In Situ – El Jardin Botanico

The Botanical Gardens in the centre of Medellin is a welcome respite from the chaos and madness that the city is. The greenness of the place immediately relaxes you. The noise of the flowing traffic outside melts away the further you walk deeper through the gardens.

Our visit here was the first, and I so wish we had come here before. Anything on a bright sunny day to escape the pollution and heat of Medellin.

It kind of took me back to Kew Gardens, which always had the same effect on me. Although we paid for the year’s membership and we never used it that much. A waste.

Deep inside the Gardens, is Situ. Our mission for today. A spying mission. A chance to see how the well to do people of Medellin spend their money, and also a chance to finally eat some decent food. Well, that is an unfair attack on the cuisine of Medellin and its surroundings. Some of the typical Paisa food we have eaten has been very good. But to be honest, I am getting sick of beans and rice. So let’s say, it was nice to be able to eat some different food.

The restaurant is open on both sides. One facing the gardens, the other facing a small pool full of fish. It was larger than I had expected, and it was full. As we had no reservation we were shown to a table in by the pool. Which gradually became more and more baked in sun. We kept moving our table inwards, at one point we were almost connected to a party of four. Who would have welcomed us to join them if the waiters had not closed the shutters in time.

The menu of Situ, as I said before is unlike your typical Paisa food. Phew. Some of it is there, but with a more modern twist and thankfully smaller portions, and a higher price tag. Why is that?

We were tempted to do a full 3 course meal. Well we were on a spying mission after all. But luckily an apparent wine deal saved us. A half bottle of white, which they were trying to promote, came with some cheeses and bread. Why not we said. The wine was from a small unknown Chilean winery and was very good. The cheeses on the other hand were a bit of a disappointment. What came were 6 small balls of cream cheese rolled in either cracked black peppercorns, dried herbs or macadamia nuts, with some thinly sliced bread(ish) and 2 strawberries. One of which was not ripe. Oh god was this a sign of things to come. It’s amazing that someone actually came up with this idea. But what is more amazing is that they went through with it. But we are in Medellin after all. A city where people still eat beans and rice on average 3 times a week, and what they call mozzarella is a yellow block of stringy cheese. But more of that later.

Thankfully the rest of the meal was a delight. So I have put the cheese incident behind us and best forgotten. But had to get it off my chest.

My salmon was cooked to perfection. When the waiter asked me how I wanted it, I almost replied, “How it’s supposed to be cooked.” Thankfully I bit my tongue. The lemon mayonnaise had a little tartness to it, which went well with the salmon and the mash. Don’t ask why I had a rolled platano and a huge basil leaf on my plate. Well they do love to garnish.

Lina’s juicy pork chop was coated in a lovely tangy tamarind sauce, with some papa criolla wrapped in a fried platano. Let’s not mention the rosemary sprig. Like I say they love to garnish.

It was a good meal, the conversation flowed along with the wine. Maybe we should have ordered a full bottle. But it has been over a month since a drop had passed my lips. So probably best not to have tempted fate.

We shared a pudding of a chocolate and passion fruit cake. I was sublime, and I love squirty cream. I’m sure the waiter took offence when I took the large mint sprig off and tossed it onto the table. I must make this my crusade. “No garnishes that are larger than the food you are serving.”

All in all it was a great afternoon, with some great food, great wine and good service. The one thing Medellin has in tonnes is good service. I’d be amazed if I ever get bad service here.

Until the next spying mission. Let’s hope it’s as good as this one.

Recipe for Chiang Mai Curry

Below is the recipe from Baan Thai of their version of Chiang Mai Curry described in my own way.

For the Paste you will need : 

10 Dried Red Chilli's

5 Tbsp Chopped Thai Shallots

2 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1/2 Tbsp Very finely chopped Galangal

2 Tbsp Finely Chopped Lemongrass

1 Tsp Shrimp Paste

1 Tsp Salt

1 Tsp Chopped Coriander Root. 

For the Chiang Mai Curry itself : 

150g Pork Belly, cut into 3cm cubes

1 Tsp Chiang Mai Curry Paste

1/2 Tsp Masala Powder

10g Peeled Garlic

10g Sliced Shallots

15g Pickled Garlic

2 Tbsp Fish Sauce

20g Brown Sugar

1 Tbsp Tamarind Juice

10g Sliced Ginger

4 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce

Method

Curry Paste

1. Soak the dried red chilli's in water for about 2 minutes.

2. Pop the garlic into the mortar and pound it well. Add the shallots and lemongrass and pound again.

3. Add the galangal, kaffir lime peel, coriander root and pound it some more. 

4. Add the red chilli's and pound again.

5. Add the shrimp paste and pound it until all is combined and is a smooth paste.

6. This paste can be kept for a few months in a jar in the fridge. But fry it off in oil in a wok until it releases its aroma. This will stop it going sour.

7. If you make the paste in a blender, if you can, pound it a little to release the oils. This will make the finished curry taste so much better.

Chiang Mai Curry

1. Put the pork, Chiang Mai curry paste and the masala powder into a bowl and massage the meat until well covered. Leave to marinate for at least 1 hour. More if possible.              Over night in the fridge would be best.

2. Heat a wok. Add the pork to the wok. Cook over low heat and stir constantly for 2 minutes. No oil here, as the pork will release a lot of fat.

3. Add water to the wok, just enough to cover. 

4. Simmer for 1 hour covered over a low flame. Keep checking and keep replenishing the water to the same level. Stirring occasionally.

5. Check the pork after an hour. If it is cooked, add the garlic, pickled garlic, shallot and sliced ginger. Stir.

6. Add the fish sauce and brown sugar. Stir. 

7. Add the tamarind juice. Stir. Once the sauce is nice and thick, it is ready. Check seasoning one last time.

8. Serve with Sticky Rice and Enjoy .......

This was one f my most enjoyable curries I have ever made. Not only was it fun to make, but it ate very well also. If you do get the chance, I recommend you give it a whirl. You will not regret it. Enjoy. 

Baan Thai Cookery School

www.cookinthai.com/index.php

Tamarind

We ate at Tamarind twice, but, the competition in Luang Prabang for traditional Laos food is not that good, well apart from a small street near the night market, where quite a few stalls set up at night to tempt you with grilled fish, chicken and Laap salad. More on that later. 

It's located down a quiet street opposite a Wat, which in the late afternoon you can hear the monks chanting their prayers. The restaurant is only open from 11am till 6pm everyday, but the week we were there they were closing much earlier as the owners were away. Which was disappointing as I wanted to attend the cooking class there, as I had heard it was very good and very hands on. 

What they serve is not really full meals but more of a Laos Brunch. More than a snack but less than a meal. The menu tells the story of all the players in the restaurant, and gives a run down on traditional Laos food. Plus highlights some local charities and exhibitions by local artists. It's quite a read.

As it wasn't going to be our main meal of the day, but more of a light lunch. We opted for two sharing plates, so we could get a wider taste of Laos food. Both came with sticky rice, which seems to be eaten by all Laotians anytime of the day, and is my favourite form of rice. 

The first one was more of a dipping plate. It consisted of a tomato and chilli dip, coriander dip, an aubergine dip (which really reminded me of baba ganoush), a fish and chilli dip and a sheet of dried river weed, which was coated in sesame seeds. It ate better than it sounds. 

The second plate had more substantial foods like local Luang Prabang sausage and dried buffalo meat, some rolled cabbage with a sauce inside, some lightly cooked greens and some shredded chicken and beansprouts. 

Both plates were presented very well and were excellent eating. The dips were spicy enough and went well with the sausage. The buffalo meat was divine. I could of eaten that all day. The greens I could of left but were pretty good. The drinks were heaven also. Lemongrass and ginger juice. Very refreshing. 

All in all we spent two pleasant afternoons in Tamarind. 

If you get the chance and do the cooking course, send me an email and let me know how it is. Gutted that i missed it. Next time.