VARIATIONS
Prune Sauce
Ingredients
½ cup pitted prunes
50 g butter
50 ml dark rum
500 ml red wine sauce (see recipe above)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
Cut the pitted prunes into neat strips. Warm the butter in a small saucepan and then add the prunes. Fry for 2 minutes, then add the rum and flambé. When the flames have died down, add the red wine sauce, bring to the boil and then remove from the heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serving suggestion
Serve with pork medallions and potato rosti, and pair with Nederburg Winemaster’s Reserve Merlot.
Chilli Chocolate Sauce
Ingredients
1 red chilli, finely chopped
500 ml red wine sauce (see recipe above)
80 g bitter dark chocolate
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
Place the chopped chilli in a saucepan with the red wine sauce, bring to the boil and then remove from the heat. Grate the dark chocolate directly into the sauce. Whisk until all of the chocolate is dissolved. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serving suggestion
Serve with beef fillet, and pair with Nederburg Winemaster’s Reserve Pinotage.
Velouté (also called béchamel or white sauce)
Ingredients
2 litres milk
100 g butter
70 g cake flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Melt the butter over a low heat, add all the flour at once, remove the pot from the heat, and stir vigorously. Put the pot back on the heat, add 1/3 of the milk, mix well, add another 1/3 of the milk and continue mixing. The sauce will now start to thicken and become creamy and glossy. Add the remaining 1/3 of the milk, stir and leave the sauce to simmer slowly for about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serving suggestions
Cheese sauce: Add a cup of grated cheddar cheese to the basic white sauce. Use in the preparation of macaroni and cheese, and pair with Nederburg Winemaster’s Reserve Chardonnay.
Parsley sauce: Add 50 ml to 100 ml of Nederburg Winemaster’s Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, 10 g of roughly chopped fresh parsley, and the juice of 1 lemon, to the basic white sauce. Serve with steamed angelfish and new potatoes, and pair with Nederburg Winemaster’s Reserve Sauvignon Blanc.
Béarnaise
Ingredients
250 ml water
250 ml white wine
250 ml white wine vinegar
½ onion, finely chopped.
1 tsp dried tarragon
1 tbsp green peppercorns
3 egg yolks
250 g butter
100 ml béarnaise reduction
10 g roughly chopped fresh tarragon or chives
Salt and freshly ground pepper
