Angela Day
This Father’s Day let dad enjoy a tipple and some tasty dishes with an alcoholic theme. On the menu:
STARTER
Spicy cider mussels
Easy beer bread
MAIN
Sticky beer ribs
Beer-battered onion rings
Warm potato salad
DESSERT
Chocolate stout brownies
DRINK
Manmosa
SPICY CIDER MUSSELS
Serves 4
30ml olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
15ml chopped garlic
15ml chopped ginger
5-10ml red curry paste
60ml mirin (sweet rice wine)
400g tin of coconut milk
30ml soy sauce
45ml fish sauce
1 stalk of lemongrass, bruised
45ml lime juice
125ml chopped coriander
60ml chopped basil
375ml cider
1kg fresh mussels, cleaned
Heat the oil and gently fry the onion, garlic and ginger until soft.
Add the curry paste and fry for a few seconds until fragrant.
Add the mirin, coconut milk, soy sauce, fish sauce and lemongrass. Simmer for about 5 minutes.
Remove the lemongrass and discard.
Stir in the lime juice and herbs.
In a separate pot, add the cider and bring to the boil. Add the mussels, cover and cook until all the mussels are opened.
Scoop the mussels into the curry sauce along with about 60ml of the cooking liquid. Toss well to combine.
Divide the mussels and sauce into serving plates and serve with beer bread and chips if desired.
EASY BEER BREAD
Makes 1 large or 4 small
500g self-raising flour
10ml baking powder
5ml salt
375ml grated mature cheddar cheese
1 bunch of spring onions, finely chopped
60ml chopped parsley
1 large can of beer
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cheddar cheese, spring onions and parsley in a bowl.
Add the beer to make a thick batter.
Spoon the batter into well-greased loaf pans.
Bake at 180°C for 25-30 minutes, depending on the size, or until a skewer inserted into the loaf comes out clean.
STICKY BEER RIBS
Serves 4
1kg pork spare ribs
1 large can of beer
GLAZE
60ml apricot jam
60ml sweet chilli sauce
60ml tomato sauce
15ml lemon juice
Place the spare ribs in a roasting pan. Pour over the beer. Cover with foil and roast at 180°C for an hour.
Remove the foil and baste with the glaze. Return to oven and roast. Glaze the ribs constantly for another hour until cooked through and well glazed.
GLAZE: Combine all the ingredients in a pot and bring to the boil.
Simmer for about 5 minutes until thickened.
Remove from the heat and use to glaze the ribs.
BEER-BATTERED ONION RINGS
Serves 4-6
250ml flour
5ml salt
2ml cayenne pepper
180ml buttermilk
200ml beer
1 large egg
5ml grated lemon zest
oil, for frying
2 large white onions, cut crosswise into 8mm thick slices, separated into rings
extra flour, for dredging
sea salt
Combine flour, salt and cayenne in a bowl.
Whisk together the buttermilk, beer and egg and add to the flour.
Whisk well to make sure mixture is not lumpy. Stir in the lemon zest. Allow to stand for 20 minutes.
Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer to 180°C.
Coat the onion rings, a few at a time, in flour and then dip in the batter.
Gently drop into the hot oil and cook, turning once, until golden brown.
Transfer rings to paper towel and season with salt. Repeat with remaining onion rings and batter.
WARM POTATO SALAD
Serves 4
5 medium potatoes, peeled and cut in cubes
2 mealies, kernels cut off the cob
1 red onion, cut into wedges
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
45ml olive oil
60ml cider
salt and pepper
60ml chopped parsley
crispy bacon, for serving
DRESSING
125ml good-quality mayonnaise
60ml sour cream
10ml creamed horseradish
juice and grated rind from1 lemon
45ml chopped fresh dill
125ml grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Place the potato cubes, mealie kernels, onion and garlic cloves on an oven tray.
Drizzle with the olive oil and pour over cider, and season with salt and pepper. Mix well.
Roast for 30-40 minutes, stirring halfway, until potatoes are golden and tender.
Place in a serving dish and pour the dressing over the warm potatoes. Stir in the parsley and serve sprinkled with a mound of bacon.
DRESSING: Whisk all the ingredients together.
CHOCOLATE STOUT BROWNIES
375ml milk stout
200g dark chocolate
180g butter
250ml castor sugar
5ml vanilla extract
3 eggs
250ml flour
50g pecan nuts, chopped
ICING
100g dark chocolate
30g butter
65ml reduced stout
Put the stout in a small pot and simmer over a medium heat until reduced to 180ml.
Place 125ml of the reduced mixture intoa larger pot. Add the chocolate, butter and castor sugar. Heat over a low heat, stirring, until the mixture is smooth.
Stir in the vanilla.
Remove from the heat and add the eggs one ata time, mixing well after each addition.
Carefully mix in the flour. Fold in the nuts.
Pour the mixture into a greased and lined 18 x 26cm pan and bake at 180°C for 20-25 minutes until just set.
Remove and cool in the pan.
ICING: Combine the ingredients in a glass bowl and microwave on medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Mix until smooth.
Allow the mixture to cool and thicken slightly. Pour over cooled brownies and place in the fridge to set.
Remove from the tin and cut into squares to serve.
MANMOSA
Serves 2
375ml can of pilsner beer
500ml fresh orange juice
1-2 tots of triple sec liqueur
Divide the beer between two tall glasses.
Top up with orange juice and add a tot of triple sec to each.
Serve immediately.
* The Angela Day cookery column is published in The Star, the Cape Argus, the Daily News and the Pretoria News.