Pork with apple is one of my favourite flavour combinations
There’s a great British tradition of combining fruit with fish, meat, poultry and game. Think of lamb with redcurrant sauce or mackerel with gooseberry sauce... What the fruit does when you use it in a savoury dish is it gives a nice little lift to the flavour.
When it comes to cooking with fresh fruit, I like to keep the flavour and freshness of the fruit, so I always cook the fruit as rapidly as possible. Have a look at how I make the apple sauce in my Honey-glazed Duck Breasts with Apple Sauce and you’ll see that I cook the chopped Granny Smiths very quickly and only add a little sugar. Why? Because I want to keep the freshness of the apple as that way it will contrast nicely with the richness of the duck.
Fruit guide
- Apples:
For me, pork and apple is a classic combination. The freshness of the apple contrasts nicely with the fatty richness of pork or, indeed, duck. Try my Pork Chops with Apple and Sage to see what I mean about how well the flavours work together.
- Lemons:
The fresh citrus zip of lemon is great with fish. I like to use it with oily fish like sardines or mackerel. My Sicilian-style Sardines is a great summertime dish, good cooked on a griddle or the barbecue.
- Orange:
The zesty tang of oranges is very good with rich meat – think of that French classic Duck al’Orange. Personally, I like to use oranges and orange juice when I cook fish – such as my Red Mullet with Moroccan Spices. The delicate flavour of the orange works well with the fish. As ever in cooking, it’s all about balancing the flavours.
