taste

Keeping
plum An ancient plum tree down
the road has Martin Bosley thinking about the
Just down the road from me is an ancient, wild
plum tree, its branches gnarled and twisted. It’s a
prolific tree, which means there are enough for the
birds and me to help ourselves to the fruit, which is
sweet and juicy with yellow flesh.
I don’t know what variety it is and, given its age,
I doubt I ever will. It may well be a cherry plum – the
myriad pleasures of this most common fruit. variety grown here more often than Japanese or
by martin Bosley European varieties. The cherry plum family includes
Photographs Mike heydon the famous black doris – with its purple-black skin
and deep red flesh – the heart-shaped fortune, with
red skin and yellow flesh, and the green-and-red
speckled omega, a juicy, medium-sized round fruit
good for eating.
Japanese varieties (which actually come from
China) include the fruit generally known as blood
plums (such as satsuma, santa rosa and shiro) and
are preferred for cooking, while European varieties –
which are smaller, often with yellow flesh, like reine
claude de davay and greengage – make for sweeter,
dessert-type eating, the kind of plum that you sit
down to eat and enjoy in quiet contemplation.
Plums are at their aromatic and tasteful best when
picked tree-ripe. Select those with a whitish bloom,
with no wrinkles or splits in the skin. Bear in mind
they do continue to ripen after picking. This makes
them perish easily and a bowl of plums will generally
last no more than a week at room temperature.
Cook plums with their skins on and the stones
intact. Once the fruit has collapsed, they are easy
enough to remove before turning the plums into
pickles, chutneys, sauces or jams, poached for
breakfast or turned into blushing tarts and rosy-
coloured ice cream.
I pass the old plum tree every day, often taking a
handful of plums, and I am thankful for its existence.
I just hope no one else notices it.

62 airnewzealand.co.nz  KiaOra
 +fresh

Slow-cooked Pork Belly with Old-fashioned Plum Sauce

Aromatic Spices and Plums
Makes 2 litres
Serves 6 This sauce goes well with really sticky pork ribs, or can
Plums are a sharp enough contrast to cut through the be used as dipping sauce for barbecued grilled meats
fattiness of pork. And when it comes to cooking pork, or seafood.
no one does it better than the Chinese – using Eastern
flavours produces a deeply aromatic dish. You could 2kg blood plums
cook the pork ahead of time and leave it in the fridge 1 tsp cloves + Plums are at
for a few days to set, then shred it before frying in a little 1 cinnamon quill their aromatic and
tasteful best when
oil and finishing it in a hot oven for 12 minutes to heat 1 tsp black peppercorns
picked tree-ripe.
through. Reheat the sauce separately. The advantage of 700g soft brown sugar
doing this is that the fat will become satisfyingly crispy. A good pinch of salt
Serve with a bowl of steamed rice and some steamed 3cm piece of ginger, finely chopped
greens on the side. 600ml red wine vinegar

2kg piece of pork belly, ribs removed
1 litre chicken stock
1 cinnamon quill
2 star anise
1 tsp cloves
3cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled
3 cloves garlic
100ml light soy sauce
2 Tbsp soft brown sugar
6 black doris plums, halved and pitted
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Place the pork belly into a deep pot with the chicken
stock. If there is not enough to cover the meat, top up
with water. Add the spices, ginger and garlic. Cover
and bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 2 hours until
the meat is tender. Carefully remove the belly to a tray
and keep it warm. Add the soy, sugar and plums to the
cooking liquid and reduce by half, until it is rich, dark
and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Using two forks, shred
the pork belly into thick strands, season lightly with
the salt and pepper and arrange on the serving plates.
Spoon the reduced sauce over each serving and garnish
with the plums and some of the spices.
First rinse the plums, pulling off any stalks and leaves.
Remove the stones from the plums. Crack half of the
stones with the back of a knife and tie in a piece of
muslin cheesecloth. Tie the spices in a second piece of
muslin and place with the plums into a deep, stainless-
steel pot (aluminium will taint). Add the sugar, salt,
ginger and vinegar and bring to the boil.
Lower the heat and cook for 20 minutes, until the
fruit has collapsed and the sauce has thickened to a
deep purple-red. Remove the muslin bags and pour
the sauce through a sieve into a bowl, pushing the
fruit through with a wooden spoon. Return the sauce
to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes, making sure it
doesn’t stick to the bottom. Pour into hot, sterilised
bottles or jars, seal and label. You can, of course, use
it straight away.

airnewzealand.co.nz  KiaOra 63
taste +fresh

Roast Plums with

Nut Crumble Topping
Serves 4

I love a good fruit crumble and plums baked under a fragile,

golden crust of hazelnuts and oats is quite possibly the
pinnacle of pie making. The sharpness of the plum cuts
the sugary sweetness of the crumble and enough juice
is produced that it keeps the crumble crust from
becoming too dry.

12 plums
½ cup of caster sugar

For the topping:

4 Tbsp flour
50g unsalted butter
2 Tbsp soft brown sugar
4 Tbsp rolled oats
50g hazelnuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 200˚C. Cut the plums in half and remove the
stones. Put the plums into a bowl and toss with the sugar. Set to
one side while you make the topping.
Rub the flour and butter together until they resemble fresh
breadcrumbs. Toss in the brown sugar, oats and hazelnuts. Pour
+ Hazelnuts and the fruit and any juices into a baking dish and sprinkle the topping
plums are a marriage liberally on top. Bake for 30 minutes until the crust is crisp and
made in heaven. golden. Serve hot with whipped cream or ice cream.
AN0 3 1 1 _ AD_ L i o n Na t h a n L K_ 3 r d H. PDF Pa g e 1 7 / 0 2 / 2 0 1 1 , 1 2 : 0 3 p . m.

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