WELSH RAREBIT

  • 50g flour
  • 50g butter
  • 600g beer
  • 400g grated cheese (strong cheddar such as Lincolnshire Poacher or Montgomery’s works best, but any will do)
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 20g English mustard (or a pinch mustard powder)
  • 100g wholegrain mustard
  • Chopped fresh chives to garnish

Method

  1. Make a roux by melting the butter in a small saucepan and stirring in the flour. Cook for a minute or two on a low heat, stirring constantly.
  2. Bring the beer to the boil in another pan and simmer for a couple of minutes to burn off any alcohol.
  3. Add the beer slowly to the roux (stirring well all the time) to make a smooth sauce.
  4. Add the grated cheese and stir until melted.
  5. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly before adding the egg yolks and English mustard.
  6. Either whisk the yolks and mustard in or blitz with the hand blender briefly to make a smooth sauce. Take care not to blitz too long as this will over work the flour.
  7. Stir in the wholegrain mustard and leave to cool.
  8. Store in the fridge until required.

 

To serve:

  1. Pre heat a griddle pan over a high heat, or pre heat a grill on its highest temperature
  2. Brush slices of stale bread lightly with butter or olive oil
  3. Grill or griddle each side of the bread
  4. Spread a generous amount of rarebit mix on top of bread and bake for between five and 10 minutes in a hot oven (around 200c) until the rarebit has puffed up and turned golden brown.
  5. Sprinkle with chopped chives and serve.