Heston's Cauliflower Cheese - with photo

[JuliaBalbilla]

Name of Recipe:  Heston's Cauliflower Cheese

This recipe was shown on the Channel 4 (UK) programme How to Cook like Heston which I have slightly adapted and converted for the Thermomix.

Number of People: 2-4 depending what you have with it

Ingredients:
50g white caster sugar
100g white wine vinegar
2 small cauliflowers, broken into florets and divided into three
Groundnut oil
500g vegetable stock
300g water
1 bulb garlic, peeled
300g white wine, reduced to 30g (10-15 minutes / Temp. Varoma / Speed 1)
120g Gruyère cheese, grated
20g cornflour
30g cream cheese
Knob of butter
Extra grated Gruyère or Cheddar for the topping

Preparation:
Add the sugar and vinegar to the  and set to 100°. Once it has reached this temperature, pour the mixture over one-third of the cauliflower. Allow to cool somewhat and leave in the fridge overnight.
The next day, grate the cheese for cooking and topping separately in the  and coat the cooking cheese in the cornflour (I used Gruyère for cooking and a mixture of that and mature Cheddar for the topping) and set aside.
Put one-third of the caulflower into the internal steaming basket with the vegetable stock and water 16 minutes / Temp. Varoma / Speed 1.
Meanwhile, deep fry the remaining third of the cauliflower at 180º C until golden brown.
Drain the cauliflower on kitchen paper and deep fry the garlic until golden brown, but make sure it doesn't burn.
Remove the steamed cauliflower (keep the liquid), mix with the others and place in a baking dish or casserole.
Reduce the stock / water mix to 200ml 18 minutes / Temp. Varoma / Speed 1 and leave in the bowl.
Pre-heat the grill to high.
Add the wine, cornfloured cheese, butter and the fried garlic to the  with the butter 5 minutes/ 90º / Speed 4.
Add the cream cheese and cook at the same setting for a further 1 minute.
Process 15 seconds / Speed 5-10 progressively, so that the garlic is well pulverised.
Mix the sauce with the cauliflower, sprinkle over the grated chase and grill for several minutes.

Tips/Hints:  The timings for the reduction of the wine and stock may vary as it will depend on the temperature of you kitchen and your ingredients.

[cecilia]

Everyone loves to watch that man.  If only we coul all be as enthusiastic and confident about cooking.  Thanks so much, Julia.  This recipe will come in very handy and I'll try it soon. 

[JuliaBalbilla]

He is great, isn't he Cecilia?  My daughter bought me the book of the series, so hopefully I can try and convert some more of his recipes, although quite a few of them require the use of a pressure cooker.  Wouldn't know how to convert those at all 

JB

[Twitterpated]

I saw that episode the other night and was going to see if I could find the recipe on the interrnet and convert it to compare to the usual cheese sauce. Now you have saved me the trouble. Thanks JB.

How did it compare in taste? Heston said that he find that cheese sauce tastes of flour and that's why he does it this way.

[judydawn]

Yes, I'd love to know if it is worth all the extra trouble of making this version - I imagine it would be a taste sensation though. I'm probably the only person who has never seen this chap cook 

[Halex]

Yes I like Heston  too.

Suagr in cauliflower cheese??!!

It does seem a lot more work than my version.

I wonder who will try his first?

H

[Lellyj]

Well done, Julia!  I had a crack at Heston's roast chicken last weekend and it was a disaster and it kind of put me off, so I'm thrilled to hear you had success with this dish.  I brined the chicken overnight, cooked for 3 hours until the thickest part of the breast reached the described temperature, rested the bird for 45 minutes,  blitzed it in a hot oven . . . went to carve and the thigh meat and drumstick were still very bloody!!  I know Heston said he didn't cook until the thermometer reached 75 degrees as food saftey guidelines, but I still expected the meat to be cooked!!  So I put it back in the oven for a while longer and the end result tasted like, well, roast chicken!! Although, the breast was really moist and tender, and a bit salty! Don't know if I'm game to give it another try, but I am encouraged by your effort.  Well done!

[Lellyj]

Code: [Select]

Suagr in cauliflower cheese??!!
Hally, the sugar is because the cauliflower is treated 3 different ways, including pickled.

[cookie1]

Thanks for the conversion JB. I saw that Heston episode last week and thought it a very good idea.

[JuliaBalbilla]

It does taste different, but it is difficult to explain because you need to experience consuming the 3 different types of cauliflower together.  Initially I thought the cheese sauce sounded weird because it wasn't made with milk, but I enjoyed it.  The original recipe doesn't include garlic - I just added it to feed my addiction to the stuff.  I think it is worth the effort.

Lellyj, sorry to hear about your chicken.  Haven't tried that one yet, but do intend to do so.  When reading some of the reviews for the book on Amazon UK, I seem to recall one or two others having the same problem with that recipe, but for some people it worked fine.  I genuinely believe that all ovens are different, some heating to a higher temp. than the one chosen and others heat to a slighly lower temp.  Ours is certainly erratic and I am going to get an internal thermometer for when I do the chicken to ensure that it is at exactly the correct temp.

Finally JD, you have never seen Heston cook?  Shame on you! 

JB

[judydawn]

Sorry JB, I just don't have time to watch cooking shows, I'd rather read what the cooks on this forum are doing and be in my kitchen 

[JuliaBalbilla]

Oh dear, well I hope you get to watch him one day - he is amazing! 

[Twitterpated]

I don't know if I would call what Heston does "cooking". It's so much more and really is something to see. His knowledge of the make up of foods and how they react to other elements such as heat is amazing.

BTW has anyone eaten in one of his restaurants? It's my dream to eat at The Fat Duck.

[cookie1]

Wouldn't it be amazing? He really applies chemistry to his cooking. My type of chef.

[JuliaBalbilla]

I would love to eat at one of his places.  Bray is only 75 miles from where I live but is a bugger to get to if, like me, you don't drive

JB