Life

James Street South Cookery School: Beetroot's seasonal, colourful and flavourful

Roast garlic and beetroot soup – "I love the burst of colour and flavour beetroot brings to anything I put it in," Niall enthuses
Roast garlic and beetroot soup – "I love the burst of colour and flavour beetroot brings to anything I put it in," Niall enthuses Roast garlic and beetroot soup – "I love the burst of colour and flavour beetroot brings to anything I put it in," Niall enthuses

ON MORE than one occasion, when presented with a dish containing beetroot, I have overheard someone say “I didn’t think it would be purple!”

Beetroot is one of those vegetables which people either love or hate. I am a huge fan and even included a beetroot and celeriac remoulade earlier this month, which I am sure you have been enjoying making over the past three weeks.

It is a fantastic ingredient to use in soups, salads or as a bit player in many main courses and side dishes – I love the burst of colour and flavour it brings to anything I put it in. Beetroot is also a great local ingredient with some delicious produce coming from farms across Northern Ireland. There is always a plentiful supply of lovely big fresh beetroot down at St George’s Market of a weekend, so I would encourage everyone to try it out.

This week’s recipes are two great earthy dishes and one tip I will give is to always use gloves when peeling as the purple stain can prove troublesome to remove – and that's a slight understatement!

ROAST GARLIC AND BEETROOT SOUP

2 cloves garlic, unpeeled

500g raw beetroot

Half an onion, finely diced

1 tblsp olive oil

¼ glass of red wine

600ml vegetable stock

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crème fraiche and sour cream

Chopped tarragon

Start by preheating the oven to 200 C. Place the beetroot and the garlic in tinfoil and wrap very tightly as you want the ingredients to steam cook. Place in the oven on a roasting tray and cook for one hour.

Once the hour has passed, remove the tinfoil from the oven and unwrap. Roughly chop the beetroot, remove the peel from the garlic clove and mash both ingredients together.

Place a pot on the hob and heat the oil; add the onion and fry gently until soft and translucent. Add the beetroot, garlic and red wine. Cook on a gentle heat for a couple of minutes; add the stock and bring to the boil. I have opted for vegetable stock for this dish but you can use chicken stock if you have it.

Once the ingredients are boiling, reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Turn heat off and, using a stick blender, blend the ingredients and season to taste.

When serving, garnish with crème fraiche and chopped tarragon.

BEETROOT, CUCUMBER, CHILLI & RICOTTA SALAD

(Serves 4)

4 medium sized beetroots

1 large cucumber, finely sliced

250g ricotta cheese

4 sprigs chervil, finely chopped

4 sprigs mint, finely chopped

1 green chilli, finely chopped and deseeded

1 garlic clove, crushed

100ml olive oil

1 lime, juice only

1 tblsp red wine vinegar

sea salt

fresh black pepper

Start by roasting the beetroots. Pre-heat your oven to 180C and clean the beetroots thoroughly. Rub with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and place in a roasting tray; cook until tender – this should take approximately 40 minutes for a medium-sized beetroot. To test, pierce with a knife similar to how you would check if a potato was cooked. Once cooked, remove the skin and chop into quarters.

Next, get your cheese and place in a bowl. Add in three tablespoons of olive oil and the garlic, the herbs and half of the chilli and, using a fork, mix together; season to taste with salt and pepper.

With the cucumber, we tend to slice lengthways in the restaurant so, if you can, slice as thin as you can. Next is the dressing: in two bowls, divide the lime juice, vinegar and two tablespoons of olive oil; in one bowl toss the cucumber; in the second bowl, toss the beetroot. Season with salt and pepper then layer up on your plates, adding in some fresh salad leaves and crumbling the ricotta and herb mix on top. Sprinkle with the remaining green chilli and serve.