All you need is a knife, a board and the ingredients – this recipe is perfect for preparing in a holiday rental this summer …
There are a few reasons I prefer self-catered stays over hotels when travelling abroad. One is that I always end up wanting something simple like a salad after a few days of eating out at every meal, and the other is that I can’t resist a foreign supermarket. Spending an hour in the pasta aisles in Italy, browsing tinned fish in Spain or endless permutations of mustard in France makes me happy, much to the annoyance of the person traipsing around with me.
Over time, I’ve become a pro at cooking in holiday rentals. I’ve cooked in kitchens with barely functioning ovens, no chopping board and a single battered frying pan, but still had some memorable meals. It seems no matter where you go in the world, rentals have the most eclectic selection of kitchen tools – a chaotic mix of one butter knife, six garlic presses and a fondue set, but no colander or mixing bowl, leaving you to dress a salad in a saucepan and somehow drain the pasta without burning yourself. (All this seems manageable and even a bit magical when you are barefoot, refreshed by your latest swim, with a cold beer in hand.) So along with my beach towel, swimsuit and SPF, I have learned to pack a few kitchen essentials if I’m staying for a week: one good knife, a microplane grater, sea salt and a corkscrew/bottle opener to make things a little easier. (Top tip: Airbnb now has a dedicated search function for properties that include a “chef ’s kitchen” for those looking for something slightly more sophisticated.)
“Cooking with friends or family, using the ingredients you picked up at the market that morning – with a full batterie de cuisine or limited kit – will almost always be more enjoyable (and more delicious) than the expensive meal in town.”
I’m in good company: in his book, What I Ate In A Year, actor-cook-author Stanley Tucci brings a vast kitchen kit when travelling by car to holiday rentals: pasta, canned tomatoes, beans, a five-litre can of his favourite olive oil, the largest saucepan he has, risotto rice, Parmigiano, kosher salt, wine, booze, a set of kitchen tongs and his favourite knife. Try squeezing that into your Ryanair bag. Other non-negotiables include at least one decent cutting board and Bialetti stovetop coffee pot.
Some of us can cope with less. I once travelled around Sicily for two weeks, not booking the following night’s accommodation until the day before. Around day four or five, I was ready for a break from eating pasta in restaurants, which meant heading to Ortigia’s market to find something simple to cook at home that evening. Fennel seems to get more expensive at home every year, so when I saw bulbs piled high for next to nothing, I couldn’t help myself. I headed back to the house with fennel, peaches, lemons, tomatoes, bunches of herbs and a tub of fresh ricotta that caught my eye. I seem to turn mostly vegetarian as the hotter months arrive, craving big plates of perfectly cooked vegetables, dressed in herbs and topped with something creamy like ricotta or mozzarella.
The house I booked for that night had a kitchen that looked like it hadn’t been touched since the early 1960s, with an impressive collection of pestle and mortars and rolling pins, but no peeler, bottle opener or bowls. I gingerly cut the fennel into wedges using the tiny, serrated knife provided, then simmered them with thin slices of lemon (a trick I often use to give more flavour to something simple). Drained and dressed in loads of chopped parsley, basil, more lemon juice and the best Sicilian olive oil, alongside the fresh ricotta, bread to dip in the leftover herby oil and slices of prosciutto, with those perfect peaches to finish, it was exactly what I wanted.
So I’m writing this to say that if you’re going away this summer, I promise you the jamón, tomato and olive oil-soaked baguette in the villa will taste better than the overpriced croquettes from a touristy restaurant. @kittycoles
LEMON-POACHED FENNEL, HERB DRESSING AND RICOTTA
This works just as well with green beans, courgette, asparagus or even carrots as they come into season later in the year. If you’d like this to become a filling side for a group, add in some new potatoes or dress with some drained and rinsed jarred butter beans.
Ingredients
Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a side
• 2 fennel bulbs, cut into 6 wedges each (or quarters if small), fronds reserved
• 1 lemon, cut into 1/2 cm thick slices
• 200g ricotta or one ball of mozzarella
For the herb dressing
• Small bunch of parsley
• Small bunch of basil
• 1 small garlic clove
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
1. Finely chop the herbs (you can use a food processor for ease if you have one) and place in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Stir to combine, then taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more lemon if you like.
2. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil then lower to a simmer. Add the fennel wedges and cook for 10 minutes. Add the lemon slices and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the fennel is tender. Drain well.
3. Arrange the fennel and lemon slices on a platter. Spoon over the herb dressing and dot with ricotta. Finish with the reserved fennel fronds and a final drizzle of olive oil, if you like.
4. Serve with plenty of fresh bread and a selection of charcuterie for a simple but delicious lunch or dinner.