1tbs thyme leavesThree large waxy potatoesTwo bunches of baby leeks150g black trumpet mushroomsHalf a bunch of chives300ml double cream100g grated Lancashire cheese100ml Port150ml brandy500ml game stock250g butter
Method
Clean the partridges and season the cavities. Wrap each bird with two rashers of bacon and truss. Seal the partridges in an oven-proof pan with oil and butter for approximately six minutes. Once the birds are nicely coloured, cover and oven-cook for 10-15 minutes at 190°C.
Peel the potatoes and dice them into 1cm cubes, blanch them until half-cooked and then refresh them. Trim the leeks and cut them into 5cm lengths. Blanch them for three minutes, then refresh and drain well.
Remove birds from the oven, cover them with foil, and leave them to rest on a cooling rack breast-side down. Begin to de-glaze the pan with the brandy, then the port. Add the game stock and reduce on fast boil.
Place the potatoes, some cream and a ladleful of stock in a pan. Simmer until a risotto consistency is achieved, stirring regularly. Finish the potatoes with the grated Lancashire cheese and finely-chopped chives. Season, set aside and keep warm.
Glaze the baby leeks in a little butter, adding the thin strips of mushroom toward the end. Keep them warm on one side. Finish the sauce with a little butter and pass it through a fine sieve.
To complete the dish, remove the legs from the birds and trim the crown. Flash in a hot oven. Place a good tablespoon of potato "risotto" at the bottom of the plate, sit the partridge on top of the potatoes and garnish with crispy bacon. Arrange the leeks and mushrooms at the top of the plate.
Finally, drizzle the sauce over the bird, making sure that some of it reaches the plate.
The rösti with the mösti
Andrew Pern, chef/proprietor of the Star Inn in Harome, North Yorkshire, shares his recipe for fried egg rösti with bacon, mushrooms and ale chutneyCost per portion: £1.88Makes: 10
Ingredients1kg grated potatoes10 eggs10 rashers streaky bacon750g mixed wild mushrooms200g chutney50g diced onionA little oil or clarified butter for frying
MethodPut whole peeled potatoes into a large pan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and cook for 10-15 minutes until tender. Drain well, cool slightly and grate coarsely into a large bowl.
Heat 2tbs of butter in a frying pan, add the onions and bacon and cook for five to six minutes until onions are softened. Tip mixture into bowl of potato, add salt and pepper and mix well. Heat half remaining butter in the pan, add the potato mixture and press down slightly to form a large pancake. Cook for 10 minutes, adding a little extra butter around the edges and shaking the pan occasionally.
Carefully cover the pan with a plate and flip. Add more butter, then slide the rösti back in to cook other side. Add butter around the edge and cook until golden. Remove from the heat and keep warm. Heat the remaining butter in a frying pan. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for three to five minutes until tender but still firm. Season with salt and pepper and stir in chopped parsley.
Grill the bacon and fry the eggs. Place the rösti onto a warm plate, spoon the mushrooms over them, place the egg on top, garnish with bacon and a little herb and serve immediately with the chutney.
You can also divide the rösti mixture into four before cooking to serve as a small starter - or vary the topping according to taste, and garnish with a few peppery salad leaves.
For more potato recipe ideas and advice on varieties, visit www.potatoesforcaterers.co.uk.
Burger king
Tony Robson-Burrell, chef/owner of the Wheatsheaf in Oaksey, Wiltshire, recently won the catering category in the English Beef And Lamb Executive's competition to find England's best beefburger.
He shares his recipe:
Cost per portion: 60p
Menu price: £8.95
GP: 93%
Makes: 10
1kg British Shorthorn Rump Mince
1/2 an onion
Three egg yolks
1tbs Dijon mustard
1tsp paprika
Salt and black pepper
Sweat down the finely diced onions and garlic and allow to cool. Once cold, add to mince and then add to mustard and mix together. Next add the paprika, seasoning and egg yolks and bind the ingredients together.
Divide the ingredients in to sections and place in moulds.
Place the moulds in the refrigerator for approximately four hours to allow the mix to set down.
Cook burgers according to the customer's preference - one minute on each side for rare, two for medium rare and so on.
In season in February
Turnip
Menu ideas:
l Try cooking them whole and roasted, pan-fried or baked as an accompaniment to roast lamb.
l Duck breast with turnip gratin and
pak choi.
Scallops
Menu ideas:
l King prawn and scallop omelette
l Haddock and scallop curry
Pears
Menu ideas:
l The less juicy nature of cooking pears makes them ideal for poaching in syrup
l They can also be baked whole or in pies, without making the pastry soggy
l Pears poached in cinnamon perry served with vanilla-pod ice cream
