Tom Yum Soup

Yum by name and Yum by nature, this Thai hot and sour soup is a quick and warming lunch and one I frequently fall back on if I am working from home or am cooking only for myself and can't be bothered to go to too much effort.

It is hot (both chilli and steam hot) and fragrant, with strong pungent flavours.  As soups go, this one is not particularly shy or retiring.   It is also ridiculously moorish (I have been known to drain the broth after the noodles have been eaten straight from the bowl) and also pretty healthy!

It honestly takes less than 5 minutes from turning on the kettle to sitting at the table.

This is the bog standard, basic staple recipe which you can jazz up with spring onions, prawns, leftover chicken breast, mushrooms, baby corn, strips of fresh ginger, basically anything you happen to have leftover.  Believe me though, this version is beautiful just as it is and also very filling.

So set the timer and let's get started.

Put the kettle on- you want enough boiling water to fill your soup bowl about 3/4 of the way full.

In a small saucepan put 2 tablespoons liquid chicken stock, 1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce, juice of 1 lime, 1 small red chilli, snipped in, a handful of ripped coriander, also snipped in and 1 tablespoon Tom Yum soup paste (if you don't have any you can leave this out and just make it with the rest of the ingredients.  This turns it into a standard hot and sour soup instead of a Tom Yum soup but it is still just as nice).  You can also add a small pinch of brown sugar if you want to tone down the sharpness a little but remember, this soup is supposed to be hot and sour, not sweet.

Pour the boiling water on the top and bring to a rapid boil.

Add your choice of noodle (egg or vermicelli are my favourites) plus anything else you want to throw in.

Boil for about 3 minutes and serve.

Slurping optional.

Jambalaya

Jambalaya, that smokey, spicey rich dish that tastes of the deep south, a dish that evokes thoughts of warm Louisiana nights down by the bayou as the lighting bugs flit or heady jazz floating through the streets of New Orleans.  Every family will have their own version and their own secret ingredients that go into it.

Remember to rhyme the 'Jam' with 'Tom' if you want to pronounce it right!

I must admit, I romanticise this dish having never been to the deep south of America (and it being on my bucket list of places to visit).  For now, to indulge my fantasy, when I dream of Mardi Gras and Haitian magic, I will put my own spin on this classic Creole meal, aided by The Spicery.

If I was being true to the origins of this dish I would flavour it with alligator and turtle meat, however these ingredients are a little difficult to find in Kent!  There are a few rules that you must follow though.

You always start with the holy trinity - onion, celery and pepper.  You also need a white meat, chicken thighs are my favourite, and good smoked sausage; chorizo or andouille.  Finally (although I left them out of this version as I was feeding a pregnant lady) you want good shellfish, normally prawns or mussels, and finally, rice.  Beyond that, the sky is really your limit.

This version has been taste tested by us a number of times and it is really good.   If you are craving the heat and spice that only the deep south can provide, I recommend this.  

Jambalaya with Hot Sauce

1 medium onion - chopped
2 sticks celery - finely chopped
2 bell peppers - deseeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic - finely chopped
1 tin chopped tomato
3 chicken thighs, skin removed and chopped into chunks
1 large, good quality chorizo sausage, chopped
3 good quality smoked sausages, chopped
1 packet raw prawns
300g long grain rice
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
2 tsp chilli flakes
2 tsp Cholula hot sauce
2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground bay
2 tsp parsley
2 tsp chives
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp basil

For the hot sauce

You don't need to make this, you can use shop bought but I just love the smokey rich hot flavour that this adds and end up sloshing it all over my jambalaya.  I would serve it separate in a jug and allow people to help themselves though as the heat levels can be a bit surprising!

2 chipotle chillis
1 birdseye chilli
2 tablespoons tomato puree
2 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
100 ml water

Cooking wise, it's pretty simple.

In a large, heavy bottomed pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil and gently fry the onions, celery, garlic and peppers until they are soft.

Add the chicken, sausage, chorizo, cajun seasoning, chilli flakes, hot sauce and paprika and mix well together, letting the meats slowly brown and allowing the chorizo to release its oils, then add the tin of tomatoes.

Add the rice, bay, parsley, chives, thyme and basil and enough water to cover the jambalaya half way up (you may need to top this up as the rice cooks and the water absorbs).  Bring to the boil and keep an eye on it, stirring occasionally to stop the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan and adding more seasoning and spices if required.

For the hot sauce, soak the chipotles in a mug of boiling water for about 10 minutes, then put the softened chillis and the birdseye chilli (minus the seeds and stem), tomato puree, vinegar, salt and water into a blender and blend until smooth.

When the rice is cooked you are ready to serve!  We like this with salad, fresh baked bread and a scattering of chopped spring onions on the top for crunch!  This is a fantastic meal to serve if you have people coming over for dinner as it is relatively quick and you can just stick the lid on and let it cook on its own without worrying about it.

Just go easy on the chilli if you aren't sure about tolerance levels!

Grab your friends, make some Sazerac's and stick some Dixieland on.  Laissez les bons temps rouler.

Thai Pork Noodle Salad

Sometimes I get a craving that only the flavours of Thailand will cure.  When this happens in the winter I normally whip up some tom yum soup (always have the paste in my store cupboard).  In the summer it has to be noodles.

This Thai Pork Noodle Salad is a variation of one of my favourite Thai dishes which is normally done with seared strips of sirloin steak on a griddle or the BBQ.   I didn't have any steak in the house and had the Thai food craving so I had a rummage in the freezer and defrosted some pork chops that were looking rather sorry for themselves.

The primary flavours are fresh and zingy and hot with the kind of sharpness that makes the edge of your jaw just below your ear tingle.  The salad element makes it look healthy and I never feel that guilty eating it, despite the noodles.  It would work well with prawns, chicken, thin strips of steak or piles of vegetables with a bit of substance and crunch like asparagus, carrot or courgette.  You could even get away with lentils in here I would think.

However you choose to make it, it is better, quicker and cheaper than a takeaway.

It is also really, really easy.

This makes enough for 2-3 people with leftovers for lunch the next day.  It is lovely cold at picnics, at your desk in the office, as a side salad at BBQ's and for fridge raiding at midnight. 

You will need:

4 pork chops, chopped into chunks.
2 teaspoons Chinese 5-spice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 teaspoons sugar
1 bunch spring onions
1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
Juice of 1 lime
Packet of quick cook (I use straight-to-wok) fine thread noodles.  Vermicelli or cellophane will also work but don't use anything thicker than fine thread.
1-2 Birdseye red chili (de-seeded if you want a little less fire, the ginger adds heat as well so go easy!)
Bunch of coriander, chopped
Salad  - whatever you fancy, pre-assembled in your bowls.

Pan fry the pork in a wok (or a large, shallow pan if you are wok-less) with a little oil (wok oil if you have it, ordinary cooking oil if not) until brown and then add the 5-spice and continue to cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the ginger, garlic and sugar and cook for a couple more minutes.  A note here, if you can, don't substitute the fresh herbs and spices for their dried counterparts as you just won't get the 'punch' that is the heart of this dish.

Add the noodles and cook for another minute.

Add the spring onions, chili, fish sauce, lime juice and a little salt and pepper.

Turn it all together and coat it all evenly.

Top the pre-assembled salad with the noodle and pork mix and serve with a great handful of coriander on the top.

Chopsticks optional!

Salmon Pepita

I'm always looking for ways to jazz up fish a little.  We probably don't eat enough of it in our house, mainly because it can be a bit dull.  I came across this recipe in my wanderings on the internet and thought with a little tweaking to suit our tastes it could be worth a go for an easy weeknight supper.

The flavours are fresh and punchy so I combined the salmon with seared asparagus tips and smoked sea salt and garlic new potatoes.  Perfect for a summers evening out in the garden with a cold glass of Sauvignon Blanc and some jazz playing softly in the background.  Or in front of the TV while the kids argue about bath-time.  Whichever.

Ingredients:
3 fillets of fresh salmon
1 packet new potatoes
1 packet asparagus tips
20g pumpkin seeds
Butter
1 red birdseye chili
1 lime
2 cloves garlic
Oak smoked sea salt

Lightly toast the pumpkin seeds in a hot pan until fragrant.  Tip into a cold bowl and grate the lime over the top.  Add the juice of the lime, the chili (finely chopped) and a slither of butter.  Set aside.

In another pot combine another slither of butter with the crushed garlic and oak smoked sea salt and mash well.  Set aside.

Season the flesh of the salmon with pepper and the skin with salt.

Sear the salmon skin side down in a hot skillet lightly brushed with oil until it turns golden and crisp then turn the heat down, flip the fillets and continue to cook until the dark pink turns light all the way through.

In a separate pan boil the new potatoes and the asparagus tips.  After 2 minutes whip the asparagus tips out and add them to the skillet.

When the salmon is cooked, set it on a plate with the asparagus and tip the pumpkin seed mix into the hot skillet.  Cook for 10 seconds until all the butter has melted, remove and top the salmon with the sauce.  Add the garlic and salt butter to the new potatoes and serve.

PS.  This little number ticks all sorts of health diversity boxes.  It's low in fat, low in calories, diabetes appropriate, gluten free, low in saturated fats, low in carbohydrate and high in omega 3.

Clever fishy.

When She Got There, The Cupboard Was Bare...

I hate those days when I go to the larder and just stare at it.  Nothing is inspiring, there are just a random collection of tins and jars and you really can't be bothered to go to the supermarket.

I had one of those days this week after work.  I was in a rush, needed something quickly and there was nothing there.  I reached in and came out with a tin of chickpeas and a tin of tomatoes.  That was it.

I rummaged in the freezer and came up with a pack of frozen sausages.

Right - lets work with this!

This is one of the reasons I keep a very well stocked spice cupboard.  I ended up making some sort of chickpea and sausage daal like curry thing.  No idea what you would call it but it was tasty, filling and nutritious.  Considering the disaster most of my food experiments are I was rather proud of this.

I admit some of the spices may be unfamiliar to you but just improvise.  Chaat masala you can buy pre-mixed or just substitute for some cumin, mint, ginger and garam masala and urfa chilli flakes can be substituted for any warm smokey chilli such as chipotle (not birdseye as you want a warm not intense heat here).  You can buy both either online or from any good middle eastern supermarket (Urfa is Turkish, not Indian in origin).

3 sausages
1 tin chickpeas
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 onion
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
2 tablespoons urfa chilli flakes
2 tablespoons crushed fenugreek seeds
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
2 tablespoons chaat masala (amchur, sea salt, cumin, black pepper, coriander, ginger, ajowan, mint, asafoetida)
Oil (for frying)
Salt and pepper
Good handful fresh coriander

Chop your onion finely and fry in a little oil until soft and translucent.

Finely crush your fenugreek seeds and add it to the onion with the crushed garlic, fennel seeds, urfa and chaat masala.

Cook until fragrant then add the chopped tomatoes and simmer.  Add a little water if it gets a bit dry.

In a seperate pan fry the chopped sausage until browned then add the chickpeas, draining off any excess water during the cooking process.

Add the tomato sauce and a good handful of coriander and cook for another 10 minutes.  You are using the coriander like another vegetable here rather than a herb so be generous.  Spinach and bacon would also be fantastic additions.

Serve sprinkled with some more fresh coriander.  I ate this just on it's own but it would be great with rice, couscous or on a baked potato.

It is not hot in terms of chili heat so good for those who like the complex flavours of curry without the burning mouth and ringing ears that come with it.

Also really nice a day later after the flavours have mellowed and combined a bit more.

Anyone want to name this for me? 

Beefy Steak Burritos

It is (slowly, oh so slowly!) getting warmer in Kent.  The sun is starting to creep past the clouds, days are getting longer and the breeze is gentler (more Notos than Boreas to use my Classics degree and sound like I didn't just have to google the names to remind myself).  Almost exponentially as it gets warmer my desire for fresh, zingy flavours undercut with warm chilli heat also increases.

I fancied Mexican for dinner, on a work night no less when normally I can't be bothered to do more than chuck some meat and sauce in a pan and serve it with whatever form of carbohydrate is closest.

I took inspiration from Tim Maddams recipe on the BBC Food website and modified it slightly.  As previously explained, this was a work night and there was no way on this earth I was making tortilla wraps from scratch when the supermarket had done all the work and presented me with pre-made ones.

These Beefy Buritos really hit the spot - tangy from the lime, warm and deep from the re-fried beans and packing a little bit of a punch.  Next time though I would add some chipotle chili to the steak marinade to add some extra smokey warmth and some more birdseye chili to the salsa.  This would turn this dish from a lightweight to a heavyweight in my books!

They are actually really easy to do and once your prep has been done (which you could do a day in advance and leave the flavours to develop), it only takes moments in the pan to cook.

For the steak:
400g sirloin steak, fat removed and cut into strips
1 red and 1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cumin seeds (lightly toasted in a dry pan until aromatic)
1/2 tsp allspice
Juice of 1/2 lime
Glug of olive oil

Bung it all in a bowl and allow to marinade.

For the salsa:
2 ripe-but-firm vine tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1 red chili, (with or without seeds), finely chopped.
Mix in a bowl.

For the yoghurt:
Fat-free natural yoghurt
Zest of 1 lime, finely grated

For the re-fried beans:
1 tin black beans, partially drained
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp olive oil

When you are ready to serve, heat a large frying pan and chuck the steak mix in with a bit of salt.  Allow it to sit for a couple of minutes until the steak has seared on one side and then flip the whole lot.  Sear the other side, remove and allow to rest.

In the same pan you cooked the steak in, heat the olive oil and add the garlic and cumin from the re-fried beans list.  When it starts to smell fragrant add the tin of black beans and start to lightly crush it with a wooden spoon.  When it becomes slightly more mushy (technical term) remove it into a bowl.

Serve the whole lot with tortillas, chopped coriander and any salad you feel like.    This is a really healthy and low fat meal and takes a grand total of about 15 minutes from the moment you heat up your frying pan.

Assemble and munch.  I am hopelessly incapable of eating any form of wrap without making a huge mess; I just don't have the right wrapping technique!

Ice cold Coronas with wedges of lime squashed in the top are the perfect accompaniment for a warm summer evening.

I have a random story about my first time working with red onion.  In Year 7 in my home economics class we were told to bring in the ingredients for coleslaw.  My mum sent me in with a red onion.  We were told to remove 'all the brown' from the onion until we got to the white skin.  By the time the teacher got to me I had no onion left and just a pile of red pieces all over the work surface as I valiantly tried to find the white.  Hopefully my cooking has improved since then!

Ye Olde Beverlie

I do promise that not all of the pubs in Canterbury are ridiculously old.  I know it currently looks like that but it's probably just because those are the pubs I tend to hang out in.

They smell nice.

I have just realised that this makes me sound like I go around and sniff old things.

Ye Olde Beverlie (or The Old Bev to the locals) doesn't even try to hide its age.  Clue is in the name.  It's not in the city centre either but located on St Stephen's Hill, leading from the city to the University of Kent. 

The pub is a listed redbrick building, dating back to c.1570 and was built by Sir Roger Manwood as part of a set of almshouses, a history that is proudly displayed within the pub restaurant.   While I was snapping away one of the waiters, clearly excited by the interest I had taken, came up and told me all about the pub.  I like this about The Old Bev; there is a real sense of pride in the premises and it's unique features.

These days it serves a mixture of Mexican and English food (not the most obvious of food choices for a old pub to be honest, but it works).  I did disagree with the chilli board assessments - but that is my personal taste.  I do happen to love my chilli's and I'm sorry, but a Habanero is not hot.

Like the other old English pubs in Canterbury, this one has a warm vibe with low, dark wooden beams pitted with ancient and long forgotten woodworm, a roaring fireplace, higgledy piggledy doors and staircases and nooks and crannies you can secrete yourself in.

 

Old church pews complete tapestry covered seats while the original ceiling, brick red flagstone floor and old green bottles with wax candles add to the rustic effect.

The Old Bev also has a large beer garden which is wonderful in the summer time and boasts the claim of being the origin of Bat and Trap.  This unique Kentish game is only really found in this corner of the world and is basically pub cricket.  There are a few pubs in Canterbury that still play and every year the Cricket Club hosts an annual tournament.  It's a fun game that is perfect for a summer day with a BBQ and a beer with friends and one that I will cover in a later post!

The wine and beer selection is good - there will be something for everyone here and it is also very reasonably priced.  Their olives are also a great bar snack.

I have not eaten here in years - not since my student days, but the menu could be enough to tempt me back in.  This place is popular with the students, being located close by to many of the student dominated residential areas just outside of the city centre and attracts a varied crowd.  It still runs the ever popular quiz nights as well, a popular destination for the students hoping to win a few extra quid!

Parking is extremely limited out front but there is plenty of on-road parking just around the corner.

Overall, a nice little pub, one I don't go to very often as it is a bit out of the way but definitely worth a visit for a game of Bat and Trap in the summer!