What is Choosy Food about?

Choosy Food is a new way of thinking about how we eat now. As two old friends who've spent their happiest times cooking for family and friends, we've noticed a definite shift in the way we all prefer to eat. Gone are the days when plates were politely cleared. In this pick and mix world, everyone¹s as individualist about their food as in everything else they choose.

A few of us have discovered a genuine allergy. Allergic reactions are on the increase, particularly amongst children - with apparently inoffensive ingredients triggering symptoms which can range from a mild rash or bloating to a life-threatening event. The Choosy Food way of thinking was cooked up with them in mind.

More and more people are selective about food for other reasons, too. Vegetarians, of course, who range from strictly vegan to fish-, chicken-, even game-eating. And we're all highly health conscious now, careful about our weight, cholesterol, blood pressure or a fear of migraine. Some people have religious scruples about ingredients. And finally, there's a growing number of us who are just plain picky: our choices about what we will and won¹t eat is as changeable as fashion - but we both like fashion.

What's to be done? Some of us cope with a household that has one or more allergies, and one or more preferences. Most of us have experienced a moment when we cook up something new and delicious, but one of our guests (who used to eat everything) will sit back and declare: "I'm sorry, I don't eat that!" The Choosy Food website and blogspot are here to help. Of course there are a plethora of books and websites devoted to each individual condition - special ones for gluten allergies, or for organic eating, for low-fat alternatives, and so on and on. But ours is the only one that aims to cover the whole range of special eating. Here you will find recipes, tips, advice and above all lively writing about the food we all love, and the food we all need. Our aim is that food designed for special preferences doesn't have to be self-denying, or seem somehow lacking or dull. We devise really delicious recipes which everyone at the table can enjoy - including us!

Friday, 6 November 2009

Keeping meat-eaters happy without too much fat


I may have been a caterpillar in a former life - I'm always happiest when chomping my way through something green and leafy. Unlike Aisling, who is a cheerful carnivore and a brilliant meat-cook, I wouldn't really mind if I didn't eat meat at all. But I know that for anyone who loves meat, a low-fat diet can be a real penance - and if you have that person in your life, the trick is to find ways to make them feel they've had the full caveman experience without consuming too much, either in fat content or in overall quantity.

Now you may think it's odd to nominate pork, if you're looking for a lowish fat content, but it's all about the cuts you choose. Pigs are bred much leaner now, and if you look for a farm pig that has had a happy life and run about a good deal, and you go for the tenderloin, the fat content is just about the same as skinless chicken - miles lower than the fat content of the good cuts of beef. Yes, tenderloin is pricey, but you don't need very much of it, and no one is better at making small quantities go a long way than the Chinese.

This Chinese pork is light, delicious and very satisfying. You can eat it with any sort of noodles, of course, or with rice, but it's also delicious as a starter or main served piping hot on a cold lettuce leaf (I told you I was a caterpillar) or a bed of warm rich shredded cabbage. (One word of warning, though - almost all Chinese food is very high in salt, so if that is a consideration, don't use this recipe.)

One tenderloin fillet (usually around 400g) will serve six for a starter, four for main. You will need:

400 g pork tenderloin fillet, trimmed and chopped as finely as you can
2 tbsps oil, probably corn oil or nut oil
200g dried porcini or other mushrooms, well soaked
2 cms ginger, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves
2 tsps sugar
2 tbsps each of soy sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce
large handful of fresh rocket, roughly chopped
chopped spring onions
a little sesame oil

Pour boiling water over the dried mushrooms and let them stand for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a wok or other wide pan fry the garlic and ginger in the oil, just for about half a minute, then add the pork. It should be chopped very small; in a hot pan it will only take a few minutes to cook. Then add the drained and chopped mushrooms, the sugar, the three sauces (don't use any other salt as there's already plenty in the soy sauce) and cook for another few minutes, adding a little of the mushroom water if the mixture is too dry. (To be more authentic, at this point you could stir in some cornflour as a thickener, but personally I don't like that slightly slimy effect so I don't.)

When the pork and the mushrooms are cooked, turn off the heat and chuck in the chopped rocket; stir it in loosely - it doesn't need to cook, just to wilt in the heat of the mixture. If you like, you can drizzle a little sesame oil and scatter chopped spring onions over the top, and serve as I suggested above - on leaves for a very lean effect, with noodles, or with rice.
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