BBQ Burger Buns

Sometimes I like to shake things up so decided to flavour my bread for our slow roast pork bap.

To be fair it turned out far better than I expected so here's the recipe!! 

500g flour (any will do, doesn't have to be strong bread flour)

150g warm water

150g warm milk

7g dried yeast (14g fresh yeast)

Pinch of sugar

Pinch of salt

10g oil

Knorr BBQ paste

In a bowl chuck the flour salt and sugar.

I always weigh the liquids for accuracy but roughly 1g equals 1ml.

Mix all these together then add to the flour.

Knead for 5 mins until it forms a dough and leave to prove until double in size. 

Knock it back then shape into rolls, brush the tops with a little knorr BBQ paste mixed with a little water and cook on 170c for around 15 mins, the toll will sound hollow when tapped.

I served mine with slow roasted belly pork and salad.

Piri Piri and Cheddar Swirls

So seeing as I still have some Knorr Piri Piri paste ( this stuff goes really far ) I thought I'd make some of these bad boys!!

You will need

500g flour 

7g fast action yeast

40g oil

Pinch salt

Pinch sugar

290g warm water

Knorr Piri Piri paste 

2 good handfuls of grated mature cheddar cheese

Combine flour salt and sugar in a bowl,

Mix the water oil and yeast then chuck this in the dry ingredients. Knead unil a dough forms.

You don't need to wait for this to prove, roll the dough out into a rectangle about half a centimetre thick.

Spread the Knorr Piri Piri over the entire dough, I like mine spicy so I used 3 tbsp but it's up to you how much you can handle! Sprinkle evenly with the mature cheddar and roll up like you would a Swiss roll, like this.....

With a serated knife carefully cut into slices around 2cm thick like this....

Arrange on a lined baking tray about an inch apart like this...

Then let them prove for around 30 minutes, chuck them in a preheated oven on 160c for 12 minutes or until golden brown like this....

These are wicked for a picnic!!! 

For even more hints and tips check out the Knorr Chefs Hacks website here and get your free sample, you wont regret it!!!

Easy Homemade Fudge

So with the bank holiday coming up its a great time to get in the kitchen and make yourself and kids a treat for when you watch a movie right? 

This fudge recipe is so easy but really tasty. 

All you need is

300ml milk

100g butter

350g sugar

Chuck all these in a heavy based saucepan and simmer to 115c or until it starts to thicken and no longer comes up when boiling.

No pictures for this one as yet but will add as soon as poss.

Southern Fried Chicken

It's been a while since the last post but have to share this awesome chicken recipe, always goes down a storm!!

So 

Take four boneless chicken thighs (you can use breast but I find the thigh has more flavour).

Cover with milk and refrigerate for about an hour.

While that's happening, in a bowl chuck a good cup full of self raising flour 1tbsp chilli powder 1tbsp smoked paprika and 1tbsp garlic powder.

Take your chicken and shake off the excess milk then coat in the flour mix.

Shallow fry on a medium heat until golden then finish in the oven at 180 for 10 mins or until the juices run clear.

Stuffed Plaice with Fragrant Rice

I don't often ask for recipes but the dish from Jack Settle is awesome!!

Make sure you check out more of what he's doing on Twitter @Chef1Jack. 

Stuffed Plaice with Fragrant Rice

Serves 6

1 onion medium diced
1 bulb of Fennel
2 lemons zest
1 lemon juiced
1 star anise
200g long grain rice
6 Plaice
Small Bunch of Parsley and Fennel or Dill


Sauce Vierge

Onion medium diced
5 tomatoes de seeded and diced
Small bunch of flat leaf parsley
Small bunch of Coriander
Small bunch of basil
2 lemons juiced and Zested
400ml of Olive Oil
200g Capers

Method,

1) Put the rice on to boil with a star anise and cook for 10 minutes season with salt. Once cooked cool down with cold water for 15 minutes and leave to the side for later.

2) In a pan sweat the fennel bulb and onion  until translucent and add your rice. Take the pan off the heat, chop the parsley and fennel and dill put the herbs into the pan along with the lemon zest and juice. Season with salt and white pepper.

3) The plaice will require patience but hang in there. Get your plaice and season the inside with not much salt and pepper. Insert the rice and fill half plaice and try to fold it like a book. For cooking insert a cocktail stick in the plaice make sure you have soaked your sticks in water otherwise it will burn during cooking.

4) Cooking the plaice, put the oven on 150C. Put the plaice on a tray lined with baking parchment. Put the plaice into the for 15-20 minutes.

5) While the fish is cooking make the sauce Vierge. Add your onions and tomatoes into the olive oil and cook to blood temperature (37.5C). Add your herbs, lemons and capers. Leave to rest in the pan.

6) Once the fish has cooked plate the fish and serve with a simple green salad. And dress the fish with sauce vierge.

Enjoy 

Thanks Jack and keep up the good work!!

Consider this recipe well and truly nicked lol

Easy Singapore Style Noodles

So I got told off today by someone who checks my blog daily for any updates, so here you go!!

For me there's nothing better on a winters day than a good plate of hot and spicy noodles. 

You will need...

4 red or green chilli

Half a bulb of garlic

A good thumb size chunk of ginger

6 tablespoons of curry powder 

500ml vegetable oil 

Chuck all the ingredients in a blender until smooth then gently heat for around 15 minutes or until the rawness of the curry powder has gone. Leave to cool.

You can use this paste to stir fry your meat and vegetables, then toss through your noodles. 

Here's mine 

Chilli Cheese Bites

Ok so quick post today.

I needed a quick starter and everyone here loves a bit of chilli and cheese.

So a bit like a beignet (fritter),

In a mixing bowl chuck in a good few handfuls of self raising flour, some chopped chilli (up to you on this one but I like mine hot) and a few good handfuls of mature cheddar cheese.

Bond it all together with some cold water until you get a really thick batter, thick enough to hold on a spoon but not so thick it won't drop off, then spoon them into the fryer. Fry until golden, drain and serve.

I servers mine with some mixed leaves and a tomato and balsamic chutney. 

Easy Choc Chip Cookies

So sometimes in my job I need to make something sweet in a hurry and these bad boys are a clear winner for me!! 

For the dough.

100g soft brown sugar

125g butter

1 egg

225g self raising flour

200g Choc chips

Beat the butter sugar and egg together Until fluffy then fold in the flour and chocolate.

Stick it in the fridge for half an hour until it firms up, then roll into balls a bit smaller than a ping pong ball. 

Bang them on a baking tray about 3 fingers apart because they speak.

Chuck them in a pre heated oven at 200c for 10 mins. 

They will be very soft when you first bring them out but after a few minutes you will have amazing cookies. 

Easy White Sugar Cake

I know I know!!! Its been a while but in my defence it has been super busy lack of staff amongst other things!!

So Ive been mucking about in preperation for Chinese New Year, I hate the usual dessert idea of banana fritters so after extensive research (google) came up with this!

Take

1 cup rice flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups water

5 tsp dried yeast

Chuck the rice flour sugar and water in a pan and continuously stir on a medium heat for around 10 mins until it starts to thicken up.

Allow to cool for about 20 mins then lob in the yeast and give it another mix.

Set aside for an hour or so until it starts to bubble and double in size.

To cook

Pour mix into a steaming pan lined with parchment and cover.

Steam for around 20 mins.

Let it cool before cutting it up. If you are impatient like me it just sticks to your knife!!!

How to make creamy Spinach and Mushroom Pasta

I used to make this in a restaurant I used to work in and recently got asked for the recipe, and as it has been remembered from seven years ago it must be a good one!!

So you need:

2 cloves crushed garlic

1 large banana shallot/medium onion finely chopped

6 sliced button mushrooms

A couple of handfuls of baby spinach

200g penne pasta

400g fresh thick cream

Drizzle of olive oil

Salt and pepper

Bring a pan of water to the boil and chuck in your pasta with a good pinch of salt.

While that's cooking in a frying pan lightly fry your onion and garlic until soft, then chuck in your sliced mushrooms.
Cook for a few minutes stirring occasionly then lob in your cream.
Simmer for a few more minutes but keep stirring so the cream doesn't burn.
Turn the heat down and throw in your spinach, cook for 2 more minutes.
Season with saslt and pepper.
Drain your pasta and add it to the sauce.

This serves 2 so if you need someone to share it with give me a shout!!

Easy Piri Piri

This recipe is fantastic for spicing up any dish but works best with chicken as a marinade but works just as well as a condiment, not much more to say about it really so I wont bore you with origins or how I came across it (more trial and error).

So here's how I do it.

Firstly to save washing up I roast off 6 red chilli and 5 cloves of garlic in tin foil on 180c for around 10 minutes.

Then chuck them in a blender with the zest of a lemon.

While it's doing it's thing slowly pour in some oil until it gets to pouring consistency. Olive oil is best for this but vegetable oil works just as well.

Check for seasoning.

Sorted!!

When it is at this stage it's great for a marinade or for a base for stir frying, and if you want to turn it into a sauce just lob in some chopped tomatoes.

Will add pictures of the various uses in due course!!

Easy Spherification

Right then, its been a while since my last post so I thought i'd give you this! "Caviars" are usually found in high end restaurants and the like. It's not as hard or as expensive as it might sound and you can get all the gear you need from Amazon.

Basically you add 2g Sodium Alginate to your chosen liquid, you need to whisk it alot or shove it in a blender because the powder doesn't like to be rehydrated.
Let it rest a bit so the air bubbles go.

While its resting, dissolve 2.5g Calcium Chloride in 500g water.
This is the Calcium bath that will react with the Sodium Alginate to form a membrane round the outside of the sphere while the inside stays liquid. Your bath needs to be around 5cm deep so choose your bowl with this in mind.

You will need a dropper to squeeze your juice into the Calcium bath, but i knicked a syringe from a childs medicine bottle and it does the trick.

Now you are ready to start making your spheres.

Suck some juice into your dropper/syringe and gently squeeze drops into your Calcium bath. You will need to hold your dropper about 3cm from the bath to get the best results.

Once they are in the Calcium leave them for 2-3 mins to form them menbrane.

Fish them out and rinse off in fresh water.

They will remain a liquid centre for a few hours but because of the Alginate they will eventually form a solid ball.

Not the greatest pics but you get the idea.

I used mango juice but you can use any liquid you like.

Authentic Dhal

Alot of you might not know that im blessed to be part of a punjabi family, so when I went to visit a couple of weeks ago I took the opportunity to nick this fantastic recipe.

Now when you taste proper indian food its worlds apart from what we might get from a takeaway!!

This recipe for dhal is in 2 parts, the lentils and the Turka. The Turka gives amazing flavour and depth and can be used in any dish you might want to make.

So for the lentils

1 full cup of green lentils

1/2 cup black lentils

5 cups water

1 1/2 tsp fresh ginger

1/2 tsp tumeric

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp garam masala ( punjabi is best )

Cook altogether until lentils are soft.

While thats cooking make your Turka

In 2 tbsp oil fry

1/2 tsp cumin seed

1 chopped onion

Brown these then add

8 cloves garlic

1 chopped green chilli

1 tsp fresh ginger

1/2 tsp masala

1/2 tsp cumin powder

Chuck this into your soften lentils and season to taste.

Thanks for letting me take your recipe Pinks!! You are a star

Enjoy!!

Back to the Food!!!

So im guessing you are probably bored of hearing about awards and nights out, so heres todays lunch.

Slow Roasted Belly Pork

Ok so I took 12 kilos of boned belly pork and slapped it in the oven on 150c for a good 4 hrs.

Because the belly is fatty it needs time to render out the fat making the meat more tender.

After it was cooked I squashed it flat with another tin and a very large can of beans and let it cool. We have a blast chill so its cold in less than 90 mins. This makes the belly more even.

I then cut it up to about 85 decent portions. 45 mins before service I smacked the oven up to 200c to crisp up the skin and heat up the meat. It only takes about 30 mins but I wanted 15 mins resting time.

All that was left to do was slice potatoes and onions and cook off some veggies.

Job done and less than £1 a plate

Enjoy!!

Cardamom and Mango Cake

Right then, if you have read any of my other posts you can probably tell I like to be a bit adventurous when it comes to flavour combinations! So ive got Bangra Burgers on for lunch and wanted to carry on the indian inspired theme, what do you chuck on for dessert? Rice pudding? A traditional indian dessert like kulfi or gulab jamun? Not me! Cardamom and Mango Cake! Very tasty! Heres how I did it.

Made a normal sponge ( see previous recipe )

In a pan on the hob heat equal water to sugar and lob in 5 or 6 cardamom pods. I used green ones.

Bring it to the boil and reduce to a syrup.

Set aside to cool.

Turn out your sponge and make little holes with a cocktail stick all over.

Tip over you syrup.

Arrange on your desired plate and garnish with mango coulis.

At the school its all about getting the students to try new things and flavours. Always handy if you csn make it work in a cake!!

Enjoy!

Easy Tempura

You'd think that being a chef in a school has massive holiday benefits right?? On the whole this is true but in my case I get to go to some of our other lovely kitchens and cook with them for a while. To be honest I quite like moving about, it gives me chance to see what other chefs are doing and how I can change it to make it work in my kitchen.

With that in mind I was mucking about with tempura batter today and came up with this!

1 egg
1 cup plain flour
1 cup ice water
Very hot oil

I used this batter for vegetables but works well on anything so give it a go!

Starter dough

Ok so heres the recipe I used to.make this loaf.

500g plain flour
1 1/2 cups starter dough
300ml water
Splash of oil

I really didnt expect this to turn out half as good as it did and the flavour is amazing. Well worth the 3 days prep time!! Saying that now its done the starter will only take a couple of hours to feed then use again.

Starter doughs

Ok well as you can see ive not been blogging for ages!! Two reasons 1. Things have been super busy for me lately and 2. I lost my way a bit and drew a blank on what to tell you all. Crap excuses I know but thats what im sticking to!! So here we are with starter doughs. A starter dough is basically growing your own strain of yeast using the wild yeast that is in the air all around us. Why? I hear you ask! Well my dry goods supplier called to tell me he had yeast issues. (after telling him to see a doctor not a chef I realised he might not be able to get any) so I investigated different ways of making the bread that kicked off the whole way we do things at the school, and found a recipe on google for a sour dough starter. Ive only started to grow it today so will be letting you know how it goes and if its actually worth the hassle!

Heres how to start.

2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 table spoon sugar

Mix them all together in a deep mixing bowl preferably glass but never steel. Cover losely with a clean cloth. The starter needs to breathe so cling film is no good. Stir 2 to 3 times a day for 3 days. This is only for the first batch of starter all you need to do then is reserve a cup full and add 2 cups water and 2 cups flour. Ill keep you posted and chuck in some pics too!!

Thai Style Duck Salad

OK so during the half term holiday I've been in deep thought about what I can do different next and came up with this! Sounds expensive and looks a bit cheffy but really easy and surprisingly cheap.

Here's what I did.

For the duck.

To prepare the legs I got a roasting tin and chucked in about 8 sticks of lemon grass, on top of that stick your legs, its best to stab them a few times with a fork this let's the fat out and makes the duck more tender. Bang it in the oven on 200c for 30 mins. When its done let it cool and take off as much meat as humanly possible.

The salad

I used French mixed salad but use whatever floats your boat, I also roasted off some yellow cherry tomatoes with spring onion, grated carrot and chilli flakes with dark soy sauce and sweet chilli.
I really wanted to give a bit of crunch and at one point considered knocking up some croutons but that's pretty standard and not really out there enough for me so then my thoughts turned to prawn crackers, now do I chuck them on the side or lightly crunch them up and bang them on?? Neither! I found a pack of spring roll pastry sheets in the freezer chopped them into strips and fried them off. Top those off with a sprinkle of micro beetroot shoots and a squirt of sweet chilli sauce and you've got yourself a posh looking plate of really tasty food. 30 duck legs got me just over 100 portions loads came back for seconds and a few thirds!

Easy Pancake Recipe

So with Shrove Tuesday looming I thought it would be a good time to give you my Easy Pancake Recipe!

 1 cup flour.
 1 cup milk.
 1 egg.

Whack them in a blender. Job done! Makes 8 decent pancakes. My boy likes them with Nutella and banana but as always you can chuck on what you like. Get tossing!