Caitriona Redmond: How to keep your food from going off in hot weather
Fresh Irish chillies are on sale at Dunnes Stores.Â
It is too hot to cook! I no more want to spend an hour in the kitchen with the oven or the hob on than you do. Iâve also exhausted my trusty fall-back of the Irish Mammy salad. It was a novelty last week and by this stage, Iâm even doing an internal groan at the thoughts of sliced boiled eggs and rolls of ham. Thatâs why this week both recipes are made without a stovetop or oven in sight and I am all the better for it. The bonus to all these no-cook dishes? Less washing up!
The clammy, sticky heat has attached itself to my brain cells and makes it more difficult to think straight, never mind plan meals, shop and cooking. In the warmth food can spoil rapidly; knowing how to store your supplies will save you money and unnecessary trips to the shops.
Did you know that the door of your fridge is the area most prone to heat fluctuations? This is why, particularly in this weather, you shouldnât put your cartons or bottles of milk on the door. When the temperature is not consistent those âuse byâ dates are not reliable and the milk may not last that long.
The top of the refrigerator is the coolest so keep your dairy products like milk and cheese on the top shelves. Butter, while it is far easier to spread kept out of the fridge, will quickly spoil even if itâs kept in a butter dish in the press. Put the butter on a lower shelf of the fridge so that it doesnât solidify too much and take it out about 30 mins before you intend to use it.
At the bottom of the fridge, you will normally find a big drawer, this is the âcrisper drawerâ and itâs designed to keep your fruits and vegetables fresh this depends on you removing the packaging that they come in. Youâll also want to make sure itâs completely dry. This is why I line mine with a dry tea towel to soak up any condensation which can cause products to spoil quicker.
Above the drawer should be a solid glass shelf. Here is where you place your meat and poultry where it canât âdripâ on whatever is stored below and because your dairy products are up high you have less chance of flavour transfer.
What about the fruit bowl and those pesky fruit flies, blue bottles and wasps?
Firstly, separate out your bananas away from all other fruit. They emit a chemical that will make everything else in your bowl ripen rapidly and, combined with the heat, your fruit will go over before you have a chance to enjoy it (but the flies will). But where do you store those bananas then? Believe it or not, they keep the longest on a hook with air circulating around them, a bit like on a banana tree. If they go over-ripe and squishy, peel the banana and pop the flesh into the freezer for use in baking another time.
Whatever fruit you have left in the bowl cover. You could get one of those dinky net umbrellas in a discount shop; I got mine in Dealz. The umbrella sits over your fruit bowl and is meant to protect it from insects laying their eggs and multiplying. If youâre not going to eat the produce within 3 days then pop it into the fridge and take it out a couple of hours before enjoying it instead.
Aldi have a major competition to celebrate Electric Picnic and is giving away tickets to the music festival and vouchers. Every customer that spends more than âŹ40 each week (excluding alcohol) is eligible to enter. Visit their website to find out more.
The âAce Build It Yourself Burger Boxâ is âŹ12 in SuperValu which includes all the ingredients you need to make the ultimate burger. Whilst on the surface it might appear expensive, the box includes streaky bacon, cheese, gherkins, and burger sauce along with the burgers and buns. Itâs a value alternative to similar cook-at-home restaurant boxes.
Fresh Irish chillis, produced in North County Dublin by Taylorâs of Lusk, are only 49c in Dunnes Stores at the moment. Even though it might seem counterproductive to be adding more heat to our meals right now.
Couscous Bean Salad
Couscous is a fantastic carbohydrate that cooks in just 5 short minutes once you cover it with hot water. Increase the ingredients depending on how many people youâre catering for.
Servings
1Preparation Time
5 minsCooking Time
5 minsTotal Time
10 minsCourse
MainCuisine
Middle EasternIngredients
50g dried couscous
75ml hot water
1 chopped red pepper
1 chopped scallion
100g mixed beans or beans of your choice
Handful chopped tomatoes
Method
Use about 50g of couscous per portion and use 75ml of hot water per person.
Put both in a heat-proof bowl and cover the top with cling film.
Leave to one side for 5 minutes then it's ready to eat warm from the dish.
Season to taste.
Alternatively, you can cook up the couscous earlier in the day, then add fresh salad items to it before serving.
Bailey's Affogato
You don't always need to use the oven or the hob to make an impressive dessert!
Servings
4Preparation Time
20 minsTotal Time
20 minsCourse
DessertCuisine
ItalianIngredients
Tub of ice cream of your choice
1 large jug of french pressed coffee or individual espresso shots per person
A shot of baileys for the adults
Method
About 6 hours before serving take your ice cream of choice out of the freezer.
Leave it to warm up a bit for 20 minutes or so, then scoop into individual portions and lay each in a large freezer-proof box. Cover and return to the freezer.
Forget about your dessert until youâve cleaned up after the main course.
Brew a large pot of coffee. Put a chilled glass in front of each person, then place a scoop of the ice cream in each glass. Pour a shot of Baileys on top of the ice cream.
Top with strong coffee. Eat straight away!
