What’s Cooking – Something from Nothing Dinner

From time to time I take a look into the fridge or stock cupboard and there is nothing to eat… actually there is a lot of things to eat but they do not really go together in any order that would create some meal that would be suitable for a dinner like meal.

One day last week was just one of those days…

The fridge was kind of full of stuff but nothing really resembled a dinner without some missing ingredient I could think off. Inevitably my first thought was “a take away it is”, but as there isn’t really a nice take away around us, we decided to look harder and simply create something from nothing… in the end this is what we came up with…

Ingredients:

• Couscous
• 1 small tin of garden peas
• 1 small tin of sweet corn
• 1 white onion
• 1 red onion
• 2 polish sausages (left from the night before)
• spoonful of olive oil

Method:

Prepare couscous as per instruction on the pack but instead of water we added a nice chicken stock.

Chop sausage and onions and fry for a while, until onions are nicely coloured and the sausage is browned.

Drain the peas and sweetcorn and place in a serving bowl.

Add all other ingredients, mix well and serve.

It took us 10 minutes to do it. It was simple yet extremely tasty. Normally we would use a lot of “posh” ingredients to go with couscous like mozzarella cheese or sundried tomatoes but actually you can mix it with anything you like.

I am quite pleased we opted for such a “creative” option instead of a take away that evening, otherwise I would never have discovered that a few simple ingredients put together like this could create something so yummy.

I think from now on couscous will be joining my list of go to ingredients in cases of dinner emergencies.

Do you like couscous?

What is your favourite couscous combination?

What’s Cooking – Quick and Easy Chicken Tandoori

Slow cooking is great and we all know it but sometimes we all have a need for a quick meal. Last week I received some lovely marinades from Ambu Tree. I was keeping them for a weekend BBQ but on Wednesday we found ourselves without any dinner. A quick rummage through the fridge and cupboards gave me an idea for a meal – we were about to have chicken tandoori.

Ingredients:

• 750g chicken breast
• 1 Ambu Tree Mild Tandoori Marinade
• 1 pepper (optional)
• 1 onion (optional)
• 4-5 mushrooms (optional)
• Olive oil for frying

Method:

Cut the chicken into desired size of cubes. Mix well with a pot of Ambu Tree marinade. Fry on medium heat pan for about 10-15 minutes. Dinner served!

Optional if you have more time and feeling more adventurous chop the veggies– chop peppers, onions plus a few mushrooms in half and place them in a baking tray. Add a small drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Once they are cool to touch slice them into smaller pieces and add few minutes before your chicken is done. These roasted vegetables will add a totally different dimension to your meal.

This Chicken Tandoori is perfect for serving with rice as a part of a dinner or you can pair it with a nice toasted bagel just like we did for something lighter and more snack-like. It will also make a perfect sandwich or baked potato filler.

Normally we do not use readymade marinades. Mark likes to mix all the herbs and spices on his own but Ambu Tree are not just your standard marinades. They are natural and healthy; suitable for vegetarians and vegans, free from gluten and diary. Where else would you find a tandoori marinade which is diary free? Ambu Tree marinades come in the form of a thick paste and are made from freshly roasted and ground spices. They are packed with flavour. 100g pot will serve 4-6 people. When used on 750g of chicken breast it was thickly covered. I would say it would marinade a 1kg bag of meat without any problems. Priced at £3.85 per pot they will not break anyone’s bank and will enhance your dining experience. So, if you are not feeling like messing about with spices and don’t have a whole day for cooking, I would highly recommend giving Ambu Tree marinades a try. For this moment you can pick from: Mild Tandoori, Spicy Tandoori or Chinese Five Spices.

Happy Cooking!

Foods Of The World – Poland – Kotlety Mielone – Polish Meatballs

This time I will share a Polish recipe as a part of my little series: Foods Of The World.

Kotlety Mielone a.k.a. Polish Meatballs are extremely popular in Poland and are really quick and easy to make. They are usually eaten as a part of the dinner and are served with boiled potatoes and some cold salad like sauerkraut or pickled/boiled beetroots. That said they are actually not limited to being a dinner meal only. They are perfect as sandwich filling or even as part of a salad.

These particular meatballs were made from pork meat but any type of minced meat would be perfect. If you use chicken or turkey they will have a much more gentle taste obviously.

Let’s start with the ingredients list:

• 750g minced pork
• 1 large egg
• 1 onion
• 2 handfuls of breadcrumbs
• Salt, pepper, garlic, sweet paprika to taste
• Oil for frying
• Fresh Spring onion (the green parts) – optional
• 1tspb chilli flakes – optional

Method:

Peel and fine chop your onion. Fry it on a medium heat until just golden brown. Put aside to cool down.

In a large bowl place your minced meat, 1 egg, 1 handful of breadcrumbs, earlier fried onions and spice to taste.

Mix all the ingredients together until everything is well combined and you have an even looking mixture. Don’t be afraid to work it. This is nothing like the burgers where your meat shouldn’t be touched / poked / pressed too many times. Work it with your hands until the mixture becomes a bit sticky, when this happens you know you have mixed it well.

This recipe will make for 16 meatballs. I normally use half of the mixture to create 8 “standard” tasting meatballs and use the remaining half to make a spicier version by adding fresh chopped spring onions and chilli flakes for some additional heat.

Once your mixture is smooth (more or less) it is time to form our meatballs. Ideally you want them to be about the size of a small egg. But as they are going to be fried and not cooked in any sauce, it is best to flatten them with your palm to make a doughnut shape…. Once they are formed gently toss them around in the remaining breadcrumbs just to give them a final coating that will crisp up nicely when they are cooked.

Fry on a medium heat for about 15 minutes turning them over every few minutes. Make sure that your pan isn’t too hot and your meat balls do not brown too quickly. Time as always makes food taste divine.

Remove from the frying pan and serve.

They are great for freezing if you fancy making a bigger batch, but if you are planning on freezing them it is advisable to skip the onion part. They will last longer in the freezer without the onions.

Happy cooking and I hope you enjoyed this Polish recipe.

This is one extremely full dinner plate 🙂

Parragon Book Buddy – “On the table in 30: One Pot”

This month I have yet another great cookbook I would like to tell you about. This time it is “On the table in 30: One Pot” 60 super speedy recipes.

We all know that in this fast moving world time is of an essence and sometimes we really can’t spare half of the day for cooking a meal. I know someone who would really like that; stay in the kitchen all day and “play” with food creating some amazing dishes for others to enjoy, but the reality is cruel and there is no time for it. “On the table in 30: One Pot” is a perfect cookbook for anyone who wants to enjoy a nice healthy meal, which can be prepared fast and with use of only one cooking dish.

“On the table in 30: One Pot” is split into four main parts:

• Super-quick poultry
• Made-in-minutes meat
• Fast fish & seafood
• Speedy veggies & beans

Plus there is an introduction and a chapter on useful information.

Every recipe includes a list of ingredients, picture of the dish and clear method on how to make it which is written giving you time indicators (30 minutes to go, 15 minutes to go, 5 minutes to go etc). This layout is actually very handy, as it gives you precise instruction and a countdown to when your meal will be on the table.

I studied this book for a while searching for meals to cook, checking differences in methods and getting a general feel for it. There are a lot of lovely recipes in there.

One of my favourite must be Spicy Bean Chilli. It is really easy and straightforward. It calls for a lot of store cupboards ingredients so it can be made without any special preparations and trips to the store. I didn’t try to make it as yet, but it is on top of my list and I will share with you once I make it… for now enjoy this Spicy Bean Chilli picture from the book.

There are a lot of cookbooks on the market these days… some of them are better than others and some are just perfect. I would include “On the table in 30: One Pot” into the perfect cookbook category and let me tell you why… Mainly because it has a great selection of fast recipes, which can suit every household taste including any vegetarians at the table; but that’s not all… As I mentioned at the beginning “On the table in 30: One Pot” contains an introduction and a chapter on useful information. The introduction part gives you great hints and tips for quick preparation and cooking shortcuts. The useful information part has a lot of really useful information; strange I know! 😉 It talks about essential equipment, covers all preparation techniques and “supermarkets cheats” (you will have to get the book if you want to know what they are, my lips are sealed) and it has a clear temperature and measurement guide.

I think this book will make a great addition to any cookbook collection but specifically I would recommend it to any new cooks, students and people always in a hurry, who are fed up of take away dishes and would love to eat a home cooked meal for a change.

Do you have any tips on how to speed up the cooking process in general?

***
On the table in 30: One Pot:
ISBN 978-1-4723-4439-7
Published by Parragon Books Ltd in 2014
Part of Love Food
Number of pages: 175
RRP: £12
Hardback

* I received this book for free from Parragon as a part of my Book Buddy pack.

What’s Cooking – Quick & Easy Baby Potato Salad with Mint and Onion

Quick and Easy Baby Potato Salad with Mint and Onion

I like simple recipes; with them there is no need for fancy cookbooks or exotic ingredients. They are easy to make and within the grasp of any cook no matter how good or bad you are in the kitchen.

One of these fast and easy meals is Baby Potato Salad with Mint and Onion.

You only need 30 minutes or so and you can enjoy something light and delicious.

Ingredients list:

• 1.5 kg of baby potatoes
• 1 small onion (I used half of red and half of white onion); chopped very fine
• Handful of fresh mint; chopped very fine
• 2tbs of mayonnaise
• Fresh cracked salt and paper to taste

And to create it you just need to follow these simple instructions below 🙂

1. Wash your baby potatoes and remove any eyes or bad bits then boil them in salted water for around 15 to 17 minutes. Remember be careful not to overcook them.

2. While your potatoes are boiling get chopping. Chop your onions and prepare the mint.

3. Once the potatoes are done you will have to cool them down. To speed up the cooling process keep them for about 5 minutes in some cold water; remember to change the water every minute or so because the potatoes will heat it up very quickly.

4. Once your potatoes are cold drain them well and then ideally pat dry with some kitchen towel. You can either leave them to dry in a natural way for an additional few minutes or as suggested use some kitchen roll to remove any remaining moisture.

5. Once nicely cooled down and totally dry, it is time to cut them into your desired size of chunks. We like out potatoes salad to have some big chunks so I only cut them in half or quarters depending on the original size of the potato.

6. Now pop your potatoes, onions and mint into a bowl; add salt and paper; add 2 table spoons of mayonnaise and mix well… but gently… you do not want to damage the shape of the already fragile potatoes 😉 Remember not to add to much mayonnaise; the potatoes should be just coated not covered completely so they are drowning in it.

That’s it! You are done! Nothing else to add to it just serve and enjoy!

This is one of those dishes you can prepare ahead of time, just cover the bowl with some cling-film and pop into the fridge till needed. Remember to take out half an hour before eating so it isn’t ice cold.

* This recipe is my entry into Betta Living Vegetarian Recipe competition.

What’s Cooking – Quick dinners – Turkey Flippers

My Turkey Flippers

To be honest I have no idea how to call this recipe (in case you spotted my made up name above) – it is something like a drop scone, but its Polish name RACUCHY doesn’t have an English equivalent.

Normally racuchy are a sweet cuisine, but someone somewhere sometime ago decided that it doesn’t have to be this way. It was changed and adapted to function as a savoury dish. It is my recipe, for a change, and I have been cooking it for as long as I can remember.  The recipe is quick, easy, really tasty and what’s most important is you can add to it just about any ingredients you desire depending on your mood or the fridge contents.

So what will you need to create your basic Turkey Flipper?

All of this will do just fine,
but remember you can add something special if that is what your heart or stomach desire

Ingredients list:

500g of British turkey breast, cubed small – Red Tractor approved
2 eggs
2tbsp of flour
50ml of milk – Red Tractor approved
Good handful of your favourite cheese, grated – Red Tractor approved
Salt
Pepper
Mix herbs
Goose fat or lard, for frying

Optionally depending on what you fancy, you can add mushrooms, onion, papers, chillies…  the possibilities here are endless…

Method:

1. Prepare your turkey by cutting it into small cubes – not too small as you want to taste it
2. Mix the eggs, milk and flour all together until you have smooth, double cream like batter
3. Add salt, pepper and herbs to taste and mix well
4. Grate a good handful of cheese
5. Add turkey and grated cheese and mix well
6. Now you are ready to fry!
7. Make sure that your frying pan is hot. Do not make your “Flippers” to big as they will be difficult to turn over and there is a possibility that they will fall apart or worse not cook in the middle.
8. Fry for 3-4 minutes on one side
9. Turnover and fry again fry for 4-5 minutes
10. Once both sides are golden brown remove from the heat and serve

They go very well together with freshly prepare Caesar salad, especially if you have some homemade dressing and croutons.

And once again, this time with some pictures 🙂

Prepare your turkey by cutting it into small cubes – not too small as you want to taste it

Mix the eggs, milk and flour all together until you have smooth, double cream like batter

Add salt, pepper and herbs to taste and mix well

Grate a good handful of cheese

Add turkey and grated cheese and mix well

Now you are ready to fry!

Make sure that your frying pan is hot.
Do not make your “Flippers” to big as they will be difficult to turn over
and there is a possibility that they will fall apart or worse not cook in the middle.

Fry for 3-4 minutes on one side

Turnover and fry again fry for 4-5 minutes

Once both sides are golden brown remove from the heat and serve

They go very well together with freshly prepare Caesar salad,
especially if you have some homemade dressing and croutons

* This recipe is my entry into British Turkey Blogger Recipe Competition in association with British Turkey and Red Tractor.

What’s Cooking – Oven Poached Salmon in white wine

Oven Poached Salmon in White Wine

Salmon is one of my favourite fishes. I like it smoked, fried, poached, on its own or as a part of a more complicated dish. Salmon taste great, it is very easy to prepare and quick to cook and I still cannot get over the fact that in this day and age it is cheaper than cod to buy.

If you are handy in the kitchen you can have a home cook, delicious dinner ready in under 30 minutes (+ a little extra time needed by your oven to get up to the desired temperature of 200 degrees).

So what is needed in order to make oven poached salmon in white wine?

•  A piece of Salmon big enough to give 2 steaks per person
•  200ml of white wine, the rest can be drink with your dinner 🙂 or in Marks case by the chef
• Lemon, juiced, no pips required
• 2tbs of olive oil
• Fresh sprig of rosemary
• Salt
• Pepper

Method:

Cut your salmon into a portions

Place it on deep baking tray covered with foil that has been brushed with a little bit of olive oil

Brush your salmon with a little bit of olive oil

Season with salt, pepper and rosemary; sprinkle with lemon juice

Add white wine until whole bottom of your trey is covered in it

Seal your whole baking tray with cooking foil, making a neat parcel
and bake at 200 for around 15 – 20 minutes

Remove from the oven and serve. Enjoy!

Serving suggestions:

Peel a couple of potatoes whilst your oven is heating up and your fryer, cut into micro fries and cook whilst fish is in the oven for posh fish and chips.

Go healthy and whilst your fish is cooking make a bed of lettuce on your plate with some other seasonal salad foods of your choosing. Tomatoes go well as do mushrooms.

Ultra lazy home cooks can just bang a bag of Uncle Bens 2 minute packets of rice in the microwave to have fish and rice, Mark says to add a good shake of pepper sauce to this version for a Caribbean twist.

Related articles

• White Wine Salmon for 6…mmmm (homestayinla.wordpress.com)
• Salmon Oh La La (simplyaginggracefully.wordpress.com)
• Second Course: Salmon….skin on please. (eatingwithkingsley.wordpress.com)
• Baked Salmon with Mango and Raspberry Salsa (annascuisine.wordpress.com)
• Poached Salmon with Quinoa and Brown Rice (annascuisine.wordpress.com)
• Oven Roasted Salmon with Asparagus (ruthyskitchen.wordpress.com)

What’s cooking – Beef and Vegetable Noodle Soup

Beef and Vegetable Noodle Soup

I love Chinese food. Most of the time it is my first choice for either take out or dinning in. Mark cooks a lot of different dishes from all over the world but very rarely is it Chinese. At present he is on annual leave, so I was promised more of my favourite food in days to come.

This Beef and Vegetable Noodle Soup recipe is based on Jenny Stacey idea from “What’s Cooking Chinese”. I said based, because like always Mark made his own twist on it.

 

Let’s start with an ingredients list:

Our ingredients… oh ok… most of them

• 225g of lean beef
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 large spring onions, chopped
• 3tbsp of light soy sauce
• 1tsp of sesame oil
• 225g of egg noodles
• 850ml of beef stock
• 1ltr of chicken stock
• Pack of baby corn cobs, sliced
• ½ leak, shredded
• 1 small celery, chopped
• Pack of baby courgettes, chopped
• 1 small tin of bamboo shots
• Handful of curly parsley
• 125g of broccoli, cut into florets
• Handful of bean sprouts
• 3 large chillies

 

And now step by step instructions on how to turn these lovely ingredients into a delicious soup.

1. Cut the beef into a thin strips or bite size cubes and place in a bowl
2. Add the garlic, spring onions, soy sauce and sesame oil and mix together well, turning the beef to coat. Cover and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
3. Put the beef stock into a large saucepan and bring it to boil
4. Add the beef, together with the marinade, than add all other already prepared – chopped or sliced ingredients. Cover and leave to simmer over a low heat for around 10 minutes or until beef and vegetables are tender and cook through.
5. Stir in the noodles and cook for further 2-3 minutes.
6. Transfer to serving bowls and serve.

And to the pot they go…

And some more…

Don’t forget about chillies

Looks good, time to add some noodles

Time to eat!
Easy isn’t it?

 

Related articles

• Chicken noodle soup, made in less than 10 minutes! (tastyadvice.wordpress.com)
• Paprika beef stew and chilli noodles (thechillipad.wordpress.com)
• Beef noodle soup with homemade stock (deagonbm.wordpress.com)

Quick dinners – Corned Beef With Veg And Rice

I do not cook very often, but this is one of the dinners I can make and other will eat and enjoy it 🙂

Corned beef with veg and rice

I have no idea what is the name of this dish or where it comes from. A friend of mine cooked it for me probably 10 years ago, I remember thinking “You have to be joking. Some crappy meat, onions and peppers and you call that dinner” but to my surprise I actually found it was extremely tasty. I guess all these ingredients go well together making something quite special.

This is a really quick and cheap dinner option. It will take you approximately 15 min to make it, depending on the rice cooking time. It will feed 2 extremely hungry adults or family of 4 (2+2) if you eat regularly 😉  In case you want to make more food at a lower cost, just add more rice.

So what will you need?

–          200g of rice

–          350g of corned beef

–          3 medium size peppers

–          3 medium size onions

–          1 x tin of sweetcorn (optional)

Step 1

Cook the rice. It is important NOT to overcook it, as it will be heated up again with everything else at the final stage.

Step 2

Cut your corned beef into small cube sized pieces. Cut peppers and onions into large size chunks

cut everything into big chunks

Step 3

Preheat a big frying pan and add some oil olive. When hot add the onions and peppers, and cook slightly. After 3 to 4 minutes add the corned beef and sweetcorn, if you choose to use it. Cook for additional 2 minutes.

cook lightly, so veg are not over cooked

add corned beef and sweetcorn (optional)

Step 4

At this point your rice should be cooked and drained. It is time to add it into your frying pan. Once this task is done everything should be cooked for an extra 3 to 5 minutes. The main point of this phase is to make the rice dry. If you cooked it well and it is not to soggy, your final cooking time will be reduced.

add earlier cooked rice

Step 5

Once you can see that all ingredients come together, are well mixed and look cooked, it is done!

make sure everything is well mixed and hot

Serve and Enjoy!