Peanut and Lime Stir Fry with Rice Noodles

Do you ever get obsessed with a specific meal? I really do. Sometimes I’ll eat the same thing every night for a week and not become bored. This peanutty, limey stir fry is my latest obsession, I hope you enjoy as much as I have recently!

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Ingredients here are for one portion but you can double, triple or quadruple as required:

• 75g nest of rice noodles
• Roughly 200g of stir fry veg (about half a supermarket bag)
• Thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 2 medium red chillis
• 1 tablespoon crunchy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• Juice of half a lime
• Sliced spring onion to garnish
• A little oil for frying (your choice, I use coconut oil for pretty much all cooking)

Method:

• Soak the noodles in some boiling water and set aside until you’re ready to add them.
• Cut the green stems off the chillis and bash in a pestel and mortar with the garlic and ginger until you have a loose paste.
• Heat some oil in a large frying pan (or wok if you have one) and fry the paste on a medium heat for 3 or 4 minutes. Be careful not to burn it as it will go bitter.
• Throw in the vegetables and toss well in the paste, fry for another few minutes until the vegetables loose a bit of volume.
• Add the soy sauce, lime juice, peanut butter and noodles.
• Toss well until everything is coated in the sauce. If you think it’s too dry add a splash of water and keep tossing and mixing.
• Tip the stir fry in to a shallow bowl and scatter over lots of sliced spring onion.

This is a vegetable dish but if you feel the need to add meat, sliced pork loin or chopped chicken thigh fillets work really well.

Spiced Up Soup

It’s getting cold now, so time to reignite our love of warm, winter food. This recipe uses some pre-chopped vegetables which saves time, but of course you can buy them loose and chop them up yourself. If you don’t have a hand blender, you can pick one up for about £5 in the supermarket; you’ll be surprised how often you use it.

Ingredients:

• Two supermarket bags of soup mix (carrots, swede, leeks and onions)
• 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped or crushed
• 2 tablespoons medium curry powder
• 2 teaspoons of ground cumin
• 2 chicken stock cubes
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Handful of fresh coriander
• 1 medium red chilli

 Method:

• Heat the oil in a large saucepan then tip in all the vegetables and sweat them down on a low heat for about 10 minutes..
• Add the garlic, curry powder and cumin and stir well to ensure everything is coated.
• Crumble in the stock cubes and add enough water to just cover the vegetables.
• Cook on a low – medium heat for 15-20 mins until the vegetables have completely softened, then blend in the food processor or using a hand blender until you reach your desired consistency (we like to very smooth).
• When you’re ready to serve, roughly chop the coriander and stir through, then slice up the red chilli and sprinkle over the soup.

To make a complete meal, serve with warmed garlic and coriander naan bread.

Morrocan Rack of Lamb with Harissa Sauce

Impress your friends with a rack of lamb, or just treat yourself! A rack of lamb costs about £7-8 so it’s not something to be eaten all the time, but it is really easy to cook and works with lots of different cuisines and flavours. The harissa sauce is so tasty and will keep for a couple of weeks if it’s sealed and in the fridge.

Ingredients:

• 1 rack of lamb (about 400-500g)
• 2 tablespoons ras el hanout
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 6 red chillis, deseeded
• 2 teaspoons caraway seeds
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Pomegranate seeds and fresh mint to garnish
• Salt

Method:

• Mix the ras el hanout with a little oil to make a paste, then crush in the garlic and tip the mixture in to a freezer bag.
• Put the whole rack of lamb in to the bag and seal. Rub the mixture in to the lamb really well and leave overnight in the fridge.
• Toast the cumin and caraway in a dry pan until they start to smell great – be careful not to burn them, they only take a minute.
• Pound the spices in a pestle and mortar or the grinder attachment of a food processor.
• Whizz together the garlic, chillis and spices with a glug of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt.
• Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary (after tasting, add a pinch of cayenne if you love it really hot).

Bring the lamb to room temperature before cooking.

• Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees (gas mark 5) and season the lamb on all sides with a couple of pinches of salt.
• Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the rack, skin side down until it is well browned. Keep turning the rack until all sides are well sealed then roast for 25 minutes.
• Rest for 20 minutes before slicing in to chops (please don’t miss this step!).

Serve with the harissa sauce and garnish with the fresh mint leaves and crunchy pomegranate. I loved this with aubergine puree and charred aubergines but it would be great served with tabbouleh salad, Greek salad or even some cous cous.

Spiced Pork with Aubergine Puree and Sundried Tomato Salsa

I called this a ‘posh tea’ when I made it, but I think that’s really only because of the sweep of puree I put across the plate before serving. The aubergine puree is best if you can prepare the aubergine the night before, but it will still taste great if you can’t.

I think this recipe looks really impressive and because only the pork needs cooking just before serving, you could make in advance for a date or dinner party. If you’re just a bit strange like me, or you need a treat, you can make it for your tea on a Monday night.

Ingredients:

• 4 pork loin chops (2 per person)
• 1 aubergine
• 100g sundried tomatoes
• 6 anchovy fillets
• 1 tablespoon capers, drained
• 1 red chilli
• 1 tablespoon each of hot chilli powder, ground coriander and smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons tahini paste
• Small handful of flat leaf parsley
• Small handful of coriander
• Juice of a lemon
• Olive oil for frying

Method:

• Start by pre-heating the oven to 180 degrees (Gas Mark 5).
• Turn on the biggest gas ring on your cooker (or heat the grill if you don’t have a gas hob), and place the aubergine directly on to the flame. Use tongs to keep turning the aubergine until all side have been charred. Place on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 20 minutes.
• Once soft, slice the aubergine length ways and when it’s cool enough to handle, scrape out the flesh in to a sieve, cover and leave suspended over a bowl overnight if possible. If you’re making everything on the same day, just leave it as long as you can. Draining the aubergine flesh in this way will intensify the flavour.
• Mix together the spices for the pork and pat the mixture on to the meat. Allow to come up to room temperature before cooking.
• Blend the aubergine with the tahini, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, half the lemon juice and the parsley. Taste then season with salt if needed. I love a smooth texture but you can leave it a little rougher if you prefer. Cover and store in the fridge.

• For the salsa, blend the sundried tomatoes, anchovy fillets, chilli, capers, the other half of the lemon juice, 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and coriander. Taste and adjust any of the flavours to your own tastes.

 

• When you’re ready to eat, pour some olive oil over the pork chops and rub in with your hands, heat a frying pan up to a medium heat (don’t let the pan smoke) then add the meat to the pan. Pork benefits from a lower cooking temperature than chicken or steak, so don’t be tempted to crank up the heat!
• Cook for 4 minutes then flip over and cook for a further 4 minutes. Once the time is up, remove the pork and leave on a chopping board or plate to rest for at least 10 minutes.

• While you’re waiting for the pork to rest, take the aubergine puree out of the fridge and heat it for a couple of minutes in the microwave (I had it cold but either works well). Stir the sundried tomato salsa and double check the balance now the flavours have had chance to sit.
• Put a big spoonful of puree on the plate and use the back of your spoon to push it across the plate, creating a swipe.
• Slice the pork in to strips and place in a stack at one end of your swipe.
• Top the pork with a generous spoonful of the salsa.
• Tuck in!

Steamed Fish with Lime and Pak Choi

The Thai name for steamed fish with lime is Pla Neung Manao, and it’s the inspiration for this recipe. Tonight is one of those no husband nights when I can make something just for me, without having to consider Jason’s appetite! I used Pouting for this recipe, but it can be made with Tilapia (good value), Cod (if you must – remember sustainability), Sea Bass (if you’re feeling flush) or even seafood like scallops and prawns.

Ingredients:

• 1 fillet of white fish
• 1 pak choi
• 1 red finger chilli
• Fresh ginger
• 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 handful coriander
• Juice of a lime
• 4 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons of water

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees (Gas Mark 6).
• Peel the ginger and slice as thinly as you can to make strips, then finely chop the chilli and garlic. The finer you chop, the more intense the flavour, so use your own taste as a measure on this one.
• Chop the pak choi at the root leaving the leaves separated and give them a good rinse under the cold tap, place them in the centre of a large piece of foil.
• Put the coriander on top of the pak choi then lay the fish over the top.

• Tip the ginger, chilli and garlic on to the fish then add the soy sauce, lime juice and water.
• Fold up the foil to make a sealed packet for the fish to steam in. I find the best way is to use two pieces of foil – lay one on the worktop and then one over the top once you have added all your ingredients, then go round and pinch the two edges together tightly to make a packet with enough room for the steam to circulate.
• Give the fish 10 minutes to soak up some of the flavours before baking in the oven for 12 minutes on an oven proof dish.
• Carefully open the foil packet being careful to burn your fingers, serve with rice and some extra stir fried pak choi.

Amazing Aubergine Dip

This is honestly one of the nicest things I ever made. It’s perfect for a party menu as it can be made in advance and doesn’t cost very much. Equally, I’d be quite happy just to sit with a bowl of it and a bag of tortilla chips to dip.

Ingredients:

• 2 aubergines
• Juice of half a lemon
• Small handful of flat leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Method:

• Light the biggest ring on your hob and turn it up to full blast! Place the aubergine directly on to the flame. If you don’t have a gas hob, a hot grill will do the trick too.
• It will take about 5 minutes to get going but once the skin starts to blister and the aubergine becomes less firm, you know it’s getting there. Keep turning it over the flame so it cooks through (tongs are great for this).
• My aubergines were medium size and took about 12 minutes.
• Once cooked, set aside to cool.
• Once cooled, slice the aubergine lengthways and scrape out the soft flesh in to a bowl using a spoon.
• For a smooth version, put the flesh and the remaining ingredients in to a food processor and whizz it up. If you prefer some texture, mash everything together with a fork.
• Taste to check salt, lemon and olive oil – add more until you’re happy.

I think this would also work well with coriander or mint, either on their own or in combination with the parsley. Garlic would give this another dimension but just be careful – half a clove is plenty for this quantity.

SO GOOD.