Mackerel are coming to the end of their season about now, I was lucking enough to catch a few during the summer off Ardmore Bay but this week will probably see the end of them until next summer. Normally they'd be gone by now but lads were still catching them Monday night off the pier probably due to the extraordinary summer we had. My favourite way to catch them is off my kayak with a simple rig that consists of a light spinning rod & one lure called a German Sprat , I recommend not using any more than one lure while in a kayak , space is limited & if your using a string of 6 feathers & happen to catch a few in the one go you'll probably end up with a hook stuck in yourself, trust me , its very painful. I took a few photos the last time I went out & you can see for yourself, its worth every second . I honestly can't think of a better way to relax. Lets Make The Pate
Ingredients : 200g mackerel
zest & juice of half lemon
100g cream Frisch
Black pepper to season
1tsp horseradish sauce
Method
1: place the mackerel in a oven proof dish, cover & bake @180 degrees for 10 to 15 mins .
2:when cooked place on a chopping board, spilt the fish in two and simply remove the whole bone in one go using your fingers .
3: place all the ingredients in a bowl & mix well using a fork . Simple as that , I choose to serve it on home made brown bread , yummy !!!! This recipe also works very well with smoked mackerel, I might put a smoker on my wish list for Christmas . Hint hint to my wife.
As the saying goes ........ "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime" ....The Happy Fisherman .
870 million people go hungry each year around the world & yet we throw out , globally , 1.3 billion tonnes of food. As organisations like the United Nations , The Environmental Protection Agency & Safe Food here at home battle to reduce our food waste levels , nationally & further afield , lets look at what we can do to help the cause .
Last month the UN published a damming report on food waste. It revealed that as much as one third of the food we produce world wide never makes it from farm to fork & ends up in food waste landfills around the world.
What is this actually costing. Food costs money to produce, if we're wasting food we're also wasting money, almost 600 billion a year according to the UN report, & if we're wasting money we're wasting resources, energy & land, in terms of water alone over half the annual average flow rate of the river Shannon is wasted each year producing food that is never eaten. It also contributes over 3 billion tonnes of greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere & takes up 30% of the world's farmland.
One of the main reasons for this level of unused food is due to the fact that people simply don't understand the difference between the use by date and sell by date . But its really very simple. "A use by date means just that , it must be used by a certain date & should not be consumed after that date. Best before is a bit more flexible, more of a guidance . It's an indication of quality. While the quality of the product may drop after the sell by date it is by no means unsafe to eat & should not be thrown out until its passed its use by date. It all comes down to common sense . Most manufactures leave leeway room in their dates anyway as consumers fridges vary by up to ten degrees, so all dates need a safety margin .
In the case of frozen products , meat in particular, where you might have frozen them close to the use by date , it is very important to put a label on the food to clearly mark how long you have before you have to cook it. Always defrost meat slowly in the fridge so that it doesn't reach a high enough temperature for bugs to grow.When it thawed cook immediately , Never Refreeze.
I grew up on a farm in Ballymacoda , Co Cork where animals were always treated with respect and now as a trainee chef it seems to have come full circle . Rare it in comfort , in natural surroundings , kill it humanly and celebrate the animals life by giving it justice on a plate .
It seems hard to believe that in this so called civilised age a most vicious & cruel spectacle of blood continues to flourish in Spain & certain other countries . Bullfighting is barbaric & should have been banned long ago . Its difficult to understand how crowds of people will pay & take pleasure in watching one lone creature , who has never done them any harm , getting hacked to death . How can anyone with an once of compassion , cheer & chant ole as a banderilla or lance is thrust into the animals pain racked body ?
Behind The Scenes :
The bull is normally not an aggressive animal & the reason he's angry & attempts to charge at the matador whilst in the bullring is mainly because he has been horrendously abused for the previous two days . In fact what spectators see is not a normal healthy bull , but a weakened half blinded & mentally destroyed version of itself . The bull has wet news papers stuffed in his ears , vaseline is rubbed into his eyes to blur his vision , cotton is stuffed up his nostrils to cut off his respiration & a needle is stuck into his genitals . Also a strong caustic solution is rubbed onto his legs which throws him off balance . This also keeps him from lying down on the ground . In addition to this strong laxatives are used to further incapacitate him . He is kept in a dark box for a couple of days before he faces the ring , the purpose of this is to disorient him . When he is let out of the box he runs desperately towards the light at the end of the tunnel . He thinks that at last his suffering is over & he is being set free , instead he runs into the bullring to face his killers & a jeering mob .
The sequence of events begins when the bull faces the picadors , these are men on horse back , who's purpose is to exhaust the bull . They cut into his neck muscles with a pica . This a weapon of about 6 to 8 inches long & 2 inches thick . Once it is thrust into the bull it is twisted around & a large gaping wound appears.The bull then starts bleeding to death .
After the picador has finished his sordid business , the assistant matadors then get to work with the banderillas ( sharp , harpoon like barbed instruments ) . These are plunged into the bulls body & he may also be taunted by capes . Up to six banderillas may be used . When the banderillas strike , the bull stops in his tracks & bellows madly .
The kill should last 6 minutes & is done by the main matador . If he has any difficulties , the others immediately rush in to his aid & finish off the bull . The matador is supposed to sever the artery near the heart with one thrust of his sword , in fact this rarely happens . It oftens takes 2 to 3 minutes before the animal is released by death . By this time the bulls lungs will be punctured & he always vomits blood . Miraculously , he sometimes attempts to rise again only to be further mutilated . He finally gives up , goes to his knees & lies down . Even then he is allowed little dignity , his ears & tail are cut off & his broken , bleeding body is dragged around the ring by mules as the crowds jeer .
The bull isn't the only animal to suffer in the ring , hundreds of horses die agonising deaths as they are gored by the pain crazed bull . Horses have their ears stuffed with wet news paper so they don't get spooked & their vocal cords are cut to keep them silent in case they get hurt so as not to upset the spectators . Theses horses are generally working horses that have come to the end of their careers . Their reward for serving mankind faithfully is to end their days in the bullring .
To say its part of their culture is a weak defence , this argument is also used to defend female circumcision . Once upon a time certain cultures believed in decapitating people in order to please their Gods , but that doesn't happen anymore . To say its part of their culture doesn't make it any more right .
It makes me sad to think that a nation of food lovers could endorse such activities . I for one won't be holidaying in Spain anytime soon .
I had the pleasure of visiting Dingle for a few days lately & I made what can only be described as a monumental discovery . A pint without the hangover . Now this might be a slight exaggeration but not totally . You see Crean's Lager is known as a fresh lager which means it has no artificial preservatives which also means less of a headache in the morning . If the pub hasn't sold the keg within 10 days after receiving it , the brewery replaces it with a fresh one . Happy days , & to make things even better its 100% Irish , using Irish ingredients & brewed in Dingle by the Dingle Brewing Company , but most importantly , its tastes great . There's a taste of more off it as they say . I think it could even replace Heineken in many pubs in Ireland in the near future if the Dingle lads can coupe with the demand . Crean's is already out selling most other beer & larger in many pubs in Dingle & is a big seller in the Kerry region in general . You can get it in some pubs outside Kerry , but not enough for my liking . There is a full list of pubs where its available on their web site www.dinglebrewingcompany.com .
The lager is named after the great Tom Crean . A local man who as a member of the British Navy went on to take part in 3 of the 4 Antartcic Expeditions . It was during the Tera Nova expedition that he undertook the 18 hr 35 mile solo trek to save the life of his two companions . Tom was a modest man & when he retired he came home to Annascaul & ran the " South pole Inn " which still remains a pub to this day , so its only fair we celerbrate his good name in such a manor .
The brewery is open for tours 7 days a week & brewing takes place most days so if your lucky you'll get to see the whole process from start to finish . The finish being able to sit down and enjoy a pint of this magical sauce .
Ingredients :
2lb mushrooms
1 large onion chopped
2 oz butter
1tbsp oil
2 oz flour
3 Cloves of Garlic crushed
800ml Chicken stock
250ml Milk
salt , Pepper & cream to taste
Method :
1 : Melt the butter in a pot & then add the oil & onions then fry them off .
2 : Stir in the chopped mushrooms & crushed garlic
3 : Reduce .
4: Add the flour and cook it off
5 : Add the stock and milk and bring to the boil .
6 : Simmer for 20 mins .
7 : Blitz & serve .
Did you know that mushrooms are full of vitamin B , which help to relieve stress , depression & fatigue & if you forage them yourself then you'll be twice as happy .
This is the perfect time of year to go foraging for mushrooms . The weather at the moment is ideal , warm and damp , perfect for fungi . I went looking this morning in the fields around Ardmore and I wasn't disappointed . I brought my little girl Ella with me and her Nanny , Marie Power led the way . She said for as long as she's living in Ardmore there has been mushrooms growing in this particular field , so off we went , eyes pealed & a bucket in hand .
The pictures below will give you an idea how we got on . In my next post I'll be making Wild Mushroom Soup .
Mackerel are coming to the end of their season about now, I was lucking enough to catch a few during the summer off Ardmore Bay but this week will probably see the end of them until next summer. Normally they'd be gone by now but lads were still catching them Monday night off the pier probably due to the extraordinary summer we had. My favourite way to catch them is off my kayak with a simple rig that consists of a light spinning rod & one lure called a German Sprat , I recommend not using any more than one lure while in a kayak , space is limited & if your using a string of 6 feathers & happen to catch a few in the one go you'll probably end up with a hook stuck in yourself, trust me , its very painful. I took a few photos the last time I went out & you can see for yourself, its worth every second . I honestly can't think of a better way to relax. Lets Make The Pate
3: place all the ingredients in a bowl & mix well using a fork . Simple as that , I choose to serve it on home made brown bread , yummy !!!! This recipe also works very well with smoked mackerel, I might put a smoker on my wish list for Christmas . Hint hint to my wife. 
