Hainanese chicken and green tea

Alcohol-free drinks are sometimes overlooked as an accompaniment to food but tea, in particular, can be a good pairing and may be an unexpectedly good option for those of you who are doing dry January.

I’d ordered in the chicken from a local Bristol street food stall called fatrice as they were offering a special of Hainanese chicken rice, a delicate dish of poached chicken and rice given a kick with a drizzle of chilli sauce.

I was intending to have it for supper but it looked and smelled so appetising when it arrived at I o’clock that I couldn’t resist having it for lunch and decided to brew up a mug of Jing Tea’s intensely fragrant Dragon Well Single Garden green tea with it which went perfectly.

Challenged by Jing, who sent me some tea samples I’ve been making loose leaf tea once a day during January and must admit it’s absolutely transformed my attitude to tea. Up to now I've lazily tended to fall back on tea bags, but using loose leaves - and enough of them - is a game changer. I’ve tried it before at various times but the tea-ière (like a small cafetière) they provided me with is so easy to use that the habit’s sticking. (Sounds like an ad doesn’t it but this ISN’T a sponsored post!)

And if you want to make Hainanese chicken yourself there’s a recipe here

Paella with pork, chorizo and spinach and palo cortado sherry

There’s still a tendency to think of sherry as an aperitif or just for drinking with tapas but it can go really well with a more substantial dish as I was reminded this week.

One of my Zoom cooking groups had decided to cook from the Moro cookbook, which was, incredibly, published back in 2001 but still feels really fresh and relevant.

I made a dish which they describe as a paella but which is more like a typical Spanish ‘arroz’ dish made without tomatoes, saffron or seafood. The key ingredients were pork, chorizo and spinach (I substituted chard) but the element which made it so particularly delicious was the slow cooked umami-rich onions and peppers. There was also a spicy note from the pimenton and cascabel chillies which I used as a substitute for the dried nora peppers recommended in the dish but probably needed cooking rather longer than the 15/20 minutes it took to cook the rice.

I tried a couple of reds with it but settled in the end for a glass of Hidalgo’s fabulous Wellington 20 year old palo cortado which chimed in perfectly with all the deep savoury flavours. Amazingly it had been open for weeks but was still wonderfully rich and nutty. You can buy it from indies such as Eynsham Cellars for £28-30 a bottle but Waitrose does a decent own label one for £11.99. A dry amontillado would work too.

I have to say that Spanish rice dishes are a lot easier than risottos (or should that be risotti?) as you don’t have to stir them. And equally, if not more tasty.

For other palo cortado and amontillado pairings click here.

Junmai sake with cheung fun, asparagus and shiitake mushrooms

It’s partly because not enough restaurants offer the option but I don’t drink sake often enough in Asian restaurants. (And yes, I know Asian is an imprecise term but that’s how many describe the food they offer)

Anyway proof, yet again that it is a reliable pairing at dinner last week at Wokyko Kauto in Bristol where I drank an Evening Sky junmai sake with a range of dishes including a brilliantly clever vegan dish of roasted cheung fun (rice noodle roll), apsaragus, shiitake mushrooms and Sichuan jus that had all the depth of flavour of a meat dish.

It also worked with an intensely flavoured onglet steak in black bean sauce (as surprisingly, did the tail end of a gin and tonic, made with their own Woky gin which has been developed for them by the local Psychopomp distillery and which is flavoured with nashi pear).

And - although you hardly needed a liquid accompaniment - with a moreish bowl of Korean fried chicken ramen with a deeply flavoured umami broth which is apparently made with serrano ham bones.

I’d like to try one of the other sakes when I go back (and it is a question of when rather than if. I definitely need that tang (umami broth) fix!)

I ate at Wokyko Kauto as a guest of the restaurant

Albarino with arroz negro (rice with squid ink)

If you’re an albarino fan I’m sure you know it pairs brilliantly with seafood but here’s a twist to take the experience to another level.

It was at the brilliant Barrafina in Adelaide Street in London last Monday where Mar de Frades hosted a fascinating tasting and lunch to show off their experiments with older vintages.

Up until that point I’d been less keen on their top wine Finca Valiñas, a richer style which is given skin contact and partly aged in wood (I like the purity of unoaked albarino) but I have to say it was a fantastic match with this rich dish of dark, deeply savoury squid-ink flavoured rice with clams, prawns and squid*.

On the basis of this I’d say keep your young, fresh albarino for uncooked shellfish, seafood salads and simple grilled fish and more complex styles for richer fish and rice dishes like this. (Paella too, of course.)

The Finca Valiñas doesn't seem to be currently available in the UK but enquire about it from importers Sommelier's Choice. They have the 2014 Mar de Frades albarino for £12 for 50cl or £16 for a full-size bottle. Amazon also stocks it for £16.53 + £4.95 delivery.

* Also called arròs negre

I attended the tasting and lunch at Barrafina as a guest of Mar de Frades.