If there is something that really gets on my nerves it is the word confit. Well, actually, not the word itself, but the fact that it is so often misused. You see it all the time, celebrity chef’s saying we are going to make a confit, which they somehow believe is a way of cooking duck in oil. Well it’s not, it’s a lot more than that!
A confit is meat that is cooked in fat, not oil, and once the cooking process is over, the fat is allowed to cool around the meat, so you have cooked meat in solid fat. Germs and microbes find it difficult to penetrate the fat, and so the meat is preserved within. Thus, a confit is a way of preserving meat. The meat is scooped out and reheated to remove the excess fat.
The same goes for curing. I have listened to a number of celebrity chefs who sprinkle a little salt with the words ‘That starts the curing process’ when all they have done is seasoned the dish. I get really cross about it, because they give the wrong impression - and don’t get me started on the so-called jam’s on the telly. They’re sweet and fruity, but they aren’t jam!
It just goes to show that the real culinary expertise is still, thankfully, in kitchens up and down the country, and the best food we will ever eat - no matter how much it costs, is made at home!
This month we start a series on curing meat, in particular making bacon, making biltong and our special corned beef. It is true that many people do not believe processed meat is safe, and you cannot deny that some of the facts indicate that over consumption can be harmful, but one thing is for sure, not curing meat will cause more problems than is ever created by nitrates. So I continue to create the foods I love to eat.
More than ever people are turning to making their own cheese and bacon, growing vegetables and keeping hens and bees, even though the majority of people are still happy to shop in supermarkets for all their food. I say all, because in these days it is impossible, more or less, to avoid them completely!
One important point: everyone will need this knowledge some day!
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