Isn't it funny how I go for weeks not blogging a thing, then all of a sudden I have a mad rush of blood to the head and bingo, there's three blog posts in quick succession. I have no idea why it happens, but it certainly seems to! Now, these almost kebabs were so blinking tasty that they just had to be committed to blogdom straight away. You won't have any idea the tussles I have had with yoghurt marinated chicken, but they have been almost on an epic scale of disappointment. Hence, having had a taste of these little babies and realised that I'd reached nirvana, I just knew I had to write down the recipe and write it down fast - before it sank without a trace. Now by rights, I should have laced these pieces of chicken onto kebab skewers and grilled them that way. However, I discovered at the last minute that the majority of my little wooden skewers had left home, so they just went onto the baking tray and were grilled like that. I don't think it harmed them any - in fact, I know it didn't.
Usually - and by "usually" I mean "in the past" - my attempts at yoghurt marinated chicken have been pallid at best and watery at worst. However, in this new and exciting dawn, I am so excited to report that they were neither pallid, oh no, nor were they watery! Well, they did exude a little water when being cooked, but that soon burned off. They were deliciously spicy hot, with the warm curry spices singing along in harmony with the tang of lime juice and intense fruitiness of the tamarind. The acidity of both yoghurt and lime juice had tenderised the chicken and the use of garlic granules meant there were no horrid lumps of half cooked garlic in the mix. The slight charring on each piece brought out the best in the Tandoori spices and that spoonful of hot curry powder meant you were left in no doubt as to the worth of the sweet & fruity salad, along with the buttery rice.
I am seriously chuffed - maybe even "chuffed as nuts" as Dave Myers (he of Hairy Bikers fame) often says - with this recipe. I might even need to cook it again, just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. LOL So if you give the recipe a whirl, do let me know how you get on with it! Oh and incidentally - if you put your chicken onto the skewers, they'd be just brilliant cooked on a barbecue!
GRILLED CURRY CHICKEN SKEWERS (serves 2) Ingredients : 4 dessert spoonfuls of full fat unflavoured Greek yoghurt juice of half a lime 2 tsp rapeseed oil 1 tbsp tamarind sauce 4 heaped tsp tandoori curry powder 1 heaped tsp hot curry powder half a tsp of ground turmeric 1 tsp of dried garlic granules a pinch of sea salt pinch of ground black pepper 2 large skinless and boneless chicken breasts, sliced across the grain. Method : Firstly, in a large bowl, make up the marinade by stirring together all the ingredients except the chicken breast slices. Add the chicken slices and stir gently, ensuring that the marinade reaches every piece. Cover with cling wrap and set aside in the fridge for a minimum of 4-5 hours. To cook, cover a baking tray with silver foil and spray with a little cooking spray. Using tongs, remove each piece of chicken from the marinade (taking as much of the marinade with each piece as wants to come) and lay it in a blob on the baking tray, leaving a little space in between each piece. Alternatively, lace each piece onto a bamboo skewer that has been previously soaked in water (to stop it going up in flames) - not too tightly - and lay the skewer on the baking tray. Distribute any leftover marinade over the pieces that need a little more coverage. Grill, under a hot grill (or a hot broiler, if you're American), until each piece has begun to char slightly. You don't want to have a lot of charring, just a few spots on each piece's high points. Turn the pieces and grill again. Serve with buttery savoury rice and a fresh, fruity salad. Printable version
I'm a bit of a novice at the Fully Loaded Nachos game, however I do love them! This evening's version was so good, its recipe definitely requires blogging. Well, I say "recipe" but in truth it's more of an assembly job than a recipe! Along with the luscious goodies that are included in this turkey version, I also contemplated adding things like beans - red kidney or cannelini - sweet corn, fresh coriander, avocado and sliced red chilis. All the kinds of things that you might find in a Mexican dish. While I can see all of those things working, I'm glad I didn't add everything because it would have been far too much - so hark to my word of caution that Fully Loaded, whilst encouraging heaps of ingredients, can easily become too much to eat! As it is, these nachos came in at around 725 calories per portion which required some jiggery pokery of the other meals, in order to fit it in without exceeding my daily calorie limit!
Anyway, the best thing about this meal is that you can include or exclude whatever you like. So long as there are nacho chips and cheese, whatever else you add is entirely up to you. My recommendation is that you use this recipe as help regarding how you make the dish, but free wheel about what you include.
Oh and it's worth knowing that these are like iron filings to a magnet for teenagers. They just can't resist! :D FULLY LOADED (TURKEY) NACHOS (serves 2) Ingredients : 1 tbsp rapeseed oil 1 small red onion, chopped finely half a bell pepper (any colour), diced 250g turkey mince a pinch of sea salt a pinch of freshly ground black pepper sufficient barbecue sauce to coat half a tsp of hot smoked paprika 150g or thereabouts, of nacho chips 100g of grated cheddar cheese 100g of grated Mexicana cheese 2 small tomatoes, sliced finely sliced jalapeno peppers, to taste 100g approx of tomato salsa 150ml of sour cream 2 spring onions, finely sliced on the diagonal crispy fried onion bits (optional) fresh lime wedges. Method : Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas 4. Heat the rapeseed oil in a frying pan and add the onion, bell pepper pieces, salt & black pepper. Cook over a moderate heat until the onion is softened and the bell pepper has begun to soften. Move the vegetables to one side, increase the heat to high and add the turkey mince. Fry until the mince has changed colour by 90% and stir in the vegetables. Continue to fry until all the liquid has gone and the mince mixture is beginning to caramelise. Reduce the heat to moderate and add the barbecue sauce & smoked paprika. Stir everything together and cook until you have a fairly dry mix, which should only take a few moments. Remove from the heat and set aside. Take two baking trays and cover each with a sheet of baking paper. Arrange a handful of nacho chips in the centre of each sheet, in a relatively flat layer. This is the "plate" upon which the dish will be built - so don't take it too broad or you'll use too many chips, or too high or you won't fit the end result in the oven! Next, sprinkle on a quarter of the cheese onto each bed of chips. Then, heap on a quarter of the mince mixture onto each bed of cheesy chips. Arrange the tomato and jalapeno slices across the mince mixture. Dollop on the salsa, dividing between the two batches of chips. Take another handful of chips and heap them on top of everything, on both trays. Add the remaining quarters of the mince mixture, balancing it on top of the piles. Sprinkle everything liberally with the remaining cheese, again dividing it between the two trays. You can even add more jalapenos at this stage, if you're keen! Carefully place the two trays into the oven for 10-15 minutes. Keep an eye on them at half time, as you don't want the chips to burn. When the cheese is melted and the mince is sizzling, remove the trays from the oven and have some warmed plates waiting. Taking the baking paper, make it into a chute and slide the nachos onto the warmed plate. They should go in one fell swoop, so be brave! Add dollops of sour cream, sprinkle with the sliced spring onion and crispy onions, if you're using them and add the two wedges of lime, for squeezing at the table. Prepare to accept the grateful and adoring thanks of the masses. Printable version
I have found the recipe for Mexican rice to be so useful - we have it a lot as accompaniment to all different types of protein - that I thought it was about time I gave it the credit it deserves and blogged the recipe! Here's some examples of where I've used it .... with Quorn Southern Fried (which get baked) flavour nuggets ...
with sausage incorporated into it ...
with a Mexican style baked lime chicken and side salad ...
with fajitas ...
and even with a fried egg & avocado, for lunch!
As you can see, it's a great accompaniment to all kinds of Mexican inspired dishes. I love it - and it can be taken up a few notches with the addition of beans, or mushrooms, or peppers, anything you like really! I tend, these days, to add a red or yellow pepper as a matter of course, anything to increase the vegetable intake of the menfolk. They love the spicy flavours and the Mexicana cheese that melts on top, so any additional veg tends to just get eaten along the way. If you can't find Spanish rice, paella or short grain rice is an acceptable substitute. Oh and interestingly (well you might not find it interesting, but I thought it was!) and while we're talking about rice, I discovered today the difference between Mexican and Spanish rice dishes. For ages I've thought they were one and the same, however it seems that the Mexican is red (because of the tomato) and the Spanish is yellow (because of the saffron and no tomato). So there, now you know. You'll thank me one day when you're at a pub quiz and that question comes up. LOL MEXICAN RICE (serves 4) Ingredients : 1 tbsp rapeseed oil 1 red onion, chopped finely 1 bell pepper (any colour), diced 10g butter 150g Spanish or Paella style rice 1 tsp hot chilli powder 1 tsp dried oregano half a tsp ground cumin half a tsp garlic granules 1 tsp chicken stock powder half a tsp vegetable stock powder freshly ground black pepper to taste 400g tin of chopped tomatoes two thirds of the empty tomato tin of hot water 100g of Mexicana cheese, sliced finely 3 spring onions, sliced finely on the diagonal, as garnish. Method : In a deep saucepan or wok (non-stick is great), heat the rapeseed oil and add the onion and pepper. Fry over a medium heat until the onion is soft and the pepper has begun to soften. Add the butter and rice and continue to cook, so as to achieve a toasted effect on the majority of the rice. Add the chilli powder, dried oregano, ground cumin, garlic granules, stock powder and black pepper and stir through. Add the chopped tomatoes and a two thirds of a tomato tin of hot water and stir through. Cover the pan and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, over a slightly reduced heat, until the rice is 99% cooked and the liquid has reduced and thickened. You may find you need to add a little more water before the rice is finally ready for the next stage. Turn the heat off and lay the Mexicana cheese on the surface of the rice. Sprinkle the spring onion over the top and replace the lid. Some 10 minutes later, once the cheese has had time to melt, serve. Printable version
I was so sure there was one, I just came to find the link for my pork, apple & mustard sausage rolls - and was absolutely astounded to find that I haven't blogged them! Yes, I have several sausage roll recipes on the blog here but none of them are with my family's favourite pastry - a mix of flour, vegetable suet and butter. This pastry is hugely calorific but so delicious with savoury recipes. It's also not as much of a mouthful as puff pastry can be and not as claggy in the mouth as a light shortcrust can be, all of which is a very good thing. Once baked, it also has a strength to it - particularly when judiciously coated in an egg yolk wash - which can be really useful when out on picnics or just plain old eating in the car. Nobody wants a collapsible sausage roll in those circumstances. As such, here now follows an aide memoire of this sausage roll recipe, including the correct quantities for the pastry - which will save me from having to work it all out for the umpteenth time! PORK, APPLE & MUSTARD SAUSAGE ROLLS (makes 6) Ingredients : For the pastry 225g plain flour 75g vegetable suet 75g salted butter a pinch of sea salt a good pinch of black pepper 60-80g of carbonated mineral water. For the filling 6 quality pork sausages, skins removed half a Braeburn apple, peeled, cored and finely diced 6 tsp wholegrain mustard (or thereabouts) an egg yolk, for glazing. Method : At least an hour before you require it, make your pastry. Add the flour, suet, butter, sea salt & black pepper to a large bowl and rubbing between your fingers, rub the butter into the mix. You should wind up with a mixture somewhere between cornflakes and breadcrumbs. Stir in approximately half the water, adding a little more and a little more, until the mix is damp enough to come together when pressed. Erring a little on the dry side is infinitely better than having it too wet, so add cautiously! Lay out a large piece of cling wrap and dump the pastry into the middle. By patting and pushing, make a rough log shape and close the cling film over it, tightening up either end to compress it. Place the pastry into the fridge for a minimum of 30 mins before using. When ready to make the sausage rolls, set your oven to pre-heat to 180degC/350degF/Gas 4. Take the pastry from the fridge and cut into two halves and set aside. Skin the sausages, disposing of the skins, and set the sausage meat aside still in its sausage shape. Peel and core the apple and chop one half into fine dice. Eat the other half. Well, someone has to! Roll out one half of the pastry on a floured board, to make a rectangle long enough to take three sausages, laid end to end, and with enough pastry on either side so that you can roll them up and have the sides meet. Spread half the mustard onto the middle of the pastry, creating a "bed" for the sausages to lay on. Add half the apple pieces to the mustard and lay the sausages on top, pressing down lightly onto the apple. Brush a little water onto the side of pastry that is furthest away from you. Lay the dry side of the pastry over the sausage mix and continue to roll onto the dampened side. You may need to trim any excess pastry, rather than have too thick a layer around the sausage mix. With a sharp, wet, knife cut the roll into three (or smaller, if you want picnic versions). Lay each sausage roll onto a baking tray, join side down, and repeat the whole process with the second half of pastry, remaining mustard, apple and last three sausages. Brush each sausage roll liberally with the egg yolk and pierce the top with a fork or make a knife cut, to let the steam out as the sausage cooks. Place into the oven for 35-40 minutes, after which you should place the sausage rolls onto a wire rack to cool. Beat off all comers until ready to serve. Printable version
I tend not to make dessert during the week, but save the calories for Sunday evenings and any leftovers go on to Monday, which helps to cheer up a sometimes glum Monday dinner. This week, because it had been for ever since we'd had one, I bought a pineapple and then pondered on what to do with it. We've had plenty of just plain pineapple with cream desserts and sometimes pineapple with fresh mint sugar (which is lovely) but this time I wanted to involve it in some kind of cooking process. I obviously had caramelisation in my back of my mind, but it took some thought for it to surface!
As I pondered on the best way of caramelising the pineapple - in a pan? Under the grill? In the oven? Use the blowtorch? - I also considered what flavour(s) to put with it and in what form. We had some Greek yoghurt in the fridge, so that would be a tasty accompaniment, but I also wanted something to give the pineapple some juice as the caramelisation process tends to dry the fruit out slightly. Perhaps not surprisingly, I began to consider alcohol and Rum Chatta and Malibu were right up there as choices. I'm so glad I went with the Malibu as the flavours are just made to go together and it gave the pineapple such a great depth of flavour.
I eventually opted to use a combination of the grill and the blowtorch for the caramelisation, which worked perfectly. The grill did the legwork of lightly cooking the fruit, melting the sugar and almost caramelising enough, but a quick go over with the blowtorch added the lovely charred flavour of burned sugar that is essential. Allowing the caramelised fruit to macerate for a number of hours in a drizzle of the Malibu turned out to be a great decision as the fruit absorbed the alcohol beautifully. When you bit into a piece, the first flavour you got was a fairly intense bitterness from the burned sugar, then the cooling juice combined with the slight heat of the rum alcohol, which turned into sweet pineapple and a hint of coconut flavours. Gorgeous effect! My son opted for a couple of spoonfuls of rum and raisin ice cream to go with his fruit, which I am quite sure was little short of divine. LOL I am sure that a Chantilly cream would be lovely too. Regrettably, I went for the lower calorie version of Greek yoghurt, which really was no hardship, being utterly delicious and very moreish!
I haven't given quantities in the recipe as it really depends on how big a pineapple you have and how much sugar and Malibu you want to involve. Pineapples are a good price in the shops at the moment (April), so go on - indulge! MALIBU CARAMELISED PINEAPPLE (Serves 3) Ingredients : One large pineapple soft brown sugar Malibu liqueur. Method : Prepare your pineapple by cutting off its top and tail, then removing the skin. Discard these pieces. Make sure to take out any "eyes" that remain, along with any seeds that might be hiding in the fruit. Then cut the pineapple into four pieces, each piece having a section of the core down one side. Turn the pineapple piece to one side and cut that piece of core out. I always have a gnaw on these pieces, as the core holds just as much Bromelain as the flesh does. (Scientific studies have shown Bromelain to be useful as an anti inflammatory, so I'll take as much of that as I can get!). Once the core is removed, cut the pineapple quarter into bite size slices and put them onto a foil covered baking tray. Repeat with the other three quarters. Pre-heat the grill (or broiler, if you're American or Canadian!) to maximum. Next, sprinkle each pineapple slice with a good quantity of soft brown sugar and place the tray high up under the grill. Cook until the sugar has dissolved and become sticky. If you don't possess a blowtorch, then simply leave the pineapple under the heat until the sugar has burned a little. This may take some time depending on how juicy your pineapple is and how hot your grill gets! However, if you do possess a kitchen blowtorch, this is the time to wield it across the top of each pineapple slice, taking care not to burn the sugar a little too much! Once you've done that first side, quickly flip the slices over and repeat with the sugar and heat. Moving fairly swiftly so as to not allow the pineapple to cool and stick to the foil, remove the slices to a dish which can cope with all the slices in one layer. I used my Pyrex lasagne dish, which worked perfectly. Taking the Malibu, drizzle it lightly over the top of the slices and deliver a flourish of rather more to the gaps in between. You don't want to wash the caramelised sugar off the slices! Cover the dish with cling film and place in the fridge for the fruit to absorb some of the Malibu and become gorgeous. Oh yes, and cool down. I left mine for a good 4-5 hours. Serve with Greek yoghurt or a compatible ice cream such as rum & raisin, vanilla, or chocolate and remember not to drive anywhere immediately afterwards. *chuckle* Printable version
