Persian Chicken in a tomato sauce

This is a simple dish on its own, best served with rice or fried potatoes, or even chips. The main recipe I tried was from ‘Nightingales and Roses‘, one of my favourite sources for ideas. I made a smaller version than the one in the recipe book. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • Vegetable oil or ghee
  • Jointed chicken, around 600g
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 2 cloves of garlic, peeled
  • 3 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
  • 250ml stock or water
  • Juice of 1/2 a lime (or to taste)

METHOD:

  • Heat the oil in a casserole pan, and sear the chicken pieces until golden on all sides. Remove these from the pan and set aside
  • In the same oil, fry the onion until it is beginning to brown, before adding the turmeric, salt and pepper, and the tomato paste. Stir to combine and heat through for a minute or so, before adding the stock and bringing to a simmer.
  • Add the chicken back to the pan, cover with a lid, and leave to simmer slowly for 30 minutes. 
  • At the end of cooking, remove the lid, and add the lime juice to taste. Simmer for another 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked and tender. 

 

Kuku-ye Lubiya Sabz – Persian bean and potato fritata

This Persian dish is delicious hot or cold; a slice is excellent in a packed lunch, equally good as part of a lavish spread of food, as a side dish. There are a lot of traditional kuku recipes in Persian cookery, depending on seasonal vegetables. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • vegetable oil
  • 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced, and then rinsed in cold water and drained
  • 600g green beans, chopped into short segments
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp plain flour
  • 6 large eggs, lightly beaten

METHOD:

  • Heat some oil in a large non-stick frying pan or wok, and cook the potato cubes over a medium heat for around 10 minutes, until golden. Remove from the oil and set aside. 
  • Fry the beans and diced carrots in the same oil for around 10 minutes or until they are starting to brown at the edges. Remove from the oil and leave to cool. 
  • Preheat the oven to 200C. While the oven is heating up, mix the salt, baking powder, spices and flour. In another bowl, mix the vegetables with the eggs, mix well and sprinkle in the flour and spice mixture. Stir the ingredients togehter
  • Oil a flan dish or other oven-safe dish, and then put it in the hot oven for a couple of minutes to heat the oil up. When it is really hot, take it from the oven and pour in the egg mixture, smoothing it level with a spatula. 
  • Bake for around 30 minutes, until the top is golden. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes before cutting into servings. 

Turkish chicken and lentil stew/soup

This is a very comforting, delicious soup. The flavours are simple, but it does take quite a bit of preparation. There’s a lot of fine chopping, as well as making some bread dough and noodles. I cheated a little bit with the dough and the noodles but it was still great. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 250ml olive oil 
  • 100g bread dough (I made the dough for one loaf in the bread maker, pinched off 100g and then nade a loaf of bread with the rest)
  • 80g clarified butter or ghee
  • 80g carrot, finely diced
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 300g boned chicken thighs, diced (I actually just put in 6 whole chicken thighs with the bone in, and it was great, making sure each serving had one thigh in it)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • 80g green lentils
  • 1 litre of water
  • 1 litre of chicken stock
  • 200g potatoes, finely diced
  • 80g egg noodles (I used linguini, but the original recipe states these should be home-made)
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 1/2 bunch fresh coriander

METHOD:

  • Make little flat dumplings with the bread dough. I made a long thin sausage, and then pinched off bits about the size of a small marble.
  • Fry the little balls of dough in hot olive oil for around 5 minutes each. Remove them to drain on paper towels or a tea towel. 
  • In a large saucepan, heat the butter over a medium heat. Fry the carrot, onion and garlic for around 3 minutes, then add the chicken, salt, white pepper and green lentils in that order, stirring them in as you go. Cook for another 5 minutes. 
  • Pour in 1 litre of hot water and bring to a simmer, and cover the pan. Cook for 20 minutes.
  • Add the 1 litre of chicken stock, bring to a simmer again, cover the pan, and cook for 10 minutes. 
  • Add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes, still covered
  • Add the noodles, and cook with the lid off for around 7 minutes
  • Add the fried dough balls and cook for 3 more minutes. 
  • Remove from the heat, stir in the turmeric, and then serve garnished with chopped coriander. 

This is not quite a soup, not quite a stew, messy to eat, and very comforting. 

Beef meatballs with lemon and celeriac

I love celeriac, and was very sad when it was not available for a while. This is a deliciously tasty dish that I have been waiting to try, and now celeriac are back, I am busy hunting out the recipes. This one is from Ottolenghi’s book, ‘Simple’.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 450g beef mince
  • 1 onion, very finely chopped or grated (a food processer works well)
  • 120g plain breadcrumbs
  • 20g chopped parsley
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 3/4 tsp allspice
  • olive oil
  • 1 small or half a large celeriac, peeled, quartered and each quarter sliced into fans 1cm thick
  • 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 1 1/2 tsp lightly crushed fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
  • 500ml stock
  • 3 to 4 tbsp lemon juice
  • salt and pepper

METHOD:

  • Put the mince, onions, egg, breadcrumbs, parsley and allspice in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper, and kneed the mixture together and then form into meatballs, about the size of a pingpong ball, or slightly smaller. Each ball should weigh around 40g
  • Heat the oil in a large saute pan that has a lid. Once the oil is hot, add the meatballs and fry them off over five minutes, turning them so that they are browned all over. Transfer them onto a plate so the pan is free for the next step.
  • Turn the heat up and add the celeriac, the rest of the spices and the garlic, and fry for a couple of minutes.
  • Once the garlic starts to colour, add the meatballs, stock, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and bring to the boil. Adjust the seasoning to taste. 
  • Simmer with the lid on for around 30 minutes, then take the lid off and reduce the sauce for around 10 minutes. 
  • Once cooked, remove from the heat for around 10 minutes. This gives you time to sort out any accompaniments. 

I served this with rice, and with some Greek yoghurt that I had seasoned with salt, pepper and mint. I garnished the dish with more parsley. 

Lamb and squash tagine

There’s always room in my life for more tagine recipes. This was prompted by the arrival of a large squash. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp ras-el-hanout
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 600g diced lamb
  • 1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced
  • 200g soft dried apricots
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 500ml stock
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • coriander leaves, chopped
  • Salt and pepper

METHOD:

  • Heat the oven to 200C. 
  • In a casserole dish, heat the oil and cook the onion for five minutes until it is softening. Add the garlic and the spices and cook for another minute or two, stirring so the mixture doesn’t catch. 
  • Add the lamb, squash and apricots to the dish, mix and pour over the tomatoes and stock. Season wtih salt and pepper, bring to a simmer, and then cover. Transfer to the oven. 
  • After one hour, take it out to check progress,and to give it a stir and to check the seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste. If it is a  bit too wet, take the lid off, and return to the oven for a further 30 minutes
  • Before serving, add the lemon zest and check the seasoning. 

Serve with rice and yoghurt, and a garnish of chopped coriander. 

Hot cabbage salad

This recipe came from a dear friend, who said it was Austrian. I’ve never had anything like it before or since, and I can’t find any reference to it anywhere. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1/4 green cabbage
  • olive oil 
  • white wine vinegar (ratio = 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar)
  • chopped garlic
  • a little mustard
  • salt and pepper
  • Cumin seeds or Caraway seeds

METHOD:

  • Shred the cabbage and steam it for five minutes
  • While it is still hot, mix the dressing ingredients (everything else, according to your taste) and pour the dressing over the hot cabbage. 

Saute of carrots and potatoes

This is a classic French recipe, to be served with a stew or roast meat. I used tarragon because I didn’t have parsley, and it was delicious. I may try summer savory next time. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 150g carrots
  • 1 small onion or 2 shallots
  • 500g potatoes
  • chopped parsley OR a good pinch of dried tarragon
  • salt and pepper
  • around 50g butter

METHOD:

  • Cut the potatoes into 2cm cubes and the carrots into batons
  • Boil the carrots and the potatoes separately, so that they are about two thirds cooked – about 10 minutes for the potatoes. Drain them. 
  • Chop the shallots or onions, and mix with the carrots and potatoes. 
  • Put the butter in a frying pan and heat until it is foaming. Add the carrots, potatoes and onions, and keep turning them in the butter until they are all coated and beginning to crisp. Lower the heat then, and cook gently until the vegetables are tender. 
  • Stir in the herbs before serving. 

Fig, pear and vanilla jam

I’m still having a great time experimenting with jam flavour combinations. This time, I mixed recipes for fig jam and pear jam, and made this, which was delicious. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1kg dried chopped figs (from Realfoodsource) 
  • 1.2 litres of water
  • 160ml lemon juice
  • 1.2 kg sugar
  • a pinch of salt
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1.2 kg pears 

METHOD:

  • Start with preparing the figs. Put the figs with 1 litre of water into the main jam pan, and bring to the boil. Turn off the heat and leave them to stand to absorb water. 
  • Next, peel, core and chop the pears. I used my melon-baller to remover the cores. In another pan, add 200ml water, bring to a simmer, and then blitz with a soup wand or blender. 
  • Add the pears to the figs, along with the lemon juice, sugar and salt, and heat gently until all the sugar has dissolved. 
  • Boil as fast as you dare until the jam has reached setting point (I use the saucer test and the flake test). Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla essence
  • Pour into pre-warmed jars and put the lids on while the jam is hot. 

Venison with Harissa

I got some Belazu rose harissa paste from the co-op, very soft and complex, easy to add to dishes. I also had a stew-pack of venison in the freezer.  I made a version of venison tagine, which can be adapted very easily. I added carrot batons, but butternut squash would be a good addition as well. I served this with bulgar wheat and lentils. Traditional tagines are served with salads and flatbreads. Carrot salad, lentil salad, and mixed salad all go well.

INGREDIENTS:

  • Olive oil
  • 500g diced venison
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 sticks of celery, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 2 tbsp rose harissa paste
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 500ml stock
  • 3 carrots, chopped into large batons
  • 50g dried apricots, roughly chopped
  • Fresh herbs as a garnish (mint, coriander or parsley)

METHOD:

  • Heat some olive oil at a medium/high temperature in a casserole dish, and fry the onions and celery until soft. 
  • Add the garlic and cook for two more minutes
  • Add the meat, and stir until the meat is beginning to brown.  
  • Lower the heat a little, add the spices and harissa and cook for two more minutes
  • Lower the heat a little more, and add the tomato puree and cook for around five minutes
  • Add the tinned tomatoes, carrot batons, and stock, and bring to a gentle boil, whilst stirring. 
  • Cover and put into the oven at 160C for 1 hour 45 minutes
  • Add the apricots and cook for a further ten minutes. 

Garnish with herbs, and serve with side dishes of salads, flat-breads, slivered almonds. If you are cooking for friends, pull out all the stops with the salads. 

Deep-fried squid rings

On a whim, I purchased a bag of frozen squid rings from Barratlantic. I had never cooked them before, so I tried a few recipes. I made a rather unsuccessful pasta dish, so I need to work on that. Tonight I deep-fried them, following the method outlined in ‘Dear Francesca’ by Mary Contini. I added a squeeze of lemon juice and mayonnaise and it was lovely. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • Squid rings, rinsed and patted dry
  • A dish of plain flour
  • Salt and pepper
  • Lemon
  • Sunflower oil or rapeseed oil

METHOD:

  • Season the flour with salt and pepper
  • Heat the oil in a saucepan, until it is hot enough to make a bit of bread sizzle when you drop it in. 
  • Dip the squid rings into the seasoned flour, shake of the excess flour and then drop into the hot oil. Don’t do too many at a time. 
  • As soon as the squid rings start to take on a flush of golden colour, scoop them out and onto a plate, and serve with a squeeze of lemon. 
  • Do the squid in batches, according to how much you have, and eat immediately. 

You can do the same to other foods, including other fish, and vegetables. Time to experiment.