Slow cooking, stovetop cooking, thermomixing and Lamb ragu . . .

Slow-cooking to the non-Thermomix owner, probably looks like a convenient way to feed your family a nutritious meal. You just need to prepare your ingredients in the morning, throw them in the slow cooker and allow them to cook all day until you are ready to eat your meal at night . . but hold on, does this sound nutritious to you? To me it sounds more like a slow death to nutrients!

Although both a slow-cooker (and also a Thermomix), typically cook food at less than the boiling point of water, which is considered a healthier way of cooking . . . surely the prolonged heat exposure to vegetables in particular, as a result of hours and hours of slow-cooking, has to put the integrity of the more unstable water-soluble vitamins and phytonutrients at unnecessary risk? Of course, there are always exceptions, such as the antioxidant lycopene, a red pigment carotenoid, which actually becomes more bioavailable when tomatoes are cooked. But shouldn't we also be concerned about the other more fragile micronutrients in tomatoes? 

As a general rule, the longer a food is exposed to heat and the higher the cooking temperature, the higher the subsequent nutrient loss. Preserving nutrients as best you can using cooking methods is definitely a tricky science, especially on the stovetop where timing is crucial if you wish to preserve the nutrients in the foods you are cooking. 

Steaming has long been recommended as the most favourable method of stovetop cooking to reduce nutrient loss and thankfully we can look to our trusty Thermomix to help us out with this method of cooking in the Varoma. But rest assured, we can also look favourably at the TM bowl method of cooking in comparison to stovetop cooking methods such as simmering, boiling and frying which all expose foods to higher temperatures which are difficult to control. This is just another way that the Thermomix comes into it's own, not only are foods cooked quickly (less time) and at comparably low temperatures which are preset and controlled, they are cooked to perfection if you follow well-tested recipes, ensuring that nutrient loss is kept to a minimum.  In terms of nutrition, quick methods of cooking at low temperatures has to be more superior, and any Thermomix owner understands the concept of 'fast' in comparison to other methods of cooking. 

Traditionally a lamb ragu is slow cooked for hours to develop flavours and tenderize meats. Using a heavy based pan and my thermie, I believe that I have achieved that lovely richness of flavour and melt in the mouth texture to the lamb in much less time, preserving more of the nutrition in your lamb and vegetables :)

ingredients

lamb ragu
700g diced lamb
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground fennel
1/2 tsp ground cumin seeds
1 tbsp organic butter or ghee
2 large cloves garlic
1 onion, halved
1 large carrot, cut into chunks
20-40g extra virgin olive oil
50g tomato paste or concentrate
1 tbsp TM vegetable stock paste
400g can BPA-free tomatoes (or your own TM cooked tomatoes)
100g tomato passata or sauce
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves only
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves and/or parsley
1 dry bay leaf
1/2 cup dry red wine

method

1. Make a spice rub for the lamb by combining the coriander, fennel and cumin in a small bowl with the diced lamb. Mix well to cover and place in the fridge for about 30 minutes. TIP: It does pay to freshly grind your spices from the whole variety so that your finished dish will be more fragrant and flavoursome. Also, your lamb should be evenly diced for successful shredding later. 

2. Melt the butter or ghee in a heavy based pan (cast iron and not non-stick preferably) over moderately-high heat. In two batches, sear the lamb on all sides until deeply browned, about 4-5 minutes per batch. Remove the meat to a plate and repeat with the remaining lamb. The lamb should still be rare inside. DO NOT clean the pan!

3. Now add the spiced lamb to the TM bowl and shred for 2-4 seconds on reverse speed 5 to break up slightly. The lamb will break up further as it simmers, so don't over-do this step and turn your lamb into mush. Remove to the plate. 

4. Add the garlic cloves, onion and carrot to TM bowl. Chop on speed 7 for 5 seconds. Add olive oil and sauté at Varoma temp for 3 minutes on speed 1. Scrape down sides of bowl, add tomato paste and cook a further 2 mins at Varoma temp.

5. Add dry red wine to the frypan and deglaze, simmer on the stovetop until the liquid thickens. Then scrape contents of the frypan into the TM bowl.

6. Return the shredded lamb to the TM bowl and add the remaining ingredients (stock paste, canned tomatoes, passata, fresh herbs and bay leaf) to the TM bowl. 

7. Simmer the ragu at 90°C, speed soft, reverse for at least 15 minutes. . . or longer if you prefer in which case you may need to add some water. . . . just don't cook it all day :) 

Meanwhile cook your pasta or lightly steam or sauté your zucchini spirals. I like to serve with a side of green salad or steamed broccoli to ensure that we are getting our daily greens quota :)  

Tomato pasta sauce packed full of veg!

I've been making this 'pasta' sauce since Miss 9 was a baby, (although it has evolved over time of course). So, I thought it was about time that I blogged it :). This tomato-based sauce is so versatile and nutritious, you can use it to create a vege-packed bolognaise or add some chickpeas, baby spinach and spices for a vegetarian meal. I have always preferred to make my own pasta sauce, so I converted this recipe for the Thermomix very early on when I could see how very simple it would make this recipe to prepare. 

If you buy the bottled kind of tomato pasta sauce, unfortunately, as with any can, jar or carton of juice, soup, sauce or vegetables you find on the supermarket shelf, the nutrition has been largely destroyed by pasteurisation or ultra heat treatment (UHT) . . . plus you'll find that some cans are lined with BPA-based lining, so watch out for this too. The Food Standards Agency requires that food is heated to produce a 'commercially sterile shelf-stable product'. This heat treatment kills food spoiling microorganisms, as well as pathogens (microorganisms that cause illness), but unfortunately it also destroys enzymes and nutrients that are not heat stabile, such as vitamin C and the B group vitamins. An exception is lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes and other red fruits which gives them their red hue. Lycopene levels are found to increase with cooking time, such that processed tomato products are an excellent source of this antioxidant, however it is also likely that other beneficial antioxidants in tomatoes are destroyed in the same process. So, it's a good idea that tomatoes feature both raw and cooked in your diet for full nutritional benefit :)

This recipe calls for canned tomatoes, but you could very easily substitute fresh . . .I would cook them first to develop their flavour (follow the EDC method). Personally, I would prepare the tomato component of this recipe from scratch if our little tomato bushes on the balcony were productive enough! Unfortunately, I don't think that the Hong Kong heat and humidity is all that suitable for tomato growing, although we might have had a better season if the recent wet and wind hadn't washed away our blossoms! Oh well, it's all part of the fun :)

This sauce has a lovely richness of flavour as well as sweetness. You can choose to blend or not to blend, depending on how your family prefers it. We like it a little chunky as you can see in the pic. This recipe makes a TM bowlful bursting at the seams. I freeze the sauce in ready-to-go portions which cover us for several meals.

ingredients
1 red capsicum (pepper), blackened, peeled & chopped
2 sml or 1 lge carrot (about 150g), cut into chunks
120g mushrooms
1 med zucchini (200g)
1 apple, cored & quartered
40g EVOO
1 brown onion, halved
3-4 cloves garlic
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes, BPA-free
400g tomato passata 
50g tomato paste (or concentrate)
100g wine, filtered water or meat stock
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar
2 tsp dried oregano, basil or mixed herbs
2 dried bay leaves
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Himalayan or sea salt, to taste
good handful fresh basil leaves

method
1. To chargrill red capsicum: Hold the capsicum with the stem upright and remove the core as you slice downwards to create 4 large pieces (or cheeks). Remove any membranes or seeds. Place each of capsicum pieces on a sheet of foil on an oven tray under a hot grill for about 10 minutes or until blackened and blistered. Remove from grill, fold up the sides of the foil and wrap ensuring that the steam cannot escape. Allow to cool, over which time the steam will condense and allow for the skin to be easily removed. Peel of the skin and cut into chunks.

2. Add carrot, mushrooms, zucchini and apple to TM bowl and chop on speed 4 for 10-15 seconds until evenly chopped. Decant into a bowl and set aside. 

3. Add onion and garlic to TM bowl and chop on speed 7 for 5 seconds. Add 40g olive oil and sauté for 3-4 minutes at 100°C on speed 1. 

4. Return chopped vegetables and apple to the TM bowl and add can or fresh tomatoes, passata, tomato paste, dried herbs, wine or water, and combine on speed 4 for 6 seconds. Add bay leaves and cook at 100°C for 25 minutes on reverse speed 2. Place the basket on top to prevent spitting. 

5. Remove the bay leaves using the spatula and add roasted red capsicum, fresh basil and balsamic vinegar. Blend on speed 4-5 for 5 seconds, or to your liking.


uses & variations

• add can tuna or salmon & serve with pasta
• add cream cheese or cream for a creamy sauce (blend into the sauce at step 5 and heat a little further)
• add freshly minced beef & cook up a batch of spaghetti for a quick spaghetti bol (see method below)
• Stir through some fresh baby spinach, cooked chickpeas and serve with a little brown rice, for a quick vegetarian meal. 
• add fresh or dried chilli (to taste) for a kick!

For a bolognese sauce:
Add 1 x rump steak, cut into chunks,  to TM bowl and pulse on turbo 3-4 times for a chunky mince. Scrape the minced meat off the blade with the spatula, then add 20g EVOO and cook for 6-8 minutes on Varoma, reverse speed soft. Then add 500-1000g of the tomato pasta sauce (recipe above), depending on the number of people you are serving and how meaty you like your bolognaise. Add 1-2 tsp of your favourite stock paste and cook for 10-15 minutes at 100°C on reverse, speed 1-2. Serve with lightly steamed spiralised zucchini or pasta of your choice.