Come and feel my plums

  We planted a plum tree in our garden last year. Actually, the reality is that I stood idly by while others did the work but now all their hard work has paid off and I'm reaping the benefits. Having watched them slowly grow and ripen, I now am in the magnificent position of being able to saunter out to my garden where I gently cup my hand around a swollen plum and tenderly squeeze.

  Using this method I can find the softest, sweetest plums. They come away from the stalks easily, another gauge of their readiness, and get plopped in my mouth where my tongue... (Ok, enough of this innuendo laced smut. Get on with it. -Ed.).

Check out my ripe, juicy plums.

  Though the cooking for Monday's supper club is supposed to start tomorrow I've elbowed a bit of room and got access to the oven. The new main course is a pulled pork which I've not attempted before. I spoke to my exceptional and very helpful local butcher, Chris (Godfrey's, 7 Highbury park N5) who has furnished me with seven and a half kilos of Sussex pork shoulder which he cut into three pieces, rubbed with a spice mix and sealed in proper roasting bags.

  The idea is to cook it in a medium oven (160c) for about three and a half hours until it is super soft and falling apart. You can see it below, and what it lacks in beauty it more than makes up for in the amazing aromas, (escaping from special vents in the roasting bag), currently filling my kitchen. I'm very excited.

Pork, soon to be pulled.

  I love a good chat with Chris as he is ridiculously knowledgeable about all things meat, farming, butchery etc. I was asking him about, (amongst other things), animal diets and here's a couple of interesting snips from our conversation. The best beef comes from cows who eat grass most of their life then are finished with a grain diet to fatten them up a bit and add a bit of marbling to the meat.

  Chickens are generally fed a grain diet and farmers have different mixes that might include corn but when you see corn fed chickens that are noticeably yellow it is marigold seeds, not corn, that turns them yellow. Also, chickens are originally rainforest animals. Having a big field to run around in is not their preferred environment. They would much rather live in a wood where, though flightless, they jump and flap to hop from tree to tree. Think of that next time you're carving one up.

Kirk out

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