Stew - the Corketts house

I never cook with dates, not because I don’t like them, but because I find them quite a one trick pony. I find that it’s difficult to use a date in any way other than as a cloying sweetener but then I was invited to a pre-christmas dinner party recently where a Middle Eastern inspired stew filled with dates, apricots and a variety of herbs and spices blended to a amazingly exotic cloud that bubbled away slowly in the corner. At first, I pretended not to notice but as the evening drew on and I got hungrier and hungrier I couldn’t hold myself back.

I hung around the stove looking longingly at the depths wondering if anyone would notice if I stuck a bit of bread or spare finger in to try it but I wasn’t left alone for long enough to find out. Instead I had to wait like everyone else, I mean seriously didn’t they know who I was…????!!!!

But worth the wait it was, deep, rich and moreish. I ran out of adjectives in the second mouthful and collapsed into simple grunts, moans and sighs. In my humble opinion, there is very little better than a stew lovingly prepared with time and thought to make the most out of the most humble of ingredients. That being said, there wasn’t much humble here; bobbing about in it’s bath of tomato, apricots, spices and those aforementioned dates, were huge chunks of beef fillet. Lamb, pork, rabbit or beef, I don’t care because I love a good stew. Beautifully soft and velvety, the gravy swirled around in thick whirlpools thanks in no small part to the use of those dates. Pockets of sweet fruitiness amid the savoury juices worked in amazing concert to bring what could have been a mere average dish alive. This was no restaurant dish, but instead it was something more. A hearty pan of sharing, conversation, laughter and meat which is the best way to eat pretty much anything in my opinion. 

The use of beef fillet was a little flamboyant for a stew perhaps, our host modestly conceded, but everyone around the table appreciated the extra effort as we consumed spoon after spoon of the softest, beefiest beef I’ve had for ages. And consume we did. That enormous vat fed nine of us with no left overs. But, when it came time to swap recipes as we chatted away the evening over the top of our fully satisfied bellies, our host suddenly became frustratingly tight lipped. Therefore and with no small amount of disappointment, I have no recipe for you all today, perhaps I can persuade them to give me a hint whilst enjoying a later date*.

*You see what I did there? Date the fruit and date the... date. I know, I amaze myself sometimes too.