In Praise of Apple Sauce

Photo © Rob Jones

I eat Apple Sauce with Chicken, I eat Apple Sauce with Pork. I eat Apple sauce whenever I get the chance really.

And yet I know that some people frown at fruity sweetness with meats and mains.

But it’s probably one of the reasons I took the cuisine of The Netherlands and Belgium to heart.

Feast and Fayre days in Belgium were always a joy with fantastic street food. Sausages galore, Frites, Waffles, Caricoles (de-shelled snails), Meatballs, Grey Shrimp Croquettes, Speculoos, Smoutebollen (sort of choux fritters), and much beer!

One highlight of the year in Belgium was the arrival of the Foire du Midi/Zuid Foor which takes over more than a mile of the city’s inner ring road. It’s like a long linear fun park. I’d hate to live along its route. I’ve heard many residents decamp to the countryside when it arrives.

Between Porte d’Anderlecht and Porte de Hal, it’s a never ending funfair that’s been an annual attraction since the 1880s. In those days you’d find freak shows, wrestling matches, fortune tellers and barrel organs, but now it’s more about roller coasters and big wheels.

It’s on again … 17 July to 22 August 2021. Covid restrictions will inevitably apply.

But enough … back to Apple Sauce - in fact a highly recommended naughty recipe which hails from Belgium.

Peel, core and chunk 8 Apples. Bring to the boil and simmer for fifteen minutes. Mash the chunks out of the mix. Add a cupful of craft beer/lager/pale ale. Needs to be hoppy. Half a cup of dark brown sugar. A teaspoon of cinnnamon. Half a teaspoon of ground ginger. Quarter teaspoon of ground cloves. Give it a good mix and simmer to regain the saucey consistency.

Serve with SAUSAGES.

RJ