Loose ends. Salsa Verde with Tempura Vegetables.

Southwest veering west for a time, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first

Moderate or rough.

Rain then fair.

Moderate or poor, becoming good.

Yellow warning has been issued for Sussex: gusts to 50 mph widely but 60-65 mph some English Channel coasts.

Due to unforeseen circumstances the last of the request will be posted later in the week.

Weekend days are for me experimenting days. And tying up loose ends. Salted Lassi with the leftover yoghurt for breakfast? Check. Finally trying Ottolenghi`s deep fried olives? Check. (Don’t bother, too much work, it did sound nice but the outcome was soso) 

Trying to find the solution for German style Bretzel dough half baked rolls and what difference the Tangzhong method does? Check (am quite excited about this so will report back). Realising that the lovely bunch of flat parsley is nearing its end? And having bits and pieces of vegetables lurking in the fridge? Including the dreaded green pepper? Check.

And a moment of awe. I used to have a herb garden and was wondering how I can get my daily fix on my windowsill.  Despite the fact that I am terribly unorganised, I do have lucid moments. One of them was: Since I live on the third floor without lift and pay a fortune for a moving company, why should I not get the things I want and let them move it? So I purchased several of the Ikea BITTERGURKA  and went wild with ASDA`s Miracle Grow compost. 

And bought later in a supermarket  BOGOF. 8 herbs, total £4. One basil, two different thymes, one rosemary, one sage, one mint, one parsley and one chive. The sage is dead. Parsley and chive are fighting for their lives. But the rest is rampant. The above picture is from basil which is 3 weeks old and already had many attacks for pesto. You have no idea how the mint took over the kitchen.

Anyway.. too much dying parsley and a glut of basil: Italian Salsa Verde.

Salsa Verde means nothing else but green sauce. You have green sauce with tomatillos, you can call your Chimichurri Salsa Verde, and if you feel inclined to call a “Frankfotter Grie Soß “Salsa Verde”, feel free to do so. You are technically not wrong.

It is very easy to make and, unless you are a strict Vegetarian, please don’t omit the anchovies. They really make a difference in taste.

Italian Salsa Verde

1 bunch, roughly chopped flat leaf parsley, including stems

as many basil leaves as you can spare, but the focus should stay on the parsley

1 good glug of extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon capers, drained or desalted (depending which one you use)

3 anchovy fillets

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated zest from 1 lemon

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place parsley, basil, olive oil, capers, anchovies, lemon juice, garlic, and lemon zest in work bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse until parsley is well chopped, about 10 11-second pulses, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as necessary.

Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a small bowl and put into the fridge where it will keep up to two weeks.

Serve with all kinds of grilled fish, meat, Halloumi or vegetables. In rice, pasta or burritos. On a Panini.

But I served it with vegetables in Tempura batter.

Unlike the batter you use for fish, Tempura batter is very light and likely to float away from the food, but it will leave a very fine coating. You can use whatever you want as the “inside”: Tomatoes, Courgette, Beans, Mushrooms, Peppers, Aubergines, Broccoli, Spanish Onions, Carrot Batons, Squash, Sweet Potato, Fennel or Celeriac. I gathered up my loose ends, including a sorry looking piece of feta and the end of a Halloumi block. Plus for fun a bit of Cheddar which was getting dry at the edges. If you use tomatoes, they should be either the green tomatoes (my, this is good!) or very firm, not very juicy red tomatoes. In short, your average supermarket tomatoes at this time of the year. But fry them at the end.

Tempura Batter

100gr fine flour

100gr cornflour

1 egg

200ml sparkling water

Salt and Pepper

Cut all your vegetables, cheeses or seafood in bite-sized pieces.

Heat your oil to where it sizzling but not smoking: 170 and 180 degrees. It is important that you don't over-crowd your frying oil: If you do, the temperature drops too quickly and you get a pretty greasy result.

Mix the batter just as you are about to cook.

Sift plain flour and corn-flour with ½ tsp fine sea salt and white pepper into a large mixing bowl. Add one egg. Whisk in 200ml ice-cold sparkling mineral water along with a few ice cubes using a whisk, but don’t over beat.

Dip in vegetables (dry ones first), take out, let drip and put in the hot oil. It should not take more than 30-60 seconds to be ready. Put first onto a sheet of kitchen roll and either eat them as you go along, or put them in the preheated oven on a rack.

Serve either with the above Salsa Verde or any dip (e.g. soya sauce mixed with sesame oil and sweet chilli sauce).

Verdict:

The above batter is far too much for one portion, but if you want to use up all your leftovers, do continue to fry. You can put the leftover tempura next day either into a sandwich for your lunch or into a Japanese style soup.

The cheddar was fun: One of the pieces slipped out of the batter when I wanted to take it out. Which left me with an empty cheesy shell and cheese dissolved in the oil.

The feta was excellent and the Halloumi was actually melted inside the crisp shell. The vegetables as usual excellent. Even the dreaded green pepper.

I have no idea why this recipe is completly screwed up. As in formating screwed up. Spend now over an hour to get it right. What a waste. I could be cooking instead!