Good evening everyone, hope you are all doing well. Today I have some good news and bad news. First the bad news is that I am delaying my book indefinitely. The good news is that I have never sent out a plate of food unless it's perfect and I feel the same way about my book. I have also decided to add even more unseen material to the book which would add even more value to it. All I ask is that you bare with me and in return you will receive a better constructed booklet, worth ever second you waited for it.  

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

Good evening every one, due to some unforeseen editing problems and finalising steps on my Booklet we have not been able to finish it on time. Thus I would like to inform you that the released date has been shifted to the 28th of January. Hope you are all well and understand my dilemma. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

As some of you might have noticed, at the end of each of my blog posts you can now read the following "Edited by: Monique Boaventura". I decided to rid all of my readers of my bad and sometimes horrible spelling, so I have brought a good friend and now my first editor on board www.chefdewet.co.za. And I would just like to dedicate this post to thanking Ms Boaventura for helping out and taking the website one step further in the right direction. Hope all of my dedicated readers have a smoother and more understandable read when on my website. 

Potatoes and onions are two ingredients which don't always get the respect they deserve. These two ingredients are almost always the basis of most dishes. The potatoes are used as the starch component on the plate, which serves as the delivery and bulking component of the dish. The onion being the base of most sauces out there, forming the foundation of the sauce, and we all know if you don't have a good foundation, you're going to run into trouble later on. So I decided to make these two the working horse of the kitchen and the stars of the dish today. Using only a few herbs to add a bit of flare and a dash of wine and cream for a bit of body. This is a great hearty dish, perfect for a cold summers day. I've also paired the soup with the crunchy element of potato tuile's, to add a different texture and colour to the plate. For the garnishes I've used a sprig of Rosemary and some Oregano flowers just to bring a bit of green to the party.  Some chopped chives or even spring onions sprinkled over the top would also do wonders to the presentation of the dish. 

Ingredients 

• 6 Medium Sized Potatoes 
• 2 Large White Onions 
• 1 tsp Chopped Rosemary
• 1 tsp Chopped Thyme
• 1 tsp Oregano 
• 1 tsp Smoked Paprika 
• 1/2 Chilli Flakes
• 1/3 tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 125 ml White Wine
• 500ml Vegetable or Chicken Stock
• 50ml Cream (optional) 
• Salt to taste
• 4 tsp Butter
• Baking Paper/ Silicone Paper 
• Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice
• 3 Bay Leaves 

Method 

1. Place large pot on your stove on a high heat and preheat your oven to 180C/356F. Add 2 tsp butter and a good dash of olive oil in the pot (the base of the pot should be covered with oil and butter ).
2. Cut 5 of the 6 potatoes into small cubes, leaving the skins on. Then place into pot once hot, stir every minute ( don't worry if they stick to the pot, just let them caramelise and then they will come off the base). 
3. Slice your 2 onions and place into the pot with the potatoes after 10 minutes. 
4. Add your herbs and spices and constantly stir, you will notice that a layer of caramelised ingredients will form on the base of the pot. Add a 1/3 of the wine and scrape the layer off the base. This will continue and every time simply add the wine to remove before it becomes burnt. Do this about 6-8 times and this will give your soup a lovely amber colour at the end (if your run out of wine, simply use the stock).
5. After repeating the deglazing process 8 times add in the remainder of your stock (it should at least cover the potatoes, if not simply top off with water) and allow to simmer till the potatoes are soft and tender. 
6. Now take a hand blender and blend your soup until smooth, then continue to simmer for another 20 minutes ( if you do not have a hand blender, place small amounts at a time into your blender. If you don't have a blender either, simply use your hand mashers and roughly mush the potatoes.) 
7. Melt 2 tsp of butter, season with salt and pepper then add 2 tsp of oil. Place into a bowl and use for your potato slices you're about to cut. 
8. Take the remaining potato and cut into thin as possible slices and place the slices into the seasoned melted butter. 
9. Get a oven tray and line with one layer of silicon paper. Place your potato slices onto the paper taking three slices and laying them down so that they over lap each other slightly. 
10. Place another layer of silicon paper over the top and then another baking tray on top to press them down. Place into oven and bake until golden brown on the bottom. Remove and take off the paper to use as a garnish in the soup when serving. 
11. After your soup has been simmering for 20 minutes and you would like to add some cream, now is the time. Add the 50 ml of cream and stir, allow to simmer for 5 more minutes and then your soup is ready to serve. 
12. Garnish with some chive, spring onions or even some fresh herbs. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

When you work with some recipes you might notice that they sometimes tell you to bring your sugar to a soft ball stage for an Italian Meringue, or a Hard Crack stage for dipping fruit in to give it a glistening coat of sugar. Yet sometimes they don't include the temperatures to which you need to boil the sugar to in order to getit to that stage. Well now all you need to do is refer back to my website. This information will be available under Culinary Glossary & Ingredients and then Sugar. This will also give you a few uses for some of the different stages of boiling, so if you would like to play around making sugar Angel Hair, now you know to which temperature you need to take your sugar. Also just remember when you work with sugar it retains heat very well and will continue to cook even once its been removed from the heat, so you have to anticipate a minute ahead of time, or place it on a cold surface straight away other wise it will over cook. 
Please be very careful when working with sugar, its not nice having a lump of blistering hot sugar fall on you! 

Boiling Stages

1. Strong Thread: 104°C - Glaze for sugared fruits.
   
2. Blow: 110°C (‘Physical test’ - Twist wire into a loop shape, dip into solution, blow, long bubble will appear)
3. Soft Ball: 116°C (‘Physical test’ – Dip teaspoon into cold water, then into boiling syrup, remove a little bit of sugar syrup, return to cold water, form a softball.)
4. Hard Ball: 128°C (‘Physical test’ - Same as soft ball however sugar will form a hard ball)
5. Soft Crack: 138°C (‘Physical test’ – Sugar will slightly crack once cooled)
6. Crack: 145°C (‘Physical test’ – Sugar will break cleanly once cooled) Uses: Sugar Ribbons, Blowing Sugar, Spun Sugar.
7. Hard Crack:  149°C (‘Physical test' – Sugar will break cleanly if bitten between teeth and should not adhere to them if correctly cooked) Uses: Pulled Sugar, Rock Sugar, Straw Sugar and Fruit Glaze.
8. Caramel:  175°C - Changes colour to caramel.
9. Black Jack: 179° C - Sugar is burnt

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

So this is another one of my own inventions, and I had to bake about 8 breads before I got all my ingredient percentages right in order to get the desired consistency in my final product. All the Rye breads I've bought all seemed to be the same, they were all very heavy and dense. I personally don't like having rye bread like that, I would have preferred it to be a bit more aerated with a nice crisp crust. So I took it upon myself to make the kind of rye bread I would enjoy having. But lets first talk a bit about the main things that make rye flour different to that of normal white flour. The two main components which jump out to me is the flavour profile as well as the significantly lower gluten content. The flavour of rye flour is much more prominent than that of white flour, thus rye seeds are also used to make whisky, vodka and even beers. The significantly reduced amount of gluten has a huge effect on the elasticity of the dough, it doesn't allow stretching and instead breaks.  You will see when working with rye flour it resembles something more to that of a thick paste than dough. This makes it difficult to work with when your making your bread. Unlike when using white flour where the dough becomes stretched and strengthens when you knead it, rye flour simply does not strengthens at all. This causes a lot of people to add loads of white flour when they make their rye bread, which changes the ratios completely, meaning they won't get what the recipe intended at the end product. Making bread is a science, so when you make this recipe keep in mind not to add loads of white flour, simply combine all your ingredients as directed in the method and work it till everything is well incorporated. 

Another very important aspect to remember when baking bread and intending to increase the volume of bread is that you can't just simply double or triple all the ingredients. Each ingredient is given a percentage of the complete dough, and to ensure you get what the recipe intended you need to adhere to those percentages. If you just double or triple the ingredients, you will not have the correct consistency. This will leave you with a dough that is either over hydrated or under hydrated, and in return you will add more or less flour than what was intended. You will have noticed that in the final product your dough is very dense, is not well aerated or is even under baked because of this. 

I will be posting 2 pictures of examples where I increased the original recipe to 3.6kg. If you do not understand what I have done to get the new amounts simply leave a comment and I will be glad to help you out. I will discuss this topic at length on one of my other posts in the near future. In this recipe I've made use of a Poolish method (which is a loose preferment) to gain two different advantages from it, this being increased flavour and  gluten development. When you make a preferment, you allow for the yeast and the flour to create a more intense flavour profile. I have also used a small amount of whole wheat flour in the recipe, and made use of the little amount of gluten in there to create some sort of a stretch in the final dough, thus by using it in the preferment I'm allow it to form gluten. 
Note: The ingredients used in the Poolish method are not extra but instead are from the overall ingredients. Please don't use separate ingredient for the Poolish method.

Ingredients 
Overall amount 

• 300g Rye (75%)
• 100g W/w Flour (25%)
• 100g Rolled Oats (25%)
• 400g Water (100%)
• 12g Salt (3%)
• 40g Sugar (10%)
• 10g Dry Instant Yeast (2.5%)

Poolish Method (these amount are to be taken from the overall amount)

• 100g Rye (33.33%)
• 100g W/w Flour (100%)
• 100g Rolled Oats (100%)
• 300g Water (75%)
• 4g Yeast (40%)

Poolish Method 

1. Place the yeast into a medium to large container and add the 300g of water (the water should be between 34-42˚C) and allow to bloom for a minute.
   
2. Now add in your oats and two flours, mix well till totally incorporated and then allow to ferment for 12 hour or over night in a dark warm place. 

Method

1. Once your preferment is ready, place your salt and sugar in a mixing bowl first, then your flour and water, and then yeast ( never place the yeast straight onto the salt or sugar). 
2. Mix till most of the flour is incorporated and next add all of your preferment.
3.  If you're using a mixer, turn the speed up to medium and allow to mix for 2 minutes and then scrape down the sides and mix for another 3 minutes. 
4. If you kneading by hand, you will notice it is very sticky and does not come together like normal dough. Don't worry just continue kneading till all the ingredients are well incorporated ( this should take about 8-12 minutes).
5. Now place the dough into a air tight container or simply wrap with plastic and allow to bulk ferment for 1 hour in a dark warm place. 
6. After the hour has passed dust a bit of flour over the top and simply degas it by knocking it down in the bowl. Allow to ferment(proof) for another hour. 
7. In the mean time you can pre-heat your oven to 190˚C
   
8. Now that the bulk proofing is complete, remove your dough and place on a well floured station. Simply fold the dough onto itself once or twice and then form into a rectangle that will fit into you baking tin. 
9. Brush you baking tin with either butter or oil, and then place dough inside and allow to final proof for 45-60 minutes (remember to cover the dough with a lose plastic sheet).
10. Once final proofing is done drop 3 ice cubes in the bottom of your oven and place your bread in the oven. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. It should have a lovely dark golden top when complete. 
11. Remove and allow to cool down for 30 minutes. 

Enjoy with a bit of salted butter.  


Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This sauce can be made and used with many different proteins or stir-fry dishes. It's a very simple and easy recipe to follow, and can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks (ensuring the container which is being used is properly sterilised).

For the wine I used a good quality Merlot, it has a lower tannin count than other more full bodied red wines such as Cabernet or Sauvignon. The tannin in wines are what give the wine the bitter and woody puckering sensation. With less tannin in the Merlot, it allows for the fruity essence of the wine to be more present, making it perfect for the sauce. 

Ingredients 

• 12 Ripe Plums (skin and seeds removed)
• 2 Granny Smith Apples or any dessert apple (peeled and cored)
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• Juice of one Orange
• 1-3 tbs Sugar (Depending on the sweetness of the plums and apples add sugar accordingly)
  
• 200 ml Water 
  
• 20 ml Red Wine (fruity wine works best - optional)  

Method 

1. Place a medium to large sauce pan on a high heat and allow to heat up, once hot add in your wine if you chose to add the wine (this just burns off some of the alcohol).
2. Add your peeled and cored apples as well as your peeled and pitted plums which you have cut into medium size pieces. 
3. Allow to cook in the wine till it becomes some what sticky.
4. Add your sugar, lemon juice, orange juice and salt, and allow to reduce once more to a stick consistency. 
5. Next add your 200 ml of water and turn the heat down to a simmer. Once the apples are soft place mixture into blender (or simply use a hand blender) and blend until smooth. 
6. To ensure there are no impurities, pass through a sieve once and place back into the pot and onto a medium heat ( unless you are happy with the consistency).
7. Allow to reduce down till it coats the back of a spoon and is at a correct sauce consistency.  
8. Allow to cool before placing into storing containers and then place into fridge until needed. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This is a simple, quick and easy recipe to follow. It's healthy and packed with lean protein. This is something I would personally cook for myself when at home as it tastes amazing. I will also be posting the recipe for the plum sauce tomorrow or later this evening. This recipe is suitable for one portion, simply double or triple it accordingly. 



 Ingredients

• Ostrich Fillet (serving size should be 250g)
• 6 Baby Carrots
• 8 Sugar Snaps (fresh peas in the pod)
• 3 Baby Radishes (cut into 1⁄2)
• 6 Button Mushrooms
• 2 tbs Plum Sauce ( you can get it at the convenience store, but if you'd like a recipe for plum sauce just let me know)
• 2 tsp Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice

Method

1. Place a big pot of water on a high heat with 3 tbs salt. Once it starts to boil add in your vegetables and boil till ready (a sharp knife should be able to cut into it and slip out when taking it out, rather under cook it a bit than over cooking it). Once ready to be taken out, place into a big bowl with iced water to stop the cooking.
2. Place the plum sauce, soy sauce and lemon juice into a small sauce pan and heat until plum sauce melts, give sauce a good whisk and keep on low heat.
3. Place a pan onto a high heat and pre-heat your oven to 200˚C.
   
4. Place a small amount of oil into the pan, season your ostrich fillet with salt and pepper and allow the pan to heat up until it starts to smoke.
5. Once pan is smoking place your ostrich fillet into the pan and allow to cook for 3-4 minutes on each side (only turn once and don't mess with it too much when it's in the pan).
6. Once its been in the pan for 7 minutes (3.5 minutes on each side) transfer into the pre-heated oven for 4 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and brush on the plum sauce and allow to rest for 3 minutes.
8. While the meat is resting, using the same pan used for the searing of the ostrich, place a bit of oil in the pan and a small cube of butter. Allow to heat up and then add in your vegetables so they can heat up again and get some colour. Season vegetables with salt and pepper.
9. When plating the meal, pour a bit of the plum sauce over the ostrich.

www.chefdewet.co.za 
Twitter: @ChefDewetV 


Edited by: Monique Boaventura

Akita Komachi Rice:
This is one of two Japonica medium-grain rice, which is favoured for making sushi and other dishes which include sticky rice. It is not only cultivated in Japan, but also in California, and many other American States.  

Arborio Rice:
Arborio rice was named after the town in Italy where it is grown. Arborio is located in the Po Valley. This round-grain medium length rice is actually more of a tan colour than pure white, it also has a distinctive white dot in the center  of the grain. This grain has the ability to absorb great amounts of liquid and in doing so can take on loads of flavour. Once cooked it has a creamy texture (this is due to its high starch content) with a chewy center (al dente) and is mostly used for risotto.  I was told by my Chef at College that a good risotto should not take more or less than 20 minutes. 

Baldo Rice:
Baldo rice is a rice which was created by crossing Arborio rice and the Stripe 136 rice variety. This made Baldo rice high in starch (which made it stickier than most other rice varieties used for risotto) and allowed it to cook faster and keep its plump shape at high cooking temperatures. These characteristics made it popular amongst chefs, using it instead of the traditional Arborio. It is also the favourite rice used in Turkish Cuisine, included in risotto like dishes, and can also be used in other applications. 

It is also of the Japonica variety, and is classified as a super fine rice. 

It is mainly grown in Turkey, Italy as well as Vietnam 

Basmati Rice:
This centuries old long-grain, slender rice has been cultivated at the foot of the Himalayas in Pakistan and India. The word Basmati in Hindi when literally translated means "pearl of scents" or "queen of scents" due to its aromatic aroma when cooked. This rice is non-glutinous and separates once cooked. When cooked it also only swells length wise. It has been exported to Arab countries for centuries, where it is used in rich aromatic dishes. 

When cooking this rice the ratio of rice to water is 1 part rice 2 parts water. 

Always wash off the rice, then place on a high heat with the water. Once it starts to boil, time it for 5 minutes then cover with tight fitting lid and turn off the heat completely. Leave covered for 20 minutes and have perfect rice every time. 

Bhutanese Red Rice:
This beautiful rusty brown red coloured rice is also grown in the Himalayas, but it is grown 8,000 feet above sea level ( 2438.4 meters). The name is some what named ofter the place where it is cultivated, which is the Himalaya Kingdom of Bhudan. It is said that the rice is irrigated (watered) by a 1,000 year old glacier which is rich in trace minerals, which gives it its earthy and nutty flavour. Once cooked, it has a soft texture and has a slightly pinker appearance. Bhatanese red rice is the staple of the Kingdom. 

Black Rice (Forbidden rice):
The term forbidden rice comes from when the Chinese Emperors were the only ones allowed to consume this unique black rice. It is a non-glutinous rice unlike other varieties from Asia. It has a deep nutty taste as well as hints of chocolate in it, making this the perfect rice to cook on valentines day. This rice is not just special because of its black appearance when raw and deep purple appearance once cooked but because it is high in fiber, amino acids as well as vitamins and minerals such as magnesium, potassium and iron. 

Research has also shown that it benefits your eyes, kidneys, spleen and stomach. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

So what can you expect from me Chef Dewet in 2014.  

Well I'm not sure if I have mentioned that I'm heading to Kuwait to go work there, but my visa has just recently arrived (supper excited about it) and the first 2 months I wont be able to post as frequently as I'm used too. 

But with that being said, I'm now going on a totally new culinary Journey where I'll be learning a lot more from the Local Kuwait cuisine, as well as my favourite cuisine, Japanese. 

I will be working for a Japanese restaurant in Kuwait (unfortunately I can not tell you guys the name of the restaurant)  and I'll be starting at the bottom, working my way up. In my opinion this is the best way to learn a cuisine, from the roots all the way to the highest branch. At this restaurant I will get to learn how to prepare sushi as well as other traditional Japanese dishes. So with my surroundings inspiring my recipes I post and the articles I write, you can expect more Japanese style recipes. 

But I also believe in learning about the country I'm staying in and exploring their local cuisine, so I will also definitely be posting authentic Kuwaiti recipes on my website. 

I'm also looking at posting video blogs where I can actually show you how I prepare the complete recipe, as I know a lot of people are visual learners. 

So that's what you can expect from me in a nut shell.

I am planning on posting at least once a week, which will be on my off days, and as I get back into a normal routine I'll start posting more per week! But the quality of my posts will be maintained and I will not slack on that! 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura