Leftovers #110
A Cornish grocery list, gochujang butter, what it means to be art struck, being sexy to someone
Things are moving forward and I’m checking things off my to-do list like making sure my friend can vote for me in the genny lec next week and replacing the punctured tyre on my bike and seeing all the people I love in the city and reading about things I should know more about and discussing important things and letting go of the not-so-important things.
I came home to a broken fridge and the process of clearing everything out was more cathartic than I expected. A new one arrived and I find myself walking into the kitchen just to open it and admire its newness, its sparsely stocked shelves, its potential to hold new meals and memories.
There has been chicken pie and mash on a heatwave Sunday (delicious) and biriyani on another heatwave day (delicious) and a roast chicken cooked in my friend’s kitchen (delicious) and crispy rice salads eaten on repeat in my armchair under the heat of the sun, the fan whirring, MUNA playing in the background. As ever, the last leftovers of the month is free for all subscribers, so enjoy!
This week’s menu
When friends ask me to cook somewhere that’s not my kitchen, I choose the path of least resistance: a roast chicken. With fries (from M&S, always) tossed in Trader Joe’s everything but the bagel seasoning, the chicken slathered with whipped gochujang butter and sat on top of a rack so all the fat collects in the tray where the fries get cooked. A little gem salad studded with pistachios (see recipe here) and a homemade aioli laced with gochujang, and the chicken juices poured into a bowl and topped with a spoonful of Lao Gon Ma.
Now that I have acquired the non-stick tortilla pan (I plan on using this exclusively for eggs), I will not stop making Spanish tortillas. It took me six months to find a recipe and method that works for me and there are lots of other versions, but I love this one for the breaking up of the potatoes in the egg mixture, which released the starch and salt, as well as gives the tortilla a slightly fuller texture in the middle!
Other things on my list to cook for the next week:
Heatwaves requires Eric Kim’s cold noodles with courgettes. Simple but effective.
An easy lentil salad laced with olives and almonds that would probably be a great BBQ side.
Ben Lippett’s grilled prawns with creamy avocado salad looks like an ideal Saturday lunch.
Very much into Gill Meller’s FLT (swap bacon for fish).
- ’s pasta with clams, something I’m planning on making for my first dinner in Cornwall.
Some wanderlust writing
Leaving
I wrote a piece about temporarily extracting myself from London (my friend Alex said I was soft launching my exit/quiet quitting the city… not not true).
The summer before the city was an attempt to return to something familiar. I had come back from a year living outside the lines and resumed what I knew: the shed, a job waitressing and cooking on wood fire, and the embers of a burnt out relationship. I performed the usual rituals: stable doors flung open, coffee on the hob, dishes done outside, a drive to the silken river, purity, the images of Monterey pines swooped over the water etched into the back of my head, cook, serve, eat, sleep. In between were whispers of him; never conversations, just a string of secrets kept behind the closed stable doors.
Art Struck
A little essay about art and what it means to me beyond the gallery walls and the elitist observations – for Mother Root to celebrate their limited edition labels created by two London-based artists!
Non-negotiable cooking tools
I’m heading to Cornwall for the summer and despite the fact that I’ll be doing a full swap, I can’t leave certain things behind. Namely…
Hydraplas non-stick pan that is purely for making tortillas
18cm Le Creuset vintage pot that I got on eBay
26cm Lodge cast iron pan that has roasted a million roast chickens
Opinel pocket knife, finally retrieved from Sophia who’s been keeping it safe for me in LA
Mini spatula which might be one of my favourite purchases of all time
Microplane – I cannot stress how important this is!!!
Flat whisk because I think it’s the reason I can finally make mayo again!
Reading list
The Vexing Problem Of The Medium Friend
There’s a reason articles like this go viral. I always find it interesting to hear how people perceive friendship!
Two books I’m buying before I disappear to the coast:
Bonjour Tristesse, on my list for years after being recommended it by my very intelligent, chic and romantic friend Sam Hillman. The French Riviera, lovers, tragedy, what’s not to love?
Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe is slightly less sunshiney (it’s a book documenting the troubles in Ireland), but my friend Jem has told me it’s absolutely fantastic and said it’s actually a great summer read, so I will oblige.
I really enjoyed this interview with Durga Chew-Bose on SSENSE (an unlikely but very well curated editorial platform), whose book I keep meaning to read, and will be picking up before I head down south.
On repeat
This is a sentiment I stand by this summer. Everyone wants to be:
I would love to hear more about you use the ‘26cm Lodge cast iron pan that has roasted a million roast chickens’ 🙏