As I said yesterday, there’s good things and bad things about being in isolation for 14 days. As each day passes I’ll share my thoughts on that with you.

So far, we have not left the house (apart from the backyard) for about 48 hours. This would definitely be a record  for me, and probably for Dave also, in this house anyway. When he was sick in Canberra in 2016, there were many days he didn’t go out, but I’m not counting that. (Did that part of our lives even happen?).

To tell you the truth, so far I’m actually quite liking it. I know it’s early days, but we have kept ourselves busy, done things we like to do (me cooking, Dave reading) and today we have also spent some time in the garden and cleaned out a few rooms, neither of which we normally would have time to do. If this was any other Saturday, I’d likely be watching Will play sport, either footy or cricket (although perhaps not this weekend since it’s between seasons), and if we were watching footy, we more than likely would be travelling out of town. There’s actually not a lot I like better than spending my Saturdays watching Will play sport, but since it’s not on anyway, I don’t feel like I’m missing out. What I am missing out on, though, is the social side of sports watching – seems wrong to not be having our weekly catch-up @Steph!

So for now, I’m going to continue to look at the positives and try to take the opportunity to get a few things in my life in order. I used to have a sign on my desk as a teenager saying, “a clean desk is a sign of a sick mind”. I have no idea where that sign came from, but for me, these days it couldn’t be further from the truth. If you saw my desk at work, you would know I like things to be orderly. I have my computer plus two screens on my desk, and a notebook for jotting things down, a small bin and a pen container. Other than that, nothing. So when I don’t have time to keep things in order at home, it creates a little bit of stress for me. So I reckon, if we are home for 14 days, and I do a room a day, by the time we are ‘released’ I should have a bit more order and therefore less stress!

Today, I started on room one, but ended up doing three rooms. Downstairs there is a bedroom, store room, bathroom, small hallway and laundry. When Will lived here, this was his space (apart from the laundry haha!) The bathroom, given its small size, seemed ideal to tackle first. I cleaned the shower and toilet, completely emptied the cupboard and mopped the floor. Only two things went back into the cupboard, a hair dryer and a hair straightener. I then tackled the laundry and store room, which was a bigger task. There are fabulously large draws in the laundry under a long bench, a big walk-in cupboard, as well as a shelved cupboard with sliding doors that goes the length of the room. I pulled out most things from the cupboards and drawers and either threw them in what is now a very large garbage bag, or otherwise cleaned and returned them in a more orderly manner. So many items I hadn’t used since we moved here seven years ago got binned!

I want to set up the downstairs area properly as ‘guest accommodation’. Hopefully one day when COVID-19 is over, we will be allowed to have visitors. You will all be most welcome. We have thought recently about moving house since it’s only the two of us, but the reality is that we (and Darryl) love living here. One day we might rent out that downstairs area to a uni student… maybe.

All this hard work built up an appetite. Which is lucky since I seem to be doing more cooking then eating. So far today I’ve done the following in the kitchen:

1. Turned a kilogram of mince into a batch of bolognaise sauce.
2. Packaged up the pumpkin curry into serving sizes and froze most of it.
3. Cryovaced the other kilo of mince (2 x 500g), the kilo of chicken breast and the remaining sirloin steaks, chops and sausages. Most things then went in the freezer, but given meat will last quite a few days cryovaced some I left in the fridge.
4. Removed the brushed potatoes and onions from their plastic bags, and lay them on paper towel in a wire drawer in the pantry. (This will keep them longer).
5. Sorted through the ‘tinned goods’ shelf, so I could see what was there (not a lot).
6. Cooked the rest of the hot chips I started last night – details below.

A month or so ago, I talked on ABC radio about cooking potatoes. (TAFE Buds blog here with a summary). Everyone thinks potatoes are easy things to cook, but actually there’s a few tips and tricks that can turn average potato dishes into great ones.

If you want a good mash, use a starchy potato, if you want a good potato salad, use a waxy potato. But if you want great roast potatoes, or hot chips, then ‘all-purpose’ should be your spud of choice. They will give you the fluffy centre you’re looking for, but the chips will still hold their shape and not fall apart. Suitable varieties include the Russet Burbank, Desiree, Sebago and Coliban. Try not to use ‘new’ potatoes as they will be too waxy. Older potatoes help the chips be a little bit more starchy, which is a good thing!

I always buy brushed, rather than washed potatoes, mostly to extend their shelf life, but also because they are cheaper. Who remembers the days when potatoes were 50c a kg? Therefore, because the potatoes are dirty, the first job to do when making chips for me is to wash and peel the potatoes. I then slice them into quite thick slices, usually getting just three slices out of a largish potato. I then cut them cross ways so I get nice chunky chips. No french-fry style thin hot chips here! Don’t be too particular about the size. If some are fatter or thinner than others, it just adds to the rustic and home-made look of them. I then pat the chips dry with paper towel. Moisture is the enemy of hot oil! Next I heat the oil, giving the potatoes just a little more time to dry out. I use vegetable oil (Australian canola) for frying, but most oils will work okay. I used to have a cooking thermometer, but since I couldn’t find it, nor go to the shops to get one, I just heated the oil over low-medium heat and dropped a chip in every now and then while it heated to test it.

First cook:

A big trick for great chips is cooking them twice (or three times if you like). The first time I cook them at a lower temperature. Basically this ‘blanches’ the potato and makes sure it is cooked in the middle. I then drain them well and let them rest for a bit, while I turn up the heat on the oil a little (medium). Don’t rush things here, you want the oil to have a good even temperature so the chips crispen up. Also don’t skimp on the oil. The chips need to have space around them and if you have too little oil the temperature will drop too quickly when you put them in. The second cook should last about 3-5 minutes.  You want them to be golden, but not brown; and crispy, but still fluffy in the middle.

Second cook:

Drain the chips in a metal strainer or colander as soon as you think they are ready. Give them a shake and they should give a ‘rustling’ sound so you know they are crispy.

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And my last hint: always salt your chip generously. If you are eating deep fried food, what difference is a bit of salt going to make 😉 Personally, I always use Murray River salt flakes, but whatever salt you have will do.

Dave really enjoyed eating them. Starch, fat and salt… what could be better!  I ate a few, then supplemented with avocado on toast. I don’t want to waste a thing, and the avocado needed eating.

The only meat I didn’t package was the leg of lamb. I’ll get that prepped for cooking shortly. I’m not sure if I’ll roast it in the oven or on the barbeque, or even maybe marinated and in the slow cooker. Other suggestions are welcome!

Tomorrow I am happy to share a few bolognaise secrets if you are interested (yes, there are such things), but importantly, I will tell you about the sourdough starter I  got underway today. It’s a week-long cooking experiment, but hey, I have the time!

Now – can I squeeze another room tidy in this afternoon, or is it time for a nap 🙂

Sara x