chicken with cardamom rice + spinach salad with dates

Two fragrant dishes from JERUSALEM by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. This one-pot chicken and rice dish is wonderfully spiced, rich with caramelised onions, tangy with barberries and fresh with herbs. First put 2-3 tablespoons of sugar into a small saucepan with an equal amount of water and heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat, add…… Continue reading chicken with cardamom rice + spinach salad with dates

cauliflower pilaf + fried root veg + spinach and yoghurt

This vegetarian meal is loosely based on a Jordanian Maqluba which normally includes meat, rice, and fried vegetables placed in a pot, which is then flipped upside down when served. The recipe is adapted from one by Henry Dimbleby and Jane Baxter which appeared in The Guardian.  Preheat your oven to 200ºC (º400F). Heat 1 litre (34 fl oz)…… Continue reading cauliflower pilaf + fried root veg + spinach and yoghurt

black rice pudding with grilled bananas and coconut turmeric sauce

Turmeric, a member of the ginger family, grows wild in the forests of South and Southeast Asia. It is widely used as a spice in South Asian and Middle Eastern cooking. Slightly bitter, musky and earthy tasting, it adds an interesting dimension to this dessert from David Thompson’s Thai Food. For the black rice pudding, soak ½ a cup…… Continue reading black rice pudding with grilled bananas and coconut turmeric sauce

jerk chicken + coconut rice and beans

I haven’t tried much Jamaican food but a newly found appreciation of all things cooked over coal led to this delicious meal. Jerk is a style of cooking in which meat is dry-rubbed or wet marinated with a very hot spice mixture which always includes allspice (pimento in Jamaica) and Scotch bonnet chillies. We used Tasting Tables’s…… Continue reading jerk chicken + coconut rice and beans

chicken in green almond sauce + red mexican rice

Simple poached chicken is taken to another level with this wonderful Mexican sauce. In a saucepan, cover chicken pieces with cold chicken stock. Bring to a simmer as slowly as possible. When barely cooked, take them off the heat and set aside. In a food processor combine 1 chopped onion, 2 chopped garlic cloves, 115g (4oz)…… Continue reading chicken in green almond sauce + red mexican rice

sambal with okra and prawns on coconut rice

A spicy Yotam Ottolenghi recipe (with the addition of prawns) from his book PLENTY.  To make the sambal combine 5 de-seeded fresh red chillies, 5 de-seeded dried red chillies, 100g (3½ oz) of red shallots, 1 diced clove of garlic, 2 tablespoons each of oil and water and ½ a teaspoon of salt in a…… Continue reading sambal with okra and prawns on coconut rice

rice with onions, chick peas and currants + butternut salad

Here are another two inspired Yotam Ottolenghi recipes from his book Jerusalem. This dish is made with a cup of basmati rice and ¼ of a cup of wild rice both pre-cooked separately. Heat some sunflower oil in a saucepan and add 2 teaspoons of cumin seeds and 1½ teaspoons of curry powder. After only a few seconds…… Continue reading rice with onions, chick peas and currants + butternut salad

chicken with prunes and olives + spinach salad + yellow rice

A veritable Mexican feast cooked by David. The chicken recipe comes from The Art of Mexican Cooking by Diana Kennedy and the rice and salad from MEXICAN healthy ways with a favourite cuisine by Jane Milton. Season 8 chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a heavy casserole and brown the chicken pieces until golden.…… Continue reading chicken with prunes and olives + spinach salad + yellow rice

prawn and broccolini risotto

A great combination of prawns (shrimps) and broccolini with saffron, chilli, capers and lemon. As usual I cooked this risotto in a pressure cooker. If you don’t have a pressure cooker you can achieve the same result by traditional methods. I used 400g (14 oz) of arborio rice and 4 cups of chicken stock. First…… Continue reading prawn and broccolini risotto