Miller and Carter, Aughton.

On Saturday we decided to take mum for a birthday lunch, we wanted somewhere close to where mum lived. The name Miller and Carter had come up on two separate occasions.

A quick Google search revealed this had formerly been the Swan Inn, Marco Pierre White's upmarket eatery. Now I reckon anyone taking on a celebrity chefs former restaurant has to be pretty confident in serving good food. The menu and prices for a set lunch seemed excellent value. Being only two miles from mums this seemed to be the perfect choice.




























We were greeted warmly on arrival with staff holding the door open for mum, a good start.
The restaurant was empty on our arrival which I thought strange for Saturday afternoon. I usually like a lively atmosphere, nothing worse than eating in an empty restaurant ! but this turned out to be fine and was hardly noticeable as we had a giggle with the staff who were friendly and very efficient ...OK it wasn't busy but still....Oh and they were smart as hell (as in turned out )

The restaurant is a steak house but on offer at the moment is a festive set lunch with a choice of four of each starter, main and desert.






































The Bull that greets you in the lobby

















Miller and Carter describe themselves as having a stylish yet informal steak house, they have that spot on! The bull is the theme here with pictures of them everywhere, your even presented with a over sized steak knife the size of which suggested you had to kill your own bull for lunch !

                                           Interior of Miller and Carter , Aughton



We started with a couple of cocktails which were very good, a chocolate Martini for me a Strawberry Daiquiri for Rach and a mocktail for mum (not a drinker) so she didn't feel left out. Cocktails where very good.




























This is what we ate.




This dish was the choice of my seventy five year old mother and I loved her for it !! she could have played safe, gone for the soup? the pate even? but no she said "I've never tried chorizo I'll have that". Seventy five years old and experimental!

On her best behaviour and struggling to eat the skewers with her knife and fork, she was thrilled when I suggested she should pick them up with her fingers. She went all Henry VIII
I thought she might flick the empty skewers over her shoulder and shout bring me the Bull !!




28 day aged 8oz rump, with fries and onion loaf






















Sea bass fillets with spicy red pepper & watercress dressing, herb crushed potatoes, green beans.



















This fish dish was mums, she had originally opted for the risotto with goats cheese fritters when I read the menu to her. Being a war child and knowing my mother she heard the word fritter and I just knew she dreamed of spam inside. I had to disappoint her by telling her they where goats cheese fritters, after a slight two second quizzical look she said "fish love I'll have the fish". Now this was another surprise as it was sea bass and not war child cod or haddock!
Seventy five and having all her own teeth I thought she would opt for the steak or chicken, but no she was experimenting again, and a clean plate ensured she loved it.

But with desert there were no surprises at all. First on the list was a pudding made from suet .. Yes the war child picked what she knew and loved and why not, a good old pud that sticks to your ribs..



Baked suet sponge, Christmas spiced fruit, toffee sauce & custard



Creme Brulee

A couple of coffees finished the meal. Two and a half hours later we left knowing we will be returning in the summer. As on the way in mum loved the outside area and suggested we all (the whole family) come in the summer for a meal on her! now this was before we even stepped foot in the place so it was a good job the food was up to scratch.

So a happy Threesome will become an Elevensome in the summer and the war child's paying RESULT ! :0)

Slow roasted pork belly with sea salt and fennel

I often cook roast pork at home. Belly pork is a favourite of mine. Slow roasted so the meat falls apart and a crispy crackling flavoured with sea salt and fennel seeds , it's a marriage made in heaven.
Very simple to do this is my recipe for the pork belly which I think is one of the tastiest cuts.

No matter how sharp I think my knife is I still struggle to get decent cuts in the skin. This is essential for great crackling. Even if I buy a joint from the supermarket that has been pre-scored it's never great there's usually just a couple of haphazard cuts so I always use a scalpel and score lines close together. This gives great results and makes carving easier, plus each person gets a nice slice of crackling.

Preheat your oven as high as it will go to get the oven hot whilst you prepare your pork.
Pat dry your pork and score lines in the skin close together .
Rub a small amount of oil over the meat and skin then sprinkle with sea salt and fennel seeds making sure you get plenty within the score lines and all over the skin.
No amounts necessary for this just simply put on the amount you like. I like a lot of fennel .

Once your pork is ready lower the oven temperature down to gas mark 3 and put in your pork and cook for 4 hours.
No need to blast it for 1/2 hour on high heat then turn temperature down as some recipes suggest this method does work and it's fool proof .
Keep an eye on it at 2 to 3 hours if it looks like the skin is getting too dark just cover the top loosely with foil for the remainder of cooking time.

Don't worry when you take the pork out of the oven if the skin appears soft it will harden up during its resting time .

That's it, carve and enjoy .

Score skin close together

Make sure you get Fennel seeds and salt right in between the cuts

Lovely crispy crackling



Lovely moist meat and crispy crackling

Jerk chicken rice and peas

Whilst in Jamaica the Jerk chicken I ate was so far removed from the marinades and dry rub spices we buy here. Once home I decided to have a go at making it myself.

The chef at our hotel was always so busy tending to a large queue of people daily I didn't feel I could take up his time by quizzing him over his recipe and getting him to offer up his secret. I doubt he would have told me anyway! so when I got back home I looked up this recipe on this Jamaican website and decided to give it a go.

http://www.jamaicatravelandculture.com/food_and_drink/jerk_chicken.htm


I slightly changed the amounts of certain ingredients (marked in orange) especially the amount of vinegar just as I felt it could overpower the spices, but you can use this recipe as a guide and add as much or take away what you don't like.

The result was amazing, very tasty and shall now be a regular in our household.

Authentic Jerk chicken eaten in Jamaica

Ingredients

One 3 1/2 lb chicken (3lb of chicken breasts may be used if preferred) I used 6 legs
6 sliced scotch bonnet peppers (jalapenos may be used if scotch bonnet peppers are unavailable) I removed the seeds as I didn't want it too spicy
2 Tbsp. thyme
2 Tbsp. ground allspice
8 Cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 Medium onions, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. salt
2 Tsp. ground black pepper
1 to 2 Tsp of the following (to taste)
1-ground cinnamon
1-nutmeg
1-ginger
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
Juice of one lime 
1 cup orange juice
1 cup white vinegar- I used 1/2 cup instead as I felt a full cup would be too much for my taste. 


Method

Roughly Chop the onions, garlic and peppers. 

Add to a blender with the rest of the ingredients to make the jerk sauce.

Rub the sauce in to the meat, saving some for basting and dipping later.

Leave the chicken in the fridge to marinade overnight.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes,gas mark 6, turn the meat then bake for a further 30 minutes.

Baste with some of the remaining marinade whilst cooking.



Ingredients for Jerk chicken

Cut slits in the chicken so the marinade can penetrate through to the meat.











Pour over the marinade keeping some back for basting.

















All the ingredients blend into a nice thick consistency.











I left the chicken marinading for 24 hours in the fridge.












 The marinade clung well to the meat.











 Chicken stayed nice and moist.











Rice and peas

Serves 4 people

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon coconut oil (or canola oil)

1 garlic clove, minced
1 green onion, chopped

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 can pigeon peas (known as gungo peas) or kidney beans are fine.
1 cup water

1 cup lite coconut milk

1 cup long grain white rice

1/2 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for the rice and peas.

Method

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, then add garlic, green onion, and thyme, and saute for 2 minutes.

Add beans, water, and coconut milk to the pan, then stir and bring to a boil. Add in rice and salt, then place a lid on top, turn the heat down to low, and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until all the liquid as been absorbed, and rice is tender.



The finished Jerk chicken, rice and peas.

As you can see the finished dish does look like the original Jerk chicken I had in Jamaica (pic at the top of the page) the only difference is the Jamaicans then smear the dish with hot sauce or BBQ sauce. This tastes fantastic. I feel like I've brought a little bit of Jamaica back home.

If anybody has a go at making this dish I'd love to hear your views.

A week in Negril Jamaica

This was a last minute booking to have a break from work and a week in the sun, so nothing much had been planned for this trip.

In this blog I try two of Jamaica's national dishes Jerk chicken rice and peas. (We were particularly thrilled to learn our own hotel had it's own Jerk chicken hut on the beach). 
And ackee and saltfish.

We visit the famous Ricks cafe for sunset drinks and watch the local boys cliff diving.

And take trips YS falls and visit the Appleton estate rum factory. And have drinks at the local beach bar called (and I loved this ) "The office of nature".

Having great dining experiences or a night out is not only found at Michelin starred or high end restaurants. Street food stalls and roadside shacks have served up very tasty and memorable eating experiences on many occasions during our travels. And the best nights out drinking has always been out of the resort and with the locals.

Out of interest a quick Google search of high end restaurants in Negril did not yield any results anyway, instead only offered gourmet dining in other hotels resorts. Not seeing the point in doing this we were happy to just eat off the cuff whilst out and about when not at our own resort.     

We were staying at the Club hotel Riu Negril in bloody bay. Our hotel rep (our new Jamaican mother) told us there was some debate about how the beach claimed its name. Some argue it was the site of a vicious pirate battle, but most believe hunters used to massacre whales there, turning the sea blood-red.

Jerk Chicken Rice and Peas

On our first full day we had a taste of authentic Jerk chicken rice and peas, this was served at the Jerk chicken hut on the beach of our hotel. The chef there was never short of any takers at lunch time, so much so I never felt I could hold up the queue by asking him the ingredients of his Jerk marinade, I doubt he would have told me anyway !

Jerk chicken with sauces hot hot hot or BBQ.

Chef on the beach at Negril

Chopping the Jerk chicken

One flick of the wrist with his clever and the chicken was sliced



Jerk chicken with rice and peas, sauces hot hot hot or BBQ.





YS Falls, St Elizabeth, Jamaica

Next time we had Jerk Chicken was at the little open air restaurant and bar at YS Falls.

YS Falls is one of the most secluded and beautiful spots in Jamaica, boasting seven layers of waterfall which cascades over several natural pools and swimming in natural springs within a beautiful jungle setting .

YS Falls, St Elizabeth, Jamaica



Natural spring water pools for a jungle swim. Great for working up an appetite.

Jerk chicken rice and peas at YS Falls restaurant, Jamaica

Ackee and Saltfish

This is the other national dish we tried. Typically served at breakfast, we tried this at our hotel. The ackee fruit should be allowed to open and naturally ripen on the tree. When it ripens it turns from a green to bright red to yellow orange then splits open to reveal three large shiney black seeds, surrounded by sorft , creamy or spongey white yellow flesh.

This Ackee tree was growing just outside the restaurant of our hotel.

Ackee and saltfish, for breakfast at the hotel, Negril, Jamaica



As you can see from the picture it really does reassemble scrambled eggs, probably the reason it's widely eaten for breakfast. But it didn't taste as nice as it looks. In fact I thought it tasted quite bland it was the salt fish that seem to overpower the delicate Ackee.



Appleton Rum Factory

You can't go to any Caribbean island without being introduced to RUM.

Rum is made from molasses, the byproduct of converting sugar cane into granulated sugar. The Caribbean with its perfect climate, fertile soil, and just the right amount of rainfall is the perfect environment for sugar cane to flourish.

When in Dominican we drank Brugal, in Cuba it was Havana club, in Jamaica it was all about Appleton. So when we discovered there was a trip to the factory where they make this fantastic drink it was not to be missed.

We travelled to the Nassau Valley in St. Elizabeth where the Appleton RumEstate is located.The tour began with a meet and greet at the bar on the estate where you are offered to try some sugar cane by chewing and sucking out the sweet liquid, and a Rum punch. After pairing up with out tour guide Norman a very likeable chap who with incredible knowledge mixed with a good sense of humour made for an interesting tour.

He told us about the history of rum before giving us a tour of the grounds and factory for an inside look at how the rum is made.

We were also taken inside the distillery to see the Copper Pot Stills and the ageing house where the rums rest in oak barrels. I did not particularly enjoy as the smell in this room it was horrendous like a very dirty musky smell, all very interesting but I couldn’t wait to get out. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take our cameras into the distillery.

 

After the tour it was on to the real business of tasting!

Eleven rums where on offer, starting with the 12 year old, at which point one older lady of the group had to be helped off to the sidelines coughing and spluttering. Next up was the over proof white rum then several fruit rums, pineapple, coconut etc.. Honey , Blue mountain coffee liquor and Rum creme. A very enjoyable experience and great fun. (Our guide joined in ) what a great job he has!

Ricks cafe

I had heard of Ricks cafe before I went to Jamaica and no matter what part of Jamaica we would end up in I knew we would make the trip to this place. As it happens we were staying not more than 20 minutes taxi ride away.

Voted as one of the top ten bars in the world so all the Jamaican billboards would have us believe?  It does however boast the number six spot on the ten most dangerous cliff jumps in the world says Google.

Opened in 1974 by Richard Hershman and known then as a hippy hangout it now attracts most people for the fabulous sunsets and cliff diving.

To be honest the Sunset was amazing but so was the sunset viewed from our resort right on the beach as it hugs the same coastline. 

What Rick’s Cafe does have however is Location Location Location.

You just can’t get a better setting for a beach bar, restaurant, live music venue and spectacular cliff diving all rolled into one glorious place.

We arrived at 1.30 and spent the whole afternoon enjoying place before the hoards of holiday makers arrived on their coaches and Catamarans to watch the famous sun set. There is just something so special about catching the perfect sunset and hearing a couple of hundred people cooing and clapping did make it memorable.

There is a restaurant here at Rick’s but we didn’t think it good value for money everything was very overpriced for an ordinary sounding menu. We did have some snacks just the usual nachos and a couple of chicken skewers portions were tiny and again overpriced. But we enjoyed the ice cold bottles of Red stripe beer!



75 foot dive! Pretty cool place to sit and sip on a nice cold beer.

 

This is what most people come here for, nothing nicer to have a drink watching the sun sink into the sea



Rick's Cafe at sunset

Office of Nature

It was during one of our morning strolls along the beach after breakfast that we noticed a wooden shack like structure and a sign outside called "Office of Nature".

Being early in the morning it was deserted but on closer inspection we worked out it must be a bar of some kind and next to it an area for cooking. So we planned to pay it a visit later that evening. We were so glad we did !

The kitchen at Office of  Nature

The bar , Office of Nature

Office of nature is run by Ital, Bingey and Gritty. They are the nicest guys who made us feel very welcome. Alas to say so welcome we stayed for lot of beers.

Bingey

Having a beer and a chat with Bingey

Watching the sunset from the bar with a nice cold Red stripe.

Bringing in the Lobsters for super.