Tag Archives: delicious

Córdoba, Argentina’s Second City

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From Mendoza in early May I took my most comfortable South American bus ride yet, a nine hour overnight Andesmar “suite 1st class” bus to Córdoba. Córdoba is Argentina’s second largest city (behind Buenos Aires) and with world heritage listed 17th century architecture it has something for tourists.

Santi, who I’d met in Santiago, kindly showed me around the centre, pointing out interesting places. Importantly, Santi also recommended places to eat typical local food including lomito, a South American steak sandwich and locro, Córdoban stew.

Córdoba, Argentina

Lighting features at one of Córdoba’s entertainment areas Continue reading →

Bariloche, Northern Patagonia, Argentina

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In January I flew south from Buenos Aires to Bariloche, a picturesque town in northern Patagonia. Bariloche is place of lakes, mountains, chocolate, ice cream, berries and inappropriate signs (for anyone fluent in English).

Bariloche, Northern Patagonia, Argentina

Inappropriate sign # 1: Salon Cultural de Usos Multiples (SCUM) approximately translates to Multi-Purpose Cultural Centre. I’m sure most people who use it are not scum

Bariloche, Northern Patagonia, Argentina

Bariloche is located next to the navigable freshwater Nahuel Huapi Lake. In fact, the region is full of freshwater lakes Continue reading →

Roast pork, cauliflower potato bake, spicy apple salsa, broccoli

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Roast pork, cauliflower potato bake, spicy apple salsa, broccoli

Last night’s dinner:

  • Rolled roast pork: rubbed in olive oil and then thyme salt and cooked in the Weber Baby Q
  • Cauliflower and potato bake topped with tulum cheese with nigella seeds and cooked in the conventional oven
  • Boiled broccoli
  • Spicy apple salsa left to slowly cook for a few hours on the stove

The roast pork turned out very well and although not all the skin crisped, there was enough crackling. The apple salsa, cauliflower and potato bake and broccoli, with their contrasting tastes and textures all complemented the pork.

T-bone steak and salsa burger

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Tonight’s meal creation was extremely delicious. Yes, extreme is an extreme word and should only be used on extreme occasions but I rated this burger 9.8 out of 10 so it deserves a superlative descriptor.

T-bone steak and salsa burger

The parts of this feast:

  • T-bone steak briefly marinated in black pepper, salt, sumac and olive oil; grilled medium rare in the Weber Baby Q and then allowed to rest in a warm oven
  • Lepinja bread fresh from the local Balkan bakery cut in half; leftover spicy salsa spread on the base and tulum (a crumbly dry Turkish cheese) with nigella seeds sprinkled on the top half; placed in a moderate oven to add a crunchy texture to the bread
  • Fresh basil, parsley and spring onion straight from the courtyard garden, chopped finely
  • Grape tomatoes halved
  • Ripe avocado flesh squashed on the salsa base

The bread provided both crunchy and squishy textures and all ingredients complemented each other perfectly. Yum!

The Joy of finding Nar Eksisi (Pomegranate Molasses) in Perth

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Nar Eksisi - Pomegranate MolassesYesterday I made my periodic visit to Dunya Market, the Turkish supermarket in Bentley. To my delight, for the first time in Perth I found pure pomegranate molasses (nar eksisi), a stunning and beautiful ingredient for salads, marinades and the like. How good is nar eksisi? Well, if a religionist used nar eksisi as a basis for their belief I would be tempted to convert.

Now, I’m not referring to that more widely available poor cousin called nar eksili sosu (pomegranate flavoured sauce). Anybody who thinks nar eksili sosu is a substitute for nar eksisi should wash their mouth out with soap. They probably also think Creed is a substitute for Pearl Jam.

rocket salad and scotch fillet steakMy favourite use for pomegranate molasses is with rocket salad. Today I made rocket salad to accompany a scotch fillet steak:
– rocket
– roasted capsicum
– garlic bruised and cut finely
– sumac (another super ingredient)
– olive oil
– pomegranate molasses
– chilli flakes
– salt and pepper

2019/05/20 UPDATE

In November 2017 Dunya Foods was destroyed by fire. The shop has now reopened at nearby Unit 1, 1164 Albany Highway, Bentley. It again stocks many Turkish and international foods and supplies, even Argentinean yerba mate tea.

Dunya Foods Shopfront on Albany Highway, BentleyUnfortunately, as of 12 May 2019, they weren’t selling Turkish pure pomegranate molasses (nar ekşisi). The closest items were non-Turkish pomegranate molasses and Turkish pomegranate-flavoured sauce, neither of which are adequate substitutes for the real thing.