FLOWER POT KITCHEN: FIRE PIT ROASTED LAMB GAUCHO CHURRASCARIA COOKING

13 Sept 2014

FIRE PIT ROASTED LAMB GAUCHO CHURRASCARIA COOKING

COWBOY COOKING ON YOUR FIRE PIT

Gaucho cooking is such an honest and simple way to cook, there is nothing you can not cook over a wood fire pit and I feel the honest rustic flavour does something to your senses, it is after all how we all cooked until recent years. Not only does cowboy cooking give you this it also brings a great social gathering aspect to the pit, known as asado, people love to be involved and help with the cooking and this makes for a great atmosphere.

Fire pit cooking is a slow cook, even though the base temperature at the start was over 400 degrees, the heat lowers as the fire pit slows down and that allows the meat to cook firstly at a high temperature and then cook slower as the temperature lowers allowing the meat to rest while cooking, this gives everyone time to talk and share in the cooking. Adjusting the height or distance of the meat from the fire pit is how you control the heat.

I like to lower the meat as the fire pit heat lowers keeping the meat close to the heat, which means I do not have to re-kindle the fire, then on the final pit height I leave the meat to slowly rest over the wood flame adding flavour. This is the most juiciest and flavoursome meat I have ever cooked and the easiest, it is very difficult to over cook the meat, with gaucho style hospitality and service known as rodizio you carve the meat from medium to rare and then place the skewers of meat back over the pit to cook on or keep warm, this is so you can serve to everyone's taste.

The first fire in the pit, I will admit the pressure and anticipation was high for the first fire lighting, concerns were firstly that we had 47 people for lunch and there was no way my oven would handle this amount of meat and secondly the fire pit staying alight and not blowing up when it would probably pass 500 degrees! There was at one point around 30 minutes in to the established fire when we all heard a massive ping and I swear the patio moved! We all looked straight at the pit, but we realised it was still standing and it must have been the fire grates in the bottom of the pit that had probably buckled under the heat, we were right and this gorgeous pit did us proud.

GAUCHO PICANHA ASADO

Whole sides of ribeye steak, cut into half then bent into a c shape and skewered all the way through, this is known as picanha and usually sirloin steak (botton). These took 45 minutes to cook to rare 50 degrees, 60 minutes for medium 55-60 degrees and 75 minutes for well done 70 degrees.

CARNEIRO

Gaucho legs of lamb, this were whoppers, bone in and around 4kg each, These took 55min-75mins to cook over the pit to medium rare 55 degrees, then allow 10 minutes resting away from the heat but on the side of the fire pit.

This is such a great social and calm way to cook for lots of people, it was great fun and I loved that lots of people want to help and be part of the cooking.

GOOD COOKING OVER WOOD

I don't know why gaucho cooking is so inspiring, it is very simple and honest, maybe that is it, no fancy gadgets like water baths or steam jets, it really is honest cooking that produces an outstanding quality of food, the wood flamed crust on the lamb and beef can not be beaten or faked, that crispy but fatty soft juicy smoked crust is a burst of heaven in your mouth, and the succulent tender meat just makes me just want to eat and eat and eat!

GAUCHO DAD'S 70th BIRTHDAY FIRE PIT PARTY

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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.