John Torode’s ‘BEEF’ [cookbook review]

by Kang L.

On Twitter, I said...

Posting tweet...



Lately, you said...

Latest Posts

The Newsletter No.5: Catch The London Sushi Train.
Photography by Kang L
September 1st, 2010 Sushi bingeing. The final frontier. The unquestionably orgasmic delight of popping dollop after dollop of a food of an unrelentingly elegant design; low in fat, high in umami, arguably, an invention born of perfection. Some say the combination of raw fish and rice is an acquired taste, but for the converted, sushi is nothing but [...] Read "The Newsletter No.5: Catch The London Sushi Train." more
Asakusa: Into the den of sushi.
Photography by Kang L
August 26th, 2010 A firm, yet genteel voice answered the phone. The line was horribly muffled as I struggled to pick out the vowels through the low, low bass. Fum.Fum.Sa.Sa. I think she said, in a deceptively Japanese accent. An awkward silence befell. “Aka …ka…” I said. “ZZZassss… ka” she said, with a quickened pace. I gave up. [...] Read "Asakusa: Into the den of sushi." more
Photos, restaurants, and dropping trousers.
camera guide for food bloggers-8
August 24th, 2010 I didn’t realise cameras in restaurants were still such taboo. This week I had two journalists ask me what I thought about the act of pulling out a camera in a restaurant, which some say is equal in every sense to dropping your trousers in the middle of the dining room and shouting: “Look at [...] Read "Photos, restaurants, and dropping trousers." more
Two years old.
Photography by Kang L
August 23rd, 2010 Yes I cannot believe it too. It is two years ago today, that I assaulted the internet with my barrage of hot air and vulgar food photography, which may as well be classified as taboo, and I would just like to start by saying Thank You for reading and putting up with me. So far [...] Read "Two years old." more
Trinity: Sunday Roast, meritorious for 3.
Photography by Kang L
August 23rd, 2010 Adam Byatt, the thinking man’s version of a celebrity chef, and owner of the much lauded Trinity restaurant, situated in leafy Clapham. Critics adore his work, for the invention, progression and enthusiasm he has brought to British cooking, and one expects no less from a chef who had apprenticed under Philip Howard, the cerebral owner [...] Read "Trinity: Sunday Roast, meritorious for 3." more
Bea’s of Bloomsbury: The Sweetest Things.
Photography by Kang L
August 20th, 2010 It has taken me about a year to visit Bea’s in Bloomsbury, but I’m glad I finally made it. This tour de force bakery, cake house, coffee & tea shop produces top notch sugary things from their massive kitchen on site on a daily basis. Needless to say, their cupcakes are superb, personally I quite [...] Read "Bea’s of Bloomsbury: The Sweetest Things." more
28-50 : Drunken memories
Photography by Kang L
August 20th, 2010 From the creators of the sleeper hit of the century, the Icelandic inspired, macaron-winning, Texture, comes Rousset & Sverrisson’s next high octane, vinely-charged collaboration, titled 28-50. The name is a geographical tip of the hat to all the world’s vineyards, most of which lie between the latitudes of 28° to the North and 50° to [...] Read "28-50 : Drunken memories" more
Twenty pounds of sushi at Mitsui, Taiwan.
Mitsui-2
August 18th, 2010 Twenty quid doesn’t go too far in London, maybe two courses. Three if it’s a michelin-on-a-budget. On the otherhand, the Taiwanese have perfected the art of amazingly affordable fine dining on half a shoe string. Back in February, I was over in Taipei for my annual visit to see how my favourite cat (seriously) was [...] Read "Twenty pounds of sushi at Mitsui, Taiwan." more
see all posts

John Torode's BEEF

John Torode’s ‘BEEF’ £ 20
John Torode

Published by Quadrille Publishing Ltd

Quadrille kindly sent me a copy of John Torode’s BEEF to review/buzz/promote. I read through it and wrote up my first cookbook review, ever (yay). I was also kindly given permission to reproduce one of the recipes from the book; I chose the Carpet Bag Steak, which is an Australian classic of a fillet steak stuffed with fresh oysters. Very yummy indeed, I’ve included the recipe at the end of this review, so do keep reading to find it. John is truly a beeflover! Hope you enjoy this one folks.

Review.

We’ve all seen the man taste food on Masterchef, and a few of us have even dined at his four storey glory that is Smiths of Smithfield and in BEEF, John lays out one of his greatest passions: Beef. I can almost hear John’s voice guiding me through the recipes as I read this book, he writes mostly in a conversational tone and…

this unpretentious approach is refreshing and really highlights his true passion for the red stuff. Naturally, I flipped to the steak section as I opened the book. He dedicates a full two page spread on how to cook a great steak and suggests pan frying more delicate cuts (fillet)  and grilling the chunkier ones (rib), keeping in mind that if you see yellow flames over the charcoal, then the fat has caught fire. His prime advice when it comes to steak is to just ‘relax and enjoy cooking it!’ – great advice indeed. John doesn’t just start and stop with the steaks, he covers alot of the ‘other stuff’ and provides recipes for soup and gravy, preserving beef, salads, pasta, make a great burger, a huge section on veal and even includes a recipe for the jam roly poly to finish.

You can tell that John has a real passion for beef as this book has really set out to cover the whole rainbow of ways to cook this great ingredient. He provides excellent commentary about the different cuts & breeds in the introductory section, and has also included details to butchers dotted around the country. And if that’s not enough, the dust cover also folds out to a diagramatic representation of the different cuts of beef, in A1 size, making it a comprehensive handbook to beef.

If you love your red meat, and are looking for an ultimate cookbook for it, John Torode’s BEEF fits the bill. If you’re after a cookbook with recipes written by someone who’s totally down to earth and most importantly a beef lover, then I can think of no better one than John’s celebration of the bovine, in print.

John Torode’s ‘BEEF’ £ 20
John Torode

Published by Quadrille Publishing Ltd

John’s Carpet Bag Steak Recipe

john-torodes-beef_kkp140Ingredients

4 fillet steaks, about 175g each
8 oysters in the shell
4 large strips streaky bacon
vegetable oil
salt and pepper
200g butter

This is an Australian classic – steak stuffed with fresh oysters, then wrapped in strips of streaky bacon and fried. It is important not to drain the oysters of too much of their liquid (you need to reserve this for later) as its saltiness tenderizes and flavours the meat and keeps the oysters lovely and moist. When the steak is cooked to your liking, take it out of the pan, remove the pan from the heat and add drained oyster juice, then scrape up the bits from the bottom of the pan and pour the resulting liquid over the steak.

Take each fillet and slice a sharp knife into the side to make a pocket – not all the way through or that won’t be a pocket.

Shuck (that is, open) the oysters and release them from their shells, draining off and keeping the juice. Put four oysters back in their shells to serve on the side of the steaks. Take the other oysters and put one inside the pocket of each steak. Pour in some of the juice – the salty water acts as a seasoning and keeps the oyster and the beef moist. We love things moist!

Wrap each fillet with the bacon and stick a toothpick in to hold it all together. Put a solid, heavy-based pan on the heat and get it super-hot. Open the window as there is about to be a good amount of smoke. Rub the steaks all over with oil and season with salt and a little pepper.

Put the steaks in the pan and cook for a good 3 minutes each side, then turn the heat down and cook for 2 more minutes each side. Add the butter and any leftover oyster juice. If you want to cook the fillets well done then they need to go into a not-too-hot over for about 5 minutes to finish.

Serve your steaks with chips (page 134) or a big tomato salad… come on, you know how to make a tomato salad.

John Torode’s ‘BEEF’ £ 20
John Torode

Published by Quadrille Publishing Ltd

John Torode's BEEF

Did you enjoy reading this post? Why not subscribe to my feed updates for free. Alternatively, You can subscribe via email.

Posted in: Cookbook reviews, Cookbooks

7 FEEDBACKS

  1. Kang, you have pans and you cook???? Who knew! I believed you were off restaurant galavanting every single night!

    Thanks for the review, and I like the components of the recipe you posted. Cheers! PS. Next I want to see pictures of you in an APRON! ;)

  2. Douglas says:

    Whilst the book sounds useful, I must say that I had a miserable meal at his ‘four storey glory’…

  3. Most people eat beef their entire life, yet understand little about the details of where it comes from (cut by cut) and how varied the styles of preparation are. When you talk to villagers who have been raising a specific breed for generations you begin to understand the nuances of beef – something we don’t often experience when buying a plastic wrapped steak at the supermarket.

  4. Not sure about carpet bag steak being an Australian classic (although that may be Torode’s claim and not yours Kang) but it does look good!

  5. Kang L. says:

    Heidi – hahahha, inspite of popular believe I do indeed hang about the kitchen some nights- though I’m abit of a mess in the kitchen, I can manage a meal every now and again :)

    Douglas – oh dear, miserable? That’s abit of a downer, was expecting his place to churn out at least half decent food. Oh, the celebrity.

    Global Patriot – that’s an insightful comment, yeah I think us city dwellers have grown complacent with the convenience of the supermarket and in many ways it’s alittle detrimental to society. Thankfully, the health concious amongst us are pushing for small farmers and organic produce, so perhaps someday buying grocery in the local sainsbury will be as taboo as getting a big mac.

    Gourmet Chick – I suspected just as much, didnt see any carpet bags on the menus when i was last in sydney! Otherwise, it does look like a plate licking recipe!

  6. [...] copy of his beefcyclopedia entitled ‘BEEF’. I wrote a review on it several moons again here, and really thought his book was great. I love beef, and one can really tell that it was written by [...]

  7. AU says:

    That Carpetbag looks fantastic, a true Australian classic- good to see it making a comeback

LEAVE A COMMENT




This site is protected by WP-CopyRightPro