Skip to main content

Ed Smith. On the side; the book that champions side dishes


This book by Ed Smith is a bit of a genius idea. A book entirely devoted to side dishes. It is already very heavily thumbed and is my go to second book after I have decided on the protein.
We had this recipe with Masala roast chicken that you will find elsewhere on this blog
The recipe
These roasted carrots are absolutely knockout. Of course, pretty much any root vegetable is ace when blistered, sweetened and caramelised in a roasting tin. But the addition here of equally sweet roast onions, fresh coriander, sour lemon juice and the spiced salt makes these carrots a little bit special. To be honest, I’d happily have them as a main course with a spoon or two of curd or ricotta. But serve with something else if you must… most dishes involving chicken, beef, pork or cod work nicely, whether heavily spiced or plain.

See if you can get your hands on some heirloom carrots for this: those funny but in fact entirely natural purples, yellows and whites. You could use regular orange ones, but the heirloom varieties are both a visual treat and particularly flavourful when roasted. It’s still lovely when at room temperature or even fridge cold, so there’s no harm in making more than you need.
Cut the carrots in half lengthways. Put them in a suitably sized baking tray or roasting tin: not so big that there’s loads of space between them, nor so tight that they sit on top of each other and steam rather than roast. Peel and quarter the onions and add them to the carrots.
Put the cumin, coriander and fennel seeds and salt in a pestle and mortar and grind well, but not quite to a powder. Sprinkle half the spiced salt over the carrots and onions. Add the oil and then mix well. Roast on the top shelf for 30–40 minutes, shuffling the tray after 20 minutes. They’re ready when tender, but also blistered and a little charred or browned at the edges.

Ingredients
1.5kg carrots (mixed colours if you can)
3 red onions
2tsp cumin seeds
1tsp fennel seeds
1tsp sea salt
3tbs vegetable oil
2tsp sesame seeds
1/2 lemon
handful coriander leaves
Method
pre heat the oven to 220C.
Remove the carrots from the oven and sprinkle over the sesame seeds and half the remaining spiced salt. Squeeze the lemon juice over the top, mix well and decant to a serving bowl or platter. Check for seasoning and add more of the spiced salt if you think it needs it. Add the coriander leaves and gently mix the carrots one last time

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Crack potatoes courtesy of Ottolenghi. Harissa and confit garlic roast potatoes

Another recipe from Ottolenghi's Simple, another recommendation from Will Saunders.   I know its the middle of summer but who doesn't love a roastie? These little tinkers are so good that they are like crack, class A calories. The clever bit is the addition of semolina and caraway seeds which adds a new level of crunchiness to add to the delicious warm heat of Harissa. Heres the recipe These make a lovely, spicy change from the traditional Sunday roasties. They’re especially good with spiced roast meat. Serves six to eight. 2 large heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled 130g goose or duck fat 4 sprigs fresh rosemary  6 sprigs fresh thyme  2kg maris piper potatoes, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks 40g ground semolina 2 tsp caraway seeds, toasted and lightly crushed 2 tbsp rose harissa Flaky sea salt Heat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the garlic, fat and herbs in a small ovenproof pan or saucepan for which you have a lid. Cover and roast for 40 minut
1 comment
Read more

Nigel Slaters deceptively brilliant monkfish

Lisa discovered this recipe in her favourite Nigel book. It is one of those fish, 'but not as we know it Jim' recipes. Not just because Monkfish is the fish that can best impersonate meat but also because of the marinade ingredients that are more often featured with lamb. It's not difficult to do but the flavour is a revelation, which makes it a perfect recipe in my book. This can be cooked on a grill pan or a barbecue. Ingredients 3 bushy sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped 4 anchovy fillets 2 large cloves garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 large lemon, juice only 3 tbsp olive oil 800g/1½lb monkfish fillet Method Pull the leaves from the rosemary stalks and chop them finely, then tip them into a bowl large enough to take the fish. Rinse the anchovy fillets and smash them to a rough pulp with the flat edge of your chopping knife. Peel the garlic, crush it flat, then smash it to a purée in the same way. Stir together the herb, anchovy and garlic, adding a grind
1 comment
Read more

Sea Bass on mushroom potatoes with salsa Verde

I felt the overwhelming need to cook something new on Saturday night. I didn't want the tired and tested I wanted to explore new culinary waters. However combined with this desire was an equal and opposing force, driven by being absolutely knackered, that meant it had to be simple too. I returned to one of Jamie's early books, to a recipe that IO had meant to do on countless occasions but never quite got round to. I have done several versions of Sea Bass on a bed of potatoes, some that I have written about on this blog. The one question I would have is about the thickness of the potatoes and the length of time they need to be cooked through ... in my oven I reckon they need about 10 minutes more than the recipe suggests. I would suggest a bit of a trial run if you are going to do it for a dinner party ... however once you have given it a whirl I think this makes for a very easy recipe for a crowd. Here's the recipe. Roasted slashed fillet of sea bass stuffed with herbs, bak
1 comment
Read more