What did you have last night?

[WillersC]

An (American) Italian feast this evening.

Braciola (Pork Shoulder steaks stuffed with provalone, parmesan, parsley & garlic), & Meatballs (lean beef, egg, raisins, pine nuts, parmesan & breadcrumbs) with a spicy tomato sauce and farfalle. Simply delicious, and enough leftovers to last the week.

[Ernie Whalley]

Pat O'Neill's incredible dry cured bacon - a joint, with parsnips, sauté spuds, peas and parsley sauce. Comfort food after a shit day.

[sireatsalot]

5 spiced butternut sqash soup

balintine of chicken with a boudin blanc, smk lardon, thyme, garlic, parsley and breadcrumb stuffing
with crushed carrot and parsnip , boiled spuds jus made from the roasting tray

individual banoffi made in little amuse bouche containers that i had over from xmas

[Ernie Whalley]

About to smoke 2 free range chickens over Lapsang Souchong tea and oranges.
Just discovered bezzy buddy has given up drink for Lent so might just open a decent bottle of red and drink it myself!

[chefsmith]

Brought a small whole norwegian cod, fried it up in fillets, touch of lime juice and coriander at the end.
Served it with some sautee baby potatoes tossed in chunks of raw garlic and flat parsley, and a courgette, pancetta and pea fricasee.

The cod itself was a huge let down, Atlantic cod has so much more flavour, was depressing as i know this would be the best cod i could ever hope to get here .........

[Melendez]

I got a few "Relish The Idea" curry pastes to try out.

Lamb Balti curry (seves 6-8)

2 jars Balti paste
1kg diced lamb shoulder (somewhat trimmed)
1 good teaspoon chili flakes (turned out mild-medium heat)
2 big onions
2 big carrots
4 garlic cloves
2 peppers
2 cans coconut milk
1 can tomato
1 can chickpeas
about 12 dried apricots (just threw in as they were there - helped the dish)

Do pretty much what you'd expect to all the ingredients in terms of frying off and adding - simmer slowly for about 2 hours. Left overnight and reheated + simmered for another hour next day. Very impressed with the result and no more difficult than using a Pataks or sharwoods pourover jar. In fact as nice as any I've made from scratch making my own paste.

I'd add a good handful of chopped coriander next time, others wouldn't.

Thumbs up for Relish The Idea Balti Paste.

[chefsmith]

Im gonna try that recipe this sunday melendez, im having a 'come help decorate my house curry lunch'.

Got some guinea fowl yesterday, confit'd the legs, turned the bones into a stock which i finished with a drop of brandy, cream and thyme, seared the breast, and served with some Champ, Green asparagus with hollandaisse and some shredded wild garlic.

Made a Strawberry daquairi Cheesecake for dessert.

I slept smiling last night

[Melendez]

Moved onto the "Sambal Oelek" paste from Relish The Idea.

Serves 4

2 Packets of ready cooked egg noodles (M&S)
Packet of stir fry veg (M&S)
3 big (happy) chicken breast pieces (pre fried) - would work as nicely as a vegetable (not vegetarian) dish without the chicken
1 Spanish Onion chopped into big lumps
2 Jars of Sambal Oelek paste

Stir fried onions in a wok followed by paste followed by veg followed by already fried chicken pieces - added noodles that were heated in microwave. Stirred it all in.

This was very hot. If you don't like it hot don't make it, it would be too dry if you use less paste and no point to it really. It was quick relief hot as opposed to cumulative hot. Some curries creep up on you that you think they're ok, when suddenly you're on fire and there's no saving you. This just gives you a satisfying reminder that it's hot and the heat disappears on time for the next mouthful. Better than any takeaway with no effort required.

I've taken full advantage of the BOGOF for these pastes in SQ and now have a shelf full of them.

[chefsmith]

Made a Curry on Sunday,
Fried some Onions, Coriander seeds whole, garlic, peppers and chestnut mushrooms added the balti paste and fried for couple more minutes, added glass of white wine, tin of tomatoes, bit of cinnamon, nutmeg and raisins and braised for an hour before adding coconut milk and bit of white wine vinegar, adding prawns in for the last 3/4 minutes.

It was a bit of a hodge podge of a curry, but it was really good and everyone enjoyed it.

If anyone else has a load of D.I.Y to do i can highly recommend inviting a few guys around who are handy with a toolbox, cooking a curry and everyone pitching in with the work, i would have paid a handyman a good few hundred quid, it cost a pot of curry, a case of beer and everyone was happy to help out and know that i'd return the favour when they need stuff done.

[Melendez]

You don't have an idiot-proof pilau rice recipe?

[burkean]

Slightly cheating insofar as I didn't cook it, but I'd a picnic in Hyde Park y'day where we'd a delicious selection of salads from the Belgravia branch of Ottolenghi. Pricey... but worth on a gloriously sunny day.

Had Moro's morcilla, apple and cider salad for dinner. Bloody marvellous.

[chefsmith]

You don't have an idiot-proof pilau rice recipe?

Nope, this idiot messed up the rice, too sticky, ill soak it a bit longer next time, oh and i put caraway seeds in by mistake in stead of cumin

Found this for next time though, annoying voice but seems pretty idiot proof.
http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-pilau-rice

[Ernie Whalley]

At sis in law's. Lovely risotto with some Thai/Vietnamese flavourings, baby spinach and jumbo prawns. A bottle of very decent Rossi di Montalcino from Lidl, soft and approachable.

[chefsmith]

Brought some Irish lamb over here from an Artisan shop, WOW, I nearly forgot how good Irish lamb is. But at 34 a kg they'd want to be really !

Got two racks, they were a bit too trimmed of the fat for my liking, but seared, bit of garlic, thyme and pork fat layed on top, and baked for 5-7 mins and left to rest for a good 10 minutes, they were a joy to eat.

Simply with a Black Olive and Lime dressed salad and some Bio baby potatoes and Crusty Bread.

Followed up with the seasons first few berries, ( strawberries, blueberries and raspberries) mascerated in sugar, brandy and a touch of strawberry compote, served simply with some sweetened mascarpone cream.


p.s, the weather has been so good here, the strawberry plant in our window has produced 5-6 strawberries over the week !
I wish i planted couple more of them now.

[Vottinopurn]

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[markh]

Well done CS, you've obviously made an impression there....

[Ernie Whalley]

A variation on David Thompson's prawn and asparagus recipe (the addition of loads of fresh ginger) from Thai Street food - wih an exquisite 1991 Trimbach reserve Personelle Pinot Gris.

[fontane77]

pasta bake with hicks bacon, chestnut mushrooms, cream and lashings of parmesan

[Ernie Whalley]

Pan fried monkfish and scallops with a tomato/wine/basil sauce, home made tagliatelle and roasted mixed vegetables

[petitechef]

new potato & coleslaw!