Category Archives: Combi Steamer

Mini brioche

January 2, 2017 4:29 pm / 1 Comment /

Mini brioche

Happy new year and welcome to 2017!  Thank you all for your continued support, making last Christmas the best ever on the blog which tells me that many of you are wanting to use your steam or combi oven to its full potential.

I thought I would take my previous brioche recipe and use it to make individual ones for a delicious, Christmas breakfast.  I have always wanted to cook these for Christmas morning but was never up early enough so this time I cheated and made the dough very late on Christmas Eve and finished proving and baking first thing on Christmas morning.  If you don’t intend to do this extended proving method then use your ‘Auto proving dough’ function as mentioned below and let the dough rest until doubled in size.

Serves 6

225g (1½ cups) plain flour, sifted
2 tbsp. castor sugar
1 x 7g sachet of dried yeast
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup milk, warmed
90g butter, softened
Sugar to dust

Method:

  1. For dough, combine flour, sugar, yeast and 1/2 tsp salt into a large bowl or mix master fitted with a dough hook.  Mix well
  2. Combine eggs with the warm milk and pour into flour mixture.  Knead with the mixer for about 5 minutes until the dough comes together.  It will be soft and sticky.
  3. Add small pieces of the softened butter piece by piece to the mixer to incorporate the butter.  Knead well for about 8 minutes.  I just left it all in the mixer.
  4. Oil a large bowl well with vegetable oil.  Tip in the mix and turn it over to coat in the oil.
  5. Cover tightly with cling wrap and leave overnight to prove.  IF you want to prove immediately read item 5 in the Pear brioche tart recipe here.
  6. Now remove the dough to a lightly floured bench.  It will still be soft but form a fat sausage with the mixture and cut into six pieces.
  7. Form each piece into a ball and break off a smaller ‘knob’ that is on the top of traditional brioche so you will have one large and one tiny ball for each.
  8. Place each large ball into individual greased brioche tins or a silicone brioche tray and top each with a little ball.
  9. Cover again this time with a clean cloth and leave to rise.  This should take approximately 30 minutes.  Sprinkle with a little sugar.
  10. Preheat oven to 190°C, I always do this for short cooking items.
  11. Bake in combi steamer in Combination mode -190°C + 50% moisture for 15 minutes OR Auto function ‘small yeast buns’ or similar.  You can set and agree to the program, check that the time is approximately 15 minutes otherwise just cancel and cook manually as above.  Most of the auto programs are for larger, 1kg size loaves.
  12. Remove from oven to a wire rack.
Posted in: Baking, Bread, Breakfast/Brunch, Combi Steamer

Healthy stuffed mushrooms & buckwheat

October 27, 2016 10:56 am / Leave a Comment /

Healthy stuffed mushrooms

After over indulging in France I now find myself desperately trying to lose not only the extra weight I have gained from our recent trip but the weight that I didn’t lose from last year!

Bring on the Sirtfood diet.  Now in the middle of week three it is going well.  It is basically a Mediterranean diet which highlights a group of ‘sirt foods’ which have added health benefits.

The steam oven has been fabulous.  Such a great appliance for healthy cooking as it really does highlight the flavours of the food by retaining all the nutrients.  I have been adapting some of the recipes from the book to the steam oven which I may post later but in the meantime this is a quick and healthy mushroom dish I have cooked in the combi oven.  If you only have a conventional oven you could try cooking them with a little water in the base of the pan under the mushrooms.

This is the first time I have cooked buckwheat grains in the steam oven.  A vast improvement I have to say!  Delicious cooked in vegetable stock but you will need to add a pinch of sea salt if you are using your own, home made stock.

Ingredients:  Serves 2

6 large Field or Portabello mushrooms, wiped, stalks removed and chopped
1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 red birds eye chilli, seeded & chopped finely
3 spring onions, finely sliced
2 large handfuls of green kale, thinly sliced
Chopped walnuts
Grated good quality Parmesan cheese
Buckwheat to serve:
½ cup buckwheat, washed
¾ cup vegetable stock
pinch salt if using home made stock

Method:

  1. Place the buckwheat and stock into the solid tray and steam @ 100°C for 20 minutes.
  2. Remove from steam oven, wipe out cavity to prepare to turn to combi mode and set aside.
  3. Line the solid tray with baking paper.  Remove the stems of the mushrooms and lay the whole mushrooms on the paper.  Chop the mushroom stalks finely.
  4. Heat the oil in a heavy based pan and saute the spring onions, garlic, mushroom stalks and chilli.  Reduce the heat and cook for 5 minutes until soft.
  5. Increase the heat a little, add the kale and stir well.  Cover pan and cook for another few minutes until just cooked but still a great colour with a little bite.
  6. Brush the base of the mushrooms with a little olive oil.
  7. Spoon the filling into the mushroom cavities pressing down the kale.  Sprinkle with chopped walnuts and the finely grated parmesan cheese.
  8. Bake in the combi oven on Combination mode @ 180°C + 30% steam for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of your mushrooms.

Serve with the buckwheat on the side for a delicious sirt dinner 🙂

Posted in: Combi Steamer, Gluten free, Healthy eating, Steam Oven, Vegetarian / Tagged: , , ,

Lamb jus

June 3, 2016 11:36 am / 4 Comments /

SAMSUNG CAMERA PICTURES

I needed to make a lamb jus for a group combi steam oven cooking class this week.  See the review from Jen about the class here.  Instead of cooking it on the cooktop as I normally do I decided to utilise the fact that I had to roast the bones in the combi first so I may as well switch modes to steam and finish cooking my stock in there.

Soups and stocks are one thing that I haven’t done yet in the steam oven.  No reason, just haven’t got around to it.  I did buy a deeper stainless steel solid tray that I can use which will be perfect for this occasion.  Certainly an easy way to make a stock as you don’t have to be watching it on the cooktop and you can even leave it unattended (apart from having to refill the water container).  Check your manufacturers information to see how long your water container will last before it needs a refill.

Whilst the whole process took a long time it was worth it!

Ingredients:

2kg lamb bones & meat such as neck chops.  I also used two large veal osso bucco bones.
1 onion, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
1 stick celery, sliced
2 bay leaves
few black peppercorns
Water to cover
(Plus extra ingredients listed below)

Method:

  1. If you are using lamb chops then trim of any excess, visible fat.
  2. In a deep dish roast all the bones & chops in the combi on Fan forced @ 180°C for 30-45 minutes until well browned.  If you are using just bones then they should be well browned too.
  3. Add all other ingredients.  Don’t worry about removing the fat we will deal with that later. Just cover meat & vegetables with water and switch combi to steam only 100°C and cook for 3 hours.  Make sure that your dish isn’t too full as the steam oven will add more liquid over the cooking time.  This will actually dilute the stock a little so keep the liquid to a minimum.  Just covering the meat and vegetables is fine.  Interesting, but for some reason there didn’t appear to be any scum to skim off the top as you normally get when cooking a stock.
  4. Stain into a large bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight to let the fat rise to the top.  Remove. You should have a rich, jellied stock.
  5. Next day pour into a large saucepan add the following:-
    4 cloves garlic, sliced
    handful of fresh rosemary and thyme
    2 large ripe tomatoes, cut into chunks
    200ml good white wine
    1 tbsp orange marmalade
  6. Boil to reduce by half.  Season to taste with a dash of thick Malaysian ‘caramel’ soy sauce which will darken it up, sea salt and black pepper.
  7. Strain again and set aside to cool.

You should have a thick, delicious jus 🙂

Note:  If it is not thick enough then mix a slurry of 1 teaspoon of cornflour with a little water and stir in over the heat.  Bring to the boil to cook off the flour for one minute and it should bring it together.  Do not over-thicken otherwise you will have gravy…..

Posted in: Combi Steamer, Steam Oven, Stocks & Sauces

In-home cooking classes!

March 3, 2016 8:03 pm / 7 Comments /

Don’t know how to use your oven?  Spent heaps of money on all those appliances but can’t even work out how to use the main oven let alone your steam oven or combi steam oven?

I am happy to announce that I am now offering in-home cooking classes in the Sydney metropolitan area!

I will come to your home  and give you an overview demonstration cooking class on how to use your products plus I will prepare you a delicious lunch using those appliances!

For more information please see my cooking classes page here.

In-home cooking classes

Posted in: Appliances, Combi Steamer, Cooking classes, Steam Oven, Traditional Ovens

Pearl barley risotto

November 24, 2015 4:22 pm / 2 Comments /

Barley risotto

I have been wanting to try cooking pearl barley in the steam oven for sometime.  Such an under-rated grain and sometimes passed off as only being for soups, pearl barley has had a revamp as one of the new, healthy grains suitable for all sorts of dishes.  Although it does contain gluten in its current form I believe that the CSIRO have developed a gluten free barley grain that is currently being grown and marketed for commercial sale.  Keep an eye out for this 🙂

Cooking pearl barley in the steam oven is similar to that of brown rice.  It needs washing and picking over and the same amount of liquid as brown rice for cooking (1 to 1.25).  So much easier to cook this all in one pan.  I chose the base of my Le Creuset flat casserole but any cooktop to oven dish that will fit into your steam oven will do.  Great for serving in and less washing up.

I have added fennel and roasted pumpkin to this risotto but play around and change the flavours to suit what you have on hand.  Cooking in the steam oven retained the shape and texture of the grain which is perfect for risotto or salads.  I served it with crumbled fetta which gave it that little extra flavour and another texture.  Would be excellent served under any fish for a more substantial main course.

Fantastic the next day as a salad served at room temperature with rocket, quartered freshly cooked beetroot, goats cheese and a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil.

Ingredients:  Serves 6

1½ cups pearl barley, washed
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 small or ½ large fennel, thinly sliced
splash white wine (optional)
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
pinch sea salt & ground black pepper
½ small butternut pumpkin, roasted prior
handful of fresh parsley or dill chopped
fetta cheese to serve

Method:

  1. Roast pumpkin, cubed with a splash of olive oil @ 200°C Fan forced for 15-20 minutes until browned.  Set aside.
  2. If your using your combi oven open it to cool down while you prepare the rest of the dish.
  3. In a deep, flat pan that will fit into the steam oven saute the onion & garlic in a splash of olive oil.
  4. Add drained pearl barley and very thinly sliced fennel and stir until coated with the oil and onion mixture.
  5. Add a splash of white wine and let it bubble away the alcohol for a couple of minutes.
  6. Add the stock.  It should just cover the vegetables and barley and cook @ 100°C steam for 40 minutes, stirring after 30 minutes.
  7. Remove from steam oven, taste for seasoning (I needed a pinch of salt even though I used commercial stock for this).
  8. Add the roast pumpkin, herbs and seasoning and stir well.
  9. Cover pan with lid and let it rest for 5 minutes.  This will warm the pumpkin through.
  10. Serve with crumbled fetta cheese if desired.
Posted in: Combi Steamer, Healthy eating, Main Courses, Steam Oven, Vegetarian

Combi oven roast chicken

August 4, 2015 11:53 am / 2 Comments /

SAMSUNG CAMERA PICTURES

As I have mentioned in the other posts and the Combi roasting table here there are two ways you can get a delicious, moist and tender roast chicken in a combi steam oven.

If you have a Miele there is an Auto Roast Chicken program but be aware it is only for a small, approximately 1-1.2kg chicken which isn’t very big at all.  By all means try the automatic program if you have a small bird as it really is the quickest and easiest way to use the combi.  Basically, season the bird, put it directly onto the oven rack with the solid tray underneath to catch the fat and set Auto: Roast chicken: Start.  The program should take about an hour.  Make a note if you were happy with the browning as next time you can set this to be more or less before you start.

We are having a casual Sunday, family dinner tonight with a roast chicken and I thought I would season with a little sumac, oil and salt and roast on the combination setting.  Serve with my pearl cous cous with dried figs and coriander here for a delicious and simple dinner.  The results were amazing.  The breast meat was so moist and tender and although the oven was dirty afterwards it was worth the effort of cleaning it the following day!

You can also try cutting out the backbone and cooking my Spiced Chicken if you want a little more flavour and a reduced cooking time.  Cooking the chicken flat in the solid tray also reduced the ‘spitting’ factor in the oven so not as much cleaning needed afterwards.

Ingredients:  Serves 4

1 x 1.5kg chicken
splash of olive oil
1 tsp Sumac
½ tsp salt & ground black pepper
few slices lemon & fresh herbs (optional)

Method:

  1. Prepare chicken by rinsing out cavity, removing any giblets and excess fat and pat dry.
  2. Drizzle the chicken on both sides with a little olive oil.
  3. Mix together the seasoning ingredients and rub all over the chicken.
  4. Put the lemon slices & some fresh herbs if you wish into the chicken cavity and tie the legs together with a little piece of string.
  5. Place breast side up directly on the wire rack with the solid tray underneath and cook on Combination Mode Stage 1: 200°C + 95% moisture for 40 minutes then Stage 2: 200°C + 30% moisture for 20 minutes.  If your chicken is larger than 1.5kg then you will need to alter the time or temperatures you are cooking at.  Check the roasting table and also look at the temperatures I used when cooking the Tarragon roast chicken here.
  6. Rest the chicken before carving.  This will be the most delicious and moist roast chicken ever with a crispy skin!

Afterwards remember to do a soak program to help with the cleaning.  You can find this in the ‘Maintenance’ programs in your appliance.

Posted in: Chicken, Combi Steamer, Main Courses

Mexican beef short-ribs

July 6, 2015 1:54 pm / 3 Comments /

Mexican beef short-ribs

This is Neil Perry’s recipe which hit the top 2013 list here. The difference is that I have converted it to cook in the steam or combi oven.  Neil firstly boiled the short ribs for over an hour in a pot on the stove, changing the water twice then baked them in the oven for about an hour and a half so that the meat was falling off the bone. No need for all that messing around with a steam oven.  You can steam them instead of simmering (no need to bring to boil, replace water and wash up another pot) and then either cook them in the combi with extra moisture if you want a thinner sauce or if you only have a steam oven, bake them covered in a conventional oven.  Only one dish to wash up and preparation time is less.

Ingredients:  Serves 4

1 kg beef short ribs (ask the butcher for the thick, meaty end)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 long green chilli, seeds removed, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
large pinch sea salt
freshly ground white pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground chilli powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground all-spice
400g tinned tomatoes, chopped
1-2 tbsp pickled jalapeño chillies, chopped
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
350ml chicken stock (I have reduced it, use more for a thinner sauce)
juice of 1 fresh lime
1 bunch coriander, leaves picked

Method

  1. Start this preparation a day ahead if possible.
  2. Place the ribs in the solid steamer tray.  Steam @ 95°C for one hour.
  3. Drain and set aside to cool.
  4. While they are cooking make the sauce:
  5. Heat the olive oil in a deep frypan that will fit into your oven or combi.
  6. Add the green chilli, garlic and spices and saute for 1 minute until fragrant.
  7. Now add all the other ingredients except the lime and coriander.
  8. Return the cooled ribs to the sauce and marinade overnight if possible.  Neil didn’t do this but it’s bound to give the ribs more flavour 🙂
  9. Next day cook in the combi oven on Combination mode 160°C + 30% steam, uncovered for 2 hours.  Stir and turn occasionally.  If you don’t have a combi then cook, covered in a conventional oven at 150°C.   I wanted a thick sauce that stuck to the ribs so I cooked mine, covered in a conventional oven for 3 hours.  They were delicious and the meat was falling off the bone.
  10. To serve stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with fresh coriander.
Posted in: Combi Steamer, Main Courses, Mexican, Party Food, Steam Oven

Bread & butter pudding

May 29, 2015 2:44 pm / 2 Comments /

Bread & butter pudding

This is the ultimate pudding if you have a combi oven as it really is quicker without the need for a water bath, just pop it into the oven on Combination mode and in just under an hour you have the perfect bread and butter pudding.  This is almost half  the cooking time than a conventional oven.  Amazing!

This version is also little quicker to whip together by using buttered raisin bread.  There are other versions you can do with this standard custard base.  Brioche is delicious, as is Panettoni or an artisan fruit loaf.  Another option includes spreading with marmalade after the butter but I prefer just a dusting of sugar.  If you use marmalade just spread some on the middle layer of bread and cover with more buttered slices.  This will stop it burning on the top.  If your using plain bread then sprinkle with a few sultanas over each layer.  Also delicious with dark chocolate chips!

This is a smaller recipe to serve four.  For six serves and a bigger pudding increase the eggs to 5, sugar to ½ cup and milk to 3½ cups.  Cooking time would be approximately a further 10 minutes.

Ingredients:  Serves 4

6-8 slices raisin bread or fruit loaf, buttered
3 eggs depending on their size
¼ cup sugar
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
Sugar to sprinkle over

Method:

  1. Grease a shallow, ovenproof dish with butter.  The pic shows my small Le Creuset 8cm x 26cm.
  2. Cut the bread if necessary and place tightly in the base of the dish with the buttered side down.
  3. Add another layer with the buttered side up.  It should be tight – no gaps so cut your bread the way you need to make it fit.  You should have at least three layers.
  4. Beat the eggs, sugar, milk and vanilla together.
  5. Pour over bread, pushing down so that it sinks in the custard.
  6. Sprinkle with sugar.
  7. Bake on Combination mode 160°C + 80% steam for 50 minutes.  It will come out of the oven puffed but will drop.  This is normal.

Serve warm with fresh cream 🙂

 

 

 

Posted in: Baking, Combi Steamer, Desserts

Chinese combi pulled pork

May 6, 2015 12:41 pm / 4 Comments /

Chinese combi pulled pork

This is my revised Chinese combi pulled pork recipe adaped from Dan Lepard’s article here.  As the combi cooks with a large percentage of moisture for this recipe I wanted the flavours to be similar but I didn’t want to cover it as that will stop the moisture getting into the meat.  I don’t need the sauce from Dan’s recipe (even though it sounds wonderful) as I will have the added moisture from the cooking process that will make my sauce.  As different cuts of pork have different fat content I now recommend adding half a cup of water to the pan before slow cooking and, if available, covering the meat with the rind of pork to retain extra moisture.  Quite different to a lamb shoulder, pork seems to need a little more help…

The paste is very strong but you end up with a delicious, spicy diluted sauce which can be mixed through the pork before serving.

Ingredients:

1.4-1.7kg pork shoulder or boneless ‘eye roast’, rind removed and a little fat left (see comment above)
50g red miso paste (dark coloured)
knob of fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2tsp smoked paprika
½tsp chilli powder
2 tsp five spice powder
pinch of salt
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp peanut oil

Method:

  1. Mix all the ingredients into a thick, almost dry paste.
  2. Smear thickly all over the pork, using it all.
  3. Place into the solid steamer tray, cover with the pork rind & half a cup of water and cook on Combination mode 110°C + 80% moisture for 4½ hours.
  4. Turn half way through cooking.  You can remove the rind at this stage if you like.
  5. Remove, shred and place into a large bowl.  Add some of the liquid, it does need this.  Set aside until you are ready to fill the steamed bao here.  Delicious served with sliced spring onion, cucumber and Hoi Sin sauce 🙂

Absolutely delicious!

Posted in: Combi Steamer, Dumplings, Party Food, Pork

Combi steamer pulled pork

March 2, 2015 9:37 am / 10 Comments /

Combi steamer pulled pork

There are a few pulled pork recipes around but not for a combi!  I wanted those smokey, mustard flavours that go so well with pork but I also wanted that caramelised crust and juicy meat.

The combi is fantastic at giving you all the cooking techniques; you just need to add a little of the flavours yourself and marinade it overnight.

I have removed the rind for this dish but if you wish to serve some crackling on the side then place the skin which has been scored onto a plate, without covering and let it dry out in the refrigerator overnight.  Next day, before serving rub with a little salt and bake alone in a hot oven @ 200°C until crisp and bubbling.  If you are cooking roast potatoes then add the crackling at the same time but in a separate dish.

Ingredients:

Piece of rolled pork shoulder 1.7-2kg
1 tbsp. smoked ground paprika
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. Olive oil
large pinch salt

Method:

  1. Remove the string from the pork and trim off the rind leaving a thin layer of fat.  See above if you wish to cook crackling.
  2. Mix all the other ingredients together to form a thick paste.
  3. Spread all over the pork, cover and marinade overnight.
  4. Cook on Combination Mode 110°C + 80% steam for 3-3½ hours.  Turn over half way through the cooking time.
  5. Shred with a fork to tear into pieces to serve.
  6. Strain the cooking liquid into a separate bowl and add a little to taste to the pork.
  7. Delicious served in fresh bread rolls with more mustard and coleslaw.  I served this as a plated main course with Roasted pumpkin and curry leaf salad here.
Posted in: Combi Steamer, Gluten free, Main Courses, Pork