Imagine The Beatles eating Scouse in Liverpool, yeah, yeah, yeah

I felt goosebumps creeping up on me as I ogled the replicas of their bespoke suits, particularly the ones they wore on the cover of their groundbreaking album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. In one significant corner was John Lennon’s last piano encased in protective glass. Other photos were of their appearances at the Cavern Club and the Casbah, as well as shots of Penny Lane, a street they frequented in their youth, and the subject of their very affectionate song tribute.

At the museum shop I bought a Beatles shopping bag, a Sgt. Pepper’s scarf, chocolate bars and a Yellow Submarine beanie hat for my husband. Impressed by such a haul, the cashier asked if I was a Beatles fan, to which of course I enthusiastically replied yes. Then he did something extraordinary. He opened a secret door leading to a replica of John Lennon’s white piano. He said they seldom do this for customers, but that I could have a photo of myself taken beside Lennon’s precious white piano. Whereupon I gladly positioned myself in front of the keyboard and pretended to be playing Lennon’s anthem song Imagine. I felt as high as Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.

For lunch Pia and I had “Scouse,” a beef stew fondly referred to as the national dish of Liverpool. The dish traces its origin to Lobscouse, a thick Scandinavian meat stew eaten by sailors throughout Northern Europe. Made with chunks of beef, potatoes, carrots and simmered to tenderness in beef stock, it’s a filling, comforting dish that can warm the heart and soothe the stomach on cold, windy days. It tasted somewhat similar to menudo, said Pia, but the herbs in which it was simmered elevated the flavor a notch higher.

From the museum, we took the Magical Mystery Tour, which brought us to the real Penny Lane, with its café, a roundabout, a bank, a cake shop and the barbershop where “all the people that come and go stop and say hello.” As a tribute to the Beatles, lyrics of the song are plastered in one building after another.

Tree-lined streets and neat rows of brick houses led us next to Strawberry Field, where garden parties would be held in the summer and where as a kid Lennon and his friends would play. It’s still where a Salvation Army Children’s Home is located. 

Driving along, we came upon the childhood homes of the Beatles. Paul McCartney’s house, in particular, looked charming and inviting, with neat hedges of greeneries and tall shrubs of hydrangea adorning the front lawn.

As the bus drove on, Beatles songs like Yesterday, Help, Eight Days a Week, and A Hard Day’s Night continued to blast, as if it were playing the soundtrack of our lives. It was like being on a fervent religious pilgrimage. It was like being back in our youth in the Sixties. It was like being with the Beatles.

Scouse 

Each family has its own recipe for Scouse, but the basic ingredients remain the same: beef (or sometimes lamb), potatoes, carrots and beef stock or broth, all lovingly simmered to tenderness. The people of Liverpool rightly take such pride in this dish that every year they hold a Global Scouse Day. It is, they say, “a celebration of who we are.”

• 1/2 kilo stewing beef (such as boneless kenchi, boneless kaldereta cut or pochero cut), sliced into medium-size cubes
• Cornstarch for dredging the beef
• 2 Tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 large onion, cut diagonally into thick slices
• 6 - 8 cups beef stock (see below for tips)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, leaves (removed from the stems) or use dried thyme
• 1 - 2 potatoes, cut into medium-size cubes
• 1 carrot, cut into medium-size cubes
• Salt and pepper
• Dredge the beef in cornstarch. In a deep pot, heat the cooking oil. Add the beef and sauté until brown. Add the sliced onion and mix with the beef. Pour in the beef stock. Stir in the bay leaves and thyme. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Then lower heat to a simmer. Let simmer over low heat for two hours, stirring occasionally, until the beef is almost tender. If the liquid reduces drastically, pour in more stock or water. 

Stir in the potatoes and carrots. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for another 30 to 40 minutes, or until meat, potatoes and carrots are fork tender. Remove the bay leaves. Spoon the meat, potatoes, carrots and the sauce into individual serving bowls. Serve with toasted bread.

This is traditionally accompanied with pickled purple cabbage. The acidity of the pickled cabbage balances the richness of the stew. If not available, you may substitute pickled sugar beets (see below for recipe). Or you can serve it with achara.

Cooking tips:

• There are liquid beef stocks and beef broths available in some supermarkets. But if you can’t find any, simmer two beef broth cubes in eight cups water until the broth cubes have dissolved. Use this as your broth for the Scouse.

• Dredging the beef chunks in cornstarch before browning them in the oil helps to thicken the sauce as it simmers.

Pickled beets 

• 2 – 3 sugar beets
• Water, for boiling the beets
• For the pickling solution:
• 1 cup white vinegar or cider vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 10 black peppercorns
• 1 bay leaf

Scrub the beets well under running water to remove any soil or dirt. Arrange the beets in a pan and pour in enough water to cover the beets. Bring to a boil and let boil until the beets are slightly softened (don’t let them get mushy). Drain the beets and wash in running water. Peel off the skin of the beets (it should come off easily). Slice the beets into circles or cubes. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile make the pickling solution: In a saucepan combine the vinegar, water, sugar, salt, peppercorns and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. Simmer until the sugar and salt dissolve. Strain through a sieve into a clean bowl. Let cool.

Arrange the sliced beets in one to two sterilized jars (like the jars used for jams). Pour in the pickling solution, leaving about one inch headspace. Stir the solution lightly to remove any air bubbles. Seal with a lid and refrigerate for at least a few hours before serving.