Aubergine & Eggplant

Good morning

Porridge with maple syrup and pecans

Crunchy thyme and pancetta pork fillet with roast carrots

Some self-flagellating urge took hold of me this evening, to think I could invent a new dish, with a cut of meat I've not cooked with before, slightly less than an hour to go before my hairdresser arrives.

Yes, well, why do things slowly when you can freak out and do it quickly with an absurdly short time limit.

So. I quick google revealed most people either cut their pork fillets into medallions or roast the whole thing. Delia says a pork fillet comes from the lower back of the pig, and the Pork Marketing Board has a slightly crazy looking diagram about where all the cuts come from, in case you're curious.

I decided to go for the roasting approach, and then went a little crazy with wrapping it up. I had some nice pancetta crying out for a purpose, fresh thyme and crunchy pre-made breadcrumbs. And a shedload of carrots.

Crunchy thyme and pancetta pork fillet with roast carrots
30g dry breadcrumbs
70g pancetta
380g pork fillet
handful fresh thyme
Carrots, sliced into batons
Olive oil
Maldon salt, or kosher salt

1. Dump the carrot batons into a casserole dish or similar, just try and get them into a single-ish layer. Toss with some olive oil and the Maldon salt. Bung into a preheated oven at 220ºC for about 30-40 minutes. You'll want to pull them out halfway through and push them around so they're evenly cooked. Keep an eye on them, depending on the size of your batons it may take more or less time. They will start to look all caramelised and begin to blister when they're finished.

2. While the carrots get going, mix your breadcrumbs with the fresh thyme on plate large enough to accommodate your pork fillet (I didn't, and ended up with a quarter of my breadcrumbs on the floor, but a helpful little terrier-shaped vacuum cleaner hoovered them up for me). Then, wrap your pork fillet with the pancetta, covering the whole thing. Press the fillet in the breadcrumb mixture firmly, flip it over (gently!) and press again. If you're not getting good coverage, try using your hands to dump the breadcrumbs on top and push down with your fingers. It should be fully covered now.

3. Put the carrot dish on the top shelf and push it to the back, putting the pork on a cookie sheet in the middle shelf. You probably don't have to take it out and rotate it halfway through, as I have a crazy oven, but there you are.Leave it in there for about 35 minutes, depending on how done you'd like your meat, and how big the fillet is.

4. Let it rest for 10 minutes. No really, don't touch it. After you've waited 10 minutes (really, I mean it) slice it into medallions and serve with the roasted carrots.

Post-cooking note: it tasted wonderful, but the outer crust wasn't as crispy as I would like. Maybe try browning the fillet wrapped in pancetta briefly in a pan first, getting rid of some of the fat, then rolling in breadcrumbs, then baking, for a shorter period of time.

 

Teriyaki(ish) chicken for lunch

Inspired by Lunch in a Box, I made my own little bento box lunch. I've ordered a Daiso bento box and some foil cups from Japan Centre, but while I wait for those to arrive I just used a random Lock & Lock container I had already. What's in it?

- Teriyaki grilled chicken breast
- Cob of corn cut in two to fit
- Two cherry tomatoes
- Grilled portobello mushroom
- Rice with cabbage

I used some foil made into cups to hold each individual bit, though I'm going to heat it up at work, so that wasn't really a good plan. I have a miso soup dish in my desk, so maybe I'll decant it into that.

I struggle with lunch sometimes. Sandwiches get soggy (and boring) and salads don't last past 3pm even with some meat on them. Soup is nice, but it's hard to pack that in a small container.

Super quick teriyaki(ish) marinade
About 200 ml soy sauce
3 tbsps brown or demerara sugar
1 tsp honey
A glug of mirin

The amounts really vary depending on what I'm marinating and how much of it there is, I taste it as I go. If I had been thinking about it, I would have added grated fresh ginger and garlic, but it's Sunday night and I'm tired. The above was for two chicken breasts, which I left for an hour and then threw on a grill pan.