Slow-braised pork shoulder with cider, crème fraîche & mustard

Serves 4

4 pork shoulder steaks, about 750g in total
oil
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
300ml cider
2 bay leaves
4 tbsp crème fraîche
2 tsp Dijon mustard
small bunch parsley, chopped

1.Heat a little oil in an ovenproof pan with a lid. Fry the shoulder steaks on each side until golden brown. Lift out then fry the onions until softened and golden. Add back the pork with the cider and bay. Bring to a simmer then put on a lid and cook in a 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 oven for 1½ hours.

2.Lift out the oven and break up the steaks into chunks. Stir in the crème fraîche, mustard and parsley then cook for another 5 minutes. Serve with mash or green veg.

Nutrition per serving (without mash):
523 kcalories, protein 9.1g, carbohydrate 67.4g, fat 16.5 g, saturated fat 8.5g, fibre 0.4g, salt 0.46 g

(Olive magazine, April 2011)

Navarin d'agneau printanier (spring lamb stew)

Serves 4 - 6

1kg lamb neck, cut into 6 pieces
2 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs of thyme
4 carrots, cut into chunks
100g fresh or frozen peas
100g green beans, chopped
salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 3. Brown the meat, garlic and onion with the oilive oil in a large flameproof casserole. Add the bay leaf, thyme and carrots, and enough water to cover the meat by a couple of centimetres.

2. Bring to a simmer and remove any scum that rises to the top. Cover the pan and transfer to the over. Cook for 1½-2 hours or until the meat is tender.

3. Ten minutes before serving, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the peas and beans. Cook for 5mins or until teh vegetables are tender, then drain.

4. Take the casserole out of the oven and remove the bay leaf and sprigs of thyme. Add the peas and beans to the lamb with the salt and pepper to taste, and serve straight away.

(The Little paris Kitchen - Rachel Khoo)

Monkfish chunks cooked with onions, peppers and sherry

Serves 4

25g butter
100ml olive oil
2 large onions, finely sliced
1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into 2½cm pieces
1 green pepper, deseeded and cut into 2½cm pieces
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Good pinch saffron strands
400ml dry sherry
750g monkfish, cut into 4cm chunks
200g fresh palourde or venus clams, cleaned and beards removed
Handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the butter and olive oil together in a large, heavy based frying pan, add the onions, peppers, garlic and saffron and cook very slowly over a low heat for about 25mins until the onions are soft, light golden and nearly melted.

2. Add the sherry and monkfish, then cover with a lid and simmer gently for 10-12 minutes or until the fish is just cooked. Add the clams five minutes before the end of the cooking time.

3. Add the parsley to the pan and season with salt and pepper then serve.

(Fish - Mitch Tonks)