how to burn things

“fire has its own language, spoken in the realm of heat, hunger and desire”

• cooking food over a hardwood fire is a primal act that is a centre point of our history.

• from the gauchos of patagonia to the butteri cowboys in the marshes of italy, every corner of this world has a rich history of food being cooked over open flames.

• many chefs and recipes focus too much on harmony of flavours, which can get boring. if you sleep in a very comfortable bed, but sometimes take a siesta on the warm ground in the shade of a tree, you will know that the experience of one highlights the virtues of the other.

• the taste of ‘burnt’ in food creates dissonance, adding a delicious and seductive element to the flavour and experience.

• we are going to show you how to replicate some techniques from the mountains of argentina, that you can cook at home in your garden, to be enjoyed with friends and family, over a burning fire, as the sun sets and the day fades into night.

–inspired by Francis Mallman, ‘seven fires’.

vegetables

• unlike argentinian tradition, we are keeping these recipes veggie. we are aware that as soon as your barbecue is lit, your da is going to be straight to the shop to stock up on burgers and sausages, which is very okay, who doesnt love a dad-style bbq?

• these dishes are to highlight the true players. the burnt vegetables, which can be enjoyed by everyone and arranged artfully across your garden table to the amazement and ego-boost from your guests.

• we have kept this vegetarian, but replacing butter with any other fat could make these easily vegan. but we love butter.

• leeks
• sweet potato
• carrots
• lemon

• these simple ingredients can be transformed into three dishes that will turn any boring afternoon into a outdoor feast, with the correct amount of love from some fire and preparation.

• using hardwood is the preferred method here. but we have used charcoal here to show you do to cook like this at home, as charcoal is easily picked up from your local garage.

• we will release a whole hardwood fire lighting and maintenance guide soon, for now, get your charcoal lit and let it heat up until the coals form a white layer of ash.

• pro tip: if you were too drunk after your last barbecue session (like us) to remember to clean the grill, here is a trick we learnt from a friend of ours who lived with us in dublin a while back (shout-out to hoppy).

• slice an onion or shallot in half, and use a pair of tongs or stick a fork in it, and use to scrape the burnt bits off your grill as the coal heats it.

baptized by fire

• anyone with experience of handling fire has probably came across a few kisses from the flames over the years, which enables you to adapt in your handling of the fire through trial and error.

• this is one such recipe. many fails and burns have been taken in this coming together, the right way, for you to be able to replicate, safely, at home. it is only dangerous if you are an idiot.

charcoal / smoked maple syrup

• this is serious

• this smoky, sweet maple and charcoal syrup is the new hot shit you need in your life. it can be used from everything from cold morning pancakes to them late summer night cocktails and glasses of charcoal & cherry whiskey (which is what we did).

• 50g maple syrup. (real maple, not that golden syrup shit).
• 50g dark brown sugar
• 100ml water
• 1 piece of charcoal, hot & burning.

• simply make a brown sugar syrup: mixing the maple, brown sugar* and water together, heating until the sugar dissolves, and then setting aside to cool.
• *it is important to use brown sugar here, as it contains more molasses than standard white sugar and will help with the process of thickening the syrup

(ensure the correct amount of water is added, if less water than this is used, or the addition of white sugar, it will produce too bitter of a taste for a delicious syrup)

• it is important the syrup is cooled completely, if in doubt place in the fridge for a brief few minutes before this next step.

• when the coals on that barbecue are starting to form white ash, using a pair of long-handled tongs, and preferably wearing a long sleeved top, drop into the syrup and watch it sizzle and smoke from a safe distance.

• ensure the coal is extinguised completely, rolling around using tongs until the bubbling and hissing has stopped.

• at this moment you will understand why you are doing this stupidly irresponsible thing, the smell of maple that is almost honeycomb, and the smoke from the coal with the caramelizing of sugar, will marry into an aroma you were not ready for.

• let the syrup cool completely, then strain through a fine sieve into your jar of choice. and that is it. ready to be added to anything you desire.

• bonus recommendation : smoked maple espresso martini

leeks

• always wash your leeks thoroughly. sand and dirt can get trapped in the layers, so take extra care in getting them cleaned out before any thought of cooking comes into play.

• slice the tops off, but leave the root end intact.

• simply place on a very hot grill, and let them burn.

• when an attractive, charred layer is formed, turn the leeks around to the other side and repeat.

• now we control the temperature

• remove your leeks and place aside briefly, remove the grill grate safely, and push the hot coals to one side of the barbecue, then place the grill back on.

• this creates two areas, a high-heat and a low-heat area, which lets you control the cooking process much more for them slower, more gentle cooking needs.

• place the charred leeks back onto the grill, on the low-heat side, and place the lid on the barbecue if you have one. now we let the leeks steam as the heat from the burnt crust reaches the inner layers

• cook for 12-14 minutes until starting to soften, then place aside and let rest for 10 minutes on a cutting board.

• while the leeks are resting, we are making a very simple but seriously delicious dressing:

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 pinch of chilli flakes

• whisk together until honey dissolves.

• slice your leeks any way you desire, but don’t go too thin as texture plays just as important a role as flavour here.

• rain some flaky sea salt on the leeks, then pour over the dressing.

charred leeks, honey & vinegar

sweet potato

• we are going to boil our sweet potatoes, then let them steam before we smash them on the fire.

• you can do this in a pot on the open fire if you wish, but it is an easy one to let tick away on the stove as you prepare other dishes and make something to sip on.

• we are going to layer some flavour into these potatoes before they even come near the embrace of the fire.

• place in a pot, cover with water and add:

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 bay leaf
• a pinch of black peppercorns
• coarse salt, to taste

• bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes, until tender when pierced with a knife.

• drain potatoes, but do not let them cool, if they are not hot, they will break apart instead of smashing. you can add them back to the empty pot with a lid on top to keep warm until ready to smash.

• we love cast iron. it is incredibly versatile and retains high levels of heat. we are lucky to have a chapa, which is a flat sheet of cast iron that is placed directly above the fire. failing this, you can use a skillet or cast-iron frying pan from your kitchen.

• use a clean tea towel, and place the sweet potatoes inside, smash together gently with your hands until flat.

• when your pan or chapa is very hot, smash your potatoes onto the surface, and do not get tempted to touch them as they sizzle, let that charred crust form with patience, it will be worth it.

lemon & thyme bbq butter

• as this burnt crust is forming, we smashed together some soft butter with herbs from the garden and other bits:

• thyme & oregano leaves
• lemon zest
• honey
• sea salt

• when you start to see the seductive burnt bits of the potato creeping from underneath, flip with a flat spatula, throwing some of the lemon & thyme butter under and around the potatoes, zest some more lemon on top and let the other side cook beautifully as the smell of burnt lemon & far-away hills surrounds your garden.

• the potato is already cooked, so how far you want to take it with the charring is up to you. however far you are willing to go, just make sure you do not remove from the grill too early or you will not have achieved that amazing, caramelized crust that makes this worth all the patience.

• paying homage to the royal argentinian chimichurri, we have made a bastardized version using what we had on hand:

• fresh oregano
• fresh parsley
• thyme leaves
• garlic cloves
• red wine vinegar
• olive oil
• sea salt

• blend until smooth and stunningly deep green in colour.

• throw your smashed potato onto a plate, sprinkle with sea salt, an optional sprinkle of red chilli flakes (recommended), and pour your green sauce on top.

burnt boniato, lemon-thyme butter and chimichurri

carrot

• with the south american tastes flowing beautifully, representing the fires of argentina, for his dish we decided to take some influence from a place far away from there, to the ancient flavours of korea.

korean bbq

• originating from the ancient barbarians of maek, korean history is filled with open fire cooking. the traditional techniques were almost lost with the arrival of buddhism which prohibited the consumption of meat. however, when the mongolian empire invaded korea, they lifted this ban which brought the re-evolution of korean bbq as we know it today, and we are thankful for that.

• we are lucky to have a local fruit & veg store which stocks beautiful produce from local farmers, so we picked up some stunning young carrots for this dish.

• we encourage you at least attempt to source some vegetables from an independent supplier, which supports the farmers and everyone in between, and the quality in taste difference is a whole new level, which you wont want to step down from after.

• scrub your carrots well, and split down the middle. you can peel them if you desire, but that is less fun.

• for our korean style carrots, we are going to be using something called gochujang.

• gochujang is a fermented chilli paste, which is made from a variety of ingredients, but the special component being the addition of starch from glutinous rice, which creates an elegant sweetness that balances the robust, fierceness of the hot chilli during the fermentation process.

• you can pick some of this up in any asian market, and is beyond worth the purchase to replicate those truely korean-style barbecue flavours.

• we made a mix of:

• 1 tablespoon gochujang
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon honey
• ½ teaspoon sesame oil
• a pinch of flaked almonds (optional)

• whisk everything together until smooth, then throw in your carrots and toss until covered.

• get your chapa or pan smoking hot once again, and pour the carrots & liquid onto it

• it will sizzle violently but beautifully, the sugars in the chilli paste combined with the honey will start to caramelize almost instantly. make sure to keep the carrots moving a little, as they will burn a lot faster than the other vegetables we have used. if you own a grill scraper, use this to scrape up the carrots and toss around.

• to dress the carrots, we spontaneously (drunkenly) made this for the first time, and it was so fucking good that it has instantly become a condiment that will stay with us for many, many more dishes and cook-outs in the future:

pickled pepper yoghurt

• we made some pickled bell peppers a while ago, using diced green, red and yellow peppers, in a simple brine of vinegar, water, sugar and salt.

• seeing this jar of pickled peppers nearly empty, and a quick glance at the yoghurt in the fridge, they were soon married in a drunken ceremony with burnt carrots as the wedding cake.

• the carrots on the grill should be caramelizing and charring nicely, don’t forget to keep them moving from time to time.

• carrots contain a lot of natural sweetness. this combined with the added honey, which will be cut by the acidic and creamy yoghurt, gives you a bit more freedom to take the carrots a little further with the dark, crisp and bold crust.

• when sensually burnt, transfer to a plate, throw the yoghurt on top, any remaining pickled peppers, and sumac if you have it.

korean-bbq carrot & pickled pepper yoghurt

• all this smoke in your face from hot coals & burning sugar has probably given you a little dry tickle in your throat, but dont worry, we are here for you.

• using that syrup you nearly burnt your hand off making earlier, we are going to make a smoky cocktail with the right amount of sweetness to bring this feast together in harmony.

maple, charcoal & cherry whiskey

• cherries are coming into season right now, and we are very happy about that. pick some up if you can, and get ready to be tipsy before you know it, sipping on this ruby gold in the evening sun.

• wash your cherries. there is no need to de-stone the cherries, as we are going to strain it, and also nobody has time for that shit.

• smash some cherries, use one of those fancy muddlers if you have one, or if you don’t, like us, just smash them, it is not that technical.

• for making drinks at home, we use a 1L jar with one of those metal ball things (which we don’t know if it has a name?) inside, that you might find in your local gym-going mates protein shaker bottle.

• smashed cherries
• single malt whiskey (or bourbon)
• charcoal/maple syrup
• ice cubes
• orange peel
• smoked chilli bitters (optional)

• place ice in your fancy glass, shake all the ingredients apart from the orange peel, then pass through a fine mesh strainer on top of the ice, stir for 30 seconds, rub the inside rim with twisted orange peel, and then, the famous line:

with a cherry on top

• do not worry if a little ash makes its way into your drink, you are probably smoked-out fully at this point, whats a little more?

• if you read through these recipes, and plan your timings right (or get lucky), you can sit down to a spread worthy of the cowboys of tierra del fuego, and equally the ancient barbarians of korea.

• fire awakens something deep in all of us, many people have tried to explain it, yet are unable. light a fire, burn some vegetables and enjoy the time spent with people you love, out in the open air.

• this entire day, the dishes, the techniques and most importantly the poetic nature of the ancient ritual of fire, has been inspired by the incredible argentian chef francis mallman, who states below, the last part of the opening quote of this post, and will conclude our translation to you of what fire has done for us.

fire has its own language,

spoken in the realm of heat, hunger and desire.

it speaks of alchemy, mystery and above all,

possibility.

it is a slumbering voice inside me,

the ever-present beast within my soul.

it is beyond words, beyond memory.

it comes from a time long before i can recall.