Pomelo The Chinese Grapefruit

The skin of the Pomelo was very pithy

We fell upon this huge fruit in the supermarket in Uzes.  It is a Pomelo or Chinese Grapefruit.  The fruit was fairly dry i.e. not as juicy as expected, and was extremely mild when eaten fresh.  A hint of sweetness, a hint of sourness.  Nothing like we have ever tried before.  The apple is just for size comparison.

I used it in the making of a sauce which resulted in an extremely bitter, grapefruit like flavour once cooked.  Very interesting change!

This fruit was used with our quail dish sauce to give it some bite but did not add the right flavour.  People that prefer a sour tasting type meal would perhaps like the combination of this.  We found that with the rather strong quail meat it was a very different dish to that our palettes are used to.

What is the most exotic fruit that you have stumbled upon in your local supermarket?

 

Oysters and Other ShellFish – A French Love Affair

Grau-du-Roi (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This Sunday we were invited to friends in Castillon du Gard where we were presented with a surprise ‘Sunday Dinner’ – Oysters, Bulots, Shrimp and Salmon.  As only 3 of us were eating Oysters and it appeared we had a lot to devour.  They were milky and nutty and tasty.

The French love their seafood! So much so that here some one and a half hours from the sea we have a Seafood Restaurant nestled in the vines in St Hilaire d’Ozilhan.  The restaurant is called ‘Les Huitres et Les Vignes’ with visitors from all around the world including as far away as Japan.  http://www.lhuitreetlavigne.com/index.php/fr/  – In fact this is where our platter came from.  If you want to eat there in the summer you have to book, well in advance.   It is a beautiful idyllic restaurant nestled in the Cote du Rhone vines just off the A9 motorway (exit Remoulin).

We have never been fans of the Shellfish platter but have come to eat the odd oyster and suffered various evenings involving all kinds of molluscs.  The most delicate and tasty that we really said yes to a 2nd helping were the ‘Couteau’ or Razor Clams which we had at the beach in Grau du Roi last summer.   Delicate and very flavoursome.  We will go back for more this year!

 

Paper Wrapped Baked Leg of Lamb with Garlic, Lemon & Rosemary

This leg of lamb which was made for our New Years Eve buffet was much appreciated.  It ss pierced with a sharp knife so slivers of garlic can be inserted into the flesh.  It is then rubbed in salt, smothered in real butter and then doused in lemon juice.  A couple of sprigs of rosemary are then added along with slices of fresh lemon and it is left to rest a moment.

The next step is to wrap the lamb with baking paper and tie it up with string (my military cable looming and lacing training came in handy here) sealing it in completely.

Bake it in the oven at 150 degrees for 2.5 – 3 hours.  There is a choice between rosy or well-done (we prefer the latter in this case).

Take it from the oven and let it settle for 15 minutes.  When you open the wrapping you will have a succulent, tender very tasty Lemony Garlic Lamb that deserves to be accompnied by some delicious fresh greens and a full bodied red wine such as a Spanish Rioja.  ENJOY!

Back to The Future For Olive Oil – Are You Really a Vigin?

We are entering the Olive Frenzy in the region, it is quite an important moment in the life of this little fruit.  This week and next week we will visit the Olive Museum in Margueritte (Nimes) and other local Mills that have an open-door viewing event.  We are looking forward to discovering why there is a new emergence of the old practice of Stone Milling that appears to be replacing the Centrifuge equipment – Back to the Future for Olives.

Other issues surrounding Rules and Regulations are discussed at this time of year.  It is interesting that the labeling of Olive Oil is fairly ambiguous with lots of ‘unenforced’ criteria e.g. If you use a Centrifuge you cannot claim ‘Cold Pressed’ only ‘Cold Extracted’ – Cold Pressed is reserved for Olive Oil extracted by hydraulic means which makes sense n’est ce pas?   Most modern Olive Mills use Centrifuge equipment and are far from the old image of a ‘Grindstone Mill’ that used Donkey or Water power to turn the cogs; they look much more like a pharmaceutical laboratory set-up than anything else.  There is also new European Legislation on Olive Oil quality, provenance and labeling matters this is pertinent in light of the massive fraud from Italy, Spain and other Olive Oil producing nations.  We also see the Chinese now entering the fray so we all believe that this is a good idea to ensure the proper future of this industry.

Here is another issue in the market:  Pommace based Olive Oil ( Pommace Olive Oil Explained ) is not and cannot be offered as ‘real’ Olive Oil, or even called Olive Oil and especially NOT at all as Extra Virgin!  However you will be surprised how this is being ignored!  The French organisation for all these regulatory matters is yet another wonderful French Acronym (There is a lot of those here!) named AFIDOL (Association Francaise Interprofessionelle de l’Olive).  They control this market sector and are a fairly well organised group that ensures all the mechanisms are in place for the Mills in France to have the testing and accreditation made available.  As many in the industry know there is a Chemical and Sensory test that you can have done on all types of Olive Oils and this is something we recommend that you understand with respect to the claims of ‘Extra Virgin Olive Oil’ in your market-place.  Not all Olive Oil is Premium or Extra Virgin.  We have had 4 brands removed from the supermarket shelves here after and independent consumer magazine did a market review and test.   Big Brands flaunting the law – Who would imagine!

Our latest Olive Oil Bottle is Sexy, Elegant and Lovely to Touch

Our latest Olive Oil bottle is beautiful!   When filled with the greeny-golden liquid of the Noire des Garrigues, Picholine or Vert de Garrigues varieties of Olive Oil the bottle’s design comes to life.  A little ‘Art Nouveau‘ in style, it is sexy, slim, smooth and tactile.   It’s shape is also reminiscent of the Olive.   We have started selling them on the www.artofoils.com website where they fit exquisitely alongside the other bottles in the line-up.