At this time of year, things get pretty dull here in mathsland. I have no students because no one wants to learn stuff over the summer.  My musical theatre friends are in a small town in Devon performing to geriatrics, James spends all his time working or sleeping , Andy is somewhere up a mountain and everyone else has returned to wherever they lived before university. To top it all, the one person I see on a day to day basis is a socially retarded dimwit who hasn't said anything to anyone for literally weeks.

Yeah, yeah I know. What did expect when I started a maths PhD? Wild parties with the number theorists?  

When life is like this, you really want something fun to do in the evenings, even if you are spending them alone. This is why I got so enthralled by cooking. It's a great creative outlet and, at the end of it all, you get to appreciate the fruits of your labour.  It's a lot easier than that singing and dancing stuff I do during term time too!

For this reason my cooking has the tendency to become quite quirky and elaborate. I'll embark on a three hour cooking marathon over a couple of gins and/or glasses of cava and end up with something ridiculous like this crazy concoction. But yesterday I had a bit of a change. I did something simple.

Unsuprisingly it wasn't my idea at all. The credit goes to a few people on the BBC food boards, most notably Riocaz and Alison. I had the mussels from the other night, grilled with a bit of garlic butter and served with linguine tossed in chilli oil and crushed smoked garlic with a squeeze of lemon. The only additions were a few sliced sundried tomatoes and parsley. It turned out absolutely gorgeous. Here are full details of what I did.

Oh, and a ready made Moroccan side salad from Tesco which I got for 15p. I just can't stay away from that bargain bin.

It really was suprisingly good and it took about 20 minutes to make. I think I'm developing a bit of an addiction to linguine. Ah well, at least its a step up from my addiction to KFC!   

Perhaps the novelty value of buying expensive “alternative” meats from Borough will wear off one day. Until then, my quest to cook the perfect kangaroo/ostrich/kudu steak will continue. Last night's kangaroo steak was served with a port and blueberry sauce, baby new potatoes with garlic and black leaf kale.

Kangaroo is a strange meat. It's a real challenge to cook because the meat is so incredibly lean! It's a dieter's dream but, rather like really lean rump steak, with too much cooking it becomes tough as old boots. The one above was cooked for two and a half minutes on each side on a hot griddle pan and then rested, wrapped in kitchen foil for another five. As you can see, the centre was perfect. Well, perfect if you are a fan of rare meat. If you aren't a fan of rare meat, go read someone else's blog.

As I was munching my way through my steak, I noticed something that bothered me. I was having to munch a little too much. Surely this couldn't be right. If I'd cooked the thing any less it might have got up and  hopped away. Closer inspection revealed that, even though the very middle of the steak was tender and juicy,  the outside corners had formed into a millimetre thick “crust”. This wasn't too much of a problem -the steak was still delicious. The meat had just gone fibrous at its edges but it was enough to irritate me after I had cooked it so carefully.

The solution probably lies in roasting it. This is what I'll try next time. I suppose cooking it on a slightly cooler pan might help too. Experimentation is needed. I'll just have to go and buy some more next week.

I'm very proud of the blueberry sauce. It was really easy to make but still delicious. Simply simmer blueberries in a little water then add a healthy dose of port. After fifteen minutes beat up the blueberries to release more of their flavour and then simmer off the liquid until all the flavours are concentrated and the sauce is thick. Easy.  Full recipe is here.

It's a real shame that kangaroo isn't available in shops now. It used to be sold by Sainsbury but a certain group of animal rights activists put a stop to that. It's sad considering that the animals are culled for pest control anyway so all the meat is just going to waste.

If you want to buy kangaroo meat in London the best place I've found is the Gamston Wood stall at Borough Market. Otherwise you can get it on mail order from  Osgrow or Alternative Meats.

Last night, after leaving the office, I started on the trip which has become a part of my daily routine. I head over to the nearest 24 hour Tesco to pick up things for dinner and spend a disproportionate time hanging around the bargain bin. Usually, I pick up things I don't need and they get stuffed into the already bulging freezer compartment I have in my little student flat.  In the last week I've picked up oxtail, a load of lunch tongue, 20p runner beans, some veal and yesterday added a kilo of live mussels to the pile. Well, they only cost £1.70! 

As I staggered home, I couldn't help worrying how I had started to resemble my Dad.  He too had the bargain bin habit and made a point of visiting every large supermarket in our area twice a week. The amount of bargain food we threw away was ludicrous. The shopping trips were made even longer by his obsessive need to inspect every item on the shelf to check it wasn't in any way damaged, dented or discoloured. Is it only a matter of time before this happens to me? 

Coincidentally, Dad popped by the flat that evening to drop off some stuff from home and harass me about various insurance related things. As we talked, I brought out that day's purchase from the fridge and said, “Look Dad! Only £1.70 for a kilo!” Dad had recently started eating seafood again after years of vegetarianism, so I thought he might be interested. He seemed confused.

“Live mussels? What does live mean?” This the type of question only my dad would ask. Maybe he thought they were plugged into the mains.

“Uhh… live as in alive. It means they aren't dead,” I replied. At this point a look of sheer horror came over Dad's face.

“You're going to eat them alive?! You can't do that! ”

“No, I'm not eating them alive.” Dad looked more calm. “I'm going to cook them. They'd probably make me ill if I ate them alive.” This sent him through the roof.

“No, no no, you can't do that! Please don't do that! You might… HURT them!!”

Dad hasn't ever responded well to explanations about biology. After learning about evolution at school I tried to explain the theory to him. He ended up thinking that if you cut the tail off a mouse, the mouse would have tail-less babies from then on. Explaining the concept of a bivalved animal without much in the way of a brain made even less sense to him. I remember he once asked me if squid talked to each other.

After ten minutes of bargaining for the lives of the mussels, I was allowed to make my dinner on the condition I made their deaths as pleasant as possible. Dad swore back on vegetarianism. Just before he left I pulled some calamari, which I'd been making as a pre-dinner snack, out of the oven. Dad asked, “Is that squid?”

“Yes,” I replied. “I'm to hungry to wait for dinner without a snack.”

“Did you cook it?” I'm always at a loss to answer these questions. What did he think I'd done to them by putting them into the oven?

“Yes. That is why they're golden brown, hot and on a baking tray.”

“Can I try just a little bit?” That takes the biscuit. Dad's latest attempt at vegetarianism lasted under five minutes.

“Ok, if you want.” 

 â€Well, it's dead already so I guess it can't hurt now.”

Interesting moral standpoint. You can't kill animals to eat them but if someone else kills them on your behalf then it's fine. Go figure. Anyhow, I decided that I'm probably not really going to end up much like my Dad. Despite years of being subjected to the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland I haven't grown up with the idea that mussels and oysters have cute little faces and talk to each other. I wonder how Dad got like that growing up in rural Sri Lanka.  

Anyway, my friends the mussels were steamed in a Thai style broth of coconut, lemongrass, lime, chilli and coriander and served with ginger rice. They were really good. Having them fresh makes a big difference. Half  a kilo got eaten and the rest are sitting cooked in my fridge.