Food & Recipes

10 April 2009, 15:29

NAME: Merrilees Parker

DISH: County Down main course – heats

DISH TITLE: Glazed loin of Irish black bacon with colcannon terrine, black pudding and parsley veloute

 Black bacon is an Irish staple, as is colcannon – a traditional Irish dish made from mashed potato, cabbage and cheese. The word is Irish for white headed cabbage.
COOK TIME: 1 hour
PREP TIME: 30 minutes
SERVES: 4
DIFFICULTY: medium
DIETARY RESTRICTIONS: dairy, wheat

INGREDIENTS AND METHOD: 

INGREDIENTS

For the loin of bacon:
900g/2lb loin of bacon (soaked overnight)
2 x carrots, peeled & roughly chopped
1 x onion, peeled & roughly chopped
2 x celery, sticks roughly chopped
Parsley stalks (keep the leaves for your sauce)
4 tbsp demerara sugar
2 tbsp English mustard

For the potato terrine:
100g green Savoy cabbage - leaves from the outside, spines removed
450g floury potatoes, peeled
200g Irish cheddar

For the parsley veloute:
25g English parsley leaves picked
2 tbsp light virgin olive oil
25g butter
1 tbsp plain flour
2 tsp English mustard powder
100ml fresh chicken stock
100ml liquor reserved from cooking the bacon
4 tbsp double cream
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 200degC/400degF/Gas6.
2. Put the bacon in a deep pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a simmer then throw away the water and cover again with cold water. Add the carrot, onion, celery and parsley stalks to the pot then bring to a simmer again and cook for about 20 minutes. Allow to cool enough to handle then remove the skin but keep the lovely layer of fat.
3. For the potato and cabbage terrine roughly chop then blanch the cabbage in boiling salted water for three minutes. Drain well and refresh in cold water then drain again ensuring the cabbage is really dry. 
4. Slice your potatoes thinly on a mandolin. Next line a 2lb loaf tin with foil followed by parchment paper. Then place a layer of potatoes on the bottom, season well with salt and black pepper then sprinkle over some of the cheese followed by a layer of cabbage and then some more cheese.
5. Repeat with the remaining ingredients finishing with a layer of the cheese. This is very important as it will go bubbling and golden.
6. Place in the oven and cook through for one hour to one hour fifteen minutes, when the potatoes should be nearly tender to the point of a knife and the cheese on top should be bubbling and golden. 
7. For the bacon glaze mix together the sugar and the mustard. Cut the fat in a criss-cross fashion so that you have lovely diamond pattern, then spread the sugar and mustard mixture over the fat and place on a roasting tray. Cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes (basting occasionally) when the glaze should be golden and bubbling.
8. Meanwhile for the sauce, pour boiling water over the parsley and leave to stand for four minutes (no less than this or the parsley won’t puree). Drain well then run under cold water until completely cooled. Squeeze out any excess water and then puree with the extra virgin olive oil to form a very smooth puree. You can add a little of the cooking liquor if you find there is too small a quantity to blend.
9. Melt the butter and add the flour. Cook out for at least a minute then stir in the mustard powder. Stirring all the time, add the stocks until you a lovely thick emulsion, then stir in the cream.
10. Next fold in the parsley purée and check the seasoning. Cover with a piece of parchment paper and keep warm until you are ready. The veloute should be a lovely runny consistency, so if too thick add a little extra liquid or if too thin reduce slightly on a gentle simmer.
11. Fry the black pudding in hot frying pan until crispy on both sides then cut the terrine into four with a very sharp knife. Cut the bacon joint into twelve lovely thin slices.
12. To serve, spoon some sauce into the centre of each plate. Top with a piece of the terrine followed by three slices of glazed bacon and a piece of the black pudding. Finish with a small jug of extra sauce on the side.

SPECIALIST INGREDIENTS USED WERE SOURCED FROM:

Irish Black Bacon from Patrick O'Doherty's, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh
www.blackbacon.com

Last updated: 10 April 2009, 15:29