Try a spicy tagine with a variety of earthy sweet root vegetables, such as kumara, yam or pumpkin, and beef. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and saute a small piece of grated ginger & 1 onion, finely chopped. Add 700 kg lean beef, cubed & seer then add 1-2 tsp ras el hanout. Add enough boiling water to barely cover the meat, cover the tagine & put in the oven at about 180. After an hour, add your root vegetables cubed - the equivalent of about 2 medium kumara. Season and cook another 20 minutes or until the meat is tender. Add 1/2 cup frozen peas and half a tin of chopped tomatoes. Cook another 10 minutes until the peas and vegetables are cooked. Sprinkle with chopped preserved lemon & flat leaf parsley. I made some Turkish flat breads & served with a dollop of Greek yoghurt.
Last Sunday was a very fishy day. Chowder at the market and whitebait fritters for lunch - the first of the season are always such a treat, served with a squeeze of lemon. For dinner we bought a beautiful piece of bluenose from the market and pan fried it with za'atar then served with a pinenut dressing, on a bed of hummus. To cook the fish, brush with olive oil, then sprinkle with za'atar and quickly cook in a hot pan on both sides. To make the dressing, combine 2 tbsps pinenuts, toasted & roughly chopped, 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped, 1/4 red onion finely chopped, 1/2 red chilli finely chopped, 2 tbsp olive oil 1/2 tsp pomegranate molasses, 1 tbsp lemon juice plus a grating of zest. Mix together & pour over the fish.
New season's Chinese greens are just beginning to appear at the market. I plan to really experiment with them this year. This week I just played it safe and had
choy sum with pork fillets.
Now that Zany Zeus is making paneer, I find we are having it more often. It is one of my favourite cheeses. Try it with chick peas, spinach & tomatoes. Heat a tbsp vegetable oil in a pan & cook 1/2 tsp each cumin seeds & yellow mustard seeds until they pop. Add 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 finely chopped red chilli, 1 small onion thinly sliced, 1 clove garlic crushed, 1/2 tbsp grated ginger. If you don't have a chilli (and they are not quite in season yet) use dried or flakes. Season with salt & cook until the onion is soft. Add a tin crushed tomatoes & a tin of chickpeas & simmer 15 minutes. In the meantime, slice the paneer (about 150g) into 2 cm thick chunks and saute in a little oil until golden on both sides. Cut into bite sized pieces. Wash a handful of spinach & chop roughly. Stir into the tomato mix to wilt along with a tbsp tamarind concentrate. If you don't have tamarind (but you should try & get some) add a squeeze of lemon juice. Toss through the paneer.
The new season's asparagus is in. One of the first things I like to do is asparagus in French bread with ham & Gruyere. This has been a great favourite in our house for many years and was something we often had for lunch when Mum & Dad came to stay in the spring. They were great asparagus fans. Lightly steam the asparagus then fill a baguette with a slice of Gruyere and a slice of ham & 2-3 asparagus spears. Toast in a medium oven for about 10 minutes. We cut our baguette into 3-4 portions depending on the size and appetite of the diners.
Try a spicy tagine with a variety of earthy sweet root vegetables, such as kumara, yam or pumpkin, and beef. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and saute a small piece of grated ginger & 1 onion, finely chopped. Add 700 kg lean beef, cubed & seer then add 1-2 tsp ras el hanout. Add enough boiling water to barely cover the meat, cover the tagine & put in the oven at about 180. After an hour, add your root vegetables cubed - the equivalent of about 2 medium kumara. Season and cook another 20 minutes or until the meat is tender. Add 1/2 cup frozen peas and half a tin of chopped tomatoes. Cook another 10 minutes until the peas and vegetables are cooked. Sprinkle with chopped preserved lemon & flat leaf parsley. I made some Turkish flat breads & served with a dollop of Greek yoghurt.
Last Sunday was a very fishy day. Chowder at the market and whitebait fritters for lunch - the first of the season are always such a treat, served with a squeeze of lemon. For dinner we bought a beautiful piece of bluenose from the market and pan fried it with za'atar then served with a pinenut dressing, on a bed of hummus. To cook the fish, brush with olive oil, then sprinkle with za'atar and quickly cook in a hot pan on both sides. To make the dressing, combine 2 tbsps pinenuts, toasted & roughly chopped, 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped, 1/4 red onion finely chopped, 1/2 red chilli finely chopped, 2 tbsp olive oil 1/2 tsp pomegranate molasses, 1 tbsp lemon juice plus a grating of zest. Mix together & pour over the fish.
New season's Chinese greens are just beginning to appear at the market. I plan to really experiment with them this year. This week I just played it safe and had choy sum with pork fillets. 
Now that Zany Zeus is making paneer, I find we are having it more often. It is one of my favourite cheeses. Try it with chick peas, spinach & tomatoes. Heat a tbsp vegetable oil in a pan & cook 1/2 tsp each cumin seeds & yellow mustard seeds until they pop. Add 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 finely chopped red chilli, 1 small onion thinly sliced, 1 clove garlic crushed, 1/2 tbsp grated ginger. If you don't have a chilli (and they are not quite in season yet) use dried or flakes. Season with salt & cook until the onion is soft. Add a tin crushed tomatoes & a tin of chickpeas & simmer 15 minutes. In the meantime, slice the paneer (about 150g) into 2 cm thick chunks and saute in a little oil until golden on both sides. Cut into bite sized pieces. Wash a handful of spinach & chop roughly. Stir into the tomato mix to wilt along with a tbsp tamarind concentrate. If you don't have tamarind (but you should try & get some) add a squeeze of lemon juice. Toss through the paneer.
The new season's asparagus is in. One of the first things I like to do is asparagus in French bread with ham & Gruyere. This has been a great favourite in our house for many years and was something we often had for lunch when Mum & Dad came to stay in the spring. They were great asparagus fans. Lightly steam the asparagus then fill a baguette with a slice of Gruyere and a slice of ham & 2-3 asparagus spears. Toast in a medium oven for about 10 minutes. We cut our baguette into 3-4 portions depending on the size and appetite of the diners.
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