Saturday Kitchen 9.1
(by Peter Richards MW)
Are you giving a wide berth to any and all talk of dry January and the Chief Medical Officer’s stingy new alcohol consumption guidelines? Good. Then let’s get stuck back into the deliciousness of Saturday Kitchen.
Wine to go with Matt Gillan’s salmon, crab fregola, lemon curd and ‘granola’
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Tim Adams Semillon 2012, Australia (£9.75, Tesco)
Peter’s comments: such a brilliant wine, probably the best value oaked white under £10 on the high street right now. It’s so elegant and balanced, with lovely acidity to wash away that spice and salty samphire. The creamy structure of the wine means it can stand up to the gorgeous richness of the crab fregola and sweet intensity of the lemon curd. Lovely, original dish and a beautiful wine to match. Not cheap but great value.
Wine to go with Paul Ainsworth’s pâté en waffle
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The Cubist Garnacha 2013, Spain (from £7.99, Waitrose)
Peter’s comments: full-bodied Spanish Garnacha may be impressive but it’s not always the easiest to match with food. Here, though, it just works so seamlessly. Its hearty, savoury style works really well with the savoury chicken livers, the fresh acidity (the altitude of the Calatayud uplands coming into play) works well with the tangy pickled red onions and the soft tannin and rich fruit are wonderful with the sweet raisin puree. The dish is impossibly (dangerously) moreish and this Garnacha is a brilliant accompaniment. It was really interesting that James didn’t like it initially when he tasted it but, as the wine opened up over the course of the show, it came into its own. A good lesson to let your full-bodied reds open up and breathe – and don’t serve them too cold. (Or drink them too early on a Saturday morning…)
Recipes, details and links
My wines for Joanna Scanlan’s food heaven and hell were as follows:
Aged sirloin steak with Thai salad and toasted hazelnuts: Taste the Difference Curicó Valley Merlot 2014, Chile (from £6, Sainsbury’s)
Whole mackerel with butternut squash and a fennel and chicory salad: Trésor du Loire Cuvee 845 Chenin Blanc 2014, France (£7, Sainsbury’s)
Thanks to James, Paul, Matt and Joanna. High fives to our brilliant wine VT crew, Laura, Alec and Isabel. Shout out to the fab team at Cactus TV who make the show. Thanks also to Tesco and Waitrose. You can find the recipes on the BBC Food site and the show is available for a few weeks via BBC iplayer. Thanks for reading!
