Day 20: peas with oomph

You will be glad to hear that I do not have much to witter on about today. Today’s cookalong comprised of two recipes, however I will only be talking about one of them. The other I will give a brief mention, it would be rude not to, but I’d like to use a free pass and make it again before picturing and talking about it. The main pick for today was Nigella’s Pork Steaks with Figs and Port, and it was absolutely delicious. I know the word delicious can be over used, and as a result have quite an underwhelming impact, but when used with sincerity; I think it packs a bigger punch than any of its synonyms. The reason I will forfeit its count towards 365 Days of Nigella, for today anyway, is because I used red port instead of tawny port. Now, the port was old so it was probably as brown as ruby port can be before spoiling, but as a result it made the final dish look like a massacre or innards and blood on the plate; the innards here being the port sodden figs. Aesthetic appeal (or lack of) aside, its taste was to be savoured and I very much look forward to making it again and giving it the attention and honour it deserves in writing. For now though please allow me to witter shortly about the second recipe I made, and without further delay I give you Nigella’s Peas with Pancetta.

Nigella’s Peas with Pancetta

I tend to spend so much time and energy on the centre piece of a meal that I always opt for very plain side dishes; often being about as adventurous as petit pois with salted butter, which is in fact sometimes all you need. When I saw Nigella’s Peas with Pancetta in Nigellissima - a book that I was given for Christmas the year it came out, but never actually cooked anything from until recently - I decided this was the dish that would take my simple sides up a gear.

It is still very simple, but with the added flavours of vermouth, pancetta, mint and parsley. A doddle to make but something so much more to look forward to than every-day peas. These are peas with oomph.

Flavour musings

The richness from the vermouth and the saltiness from the pancetta is perfectly offset by the fresh liveliness of the parsley and mint.

As long as I have pancetta in the fridge, I think I will often veer towards this way of cooking peas and perhaps just have them less often (for variety). Also -for the sake of transparency - I actually used smoked bacon lardons as I did not have any pancetta, but I look forward to doing it right next time!