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Recipe| January 20 2021
Photo by Tanveer Badal
Nina Compton’s approach to food is infused with multiple cultural influences, just like New Orleans itself. “Everything I do in my restaurants showcases my Caribbean beginnings, my roundabout 20-year journey to New Orleans and, of course, all the rich traditions and ingredients we have here. It’s all about time and place.”
New Orleans is a great place for a food lover. “One of the things I love about New Orleans is that the entire city is excited about food all the time,” says Nina. “As a chef, that is the best thing you could ask for.”
She loves showcasing premium ingredients from elsewhere for food lovers in her hometown. “Westholme wagyu is beautiful,” she says. “I am in love with that striploin. It’s the steak I could have everyday. If I had to choose my last meal on earth it would be steak frites and that would be my steak. The marbling, the nuttiness, the earthiness and the rounded flavours, the crust when you sear it – it’s not too fatty, not too lean, it’s just perfect.”
Nina Compton owns Bywater American Bistro and Compere Lapin in New Orleans.
Photo by Tanveer Badal
When I’m cooking a premium product like Westholme wagyu, I just want to keep it simple. Westholme takes so much time and care to raise these cattle – I want to showcase that. A little bit of salt, rosemary, garlic and olive oil and I’m ready to go.
The sorghum butter and pecan gremolata echo qualities that I love in this meat: the sorghum picks up on the sweetness and the pecans add another layer to the nuttiness of the wagyu.
Serves 4
Time 2 hours
Sorghum butter
1 large onion, finely sliced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ cup softened butter
1 tsp liquid smoke *
½ cup parsley, finely chopped
½ cup sorghum syrup *
1 tbsp coarse sea salt
Pecan Gremolata
1 clove garlic
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup parsley, finely chopped
1 lemon, zest finely grated
2 tbsp pecan nuts, finely chopped
Striploin
4 x 280g (10 oz) Westholme striploin / New York strip
salt
freshly ground pepper
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 sprigs rosemary
2 tbsp softened butter
Sorghum butter
Pecan gremolata
Striploin
Notes
We grow sweet potatoes at home and this spiced butter goes so well with them. You’ll have plenty of butter left over: roll it up and freeze it for the next tray of roast vegetables or grilled meats.
Serves 4
Time 1 hour 10 minutes
4 x 230-280g (8-10 oz) sweet potatoes, washed well
6 cloves garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp thyme
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 cups butter, softened
4 tbsp chives, finely chopped
‘Malfatti’ means ‘badly made’ and means that it’s perfectly fine if your dumplings are a little misshapen. Get a head start on this recipe by drain the ricotta the day before you make them. If you’re not serving the malfatti with the steak, they are also delicious with burnt butter and sage.
Serves 4-6
Time 1 hour 30 minutes, plus overnight ricotta draining
450g (1 lb) ricotta
900g (2 lb) spinach or 450g (1 lb) frozen spinach, very well drained
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 cup flour, plus extra for dusting
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg yolks
1 egg
freshly ground pepper, to taste
8 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 cups heavy (pouring) cream
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, to taste
½ cup panko breadcrumbs