Meade's Menu

Meade's Menu News and views on all things food......Five decades, five countries, chef, teacher, writer, inspector, manager and hospitality consultant.

A HOT STARTER FOR THEN AND NOWOne of the first fancy hot snacks or starters I ever tasted was the classic chicken vol au...
23/05/2026

A HOT STARTER FOR THEN AND NOW
One of the first fancy hot snacks or starters I ever tasted was the classic chicken vol au vent. This old time French favourite of diced up cooked chicken fillet in a creamy sauce served in a crisp puff pastry case had usually some sliced mushrooms mixed in with it and even some herbs, garlic or bacon bits too.
You will see these days the full array of quality ranging from the reheated frozen budget nibbles at the supermarket all the way up to a five star de luxe version in the swanky hotels. Just about every second banqueting menu will have it on as a sure fire popular choice though it’s not so coeliac friendly.
It will be always a lottery as to how much chicken, mushroom or sauce you get as carefree chefs dollop spoons of the mix on starter plates to be whisked off to a couple of hundred hungry guests. I often had a pool of thick gloopy sauce and just a couple of bits of chicken which is often the case with these types of dishes at functions.
If you have it in a restaurant however the chances are the ratios will be more in your favour. I prefer to make square or rectangular cases so as to avoid waste of pastry trimmings and to fill the cases properly with the filling just coated in the sauce and then spoon a little more sauce around the base so the presentation is enhanced.

EARS TO CAULIFLOWERCauliflower has been having a fashionable moment of late having been long overshadowed by its broccol...
16/05/2026

EARS TO CAULIFLOWER
Cauliflower has been having a fashionable moment of late having been long overshadowed by its broccoli and cabbage cousins. Cauliflower rice and purees have been very popular on menus across the board. It’s highly nutritious especially raw with hundreds of global varieties and several colours all stemming from its Mediterranean origin where its name derives from the Latin for a cabbage flower.
Contrary to custom the leaves are quite edible and most of us would have first had cauliflower as a soup or coated in a creamy cheese sauce. It will also pop up in a stir fry or salad and be just about ok when used from frozen if treated right.
Its best in September but these days there are crops more or less year round. I like to treat any non meat eaters to it cut and cooked as a steak, when you simply slice through it, stalk and all, coat it with some nice seasoning and oil, fry it in a hot pan for a few minutes as per a beef steak and then let it finish in a lot oven for a few more minutes until it just cooked but with still a bit of crunch to it.
It will depend how thick you cut it but an inch or so is usually good enough. I slice up the leaves too and give them a little stir fry so nothing gets wasted. A few good accompanying flavours will produce a substantial plate of food for the most discerning plant based dieters.

NOT ALWAYS DONE IN SIXTY SECONDSI first saw proper minute steaks cooked on a French ferry cruise when the chef had a pil...
08/05/2026

NOT ALWAYS DONE IN SIXTY SECONDS
I first saw proper minute steaks cooked on a French ferry cruise when the chef had a pile of thinly cut steaks stacked beside a hot grill and as you selected your main course from the menu, if it was the steak you picked he would pluck a raw one from the top with his tongs, sprinkle it with salt and slap it on the flaming grill. He would then flip it over and by the time you reached his station he had it on a plate handing it to you for you to add your own accompaniments from the hot food self service counter.
It was literally under a minute cooking, maybe only thirty seconds in fact and still very rare but delicious as my first real taste of well underdone beef. These days I see packs of budget priced minute steaks in all the supermarkets but most of the time these steaks are actually quite tough and you have to go through a few packets to see that the colour and grain are looking just right to be tender. They are not all cut from the same joint that is for sure.
I purposely picked another random one from this one lately just to prove my point and it was like leather more in need of braising than a quick fry in the pan so I ended up stewing it for an hour. So with barbeque season approaching they are ideal for that but do be careful when you pick from this meaty lottery or better again get your local craft butcher to cut them from a mature strip loin or rump of beef. That way you will be guaranteed melt in the mouth tenderness and flavour.

NO BONES ABOUT ITThe question of the best ways of marinating meat or fish and imparting extra flavour into the flesh is ...
01/05/2026

NO BONES ABOUT IT
The question of the best ways of marinating meat or fish and imparting extra flavour into the flesh is always being asked especially coming up to the barbeque season. For bigger items it means cutting into the skin which will only carry flavour so far. Inserting ingredients inside natural cavities like in fish or poultry always works well and they can even be as nice to eat having taken on some of the fleshy flavours.
For meat, the obvious way is to have it b***d out and for the resulting joints or cuts to just sit for a few hours or days even in a mix of the chosen herbs, spices, oils and liquids. For something like a leg of lamb, it can be sometimes be bought butterflied these days or a good craft butcher will happily bone it out. This will certainly cut the cooking time down and make it much easier to carve as well.
Taste wise it might take on more of the added flavours than if it were left whole but cooking off the bone it also loses some of the meaty flavour that only comes when it’s left intact. The same goes with fillets of fish hence the making of good rich sauces made from the removed meat and fish bones is essential to retaining the essence of the main ingredient. Your cat or dog will be happy with the leftover bones too.


A TOAST TO THE FRENCHWhen we think of the many food and dish names with the word French in front of them from omelette, ...
25/04/2026

A TOAST TO THE FRENCH
When we think of the many food and dish names with the word French in front of them from omelette, onion soup and fries to beans, tarts and bread it only shows how much an influence the country has had on the world of gastronomy. One that is definitely global is French toast, be in a sweet or savoury version.
Its real name is ‘pain perdu’ or lost bread. It came about as the tasty way of using up stale bread which the real thing will quickly become after a day when none of the common preservatives have been added. Its history goes way back to the middle ages and was known throughout Europe in fact.
There are many modern variations across Asia and the Americas but I stick to the original. The idea of soaking slices of old bread in a flavoured or seasoned beaten egg, mixed with a splash of milk or cream and then frying in butter or oil until cooked through and golden brown is a thrifty way of making a meal out of any leftover bread.
It’s best to use a quality artisan loaf and not the commercial sliced pan which is pretty much artificial these days. I prefer it savoury and actually like to use thickly sliced brioche bread cooked slowly and with simply some grilled bacon and a drizzle of proper Irish honey or maple syrup over the top to finish.

BREADTAKING BRIOCHEI remember the first time I tasted brioche visiting Paris on a school trip and thinking now this is s...
18/04/2026

BREADTAKING BRIOCHE
I remember the first time I tasted brioche visiting Paris on a school trip and thinking now this is something that could be eaten all day. It is one of the more decadent breads originating in Middle Ages Normandy where they had plenty of butter and eggs to develop richer recipes and they are famous there for their round shaped brioches.
I prefer the loaf shaped ones that can be sliced and for French toast. Around France you will find all sorts of other styles. The word itself comes from their verb brier meaning to work the dough.
The recipes you will find are pretty standard with flour, eggs, butter, sugar, salt and the all important yeast for which I used dried. I have seen many over complicated versions with twenty or more steps but I like to keep it simple by just sticking to the basics. You can make it with a mixing bowl, food processor or just by hand in a bowl which is what I do.
Time is the secret ingredient, making sure you get a good rise out of the dough so do be patient. Let it cool down fully after cooking and it keep well for a few days and in the fridge or freezer it will keep even longer.

PLAIN SAILING IN SMALLER BOATSWhen I lived in France I learned that the small fillet on the inside of poultry breasts wa...
11/04/2026

PLAIN SAILING IN SMALLER BOATS
When I lived in France I learned that the small fillet on the inside of poultry breasts was called le bateau or the boat from its shape. It’s particularly prized in whole roasted poultry joints and would always be given to the children at the table. It tends to fall off in b***d out poultry hence it is now sold in packets all on its own and costing less per kilo than the main fillets it is attached to.
It is perfect for the likes of stir fried dishes or warm meaty salads needing strips of chicken. It is also very versatile for something fancier where breast or supreme of chicken is called for and it simply needs to be layered in four or five pieces and you have the equivalent of a normal larger fillet. It will knit together in the cooking if it has something wrapped around it to stop it falling apart.
I like to envelop them in some precooked leeks and say bacon or Parma ham, then you can fry it in the pan or bake in the oven and you will have a delicious meal with it just needing some roasted veggies or spuds and a basic sauce as it will have lots of flavour from the ham. I did the same with the duck fillets one time when they were available commercially for restaurants. With food inflation on the rise again, every little saving literally does help.

CHOUX IN FOR EASTER CHOCOLATEWith the price of all things in the good chocolate world rising rapidly there are alternati...
04/04/2026

CHOUX IN FOR EASTER CHOCOLATE
With the price of all things in the good chocolate world rising rapidly there are alternatives to getting that sweet hit at Easter or anytime without having to go full on with the dark stuff. So many dessert items only need a dash of chocolate to make them special and complete.
Chocolate éclairs are one of my favourites ever since I first tasted a real proper one in Paris at twelve years of age. Then when you actually learn to make them they turn out to be a miracle of chemistry with the resulting delicacy being one of the true great sweet treats for special occasions.
The idea of just boiling some water, sugar and butter, adding some flour then beaten eggs and cooking them until dry and crispy is pure genius. They can be any shape at all but do stick to the specific ingredients measurements you are to use and of course there are hundreds of them online to pick from.
They will have excellent how to tutorial videos as well online. You just do not deviate from recipes in baking either and I also like to stick to the plain whipped airy cream inside as I find those modern dense sweet fillings just to heavy especially when already there is a rich, dark and sugary chocolate coating over the top.

SPICE UP YOUR EASTER EGGSIt only when you travel to North Africa that you see how rich and vibrant the various cuisines ...
28/03/2026

SPICE UP YOUR EASTER EGGS
It only when you travel to North Africa that you see how rich and vibrant the various cuisines are. We are now used to the tastes of their exotic dishes from couscous to harissa with the all the influences of Arab, French and native foods coming together to make dishes that simply take your taste buds off on a magic culinary carpet. I noticed on a few breakfast menus here now that shakshouka or shakshuka is making more of an appearance and it’s something when done nicely is a sure fiery way to get your day off to a spicy start.
. It’s an easy enough concept with eggs being poached in a concentrated tomato sauce made with onions, garlic, bell peppers and plenty of spices like chilli, cumin and paprika to liven it up, then finished off with some chopped parsley or coriander. Some other items like potatoes and sausages can give it a bit more substance. It’s a distant relation to the French ratatouille and other vegetable stews from around the Mediterranean. The word itself translates as ‘mixture’ in Arabic and the dish exists right across North Africa and the Middle East.
There are a variety of styles and it’s also eaten at any time of the day. Like all stews the vegetables are given a light frying to release the flavours, chopped tomatoes and spices are added and then it’s a slow cooking until everything is soft and the sauce is thickened. Check the seasoning of course, then depending on the size of your pan you make a few wells with a spoon, crack the whole eggs into them and cover the dish. Let the eggs steam under the lid on a low heat until they are cooked to the degree you like. It can also be finished in the oven or under a grill.


TRYING FOR COLOURAt the end of another patriotic week and all things Irish taking over the world I was thinking of the t...
21/03/2026

TRYING FOR COLOUR
At the end of another patriotic week and all things Irish taking over the world I was thinking of the times I had to represent the Irish flag on a plate or platter, be it in sweet or savoury dishes. It’s an obvious way to celebrate nationality and our green, white and orange colours are quite common across ingredients. Now some other flags would be quite a challenge to replicate bit I have seen them done.
I once made a large Swedish flag out of sugar for their king and his party on his regular private visits to the Wicklow Mountains for his post Ballinacor duck shooting buffet. I also had to cook a French flag for them one time on their Bastille Day. For us here in Ireland two of our biggest symbolic ingredients are salmon and potatoes.
With say smoked salmon, some cooked spuds and buttery spinach you can easily muster up a nice tricolour terrine. Indeed the only cooking is the potatoes and the spinach but frozen works too. Then it’s a case of simply layering them up in a lined mould so that the colours will have a decent graphic impact when it’s finally cut into neat slices. It just needs our famous soda bread and a cead mile failte. 🇮🇪☘️

LEAVING IT TO THE IRISHOne vegetable associated with Ireland is our green cabbage which grows beautifully here in our te...
14/03/2026

LEAVING IT TO THE IRISH
One vegetable associated with Ireland is our green cabbage which grows beautifully here in our temperate climate but it’s also revered elsewhere and so much so there is even a world championship of stuffing cabbage held every year in France. Stuffing the pre cooked leaves of cabbage is a common dish in a lot of European and Middle Eastern cuisines with mostly meaty fillings and a long, slow cooking. If the filling is raw then it needs time to cook through but I always feel the cabbage on the outside then loses its colour and flavour as a result.
I prefer to make individual portions and to use pre cooked fillings like rice or vegetables to try and retain some of the cabbage goodness with a quicker cooking time. With the week that is in it coming up where we celebrate all things Irish I thought it might be interesting to see how a stuffed cabbage might work with our famous bacon and cabbage recipe. The leaves need a quick boil for just a minute then they are cooled down and lined inside a buttered cup or mould. Make sure you use the more tender inner leaves from the cabbage.
Some nice mash and fully cooked carrots are spooned inside the blanched and refreshed leaves; it’s all then closed up with more cabbage. You can have it made in advance and simply micro wave it for a minute or two so everything is hot and ready to serve with our traditional boiled bacon and its parsley and onion sauce. It’s a very versatile starter dish or main course accompaniment as it works with any meat and fish and the stuffing can be all sorts of other vegetables you might prefer but it does need a sauce as the filling has to be dry enough to retain the shape. ☘️🇮🇪

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