Chef Andrew Nutter took to the stage last week to demonstrate some great leftover recipes at the launch of Love Food Hate Waste. Starting off with those bread crusts that no-one eats and a bit of hard cheese from the back of the fridge he magically concocted a delicious sounding Welsh Rarebit, which was then plonked on top of a salmon fillet.
He then imagined he was stood up on a date and still had one of the salmon fillets going spare - so that was whizzed up into a fishcake, along with the Welsh Rarebit topping. No waste here at all!
Andrew, who runs Nutterâs restaurant in Norden, Rochdale, said: âThere are so many things we can do with food leftovers, and itâs definitely made me more aware of food waste in the restaurant.â?
This demonstration was very light-hearted and entertaining, but he was making a very serious point. In Britain we throw away a third of all the food we eat, which then goes to landfill and produces nasty emissions - which are all bad for our environment. And itâs not only the food thatâs bad for the planet - itâs the packaging and the energy and food miles its taken to produce that food in the first place. And in money terms, each family wastes, on average, £50 worth of food a month.
The event at the Palace Hotel on Wednesday (April 22) marked the beginning of this campaign in Manchester to teach residents how to make the most of the food they have in the fridge - and save themselves money.
The Lord Mayor of Manchester, Councillor Mavis Smitheman - who had dyed red hair for St Georgeâs Day - said: âThis campaign has been a revelation to me and Iâve been very enlightened since I got here.â?
Andrew Nutterâs Seared Salmon Fillet with Lancashire Rarebit
Ingredients
100g Lancashire cheese (or any cheese leftover in the fridge)
50g Stilton - roughly chopped
50ml milk
10g plain flour
20g breadcrumbs
1 egg
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Worcestershire sauce to taste
200g of salmon fillets
Splash of olive oil
To serve
6 Baby Roma tomatoes (or any in fridge)
1 shallot (or onion will do)
½ clove of garlic
Fresh thyme and rosemary
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1tbs olive oil
Drizzle basil oil
Mixed salad leaves
Tomatoes
For the tomatoes, slice in half, place on a tray cut side up and scatter with shallots, garlic, thyme, rosemary, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and seasonings. Place in hot oven for eight minutes until slightly blistered.
Lancashire Welsh Rarebit
In a pan, add the cheese with the milk and heat until they melt, stirring frequently. Stir in flour and breadcrumbs and cook until cheese thickens. Cool slightly and put in food processor, then add egg, yolks, mustard and Worcestershire sauce and blend until smooth.
Salmon
In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and seal the salmon on both sides. Place the basil on top and top with the Welsh Rarebit. Grill until golden brown, approx two minutes.
To serve
Arrange the salad leaves and tomatoes on a plate, add a little Worcestershire sauce and finally top with the grilled salmon.