This was a brilliant Christmas present from The Girl. A signed copy, too. One of the most satisfying things in life is coming up with the idea for a brand new recipe- which you've completely invented yourself; no cookery books used ('onest Guv'), and then discovering that it works; or at least that your guests clamour for a second helping.
If you're in the mood for invention, simplicity is the way forward. If you then log on to the internet and find out that others out there have come up with the same idea, not to worry; there's a good chance that the flavours you've come up with well, work- and that's why someone's been there before you.
And that's why Niki Segnit's "The Flavour Thesaurus" is such an inspiring book. It lists various foods in an alphabetical order, and then suggests suitable flavour combinations. This is creative stuff.
I looked up "chicken": I had a very boring packet of mass-produced chicken thighs (which said "Sainsbury's" all over) and wanted to do something different with it.
The Thesaurus suggested "pear" as an interesting combination. So I chopped up an onion and sautéed it until soft, added some smoked bacon lardons, and fried the chicken thighs (sprinkled with seasoned white flour) until golden brown. I poured in some decent stock and a generous slug of a dryish white wine: bubbled off the alcohol, and then added the pears, which had I had previously peeled and sliced. The dish was finished off with fresh thyme (with the leaves pulled off the stalk).
The flavours worked well: chicken, bacon, pear and aromatic thyme. But The Girl thought that there was something missing, and I think she was probably spot on. Although I''m not exactly sure what? The dish, I have to confess, was slightly anemic to look at. A trifle bland; at least visually, though perhaps not in taste? Maybe it needed more colour? Tomatoes? Not sure about that one. What do you reckon? Any ideas?
