FLOWER POT KITCHEN: 32oz RIBEYE STEAK COWBOY COOKING OVER WOOD FLAMED FIRE PIT

16 Aug 2014

32oz RIBEYE STEAK COWBOY COOKING OVER WOOD FLAMED FIRE PIT

I love this style of cooking, not only do I get to be girl with fire I also get to cook cowboy caveman style, there is something that stirs deep within me when I get to cook half a cow on an open fire, I can't quite explain it but it just feels so right, and what's more the meat always tastes the best I have ever eaten, I would not normally be able to eat such a huge amount of meat in one sitting, but with this dinner I almost manage it all !!!

Ingredients

28-32oz ribeye steak on the bone (tomy hawk cut)

1 wood fired pit

salt and pepper

Rare 55 degrees

Medium rare 60 degrees

Medium 60-65 degrees

Well done 75 degrees

If you do not have a fire pit, it is easy to make a temporary one, take the turf off a metre wide circle and maybe place a few large boulders or stones around edge, not essential, and then throw down a little sand and make your fire, I used bricks loosely stacked either side of the fire pit and as wide as my skewers or grill to give me adjustable height over the fire for cooking, that's it, keep the turf so that you can make good after.

To cook the steak, season with salt and pepper, wait until your established fire has glowing coals and put your steak on the grill, I like to cook the steak over a high heat to sear then to move the steak to a lower heat area for a while and alternate this, I do this so that I don't end up with a heavily charred outer steak, but a level rare cooked steak with the most wonderful woodfired bursting flavoured crust, (do not be tempted to keep turning your steak, I probably only turn my steak a total of 6-8 times over the twenty minutes). This size steak takes around 20-30 minutes to cook, with a five minute resting time on a warm area of your pit before serving allowing all those gorgeous juices to flow back to the centre of the meat. You just can't beat this honest flavour.

With this kind of cooking I often just serve with a side of french beans or simple mini roast garlic potatoes, I do not want to distract from the meat, all it want is the meat! Considering I mainly eat a vegetable diet there is clearly moments when I crave meat, and I really enjoy this occasional dinner.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.