Christmas Dinner at Hanbury Hall

Hanbury Hall is a charming National Trust house near Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire. This December the dining room table has been laid for Christmas Dinner as it might have been in the late Georgian period (1750-1800).

Bombay Duck

Bombay Duck is not, of course, a bird, but a dried and salted fish from India. The fish are trimmed and filleted, brined, and hung up on racks on the beach to dry in the sun. It has a pungent smell and is an acquired taste, but has a following among the affectionardos of Indian food.

Bombay Duck is usually prepared by frying or heating in the oven, and can be eaten as a side dish or crumbled over curries. It can also be cooked with other ingredients as a starter dish to an Indian meal.

Bombay Duck was banned by the European Commission in 1997 on public health grounds, because of the way in which it is produced. Thankfully, commonsense prevailed and this restiction was lifted in 2003 on condition that the product was packed in an EC approved facility, and one has been approved in Mumbai.  However, it has been slow to return to restaurants in the UK and is often difficult to find.

We are fortunate that the excellent Balti Bar restaurant in Cleobury Mortimer has it on the menu at a very reasonable £1.50 (as does its partner restaurant, the Spice Empire). I recommend that you try it, as I did last night.

Tournedos Rossini

A lovely lunch yesterday at the Peacock Inn, Boraston, nr Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire. It was the first day of their special Christmas menu, and I had a Tournedos Rossini. This is one of my favourite dishes, not seen much on restaurant menus these days, so it was a much-anticipated meal. And it was fantastic - fillet of Herefordshire beef, with fresh foie gras and a black truffle Perigueux sauce, served with turned potatoes. It looked pretty as a picture and tasted superb with a nice glass of French cabernet sauvignon wine. Jean the chef is French and knows how to cook and present this dish to perfection. The foie gras was set on a crouton that sat on top of the steak, which was handy for savouring the individual elements of the dish, and there was a very generous serving of beautifully thinly sliced fresh black truffle.

Other Christmas menu choices include traditional roast turkey with a prune stuffing, grilled noisette of halibut with a creamy sorrel sauce, and vegetarian chestnut and wild mushroom gnocchi. The cost for four courses and coffee is £24.95, with a supplement of £7.50 for the Tournedos Rossini - this is excellent value for money and I will be returning for more before the truffles run out.

Yesterday evening we went to a special event at the Ludlow Food Centre, organised by Strutt and Parker. There were interesting wines to try from John Villar Wines Ltd, including a delicious Dinastina Vivanco Cranza Roija, and a St Hallett Shiraz/Granacche 2009 from Australia which was rich and dense. The high-point was St Hallett Old Block Shiraz 2006, complex with nice tannins and damson, ripe plum and cherry tones.  Lots of nice food to sample in the store and I came home with some lovely pork terrine, fresh corned beef, Shropshire cheeses, and a pot of delicate little cornchons.

Snowy Weather

There are heavy snowfalls across England at the moment. Cold weather always makes me think about hearty, warming food. As I look out of my office window across the glistening white landscape, I am thinking about tonight's dinner. There are Ryeland sheep in the field and they have inspired me to have lambs liver and bacon, with mashed potatoes. Just thinking about it makes me feel warmer!