Salt

Posted on 2017-08-20

Salt recipes

Over the years, I’ve developed a bit of an obsession with salt. Ever since my shoot at Læsø Salt, I’ve been testing recipes, using salt as a main part of the dish. Wether it be preserving, a cooking technique or just adding a salty flavour to the food. The whole thing has been quite an experience, entering the world of recipe writing! I’ve been fortunate enough to have my salt recipes published in the current summer issue of NORD magazine along with my article about Læsø Salt Works.

Below follows the unedited version of the article, and over the next few weeks, I’ll share a series of blog posts, with my salty recipes:

BLACBERRY GRAV LAX
ZINGY MARGARITA & PINK GRAPEFRUIT MARGARITA
SALT & VINEGAR POTATOSKINS WITH TAHINI, SOUR CREAM DIP
PORK BELLY IN BRINE WITH CRISPY CRACKLING
SALT DOUGH LEG OF LAMB
SALTED CHOCOLATE AND CARAMEL TART(S)
GOLDEN PAVLOVA WITH SUMMER BERRIES AND SALTED CHOCOLATE SAUCE
SALTED CARAMEL ICE CREAM (you’re gonna wanna check back for this one…)

Cooking with Salt

COOKING WITH SALT
Salt has been used for cooking for thousands of years, in many cultures around the globe. Before the invention of the refrigerator, salt has been one of the most important preservation methods of meat and fish and as one of the 5 main flavors (sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami), salt is an important and recognizable part of our daily life when it comes to cooking.

The modern day’s introduction of ready-made foods and fast food has given salt a really bad reputation. However, there are many ways to utilize the salt’s good qualities in the kitchen to preserve, slowcook or give untraditional taste in the sweet kitchen.

Laesoe Saltsyderi

A TRULY IDYLLIC PLACE!
We are on the island of Læsø in Denmark. Læsø is a small island in Kattegat, just off the east coast of the peninsula Jutland, Denmark. Half an hour sailing from Frederikshavn you will find this idyllic island, also called the gem of Kattegat. When you leave the ferry (or almost already when boarding) you know that you are on island time. It is quite a wind blown place but also peacefull. It is filled with nostalgia and the passing days of old Danish fishermen and village charm. This is really the outskirts of Denmark, but if you feel stressed, you’ve come to the right place: Here you can relax!

The island has a fantastic and unique nature and you will find the beauty in the little things. The island is known for its scampi festival in August and the cute timbered houses with seeweed roofs.

On the edge of a pine forest, south of Byrum, bordering the open part of the truly windy parts of Læsø lies Læsø Saltworks. It is both a place where they make Læsø Salt, but also a tourist attraction that in a very gripping way, tells the story of life on Læsø in the past and gives a living sight of how to make salt.

The salt they make here more than measures up to some of the world’s leading salt brands and I would venture to say it’s something very special. Due to the high concentration of salt in the sea around Læsø (up to 14%, against normal 2-3%), the sea salt has been harvested on Læsø since the Middle Ages, but later died due to shortage of fire wood and sand drift.

Back in 1990, when archaeologists began studying the history of Læsø, the idea of salt seething on Læsø was revived with the discoveries made by the archaeologists. Today the salt is made according to the old traditions and recipes.

Entering the seething room, it’s warm, humid and dark. The only light is a lamp over the huge seething pan, as well as a bit of daylight flowing under the grassy roof and the open doorway. It’s almost like going straight back into the Middle Ages. This is how the seethery looks. It is designed from archaeologists’ findings of the original salt works, which lay here hundreds of years ago. Saltwater is taken from wells, dug into the lowest parts of southern Læsø and in the saltworks the water is set to evaporate in large pans over open fire. The big pans look like a huge bathtub, with steamy water, as you imagine it would look like in a movie about the wild Northmen from the 16th century.

When the salt layer is saturated, the salt crystals are formed on the surface and poured into baskets where the residual water runs off before the salt is added to drying on the drying ceiling. The salt is handmade with respect for nature’s surroundings on the island, and they also give a demonstration of how to sethe salt yourself.

All by-products of the process are used for the Læsø Salt Care skin care series and are excellent treatment for people with dry skin or psoriasis. The salt retains many of its natural minerals such as calcium and magnesium and has a rich flavour. It is porous enough to crush between two fingers. Læsø Salt is the preservation of a lost art and pride and a tasty and beautiful product that is good for many types of cooking, not just to sprinkle over an egg. A visit here inspires a desire to retrieve cooking methods of a bygone era using salt dough for long-term cooking and cure salmon in a new way, as well as exploring salt in the sweet kitchen. One of nature’s most exciting taste contradictions with a lingering selection of salty sweet sensations. From irresistible caramel ice cream to decadent chocolate tart and sweet pavlova, it’s hard to resist this winning combination.

You can check out more of my images from Læsø Salt Works here. And read more about what else to do on Læsø, here & here

Orphans Kitchen

Posted on 2016-11-24

Dish Magazine #58

Having shot two editorials of Orphans Kitchen, been there to eat a few times, and also recently went to a ConversatioNZ talk by Tom Hishon, chef and co-owner, I thought it’s probably time to share this fabulous eatery on my blog.

Orphans Kitchen opened in 2014, named as a tribute to their London kitchen where all their “orphan” expat friends would gather for dinner during the holidays, Tom Hishon and Josh Helm was quick to find their niche on the competitive Auckland dining scene, and have had great success.

With bees on the roof and a love for locally sourced, organic and sustainable produce the eatery is at the front of the worldwide trend of local, honest ingredients, foraging and anything homemade and wholesome. If you haven’t been, GO!

Here Tom shares a couple of his recipes from the restaurant…

Dish Magazine #58 Homestyle Magazine #60

ROAST PORK FILLET
Serves 6

zest of two lemons
2 long sprigs of rosemary
pork scotch fillets, trimmed (300g of pork per person)
flaky sea salt
grapeseed oil
3 cloves of garlic
100g butter

Zest the lemons, chop the rosemary, then massage into the fillets. Leave overnight on a covered tray. Take out of the fridge one hour before cooking and bring to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 140°C. Heavily season the fillets with flaky salt. Heat a cast iron pan to a high heat, and add enough grapeseed oil to make a shallow pool in the bottom of the pan. Add the fillets and heavily colour by rolling. Add the butter and garlic and continue cooking in
the foaming butter.

Once you have achieved a very heavy crust, place the meat on a wire rack. Put the rack on top of an oven tray and into the oven, rotating every 20 minutes. At the 60 minute mark the meat should be well roasted through and ready to serve. If you are not confident it is ready, insert a metal skewer in the centre, pull out and make sure the juices are running clear.

Homestyle Magazine #60

SWEDE & CARROT MASH
Serves 4-6

2-3 large swedes, peeled
4 carrots, peeled
3 tbsp olive oil
flaky sea salt
fresh thyme
50g honey
50g honeycomb
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cut the swedes and carrots into chunks and toss with olive oil, a good pinch of sea salt and the thyme. Put into a roasting tray, cover tightly, and roast for an hour and a half, or until very soft. Pour off residual juices, coarsely mash with the honey and season to taste. Top with honeycomb and drizzle with olive oil to serve.

BREAD & BUTTER PUDDING
Serves 6

800ml milk
200ml cream
1 vanilla bean, sliced length-ways
5 sprigs fresh thyme
100g dried currants
90ml Olorosso sherry
60ml water
1 loaf brioche
100g butter
fresh nutmeg
2 pears
zest of half an orange
1 tbsp honey

CUSTARD
1 whole egg
7 egg yolks
100g caster sugar
100g honey

Preheat the oven to 180°C. In a saucepan combine milk, cream, vanilla bean and 2 sprigs of thyme. Bring to a simmer while stirring with a wooden spoon.

Next, make the custard. In a large bowl, whisk the whole egg and yolks together with the sugar and honey until a creamy white texture is achieved. Pour the heated milk mixture over the beaten honey and eggs, while stirring to incorporate.

Place currants in a small saucepan with 60ml of sherry and 60ml of water. Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid then take o the heat until they plump up. Cut the brioche into 2cm slices and butter each side with half the butter. Finely grate nutmeg over the buttered brioche.

Assemble in small ovenproof bowls, layering the brioche with the crusts sticking out. Pour the custard over the top, sprinkle with currants and leave to sit for half an hour.

Place the bowls into a deep oven tray and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of them. Carefully place the tray in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.

While the puddings are cooking, peel and cut pears into 6-8 wedges, removing the cores. In a non-stick pan, add the remaining butter, thyme sprigs and pear slices. Cook until golden brown, then add honey and remaining 30ml of sherry. Flame, then serve alongside the pudding.

Homestyle Magazine #60

ORPHAN OLD FASHIONED
Serves 2

120ml whisky (any will do, but we prefer to use a rye or a bourbon)
3 cloves
2 cinnamon quills
Angostura orange bitters
2 cubes or 2 level tsp sugar
orange rind

Steep 120ml of whisky overnight with 3 cloves and half a cinnamon quill.

Absorb Angostura in sugar (a cube of sugar on a napkin works best).

Muddle orange rind with sugar in a Boston or large glass.

Fill half a glass with ice and 60ml of whisky. Stir until sugar melts. Top with ice and add another 60ml of whisky. Stir again. Strain liquid from the ice. This can be made in advance. Pour half the liquid into a serving glass with a large block of ice, then squeeze orange rind into the drink to release the oils. Garnish and serve with more orange rind or a cinnamon quill. Drink responsibly.

A selection of these images has previously been published in Dish Magazine#58 and Homestyle Magazine#60. The recipes was also published in Homestyle Magazine #60.
Recipes © Tom Hishon, Orphans Kitchen

Parts of this story also features on my profile on Steller

Nordic Sea Salt

Posted on 2014-07-14

Læsø Saltsyderi

If you’ve worked with me in my studio, or just gotten to know me, while I’ve been in New Zealand, you might have been so lucky to recieve as a present, a cute little linnen bag, tied with a piece of string and filled with pourus sea salt crystals, along with an attempt from me to explain why this salt is awesome!

You might have thought: “Wow, how awesome can salt be?” or “I thought Maldon salt was supposed to be the awesome salt!” Well Maldon salt is awesome, and I know the “REAL” salt to use if you are a chef or a real foodie. But Maldon, move over, because here’s the story and the images to show, why I think Læsø Salt is more awesome.

As a visual person, I buy with my eyes (not everything and always, but often). A product has got to look good or sell me the idea of looking good. Well for starters Læsø Salt does just that. Just take a look at the place where they make it!
It is full of beautiful photo opportunities, and if my dad hadn’t been hanging around, waiting for me to finish “doing my thing”, I could have spent the whole day here. Although I think I got some pretty cool shots after all.

We are still on the island Læsø, as I wrote about the other day and the first visit on my itinerary of the day. At the edge of a pine forrest, south of the town Byrum, bordering the open plain of the the truly windblown parts of Læsø, lies Læsø Salt Works. It is both the place where they make Læsø Salt, but also a tourist attraction that tells a lot of the story on life on Læsø back in the day. Without making it too long and boring (the guides at Læsø Salt does not), I’ll try to explaing why this place, and the salt, is so special.

Due to the high concentration of salt in the sea around Læsø, the making of sea salt has been happeing on Læsø since the middel ages, but then since died out. Back in 1990 when archeoligists started looking into some of the history of Læsø, the idea of salt seething on Læsø was brought back to life using the discoveries the archeologists made. Today they seethe salt after the old traditions and recipes and make just enough to meet demands and keep Læsø Salt Works a healthy business.

The salty water is brought in from wells, dug in the lower parts of southern Læsø. In the Salt Works the water is set to evaporate over the fire. Once the brine is saturated, the salt crystals form on the surface and is scooped up into the baskets where residue water runs off, before the salt is set to dry in the drying addic.

The salt still retains a lot of the minerals and has a full-bodied flavour. It is porous enough to be perfect for crushing between two fingers before seasoning any dish. The salt is hand made and with respect for the nature sourroundings of the island. All biproducts of the seething is used for Læsø Salt Care scin care range and is excellent treatment for people with dry skin or pshoriasis. So apart from the oddness in bringing sea salt across the globe to New Zealand, Læsø Salt meets a lot of my criteria for many products that I buy. I like to support: My local community, the preservation of a lost art, AND pride and effort into making a tasty and beautiful product.

Read more about Læsø Salt Works in English here and in Danish here. Stay tuned for another awesome place to visit on Læsø, soon!

Curious Croppers

Posted on 2014-04-14

Curious Croppers

Sometime in the beginning of summer, I went to visit Angela & Anthony Tringham’s farm in Clevedon valley. Angela & Anthony are the Curious Croppers, a pair of ambitious and hardworking tomato and vegetable growers, with a passion for beautiful produce and delicioius meals.

I first met Angela & Anthony on an assignment to photograph their farm for Dish Magazine during summer of 2013, and totally fell in love with their incredible play house of a green house “gone wild”. This is where they experiment and grow all sorts of fantastic variants of tomatoes, and other veges, that you wouldn’t dream exsisted. Anthony sources seeds from all over the world, to test out in the play house, and see if there just might be market for something special here in New Zealand. There is! Curious Croppers supplies their top of the class tomatoes to many of the high end restaurants across the country, and you will often find them out and about, testing their produce on one of Aucklands trendy eateries.

You can find the Curious Croppers tomoatoes for your own cooking at the Clevedon Valley Farmers Market, and in Farro Fresh Supermarkets. Since my first visit, Angela & Anthony has probably become the biggest fans of my work, so this little post is a tribute to you guys. Thanks for all the love, and for filling my tummy with my all time favorite flavour: Tomatoes!