Barbecued Mackerel with Ginger, Chilli and Lime and Grilled Asparagus

After not having enough Asparagus last year, I have maybe gone out of my way to ensure I get some every weekend this season.  But I also really wanted to utilise my barbecue on another semi-fine day, so decided to try and do some mackerel.  So far, the only time I've cooked fish on my Weber is either in a paella, or using fillets on a cedar plank, but this time, I wanted to try and do a whole fish, straight on the grill, using direct cooking.  I'm far more comfortable with more slow cooked barbecue stuff, although using my phone for a count-down timer, I've got better at not overcooking things that just need minutes and seconds, or at least need to be checked every couple of minutes.

I'm not sure I've ever cooked a whole fish before, be it on the barbecue or anywhere else.  I normally get my fish filleted, or when I have cooked something with bones in, it hasn't been the entire fish.  But, having read up on a number of mackerel recipes done straight on the grill, I thought it was about time I gave it a try, especially as it's cheap enough that if I messed it up first time around, I could easily go out of buy a couple more to try again.

A number of places talk about having your grill squeaky clean to do this.  I'm guessing this is for people that don't use their grill much.  Personally, I clean my grill by getting some hot coals under it, closing the lid for 15 minutes or so, then giving it a good brushing with a decent, wire grill brush.  I'm sure a perfectly new, squeaky clean grill will work really well, but it doesn't have the character of one that shows real use.  It's like woks.  The blacker the wok, the better the chef.  But like also like woks, just because it's black, it doesn't mean it should have large amounts of grease, and leftover foodstuff hanging to it.

This recipe was good for two Whole Mackerel, a really good value, but nice meal for two.

Recipe for the Marinade

• 3-4 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Lime (zest and juice)
• 1 Red Chilli (finely chopped)
• 1 thumb of Ginger (finely chopped or grated)
• 1-2 cloves of Garlic (crushed)
• 2 teaspoons of Honey
• 1 tablespoon Fish Sauce

Recipe for the Grilled Asparagus

• 12 or so big, thick pieces of local Asparagus (if it's too thin, it will cook too quickly on the grill)
• 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
• Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Mix all the marinade ingredients together.  Adjust amount of lime, honey and fish sauce to taste.  If too salty, add a little more lime juice.  If too sour, add a little more honey.  Balance to taste.  Maybe add some finely chopped Fresh Parsley too.

Make 6 deep slits on both sides of the Mackerel with a sharp knife.  Massage the marinade all over the fish, into the slits and the body cavity.  Wrap them in cling film, and keep in the fridge for 20 minutes or so while you get your barbecue going.  Keep any remaining marinade to drizzle over the Mackerel after grilling.

Cut away any woody bit at the end of the Asparagus.  If it's in season, fresh and local, there shouldn't be much to cut away at the base.  Rub in Olive Oil, then season with Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper.  Keep aside to grill towards the end of the Mackerel cooking, or while the Mackerel is resting.  

Get your barbecue (grill) ready for moderate direct cooking.  Depending on your lighting method, this could take about 40-45 minutes to get the coals to their optimum.  Ensure your grill is as clean as possible.  A lidded barbecue (such as a Weber kettle barbecue) helps to ensure coals don’t flame up too much as the marinade and oil drips from the fish.

Place the fish on the grill for 5-6 minutes per side, only moving when turning over.  When done, the eyes should look milky and the middle of the fish should be warm (about 52-55°C near the spine with an instant read thermometer, or fairly warm, but not burning to the touch). Leave to rest for 2-3 minutes.

While the fish is resting, grill the Asparagus, turning fairly frequently.  Again, use the lid to calm any flames from small amounts of Olive Oil dripping on the coals.

Serve the Mackerel with the Asparagus, drizzling any remaining marinade over the fish.

Packer Cut Brisket, Low and Slow

I've done a few briskets on the barbecue the last year or so, but being in the UK, the brisket cut we get isn't the same as the one we see of all these US based pit-masters smoking.  When I get a brisket from my local Irish butcher, it generally comes with bones (which are useful for stock), and is a totally different shape to those I see on US barbecue websites.  A quick scout for the wikipedia entry on brisket shows why.

However, there is at least one butcher in London that will sell a really nice quality Packer Cut Brisket, and for this particular barbecue, I went to Turner & George.  The 6.425kg hunk of beef that arrived early Friday morning was something to behold.

The photos just don't do it justice (plus I should've also taken a few shots of the other side).  A lovely, properly aged, piece of brisket, just needing trimming and rubbing, leaving for about 12 hours,  and then putting onto the Weber, for another 12 or so hours.  I thought about injecting Veal Stock into it, but once I realised that I'd run out of stock anyway, I decided to just to let the meat speak for itself.

Rub Recipe

• 50g Maldon Sea Salt
• 25g Light Muscavado Sugar
• 15g Black Pepper
• 10g Whole Chipotle
• 5g Smoked Paprika
• 5g English Mustard Powder

Put into a spice blender and blend until powdered.

Smoked Brisket Recipe (Serves 8-12)

• 1 Packer Cut Brisket (around 6kg)
• 1 Portion of Rub
• 2 Tablespoons of Light Rapeseed Oil
• Long-Lasting Charcoal Briquettes
• Mesquite Chunks
• Remote Thermometer
• Kettle Barbecue or other Smoker

Trim your brisket to get rid of some of the excess fat.  There are many videos on Youtube showing how to do this.  Depending on where you get yours from, there may be more or less to trim off.  If it's not an aged piece of brisket, probably leave more fat on, to help maintain moisture.  Once trimmed, rub the meat in the Light Rapeseed Oil, and apply the rub liberally all over the meat.  Wrap the meat in cling film and leave in the fridge for a few hours at least.  Remove the meat from the fridge an hour or two before you intend to start smoking.

If you're using a Kettle Barbecue, try arranging your coals using the "Snake Method", with chunks of Mesquite lined side by side on top of the unlit coals to last for the first 5-6 hours of cooking (half a dozen fist sized pieces perhaps).  Put a drip tray filled will water under where the meat will be, and another above the hot coals.  I've used this a couple of times now with great results.  However, if using a remote thermometer, position the grill thermometer to get an accurate reading can be tricky.  I think I just need to mount it near the one on the lid of the barbecue.  Having the remote thermometer probe permanently in the meat does help in not prodding too many holes in it and losing precious moisture.

Get the barbecue/smoker going at 110°C (around 225°F) and put on the brisket, close the lid, and keep and eye on your temperatures.  You need to maintain the same temperature for about 12 hours.  Unless you see the barbecue is not smoking when you think it should be, or the temperature gauges have gone way high or low, then you shouldn't be tempted to open it at all.

As many websites will say, once the temperature of the thickest part of the meat reaches 70°C, the heating will 'stall', literally for hours as some of the moisture evaporates.  Depending on the age of your beef, etc., at this point, you might want to wrap the brisket in two layers of foil and return to the grill/smoker.  With a properly aged piece of beef, or a well regulated smoker, than might not be necessarily, but if you're short of time, and don't mind not having a great bark, then wrap away.  Also, if you have issues towards then end of your smoke and the meat loses temperature, wrapping with foil can help out to get it up to the 84-88°C you want before you take it off the heat.

Once the meat gets to between 84-88°C, if it's not already wrapped in foil, wrap it in at least 2 layers of reasonably heavy foil, then wrap a couple of towels around that, and leave it for at least an hour (I normally leave it two).  Then unwrap it, lift it out of the foil onto a chopping board, and pour the juices out of the foil, either into your pre-prepared barbecue sauce, into a separate jug, or just straight back over the meat.  Depending on the result, sauce may not be necessary.

The two pieces of meat in the packet cut should separate easily at this point, so pull them apart so that you can carve them separately.  If it's not immediately obvious which way the grain is in the meat, cut off a corner to see, then carve the whole thing into slice that will stay mostly together, but will almost melt in the mouth when eaten.

I understand why people have electric smokers now, but still, it's nice to get at one with your coals and grill.

And within about 10 minutes...

Bacon and Asparagus Quiche

Quiche is definitely a family favourite of mine.  I love my mother's quiches, most of the time, once I realised how simple they are to make, I've had a go at a few myself.  With Asparagus in season, I decided to make pretty much a Quiche Lorraine, but with the addition of Asparagus.

Most times when I've cooked quiche, I've tended to blind-bake the pastry first, then fill and bake again.  However, a foodie friend of mine said that he never bothered, especially as you're cooking for 45 minutes.  Having tried one of his quiches, without soggy pastry, I've decided to give this a try myself on the last couple of occasions, and I have to say, he's pretty much right.  I suppose, if you have the time, and you want to blind bake the pastry first with a quiche, it does no harm, but it not 100% necessary.

For the Short Crust Pastry

• 100g Butter, cubed and chilled
• 200g Plain Flour
• 1 Egg
• Pinch Salt

Mix the Salt with the Flour, add in the Butter, and blend until you have Petit Pois sized crumbs of butter.  Lightly beat the Egg and add to the mixture and combine to form a dough.  Add a tablespoon of water if the mixture is too dry to form a dough patty.  Wrap in cling film and leave in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill.

Once chilled, roll out to about 3mm thickness, then line a greased 24cm Flan Dish, and put back into the fridge to chill.  At this point, you could prick all over with a fork, line with baking parchment, fill with baking beans, and bake in a 180°C oven for 15 minutes.  Or you could leave that step out.  Phillip would leave it out.  I'm undecided.

For the Filling

• 200g Free-Range Bacon Lardons
• 1 Large Onion, finely chopped
• 450g Asparagus, chopped to 5cm pieces
• 150ml Creme Fraiche
• 50ml Milk
• 5 Large, Free-Range Eggs
• 200g Gruyere Cheese
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• Freshly Grated Nutmeg

Once you pastry is ready to use, drop the Asparagus into a pan of boiling water for couple of minutes minutes, then cool down immediately in cold water.  Keep the tips separate, so that you can arrange them nicely at the top towards the end of the assembly process.

Gently fry the Bacon Lardons in a dry pan.  If it releases some additional water, wait until this has evaporated and then add the onion, continue to fry in the fat released from the Bacon until softened and translucent.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk the Eggs with the Creme Fraiche and Milk.  Add a good helping of Freshly Ground Black Pepper.  Pour in the Bacon Lardons and Onion.

Put half of the grated cheese in the bottom of the prepared pastry in the flan dish.  Add the non-tips over the cheese.  Pour in the Egg, Creme Fraiche, Milk, Bacon and Onion mixture.  Arrange the tips over the top, so that they're still mostly submerged.  Put the remainder of the grated cheese over the top, along with the grated Nutmeg.

Bake in a pre-heated 180°C oven for around 45 mins.

Lancashire Hotpot

Having seen some good looking, cheap, lamb neck chops in my local 24 hour butcher on Friday night, and the cold weather really suggesting good, traditional, comfort food, I decided on making my first Lancashire Hotpot.  I could think of nothing better to have after an afternoon and early evening of watching international rugby.

This is definitely a satisfying, and pretty cheap dish to prepare, especially for those who are feeling the credit crunch.  As I discovered, lamb neck is about half the cost of some other cuts, and having seen it as the ingredient of choice when looking at Lancashire Hotpot recipes in the past, I put off making it no longer.

Most recipes I’ve seen for Lancashire Hotpot include Lamb Kidneys in the ingredients.  There are a few ingredients that readers are unlikely to see included in recipes on this site, and Kidneys are one of them, but feel free to add a few yourself if you are partial to them.  I’d actually meant to get some black pudding to substitute for the Kidneys, but, as with most of my cooking experiences, this was the ingredient which got away.  Cooking for me is a bit like any mechanical task in that there’s always a spare washer/screw/ingredient, left over when I’m finished.  But then, if the car still runs/computer hasn’t blown up/food tastes fine, it doesn’t really matter, does it?

Carrots definitely seemed an optional inclusion too, although as we had some to go with it anyway, and they helped fill in a few gabs in the layers, I thought it was worth sticking a few in.

Lancashire Hotpot Recipe (serves 4)

• 8 Lamb Neck Chops (about a kilo)
  
• 2 Large Onions, chopped
  
• 1 kilo King Edward Potatoes (peeled and thinly sliced)
  
• A handful of Chantaney Carrots (optional)
  
• A small glass of Red Wine
  
• A few sprigs of Fresh Thyme and Rosemary (leaves only, finely chopped)
  
• 1 Pint of Lamb Stock
  
• Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper
  
• 1 tablespoon Plain Flour
  
• 30g Butter
  

First, season the Flour in a bowl with Salt and Pepper, then mix the Lamb Neck Chops in the Flour to give it a light coating.  Heat up a little of the butter in a pan with a little vegetable oil, and lightly brown each piece of Lamb and set aside.  If you are using Kidneys or Black Pudding, you should lightly brown these now as well and set aside.  Next add the Onions, adding a little more Butter if the pan is becoming dry, and cook these for about 5 minutes to soften.  Then add the fresh Herbs and the Wine, and reduce until it becomes a bit syrupy.  Pour in the Stock, season with Salt and Pepper as necessary and bring to the boil.

Now, lightly grease the pan or deep casserole you are going to make the hotpot in.  Put a lining of Potato slices at the bottom of the pan, then a layer of 4 overlapping Lamb Chops, maybe a few Carrot pieces and onions from the stock.  Add another layer of Potato slices, with the remaining Chops on top, a few Carrots, etc, then, pour the stock over the top.  Melt the remaining Butter in a small pan, and use it to brush over and between the last layers of sliced Potato which top the hotpot. 

Cover, and put in a 170 degree Celsius oven for about one and a half hours.  After this time, uncover the pan, brush a little more melted butter over the top, then cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes until the top is golden.  Serve with some seasonal vegetables of your choice.

Gong Bao Ji Ding (Kung Pao Chicken and Peanuts)

I’ve always been a fan of Chinese food, but until recently, I had never really tried very hard to make it.  This was partly because I only recently got a Wok which works on my stove, and partly due to a friend of mine saying that even if you find the right ingredients in London, it will never taste the same as it does in Beijing.  Perhaps that is once reason why I have never tasted anything remotely like it in a Chinese Restaurant in the UK.

This Chicken and Peanut dish always seemed to be a popular choice in Beijing, especially in some of the Sichuanese restaurants we tended to visit.  The Sichuan Peppercorns tend to have a bizarre, mouth-numbing effect, that definitely seems a bit strange when you first try them, but which helps with the heat of the Sichuan Peppers.  This is definitely a taste sensation that everyone should try at least once in their lives.

Part of the inspiration for making this came from reading the recipe at Rasa Malaysia, one of my favourite food blogs.  The recipes and photography definitely make subscribing to the RSS feed well worthwhile for the occasional inspiration, however, the recipe here doesn’t include Sichuan Peppercorns, and so I had to look elsewhere for a recipe which included them.  It’s also worth checking out the Ma La Crayfish photo, and if you ever order it in Beijing, try and make sure you get latex gloves to eat it with if you want to be able to touch any sensitive areas of your (or anyone else’s) body in the next 24 hrs!  It takes a lot of hand-washing to get the Chilli off your hands.

For me, the most important ingredient in this recipe is the Sichuan Peppercorns, as without them, I don’t think it would quite re-awaken the memories of the dish I enjoyed in Beijing so many times.  They’re not the easiest thing to find, although a trip to my local Wing Yip found pretty much everything required.  The ones I bought were definitely not as potent as the ones in Beijing, so it is probably worth using the upper amount in this recipe.

This recipe literally takes minutes to cook, so personally, I like to have everything prepared beforehand so that I’m not looking for stuff while I’m cooking.  It’s also worth trying to getting quite thick spring onions, rather than the thinner, salad variety, as you then get nice chunks of spring onion, about the size of the chicken pieces, rather than weedy little bits.  The Chillies should also be of the Sichuanese variety.  They had sold out of these in Wing Yip, and the ones I got as an alternative were really too big and although tasted alright, for me, they were too mild for this dish.

Recipe for Gung Bao Ji Ding (serves 2)

• 2 Chicken Breasts (cut into 2cm cubes)
  
• 6-10 Spring Onions (white parts only, cut into 2cm pieces)
  
• 3 Cloves of Garlic (thinly sliced)
  
• 2cm piece of Ginger (thinly sliced)
  
• Half cup or so of Peanuts (roasted, unsalted)
  
• 1-2 teaspoons Whole Sichuan Peppercorns
  
• 10 Dried Red Chillies (seeded and cut into 2cm pieces)
  
• Groundnut Oil, for stir-frying
  

For the marinade

• 2 Teaspoons Corn Flour
  
• 2 Teaspoons Light Soy Sauce
  
• 2 Teaspoons Shaoxing Rice Wine
  

For the sauce

• 1 Teaspoon Corn Flour
  
• 1 Teaspoon Chinkiang or Black Rice Vinegar
  
• 1 Teaspoon Light Soy Sauce
  
• 1 Teaspoon Dark Soy Sauce
  
• 1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
  
• 1 Tablespoon Water
  
• 2 Teaspoons Sugar
  

Mix the cubes of Chicken with the marinade, and keep in the fridge for about 30 minutes or so.  Heat up a couple of tablespoons of Groundnut Oil in a wok until it’s nearly smoking, then add the Whole Sichuan Peppercorns and Dried Chilli pieces and stir until the oil is fragrant.

Next, stir in the Chicken pieces, and when they’re all separated, stir in the sliced Garlic and Ginger.  Stir fry for a couple more minutes, then add the spring onion.  After about another minute, pour in the sauce and ensure that everything gets a good coating before finally adding in the peanuts.  Give it a quick stir so that the peanuts also get a coating in the sauce, and serve immediately.

Serve with Rice, e.g. Thai Fragrant Rice. 

Chicken and Chorizo Risotto

Risotto is a bit of a recent discovery for me, and since Andrew got me the Silver Spoon, I've experimented with a few different varieties. Lots of people seem to think that it's really difficult to make, but so far, that's not the experience I've had, although not all of my efforts have been tasted by anyone but myself. One of the things which tends to put me off Risotto in restaurants is the fact that they always tend to be some form of Mushroom Risotto, and with me being pretty much allergic to Mushrooms, it's not something I'm every likely to order. However, there seems to be an almost limitless variety to what you can have in a Risotto, and so I tend to use what I have to hand.

One of the things I like about Risotto is that with minimal ingredients in the house, I can quickly cook a simple meal in a small pan which is pretty tasty. I have tried using Chorizo in a Risotto before (as I was told it was illegal to use it in Paella) as I find it adds a nice flavour and texture to the dish when in small cubes, but this time, my creation ended up being somewhere between a Risotto and a Jambalaya. Not particularly traditional, but very tasty all the same. I made enough so that I could take some and reheat it at work the next day, and although it's definitely at its best when fresh from the pan, it was still very tasty. The boys in the office who had some all gave it the thumbs up.

Recipe Chicken and Chorizo Risotto (serves 2-3)

• 1 Chicken Breast, cut into cubes
• 1 Round of Chorizo, cut into cubes
• 2 cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 Onion, chopped
• 1 Red Pepper, chopped
• A knob of Butter
• 1 cup of Arborio Risotto Rice
• 1 cup of White Wine
• 1 pint of Chicken Stock
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 cup Peas
• 1 cup Sweet corn
• 50g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated
• Freshly grated Black Pepper

Add the Chorizo cubes to a pan over a medium heat and as it starts to release some of the fats, add the Chicken pieces, and stir and cook for about 5 minutes. Remove the Chicken and Chorizo with a slotted spoon and keep to one side.

In the same pan, add the Garlic, Onion and Red Pepper and cook for about 5 minutes or so, until the Onion is turning transparent. If the pan is quite dry, add in a knob of Butter, turn the heat up a bit, and once melted, pour in the Risotto Rice and stir into the Onion and Pepper. Cook for about 3 or 4 minutes, stirring to ensure it doesn't stick or burn, then pour in the White Wine. This should help de-glaze the pan, and you should let cook until it is almost all evaporated.

Now you should add the Tabasco and Worcestershire Sauce, and then you can start to add the stock, about a ladleful at a time. Stir occasionally to ensure the Risotto doesn't stick, and as the Stock is absorbed by the Rice, add in another ladleful. After about 20 minutes, just as the rice is becoming al-dente, add the Chicken, Chorizo, Sweet corn and Peas into the mixture. Add a little more stock if necessary and continue cooking on a low heat for a few minutes. Finally, stir in the Cheese and Black Pepper, then cover for 5 minutes before serving.

Lamb Rogan Josh (Red Lamb Stew)

I've cooked at Eduardo's flat a few times, but recently he got a new kitchen fitted, and finally has a half decent gas stove and had been trying to get me to come around and cook for a while. As it was a new-ish kitchen, I couldn't think of anything better than letting it have that cooked-in smell of doing a good curry.

The last time I cooked at Ed's place, his girlfriend reckoned she had a reaction to the coconut milk in the Thai curry I cooked, so I decided that this time I would cook an Indian using yoghurt instead. I had wanted to cook something with Lamb, and after flicking through the Madhur Jaffery book, I settled on doing a Lamb Rogan Josh, as it seemed nice and simple, and I wouldn't have to carry too many ingredients with me (knowing that Ed was unlikely to have most of the necessary spices for even the simplest curry). Also, Lamb Rogan Josh is one of those dishes that I would regularly order in a restaurant, so I really wanted to have a go at doing it myself.

To be honest, I think I made it a little hot, so the recipe I'm writing is how I would do it if I made it the same again. This was partly because I was cooking less due to Katia being ill and not wanting to eat any, and so I didn't buy as much Lamb as I would have done if everyone was hungry. Also, it really could have done with a vegetable dish to go with it, but I forgot that I had considerably better cooking facilities, so concentrated on the main dish and forget to get together a vegetable dish to go with it. Due to the hour long simmering time, there is plenty of time to get something else together while waiting for the lamb to become tender.

Recipe for Lamb Rogan Josh (serves 2-3)

• 3 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
• 8 Cloves of Garlic
• 5cm Piece of Ginger (roughly chopped)
• 500g Lamb Shoulder Cubes
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 5cm Cinnamon Stick
• 10 Peppercorns
• 10 Cloves
• 8 Green Cardamoms (Broken)
• 2 Onions (finely chopped)
• 1 Teaspoon Ground Coriander
• 2 Teaspoons Ground Cumin
• 3 Teaspoons Paprika
• Half Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 5 Tablespoons Natural Yoghurt
• 200ml Water
• Half Teaspoon Garam Masala

Put the Garlic, Ginger and a few tablespoons of water into a blender, and blend to a smooth paste. Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pan and then lightly brown the Lamb in batches, and remove to a bowl.

Drop in the Bay Leaves, Cinnamon Stick, Cardamom Pods, Peppercorns and Cloves into the pan and stir for about 30 seconds, then add the Onion and fry until lightly browned for about 5 minutes. Add the Garlic and Ginger Paste and stir and fry for about 30 seconds before adding the Ground Coriander, Cumin, Paprika, Cayenne Pepper and Salt. Stir these in well. The mixture will probably be fairly dry at this point, but then add the Lamb and juices back into the pan, and it should start to moisten up again.

Next start adding the Yoghurt, a tablespoon at a time, stirring it into the mixture and ensure that it's fully combined before adding the next tablespoon. Cook for a further 4 minutes, then add in the water, stir and bring to the boil, then reduce the meat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for an hour, or until the Lamb is tender, and the sauce has reduced to a nice Gravy. Finally stir in the Garam Masala.

Serve with Rice and ideally a nice vegetable dish.

Beef Bourguignon

I remember this dish being a regular instalment on the Tower Restaurant menu at South Bank University in the days when I used to type up menus for the day, but it was never anything I had thought of making myself until reading Pille's post at Nami-Nami. Her version looked really tasty, so I decided I just had to have a go myself. The only problem was that I mentioned this to my friends, Natalia and Gosia, making the further mistake of saying I'd cook it for them one day, and now, about a year later, we finally made the date, and I have finally made it.

The biggest obstacle to making this in the past is that most recipes I've seen require preparing the Beef in the marinade the night before, so if there is any chance that diners won't appear the next day, one may be lumbered with a large amount of food which will never be eaten. Most stews I make require a good few hours to cook, but with Bourguignon, I figured the overnight marinating was something which really had to be done.

There seems to be a couple of different camps when it comes to making Beef Bourguignon. Some cook the stew the night before, then store overnight and reheat before serving. Others seem to go for either a cold or cook marinade, leave overnight, then, cook for 3 or 4 hours the next day. Gordon Ramsay even has a same day recipe, but that feels like cheating to me. Personally, I went for the cook marinade method, although I couldn't fit it in the fridge, so I just left it near the window overnight.

Recipe for Beef Bourguignon (serves 6)

• 1kg Braising Steak, cut into nice chunks
• 1 large Onion, roughly chopped
• 2 ribs of Celery, roughly chopped
• 2 large Carrots, roughly chopped
• 1 bottle of Red Wine (preferably Burgundy)
• A few sprigs of Fresh Thyme
• A bunch of Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley
• 5 Bay Leaves
• A bulb of Garlic, cut in half across the cloves
• 25g Butter
• 250g Smoked Bacon Lardons
• 400g Shallots, peeled
• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 400g Chantaney Carrots
• 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 1 tablespoon Plain Flour
• Half pint of Beef Stock
• Salt and Black Pepper

First fry the Onion, Celery and Carrot together in a little oil for about 2-3 minutes. Then add the Wine, Thyme, Bay Leaves, Parsley and Garlic, remove from the heat, drop in the Beef, cover and keep in a cool place overnight.

The following day, drain the vegetables and Beef, reserving the marinade. Put the vegetables into a large casserole dish, and pat the Beef dry using kitchen roll. In another pan, add butter and fry the Bacon until golden, adding the shallots about halfway through. Remove from the pan and add to the Casserole. Next, add a little oil and brown the pieces of Beef in a couple of batches in the pan. Remove and add to the Casserole. Now add a little of the reserve marinade to the pan to de-glaze it, followed by the Mustard and Flour, stirring continuously to ensure there are no lumps as you add the remaining marinade and beef stock. Pour, this into the casserole, cover, and cook in a preheated 160 degree Celsius oven for about 4 hours.

If you want the gravy a little thicker, you can mix more flour with a little of the existing gravy, then add back into the casserole an hour before the end of the cooking time.

Garnish with Freshly Chopped Flat Parsley and serve with Potatoes, Rice or French Bread. In my case, Mash Potato with Chopped Spring Onions was requested, so that was what I cooked.

Roast Chicken with Sage, Onion and Apple Stuffing

With all the publicity that Free Range Chickens are getting at the moment due to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Chicken Out campaign, I really fancied a Roast Chicken myself this weekend. I wasn't planning on cooking for anyone except myself, but I wanted the leftover chicken for other recipes, and wanted the carcass to make the stock, too. However, I was slightly upset to find that none of the chickens in my local Waitrose came with Giblets. This was definitely mildly annoying as I wanted to use the Giblets to make the stock for the gravy at the very least.

Still, it was a nice Chicken which I managed to cook just right so that the breast was still nice and moist without being undercooked at all. I think it's definitely worthwhile getting a chicken larger than you need so that there are enough leftovers for another meal or two as it's definitely cheaper than buying in smaller pieces of Free Range Chicken.

With or without Hugh's Chicken Run, I'd been put off mass produced, Non-Free Range Chicken for a while after a documentary highlighting the fact that the burns often seen on the legs of these birds are due to them sitting around in their own filth all day long as they can barely stand up. Also, my Mum has bought free-range since we were kids, and I remember everyone commenting on the difference the first time she did. It is more expensive, but then, more recently, I have tended to go for more expensive pieces of meat, but just eat less of it, or at least, less often.

To go with the Chicken, I made a few Roast Potatoes, plus some Carrots and Sprouts. I reckon that most years I probably have sprouts only for Christmas Dinner, and very occasionally at someone else's house. I never cook them myself, even though I absolutely love them. I really didn't need all the stuffing I made, and ended up keeping most of it for sandwiches, but I wanted to make it simply because I'd never bothered in the past. I based the recipe on lots of similar stuffing recipes which I found searching on Google, and for me, it tasted great, so I'd definitely follow a similar route with that another time.

Recipe for the Roast Chicken

• 1 Free Range Chicken
• 25g Lightly Salted Butter
• Freshly Ground Salt and Black Pepper

Recipe for Sage, Onion and Apple Stuffing

• 3-4 slices of Whole Meal Bread, with Crusts
• 454g Sausage Meat, or peeled Sausages (not low fat)
• 1 Large Onion, finely chopped
• 2 Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored and finely cubed
• 2 tablespoons of Fresh Sage Leaves, finely chopped
• Fresh Ground Black Pepper

In a food processor/blender, convert the bread to breadcrumbs. In a frying pan, cook and break up the Sausage Meat, until no longer pink. Remove with a slotted spoon and add to the breadcrumbs. If there is a lot of oil in the pan, pour away most of it, leaving a little to fry the Onion, Apple and Sage. Fry gently for about 5 minutes, then add to the breadcrumbs and Sausage Meat. Either blend together in the food processor, or simply mix by hand, ensuring all the ingredients are well mixed together.

Put stuffing into the cavity of the Chicken. Any remaining stuffing can be cooked in a casserole dish, or rolled into balls and cooked for 30 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius.

Cut the butter into two thin slices, then from the neck of the chicken, carefully lift the skin from the breast and insert the two slices of butter under the skin, on top of the breast. Sprinkle Freshly Ground Salt and Black Pepper over the skin, then cover with foil and cook in a preheated oven at 200 degrees Celsius, following the pack instructions (normally around 45 minutes per kilo of chicken, plus an additional 20 minutes). Remove the foil covering for the last 40 minutes of cooking.

Beef Kerala, or maybe just Beef Curry Stew

I had various plans for cooking this weekend, but in the end, I decided I wanted something nice and warming, and with a bit of red meat for a change. Laura was going to come for dinner and didn't want to eat Lamb, so Beef it was. I really liked the Chicken Kerala recipe I made a few weeks ago, so decided to hunt the web for some ideas for a Beef equivalent.

I found a number of slightly different recipes, but which tended to follow the same theme, with one of the common differences between the Beef and Chicken variety being the addition of Black Mustard Seeds and Green Cardamom Pods. Also, none of them seemed to have as much in the way of vegetables, so I decided to add a bit of what I had, in this case, some Fresh Peas, a bit of Cauliflower, Carrots and Potatoes. This is where it tended towards a stew I think. This and the fact that after normal cooking time had completed, and after a little taste, I decided that the beef wasn't anything like as tender as I like it, so I decided to keep slow cooking it in the oven for a couple more hours which worked great.

The resulting dish was definitely a cross between a curry and one of my more traditional stews, but with a very different flavour. Still, it was missing something on the flavour front, but I'm just not sure what, so I will have to have a little of the leftovers later to try and figure it out. The taste was fine, but just something missing.

Recipe for Beef Kerala (Serves 6)

• 900g Casserole Steak (cubed)
• 8 cloves of Garlic (minced)
• 2" piece of Fresh Ginger (grated/minced)
• Half teaspoon of Salt
• Half teaspoon of Black Pepper
• 2 tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
• 4 Green Cardamom Pods (crushed)
• 1 teaspoon Black Mustard Seeds
• 5-6 Curry Leaves
• 3 Green Chillies (sliced)
• 3 Red Onions (sliced)
• 1 teaspoon of Ground Coriander
• 1 teaspoon of Ground Cumin
• 1 teaspoon of Chilli Powder
• Half teaspoon of Ground Turmeric
• 4 Tomatoes (chopped)
• 4 Potatoes (cubed)
• Half Head of Cauliflower (cut into small florets)
• 3 Carrots (julienned)
• 1 Cup Fresh Peas
• 400g Can of Coconut Milk
• 1 Teaspoon Garam Masala

First marinate the Beef in the Ginger, Garlic, Salt and Pepper for about an hour.

Heat up the oil in a heavy pan and add the Cardamom and Mustard Seeds. When they start popping, add in the Curry Leaves, stir for a minute, then the Chilli, stir for a minute, then the Onion and continue to cook until going golden. Put the Coriander, Cumin, Chilli and Turmeric into a small bowl and mix with some hot water to make a thin paste, then add this to the pan and stir well.

Next, add the Beef and continue to stir for about 10 minutes until the beef is browned all over, then throw in the tomatoes and continue to cook for a few minutes. At this point, I added the rest of the vegetables and a cup of hot water, covered, and allowed to cook for about 40 minutes at a simmer. Next add the Coconut Milk and Garam Masala. Stir in and simmer for a further 5 minutes without letting it boil.

At this point, most of the recipes said to serve it, but after finding a fairly tough piece of beef at the top, I decided to put it into a 150 degree Celsius cover for the next few hours and see how it came out. For me, this worked well, and the resulting curry/stew was definitely one to keep you warm in winter, plus I could imagine up a number of variations. I'm pretty sure none of the other recipes added much in the way of vegetables other than the Onion and Chilli, but the tomatoes I added as the Chicken version I'd made had used them, and as I wasn't doing any other vegetable side dishes to go with it, I felt it necessary to add some other vegetables in there.

Definitely a recipe I'm going to make again in future, even if only to see if I can figure out what the missing flavour was, if indeed there was any. I could just have been my imagination.

Thai Turkey Curry and Jasmin Rice

I was going to title this "Thai Red Turkey Curry" due to the Red Curry Paste recipe I used, however, Dave reckoned my paste look nearly a green as the Green Thai Curry Paste which he had bought in Wing Yip. Personally, being slighltly colour blind, I'm probably not a good judge, but mine definitely looked more Red than Green. If anything, I would say that the bought Green Curry Paste was more Red (but I could be wrong).

Either way, Dave decided that it was a Brown Thai Curry, and although he didn't approve of the Cauliflower in it, he did like the Curry, but he still thinks it's a waste of time making your own Paste. Personally, I like making the Paste. It can be made at anytime, just as long as you have the ingredients to hand, and keeps for a month or two in the fridge. The only problem is that although I make enough for 2 or 3 curries at least, I invariable end up having to hand over the leftover Paste to someone who ate some of the curry and wants to make it themselves. Last night was slightly different in that I was cooking at a friend's house, and simply left it behind.

I've made this curry with a variety of variations in the paste and with various ingredients. Turkey steaks were going for a good price, and are supposedly fairly low fat, so this week I figured I'd give them a try again in this curry. I'm not a fan of having Turkey for Christmas Dinner, but I've found that Turkey steaks can be quite versatile for other things.

Recipe for the Red Thai Curry Paste (enought for 2-3 curries)

• 50-60 Dried Bird Eye Red Chillies (whole)
• 1 tablespoon Coriander Seeds (toasted and crushed)
• 1 tablespoon Cumin Seeds (toasted and crushed)
• 3 stalks of Lemon Grass (chopped fine)
• 2" piece of Galangal (or Ginger if not available)
• 8 cloves of Garlic (chopped fine)
• 6 small shallots (chopped fine)
• 2 tablespoons Coriander Root, or white part at base of the stem (chopped fine)
• 6 Kaffir Lime Leaves
• Half teaspoon Turmeric
• 1 tablespoon Fish Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Shrimp Paste

Toast the Coriander Seeds and Cumin Seeds in a dry pan until they start to give off their aromas. Then throw everything into a blender and blend until you have a smooth-ish paste. Decant into a jar of your choosing and store in the fridge for up to 2 months.

Recipe for the Thai Turkey Curry (serves 4)

• 400g Turkey Steak (about 4 steaks, cut into bit-sized pieces)
• 1 Cauliflower (cut into small florets)
• 250g Fine Beans
• 1 Red Pepper
• 1 x 400g can of Coconut Milk
• 1-2 tablespoons Fish Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Palm Sugar
• The juice of half a Lime
• Fresh Coriander to Garnish

In a flat based wok, heat up a couple of tablespoons of oil, then when hot, add a couple of good tablespoons of the Curry Paste and cook until the room completely fills with the aroma of the cooking paste (you might need to remove small children and pets from the room at this point). Next add a little of the Coconut Milk and combine with the paste and keep cooking until the oil starts rising through the Coconut Milk.

Now add the turkey, then cook for about 5 minutes, stirring into the sauce. Add the rest of the Coconut Milk, bring back to the boil, add the vegetables and stir in. Then cover and simmer for about 30-40 minutes. In the last five minutes, add the Fish Sauce, Palm Sugar and Lime Juice a little at a time and taste to get the balance as you want it. Serve with Jasmin Rice and sprinkle with a little chopped Fresh Coriander.

I've found this basic recipe works with a variety of meat and vegetable combinations. I tend to just use whatever looked good in the shop that day. Cauliflower didn't sound particularly Thai sounding, but then it's popular in Indian Curries, it's coming in to season, and I love it, so in it went. Chicken and Bamboo shoots is one of my favourite combinations, but if I've had a chance to get to Wing Yip to pick up some King Prawns, then that is also a nice version (although the Prawns need go in right at the end so that they don't overcook).

Lasagne Bolognese

I made my first ever Lasagne only a few months ago, and it was a great success with those who tasted it, although improvements could be made. For one, I think there was too much pasta in the last one. I had some dried Lasagne in the cupboard this time, so decided to give that a try, even though the Lasagne recipe in The Silver Spoon places it firmly in the Fresh Pasta section. The stuff I had claimed that it did not need any pre-preparation, however, this was not the case, and the top layer which was made with this stuff just didn't work properly at all, which was a shame, because the Bechamel topped with a generous amount of Parmesan on the top tasted great. Just slightly spoilt by the hard pieces of pasta underneath.

When talking with friends about making Lasagne over the last week, it seems that everyone has their way of doing it, but you can divide most of them into two camps: those who pre-cook the pasta, then put a layer on the bottom of the dish, and those who don't pre-cook the pasta, and put a layer of Ragu on the bottom. After the way mine went today, I'm definitely going to stick with using Fresh Pasta, slightly pre-cooked and with a layer at the bottom of the dish.

The Ragu was my pretty much standard recipe, i.e. St Paddy's Bolognese but without the Guinness, although the Silver Spoon suggests uses Passata rather than Chopped Tomatoes. I did this last time, but I forgot to get some in this time, so the Chopped Tomatoes had to do. The length of time I cook the Ragu, I doubt it makes much of a difference.

Recipe for the Ragu Alla Bolognese

• 400g Lean Minced Beef
• 200g Pancetta, cubed (Smoked bacon, normal or streaky, can also be used as long as it's cut into small pieces)
• 1-2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 ½ large onions, chopped
• 3 ribs of celery finely diced
• 3 carrots finely diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 glass of Red Wine
  
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 x 400g can of Chopped Tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon Concentrated Tomato Puree
• 1 teaspoon Fish Sauce
  
• 1 teaspoon Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Thyme
• ½ teaspoon Hot Chili Powder
• 2 Bay Leaves
• Freshly ground Black Pepper (to taste)

The directions for cooking this are exactly the same as the St Paddy's Bolognese. Like usual, I gave it a good 2 hours of simmering, only because I had to go and get some Milk for the Bechamel Sauce, I did this in my great new combination oven. I also added a little additional Beef Stock so that it wouldn't dry out too much while I was out.

Recipe for the Bechamel Sauce

• 3 Tablespoons Butter
• 3 Tablespoons Plain Flour
• 1.5 Pints of Milk
• Half an Onion
• 6 Black Peppercorns
• Pinch of Freshly Grated Nutmeg
• Salt and Pepper to Taste

First simmer the milk for about 20 minutes with the Onion, Peppercorns and Nutmeg, then strain it through a sieve to remove the bits. Next melt the butter in a pan, add the floor and cook briefly before gradually adding the milk, stirring all the time. Using a whisk later on helps keep the lumps out, but you shouldn't stop stirring until the floor is properly cooked. Add a little Salt and Pepper to taste.


Now, in a greased roasting dish, arrange a layer of Pasta on the bottom of the dish, then spread over a layer of Ragu, more Pasta, layer of Bechamel Sauce with a little Fresh Mozzarella if you wish, then Pasta, Ragu, etc. Keep layering until all the ingredients are used, finishing with a layer of Bechamel Sauce on the top. Next add a good covering of Parmesan Cheese and a little Freshly Ground Black Pepper.

The Lasagne should then be cooked in a pre-heated oven at about 200 degree Celsius for about 30-40 minutes. Let it rest for about 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Toad in the Hole with Browned Onion Gravy

This is not a recipe I make very often, but it's one of those meals I loved during childhood. I've never really had a problem making it, except last time, when my oven wasn't great. This weekend, I had some chipolatas to use up and decided I'd give it a try with them. Not the healthiest of meals by any stretch, but for me, definitely comfort food. So as to not be disappointed like last time, I went about things slightly differently.

For one thing, I used a much better oven, and took a lot more care over the batter mix (sifted the flour, and whisked rather than blended it). I also spent longer over making the onion gravy, getting the onions really browned and cooking that bit longer.

The Batter Mix was modified after reading Nigel Slater's recipe as the idea of adding Wholegrain Mustard to it sounded appealing, although peeling the sausages and wrapping them in thinly sliced ham seemed to be taking it a little too far, especially considering the sausages I was using.

All in all, it came out pretty nicely I think. The gravy was especially nice, and definitely worth the additional time I spent on browning the Onions well.

Recipe for the Browned Onion Gravy

• 2 Large Onions, finely sliced
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 2 Tablespoons Plain Flour
• 2 Tablespoons Worcester Sauce
• 2 Teaspoons Dijon Mustard
• 1 Pint Swiss Marigold Vegetable Stock
• 1 Glass Red Wine
• Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Browning the Onions nicely takes a while, so I started making the Gravy before making the Toad in the Hole, then reheated when everything was ready. Using a large heavy based pan (with a lid), melt the butter at a fairly low heat and add the sliced Onion. Continue to cook uncovered until they turn golden, then cover and continue to cook at a low heat until they go brown. Covering them keeps in the moisture so that they can caramelize nicely without drying out.

Once they are nicely browned, add the flour and stir into the onions. Then stir in the mustard and start adding the liquid ingredients. Gently bring to the boil, then simmer, stirring occasionally for about another 15-20 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.

Recipe for the Toad in the Hole

• 454g Sausages (preferably nice Lincolnshire or Cumberland)
• 4 Rashers Smoked Bacon, cubed
• 1 Cup Plain Flour
• 2/3 Cup Milk
• 2/3 Cup Cold Water
• 2 Eggs
• 2 Teaspoons Wholegrain Mustard
• Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius, put the sausages and bacon into your roasting tin/dish and cook for 10 minutes. At this point, you can sift the flour and mix together the ingredients for the Batter. Whisk until you have a smooth batter with no lumps except for the grains from the Mustard and there is a layer of fine bubbles on the top.

Remove the sausages from the dish, leaving the fat which has come out from them, add a little more oil so that you have about 4 tablespoons in total, then return to the oven until the oil is smoking. Depending on what you're using to cook it in, you could do this directly on a stove. Once it is really hot, pour in the batter, then add the Sausages and Bacon and put straight in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes, so that the Batter has risen nicely and is golden brown.

Serve immediately, with Mash Potato and some other vegetables, and, of course, the Onion Gravy.

Spicy Red Lentil and Bacon Soup

Lentil soup is definitely a family favourite, and after getting my mum's recipe recently, I decided to vary it slightly. I remember that my mum always used to add chopped frankfurters to the soup to make it a cheap meal for the family, although she stopped doing that during my time as a vegetarian, and with my youngest sister also turning veggie, they have never made a reappearance. Still, it doesn't really need anything like that added, but I do find that having some bacon in there, is definitely a nice addition.

Today, I didn't have any nice Smoked Bacon in the fridge, but did have some Pancetta which needed using up. Normally, I would chop all the excess fat from the Bacon and add it to the soup after the stock, but with the Pancetta, I first fried it in its own fat, then, poured it out into a colander before starting on the vegetables. So it might not have been as fat free as my mum would like, but it was still fairly lean. I would have also added a stick or two of celery, but what I had in the fridge had seen better days. Also, instead of Bacon or Pancetta, I think this could also work well with some small pieces of Chorizo in it, although I would probably put far less Paprika in.

Recipe for Spicy Red Lentil and Bacon Soup (serves 4)

• 1 cup of Red Lentils (washed)
• 1 medium Onion (finely chopped)
• 2 cloves of Garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 Red Pepper (finely chopped)
• 3 Carrots (finely cubed)
• 1 tin of Chopped Tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon Spanish Smoked Paprika
• Half teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• Half teaspoon Black Pepper
• Half teaspoon Ground Coriander
• 1.5 Pints Swiss Marigold Vegetable Stock
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 200g Cubed Pancetta (or some Smoked Bacon Rashers, very trimmed)

If you are using Pancetta, first fry it off in the pan in its own fat, then remove and drain off the fat. Then add a little olive oil and cook the Onion, Red Pepper, Garlic and Carrots until the Onion is transparent and the Carrot is beginning to soften.

Add the dried spices and ensure that everything is nicely coated, and then stir in the Red Lentils and add the Chopped Tomatoes. Mix the ingredients, and when it’s up to temperature, add the stock and bring to a simmer. If you are using Bacon, you should add it to the soup at this point so that it cooks with the Lentils. Simmer for about 30 minutes until the lentils are cooked. Finally, puree half the soup before serving. If the soup is too thick for your liking, add a little more stock.

You could serve this as a starter, but is a pretty filling and hearty soup, so I tend to have it as a main meal instead. If you are having it as a starter, then the amount here would probably serve about 8 people.

Paella 2.0, on a Barbecue, in Warlingham

Anna and Jose gave a slightly rough review of my last attempt to make Paella. The main problems they highlighted were that I'd used chicken drumsticks rather than wings, the prawns were not in their shells, nor the mussels, that the rice wasn't yellow enough and I had no lemon as garnish. I think the lack of yellowness might just have been my camera performing badly with the colour with the poor lighting, but even so, I got the saffron as ordered, and made Paella 2.0 using that instead of turmeric.

I'm cat-sitting Nutmeg for my parents over the next couple of weeks, and they have pretty decent (although filthy) barbecue with adjustable grill height, so I decided to try and make it on that. I'd brought my Paella with me, knowing that my sister would be a willing taster, that cooking facilities and that better local shops would help with the endeavor. There was also the added bonus of getting my sister to do all the food photography with her decent camera. Although, saying that, she did manage to drain her battery taking pictures of Nutmeg, then have to bolt back home for the spare so that she could take pictures of the finished food.


The recipe was pretty much the same as before, except that I used Dwarf Beans instead of Fine Beans, a good pinch of crushed saffron instead of turmeric, and chicken wings, instead of legs (as per Anna and Joses' instructions), plus prawns and mussels in their shells. Also, I used about 50% more rice this time as I was fairly certain it wasn't enough last time.

Recipe for Paella 2.0

• 5 Whole Chicken Wings, cut in their 2 halves
  2 Pork Ribs, cut into bit size pieces
• 1 clove Garlic
• 4-5 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 large Red Pepper, cut into 6 strips
• 1.5 cups Dwarf Beans
• 2 medium Fresh Tomatoes
• 1.5 cups Paella Rice
• 4.5 cups Boiling Water
• A pinch of Saffron (enough, when crushed, to turn the water yellow)
• 1 teaspoon Smoked Spanish Paprika
• 1 can of Chickpeas
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• Lots of Prawns in their Shells (could have been bigger in our case)
• Lots of Mussels in their Shells
• A Lemon

The method was exactly as before, only done on a barbecue instead of the stove. The Mussels were cooked briefly in White Wine before adding to the top of the Paella in the last few minutes of cooking. The other difference is that I didn't use any stock as I seemed to end up with a better stock in the pan this time around, so just added the Saffron and Paprika to the boiling water (3 times that of the rice). I also remembered to add the Chickpeas as I had them washed and drained and out with the rest of my ingredients before I started to make sure nothing was forgotten.

My sister's hectic schedule for the day meant that I didn't get started on cooking until there was no real sunlight left in the garden and it was getting dark by the time I'd finished cooking. This was partly caused by the barbecue dying halfway through (luckily at a good moment to pause in the cooking) and us having to get it started again before getting the rice in. So, rather than a nice afternoon meal in the sunshine, it ended up as an evening meal around the dining table.

Although I pretty much followed their instructions to the letter this time, I can still almost hear the comments Jose and Anna are going to make. For one, I'm sure they are going to say that I put too many prawns and mussels on the top so that the chicken and peppers are nearly invisible. The rice was cooked to perfection though, with that slightly caramelised bottom, but without sticking to the pan. Definitely got a lot more confidence after cooking this one. I just need to get the time of day right.

Valencian Paella, made in Willesden Green

This was a recipe which I could not get wrong. Well, I could get it wrong, and probably have got bits of it wrong, but I'm satisfied enough with the results of this, my first ever paella, made from a recipe from Jose and Anna, using the Paella, Rice and Paprika they left me (and no Chorizo!).

Once again, I'm cooking for Caroline and Gabriel, so I figured that Paella would be a good thing to do as it's not really spicy and so would go down well with Gabriel. Plus it was a good one to flex my cooking muscles, as the instructions from Jose and Anna were pretty intricate. To be honest, like all the recipes I put up on this blog, if it had been a failure, it wouldn't be here. Even more so with this one, given that Anna and Jose will no doubt examine this particular blog entry and give thorough feedback on whether this was a success or failure.

Pretty much everything went according to plan with this recipe, although I was having to rush back to the computer to double check the email from Anna and Jose to make sure I was doing everything correctly. I totally forgot about adding the chickpeas, which I think would have been a nice addition. Plus I think I could have got away with a little more rice in the size pan I have. Also, I exchanged one of the mugs of hot water for chicken stock, as I remember them having some in their Paella, so I figured one mug wouldn't be so bad, especially as it was the nice stock cubes they left me.

Recipe for the Paella (Serves 2-3)

This is based on the size dish I have. So you need to adjust the proportions depending on the dish of Paella you have.

• 4 Chicken Drumsticks
• 2 Pork Spare Ribs, cut into chunks
• 250g Cooked Seafood Medley (from Waitrose in my case, with mussels, prawns, squid and cockles)
• 1.5 Red Peppers, cut into about 6 strips per pepper
• 2 Tomatoes, pureed with a little Salt and Olive Oil (Anna used a cheese grater and so did I)
• 1 Clove Garlic, finely sliced
• 1 Cup of Fine Beans
• 1 Cup of Chick Peas (optional, and forgotten in my case)
• 1 large mug Paella Rice
• 1 large mug Chicken Stock
• 2 large mugs Water
• 1 teaspoon Spanish Smoked Paprika
• 0.5 teaspoons Turmerric
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 5-6 tablespoons Olive Oil

First, prepare all the vegetables and other ingredients so that it's easy to just get everything together as you're cooking. Put a little salt over the meat and heat up the 5 or 6 tablespoons of Olive Oil in the Paella. When it is hot enough, add the meat and cook until it is golden all over. Halfway through this process, add garlic and the Red Pepper and cook until the Red Pepper is easy to peel. The stove should be on a moderate heat. Nothing should burn, and you should just be moving pieces around the dish to make sure nothing sticks and cooks evenly.

Remove the meat as it is cooked and set aside. Once the Red Pepper is easy to peel, remove from the pan and set aside, then add the fine beans.

Once all the meat is cooked and you just have beans remaining in the pan, add the pureed Tomato and fry until cooked. Then add the Paella Rice and fry with the tomato, making sure it is all coated with the tomato and oil. You can now start adding the boiling water and stock if using (3:1 ratio to rice). Also add the Salt, Paprika and Tumeric (or Saffron), and make sure that the rice is boiling all over. Add the chickpeas (if you remember) at this point, then bring the heat down to a simmer. Stir the rice about to ensure that there are no peaks or troughs. It should be totally flat and even all over, as should the heat being applied underneath.

It will cook for about 20 minutes or so, until the rice is aldente. You need to add the cooked seafood in the last 6 minutes or so of cooking, then arrange the Chicken, Pork and Red Pepper pieces on the top. Once the Rice is aldente, switch off the heat and cover the Paella with a newspaper to help the top cook for a few more minutes.

You are now ready to serve. Bring the whole dish to the table and impress your friends!

Caroline and Gabriel both loved it. What little leftovers there are, Gabriel wants for breakfast. Personally, I'm quite pleased with the result for a first attempt.

Chorizo and Queso Stuffed Chicken Breast Wrapped in Palma Ham

I wanted to do something slightly less time-consuming tonight, and as I'd managed to find some really thinly sliced Parma Ham in my local shop, I decided to wrap it around some chicken breasts. Ideally, I wanted some fresh Mozzeralla for the stuffing, but as I was using Chorizo pieces, I figured that some of the mild Queso de Mezca might work alright as a flavour combination. Some Jamon Serano would've been better as a wrapping to keep the Spanish theme, but Palma Ham I figured was a cood second place ingredient.

The Chorizo has a lot of lot of flavour, so I didn't put any thing else other than that and the cheese in the centre.

Some similar recipes start it off in the pan, then transfer to the oven, but personally, I found that I've got a better chance of them staying together properly by doing all the cooking in the oven.

Recipe for Stuffed Chicken wrapped in Palma Ham (serves 3)

• 3 Chicken Breasts
• A few slices of Chorizo (cubed small, 2-3 mm)
• A few slices of Queso de Mezca (cubed small, 2-3 mm)
• 6-9 thin slices of Palma Ham (or Jamon Serano)
• 1 teaspoon Dried Sage
• Olive Oil
• Freshly Ground Sea Salt and Black Pepper

Preheat the Oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Cut pockets into the Chicken Breasts and put in the cubes Chorizo and Cheese, then wrap in two or three slices of Palma Ham.

Put a little Olive Oil into the bottom of the baking tray, then place each wrapped breast on, drizzle with a little Olive Oil and sprinkle some Sage, Salt and Pepper over the top.

Bake in the middle of the oven for about 25 minutes.

I served with Mash Potato and Runner Beans as I was keeping a 6 year old happy, and I knew that Mash would be his preferred choice, but I'd probably serve with either Salad or Boiled New Potatoes given the choice.

The result was pretty good, much better than the last time I tried doing something similar. The Queso worked quite well, but I still think that a softer cheese, such as Mozzarella or Ricotta would work better.

Fisherman's Pie

This dish was one of the things which I used to buy as a TV dinner (normally when I've had a hangover for some reason) and have never quite had a the right kind of shallow dish to prepare it in for myself. However, when my friends, Anna and Jose, left to go back to Spain, they gave me the perfect stoneware dish to make something like this, and it was about time I made good use of it.

My local Sainsbury's once again let me down on the ingredients front, as it does nearly every time I go there. The selection of fish to choose from was pretty useless, with not a single piece of smoked haddock, which is what I really wanted for this recipe. So, I had to go with some Cod and a couple of 'Crayfish Medleys' (pre-cooked Crayfish, Mussels and Prawns). Not what I necessarily wanted to put in it, but still worked pretty well.

Recipe for Fisherman's Pie (serves 4)

• 450g Cod Fillet
• 440g Cooked Crayfish, Mussel and Prawn Mixture
• 1 kilo Potatoes (Maris Pipers, in my case)
• 2 Carrots, chopped
• 2 sticks of Celery, chopped
• 1 cup Fresh Peas
• 1-2 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
• 1 handful Fresh Parsley (fined chopped)
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 40g Butter
• 1.5 tablespoons Plain Flour
• 1.5 pints of Milk

Put the carrot, celery and whole cod pieces into a pan, cover with milk and add a couple of stems of parsley, black pepper and bay leaf. Heat gently until the milk starts to simmer, then turn off the heat and leave for about 15 minutes to steam. Pour into a colander, reserving the now seasoned milk.

Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes so that they cook fairly quickly. Boil in water with a little salt, drain in a colander, then mash, using a little of the milk from the fish and a little of the butter.

Remove the skin from the fish, then put into a greased, shallow, baking dish, along with the carrot, celery, peas and other cooked seafood.

Next make a roux using the remaining butter, flour and the seasoned milk from cooking the fish. Add a little more milk if sauce becomes too think. Add the chopped parsley, then check the seasoning of the sauce and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Then pour the sauce over the fish and vegetables, cover with the mashed potatoes and put in an oven, preheated to 200 degrees Celsius for 20-30 minutes, until the potato is golden on top. Some people decorate the top beforehand with a fork, but I just added a little grated cheddar on the top.

Even though it seems extremely late in the season for purple sprouting broccoli, my local Sainsbury's, for the first time this year, actually had some, albeit from Jersey, so this is what I decided to serve with it.

Caroline and Gabriel seemed to really enjoy it. It's actually very refreshing to see a 6 year old not question what's put in front on him and just eat it all, and Gabriel certainly did that and went as far as to say that it was really nice. I wonder what else I can get him to eat? It was quite filling though, and so it looks like I'll be having more for breakfast tomorrow, although if Dave was here, he'd probably say that it only served 3 and I doubt there would be any leftovers.

Red Jambalaya

I've only made Jambalaya a couple of times before. The first time, it was a disaster due to the fact that I didn't have a big enough pot to make it in, didn't have any nice Chorizo and ended up burning it because I couldn't stir properly without it going everywhere. The next time, it came out much better, although I didn't have a charged camera to document it properly. This time, I made every effort to get everything together, although, I didn't get it ready in time to get any decent daylight to get a good shot with my camera.

The original inspiration for my recipe was from Chuck's Jambalaya on the Gumpo Pages website. However, due to not being able to get all the correct ingredients, and not making my own stocks most of the time, I looked around at other variations, including Charita Jones's version (after all, her Jambalaya seems fairly popular, although not a Red Jambalaya like Chuck's), then adapted things a little during the cooking process. I'm going to try one without tomato one day, but there is something about the rich, red sauce during the cooking process which attracts me to Chuck's version.

The traditional recipe calls for Andouille (not easily available in the UK) or Chaurice (which seems to be close to Chorizo) and looking around at recipes on the Internet, it seems that all the recipes written by people based in the UK tend to use Chorizo instead. I'm a big fan of Chorizo, cooked or uncooked, and I definitely find that it's great in Jambalaya. My friends, Anna and Jose, bought me some great stuff from Spain, so I used some of that along with some stuff I bought here. I wanted to save the stuff from them until I make Fabada with the nice Morcilla they also bought me.

Recipe for Red Jambalaya (serves 6-8)

• 600g Chicken breast, cubed
• 600g Chorizo (2-3 rings), skinned and sliced
• 2 medium Onions, chopped
• 4 sticks of Celery, chopped
• 1 Green Pepper, chopped
• 1 Red Pepper, chopped
• 1 Chilli Pepper, chopped
• 6-8 cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
• 2 small cans of Tomato Puree
• 1 can Chopped Tomatoes
• 3 mugs of Basmati Rice
• 2 pints Chicken Stock
• 1 cup Peas
• Half cup of Baby Carrots
• 3 teaspoons Black Pepper
• 2 teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Thyme
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil

First, season the chicken. In my case, I use a bit of Lawry's Seasoned Salt, but a combination of Salt, Pepper and a little Cayenne Pepper will probably do just as well. Then brown the Chicken slightly in the Olive Oil in a large, heavy pan. Remove the Chicken from the Pan and set aside. Next, do the same with the Chorizo slices, although without additional seasoning, remove from the pan and pour away the excess fat.

There should now just be a thin layer of oil on the bottom of the pan with which to saute the Onion, Garlic, Celery and Peppers until transparent. The moisture from the vegetables should help deglaze the pan of dark matter from the Chorizo. Then, add the tomato puree and cook so until it starts to darken to a mahogany sort of colour.

At this point, add a little of the stock to the sauce to help deglaze the pan again, then add the additional herbs and spices and Chopped Tomatoes. Cook for about another 10-15 minutes and check the flavour so that if you need to add more spices, you can do it before the rice goes in, as it's better to get balance right beforehand so that the rice can soak up all the flavours. Add the Chicken and Chorizo back to the sauce.

Now, add the rice and ensure that it is thoroughly mixed, add the stock, mix and bring to the boil, then put the lid on the pan and put in a 180 degree Celsius oven for about 40-60 minutes until the rice as absorbed all the liquid and is well cooked. You should stir it a few times during cooking, and about halfway through, you can add the peas and carrots and any cooked fish.

I prefer finishing it in the oven as I find it cooks better and doesn't get stuck to the bottom, but you can do it all on the stove by lowering the heat to a simmer after it has started boiling with the stock and rice added, and stirring occasionally.

Serve with a salad and bread.

With this one, I wanted to add some crayfish too, but I didn't get the time to go up to Wing Yip to buy some. Instead, I added a little selection of Crayfish, Prawns and Mussels (should've bought double really) halfway through the rice cooking phase. The problem was that compared to the quantity of food, they were barely noticeable. Another time, I'll have to get some crayfish in their shells so that I can use the shells to improve the stock.

This recipe fed 5 people well (one of whom had about 4 or 5 helpings) and still with leftovers for a good 3 helpings. It was loads, but tasted so good, it didn't seem to matter. Jambalaya can be made with lots of different types of meat. It's certain not Paella, but it is a great, spicy, rice dish, and the fact that it's made all in the same pot makes it easy when you have limited cooking space.