In the 90s, a book that was on everyone must read list, was called "Fried Green Tomatoes at The Whistle Stop Cafe" by Fannie Flagg
The thought of Fried Green Tomatoes fascinated me. I thought they meant unripe tomatoes

but as my food knowledge grew, I understood that they are a special breed of Tomato
Now in New Zealand, as all over the world we can now access almost every food available...
and YES we can buy Green Tomatoes
Found some at the local shop and decided to make these little delights
Can’t get much easier

Slice the tomatoes
Dip in seasoned flour

Dip in beaten egg

Finally into breadcrumbs

Set aside In the fridge to settle and when ready
Just fry in mix of butter and olive oil
Fry in batches. Don’t overcrowd the pan

Delicious with the leg of lamb we cooked this evening


Sent from my iPad

Coconut Chicken Curry

When I first made this curry, I used Curry Powder, but this week I used a Curry Paste
I think it was a more exciting flavour
Also I rubbed the chicken thighs with the paste and roasted them
Then pulled the meat apart. Great flavour on the chicken
But if you follow the recipe below It becomes a very quick curry
A Curry in a Hurry in fact.
Very popular with the kids and the Adults
I found this recipe on the Epicurious Site
This feeds six

1 medium onion roughly chopped
1 tablespoon oil
1 kilo chicken boneless, skinless  thighs chopped
2 Sachets of Asian Gourmet Curry Paste… the Vietnamese Flavour
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons virgin coconut or vegetable oil (plus 2 teaspoons; optional)

2 x 400 ml cans coconut milk (preferably full-fat)
1 (2 1/2") piece ginger, peeled and rough chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 cup raw cashews, chopped (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons yellow and/or black mustard seeds (optional)
1 packet baby spinach
Cilantro leaves with tender stems and cooked rice or naan (Indian flatbread; for serving)



Toss chicken with curry paste, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet (at least 12" in diameter) over medium-high.
Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes.
add 1 sachet of curry paste, stir

and cook for another couple of minutes remove and set aside
Add more oil and saute chicken till brown
You may need to do it in batches

Meanwhile Purée coconut milk, ginger, and garlic in a blender until very smooth.

Add coconut milk mixture and cooked onion to the chicken in the pan

and cook, tossing occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and sauce has thickened, 7-10 minutes.
Add spinach to pan sprinkle with salt and pepper

and blend in till spinach is wilted. about a minute or two

Meanwhile, if using, heat 2 tsp. oil in a small skillet over medium.
Add cashews and mustard seeds and cook, stirring, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2–3 minutes.

 Immediately transfer nut mixture including the oil to a small bowl.

Serve the Curry over rice
Garnish with Cashews, Coriander and Red Pepper

 Delicious, Pretty and So so simple

Easy Butter Chicken

I have never made Butter Chicken. 

Last week my Granddaughter requested it for dinner

so I Surfed the Net and found quite a few recipes, naturally

I decided to use the BBC Good Food idea, 

with a couple of changes, to suit what I had in the cupboard

It was very popular, with the kids…Second and third helpings in fact

I didn’t add chilli as I was cooking for kids, but if you feel the need…

Finely chop and saute a red chilli with the garlic and ginger

If you want greens I suggest some wilted spinach on the side

Cooks hint

Don’t forget when you wilt the spinach, sauté  in a little butter with garlic, seasoned 

with S & P

Spinach really needs that extra touch

So back to the Butter Chicken 

You will need

25 gms Butter

1 red onion chopped

Sea Salt and Freshly ground Black Pepper

3 tablespoons Butter Chicken Curry Paste

3 large chicken Breasts cut into pieces

1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon Rice Bran oil

3 cloves garlic peeled and crushed

1 Tablespoon grated ginger

2 whole tomatoes chopped

Sea salt and freshly Grated Black pepper

500g Passata or 1 400 gms can chopped tomatoes blitzed

100 mls double cream

Handful coriander chopped, stems and leaves 

Cooked Rice to serve

Marinate the chicken piece in the curry paste, for at least an hour

Then when ready 

Heat butter in a large pan, 

Over medium heat, add onion, season with salt and pepper and sauté till softened

Meanwhile in another pan over high heat

Add More butter and a tablespoon of Rice Bran oil

Brown chicken pieces

Don’t crowd the pan so you will need to cook in batches

You will also need to add more cooking fat as you go

Add to onion mix

Add another tablespoon of butter

Add garlic, ginger and chopped fresh tomatoes

Season with S & P

Saute till soft

Add to chicken and onion

 Add the Passata/Canned Tomatoes

Stir and bring to a simmer

Simmer gently, uncovered for about 20 minutes, till chicken is tender

Taste and adjust season if needed 

Just before serving add cream and chopped coriander

Serve over cooked rice 

With a leaf or two of coriander for presentation

It was suggested that you add 2 tablespoons Cashew Butter with the cream

I didn't have any but it sounds like a tasty idea

And as usual the youngest Members of the Family don't give a damn

Leftovers - Don't Waste Them - Make Frittata

I had some roasted sweet potato and buttercup squash, leftover from dinner
There was about a cup
Cant throw it out, so
What to do?
Make Frittata,

Heat oven to 180C

To the leftover vege
Just add a spring onion chopped
3 Cherry tomatoes halved, seeded and chopped
Parsley, chopped, about 1 tablespoon
Plus a handful of cheese
Toss all of this into 4 beaten eggs
Season with Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Heat a pan with olive oil till just bubbling
Add the mix
Let it start to set on the bottom
just a few seconds

Into oven for 8 minutes

Done
Enough for 4 breakfasts for a young hungry man

Keeps in the fridge for a couple of days and freezes well

Best Mac and Cheese with Sweet Potato - Thank you Nigella

Currently I am feeding a teenage boy...wow they have huge appetites so always thinking of tasty filling food
Also, mindful of the budget.
This Mac and Cheese... bulked up with pasta...also with an excellent addition of
Kumera (sweet potato)
Cheap and Cheerful and so so tasty.  Quite a different texture. Thumbs up from the Teenager

This recipe is from Nigella's Book “Simply Nigella”
I found it on my Epicurious Website and just had to share

2 large sweet potatoes peeled and cubed
2 cups macaroni, or other small, short pasta I used Farfalle
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon English or French mustard (works with both)
1/2 teaspoon paprika
3/4 cup feta cheese crumbled)
1 1/2 cups sharp Cheddar, grated
Sea Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 200°C Put on a large-ish pan of water to boil,
with the lid on to make it come to a boil faster.

When the water’s boiling, add salt to taste, and then the sweet potato pieces, and
cook them for about 10 minutes or until they are soft.
Scoop them out of the water into a bowl–using a ”spider” or slotted spoon–
and lightly mash with a fork, without turning them into a purée.

Don’t get rid of this water, as you will need it to cook your pasta in later.

In another saucepan, gently melt the butter and add the flour,
whisking to form a roux, then take the pan off the heat,
slowly whisk in the milk and, when it’s all combined and smooth,
put back on the heat.
Exchange your whisk for a wooden spoon, and continue to stir
until your gently bubbling sauce has lost any floury taste and has thickened.
Add the mustard and ¼ teaspoon of the paprika.
Season to taste, but do remember that you will be adding Cheddar and salty feta later,
so "underdo" it for now.

Cook the pasta in the sweet-potato water, starting to check 2 minutes earlier than packet instructions dictate, as you want to make sure it doesn’t lose its bite entirely.
Drain (reserving some of the pasta cooking water first) and
then add the pasta to the mashed sweet potato, and
fold in to combine; the heat of the pasta will make the mash easier to mix in.

Add the feta cheese to the sweet potato and pasta mixture,
crumbling it in so that it is easier to disperse evenly,

then fold in the white sauce, adding 1 1/4 cups grated Cheddar as you go. 

Add some of the pasta cooking water, should you feel it needs loosening up at all.
It did

Check for seasoning again, then, when you’re happy, spoon the brightly sauced macaroni cheese into 4 small ovenproof dishes of approx. 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cup capacity
(or 1 large rectangular dish measuring approx. 12x8x2 inches deep and 6 1/2 cup capacity).

Sprinkle the remaining Cheddar over each one,

Put the pots on a baking tray, pop into the oven and bake for 20 minutes
(or, if you’re making this in a larger dish, bake for 30–35 minutes), by which time they will be piping hot and bubbling, and begging you to eat them.

I made this earlier in the day then into the oven just before we wanted to eat...and also froze 2 of the containers
Always looking ahead

Grilled Chicken-Korean Style -

So following moving on from the previous post, where I made chicken soup using thigh bones, that were sitting there, lonely... after boning Chicken Thighs.
This thigh meat was going to be used for the following recipe and it was!
I have been looking for Korean recipes lately as I currently have a Korean student staying with me
Turns out he eats everything (except Kimchi, which I raced out and bought…oh well, my family likes it)
However I want to make some flavours, that are similar to what he is used to
This seemed to fit the bill and we liked it a lot

The foodlovers.co.nz website had this recipe for  Grilled Chicken Korean Style
I served it with rice and some colourful vege

600g chicken thigh fillets skinless, boneless
1/3 cup (80ml) soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 red onion finely chopped
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (or other chili sauce) 
2 tablespoons rice wine
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 teaspoons grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Coriander leaves
Rice Bran Oil

Basmati Rice 1 1/2 cups
1/2 each yellow and red peppers
Handful of green beans, topped and tailed and cut into small pieces
1 spring onion

Method
Chop chicken thigh fillets in half.
Place the chicken in a glass container
and add the remaining ingredients except the coriander leaves.
Cover and then place in a shallow dish and refrigerate for up to 8 hours.

Heat a barbecue hot plate or grill on medium – high heat.
Add a little Rice Bran Oil
Drain the chicken from the marinade 

Reserve the marinade and
Cook the chicken for 8-10 minutes, turning at times,
until well coloured and cooked through.

Remove from heat let sit for about 5 minutes then cut into pieces

To Cook the Rice
Fill a pot with lots of salted water
Add the rice
Stir and boil for about 8-10 minutes
Test for doneness, a little bit of bite!
Drain and set aside and place into a serving dish

Meanwhile in another pan
Over med heat  
Add 2 tablespoons Rice Bran Oil
Add the spring onions, chopped peppers 
Season with Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Salute for 3-4 minutes
Add beans
Toss and cook for about another minute or two just to heat them through
Remove and add to the rice
Stir well

In the same pan, add the marinade
Bring to the boil and simmer for a minute to two

Dip the chicken into the cooked marinade to make a sauce
Arrange over the rice and vege
Cover with the remaining sauce
Sprinkle with coriander leaves.

Serve

Simple Chicken Soup - Cost Virtually nothing - Waste Not Want Not

I am in the process of making a Korean Barbecue Dish
It consists of Chicken Thighs Marinated for a few hours then onto the grill

The thighs I bought, had a bone in them
So I removed it. Of course I cant throw anything away, so I threw the 3 little bones into a pot with some Vegeta Powdered Stock and about a litre of water
Brought to the boil and simmered for about 20 minutes

Meanwhile,  using what I had in the fridge and freezer, I chopped an onion, 2 sticks of celery
Added them to the pot. In the freezer, I always have Frozen Corn and Peas
Grabbed a good handful of them both
I also have in the pantry, Asian Egg Noodles

I popped the corn in with the onions and celery, simmered them for about 15 minutes.
Throw in one little nest of Egg Noodles
Bring back to the boil
Swirl them around with a fork to separate
Simmer for 3 minutes
And at the last moment a good handful of frozen peas

Another couple of minutes so that the peas are just cooked

Tip into the bowl and serve

Lunch is served