Tom Kerridge's Proper Pub Food (13 page)

For the hot-water crust pastry

For the piccalilli

At least 24 hours in advance, start the piccalilli. Mix the French beans, shallots, onions, cauliflower, cucumber and sea salt together in a large non-metallic bowl. Cover the
bowl with clingfilm and leave to stand at room temperature for 24 hours.

Meanwhile, put the white wine vinegar, malt vinegar and chilli flakes in a saucepan over a high heat and bring to the boil. Remove the pan from the heat and leave mix on one side
to cool.

After the vegetables have stood for 24 hours, rinse them well to remove the salt, then return them to the washed bowl. Combine the caster sugar, mustard powder, turmeric and
cornflour in a bowl. Stir in a little of the vinegar mixture until smooth, then add this thin paste to the remaining vinegar mixture in the pan. Bring to just below the boil, stirring, until it
thickens slightly. Pour it over the vegetables and blend together well. Leave to one side to cool completely.

To make the hot-water crust pastry, mix the flour and salt together in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Melt the butter and lard with the water in a saucepan over a
medium heat. Pour this melted fat and the eggs into the well and mix with a wooden spoon to form a dough. Use your hand to knead the dough around the bowl until it is smooth and silky. Cover the
bowl with clingfilm and leave the dough to rest for 1 hour, or until the dough becomes elastic and easy to work.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Mix the pork shoulder, bacon, pork belly, sage and thyme leaves, cayenne, mace, the black and white peppers and the salt together in a large bowl.
Leave to one side until needed.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4. Generously grease a deep 25cm springform cake tin with lard. Cut off one-quarter of the dough, wrap in clingfilm and leave to one side
to use later for the pie lid.

Roll the remaining dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 45cm circle about 1cm thick. Drape the pastry over the rolling pin and unroll it over the pan, then gently ease
it down into the pan. Press it down on to the base, but leave the overhang.

Fill the pastry case with the filling, pressing it down against the base and side. Roll out the remaining
pastry into a 25cm circle 1cm thick. Place it on
top of the pie. Dampen the underneath edge and press to seal with the overhang. Use a fork to crimp all around the edge, then cut a steam hole in the centre.

Place the pie on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 160°C/Gas Mark 3 and bake for a further 1¼ hours. Remove the pie from the oven and brush
the pastry with the egg glaze, then return it to the oven and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the juices run clear when you stick a skewer into the filling.
Transfer the pie to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

When the pie is cool, warm the stock in a saucepan over a medium heat. Do not let it boil. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for about 5 minutes until softened. Squeeze out
the water, then add them to the warm stock and stir until the gelatine has dissolved. Pour the stock in to the pie through the steam hole, then leave the gelatine to cool and set.

Serve the pie cut into wedges with the piccalilli.

Pork pie with piccalilli

This dish is full of beautiful woodland flavours. The lovely, delicate gamey flavour of rabbit is a classic match for the warm, piny sweetness of juniper and star anise. The
tender baby carrots have a little kick of vinegar and cayenne and a soft note of caraway. Serve with slices of toasted sourdough.

Serves 4–6

For the carrot top salad

Mix the sea salt flakes, juniper berries, bay leaves and star anise together. Sprinkle a thin layer of this salt mix on to a non-metallic tray, then place the rabbit pieces on
top. Cover with the remaining salt mix, then wrap in clingfilm. Place in the fridge and leave for 12 hours.

Rinse the salt from the rabbit pieces then put them in a large saucepan. Cover with the duck fat and the lardons and place over a medium heat until the duck fat melts. Reduce the
heat to low and leave the rabbit and bacon to ‘confit’ for about 1½ hours until the meat is cooked through and tender. Turn off the heat and leave the rabbit pieces and bacon to
cool a little in the pan.

When the rabbit is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and flake the flesh into a bowl. Add the lardons and use 2 forks to shed both meats. Reheat the duck fat
to melt it, then strain it though a fine sieve. Add as much of the duck fat as necessary to make a pâté-like consistency. The amount of fat you need will depend on how succulent the
rabbit was. Taste and add cayenne pepper and salt, if needed.

Divide the mix into 4 equal portions and pack it into 4 suitable serving bowls, a 25 x 10cm terrine or other suitable serving dish and leave to cool completely. Cover and chill
until needed, but remember it should be removed from the fridge at least 20 minutes before you serve. Don’t forget.

Meanwhile, make the carrot top salad. Bring a saucepan of water with a large pinch of salt to the boil. Pick the frilly green tops from the carrots and wash them well to remove
any grit. Peel and cut the carrots into chunky strips.

Add the carrot strips to the boiling water and boil for 2–3 minutes until just tender. Drain well and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Whilst the carrots are still warm,
drizzle them with the rapeseed oil and cider vinegar, then set aside to cool. They will take on more flavour when dressed warm like this.

When you’re ready to serve, add the dandelion leaves and carrot tops, caraway seeds and parsley to the bowl with the carrots. Season with salt and cayenne and mix
thoroughly. Serve with the potted rabbit and some toasted sourdough bread.

Potted rabbit with carrot and carrot-top salad

This is a great beachside-style snack, based on the jars of pickled cockles you get at the seafront, but I’ve added a hot chilli vinegar kick. The polenta and cornflour that
coat the cockles give them a light crunchy chew, a bit like when you eat popcorn.

Serves 8 as a snack

For the chilli vinegar

First, make the chilli vinegar. Mix the malt vinegar, sugar and chillies together in a saucepan over a high heat and bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove the
pan from the heat, pour the mixture into a vinegar dispenser, including the chillies, and leave to cool completely. Keep this in the fridge until needed, where it will last for ages.

At least 2½ hours before you plan to serve, discard any cockles with broken shells or any open ones that don’t snap shut when tapped. Wash the cockles under running
cold water to remove any grit or dirt (don’t cut corners here: run the water long enough to clean them properly).

Heat a large saucepan over a high heat until very hot and pour in the cockles. Add a splash of water and put a lid on the pan. Steam the cockles, shaking the pan occasionally,
for 5–6 minutes until all the shells have opened. Discard any cockles that remain closed. Drain through a colander and leave the cockles to cool.

Pour the milk into a large bowl. When the cockles are cool enough to handle, remove them from the shells and add them to the milk. Discard the shells. Cover the bowl with
clingfilm and transfer to the fridge for at least 2 hours.

When you are ready to fry the cockles, mix the flour, cornflour and polenta together. Heat enough oil for deep-frying in a deep-fat fryer or heavy-based saucepan until it reaches
180°C.

Working in batches, dust the cockles in the flour mix, shaking off any excess, then deep-fry a few at a time, so you don’t get big clumps, for 3–5 minutes until they
float to the surface and are golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the oil and drain well on kitchen paper. Season the cockles with sea salt flakes and the finely chopped red
chilli. Reheat the oil to the correct temperature between batches, if necessary.

Serve the cockles in rolled baking parchment or newspaper and with the chilli vinegar for sprinkling over.

Deep-fried ‘popcorn’ cockles with chilli vinegar

If you’re not a fan of raw oysters and hate the thought of that ‘snot’ texture, this is the oyster dish for you! Here the oysters are deep-fried until crispy and
cooked through. Think of them as chicken nuggets that taste of the sea! Serve these with a dipping mayonnaise that tastes of seaweed and has a little kick from wasabi.

Serves 4

For the seaweed salt

For the seaweed mayonnaise