In case you didn’t already know, Father’s Day is this Sunday. Dad deserves to be celebrated and what better way to do that than with food?
They always say that the best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Below we have the perfect recipes to whip up this Sunday to celebrate the man or men in your life.
Portabellini and spring vegetable risotto with poached eggs
Serves: 6
Ingredients
2 tbsp butter
500g portabellini mushrooms, sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
2 shallots, finely diced
2 large leeks, whites, and pale greens only, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
2 cups arborio rice
1 cup or 250ml dry white wine
2 litres of vegetable stock, kept warm on the stove
200g asparagus, cut into 2cm pieces
200g runner beans (or similar), cut into 2cm pieces
2 tbsp sour cream
1 cup finely grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
6 large eggs
¼ cup Italian parsley stalks removed, for serving
Method
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until tender and golden brown. Season. Remove mushrooms with a slotted spoon, and set aside.
Heat oil and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the same pot over medium heat. Add shallots, leeks, and garlic. Cook until vegetables are softened. Add rice and stir to coat and get slightly toasty.
Add wine and reduce until fully absorbed. Add about one ladle of stock. Stir until stock is almost absorbed. Add remaining stock one ladle at a time, stirring almost constantly, allowing it to be absorbed before adding more.
When rice is almost cooked add asparagus and beans and cook until tender. Cook rice until tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is very creamy for about 20 minutes.
Finally add sour cream, Parmesan, and reserved mushrooms to the risotto. Stir well and then cover the pot with a lid. This is where the magic happens and the Parmesan melts and everything gets very saucy and gooey.
A few minutes before the risotto is done:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a bare simmer over medium-low heat. Swirl the water with a slotted spoon to create a vortex. Crack 1 egg into a small teacup, then slide into simmering water.
Cook until whites are fully cooked but yolks remain runny for about 2.5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the poached egg to a plate and repeat with the remaining five.
Check to season and then serve the risotto in warm bowls and top with eggs. Season the eggs well and scatter the dishes with fresh parsley.
Recipe by the South African Mushroom Farmers’ Association.
Beef rendang
Serves: 6
Ingredients
For the spice paste
3 onions, roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic
3 tbsp chopped peeled fresh ginger
5 red chillies, roughly chopped
2 stalks of lemongrass, chopped
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
½ tsp ground cardamom
For the curry
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1.8kg stewing steak
625ml coconut milk
2 tbsp tamarind paste
2 tbsp brown sugar
3 Thai lime leaves
⅓ cup crunchy peanut butter
A handful of coriander leaves, roughly chopped
Rice to serve
Method
Put the spice paste ingredients in a food processor and blitz to form a smooth paste.
Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot and add the spice paste. Cook over a gentle heat for 10 minutes.
Dice the beef into 4cm-5cm pieces and add to the paste, stirring to coat the meat.
Add three-quarters of the coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook over a very gentle heat for 5 hours, stirring occasionally.
Place a wooden spoon across the top of the pot and rest the lid on it so that a little steam can escape.
After 5 hours, stir in the remaining coconut milk, tamarind paste, brown sugar, lime leaves, and peanut butter.
Cook for a further 20 minutes, remove lime leaves, and serve, garnished with coriander, and spoon over cooked rice.
Chocolate martini
Ingredients
1 tsp melted chocolate
50ml Irish cream liqueur
50ml coffee liqueur
1 tbsp chocolate syrup
100ml vodka
A handful of ice
Method
Dip a pastry brush into the melted chocolate and brush up the side of two glasses.
Chill until set. Pour the Irish cream liqueur, coffee liqueur, chocolate syrup, and vodka into a shaker with a handful of ice and shake hard until the outside of the shaker feels very cold.
Strain into the glasses.
Recipes from chefs at Capsicum Culinary Studio.