Did you visit a market this weekend? What did you buy?

Links:

Victorian Farmers Markets – find your closest accredited farmers market.

King Valley Free Range Pork

At the Collingwood Farmers’ Market yesterday I bought some duck, basically on a whim, from Milawa Chicken. I was remembering the gorgeous lightly smoked confit duck salad I’d had a Gerald’s a few weeks ago, and also I was looking for a filling for some dumplings to stock up the freezer.

The two plump breasts (about 500g) were just beautiful, firm in texture and a lovely colour.

I trimmed them a little bit, but not much, rinsed them and dried them well then with a sharp knife I scored through the skin and fat so that you could see the meat underneath.

Spice rub

• 1 tsp star anise
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt.

I started breaking these down in my mortar and pestle and finished them off in a spice grinder.  Rub the mix into the cuts and the underside of the fillet. Then I placed them on a rack in an open container in the fridge for a few hours while I went off to the movies.  The flavour will infuse in this time and the skin will dry out a bit.

So now I need to set up my wok as a smoker.  Line it with a double layer of foil and tip in ½ cup of my tea smoking mix.  Put the wok on a medium heat and in 5 – 7 mins smoke will start to form.  Brush most of the rub off the duck (I forgot to do this, which is why my duck looks so dark) Place the duck in a steamer (you can see I’ve used a clean Chux underneath it) and pop on the lid.  Smoke for 7 mins.

I’ve been asked about smoking inside: I smoked this duck, and the tomatoes previously in my small kitchen with the door open and the extractor fan on full.   The smoke seems to just curl around the food, it doesn’t go up in a plume, so it seems quite contained.  Although the rest of the house faintly smelled of smoke for a few hours afterward, it doesn’t smell like it now, a day after.

Pre-heat a heavy fry pan, and when the duck is smoked – pop it into a hot frypan, skin side down, and turn the heat to medium.  After 6 mins turn it over and cook for a further five.  Test the duck  by poking it – or using a meat thermometer.  I think duck should be served quite rare.  Let it rest.

Dressing

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of Chinese cooking wine
• dash of sesame oil
• dozen pitted cherries chopped in half.

While the duck is resting, pour out the rendered fat from the fry pan and wipe with paper towel.  Toss in the cherries and  half of the dressing.  Season with pepper.

Slice the duck diagonally across, serve with salad (I used cabbage, cucumber, watercress and fried noodles) add cherries and dress with reserved dressing.

**Thanks for the inspiration Mario

This week, as I was leaving the Collingwood Farmers’ Market, I spied an interesting sign promising vanilla pods from Papua New Guinea.

Turns out it was a fundraiser for a small community off the coast of PNG which is being forced to move off their coral atoll, Carteret.  This atoll is about 80km from the coast off Bougainville, a larger island off the coast of PNG.  Carteret atoll has been submerging for the last few decades.

So their taro swamp is salty, their land is being eroded and the living conditions are such that an evacuation of the atoll is underway.  As they move to the mainland however, they find themselves without a source of income, or food. The elders of the community have set up an organisation called Tulele Peisa or “sailing the winds together” to help and support these villagers.

A group of villagers on a near by island grow vanilla orchids in their yards. With the help of the Australian Conservation Foundation, with sales facilitated by Friends of the Earth, and stall space from the Farmers’ Markets, this sustainably produced vanilla is being brought direct “to market” to support this organisation.

The pods aren’t as soft as some of the very expensive ones I’ve bought – but at $10 a bag – which in my case contained 10 long straight pods, and another 5 that were shorter of curlier, you can’t argue with the value.  I made a poaching syrup today with the pods and they smell quite delicious.  And I feel very ‘rich” with so many to use! (and a little bit virtuous).

The pods will be on sale again and Gasworks Farmers’ Market next week, and if there are any left, you might see them at the Twilight Xmas markets. A real case of buying when you see it at the farmers’ markets as it might not be around long.

If you’d like to donate to the cause you can do so via Friends of the Earth – or look out for some of this fabulous vanilla.

Anorak, scarf, produce bags and carry bags – CHECK!

It got a bit muddy as they morning progressed, but it was heartening to see the line up of folk waiting when I got there just before 8:00 am, and a bit frightening to see the guy in front of my wearing no shoes, at all.

Here’s a list of what I brought home with me (an anti-shopping list if you will)

• 5 large beetroot
• 3 small leeks from Sarah.
• 1 large bunch of Trevor’s rhubarb
• 6 Mildura Oranges
• 1 kg of “Easy Peel” chestnuts
• 1 punnet of SunnyRidge Strawberries
• 1 bag of Bellengen organics loose garlic cloves
• a Slice of Holy Goat La Luna ring from Anne Marie
• Bunch of Parsley and bunch of bay leaves from Jill and Andrew
• Bag of chicken frames and 500g Chicken thighs from Milawa Chicken
• 1 litre of milk, 250ml cream, and 500ml yogurt from Schulz Organic Milk
• 12 Champion variety quinces from John “The Quince Man”, to celebrate the end of the quinces. I do hope we see John and his quinces next year, these were the best I’ve ever eaten.

Now to feed myself for the next week.

I’ve roasted the beetroot and skinned them.  They are sitting in the fridge.

• Beetroot, walnut and goat’s cheese salad
• Part of a steak sandwich (maybe – do I have steak anywhere?)
• Perhaps some Borsch?
• Beetroot and chocolate muffins maybe?

Chicken

• Frames and parsley wil go into stock.
• Thighs will become chicken soup (with the stock) and chicken and noodles.

Rhubarb will go into a breakfast crumble with some of the berries I have in the freezer, to be eaten with some lovely Schulz’s Yogurt for breakfast on these chilly mornings.

Chestnuts, having proven themselves to be truly “easy peel” were

• roasted and eaten with a bit of salt
• Sauteed with some Gypsy Pig streaky bacon and some Brussels Sprouts to have with soup for dinner
• Will be roasted for 20 mins at 200º and peeled, then frozen for further adventures.

The strawberries will be eaten with the cream over the next 3 nights as dessert.  It doesn’t do to try to keep the strawbs this time of year, I’m just happy to see them, and smell them. Forgot to ask what variety these are, last market they were Albions.

I’ll make some chicken soup with the Milawa chicken frames, and thighs, Sarah’s leeks and Jill and Andrew’s parsley (the stalks into the stock pot along with their fresh bay leaves)

The oranges will come to work with me to starve off office colds and afternoon snacks.

The quinces will get poached for 4 – 6 hours at 140º in a light sugar syrup with a star anise, some vanilla and a bay leaf.  These will then keep until next week to top porridge and have warm for dessert maybe?

The garlic and the milk will just get used during the week.

What would you make with my haul?  What did you buy this week that looked great!