Polpetto's head chef Florence Knight combines everyone's go-to sauce with .... chocolate? No, really ...
Fish and chips, bacon butties, hamburgers … greasy food usually demands a good glug of ketchup. The sweetness and acidity of this well-loved condiment cuts through fat. In truth, though, it's so much more than just a condiment. To me, it's a seasoning tool and flavour enhancer with a fantastic umami quality.
Ketchup seems to have its origins in east Asia. I believe it started out as some kind of fermented fish sauce, popular long before tomatoes were added to the mix. Early recipes for it have been around since the 18th century, as well as versions in which mushrooms were the main ingredient. When you break it down, it's really quite a simple, but perfect, balance of sweet, savoury and acidic.
There's a bottle of tomato ketchup lurking in most people's cupboards or fridges, so it makes sense to find new and innovative uses for it. Try adding a little to lentils as they simmer, or pairing it with beetroot or smoked mackerel. It has to be cooked with ingredients that are equally gutsy and capable of standing up to its intensity. I wouldn't dream of combining it with something delicate.
Ketchup is also perfect when making chocolate cake – it lends a sweet and sour quality, which the Italians call agrodolce. I also use it in my brown crab pasta sauce. I usually avoid powerfully pungent brown crab meat, but ketchup transforms it, melting the meat away to make a thick, intense, buttery sauce that coats every single strand of pasta.
Aside from culinary applications, I have found other practical uses for it – try applying a thick layer to clean copper pans. It sounds odd, but actually makes them look brand new.
*Ketchup chocolate pots*
Ketchup lends a sour, berry-like taste to the richness of the chocolate.
Serves 4
*100ml milk*
*A big pinch of dried chilli flakes*
*95g dark chocolate, plus extra for grating*
*150ml double cream*
*1 tbsp ketchup*
*1* Place a pan on a low heat, pour in the milk and add the chilli. Bring to the boil, then remove the pan from the hob and leave to stand for 15 minutes while the milk infuses and cools.
*2 *Break the chocolate into small pieces. Stir the cream into the cooled milk and return the pan to the heat. Bring to a boil again, then reduce the heat and add the chocolate and ketchup, stirring through until completely dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the chilli flakes, then pour into small cups or glasses. Finally, grate a little dark chocolate over each one, cover and leave to chill in the fridge for at least a couple of hours.
*3 *Take the chocolate pots out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving to help soften after chilling. I like to eat this with shortbread, for dipping.
Recipe taken from One: A Cook and her Cupboard (Salt Yard)
*Three more creative ways to cook with ketchup*
• *Baked ricotta and onion sarnie* Beat 175g ricotta until fluffy, fold in 50g grated parmesan, 1 egg, a yolk, a splash of cream, then season. Fry 2 onions until caramelised, stir in 1 tbsp ketchup, spread on sourdough, top with the ricotta and grill.
• *Crab pasta *Mix 100g brown crab meat, 2 tsp ketchup and ribbons from 1 courgette. Cook 150g pasta, saving some cooking water. Cook 1 diced red chilli in 100g butter for 1 minute. Add the reserved water, fold in the pasta, stir in the crab and courgette. Sprinkle with lemon zest.
• *Pork collar in milk and ketchup *Fry 4 garlic cloves in 100g butter with some lemon peel and 2 sprigs rosemary for 1 minute. Add 680g pork collar; brown all over. Add 1.5 litres milk, nutmeg and allspice. Cover. Simmer for 2 hours till tender. Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.
Fish and chips, bacon butties, hamburgers … greasy food usually demands a good glug of ketchup. The sweetness and acidity of this well-loved condiment cuts through fat. In truth, though, it's so much more than just a condiment. To me, it's a seasoning tool and flavour enhancer with a fantastic umami quality.
Ketchup seems to have its origins in east Asia. I believe it started out as some kind of fermented fish sauce, popular long before tomatoes were added to the mix. Early recipes for it have been around since the 18th century, as well as versions in which mushrooms were the main ingredient. When you break it down, it's really quite a simple, but perfect, balance of sweet, savoury and acidic.
There's a bottle of tomato ketchup lurking in most people's cupboards or fridges, so it makes sense to find new and innovative uses for it. Try adding a little to lentils as they simmer, or pairing it with beetroot or smoked mackerel. It has to be cooked with ingredients that are equally gutsy and capable of standing up to its intensity. I wouldn't dream of combining it with something delicate.
Ketchup is also perfect when making chocolate cake – it lends a sweet and sour quality, which the Italians call agrodolce. I also use it in my brown crab pasta sauce. I usually avoid powerfully pungent brown crab meat, but ketchup transforms it, melting the meat away to make a thick, intense, buttery sauce that coats every single strand of pasta.
Aside from culinary applications, I have found other practical uses for it – try applying a thick layer to clean copper pans. It sounds odd, but actually makes them look brand new.
*Ketchup chocolate pots*
Ketchup lends a sour, berry-like taste to the richness of the chocolate.
Serves 4
*100ml milk*
*A big pinch of dried chilli flakes*
*95g dark chocolate, plus extra for grating*
*150ml double cream*
*1 tbsp ketchup*
*1* Place a pan on a low heat, pour in the milk and add the chilli. Bring to the boil, then remove the pan from the hob and leave to stand for 15 minutes while the milk infuses and cools.
*2 *Break the chocolate into small pieces. Stir the cream into the cooled milk and return the pan to the heat. Bring to a boil again, then reduce the heat and add the chocolate and ketchup, stirring through until completely dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the chilli flakes, then pour into small cups or glasses. Finally, grate a little dark chocolate over each one, cover and leave to chill in the fridge for at least a couple of hours.
*3 *Take the chocolate pots out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving to help soften after chilling. I like to eat this with shortbread, for dipping.
Recipe taken from One: A Cook and her Cupboard (Salt Yard)
*Three more creative ways to cook with ketchup*
• *Baked ricotta and onion sarnie* Beat 175g ricotta until fluffy, fold in 50g grated parmesan, 1 egg, a yolk, a splash of cream, then season. Fry 2 onions until caramelised, stir in 1 tbsp ketchup, spread on sourdough, top with the ricotta and grill.
• *Crab pasta *Mix 100g brown crab meat, 2 tsp ketchup and ribbons from 1 courgette. Cook 150g pasta, saving some cooking water. Cook 1 diced red chilli in 100g butter for 1 minute. Add the reserved water, fold in the pasta, stir in the crab and courgette. Sprinkle with lemon zest.
• *Pork collar in milk and ketchup *Fry 4 garlic cloves in 100g butter with some lemon peel and 2 sprigs rosemary for 1 minute. Add 680g pork collar; brown all over. Add 1.5 litres milk, nutmeg and allspice. Cover. Simmer for 2 hours till tender. Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.