Gourmet Gavin

Gavin started his career as an apprentice working in some of Ireland’s leading restaurants, including La Stampa (a unique hotel located in the heart of Dublin city centre).  He gained his professional qualifications at the City and Guilds of London Institute, the leading provider of vocational qualifications in the United Kingdom.

A major highlight of Gavin’s career was his three year appointment as Head Chef of the Newcastle Club – a very old institution of Newcastle’s business community, offering an exceptionally high standard of dining and old-fashioned traditions of service, courtesy, comfort and charm.

Playlist: All Gormet Gav Videos

Lamb Ragout

For the lamb ragout

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1kg half leg of lamb
• 1 large brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 4 slices pancetta, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled, cut into 1cm pieces
• 2 celery stalks, cut into 1cm pieces
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (such as rosemary, thyme and sage)
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 2 tbsp Mutti Double Concentrate Tomato Paste 130g
• 2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes

For the cheese sauce

• 1L (4 cups) milk
• 1 brown onion, halved, coarsely chopped
• 8 fresh parsley stalks
• 8 whole black peppercorns
• 4 whole cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 60g butter
• 50g (1/3 cup) plain flour
• 70g (1 cup) finely grated parmesan
• Pinch ground nutmeg
• Salt & ground white pepper

To cook the lamb

• Step 1 Heat oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Add lamb. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes each side or until browned. Transfer to a plate.
• Step 2 Add onion, garlic, pancetta, carrot, celery and herbs to pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 12 minutes or until onion has softened. Add wine. Cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste, tomato, stock cubes and 2 cups cold water. Stir to combine. Bring to the boil. Return lamb to pan. Cover. Reduce heat to low. Simmer, turning halfway during cooking, for 2 hours 30 minutes or until meat is tender. Transfer lamb to a large plate. Cover with foil to keep warm.
• Step 3 Increase heat to medium. Bring tomato mixture to the boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until thickened.
• Step 4 Remove and discard fat and bone from lamb. Using 2 forks, coarsely shred lamb. Add to tomato mixture. Stir to combine.
• set aside.

For the cheese sauce

• Meanwhile, to make the cheese sauce, combine the milk, onion, parsley stalks, peppercorns, cloves and bay leaves in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and set aside for 15 minutes to infuse.Strain the milk mixture through a fine sieve into a large jug. Discard solids.
• Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until foaming. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until mixture bubbles and begins to come away from the side of the pan. Remove from heat.
• Gradually pour in half the milk, whisking constantly with a balloon whisk, until mixture is smooth. Gradually add the remaining milk, whisking until smooth and combined.
• Place saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to the boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for 5 minutes or until sauce thickens and coats the back of the spoon. Remove from heat. Add the parmesan and stir until cheese melts. Taste and season with nutmeg, salt and white pepper.
• Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush a rectangular 3L (12 cup) capacity ovenproof dish with oil to lightly grease. Spread one-quarter of the bechamel sauce over the base of the prepared dish. Arrange 1 lasagne sheet over the sauce. Top with one-third of the lamb mixture and one-third of the remaining bechamel sauce. Continue layering with the remaining lasagne sheets, mince mixture and bechamel, finishing with a layer of bechamel. Sprinkle with mozzarella. Place on a baking tray. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until cheese melts, is golden brown, and the edges are bubbling. Remove from oven and set aside for 10 minutes to set.
• Cut the lasagne into 8 portions and serve with mixed salad leaves.

Chicken Soup

• 1 onion
• 1 carrot
• 2 stalks of celery
• 300g of chicken
• 1lt of chicken stock
• 400g of corn
• 500mls cream (optional)

Fine dice all your veg and chicken.

Place in a pot at a high heat.

Cook of chicken and veg until you seal all the chicken. Cover with your stock and bring to the boil. Turn down heat and allow to simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and blend until fine. Return to the heat. Add your corn and cream. Return to boiling.

Correct seasoning. Serve and enjoy.

Mushroom Risotto

• 6 cups chicken stock, or vegetable stock
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 500g shiitake mushroom(455 g), stemmed and thinly sliced
• 500g button
• 500g swiss browns
• 2 tablespoons  butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 1 ½ cups arborio rice(200 g)
• ½ cup white wine(120 mL)
• 1 cup grated parmesan 

1. Add the stock to a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Once the stock is boiling, reduce the heat to low or remove the pan from the heat and keep nearby.
2. Heat the olive oil in a wide, tall pot over medium heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the shallot and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent.
3. Add all the sliced  mushrooms and butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have cooked down.
4. Add the garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper, stir, and cook for 1 minute, until the butter has melted and the garlic is aromatic.
5. Add the rice and stir until fully coated in the mushroom mixture. Let the rice toast for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
6. Add the white wine and cook until the wine has evaporated, stirring occasionally.
7. Add 1 cup (240 ml) of the hot stock and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, until the stock is fully absorbed.
8. Continue to add the stock, ½ cup (120 ml) at a time, stirring continuously, until the broth is fully absorbed, for 15-20 minutes. Depending on how fast the rice cooks, there may be leftover stock.
9. Once the rice is al dente, remove from the heat. Add the Parmesan and stir to combine.
10. Top with  Parmesan.
11. The secret is to make sure very grain of rice gets butter.
12. Enjoy!

Chocolate Fondant with creme anglaise

Served with cream anglaise, chocolate crumble and vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients:

Dark chocolate 70 grams 
Sugar 1 tablespoon
Unsalted butter 1 tablespoon
Flour 1 tablespoon
Egg 1

Preparation:

Melt the butter and chocolate together using micro oven and mixed.
Whisk the egg and sugar, add little by little melted chocolate and butter mixed to the egg and sugar mix.
Add flour.
Grease the mould with soft butter and coat with coco powder.
Pour the mix into mould and bake 190 degree c for about 7 to 9 minutes.

Cream anglaise:

1 egg yolk, 1 table spoon sugar, and 100 ml cream and vanilla pod.
Mix everything together and cook slowly until custard gets thick enough.

Chocolate crumble:

Dark chocolate 25 g
Coco powder 25 g
Sugar 50 g
Flour 50 g
Unsalted butter 50 g

Preparation:

Melt the butter and mixed with rest of the ingredients and bake 190 degree c.
Mix with whisk every 6 minutes until crumble.

Sumac spices Tuna Filet (GF)

Served with roasted capsicum, lentil, pickled fennel, broccoli, and tomato caper sauce (Serves 2)

Preparation Method

Roasted capsicum:

Roast red capsicum 20 minutes at 180 degrees, seasoned with salt and pepper. After it is cooked let it cool down and eel the skin of the capsicum.

Green lentils:

Boil lentils about 15 minutes or until cooked.

Pickled fennel:

Shave the fennel and put into pickling liquid

Liquid: 1 litre water
200ml vinegar
50g sugar
1 tblspn mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds

Mix all together and boil.  Add fennel and let it cool down.

Broccoli:

Blanch the broccoli 2 minutes

Tomato caper sauce:

500g crushed tomato
50g capers
1 onion
20g sugar
10g salt
20g basil

Add everything except the basil, cook 30 minutes.  Add basil and blend.

For the final preparation:

Grill the tuna about 1 minute each side, let it rest. Add sumac spices.
Add olive oil to a pan, add roasted capsicum. Lentils and blanched broccoli seasoned with salt, pepper and ½ teaspoon garlic, sauteed.

Warm the sauce, add soft butter, and combine slowly. 

Lemon Curd

4 ingredients only 
1/2  lemon juice
1/2 white sugar
1/4  diced butter
3 eggs

Whisk eggs lemon and sugar together. Add to a thick bottomed pot On a medium heat, add the butter continuously whisking until thick. Should coat the spoon. Chill for 8 hours.

Serve and enjoy 

The Beloved Pumpkin Soup

1 onion
1 leek
1 peeled potato
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1kg peeled jap pumpkin
1 carrot
1 Lt chicken stock

Rough chop potato, carrot, pumpkin, onion and leek. Sautée in a large pot until the onion softens. Stir through nutmeg and cumin. Add stock and bring to the boil. Allow to smimmer until all the vegetables are soft. Blend, season and serve. Enjoy