Meat

Although I’ve eulogised about the joys of vegetables and fish, I have to admit that I occasionally have an enormous hankering for meat, especially meat with fat such as pork belly, mutton, hogget or roast lamb. I’m not really a beef eater, but when I crave a steak I really have to have something like a grilled Longhorn porterhouse. Venison is great because you can almost taste the heather if it’s wild from the Scottish Highlands and the farmed venison from New Zealand is a healthy, lean, delicious and tender beast. All prime cuts of meat are best cooked quickly to no more than medium. Whereas all the muscly joints need to be stewed or braised – cooked gently over a long period in some liquid. Never stew lean prime cuts though, as they contain no fat or gristle and will remain forever dry.