1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,680 Speaker 1: You were listening to Ruthie's Table four in partnership with Montclair. 2 00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:10,160 Speaker 1: Welcome to our new bonus series of Ruthie's Table four. 3 00:00:10,720 --> 00:00:14,239 Speaker 1: It's September. Feels like we're all sharpening our pencils and 4 00:00:14,280 --> 00:00:17,840 Speaker 1: coming back to school after a warm, beautiful summer, and 5 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:22,080 Speaker 1: I'm here with Sean Owen and Joseph Travelli are executive 6 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:24,520 Speaker 1: chefs at the River Cafe. Do you want to tell 7 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:28,000 Speaker 1: us about the ingredients that are coming in? The ones 8 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:30,240 Speaker 1: who were saying hello to the ones we're saying goodbye 9 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: to you. 10 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:34,280 Speaker 2: It's the stereotypical cook's favorite time of year. I think 11 00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:34,960 Speaker 2: pretty much. 12 00:00:35,040 --> 00:00:37,279 Speaker 3: Yeah, we're going into the chef season now what we 13 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:41,600 Speaker 3: were like autumn? I guess harvest and mushrooms are a 14 00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:44,800 Speaker 3: kind of the staple of September. I think they're so 15 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 3: amazing and they're right slap bang start in season now. 16 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:50,920 Speaker 2: Definitely that when I came back from holiday is the 17 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:51,960 Speaker 2: first and I went in the kitchen. 18 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:53,880 Speaker 4: It was the first thing. It's like, Oh, they're porcini. 19 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:57,960 Speaker 1: So on this episode we're going to talk about porcinion. 20 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:00,320 Speaker 1: Let's just start from the very first thing, which is 21 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: how to get one in the country. Would you tell 22 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:04,280 Speaker 1: somebody to pick one. 23 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:06,880 Speaker 5: You're probably best finding your local mushroom. 24 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:10,280 Speaker 4: It's not easy to get them, you know. 25 00:01:10,319 --> 00:01:14,120 Speaker 2: Funnily enough, yesterday I found myself walking past the vegetop 26 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:15,760 Speaker 2: of an old supplier of ours, so you know, I 27 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:17,959 Speaker 2: won't say hello, and obviously I'm like, it's this time 28 00:01:17,959 --> 00:01:19,840 Speaker 2: of year, you know, what about all these mushrooms used 29 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:22,200 Speaker 2: to bring us? You know, because we're in London, we're 30 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:25,679 Speaker 2: brilliantly placed because last year we had the amazing porcini 31 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:29,600 Speaker 2: from Sweden a lot or from Scotland we get them, 32 00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 2: or from Italy, you know, or they're supposedly at least 33 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 2: through Italy and you know also from the East. They're 34 00:01:36,280 --> 00:01:38,800 Speaker 2: all wonderful, but obviously the best are the local ones 35 00:01:38,800 --> 00:01:41,240 Speaker 2: that you get the fast. And he said that he 36 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:43,520 Speaker 2: can't buy them so much anymore because the people that 37 00:01:43,640 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 2: used to go picking them are now older and he 38 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:51,480 Speaker 2: has this hard work, you know, because everyonthing's it's expensive, 39 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:53,160 Speaker 2: but actually because there's not much in it, you've got 40 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:55,920 Speaker 2: to get up really early. You're competing with all these 41 00:01:55,920 --> 00:01:57,720 Speaker 2: people that are just going to pick porgini's because they 42 00:01:57,720 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 2: want it anyway, like you know, we buy a day off. 43 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:01,480 Speaker 4: But the old days of someone. 44 00:02:01,240 --> 00:02:03,800 Speaker 2: Arriving with a car full of twenty kilos of mushrooms, 45 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:06,040 Speaker 2: he said, it doesn't happen anymore. And that's not because 46 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:07,240 Speaker 2: the nature's. 47 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:11,320 Speaker 3: Changed, it's just the lady used to go to Wimbledon, 48 00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:14,960 Speaker 3: common didn't she coming with the porcini? And then we 49 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 3: were always like, well, let's get her followed. We should 50 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:19,480 Speaker 3: follow her so you can find that where she's gay 51 00:02:20,320 --> 00:02:24,600 Speaker 3: because we have a chef who and she wouldn't leave 52 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:28,040 Speaker 3: the trail because any reputable mushroom picker is not going to. 53 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:28,639 Speaker 5: Let anyone know. 54 00:02:28,720 --> 00:02:31,520 Speaker 1: Well, basically we're telling people all about portuini, but they 55 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:32,640 Speaker 1: probably can't get them. 56 00:02:32,800 --> 00:02:34,920 Speaker 2: I think you could get them where I grew up. 57 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:37,040 Speaker 2: You should buy them, like you can buy them, you know, 58 00:02:37,080 --> 00:02:37,960 Speaker 2: it's not impossible. 59 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:39,760 Speaker 5: Yeah, you can come and eat them with the River Cafe. 60 00:02:39,800 --> 00:02:41,079 Speaker 5: Yeah right, yeah, yeah. 61 00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:43,880 Speaker 2: You're supposed to not pick any mushrooms unless you really 62 00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:44,480 Speaker 2: know what you're doing. 63 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:47,959 Speaker 1: Yeah, so let's talk about what we're cooking. But were 64 00:02:47,960 --> 00:02:49,480 Speaker 1: you cooked to know with the portuini? 65 00:02:49,919 --> 00:02:51,639 Speaker 5: So I had them on the menu three times. 66 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:56,000 Speaker 3: I had them thinny lives and raw on top of 67 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:58,799 Speaker 3: the beef carpaco this season with olive on and lemon 68 00:02:59,280 --> 00:03:02,840 Speaker 3: and a bit of fresh parmesan shaved on top. 69 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:05,760 Speaker 5: I had them slow cooked down to a. 70 00:03:05,720 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 6: Real sludge, really strong, slow cooked down with pappadelli, fresh pappadelli, 71 00:03:12,440 --> 00:03:15,840 Speaker 6: and then I had them on with the grouse roasted 72 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:19,799 Speaker 6: whole with the burrello brescata. 73 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:21,040 Speaker 4: So you could have a three course. 74 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:27,160 Speaker 1: But for the home cook somebody who might be listening 75 00:03:27,240 --> 00:03:30,080 Speaker 1: at home, what do I do when I get them home? 76 00:03:30,480 --> 00:03:31,200 Speaker 5: How do I clean a. 77 00:03:31,200 --> 00:03:33,080 Speaker 3: P I would say, if they've got a lot of 78 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 3: mud on them, dried mud or the ground, do you 79 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:38,280 Speaker 3: want to resist the eyge to let them sit in 80 00:03:38,320 --> 00:03:40,760 Speaker 3: a sink of water because you might think, oh, they're 81 00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 3: really dirty, I'll put them in the sink. Well, what 82 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 3: we do is we use a peeler to peel the 83 00:03:46,120 --> 00:03:49,280 Speaker 3: to peel the stem and cut off the little tiny 84 00:03:49,280 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 3: bottom bit where it's been attached to the ground. And 85 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:54,960 Speaker 3: then we would get a damp cloth and wipe the 86 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 3: cap with a damp cloth to get rid of any debris, 87 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:01,760 Speaker 3: and then look underneath it for any extra like dusty stuff, 88 00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:03,880 Speaker 3: and then if it looks clean, I'd leave it at 89 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:08,680 Speaker 3: that if you cut it and they have tiny tiny 90 00:04:08,680 --> 00:04:11,480 Speaker 3: holes in that can be maggots. 91 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:13,880 Speaker 2: Quite often they're sold there's a couple cut in half, 92 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:15,800 Speaker 2: so you can sort of inspect them even we buy 93 00:04:15,840 --> 00:04:16,240 Speaker 2: them like that. 94 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:19,279 Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, so let's now think. So we've got the 95 00:04:19,279 --> 00:04:22,880 Speaker 1: porcini attached to its stem, we've wiped the top with 96 00:04:22,920 --> 00:04:26,200 Speaker 1: the cloth, and we've peeled the stem with a peeler, 97 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: and we've cut off the base. 98 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:29,960 Speaker 5: Now what Well, now you have to work out what 99 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:30,600 Speaker 5: you want to cook. 100 00:04:30,720 --> 00:04:33,880 Speaker 3: I'd probably go for a roasted porcini because I just 101 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 3: I think that it is just so exciting and so visual. 102 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:40,119 Speaker 3: A great porcini could be the size of your hand, 103 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:43,760 Speaker 3: or bigger than that, and you could just cut it 104 00:04:43,800 --> 00:04:47,919 Speaker 3: in half lengthways, in half or quarter if it's massive, 105 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:48,920 Speaker 3: or even leave. 106 00:04:48,800 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 5: It hole if you want to. 107 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:51,480 Speaker 4: Hole's nice. 108 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:55,120 Speaker 3: You can either cut the bottom of the mushroom and 109 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:57,719 Speaker 3: stick a sprig of time in or a sprig of garlic, 110 00:04:58,920 --> 00:05:01,799 Speaker 3: and then just put it in a pan, a saucepan 111 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:04,560 Speaker 3: with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it 112 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:08,320 Speaker 3: in the oven til I'd probably say a good at 113 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:13,960 Speaker 3: least ten minuteserature or about two twenty DeGreasy for fifty 114 00:05:14,080 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 3: f something like that. 115 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:17,560 Speaker 4: I say, hot, hottish, you know the f that's really impressive. 116 00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:19,520 Speaker 5: I'm probably wrong. 117 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:23,720 Speaker 3: Let's cook for ten minutes in a hottish oven and 118 00:05:23,760 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 3: then let it sit for a couple of five minutes 119 00:05:26,360 --> 00:05:28,239 Speaker 3: or so. Maybe you put some tinfoil on it. 120 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:30,440 Speaker 4: It goes really Yeah, that sounds really nice. Then rest 121 00:05:30,480 --> 00:05:31,840 Speaker 4: a bit, and then. 122 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:34,120 Speaker 3: You could have a fresh cannellini bean. So you can 123 00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:36,600 Speaker 3: have it on a brisqueta. You could have it with 124 00:05:36,640 --> 00:05:39,839 Speaker 3: some presiuto. It should be soft enough that in theory 125 00:05:39,880 --> 00:05:43,159 Speaker 3: you could eat it with a fork or it's not 126 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:48,760 Speaker 3: hard to cut. And it's very aromatic and perfumed. It 127 00:05:48,880 --> 00:05:51,200 Speaker 3: just goes with everything. You can have it with fish, 128 00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:53,360 Speaker 3: it with meat, have it on his own, co it 129 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:54,080 Speaker 3: for breakfast. 130 00:05:54,320 --> 00:05:56,760 Speaker 2: My dad used always Mate, they go out foraging them 131 00:05:56,800 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 2: before we got up and then come back and make 132 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:03,440 Speaker 2: the scrambled egs with couch before school scrabbled eggs. Yeah wow, 133 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:06,480 Speaker 2: but not every day, you know, this is like once 134 00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:08,240 Speaker 2: in a while. And I definitely it was like a 135 00:06:08,279 --> 00:06:10,880 Speaker 2: normal kid, and I didn't like mushrooms like regular kid. 136 00:06:10,920 --> 00:06:12,720 Speaker 2: And then suddenly I like to remember a family a 137 00:06:12,760 --> 00:06:13,440 Speaker 2: little bit gutted. 138 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 4: Oh no, there's like. 139 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:19,760 Speaker 2: Another just share. It's really nice when they go into things. 140 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:23,120 Speaker 2: I love porcini cooked with potatoes, you know, over potatoes, 141 00:06:23,160 --> 00:06:25,280 Speaker 2: when the juice goes in the potatoes, all the same 142 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:28,200 Speaker 2: would be. You know, if I think of my favorite rosotto, 143 00:06:28,279 --> 00:06:31,040 Speaker 2: it definitely would be porcini. I think there is something 144 00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:33,520 Speaker 2: about a fresh porcini risotti which is really just. 145 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:38,040 Speaker 1: Magic porcini and potatoes. Who've done it different ways the. 146 00:06:38,000 --> 00:06:38,880 Speaker 4: Way I like it best. 147 00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 2: Here is cooked in this round tin, and I remember 148 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:45,919 Speaker 2: making this with Roads so well, and you'd have just 149 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:51,840 Speaker 2: very thin layer of potatoes, very thin layer of parsley 150 00:06:52,040 --> 00:06:53,760 Speaker 2: which would always go brown by the end. 151 00:06:53,760 --> 00:06:55,200 Speaker 4: And somehow that kind of added to it. 152 00:06:55,480 --> 00:06:58,400 Speaker 2: And then a big layer of porcini and another layer 153 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:01,160 Speaker 2: of potatoes and a lad puccini and olive oil and 154 00:07:01,320 --> 00:07:02,760 Speaker 2: just put in the oven like that baked. 155 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:03,719 Speaker 4: I'll be absolutely honest. 156 00:07:03,720 --> 00:07:07,560 Speaker 2: It doesn't look exquisite, but it tastes absolutely magic. 157 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:09,640 Speaker 5: I've made that dish. 158 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:12,080 Speaker 3: I remember getting shown how to make it by Rose, 159 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:14,040 Speaker 3: and already I make it differently. 160 00:07:14,440 --> 00:07:16,520 Speaker 2: This is the great thing about having cooked with Rose 161 00:07:16,680 --> 00:07:19,600 Speaker 2: is that everyone thinks that she had the way in 162 00:07:19,640 --> 00:07:21,640 Speaker 2: the way they learned from her is the way, but 163 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:24,160 Speaker 2: she always changed it. 164 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: I think for me, the timing of porcini with polenta, 165 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:33,120 Speaker 1: this is one of my favorite's. The way it's the 166 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:39,080 Speaker 1: reading is because I would separate the stem from the top, 167 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:43,440 Speaker 1: and I think because I sometimes question cooking them whole, 168 00:07:43,520 --> 00:07:46,840 Speaker 1: because I think that the stem often tastes takes a 169 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:49,560 Speaker 1: different timing for the from the top, and so you 170 00:07:49,640 --> 00:07:52,400 Speaker 1: might get the top which kind of melts and feels 171 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:56,600 Speaker 1: really good in that stem somehow separated, feels like a 172 00:07:56,640 --> 00:07:59,720 Speaker 1: stem rather than to me part of the mushroom. And 173 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:03,600 Speaker 1: so I I like to cut them separately, and then 174 00:08:03,960 --> 00:08:07,280 Speaker 1: I would fry them in olive oil quite a while, 175 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:11,520 Speaker 1: and I'd do probably quite big pieces, you know, thick pieces. 176 00:08:12,080 --> 00:08:14,320 Speaker 1: But I think that then with the polenta, there's your 177 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:18,080 Speaker 1: moment to choose the butter, which I just love, and 178 00:08:18,120 --> 00:08:22,640 Speaker 1: the parmesan. So I would never myself sprinkle cheese if 179 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:24,800 Speaker 1: I was having a mushroom next to it, you know, 180 00:08:24,880 --> 00:08:28,840 Speaker 1: I just stir probably the cheese and butter into the 181 00:08:28,880 --> 00:08:32,000 Speaker 1: polenta and then have the mushrooms, you know, sort of 182 00:08:32,040 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 1: next to it. And yeah, for me, that is one 183 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:37,400 Speaker 1: of the great dishes. 184 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:41,760 Speaker 3: But this is something about the smell. It's so alluring, 185 00:08:41,840 --> 00:08:45,000 Speaker 3: isn't it. They're so kind of perfumed. 186 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:47,839 Speaker 1: Well, Porcini. How to find them, how to clean them, 187 00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:51,000 Speaker 1: how to cook them, how to eat them, And we'll 188 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:52,000 Speaker 1: be back next. 189 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 5: Week with more. 190 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:03,320 Speaker 4: Thank you for listening to Ruthie's Table four in partnership 191 00:09:03,320 --> 00:09:04,000 Speaker 4: with Montclair