Posts tagged chilli

Mexican Roast Chicken Feast

June 3, 2014 Comments Off read Poultry

Sometimes an English roast can be boring (shoot me now)…especially in summer. I’ve experimented with a Spanish roast (see here) but it was time for a Mexican Roast chicken over the weekend as my craving for dark creamy black beans took over. This chicken recipe is a great BBQ favourite of mine…and Jamie’s. You know a good marinade when you make it in the morning, refrain from eating there and then and think about it all day until that charcoal is ready! The sweetcorn puree adds a lovely sweetness to this to counteract the savoury beans and spicy chicken and greens.

Mexican Roast Chicken Feast – Serves 4

BBQ Chicken

1 x spatchcocked chicken
1 x BBQ marinade recipe (see here)
1 lime
Handful of mint leaves for garnish

Marinade the chicken the night before if you can. Massage over the chicken making sure you get it into all the cracks.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 180°C.
Line a roasting tray with foil and place the chicken on top with the excess marinade. Wrap in foil and roast for about 1hr and 20 minutes depending on the size. For the final 15 minutes or so, turn up the heat to 200°C and remove the foil to allow the skin to crisp up and brown. (This recipe is actually best cooked in the oven first to keep it moist and then finished on the BBQ so you get that charred outer crust and moist meat).
When cooked remove from the oven and leave to rest for at least 15 minutes wrapped in foil while you finish the side dishes.
When ready to serve, carve rustically, scatter with fresh mint and give everyone a wedge of lime for squeezing over.

Black beans

2 x tins black beans, drained (retain the juice only if not salted)
2 large spring onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
½ red chilli
Bunch coriander chopped
Lime juice

Fry the spring onion in a little oil to soften for a few minutes then add the garlic and chilli and soften for a few minutes.
Add the beans and top up with a little hot water or the bean can juice (as long as it is not salted). Add enough to cover them gently and allow to simmer.
Simmer gently for about 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly. The consistency you want will depend on how you like them so simmer longer for a thicker texture. I like mine to be quite loose but still sit on the plate.
Use a masher to lightly crush and mash some of the beans. This will help thicken the mixture and add texture but leave most of the beans whole.
Taste and season. Add the coriander and a squeeze of fresh lime before serving.

Sweetcorn Puree

1 x tin sweetcorn, drained.
Milk to cover
1 knob butter
Salt and pepper

Drain the sweetcorn and add to a saucepan. Add enough milk to just cover and bring to the simmer making sure the milk doesn’t boil over (not speaking from experience at all…..).
Simmer for about 5 minutes then drain reserving the cooking milk.
Add to a food processor with some salt and pepper and a large knob of butter. Puree for a good few minutes until really soft and creamy. Add a few tablespoons of the reserved milk as it blends to thin it out until you have the consistency you’re after.
Sieve the mixture into the pan to remove the tough shells and produce a really creamy velvety puree (this is optional, just as good left non sieved). Set aside to keep warm.

Garlic-Chilli Broccoli

½ red chilli, sliced thinly
2 large cloves garlic, sliced very thinly
Sunflower oil for frying
Broccoli

Heat a good glug of oil in a frying pan until hot. Fry the chilli and garlic for a few minutes until beginning to turn golden and crispy but make sure you don’t burn it. It can turn very quickly so remove from the heat and pour into a serving dish just before it looks ready, as it just turns golden as it will keep cooking a little after.
Cook the broccoli al dente and drain well. While still warm, toss in the garlic-chilli infused oil and serve.

Thai Coquina Squash Soup

March 1, 2014 Comments Off read Vegetables and Salads

You don’t have to use a Coquine squash here – butternut or any other meaty variety will do- but the animated colour was just so bright and vibrant to resist. The sun was finally glowing today to mark the 1st March (already! where has time gone?) so it seemed appropriate to reflect this.

This soup is like a bowl of spicy chilli flecked lava with wonderful flavours. Butternut squash is the king of soup ingredients I think as it creates such a wonderful silky texture. Feel free to use half stock and half coconut milk here for a deeper coconut flavour and an even creamier texture. I didn’t purely as I didn’t have enough to hand.

NOTE: For both garnish and if using in addition to stock, use a thick good quality coconut milk. The cheap varieties in the ethnic sections of many supermarkets are always better value and are thicker and creamier.

Serves 4

1 large squash
1 onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 red chilli (medium hot or half a hot one…depends on taste), chopped
3-4cm piece ginger, grated
1 tbsp black mustard seeds
1 fresh Kaffir lime leaf
700ml hot chicken stock
1 lime
Bunch coriander
Coconut milk (to garnish or use 350ml stock and 350ml coconut milk. and half coconut milk for a creamier soup)
2 tbsp desiccated coconut

Heat a splash of oil in a saucepan and gently soften the onion for about 5 minutes.
Once soft, add the garlic, ginger, chilli and mustard seeds and fry for a few more minutes until the flavours have combined.
Meanwhile, peel and deseed the squash reserving the seeds. Chop into chunks and add to the pan and combine with the onion mix.
Add the stock (if you like you can use half stock half coconut milk) and the lime leaf and some seasoning and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 15minutes until the squash is soft.
Remove from the heat and discard the lime leaf. Blend until fine and smooth with a hand blender. Add the juice from the lime and all but a handful of coriander and bend again.Taste to check the seasoning and keep warm.
Heat a frying pan until hot. Remove any pith from the reserved seeds and fry in a tsp of oil for a few minutes. Add the desiccated coconut and fry until toasted. Remove from the heat.
To serve, fill warm soup bowls with the soup, drizzle with some coconut milk and garnish with the toasted seeds and extra coriander.

I served mine with some warm charred flatbreads (see here) spiked with Nigella seeds and smothered in butter.

Chilli and Cornbread

January 2, 2014 Comments Off read Meat

This is one of those rare suppers that is all the more appreciated when eaten in front of the TV on a chilly winters evening warming your lap- served in a warm bowl topped with cooling soured cream, freshly made guacamole and a hearty door-stop-wedge of cornbread smothered in butter or extra cheese- it hits the sport every time!

If you prefer, serve with rice instead of cornbread. I also highly advise you to make your own guacamole- I promise it is one of the easiest things to knock up and once you’ve made it, you’ll never buy a plastic pot of the gloppy stuff again. Regardless of taste- its quicker to make too!

Chilli (Serves 3-4)

450g beef mince
1 onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
1 tsp each- ground cumin, coriander, chilli powder, chilli flakes
300ml red wine
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 heaped tsp marmite
400g chopped tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
To serve- soured cream, guacamole, cornbread or rice

Heat a heavy based saucepan on the hob and add a splash of olive oil and soften the onion and red pepper for 10 minutes or so. Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes.
Add the mince, break up and brown well. Add the spices and cook out for a few minutes.
Turn up the heat and add the wine, Worcestershire sauce and marmite and brink to a simmer.
Add the tomatoes and stir to combine.
Either simmer gently with a lid on, on the hob for 20 minutes or in an oven preheated to 180°C
After this time, add the kidney beans and stir well. Remove the lid and cook for a further 30 minutes until the liquid has reduced and thickened. This can cook away slowly for as long as you like, in a low oven. If it gets dry, add a splash of water.

Guacamole

2 ripe avocados
1 small red chilli, chopped finely
1 lime, juice and zest
Small bunch coriander, chopped
Salt and pepper

Mash up the avocado flesh with a fork in a small bowl,
Stir in the chopped chilli, lime juice and zest and coriander and season. Serve at room temperature.

Cornbread– See here

Moroccan Slow-cooked, Shredded Lamb Tagine and a Tuscan Red

January 1, 2014 Comments Off read Meat

Warming, spicy, comforting. Undertones of festive cinnamon and some punchy chilli. Sweet prunes, melting succulent slow cooked lamb and the freshness of lime all make this tagine one of my absolute favourites dishes! I once made this recipe when I catered for a 30th Birthday party for 70 people….needless to say, after repeatedly cooking up around 12 batches, my once favourite tagine recipe became a little hard to face again. However, enough time has passed and I couldn’t resist its tempting taste for my New Years Eve celebrations!

I give credit to the wonderfully wholesome and flavour laden style of Skye Gyngell for this recipe with a little adaptation from myself. I often serve mine, as recommended, simply scattered with fresh coriander on a creamy sweet potato puree. However, New Years Eve called for a glimmering jeweled rice salad and a tangy lime yoghurt.

NOTE: I’ve always used diced lamb shoulder for this recipe but this time I used a whole shoulder of lamb and cooked it on the bone for longer and shredded the juicy meat into the tagine sauce before serving. I highly recommend this if you’re willing to add a little more effort. If not, diced lamb shoulder works perfectly too!

Serves 6

1 small shoulder of lamb, or about 1kg diced lamb shoulder
3 red onions, chopped roughly
3 garlic cloves, crushed
3cm knob ginger, grated
Bunch of coriander, stems chopped, leaves picked for garnish
1-2 red chillis (depending on their heat) finely chopped
2 tbsp spice mix (made by toasting 1tbsp of each fennel, cumin, coriander, fenugreek and mustard seed with 1 cinnamon stick, 3 cardamon pods and 1 star anise in a dry frying pan until hot, fragrant and beginning to pop. Grind in a pestle and mortar until fine).
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
2 cinnamon sticks
2 bay leaves
1- 1.5 litres chicken stock
1 lime, juice only
200g prunes
Optional- Skye suggests adding a splash of maple syrup (about 70ml) and100ml of tamari at the end of cooking. However, I never had these to hand on my first attempt so I left them out- it still tastes delicious without so feel free to experiment. For my tastes, I think the prunes add enough sweetness as it is without the need for syrup!

Preheat the oven to 180.
In a large heavy bottomed casserole dish, heat a splash of oil. Season the lamb and brown the shoulder/pieces well in the pan for about 10 minutes or so before setting aside to rest.
In the remaining oil and lamb juices, fry the onion for about 5 minutes until soft.
Add the chopped garlic, chilli and ginger and cook for a further few minutes.
Add the spice mix, cinnamon sticks and bay leaves and cook out for a few minutes. Finally, add the chopped coriander stems and season.
Add the tomatoes and bring to the simmer. Add the lamb back in at this stage either in diced pieces or the whole shoulder.
Cover with about 1 litre of the stock or enough to cover. I find the amount of stock varies and can be topped up during cooking for a thicker tagine once it has reduced
Cover and place in the oven.If using a whole shoulder cook for about 2 hours. If using diced lamb, cook for 45 minutes.
After this cooking time, add the prunes and remove the lid. Cook for a further 1 hour for the shoulder or 30 minutes or so for the diced lamb. This really cannot be overcooked so allow to cook away for longer on a lower heat if you like. Just keep checking/adding more stock if it gets too thick. (Essentially, cook until the lamb is tender and the sauce has reduced to the desired consistency. Add more stock is to thick (I usually top it up as it cooks) or remove the lid to brown and reduce if too thin)
Once ready, add the lime juice and (if using the whole shoulder) shred the lamb meat into the sauce.
Scatter with the coriander and serve!

I served mine with:

Lime yoghurt– ½ lime, juice and zest, and some seasoning per 150g plain yoghurt)

Jeweled Rice – Cooked wild rice, diced spring onions, chopped coriander, salted cashews and pomegranate seeds (or see here for similar recipe)

WINE: In terms of a wine to drink with this tagine, all I had to hand was this (below) delicious bottle from Italy that I received as a gift that I have been too tempted to open for some time! A Tuscan wine made from a blend of Merlot, Cab Sauv and Sangiovese. Lamb and the typical dried fruits in this tagine went really well with the juicy Merlot flavours as would perhaps a Rioja of sorts.

Green Chicken Curry

September 8, 2013 Comments Off read Poultry

Its been a busy few weeks and the pantry has been in shameful neglect and I miss it badly. No work on a Sunday so it cannot possibly steal me from my apron and wooden spoon. I love this dish and these flavours. I hate the fact that amongst my travels, I haven’t ventured anywhere where I have been able to master and learn the art and recipe for an authentic Thai green curry paste that would put the salty and sugary rubbish you can buy in a supermarket jar to shame. Therefore with a little research, my (hopefully) good instinct and palate and a huge bomb proof granite pestle and motar this can be appreciated as a good English alternative. Feel free to use different vegetables, more herbs and it is absolutely open to adding a splash of whatever you think it needs. This recipe worked for me (this time) but I find it changes everytime depending on the strength and type of coconut milk, chilli or even the chicken. In this recipe, its important to taste as you go along!

Serves 4

Paste

Large knob ginger, peeled and sliced roughly
2 red chillis, deseeded
2 kaffir lime leaves
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 stick lemongrass
4 spring onions, chopped
Bunch of coriander

Sauce

400ml thick coconut milk
200ml chicken stock
1tsp fish sauce
1tbsp soy sauce
50g desiccated coconut
200g sugar snap peas/green beans/mini baby corn
8 chicken thighs, boned (optional)
1 tsp sesame oil
Handful of basil, coriander,and 2 spring onions to garnish
2 limes (1 for serving)
6oz wild/brown rice
4 cardamon pods
Popadoms to serve

Preheat the oven to 190°C.
Start with the paste. Using a pestle and mortar, firmly pound together the ginger and the chilli. Add the lime leaves and repeat.
Add the garlic, the lemon grass and the spring onions and pound everything together firmly until you form a really mashed and blended paste. Add the coriander leaves and pound in. Reserve your paste to a bowl.
Heat a heavy based pan or casserole dish with a splash of sunflower oil over a high heat. Season the chicken thighs and fry skin side down until a really crisp skin forms.
Add the sesame oil and remove them from the heat. Remove from the pan and reserve to a plate
Over a medium low heat now, add the curry paste and fry for a few minutes until fragrant. Add 2-3 tbsp of the coconut milk and mix. Add a splash more coconut milk and mix in before adding the rest. Add the fish sauce and soy sauce and stir together. Bring to the boil and add about 200ml of hot chicken stock to form a thickish sauce.
Return the chicken to the pan, try to keep the skin above the liquid to retain the crispy skin but don’t panic if not it can be crisped up later.
Cook for 25 minutes in the oven, uncovered. While cooking, cook your rice with the cardamon pods thrown in or a cinnamon stick if preferred.
Once the chicken is cooked and tender, remove from the dish from the oven. Remove the chicken from the pan and, if the skin isn’t crisp, place on a baking tray under a hot grill and crisp it up while you deal with the sauce. Alternatively, remove to a warm place to rest.
Place the sauce over a medium high heat on the hob and bring to a simmer. Add the sugar snaps (or vegetables being used) and the coconut and simmer for a few minutes. Add the juice from ½ lime and taste. Adjust the taste as needed, adding soy for seasoning.
Return the chicken to the pan. Scatter with chopped basil, coriander and thin slices of spring onions. Squeeze over the juice from the other half of the lime and bring to the table to serve with the rice.

NOTE: This can be adapted in many ways. Try topping with toasted coconut for texture of chopped salted peanuts.

Keralan Cod (Pollichathu)

August 7, 2013 Comments Off read Seafood

This dish is cooked in a Keralan style called ‘Pollichathu’ where the fish (usually a traditional Karimeen) is wrapped in a banana leaf and cooked in a tasty marinade to keep it moist and succulent. However, I used foil for mine and cooked it under the grill but a BBQ would be a great alternative! Serve with some homemade warm chapattis and some nice cooling lime infused yoghurt!

Serves 4

½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
¼ tsp turmeric
½ lemon juice
4 cod fillets/seabass fillets
1 coconut, flesh grated OR 2 large generous handful of desiccated coconut
8 spring onions
2 garlic cloves
5cm ginger root
1 large green chilli
1 large tbsp dried curry leaves (or a handful of fresh)
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 dried red chilli, torn or 1 small tsp of dried chilli flakes
Small bunch of coriander

Chapattis

280g wholemeal bread flour
1 tsp salt
200ml cold water

Combine the black pepper, turmeric and lemon juice and marinade the fish for 1 hour in the fridge.
Chop the spring onions, garlic ginger and green chilli and combine with the curry leaves.
Heat a splash of oil in a frying pan and add the mustard seeds until they begin to crackle and then add the red chilli.
Add the onion mixture and stir for a few minutes until beginning to brown but make sure it does not burn.
Add the coconut and the coriander, saving a handful for garnish and season and set aside to cool slightly.
Meanwhile, make the chapattis by placing flour and salt in a bowl and adding the water in a steady stream and mix with a wooden spoon. Knead briefly to obtain a sticky elastic dough and set aside in an oiled bowl to rest.
Place the fish fillets in the middle of a piece of foil or a banana leaf and spoon over a ¼ of the coconut mixture. Wrap the foil up into a sealed parcel. Place on a hot BBQ or under a hot grill for about 8-10 minutes until cooked.
While cooking, teach of golf ball sized pieces of chapattis dough and roll thinly. Either on the hot BBQ or in a hot dry frying pan, fry for a few minutes either side until charred and cooked. Wrap in a tea towel to keep warm and soft until ready to serve.
Once the fish is cooked, serve along side the fish garnished with the reserved coriander and a spoonful of yoghurt seasoned with some lime zest and juice to taste for a nice cooling side.

Moroccan Lamb

July 3, 2013 Comments Off read Meat

This is a knock out way to cook a leg of lamb. If you buy a good quality piece from a good butchers it will so tender and cut like butter every time. Served with some beautiful jeweled cous cous scattered with pomegranate seeds and toasted almonds, a fresh green avocado salad dressed with lemon and olive oil and some oiled and grilled pitta breads dusted in spicy sumac, it really is a fantastic exchange for a Sunday roast in the summer when the weather lets you down. However, preferably if the sun is out, this lamb is amazing on the BBQ where it gets that priceless charred outside!

Moroccan Lamb (Serves 8)

(2kg) Leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
2 lemons, juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Bunch of coriander, chopped
1 red chilli, chopped
4 tbsp olive oil
2-3 tbsp Ras El Hanout

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl adding Ras El Hanout to taste (the strength will depend on the brand you buy so add as much as you like). Massage the marinade into the butterflied lamb and then place into a large dish in the fridge overnight to tenderise.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 180°C . Place the lamb in a baking tray or grill rack over a tray and cook for 45 minutes (medium) or 1 hour (well done). Leave to rest for at LEAST 20 minutes wrapped tightly in foil so that you can collect all the lovely juices and use them for pouring over the carved meat.
Once rested, carve into thick slices and serve with the juices. I also made a minted oil as a nice dressing by blitzing a bunch of mint leaves with some olive oil and seasoning in a processor.

Jeweled Bulgar Wheat Salad (Serves 4)

120g bulgar wheat
1 litre light vegetable stock
1 pomegranate, seeds removed
50g pistachios/flaked almonds
Bunch spring onions, chopped
1 cucumber, diced
Small handful of chopped dried apricots
Large handful each of coriander, flat-leaf parsley, mint (and/or any other herbs you like)
1 lime, zest and juice
1 large or 2 small onions
1 tsp ground cumin/ras el hanout
1 tbsp olive oil

Simmer the bulgar wheat in the stock for about 10 minutes or so to loose its crunch. Drain and set aside to cool.
In a dry frying pan or warm oven, toast the pistachios or flaked almonds for a few minutes. If using pistachios, chop roughly keeping fairly coarse.
Cut the onion into half moons and fry in a little oil over a medium heat until softened and golden brown coloured and beginning to crisp. Season with salt, stir in the ground cumin/ras el hanout and remove from the heat. Stir into the wheat along with the lime zest and juice and season.
Add the diced cucumber, spring onions and chopped apricots to the cooled bulgar wheat along with the chopped herbs (make sure the herbs are added when wheat has cooled to prevent them turning black). Add the nuts and pomegranate seeds but save a handful to scatter over the top for garnish.

This recipe could also be done with couscous and using any herbs, nuts or dried fruits etc that complement your other dishes! Serve with some grilled pitta breads if you like (recipe here)

Cornbread

January 8, 2013 Comments Off read Extras

I love this American derived cornbread as it has a really deep rich flavour. Our family loves a good bowl of spicy chilli and rice when the colder months hit but sometimes rice gets a bit dull and this makes a really hearty change. Cornbread is a traditional Southern American staple which I love! I’ve added popular ingredients like cheese, chilli and sweetcorn but the usual cornbread is actually fairly plain, made with polenta (cornmeal) and baking powder which makes it rise.

140g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
125g polenta/cornmeal
1/2tsp chilli flakes
75g mature cheddar, grated
4 spring onions, chopped including the green tops
25g melted butter
2 eggs
150ml whole milk
150ml buttermilk
150g sweetcorn

Preheat the oven to 220°C.
Traditionally made in a skillet, I made mine in a flat square brownie tin (23cm x 23cm and 4cm deep) but also feel free to use a loaf tin. Grease and line with baking parchment.
Combine the first 9, dry, ingredients in a large bowl.
Whisk the eggs and milk together in a jug.
Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and, working quickly as the bicarbonate will begin to react with the buttermilk for the rising effect, whisk in the melted butter followed by the egg and milk. Stir in the sweetcorn, and transfer quickly to the prepared tin.
Bake in the centre of the oven for about 20 minutes until golden and cooked.
This is best served warm with salty butter and a bowl of steaming chilli, soured cream and guacamole smothered all over the top like there’s no tomorrow.

Green Chutney

December 17, 2012 Comments Off read Extras

This green chutney is undoubtedly packed full of herby flavour and is the PERFECT addition to the Indian marinated lamb (or chicken) we scoffed…

About 35g coriander, stalks included (or a big bunch)
35g mint leaves
1 garlic clove
2.5cm ginger, grated or chopped
½ small onion
1 green chilli, seeds removed
15-20 pistachio nuts
2 tbsp lemon juice, grated zest of half a lemon
salt
3 tbsp water
1-2 tbsp yoghurt

Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor.
Process until thoroughly chopped. I added a couple of heaped tablespoon of natural yoghurt just to make it more ‘spoonable’ but feel free to add lots more if you’re after a more cooling chutney! Toasted coconut is also a nice addition!