Top 3 Weird Food Combinations

This week we found ourselves inspired by the unusual combination of bananas wrapped in bacon, from the guys at SORTED and it got us thinking about other weird and wonderful food combinations.
For most of us, our most "creative" food combinations tend to arise when either when the fridge is looking rather empty and we are scrambling to put together a snack or meal with very limited resources, or when we accidentally mistake sugar for salt, oil and vinegar, balsamic and soy sauce etc.
But, some people take flavour combinations much more seriously and base food pairings on scientific flavour analysis. The theory goes, that foods which share some major flavour components. For example, consider some unusual flavour combinations found on Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck menu. By whipping out your chemistry kit, you can find out that pork Liver and Jasmine flower share a key flavour compound, indole, and similarly the combination of white chocolate and caviar share amines, making these winning duos. If you are feeling inspired to check out some new flavour combos then you might enjoy this demo of a food pairing tree, an interactive visualisation for each ingredient.

After much long and hard deliberation, we at Dinnr bring you our top 5 weird and wonderful food combinations. They really shouldn't work, but they do!

1. Olive Oil and Ice Cream

Put down the bottle of caramel sauce, and grab a bottle of olive oil. Take a moment to get over how weird it might seem to eat ice cream with olive oil, and then give it a shot. It adds as much richness as any chocolate or fudge sauce!


2. Salt and Coffee

Ok, so this is probably one of those cases where someone confused salt and sugar, but it really works! A pinch of salt in your coffee can enhance the flavour and add depth. Restaurants use salt in almost every dish, even desserts, and they know what they are doing so why not give it a try.

3. Smoked Salmon and Dark Chocolate
So often associated with cream cheese, the combination of smoked salmon and dark chocolate has been overlooked for too long. The saltiness of the fish combined with the sweet bitterness of the chocolate might just be a match made in heaven. Find some exciting recipes using these ingredients here

Now we have shared ours, what are your favourite and unusual food pairings?

The Humble Potato

"You say Potato, I say Pattatah" Others say spud, tattie, tater, but whatever you want to call it, the humble potato is so delicious and versatile that we aren't surprised it is our Irish brethren's favourite vegetable! With St Patrick's Day looming this weekend, we thought that before we celebrate with the traditional Guinness and silly hat, we would give you some fun facts about potatoes:

1. The Year of the Potato
2008 was the International Year of the Potato

2. The First Food Grown in Space
In 1995 potatoes were taken into space on the shuttle Columbia, marking the first time food has been grown in space.

3. The Biggest Potato
World's biggest potato weighed in at 18 pounds and 4 ounces (according to the Guinness Book of World Records) which is enough to make 72 medium portions of McDonalds fries!

4. A Royal Fashion Accessory
Marie Antoinette was known to wear potato blossoms with her outfits.

5. Potatoes can be Poisonous
The plant contains the toxic compound glycoalkaloids in the stem and leaves. When the potato turns green this is a result of a high concentration of the glycoalkaloid poison. Don't worry though, being poisoned by potatoes is very, very rare!

So bake them, fry them, boil them or mash them, but whichever way you like your potatoes, enjoy them this weekend! It is what St Patrick would have wanted.

Dinnr's Top 5 Nifty Cooking Tips and Tricks!

The Dinnr test kitchen sees more action than your average kitchen (Cooking! We mean cooking action!) There is nothing unusual about our culinary wizards whipping up a rack of lamb with roast vegetables at 10am, or having a three course meal on the table before it's time for elevensies. With this constant chopping and sizzling, we have picked up a few tips and tricks. But use is this information if we don't share it with you lovely people? 

So, read on for Dinnr's top 5 tips and tricks in the kitchen:

1. Save an oversalted dish

If the dish contains an acid – e.g. juice from a citrus fruit, vinegar or wine, then add a little more of it to counter balance the salt. Likewise, if you've added too much of the acid, try adding a little bit more salt!

Alternatively, add a peeled potato which absorbs any excess salt.

2. Remove the smell of garlic

Ever used a “clean” chopping board, but everything you chop on it suddenly smells and tastes like garlic? A little lemon/lime juice and a bit of salt helps. Sprinkle salt on your board, then rub with a quarter of a lemon or lime. Let it sit for 2-3 mins before wiping with a damp cloth. And, if you end up with garlic lingering on your fingers, rub them with a stainless steel spoon and the smell will be gone in a flash!

3. Find out how fresh your eggs are

Fill a glass with water and pop your egg in. Eggs that sink and sit horizontally on the bottom are fresh. As they get older the larger end starts to rise, and eggs which float have gone off.

4. Soften butter at the last minute

We are forever taking rock hard butter out of the fridge only to realise we need softened butter! This nifty trick speeds up the process without turning the butter to liquid. Boil the kettle, and fill a glass with hot water giving it a few seconds to heat up. Then turn the glass upside down and place over the butter. Leave it for a minute and soon you will have perfectly softened butter.

Last, but certainly not least...

5. How to flip food in a pan.

Being able to flip food makes you look a real pro in the kitchen. It takes a bit of practice, but mastering this is brilliant for impressing guests and any sceptics of your cooking abilities. (But don't worry, you can always revert back to using utensils and turning food manually if it all goes wrong!)

The key thing to remember is that you want to move the pan horiztonally, forward and back, not up and down.

Have you any great cooking tips to share with us?

Dinnr spreads the love this Valentine's Day

Move over, Heston!

If the thought of eye-wateringly expensive restaurants and sitting elbow-to-elbow with other smooching couples this Valentine’s day fills you with dread, then fear not. Here at Dinnr we have just launched our exclusive 3-course menus to help you create a delicious meal at home to really treat that special someone.

Our exclusive menus are inspired by London’s top eateries:

The Ivy
Duck eggs 'en Cocotte'
Salmon Cakes, Chilli Cream and Wilted Spinach
Mixed Berry Gratin with Mint Granita
(which is what you can see above)
£40

The Hawksmoor
Tiger Prawn Caesar
Grilled Onglet Steak, BBQ and Roasted Glazed Carrots 
Banoffee Pie
£45

Polpo
(all vegetarian)
Insalata Caprese
Butternut Squash Risotto
Tiramisu Verrine
£35

What's included?

Included in the price are
a) All the ingredients for starter, main and dessert, perfectly measured
b) Delivery all across England
c) Precise and image-rich recipe instructions for each dish
d) A leaflet with the number of our resident Chef who can answer your questions
e) Rose petals & scented candle
f)  Wine recommendation and music playlists

We provide everything you need for the perfect Valentine’s evening, except the wonderful company. That bit is up to you.

These delicious menus are available for delivery between 11th - 16th February. Within the Dinnr Central London Delivery Zone, we offer Next-Day delivery between 3-6pm or 5-7pm, for orders placed before 6pm. Outside of this zone, delivery takes place between 9am-5.30pm and orders need to be placed before 6pm 2 days before the date of delivery (e.g. For delivery on Thursday, orders must be placed before 6pm Tuesday).
  
Choose your menu now at www.dinnr.co.uk/recipes and prepare for the most romantic night of your life.

Looking forward to serving you, 
Your Dinnr Team 

Currently in Season: Carrots

What’s the big deal?
So Bugs Bunny was a big fan, and our mums used to tell us that they would help us see in the dark. Turns out they really were right! Carrots are packed with a nutrient called beta-carotene which is converted into vitamin A in the body, this really does help you see in the dark as it transforms into a purple pigment called rhodopsin in the retina which is essential for vision in dim light. Beta carotene also promotes healthy, younger looking skin and vitamin A is essential for a healthy immune system. So get crunching because these delicious orange sticks really are good for you!

Trivia
In Britain, approximately 100 carrots are consumed per person per year, that is £290 million or 700,000 tonnes.
If you laid all the carrots grown in this country in one year end to end they would reach 2.3 million kilometres - that’s two and a half return trips to the moon.
The first orange carrot didn’t originate until the 16th century in Holland. Other colours of carrots include purple, black, yellow, white and red.

Get the best:
Carrots are harvested for 12 months of the year. You should look for smooth form and a healthy orange colour. By selecting carrots that still have greens attached, they will stay fresher longer, the leaves themselves should be fresh and bright green. Selecting young slim carrots will be sweeter

How to cook:
Boil them, roast them, mash them, eat them raw. It really is up to you! Cutting them into smaller pieces helps them cook faster, and you can cook them until tender or keep them a little al dente. Eating carrots raw rather than cooking them, as they release sugar as they cook. Eaten raw carrots have a GI of 20, which rises to 50 when cooked.

Try it
Check out our Mediterranean Chicken with grated carrot quinoa.

Or, for a sweet treat, try this carrot cake recipe

Dinnr Takes On the Nation!

The overwhelmingly positive response we have had from our London customers in the few short months we have been up and running has prompted us +Dinnr to spread our wings and we now offer our services across mainland UK!

If you live outside of our London delivery zone, then fear no more!

• Make an order for £35 or more
• Order before midday for next day delivery
• Or schedule in advance
• No delivery charge! 
• We deliver Tuesday - Saturday between 9am - 5.30pm.

And for a limited time only, enter the code:

dinnruk 

at the checkout for a £5 discount!

Head to www.dinnr.co.uk/recipes now to order your next delivery!

*Dinnr boxes are packaged with Wool Cool to keep food chilled within Health and Safety Standards until at least 7pm on the day of delivery. As always, get in touch with any questions at feedback@dinnr.co.uk

In season this month: Kale

What’s the big deal?
We are all a little guilty of bandying around the term “superfood” these days, but when it comes to Kale it really is a well deserved title. These little leaves are packed with beta-carotene, folate, vitamin c, iron, magnesium and potassium. Also, did we forget to we mention that it is one of the richest vegetable sources of calcium? Being so rich in nutrients means kale can help lower cholesterol, protect against various cancers, is good for your vision, skin and your immune system. If those aren’t good reasons to get chomping then we just don’t know what are!

Trivia
Kale, cabbage, kohlrabi, cauliflower, broccoli and brussels sprouts are all the same species of plant, Brassica oleracea.
Early in the twentieth century, Kaliyard (kale field) was a disparaging term used to describe a school of Scottish writers, including Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie whose writing featured sentimental nostalgia for Scottish life.

Get the best:
A smaller head of kale will be more tender, and always pick one with crisp, brightly coloured leaves.

How to cook:
To cook whole leaves: Rinse and pop in a pan without drying, cook for 2 minutes until wilted.
Or for shredded leaves, bring a cm deep of water to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

Try it
Check out our Sweet potato, beetroot rosti with kale, apple and fennel salad. More colours than a double rainbow (ok, not quite) and with wonderful oozy cheese seeping through, this dish is really delicious.

Or, kale is also great in stews and soups. We love this recipe from our friends at Love Food Hate Waste for ribbolita. It will even help you use up that stale bread lurking in the back of the cupboard!

References
http://www.discoverkale.co.uk/
http://www.traditional-foods.com/profiles/kale/
http://www.veraveg.org/Veg%20History/Veg%20History%20Kale.html