HB&B Blog — Claire Bullen
Wine & Food Killers: Shrimp Étouffée and Fin Wines I’m All Ears Pet Nat 2021
Australia Claire Bullen Natural wine Natural Wine Killers Pet Nat

Alongside gumbo and jambalaya, shrimp étouffée is a stalwart of Cajun and Creole cooking, and a classic New Orleans dish. Étouffée means “smothered” in French, and in this dish, pink prawns are enrobed in a saucy stew made with a base of the “Cajun holy trinity” – onion, celery, and green bell pepper – and a burnished roux, mixed with chillis and a potent Cajun spice mix, chopped tomatoes and fish stock. That mix is cooked down until thickened and glossy, served with rice, then garnished with handfuls of parsley. I tend to crave New Orleans-style cooking at this time...
The Beer Lover's Table: Spring Chicken with Potatoes and Asparagus and Arpus TDH Strata x Nelson x Galaxy IPA
Arpus Beer Lover's Table Claire Bullen IPA Latvia

Years ago, when we all still lived in London, a group of friends and I developed a ritual: Every Sunday, we would meet at one of their houses for “family dinner”, which consisted unvaryingly of a roast chicken and potatoes. All of us lived far from family and these casual dinners quickly became a lifeline, a way to come together to enjoy a simple and comforting meal at the end of the week. The company was excellent, and the chicken was, too – juicy and moist every time, fresh with lemon and herbs, but never fussy. When I finally asked my...
Wine & Food Killers: Oyster Mushroom, Wild Garlic and Chipotle Quesadillas with Kindeli Tinto 2020
Claire Bullen Natural wine Natural Wine Killers New Zealand Red wine

If I am guilty of one thing every spring, it is of losing my shit over the annual return of wild garlic. I’m aware that I make a slightly parodic picture: The wayward urban forager who runs to that secret patch in the local woodland armed with a pair of kitchen shears, trying to keep my scarf from collecting too much dirt as I hunch over another patch of those glossy green leaves. But I’m happy looking foolish if it means walking away with a big ziploc bag stuffed with the seasonal bounty, trailed by an allium scent cloud that follows...
The Beer Lover's Table: Caramelised Shallot and Tomato Pasta with Anchovies and Brick Brewery Dunkel
Beer Lover's Table Brick Brewery Claire Bullen Dunkel Lager SE London

One of my favourite Instagram accounts belongs to my friend Katie. At @nytfortea, she reviews New York Times Cooking’s vegetarian (or veggie-adjacent) recipes, including star ratings, tweaks and overall impressions. The comments on NYT Cooking’s recipes are famously deranged – a mix of rambling personal stories and diatribes from people who swapped out half the ingredients and can’t understand why the recipe didn’t work – so instead, Katie’s Instagram has become a micro-recipe recommendation service, one I can always trust. Recently, Katie made Caramelised Shallot Pasta, and I recalled noting down the recipe nearly two years ago – in the early...
Wine & Food Killers: Burrata and Mortadella Sandwiches with Pistachio Pesto and Podere Pradarolo Indocilis Rosso 2020
Claire Bullen Italy Natural wine Natural Wine Killers Red wine Sparkling wine

Some of the very best things are simple. Sun on a winter morning after weeks of rain. A well-made cup of coffee, served at exactly the right temperature. Dinner with good friends. And a glass of well-made sparkling red wine, with all the richness of its hue and all the levity of high carbonation. Podere Pradarolo’s Indocilis Rosso is just such a wine. Hailing from near Parma in Emilia Romagna, this vino rosso frizzante looks almost like a kriek when it’s poured, glugging into the glass with a big souffle of pink foam before eventually settling down into hissing merriment. It is made from 100% Barbera...