Clare Agius

know your ingredients
vegetables

the capers

Native of the southern Mediterranean basin capers are a common ingredient in every household. The caper plant can be seen growing wild in the hillsides or on rocks wherever you turn your head.

The flower is of a soft pale pink colour which opens at sunrise and closes at sunset. The capers that we eat are the buds and they are picked, left to dry for 24 hours and then packed in either salt or vinegar.

Storing capers in either salt or vinegar gives them each their particular taste. Capers stored in salt cannot be eaten straight from the jar. They must be soaked for 10 to 15 minutes and then rinsed. Keep rinsing under cold running water, if necessary. Capers stored in vinegar have a sharp taste and last indefinitely, if kept refrigerated.

Capers and tomatoes are a marriage made in heaven, made into a sauce to accompany any of your favourite dishes including, fish, meat, vegetables or pasta. They add sharpness or bite to any Mediterranean-style dish which will perk up your taste buds and take you back to your last holiday in the Med.


the onion Onions have, since almost prehistoric time, been attributed aphrodisiacal properties...		the potato Fries, mash, baked, boiled, roast, jacket, wedges - the different ways a potato can be cooked is endless		the mushroom Mention mushrooms and what comes to mind is fried sliced mushrooms in a little extra virgin olive oil and fresh herbs		zucchini ...a plate of just steamed tender zucchini, sprinkled with salt and drizzled with lemon juice and a good extra virgin olive oil...