its a day for a nice big stew

Andrew Everard:

Ah right - no, I'm not involved in that. But I fear we are going way off topic here...

Shame. Back to to Max's recipes.

chebby:

plastic penguin:

When you seal off the meat, add a few rashers of bacon (either chopped or whole), or a good quality sausage, like a Lincolnshire, finely chopped. Either bacon or sausage will give extra flavour and depth to the stew. Also add the zest and juice of one lemon and one small orange, this will give a sweet and sour edge to it.

You were going well until you started chucking citrus fruit in it.

Yeah, getting all Heston Carter Blumenthal there.

drummerman:

Shame. Back to to Max's recipes.

Not of course that there is a recipe any more.

plastic penguin:

A quick suggestion for Maxflinn stew:

When you seal off the meat, add a few rashers of bacon (either chopped or whole), or a good quality sausage, like a Lincolnshire, finely chopped. Either bacon or sausage will give extra flavour and depth to the stew. Also add the zest and juice of one lemon and one small orange, this will give a sweet and sour edge to it.

id forgot to add turnip btw, as johnny mentioned. but sausages, rashers, and oranges and lemons..

maxflinn:

trust me pp i dont need tips on how to make an irish stew.. it smells beautiful cooking away here

Ooh get you.

maxflinn:

sausages, rashers, and oranges and lemons..

plastic penguin:

johnnyjazz:

Sounds good max, you go ahead and add the salt and pepper. I had stew on friday, i like a lot of turnip as well, by the time the potatoes and turnip have been added it takes the salt out of it. If you do a physical job and sweat then you release a lot of salt, don,t let any of these big bottomed, sitting on a chair all day supposedly do-gooders tell you how to make a pot of stew . I bet their grannies added a lot more to their stew and didn,t do them any harm.

Body salts are replenished by drinking lots of water.

Other ways of enhancing the flavour of any meal: Add root ginger, fresh herbs (Rosemary, Parlsey, Oregano etc etc), and add a mild chilli for a peppery taste.

Body salts are replenished by ingesting...salt. Drinking too much plain water aggravates the problem by reducing the salt content further in the muscle by osmitic pressure, causing cramp, so if you are exercising at  a level where you are getting a crusty forehead, you need to start replenishing salts - 'expensive' sports drinks contain it (though a more sensible balance with potassium chloride which is what the muscle cells require in order to function). Also, bananas have a fairly high concentration of KCl which is why endurance athletes liike them. Max's banana( stew anyone?

maxflinn:

plastic penguin:

A quick suggestion for Maxflinn stew:

When you seal off the meat, add a few rashers of bacon (either chopped or whole), or a good quality sausage, like a Lincolnshire, finely chopped. Either bacon or sausage will give extra flavour and depth to the stew. Also add the zest and juice of one lemon and one small orange, this will give a sweet and sour edge to it.

trust me pp i dont need tips on how to make an irish stew.. it smells beautiful cooking away here

id forgot to add turnip btw, as johnny mentioned. but sausages, rashers, and oranges and lemons..

Never said you did... an alternative take, and adding the bacon/sausages & lemon and orange gives it a mediterranean feel to it, and gives some natural sweetness and bite to it...

the_lhc:

maxflinn:

sausages, rashers, and oranges and lemons..

I've never heard that version of the Bells of St. Clements before...

edit.. thats not a xmas carol is it.. sounds xmassy though

plastic penguin:

an alternative take, and adding the bacon/sausages & lemon and orange gives it a mediterranean feel to it,

Nope, not an Irish stew, just something a little different.

Tonight I'm cooking mixed mushroom risotto (made with Arborio rice not micro wave rubbish), homemade flat bread and a nicely dressed salad.

plastic penguin:

Tonight I'm cooking mixed mushroom risotto (made with Arborio rice not micro wave rubbish)

I have been out window licking today earning my pennys in this lovely weather so max i think your stew with or without salt sounds bloody good to me

grifz:

I have been out window licking today

grifz:

I have been out window licking today earning my pennys in this lovely weather so max i think your stew with or without salt sounds bloody good to me