In our household we refer to this
as Jacques Pepin pasta as it is his recipe that I have modified to cater to my
family’s taste buds.
1 large or 2 small fennel bulbs
evenly diced
1 large onion evenly diced
180 grams tinned tuna in spring
water
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
2 tablespoons currants
A few sprigs of Italian parsley
coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
Grated rind from one small lemon
100 grams hazelnuts toasted and
coarsely chopped
Salt and pepper
500 grams of dried pasta cooked
according to directions on the box (I used casarecce)
Put water on to boil for cooking
pasta while you prepare the sauce.
Heat the olive oil in a large fry
pan. When sufficiently heated fry the diced onion and fennel. After frying for
2 -3 minutes, add the chilli flakes, currants, parsley and tuna along with the
water. Fry for a couple more minutes. Add half a cup of water and allow to cook
for five minutes.
Add a ladle of pasta water to the
sauce. Just before serving stir in the lemon rind and hazel nuts. Mix the sauce
into the pasta and serve hot immediately. Serves 4.
This is a very simple and satisfying dish (sometimes called tarka dhal or tadka dhal) you see on the menu in Indian restaurants and households. There are any number of variations – normally this is made with Toor Dhal (obtained from specialist Indian stores and you would cook this in a pressure cooker as stove top method takes too long) but I have done a simple one with all the flavours using red lentils.
Ingredients
1 cup red lentils washed
1 thumb size fresh ginger piece
chopped fine
1 large onion finely chopped
1 fresh red chilli finely chopped
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
2 tablespoons ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
Salt to taste
½ fresh lemon
1 tablespoon coriander leaves
finely chopped
Method
Place the lentils in a large
saucepan and add two and a half cups water. Add the onion, ginger, chilli and
turmeric powder. Stir to combine contents of the pot and bring it to a boil.
Once the water is bubbling, reduce heat and let the lentils simmer for 15
minutes stirring a couple of times so the lentils do not stick to the bottom. Once
cooked stir in the salt, lemon juice and coriander leaves and set aside. Heat
the ghee in a small fry pan. When hot add the cumin seeds, fry until they
splutter or the seeds have opened up and the flavour is evident. While hot pour
on top and serve immediately with pulao. Serves 4.
PULAO
Dhal fry and pulao
Ingredients
2 cups Basmati rice rinsed in a
sieve and drained
1 large carrot cut into a small 1
centimetre dice
1 large onion sliced very thinly
1 cup frozen peas
½ thumb size piece of fresh
ginger finely chopped
4 plump garlic cloves finely
chopped
1 x 5 cm cinnamon stick cut in
half
5 cloves
5 cardamom
4 tablespoons ghee
Salt to taste
Method
Take a wide saucepan with a lid
preferably one with a non-stick surface. Heat ghee and add the whole spices. Fry
for a minute until all the spices have opened up and the smell is evident. Then
fry the onions for three minutes. Add the ginger, garlic and continue to fry for
a further minute. Add the rice, carrots and fry for a couple of minutes. Add
salt and three and three quarters cups of cold water from the tap. Increase
heat and let the contents of the pan come up to the boil. Reduce heat to the
lowest setting and cook for 12 minutes. Stir in the frozen peas and continue
cooking for a further 4- 5 minutes. The key to cooking beautiful rice on stove
top is to get the best quality Basmati rice you can afford and also do not stir
more than once in the middle of cooking. Allow the rice to rest for ten minutes
before serving hot with the Dhal or raita.
Radish / Onion Salad
5 small pink table radishes
sliced thinly
2 medium red onions sliced thinly
Salt to taste
Pinch of sugar
½ teaspoon Ajwain seeds (Indian
store)
Juice of one lemon
Method
Using your hands, mix the radishes,
onions, salt, sugar and ajwain seeds. Squeeze in the lemon juice and allow to
pickle for at least half an hour. Serve as part of an Indian meal.
ANDHRA STYLE LEMON PICKLE
10 large, juicy lemons (Meyer)
Juice from 4 lemons
10 tablespoons salt
9 tablespoons chilli powder (I
use a combination of very hot and mild Kashmiri chilli powder)
1 heaped dessertspoon full of
fenugreek seeds (roasted until brown and ground to a fine powder)
10 cloves plump garlic (optional)
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
4 tablespoons vegetable oil like
canola
Method
Cut the 10 lemons into eighths or
if smallish into quarters. Take a large jar and place lemons in jar. Add all
the salt and shake the jar so the salt is mixed in. Set the jar aside for 24
hours. Squeeze out all the pieces (retain the juice that has collected) and you
can dry the pieces in the sun or I prefer to dehydrate them in the oven at 50
degrees Celsius for about 16 hours or so. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds – fry until
the seeds are sputtering. Then add the garlic and fry for about 30 seconds. In
another large mixing bowl, using a wooden spoon mix the chilli powder and roasted
fenugreek powder and add the oil mixture. Add the dried lemon pieces and also
the reserved juice (the one from soaking). Mix well and put all the pickle back
into the jar. Allow to rest in a cupboard for a couple of days. Then give it a
good mix and squeeze in juice from the four lemons. Will keep for a few months
in the back of your cupboard. Serve as accompaniment to an Indian meal.
1 x 400 grams tin of chick peas
drained and rinsed
1 red onion sliced
½ head cauliflower washed and cut
into florets
Juice of one lime
Curry Paste
4 tablespoons peanut butter
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 red chilli finely chopped
To Serve:
3 tablespoons coriander leaves
35 grams toasted peanuts and
sesame seeds
1 lemon cut into wedges
Silverbeet Rice:
4 silverbeet leaves washed and finely
chopped removing the rib
4-5 spring onions finely chopped
2 cups Basmati rice rinsed
30 grams butter or ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 x 5 centimetre cinnamon pieces
Salt to taste
For the curry:
Mix all ingredients for curry
paste and set aside. You can thin by adding a couple of tablespoons of warm
water.
Heat oil in a sauce pan. Fry
pumpkin cubes, then add the lentils. Add a cup of water and after ten minutes,
add sliced onion, chick peas and cauliflower florets. Increase heat, add the curry
paste and coconut milk. Stir to combine and check amount of liquid – add more
if necessary. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and cook for 15 -20 minutes making
sure all vegetables are cooked to your liking. Finish off by adjusting seasoning.
Serve immediately with the toppings or the silverbeet rice.
Silverbeet rice:
Heat half the butter (15 grams)
in a large fry pan with a lid. When the butter is starting to froth, add the
chopped silverbeet. Increase heat, add a half teaspoon salt and fry until the
silverbeet is nicely wilted and partially cooked. Remove and set aside. Heat
the remaining butter in the same pan. When frothing, add the cinnamon stick and
cumin seeds. After frying about 20 seconds, add the rice and continue to fry so
the rice is toasted (maybe about a minute or so). Add half a teaspoon salt and
about three and three quarters cups of cold water. Stir, increase heat and cover
with lid. Let it come up to the boil, reduce heat and cook without stirring for
15 minutes. Mix in the silverbeet, cover and let cook for a further minute.
Once rice has blossomed and is cooked, stir in the spring onion and serve with
the pumpkin and peanut curry.
1 x 400g tin of plum tomatoes mashed
up using your hand
5 plump garlic peeled and sliced
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive
oil
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
1 tablespoon plain flour
8-10 basil leaves
12 pitted black olives and
roughly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of sugar
Creamy Polenta:
400 grams Instant Polenta
40 grams butter cubed
30 grams freshly Microplaned
Parmesan cheese
Salt to taste
Cook the ragu first. Cube the eggplant
(no need to peel). Sprinkle salt generously on the eggplant and let sit in a
colander for at least an hour. Squeeze out all the water and dust pieces with
the flour. Heat the olive oil in a deep enough sauce pan (one that you would use
to make the sauce / ragu in) and fry the eggplant pieces in batches. Set aside.
Once all the eggplant is fried, add the garlic to the oil taking care not to burn
the garlic pieces. Once garlic gets a bit of colour and the fragrance is
evident, add the tomatoes, chilli flakes, olives and some of the basil leaves
saving a few for garnish. Add salt (may not need much as you have salted the eggplant),
pepper and pinch of sugar. Stir to combine and let it come up to the boil. Mix
in the eggplant pieces and cook for a further 15-20 minutes. The sauce should
be rich and thick. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve with creamy polenta or
pasta.
Creamy polenta
Cook the polenta as per the
instructions on the packet. Once cooked, stir in the butter mixing to avoid
lumps. It should look smooth and creamy. Then stir in the microplaned parmesan.
Taste and adjust salt according to your taste. Serve hot immediately.
2 tablespoons tomato paste mixed
with 2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons ketjap manis
Salt to taste
4 x eggs fried to serve
Method:
Heat the oil in a well-seasoned wok. Fry onions for 3 -4 minutes. Add the diced carrot and garlic and continue frying for a further three minutes. Now add the curry powder – continuing to fry for thirty seconds so the powder does not burn. Add the tomato paste, ketjap manis, chilli flakes if using, a couple of generous pinches of salt, the corn kernels and peas. Give it a stir and cover the wok with a lid for a minute. Break up the rice during the process of adding the rice to the wok. Continue frying until all the rice is thoroughly mixed and heated through (about five minutes). Serve hot with fried egg on top. (Serves 4)
This is typical Malaysian street food and for best results you need to cook individual serves. I normally prepare the tofu and have all my ingredients portioned out and ready to go, so cooking becomes a coordinated effort and is a breeze.
I suggested using fresh rice noodles but you can also use dried rice noodles about 1cm wide. Cook them first in boiling water for 2 or 3 minutes (refer to instructions on the packet) and refresh them several times in cold water so they don’t clump up together.
You can use any combination of protein – Chinese sausage, squid, prawns or just egg and tofu.
1 small bunch
of green beans cut into 3 centimetre pieces or 1 cup of frozen cut beans
½ cup frozen
or fresh peas
½ cup natural
yoghurt
60 grams
blanched peanuts dry roasted and ground
1 cinnamon
stick
1 teaspoon
Kashmiri chilli powder
2 teaspoons
ground cumin powder
2 teaspoons
ground coriander powder
1 teaspoon
garam masala powder
½ teaspoon
turmeric
½ teaspoon
sugar
1 hot green
chilli
5 centimetre
piece of ginger
6 plump
garlic cloves
10 -12 thick
coriander stalks roughly chopped
4 tablespoons
vegetable oil like canola oil
Salt to taste
Steamed Rice
or Roti or Pita Bread to serve
Method:
Using a
mortar and pestle or a mixer, grind the ginger, garlic, green chilli and
coriander stalks to a fine paste.
Heat oil in a large fry pan. When
oil is sufficiently hot, throw in the cinnamon stick and fry for 30 seconds.
Then add the finely chopped onion and fry for a minute. Add the cauliflower,
carrot and potato pieces. Turn the heat to the highest setting and let them
sizzle for two to three minutes. Clear a bit of space so you can see the bottom
of the pan – now add the cumin, coriander, chilli and garam masala powders
along with the pinch of sugar and salt. Incorporate the spice powders into the
vegetables and continue frying for a minute. Now add the yoghurt and ground
paste mixing everything so the spice paste adheres to the vegetables. Add a cup
of water, mix, cover with lid and let cook for about 15 minutes. (The
vegetables need to be just about done but not too mushy) Add the green beans
and peas and continue cooking with the lid on for a further five minutes.
Finally add the ground peanut powder. Give everything a good stir. Taste to
adjust seasoning. Serve hot with steamed rice or roti or pita bread.
