Spicy Potato Wedges

Who could resist a potato chip or better yet a Spicy Potato Wedge?? 

So having made my Chicken Pie I had to think of a vegetable to accompany it and so I thought of the simple potato. Dress it up and make it homestyled with a few spices to add flavour and bake in the oven till it's crisp.

Spicy Potato Wedges

12 small potatoes, throughly cleaned and cut into wedges

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 tsp sweet paprika

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp ground rosemary

1/4 tsp ground coriander

pinch of cayenne pepper

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Sea salt

1. Clean and cut the potato into small wedges.

2. Using a roasting pan, add all the ingredients and thoroughly mix making sure to coat all the wedges.

3. Preheat the oven to 180C. Arrange the wedges skin side down. Sprinkle with sea salt and bake in the oven for 35 mins or until golden.

Five Spice Chicken with Curried Pumpkin

I think any dish cooked in Five Spice powder gives it a truly unique Chinese taste all in one. You have a blend of all the elements of Chinese cooking with the five spices; sweet, sour, salty, bitter and pungent. The powder usually consists of a mixture of equal parts of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, start anise and Szechwan peppercorns, and sometimes dry orange peel is added. It can be bought ground up and pre-packaged or you can make your own by toasting and grinding all the ingredients. 

My dad use to make his Five Spice Chicken from a special blend of spices brought all the way from China during his many trips overseas and he would use the powder with some salt and marinate a whole chicken, bake it and it was always so tasty. He would use just the right amount of powder for marination because a little goes a long way. Too much and the flavour is just too strong. The powder is suppose to have just the right balance of yin and yang so I guess that you can have too much of a good thing!

For dinner tonight I've made a simple version of Five Spice Chicken and accompanied the dish with one of my fav side dish of Curried Pumpkin. You have a spicy chicken topped off with some sweet hot pumpkin...delish and of course another of veg the kids like.

Coriander Beef Casserole

Another part of the Coriander Trilogy!! ....Coriander Beef Casserole for dinner tonight. I won't be buying a big bunch of coriander anytime soon...well not too soon. 


So far I've been cooking pork, chicken and now it's time for beef cooked with coriander. Now I've always found that coriander really brings out a citrus taste to beef, especially if it's been simmering in a pot for over an hour. The flavour just infuses itself onto the beef and even more so when you add just a hint of licorice with a bit of star anise. Top that off with some red wine and you have real comfort food...

Coriander Beef Casserole


450 g beef, sliced thinly into strips
5 tomatoes, chopped roughly
1/2 cup fresh coriander, chopped roughly
2 medium carrots, peeled, chopped roughly
1 medium red onion, chopped roughly
1 star anise
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp worcestor sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tbsp plain flour
1/2 cup red wine
1 cup beef stock
1/2 cup water
salt to taste


1. In a bowl, add the beef, soy sauce, worcestor sauce, pepper and flour. Combine well and leave for about 30 mins.
2. Heat oil in a saucepan and saute the onions and garlic. Add the beef and cook until browned. Add the tomatoes, star anise, coriander and carrots and stir. Stir in the wine, water and beef stock and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for 50 mins. You can check the liquid level and add water if necessary.
3. Simmer for a further 15 - 25 mins or until the beef is tender. Remove the lid and cook until the sauce has thicken. Add salt to taste. Garnish with coriander and serve with rice or pasta. You can even try serving it with Polenta too (use the Polenta Crusted Moussaka recipe for the polenta)

Coriander Chicken Mushroom Stew

It's a Coriander overload..............I think I bought too much coriander (cilantro) on my shopping trip yesterday! So, this is my Coriander Chicken Mushroom Stew for dinner. I had already made my Coriander Pork with Bok Choy earlier for lunch and had to use up the veg before it waste away in the fridge. 

I just love coriander but I don't think the kids would appreciate everything coriander tasting. It's crunchy, tastes a bit like lemon and sage, it's a herb and good for you too. You can eat just about every part of the coriander plant and it's found in all types of cuisines from the Mediterranean, South American, Indian, Asian, and African, but just about anywhere really.

Coriander Chicken Mushroom Stew

2 chicken leg quarters, skinned, cubed 2cm

150g shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

1/4 cup frozen peas

handful of coriander, finely chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

50 g butter

salt & pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan and saute the onions and garlic. Add the chicken, salt and pepper and cook well. 

2. Add in the mushrooms and peas and stir. Pour the chicken stock, water and stir until combined. Simmer and cover for about 5 mins.

3. Pour in the milk and add the breadcrumbs. Stir until the sauce thickens. Add the coriander and stir until combined. Serve with rice or pasta.

The base of this stew is similar to my Fresh Shitake Mushroom Soup..... shitake mushrooms another shopping item I bought too much!!

Coriander Pork with Baby Bok Choy

A bit of carrot, baby bok choy, pork and coriander all stir fried together for our lunch, Coriander Pork with Baby Bok Choy. We are really very lucky over here, so many fresh vegetables readily available and sometimes you tend to buy too much like I did for the weekend. A big bunch of coriander, shitake mushrooms (again!!) and baby bok choy.

Coriander Pork with Baby Bok Choy

300 g pork, thinly sliced diagonally

1/4 cup carrots, thinly sliced

1 bunch of baby bok choy, cut in quarters from the base

1/2 cup coriander, roughly chopped

1 small onion, cut into small wedges

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp Shaoxing wine

1/2 tsp rice vinegar

2 tsp soy sauce

pinch of pepper

pinch of sugar

1. Heat oil in a wok. Add the onion and garlic, cook. Add the pork and cook well. Sprinkle with pepper and pour in the wine, soy sauce, vinegar and sugar and stir. Add a little water too to lighted the sauce.

2. Add in the carrots and stir. Add the baby bok choy and stir until cooked.

3. Add the coriander last and cook lightly. Serve with rice.

Fresh Shitake Mushroom Soup

Fresh Shitake mushrooms are in abundance here in South East Asia. Fresh or dried shitake mushrooms are a popular ingredient in many of Asian dishes and are also symbols of long life. 

So fragrant and full of flavour, these little brown pillows are my choice mushroom for making my fresh mushroom soup. Thinly sliced, sauted in butter and garlic and blended through to make a creamy mushroom soup for lunch today. A complete soup meal for a light Friday lunch , thick and hearty, and sprinkled with just the right amount of bread croutons. Another easy meal that I make with not alot of fuss and when I need something to fill the tummy.

 Fresh Shitake Mushrooms

300 g fresh shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 small onion, chopped finely

50 g butter

2 cups of chicken stock 

1 cup of water

1 cup milk

3/4 cup breadcrumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs)

1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

salt to taste

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Saute the garlic and onion. 

2. Add the mushrooms, pepper & salt and cook until soften. 

3. Add the chicken stock, water and milk and bring to the boil. Simmer, uncovered for 10 mins.

4. Remove from heat and using a hand blender, carefully pulse through the soup to blend the mushrooms. Try to blend a majority of the soup but leave some slices of mushrooms too. It adds great texture and you don't want it to become a puree.

5. Add the breadcrumbs and heat over medium heat until the soup thickens. It should be creamy and thick. Add any extra salt & pepper for seasoning.

Serve the soup with homemade bread croutons or just a bit of crusty bread.

Polenta Crusted Moussaka

A traditional moussaka is a casserole usually made from ground lamb mince, covering a layer of sauted eggplant (aubergine) and topped with a bechamel sauce. There are many different versions of moussaka from around the mediterranean but the best known ones are from Greece.

For this version of moussaka, I've replace the lamb with beef mince, crumbed the eggplant and topped it with a creamy cheese polenta layer. The layering is quite similar to lasagne minus the pasta but I've managed to incorporate the polenta (cornmeal) instead of the bechamel sauce (white sauce) to give it more structure, and of course to add in corn for the kids.

Polenta Crusted Moussaka

300 g beef mince
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
410 g tin of tomato puree
4 medium tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
salt to taste
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup red wine
2 medium eggplants, sliced thickly
3/4 cup of breadcrumbs
1 egg white
Polenta
2 1/2 cup chicken stock
2 1/2 cup milk
1 cup polenta (cornmeal)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
30 g butter


1. Cut the eggplants and place in a bowl. Add the egg white and toss the eggplants coating it with the egg white. In a small bowl place the breadcrumbs and coat the eggplants.
2. Preheat oil for deep frying. Place a small batch of crumbed eggplants and fry until it is golden. The eggplant should be crispy and the bread crumbs will help absorb the sauce. Remove and drain. 
3. In another saucepan, heat oil and saute the onions and garlic. Add the beef and cook until browned. Add the tomatoes, basil, oregano and stir. Add the tomato puree, wine, water, pepper and salt. Bring it to the boil and simmer over medium heat, covered for 15 mins and cook further until the sauce has thicken.
4. Preheat the oven to 180C. In a shallow baking dish, ( I would normally use a 2 small baking dishes equivalent to the size of 1 rectangular lasagne dish) arrange the crispy eggplants at the bottom layer. Add the meat sauce next and spread evenly over the eggplants. Spread the polenta layer on the top and bake for about 15 mins or until the top is golden brown.

Polenta

1. Pour the milk, chicken stock in a saucepan and bring it to the boil. Reduce the heat. Gradually add the polenta and carefully stir out any lumps. Keep stirring until the polenta thickens. It should take about 10 mins and add the parmesan, mozarella cheese and butter. remove from heat.

*** The kids loved the polenta and they didn't even realise that it was cornmeal!!

Tempting Tempura

Putting a twist on the old fish and chips the Tempura way. 

For lunch today I couldn't decide what to cook for the kids. They're usually very hungry after a long day at school and the first thing they'll ask is...

                 "What's for lunch? I'm so hungry!!"

So I had some fish fillets on hand and a couple of potatoes, why not give it a Japanese theme. I knew I had a packet of tempura batter somewhere at the back of the cupboard and a few fresh shitake mushrooms, daikon, green french beans and onions to spare in the fridge. The only thing I had to come up with was the tempura dipping sauce.

Now the expert at making Tempura in the family is my dad, he'll always manage to get the batter just right and everything would look like it came straight from a japanese restuarant......but he's miles away back in Sydney. ....But that didn't stop me from calling him today just to check what his secret to successful Tempura was.... "Ice, just remember the ice!"

Tempura

150 g tempura batter mix

150 ml ice cold water

handful of ice cubes

vegetable oil for deep frying

200g fish fillet, sliced

mushrooms, thickly sliced

daikon, thinly sliced

potatoes, thinly sliced

green french beans, cut in 2' lengths

onions, sliced

1. Place the tempura batter mix in a medium bowl. Pour the ice cold water into the bowl and add a couple of ice cubes. The ice cubes will keep the batter cool and this makes the batter crispy when it's deep fried. Use chopsticks to stir the mixture. It should be a slightly runny batter, not too thick. 

2. Heat the oil for deep frying. Test the batter by placing a little bit of batter.

3. Dip the ingredients one at a time in the batter. Use long cooking chopsticks for deep frying. Coat each with the batter and deep fry each ingredient until golden. Drain on paper towels. Serve the tempura while hot.

Tempura Dipping Sauce

1 tbsp dashi stock granules

2 tsbp soy sauce

1/4 cup mirin

1 cup water

1. Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring it to the boil. Remove from heat and serve.

Meat Pie on a bed of Mash

Feeling a little homesick for an Aussie Meat Pie...... 

So for tonight's dinner I dusted off the Breville pie maker and put together my version of a meat pie, which is similar to my Cottage Pie with a twist on the presentation.

It's been years since I had a meat pie, not the party pies or the mini-pies but a  real hearty pie. The last one I had was about 6 years just outside of the Capital Theatre, down at Haymarket  from Harry's Cafe De Wheels. A Harry's "Tiger" meat pie, mashie peas, mash and tons of gravy!!! ....a real touristy thing but real meat pie icon.

I clearly remember that day because it was also the day of the BIRDs, the day that Ash would remember too.....Here we were eating our pies in the park and down came this huge flock of pigeons and seagulls surrounding us, all chanting like in Nemo, "Mine, MIne, Mine"..............and till this day my daughter can't stand the sight of birds!!

Now with this recipe I also made the shortcrust pastry but you can use supermarket ones or even bread, which I sometimes do for a quick pie.

Meat Pie on a bed of Mash

300 g beef mince

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, chopped

1 tsp worcester sauce

1 tsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp tomato sauce

1/2 cup tomato puree

1 cup water

1/4 cup red wine

2 tomatoes, chopped roughly

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup shitake mushrooms, sliced thinly and chopped

ground cracked pepper

sea salt to taste

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan, add onion and garlic to saute. Add the mince meat and gently stir until browned.

2. Add the worcester sauce, soy sauce, tomato sauce, tomato puree, pepper and stir. Add the chopped tomatoes, mushrooms, peas, tomato puree, wine and water. Bring to the boil, simmer covered for about 15mins, until the tomato has soften and add salt to taste. 

3. Remove the filling and cool. You can use this meat sauce to disguise a lot of vegies for the kids and they wouldn't know it!!

Shortcrust Pastry

1 1/2 cups plain flour

90 g butter, chilled and chopped roughly

3 tbsp cold water

1. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl and add the chopped butter. Rub in the butter until is resembles breadcrumbs. 

2. Add in the cold water and knead into a ball. It might get a bit too sticky but just work it until it's smooth. Wrap it in cling wrap and place it in the fridge for 30 mins. I normally put it in a plastic kitchen bag as it's easier to handle than using a wrap.

3. Roll the dough onto a floured surface and use the pie cutters or shape it to fit the pie moulds (if you're using pie moulds in the oven).

Pie making

1. Preheat the pie maker for about 8mins or until the light switches off OR preheat oven for 180C.

2. Layer the pie moulds with the shortcrust pastry and fill with the meat filling (about 1/2 cup or more). Don't over fill the pie as it will eventually ooze out at the side!! Cover with the pastry top and seal the edges.

3. Cook in the pie maker for about 8 mins or until the top is browned. I lost my pie cookbook that can with the pie maker so i just check to see if it has browned, all depending on what pastry you use.

For the oven you can egg wash it if you like. Bake it in the oven for about 10-15mins or until it browns.

4. Serve it on a bed of mashed potatoes, topping it off with tomato sauce.

Meat Pie on a bed of Mash (I would have loved  to put mashie peas on the pies but the kids would never eat it)

Mashed Potatoes

This is one of the few cooking tips that my hubby taught me!! Microwaved mashed potatoes.

about 6-7 large potatoes, thoroughly washed and scrubbed

30 g butter

1 1/2 - 2 cups of warm milk

2 tbsp parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

1 microwaveable pie dish (I use a pyrex pie dish)

1. Wash and scrub the potatoes. Prick the potatoes with a fork, making sure it's thoroughly poked. This will release the steam and won't let the potatoes explode in the microwave!!!

2. Arrange the potatoes in a microwave pie dish, cover with a microwaveable cover with a vent for 12mins on high.

3. Remove from the microwave and use a fork and knife to peel off the skin.

4. Place the potatoes in a large bowl and mash it with a potato masher or fork. Add the butter, cheese and stir. Gradually add the milk and pour as much as you need for the right texture of mash. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I would sometimes use a Desiree (red) potato and leave the skin on for a rough mash. The kids can get a little fussy over it seeing the skin but it's lots of fibre and I love the rough texture of the mash this way.

Lasagne

Dinner, dinner, dinner.............tonight's dinner.

What do you want for dinner???

The quickest response for that question would always come from Tristan, hands down...

Mum, I want Lasagne!!!!

I don't think he would be able to to survive without a serving of lasagne at least 3 times a month. He simply loves it! And it's not that often where he'll gobble up every morsel of food on his plate, esp. when there are vegetables involved.

So here's my lasagne recipe, quick and easy to put together. I'd often add vegetables to this lasagne without the kids knowing, simply by chopping it up finely or just letting it cook through with the sauce.

Lasagne

5oo g mince meat (chicken or beef)

4oo g tin of tomato puree + 1 tin of water

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

400 g tin of whole tomatoes

OR 4 tomatoes, chopped roughly

2/3 cup of mushrooms/carrots, chopped finely

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp sweet basil

cracked black pepper

sea salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

lasagne instant sheets

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Saute the onions and garlic until soft. Add the mince meat and cook until browned. Sprinkle in the herbs. Add the tomato puree plus 1 tin of water. Add tin of whole tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes and other vegetables (carrot/mushroom) I'd often disguise vegetables into the lasagne as it's so easy to blend them in without the kids knowing. Stir and bring to the boil, simmer with lid on for 15 mins. The meat sauce should have plenty of sauce and the vegetable soft. Remove from heat.

Cheese Sauce

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

3o g butter

2 tbsp plain flour

2 cups of milk

salt and pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add the flour and stir. Pour in the milk. Add the parmesan cheese and stir constantly to remove any lumps. Increase the heat to medium and cook until sauce creamy and thick. Remove from heat.

Lasagne

Preheat the oven to 180C.

1. Layer the meat in a rectangular baking dish first and then follow with the instant lasagne sheets. Repeat the meat layer and another lasagne sheet layer. Cover the last layer with the meat sauce mixture making sure that all the lasagne sheets are fully covered in the sauce.

2. Pour the cheese sauce over the last meat sauce layer, covering all the top. Sprinkle the cheese sauce with grated parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 mins or until the cheese sauce is golden brown.

You can either prepare this dish in a large rectangle ovenproof dish or 2 smaller ones.

Lasagne can be tricky to make but once you get the hang of getting the right amount of liquid in the sauce to cover the layers it's easy.