Three Compasses in Patchetts Green, near Aldenham in Hertfordshire.

[At home in NZ]

Peter's question in today's newsletter:
Can anyone work out what is in the picture, and explain to me what's so gastronomique about it (other than the, presumably, astronomique price)?

It's the Grass Fed Surrey Farm 8oz Sirloin Steak for the astronomique price of £25.

what's so gastronomique about it,
Nothing much, I think the pub is trying to gain a name for themselves.

 

[peter]

It's the Grass Fed Surrey Farm 8oz Sirloin Steak for the astronomique price of £25.

Hmmm - when we have an 80z steak at home it costs us £1.99, plus about £1 for chips or baked potato, petit pois (yes, I can string two words of French together), mushrooms, salad and bearnaise sauce. Not sirloin steak, admittedly, but leaner and just as tasty thanks to the sprig of rosemary placed under the steak while it's frying. There might even be a sprig or two of roquet hidden amongst the generous portion of salad.

But you've only answered half the question - what are the items of 'food' that we can see in the photo?

 

[At home in NZ]

Hmmm - when we have an 80z steak at home it costs us £1.99, plus about £1 for chips or baked potato, petit pois (yes, I can string two words of French together), mushrooms, salad and bearnaise sauce. Not sirloin steak, admittedly, but leaner and just as tasty thanks to the sprig of rosemary placed under the steak while it's frying. There might even be a sprig or two of roquet hidden amongst the generous portion of salad.

But you've only answered half the question - what are the items of 'food' that we can see in the photo?

You didn't specifically ask for the different foods, I took it literally to mean what the meal is. according to the menu, they are
Portobello mushroom, roast tomato, Roscoff onion, fries
Choice of: peppercorn sauce, bearnaise sauce or wild garlic butter

I can also see what looks like the strip of fat from the edge of the steak. Can't see the fries and those square chunks look like pumpkin to me.

We buy meat in kilos, 8oz is about 225g and that is about the amount of meat per serve in our house. We do have sirloin and the occasional scotch fillet when it's reduced by long way.
Meat is expensive here, looking online at the supermarket where we shop sirloin is NZD27.90 per kilo, it's on special and reduced from $34.50.
Angus beef scotch fillet is a staggering $50 per kilo and it can stay on the shelf!

I wouldn't have a clue how much it would cost to cook a portion of chips or a baked potato.

 

[peter]

I agree that the large item on the board looks like a strip of fat, but if that is the case, what's it doing there?

I'm prepared to accept that the cubes are poncey fries (excuse my French), but which of the items in the photo is the roast tomato and what are those globs on the left of the superfluous wooden board? The meal looks most unappetising and exceedingly unhealthy - if I served my wife a meal looking like that she'd ask for a divorce tout de suite.

 

[Pauline]

Is it a wooden board? It looks to me more like a "decorative" smear of sauce. I wonder if the thing that looks like a strip of fat is two mushroom stalks, and maybe the things to the left of that are the roast tomatoes, or maybe they are mushrooms. There's some kind of cheese on top of the steak - shaves of parmesan?

 

[peter]

Is it a wooden board? It looks to me more like a "decorative" smear of sauce.

You're right - these days the fashion is to serve up steaks on a wooden board, so I was sort of expecting it, and the left-hand end looks quite three-dimensional (but then I couldn't figure out why the steak was on the plate, not on the 'board').

Now I know that it's a smear the meal seems even more unappetising....

 

[Margery]

square chunks look like pumpkin to me.

Deep fried tofu?

the occasional scotch fillet

The same here, unfortunately it can be quite flavourless even though it's tender. Husband claims that the lack of flavour is because the animals are grain fed!

 

[At home in NZ]

Deep fried tofu?

The same here, unfortunately it can be quite flavourless even though it's tender. Husband claims that the lack of flavour is because the animals are grain fed!

Pardon me for being direct, that's why I don't buy Aussie meat! our animals are all grass fed and it does make a difference to the flavour.
Occasionally Aussie steak is available in our supermarket (the equivalent of your Woolworths) and it is labelled as grain fed.

EDIT: Deep fried tofu? YUK!

 

[Margery]

our animals are all grass fed and it does make a difference to the flavour.

Agree absolutely. We are ex beef farmers and our cows were grass-fed.
Re the fried tofu - I have never tried it but it must appeal to someone.

 

[peter]

Re the fried tofu - I have never tried it but it must appeal to someone.

I've never tried it, but I can imagine that it would make the tofu more interesting (albeit far less healthy). But I think it would be very difficult to get tofu (soya bean curd) to form perfect cubes and retain that shape during frying.

Any more thoughts on what's in the photo?

 

[canadianbeth]

I did not receive the newsletter to which you are referring. I have not changed my e-mail. I went into the website and read it there.

 

[CeeJay]

I'd vote for those square things being their 'take' on chips, they seem to like tarting up their dishes with blobs and smears of what I assume is jus. But would that slab like thing on the smear is I have no idea I also can't see the tomatoes. It all looks rather messy and unappealing.

 

[peter]

I did not receive the newsletter to which you are referring. I have not changed my e-mail. I went into the website and read it there.

Unfortunately all I can do is send emails and hope that members' email providers deliver them. I suggest checking your online spam folder and also making sure that you've white-listed LostCousins email addresses.

Please also see this article from my Christmas Day newsletter.

 

[canadianbeth]

I received it this morning, after I had posted above.

 

[peter]

I received it this morning, after I had posted above.

The email would have been sent at around 1am (London time) on Saturday morning, so should have reached you on Friday evening.

However it's possible that your email provider found that the LostCousins site was unavailable (because of the overnight backup, which starts at 1am) and decided not to accept the email at that time.

 

[Margery]

form perfect cubes and retain that shape during frying.

Apparently the trick is to freeze the tofu then cut your cubes. This works well when making lamingtons - freeze the cake then you can cut perfect, symmetrical, crumbless cubes. Try it next time you make lamingtons, Peter.

 

[At home in NZ]

Apparently the trick is to freeze the tofu then cut your cubes. This works well when making lamingtons - freeze the cake then you can cut perfect, symmetrical, crumbless cubes. Try it next time you make lamingtons, Peter.

Looking at Google to see if they are available in the UK I came across the claim that they are a real Aussie treat. and there's me thinking they were an NZ treat.
I found this website which says it's NZ.
This could begin something similar to the long running Pavlova 'war'.

 

[Margery]

Yes, the cake in the painting does look something like a lamington, BUT do I detect a layer of cream? No self respecting lamington would contain cream and/or jam. The NZ Herald report refers to a "double sponge" with no mention of the runny, gooey chocolate icing in which the cake is dunked before being coconutted!!
So let's call a truce - NZ can have a Wellington and Oz can have a Lamington.
Now, if we are going to discuss the Pavlova...

 

[At home in NZ]

Yes, the cake in the painting does look something like a lamington, BUT do I detect a layer of cream? No self respecting lamington would contain cream and/or jam. The NZ Herald report refers to a "double sponge" with no mention of the runny, gooey chocolate icing in which the cake is dunked before being coconutted!!
So let's call a truce - NZ can have a Wellington and Oz can have a Lamington.
Now, if we are going to discuss the Pavlova...

You will have kittens when you see the pic in this link, they have been like that ever since I came to NZ 48 years ago. I didn't know what they were at the time, didn't have them in the UK then.

 

[Margery]

Raspberry! An abomination, I say!! (Probably tastes yummy, though).
Way back in the last century when my children were at primary school, a great fund-raiser was the Lamington Drive. Children were sent home with order forms, ice cream containers were collected and great slabs of sponge cake were ordered from the local baker. We mothers would set up a production line (using the Guide/Scout Hall) cutting the cake into cubes, dunking them in the chocolate mix then rolling them in coconut and finally packing them in the aforementioned containers. It was a messy operation but quite a social occasion for the Mums. Probably would be frowned upon now by the OH&S people.