World Cup Dinners

And my Brazil shirt arrived today just in time for the final group match!

Lacklustre Spain join unenviable recent list of (Italy-2010, France- 2002) defending World Cup champions who have then been knocked out in the group stages of the following World Cup finals.

La Roja have been left with egg on their faces after losing both of their opening matches- 5-1 to the Netherlands, and 2-0 against Chile, and will be scrambling to beat Australia in the final match of the 2014 tournament.

This recipe for Spanish Tortilla, is a dish that I make quite often, and which never fails to impress. If you are only going to attempt one of the World Cup Dinners then I’d recommend this one! The fillings can be varied depending on what you feel like (salmon and asparagus is a favourite), but for this version I am going for a combination inspired by the colours of the Spanish flag.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 4, or a hungry 2!)
1 medium onion
1 can new potatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil
5 large eggs
8 cherry tomatoes halves
10-12 red pickled jalepeno slices
2 slices serrano ham cut into strips about 1 inch long.
salt and black pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Use a frying pan around 20 cm diameter. This is important as the tortilla will be too thin if a larger size pan is used.
2. Cut the onion into thin circular half-moon slices.
3. Drain the new potatoes and cut into rounds around 3mm thick.
4. Dab them dry with kitchen roll.
5. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in the frying pan and, when it’s smoking hot, add the potatoes and onions.
6. Sauté the onions and potatoes until tender, but not browned.
7. Add salt and pepper.
8. In the meantime, crack 5 eggs into a large bowl and whisk lightly using a fork.
9. Mix in the serrano ham, red jalepenos, cherry tomatoes.
10. Add plenty of Salt and Pepper.
11. When the onions and potatoes are cooked, add them to the eggs in the bowl, and give a good stir to ensure everything is coated.
12. Return the frying pan back to a medium heat, and add the rest of the oil.
13. Pour the tortilla mix into the frying pan, and turning the heat down to its lowest setting.
14. Leave the mix for 15 minutes to cook slowly, uncovered- patience is a virtue here!
15. Go round the edge from time to time with a palette knife, as this will give it a nice clean edge.
16. After 15 minutes transfer the pan from the hob to under the grill to finish off the top of the tortilla.
17. Place onto a board and cut into wedges- tastes great hot or cold the next day.

I normally eat my tortilla with some salsa and hot sauce. My favourite at the moment is Glasgow Megadeath! A nice glass of Rioja and you’re good to go!

“Round is the blin, yellow gold and hot like the sun, the symbol of sublime days, rich harvests, harmonious marriages and healthy children.”
– Alexander Kuprin.

Blini are inexpensive, light, buckwheat pancakes which have been served in Russia for over 1000 years, eaten most typically during ‘Butter Week’ a feast celebrating the end of winter and beginning of spring.
Russians won’t be celebrating today, however, following their 1-0 Group H defeat by Belgium earlier.

The Sbornaya must be pining for the days of Lev Yashin, a true icon of Russian football. Reckoned to be the greatest goalkeeper of all time, Yashin was known as ‘the Black Spider’ following his performance in a ‘Rest of the World XI’ against England in due to his distinctive all-black outfit, and the assertion that he must have had 8 arms to perform some of the fantastic saves he made that day. Yashin’s greatest World Cup moment came in 1966 where he marshalled the Soviet team to a fourth place finish, losing out 2-1 to West Germany.

“The joy of seeing Yuri Gagarin flying in space is only superseded by the joy of a good penalty save.”
—Lev Yashin

My Russian World Cup Dinner consists of blinis served with various toppings and zakuski plates (a sort of Russian tapas come smorgasbord) consisting of pickled onion, pickled cucumber, boiled egg with paprika, and a couple of simple vegetable salads of diced potato, carrot and cucumber in mayonnaise.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2)
Blinis
1.5 tsp dry yeast
1.5 tbsp sugar
250ml warm milk
15g butter softened
150g buckwheat flour
100g plain flour
1 egg separated
1/2 tsp salt
90g sour cream
Butter for frying

INSTRUCTIONS
Blinis:
1. Place 110ml warm water in a small bowl.
2. Stir in yeast and 2 tablespoons of sugar.
3. Leave to stand in a warm place until the mixture has doubled in volume and is frothing.
4. Stir in half the milk, the rest of the sugar and butter.
5. Add the buckwheat flour stir well for around 10 minutes.
6. Leave to rest for 30 minutes
7. Add the rest of the milk, the plain flour, egg yolks, salt and sour cream and stir until the mix is well blended.
8. Cover and leave for a further hour until the mixture is frothy and has doubled in volume again.
9. Beat the egg whites to a stiff consistency and fold into the blini batter.
10. Coat a frying pan with the butter, and bring to a medium heat.
11. I’m making smaller sized blinis so using around 1tbsp per pancake, but for larger size use around 3tbsp.
12. Fry pancakes- around 1 minute per side, or until golden brown, flipping half way through.
The most famous topping of course is chilled caviar (salmon eggs), and today we are also having smoked salmon, sour cream, and cranberry jelly.

I got the caviar we are having at Fantoosh fish on Great Western Road, which is great for fish if you’re in Glasgow, but a good online alternative I’ve had in the past is Mottra which sells fully sustainable caviar. Best served with sparkling wine, a good option is Tsarine Cuvée Premium Brut Champagne which comes in a bottle inspired by the spirals of St.Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow. If you fancy some you can buy it online from the Champagne Company.

Daniel Amokachi is a legend of Nigerian football.

Riding high after winning the African Cup of Nations, the ‘Super Eagles’ headed to the United States for their debut World Cup appearance in 1994, with 21 year old Amokachi spearheading their attack.
‘The Bull’ scored goals in wins over Bulgaria and Greece in the group stages, before they lost out 2-1 to Italy after extra time in the first knock-out stage. Amokachi would return to the USA 2 years later, leading Nigeria to gold at the Atlanta Olympics.

The current batch of Super Eagles will hope to repeat the success of the ’94 team, but face a stiff test after drawing their opening match with Iran.

Tonight’s World Cup Dinner is the typical West African meal of Jollof Rice with fried plantains (a sort of large, less sweet banana).

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)
For the rice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onions, sliced
1 400g cans chopped tomatoes
1 red pepper, diced
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp curry powder
1 bay leaf
300ml vegetable stock (from cube)
120g dry white long-grain rice
salt and pepper to taste

To serve
1 medium plantains, cut into slices and deep fried
crisp green leaf salad

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Sauté onions in large pan with the olive oil.
2. Add the canned tomatoes, red pepper and tomato purée.
3. Season with salt, pepper
4. Add the chilli powder, curry powder, and bay leaf,
5. Then add 300ml of vegetable stock.
6. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for around 25 minutes.
7. Rinse the rice, then add it to the tomato mixture.
8. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low.
9. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes, until the rice is cooked.
10. Serve the joffol with fried plantains and a crisp green salad.

If you ask someone for a ‘soda’ in Costa Rica, you won’t get a fizzy drink, you’ll be given directions to the nearest small family-run restaurant, where they specialize in home-style cooking. One of the most popular meals in these sodas is casado, a meal consisting rice and black beans, typically along with meat and salad.

Casado in Spanish means ‘married man’ and the name seems to have its origins in the home-spun nature of the restaurants, where customers would go to feel like they were treated as casados.

There will certainly be a warm homecoming for the current Costa Rican team if they can follow up their surprise opening victory over much fancied Uruguay with another positive result over Italy tonight.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2)
CHICKEN
2 skinless chicken breasts
5 spring onions chopped.
2 garlic cloves crushed
10g fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 Scotch Bonnet chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp soft brown sugar
½ tbsp allspice
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
Juice of 1 lime
30ml olive oil for cooking

RICE & BEANS
100ml coconut milk
150ml chicken stock
100g long grain white rice
1/2 can black beans- drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove chopped
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Chop the scotch bonnet in half and deseed (wear gloves –they are super hot)
2. Place scotch bonnet in food processor with garlic, half of the spring onions ginger, sugar, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and lime juice. Mix to paste.
3. Cover chicken breasts in spice mix and leave in fridge for 1 hour.
4. Bake chicken breasts in oven with the olive oil at 180C for 25 minutes or until cooked through.
5. Pour coconut milk and chicken stock into a pan and bring to the boil.
6. Add the rice, beans, garlic, lime juice and remainder of spring onions.
7. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes until rice is tender and stock mix is absorbed.
8. Spoon the rice onto warm plates, and serve with chicken breasts and salad of choice.

Bonus Greek pudding after tonight’s World Cup Dinner- Greek yoghurt with flaked almonds and honey- absolutely delicious and so each to make!

Greece will be hoping to avoid another World Cup tragedy tonight when they face Japan in their second match, after suffering a heavy 3-0 defeat to Columbia in their opening game.

Despite having strong domestic club sides, and actually winning Euro 2004 in Portugal, Greece have a woeful record at the World Cup, qualifying for only the third time in the competition’s history  in 2014, and have only managed 2 goals at the finals.

Tonight’s World Cup Dinner is a simple, but tasty one- Greek Koftas with pittas, hummus, tzatziki and olives

INGREDIENTS
250 g lamb mince
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 lime, juiced
1 red chilli, chopped
2 tbsp freshly chopped coriander
salt and pepper to taste
3 tsp olive oil, for frying
Flatbreads, hummus, tzatziki, olives, wedge of lemon to serve.
Also required- wooden kebab skewers. ( I got mine from Lakeland in Buchanan Galleries)

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Mix the mince with the other ingredients, other than the oil, in a bowl.
2. Form the mix into balls (about golf ball sized), and then roll into kofta ‘sausages’. Slide onto skewers.I had some vine tomatoes left over from last night so I ‘kebabed’ them too.
3. Fry the Koftas over a medium heat in a griddle pan with olive oil, turning regularly. They should take around 8 minutes.
4. Serve the cooked koftas with the hummous, tzatziki, and olives.

I bought in the accompaniments ready made, but there’s a great hummus recipe from Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall here.

After an opening match defeat to Brazil, Croatia head into their make-or-break second group match with Cameroon tonight, and so it seems like an opportune time to move my World Cup Dinners to the former Yugoslavian republic.

Croatian food tends to be regional, so it was pretty difficult to decide on a dish that represents the country, but in the end I decided to go for Brodet a fish stew from the Dalmatian coast as one of my favourite players from the 90s- Zvonimir Boban- hails from this part of the country. Don’t worry no dogs will be hurt in the making of this dinner!

Hirsute, before it was hip, Boban captained the Croatian squad in their first ever World Cup appearance at France ’98. The Croats had a great tournament, reaching the semi-finals before losing out 2–1 to eventual winners France. Croatia went on to defeat Holland in the third place playoff, with Boban providing the killer pass to Davor Suker for the winning goal.

INGREDIENTS
400g fish pie mix.
30ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for frying
1/4 lemon- juiced
4 garlic cloves, minced
bunch parsley, chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
100g chopped tomatoes
60 ml white wine
salt and pepper to taste
150ml fish stock (from stock cube)
50g prawns
6 cherry tomatoes
To Serve:
100g Polenta
Fresh chopped parsley

INSTRUCTIONS (serves 2-3)
1. Marinate the fish in the lemon juice, oil, half the garlic, parsley and salt and pepper for a couple of hours in the fridge.
2. Saute onions and the remainder in the garlic in a medium saucepan until lightly coloured (be careful not to overdo as garlic will taste bitter)
3. Add the chopped tomato and cook for a further minute.
4. Add the white wine, fish mix and fish stock to the pan and cook on a low heat for 20 minutes.
5. Serve with polenta and chopped parsley garnish

I’ve made the ‘perfect polenta‘ as per Felicity Cloake’s recipe here, but the instant stuff is fine too if you can get it.

Algeria has a history of rule by outsiders- at various points under the control of  the Roman Empire, Muslim Conquistadors, and local tribal dynasties, which ruled up until 1830, when the French invaded and colonised the country. The cuisine of Algeria is also something of a palimpsest, building on the influence of the various nations under whose rule it has fallen, including the Berber’s who first introduced, the national dish of couscous to the country!

The Algerian national football team itself has only existed since 1963, following the nation’s independence from France in 1962. Since then the ‘Fennec Foxes’ have had a pretty good record, having qualified for the World Cup finals in 1982, 1986, 2010 and 2014.

Their greatest moment, so far, came at the 1982 World Cup, when they shocked much fancied West Germany 2-1 in their opening group match. Unfortunately this also led to one of the low points of World Cup history- when in the final game of the group stages, and with Algeria in a position to qualify, Germany and Austria played out a match which has become known as the ‘Disgrace of Gijon’.

With Algeria having played their final match a day earlier, a win by one or two goals for West Germany would mean both them and Austria would qualify at Algeria’s expense. The Germans took a 1-0 lead after 10 minutes, and thereafter the match was played with few scoring chance created, giving the impression that the result was agreed before the match. Although FIFA dismissed Algeria’s protest, in subsequent World Cups all final group stage matches have been played simultaneously.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2)
2 lamb leg steaks
2 tbsp harissa paste
100g dry couscous
Roast veg- red pepper, onion, spring onion, aubergine.
160ml boiling water
Drizzle olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Spoon 1 tbsp harissa paste into a jug of boiling water.
2. Pour over the couscous in a large serving bowl.
3. Cover and stand for 5 mins.
4. Chop and roast vegetables for 10 minutes at 200deg with a drizzle of oil and salt and pepper to taste.
4. Fluff with a fork.
5. Season lamb, then fry for 1 min each side in a frying pan.
6. Spread remaining harissa paste over the lamb.
7. Cook for 2 more minutes on each side, remove from pan and rest for 5minutes.
9. Slice lamb and serve on top of the couscous.

When the United States mens international team headed to their 3rd World Cup finals in 1950 after a 16 year absence, things were not looking good for them. With a team comprising part-time players who had lost had lost their last seven international matches by the combined score of 45–2, they were due to play England’s all-star team generally considered the best in the world at that time.

The only goal of the game came in 38 minutes however when Joe Gaetjens, a Haitian, scored for the US with a diving header to deflect a long driven shot past the English keeper.

England’s star player Stanley Matthews who missed the match through injury later stated- “The game was purgatory to watch from the stands, come the final whistle, I thanked my lucky stars I hadn’t been part of it.”

For my US World Cup dinner I’ll be making an American icon which sums up images of the Wild West, drive-in movies and Elvis- the Cheeseburger.
I make burgers to this recipe quite often. I’ve tried all sorts of burger recipes- the ones where you add egg, breadcrumbs, onions, chilli, and so on, and so forth, but none I’ve made have been as good as this simple version.
The key to this burger’s success is the balance of flavours- the meatiness of the burger is offset by the sweetness of the other ingredients, so it’s important to use the correct tomatoes, lettuce, onion, etc, and I find it goes really well with a brioche as opposed to a regular burger bun. I’m having it with a ‘Pabst Blue Ribbon’, my beer of choice when I lived in the States.

INGREDIENTS (per burger)
100g lean steak mince (per burger)
Salt & Pepper to taste

To Serve:
1 slice gruyere cheese
1 Brioche bun toasted
1 slice vine ripened tomato
½ sweet onion sliced
Baby gem lettuce, broken into leaves and washed.
Dill pickle slices
Ketchup
Mayonnaise
French’s mustard

INSTRUCTIONS (per burger)
1. Put mince into bowl, add plenty of salt and pepper, and then work firmly with hands til the mince is approaching a paste consistency
2. Form mince into a patty- I make mine pretty thin- just less than 1cm thick.
3. Sauté the sliced onions over a low heat until they soften, but stop before they brown. Put to one side. This sweetens the flavor of the onion.
4. Fry the patty in a griddle pan over a medium heat. Cook to personal taste.
5. When burger is done as you like it, take it off the heat and let it rest for a minute.
6. Light toast the brioche under the grill (I actually use the griddle pan)
7. Prepare your bun and appropriate garnishes.
8. Assemble the burger thus- bottom ½ bun, cheese, tomato, dill pickle, ketchup, mustard, mayo, burger, onions, lettuce, and top ½ bun.

A miracle took place in Lausanne on 26 June 1954.

Host nation Switzerland took on Austria in the quarter finals of the World Cup, on a day where the temperature tipped the scale at 40deg- the highest ever recorded in the city- and a partisan home crowd were turning the heat up on the opposition. It was in these extreme conditions that the most extraordinary of matches took place.

The ‘Hitzeschlacht von Lausanne’ (battle in the heat of Lausanne) saw the Swiss storm to an early lead, scoring 3 goals in under 18 minutes, thanks in part to the collapse of the Austrian goalkeeper Kurt Schmied from overheating. He was forced to play on as there were no substitutions permitted, but Austria recovered to counter, scoring FIVE goals, followed by another for Switzerland, before the referee blew for half time with the score at 5-4.

The second half was equally sizzling- the Austrians extended their lead to 6-4, Switzerland pulled one back only for Austria to score again leaving the final score 7-5, the record scoreline in any World Cup Finals match.

The typically Swiss dish of fondue is my World Cup Dinner for today.

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)
250g steamed and pureed cauliflower
60ml milk
1 garlic clove
60ml white wine
30g Gruyère cheese, grated
30g Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

To Serve
Cubes of crusty bread, gammon steak, celery, carrots, cauliflower, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, green apple.

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Place the cauliflower and milk in a food processor; puree until absolutely smooth consistency.
2. Rub a medium saucepan with the garlic.
3. Pour the wine into the saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
4. Add the Gruyere and Parmesan cheese, stirring constantly until the cheese is melted. Make sure not to boil.
5. Stir in the cauliflower purée, and nutmeg.
6. Continue cooking, stirring gently, until smooth and heated through.
7. Transfer to a fondue pot, and serve at once.

“Once you decide on your occupation, you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That’s the secret of success and is the key to being regarded honorably.”
– Jiro Ono

A few months ago I watched the documentary ‘Jiro Dreams of Sushi’ which gives a fascinating insight into the life and work of 85 year old Japanese sushi master Jiro Ono.

Jiro’s outlook seems analogous to football- mastery of technique through practice and repetition, and like Jiro’s minimalist cuisine- football is often at its most beautiful when at its simplest.

For my Japanese World Cup Dinner, there couldn’t have been any other choice than making sushi. This was my first attempt at making it though….definitely more mastery of skill required, though it tasted great!

;

INGREDIENTS
RICE
200g sushi rice
35ml rice wine vinegar
250ml water

NIGIRI SUSHI & MAKI ROLLS
100g sushi grade salmon
100g sushi grade tuna
1/2 avocado sliced into strips
3 roasted seaweed sheets
wasabi paste

TO SERVE
pickled ginger
wasabi
soy sauce

INSTRUCTIONS
Wash the rice three times, then drain and leave to stand for 15 minutes. Bring one litre/1¾ pints of cold water to the boil and add the kombu (if using) and the rice. Simmer with the lid on for ten minutes, then leave to stand without taking the lid off for another 20 minutes.

Tip into a large wooden bowl, sprinkle on the sushi vinegar and cut through into the rice with a slicing motion with a wooden spatula.

Fan to cool, with a wooden paddle (or an old tablemat), for ten minutes. Turn the rice over, fan for two minutes. Repeat this four times and the rice should be at room temperature and just sticky enough.

Use the rice immediately as it is past its best after a few hours.

NIGIRI
Cut your chosen fish carefully into strips.
Take a ball of rice about the size of a walnut, roll it in your hands to form a long sphere.
Place a dot of wasabi on the top.
Place a fish strip on top.
Compress into place with a tapping motion.

MAKI ROLLS
Cover bamboo rolling mat in cling film ( to stop rolls sticking).
Cut sheet of roasted seaweed in half.
Cover with rice all over except for the edge facing you, leaving a 2cm border
Press the rice down firmly to give you a thin, even coating.
Line a thin strip of salmon and avocado, or tuna, in the middle.
Roll the mat away from you, catching the filling into the roll. Firm up with the mat.
Unroll, the with your sharpest knife cut into bite-sized pieces.
Serve the nigiri with pickled ginger, wasabi and soy sauce.

The first World Cup I REALLY remember is USA ‘94.

Sure, I remember bits of Mexico ‘86 (mostly getting a toy of the mascot- Pique, a sort of anthromorphic upside down chilli-pepper with sombrero in a Kinder Egg) and Italia ’90 (Gazza crying, everyone in school singing Nessun Dorma), but it was the year of the ‘Greatest show on Earth’ where my love of the World Cup really took hold. Baggio was the star of the show, and my hero, that year…..but Brazil won in the end thanks to his infamous penalty miss in the shoot-out, after what was a pretty dour final.

So, Brazil were the champions of my first World Cup, and after winning again in 2002, are facing enormous pressure to claim their sixth win this year, in their own back yard!

I thought it seemed appropriate, to get in the mood for the tournament, to kick off the project by making the national meal of the host nation Brazil – Feijoada.

Feijoada (pronounced ”fayzhe-wada”) is a stew consisting black beans, and varied meats, usually sausages, and cuts of smoked pork, but sometimes beef too. (In my version I’ll be using a smoked gammon joint and a Mattesson’s smoked sausage.)

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2)

Feijoada
300 g smoked gammon cut into cubes
100 g smoked sausage
2 slices bacon cut into cubes (or lardons)
1 can black beans drained
1 brown onion cut into segments
2 spring onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
4 ml olive oil
1 bay leaf
1 tsp ground coriander
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 an orange (cut into quarters)
300 ml ham stock (from stock cube)

Greens
200 g collard greens, washed, shredded
10 ml olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

To Serve
100 g Rice
chopped fresh (optional)
chopped fresh parsley (optional)
1 orange sliced

INSTRUCTIONS
Stew
1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy, deep pot and stir-fry the onion, garlic, and spring onions until softened.
2. Cut the smoked pork and sausage into chunks about and inch in size.
3. Add the drained beans, sausage, pork, smoked bacon, salt, ground coriander, black pepper, bay leaves, quartered-orange and ham stock. Cover and simmer for 2 hours or until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally and adding water if needed to ensure that the beans are completely covered while cooking.

Spring Greens
1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large frying pan and sauté 1 crushed clove of garlic until soft( careful not to let brown as garlic has an acrid taste when overdone).
2. Add the 2 bunches spring greens, and salt & pepper
3. Stir-fry over medium-high heat for 3 minutes or until greens are tender.
4. Serve with sliced oranges, white rice, spring greens.

The bunting is going up, purchasing of ingredients has begun…..pre- tournament preparation going well!