January 2006 : Aftermath of Hurricane
What effect did “Katrina” have on restaurants and wine cellars in New Orleans? Prior to the catastrophe there were 1,350 restaurants but only 435 have re-opened. The losses in wines were terrible e.g. the award winning restaurant “Brennans” possessed one of the world’s best cellars with a stock of 35,000 bottles including irreplaceable old vintage wines dating back to 1897.
A major problem was the ferocious heat wave following the floods, when electricity was non-existent. The largest wholesale suppliers of wines to restaurants and hotels based in Louisiana were not flooded, but lost thousands of cases of wine due to the power shortage. It is unlikely that insurance claims will cover all losses. Hard times indeed, but as we all know in a crisis the human spirit rises like the phoenix.
Apart from the loss of wine, the music industry has suffered with a serious decrease in employment for musicians. Matters are improving but it’s a slow journey.
French still arguing
Some interesting news now from Bordeaux. I have written about the drop in UK sales of French wines and the producers are stirring in their attempts to revitalise sales. The latest idea is to amalgamate 5 x regions into a single appellation which would simplify labelling – making it easier for customers to choose their purchases. Four of the regions are agreeable to this new move, but one of the regions does not accept it. This disagreement could take years to resolve – in the meantime New World producers are laughing all the way to the bank!
Keep it simple, stupid!
For years famous TV chefs have persuaded us to be innovative with our cooking skills – making fancy dishes with outlandish ingredients etc. Now they are all advising us to be ‘simple’! Straightforward cooking is the order of the day – with restaurants and bistros too – maybe because too many of them go bankrupt whilst trying to provide ‘fancy food’!
Happy & Healthy Drinking!
Kenneth Harry Putt
This Month's Recipe : Cous-Cous with griddled Salmon fillets and Pok-Choy
A recipe for the new year to tingle your taste buds and something which is light and fresh at the same time.
Ingredients (serves 4 people) :
350g cous-cous
1 lemon – zest and juice
6 sun blushed tomatoes and a little olive oil, cut into strips
4 globe artichokes hearts - cut in half
1 bunch spring onions, cleaned, peeled and chopped
½ bunch coriander chopped
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
4 pok-choy, cut length-wise in to ¼ and washed
1 small piece ginger - peeled and grated
4 salmon fillets
Method:
Place the cous-cous into a bowl. Boil a kettle of water; once boiled, cover the cous-cous with just enough water to soak the grains and then cover with cling-film. Leave for 5 mins to soak up the liquid.
Remove the cling film, fluff with a fork and season with a little pepper. Add the sun-blushed tomatoes, lemon juice and zest, artichokes, ¾ spring onions and ¾ of the coriander. Depending on your taste you can use the tomato oil or olive oil to moisten the cous-cous, but be careful not to make it too soggy. Taste, season and set aside.
Heat the griddle pan, or frying pan with a little of the olive oil. When hot add the salmon fillets in batches and cook for 7-10 mins and keep warm in the oven. You may want to grill them if you want to be more healthy - whichever way suits you!
Using a clean saucepan or fying pan, add some olive oil and heat up the pan to cook the pok-choy. Add the grated ginger, salt and pepper and then the pok-choy. Stir well, trying not to catch the ginger. You can add a little boiling water to steam the pok-choy and help with the cooking process.
Once cooked, get your 4 serving places out. Divide the cous-cous between the plates and place the salmon fillet on top, placing the pok-choy at the side. Sprinkle with the remaining spring onion and coriander and serve. Enjoy!
