Raising the Steaks

There aren't many things better in life than a simply but well cooked steak coated with a red wine sauce and devoured with a bottle of a full bodied red.

There's something about biting into a juicy, medium rare steak that satisfies the primal human and frankly, it takes nothing more than some loving care and quality ingredients. Below is a simple but winning recipe.

Ingredients
For the steak
400 gram steak (I used a T-bone on this occassion - look for good marbling)

Sea Salt
Freshly cracked black pepper

For the sauce
Shallots
Beef bones (if you have them - otherwise use trimmings from your steak)
Diced carrot
Diced celery
Garlic cloves
Sprig of rosemary
Brandy
Full bodied red (I used a Cabernet Shiraz)
Good quality beef or veal stock
Knob of butter

Method
1. Leave meat out at room temperature for at least an hour. Season very generously with salt and pepper (the seasonings will "disappear" into the crust of the steak)
2. Once a pan is very hot, pan fry the steak 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a pre-heated oven (200 degrees celcius) and cook for a further 2 minutes. Remove and rest for 2 minutes.
3. For sauce, pan fry bones in olive oil, add shallots, carrots, celery, garlic and rosemary. Season with sea salt and cook until vegetables start to caramelise.
4. Deglaze with brandy, then add a glass of red wine. Simmer until alcohol burns off and add beef/veal stock. Simmer for 20 minutes or until reduced. Strain sauce, season and add a knob of butter at the end of the cooking time.
5. Serve steak on a warmed plate, drizzle with red wine sauce and a side of blanched french beans.
6. Eat, drink and be very happy!

Melbourne Bites #10: It's all in the name

This fine dining restaurant makes no secret about what it serves with its choice of name. Straightforward, traditional Italian fare. The smart and elegant dining room is popular with the corporate types who work in the office building which it is housed in and has an air of understated intimacy.

We started with a classic – Parma ham wrapped around succulent rockmelon. Salty, sweet – superb. We then proceeded with oxtail ragu with hand made pici, slow cooked tripe served with creamy polenta and a wagyu tenderloin served with mixed mushrooms. For mains, our table had the swordfish, porterhouse and a Ligurian fish stew chockfull of fresh seafood. The food here is competent but we were let down on a few occasions by the service and attention to detail (we had to ask repeatedly for a dessert menu and were not offered more wine when our glasses were empty).

But all was forgiven with a sweet ending to the evening – the desserts here are pretty darn good. We had a magnificent tiramisu and a done just right panna cotta with mixed berries compote. All in all, the Italian will do its namesake proud if it smooths out a few service issues in the dining room.

The Italian

101 Collins Street

Melbourne Victoria

Italian with Heart

I had the privilege of joining in the celebration of the wedding anniverary of close family friends, the L's last night. The L's are close family friends and have been there for my family during our darkest hours when dad became critically ill. They are incredibly giving people and last night, celebrated 33 years of marriage.

We celebrated this wonderful occassion at Trattoria Lafiandra Al Museo - an unpretentious, cosy Italian restaurant housed in the Singapore Art Museum. Another close family friend who had hosted a party there previously arranged for a menu designed by the chef and owner, Cataldo Lafiandra.

We started off with the antipasto which consisted of grilled vegetables (portobello mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant), calamari with aioli, eggplant parmigiana. The presentation of the dishes were very rustic as were the flavours - robust and had a great home cooked element to them. The eggplant parmigiana in particular was excellent - oven baked eggplant rolls in home made tomato ragu filled with meltingly gooey mozzarella.

We then followed with two types of pizza - rocket with fresh tomatoes and parma ham. Both were very good with perfectly thin and crispy crusts. Chef Cataldo is also very generous with his toppings, the latter pizza covered with deliciously salty prosciutto.

We were also served a very hearty fettucine bolognese. A dish that is often misunderstood because of the trashy versions that are served in American style diners... this was done the way it should be. Hand made pasta tossed in a rich ragu of beef and pork mince in tomatoes finished with a hint of cream... Love it.

For mains we were served an assortment of simply grilled crayfish, pan fried dory, grilled chicken and beef fillet with sauteed mushrooms. Aside from the chicken which had obviously spent too much time on the grill and was actually burnt rather than charred, everything else was delicious. The beef was cooked to a perfect medium rare (just the way I like it) and had been simply seasoned with salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice.

The food at Lafiandra has a comforting factor to them with most dishes being hearty in portion and flavour - the restaurant is very unpretentious and doesn't try overly hard to impress. Prices are very reasonable which is something which I have found is a rarity for good Italian food in Singapore.

We left Lafiandra happy and I was glad to have been able to share such a joyous occassion with such dear friends. Happy Anniversary Uncle KL and Aunty CH... May your life together be like one big party - filled with delicious food, infectious laughter and great company in one another.

Simply Bellissimo!

The occassion - To celebrate the birthday of a close family friend. The venue - Pontini, a reputable Italian restaurant located in the Grand Copthorne Waterfront hotel in Singapore. The result - a great evening filled with laughter, great wine and simple yet delicious Italian food.

We started with Pontini's freshly made wood fire oven pizzas (roasted vegetables, italian sausage and prawns with rocket being the three different toppings). The pizzas were all well made and had a deliciously thin, crispy base. Simple toppings using quality ingredients are the best in my book when pizzas are concerned - and Pontini delivered just that.

What followed was an entree sized pasta dish - spaghetti with pancetta, chilli and mixed mushrooms. Perfectly al dente freshly made pasta with yet again clean flavours. The salty pancetta was perfectly balanced against the earthy mixture of porcini and portabello mushrooms.For mains, I decided on a medium rare tenderloin steak which was served on a bed of spinach in a veal jus and balsamic reduction. Whilst not a particularly large serving - the meat was perfectly cooked and the uncomplicated accompanying sauce made this a more than satisfying dish.

We of course had room for the birthday cake - a stunning dark chocolate grenache cake to round off the meal with freshly brewed Italian coffee.

The service at Pontini's was spot on - waiters were readily available without being overly intrusive. The clean presentation of the dishes and the elegant private dining room also reflected the restaurant's approach to its food to a tee.

I thorougly enjoyed this meal - and what defined it for me is the fundamental appeal of Italian food - using the best ingredients available and cooking it simply but well.

Good Italian food should be unadorned, rich in flavour and beautiful in its simplicity... and Pontini's food is exactly that - simply beautiful.

Where time stands still

I spent most of my childhood in Singapore - and along with that part of my life are many fond food memories. Back then, having a steak dinner was a novelty and my dad used to love to bring us to a Russian steakhouse near our home for special occassions or treats.

The venue then was Shashlik restaurant, an iconic establishment off Orchard Road in Far East Shopping centre. Only in Singapore will you get a Russian restaurant run by elderly Hainanese Chinese waiters who bring your orders to the table in wooden pushcarts.

My dad especially loved the breadrolls that were always served piping hot and the signature Borsch soup (a rich tomato beef stew with vegetables served with a thick dollop of sour cream). The steaks were all served on sizzling hotplates which used to be the fad back then and served with unashamedly unRussian condiments - bottles of Heinz tomato and chilli sauce or English mustard that were presented on request.

Fast forward almost 10 years and I find myself walking into this same dimly lit establishment last night - and immediately I was struck by the familiarity of everything that is this restaurant. The same aromas and sounds from sizzling plates, the same decor of deep yellow table cloths and mahogany chairs, the same vibe of nonchalant service that is provided on a need to be provided basis. I was however saddened to see that only one of the original Hainanese waiters was still working in the restaurant. Surprisingly, I could still remember their faces and how each had their own mannerisms and quirks.

We started with the Borsch soup which evoked immediate nostalgia - memories of birthdays, anniversaries, etc came flooding back to me with each sip. This was the definition of comfort food - more than just a soup - I tasted the coversations, warmth and laughter that my family shared in this restaurant. Mopped up by the familiar piping hot bread rolls - I was a happy man.

The Oysters Mornay that followed were tasty - rich bechamel sauce and parmasean cheese smothered oysters which were then placed under a hot grill. Not exactly Russian and definitely not sophisticated - but to be honest, I couldn't have cared less.

Shortly after our starters, the familiar sound of the rolling pushcart arrived and we tucked into a medium rare Chateaubriand steak (which at Shashlik means a tenderloin steak with mushroom sauce made from canned champignions and served on a hot plate with sides of frozen mixed vegetables, crinkle cut chips and a lonesome grilled tomato). There was too much butter in the sauce (and the frozen vegetables as well I suspect) and the sides weren't exactly inspiring - but this was as unpretentious as they come. Everyone comes here knowing what they will get - a slice of how a foreign cuisine was adapted and used to taste when it was first introduced to Singapore.

As I sipped on the aromatic Hainanese coffee at the end of the meal - I remembered how dad used to love coming here. How he would always order extra servings of the soft breadrolls and smile at his first sip of the Borsch soup. And although I will no longer be able to see him do these things - I am glad that places like Shashlik exist to challenge the passing of time and perhaps - to simply allow its patrons to indulge in reliving the past.