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Category: Miscellaneous

Area: Italian

Ingredients:

• 150ml Water
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 15g Yeast
• 225g Plain Flour
• 1 1/2 tsp Salt
• Drizzle Olive Oil
• 80g Passata
• 70g Mozzarella
• Peeled and Sliced Oregano
• Leaves Basil
• Pinch Black Pepper

Instructions:

1 Preheat the oven to 230°C.

2 Add the sugar and crumble the fresh yeast into warm water.

3 Allow the mixture to stand for 10 – 15 minutes in a warm place (we find a windowsill on a sunny day works best) until froth develops on the surface.

4 Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl, make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast mixture and olive oil.

5 Lightly flour your hands, and slowly mix the ingredients together until they bind.

6 Generously dust your surface with flour.

7 Throw down the dough and begin kneading for 10 minutes until smooth, silky and soft.

8 Place in a lightly oiled, non-stick baking tray (we use a round one, but any shape will do!)

9 Spread the passata on top making sure you go to the edge.

10 Evenly place the mozzarella (or other cheese) on top, season with the oregano and black pepper, then drizzle with a little olive oil.

11 Cook in the oven for 10 – 12 minutes until the cheese slightly colours.

12 When ready, place the basil leaf on top and tuck in!

Category: Side

Area: Dutch

Ingredients:

• 2L Water
• 300g Peas
• 100g Pork
• 1 Vegetable Stock Cube
• 2 Celery
• 2 Carrots
• 1 large Potatoes
• 1 small Onion
• 1 small Leek
• 1 cup Celeriac
• 1 pound Sausages

Instructions:

Gather the ingredients.

In a large soup pot, bring water, split peas, pork belly or bacon, pork chop, and bouillon cube to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and let cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam that rises to the top.

Remove the pork chop, debone, and thinly slice the meat. Set aside.

Add the celery, carrots, potato, onion, leek, and celeriac to the soup. Return to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and let cook, uncovered, for another 30 minutes, adding a little extra water if the ingredients start to stick to the bottom of the pot.

Add the smoked sausage for the last 15 minutes of cooking time. When the vegetables are tender, remove the bacon and smoked sausage, slice thinly and set aside.

If you prefer a smooth consistency, purée the soup with a stick blender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the meat back to the soup, setting some slices of rookworst aside.

Serve in heated bowls or soup plates, garnished with slices of rookworst and chopped celery leaf.

Enjoy!

Category: Beef

Area: Egyptian

Ingredients:

• 1lb Beef
• 1 Onion
• 1 Chicken Stock Cube
• 2 Tomatoes
• 4 Garlic Clove
• 1 tbs Tomato Puree
• 2 cups Rice
• 1/4 cup Noodles
• 1/4 cup Butter
• 2 cups Olive Oil
• 1 Pita Bread
• 1 tbs Cumin
• 3 tbs White Wine Vinegar
• To taste Salt
• To taste Pepper

Instructions:

To prepare bread for bottom of dish: Take pita bread and rip into bite size pieces. In a frying pan, add about a 1/4 stick of butter, add bread pieces and fry until golden brown and crisp. Put these pieces in a glass baking dish, preferably a square sized dish. Set aside.
Then add to same pan, a little more butter, salt, approximately 2 cloves of crushed fresh garlic, and a teaspoon or so of cumin stir around a bit until you can smell aroma, then add fried bread pieces to this mixture, stir to coat bread and put back into glass baking dish. Set aside.
To prepare meat: put some butter in a pot, stir fry meat until brown, add 1 onion quartered, salt & pepper, 1 cube of chicken bouillon and water to cover meat. Bring to a boil, turn down to simmer, cover and cook until tender, approximately 2 hours. After meat has cooled, take out chunks of meat and put in a bowl, set aside. Reserve soup from the meat separately.
To prepare the rice: Put some butter into a pot, add shareya (fideo noodles) like a handful or so, keep stirring until golden brown, not too dark, but very golden. Then add two cups of rice, stir a little bit until some of the rice turns an opaque white. Add 2-1/4 cups of water and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and turn down to simmer, cook until tender. Test the rice tenderness after about 35 minutes.
Now take some of the soup from meat and add to the top of the bread pieces in baking dish to saturate.Add cooked rice on top of bread pieces. Slowly spoon remainder of soup onto rice, looking at glass dish sides to see level of soup, should reach just to top of rice, don’t worry, this doesn’t have to be exact. Now you’re ready to make the sauce and fry the meat to put on top.
To prepare red sauce: In a pan, add a little oil or butter, crushed tomato, a half teaspoon of tomato paste, salt & pepper, 2 cloves of fresh crushed garlic and cumin. Add also approximately 3 tablespoons of vinegar, stir this until you smell aroma and it is a bit smooth. It should be a bit thick, not watery, but if too thick you can add a bit of water. Spread with a wooden spoon atop the rice to cover.
To fry meat: In a pan add a bit of butter or oil, the meat, just a touch of tomato paste, about a tablespoon of fresh crushed garlic, salt & pepper, a teaspoon of cumin. Cook until meat is golden fried.
Spoon this atop the rice and serve. Enjoy!

Category: Side

Area: Turkish

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Lentils
• 1 large Onion
• 1 large Carrots
• 1 tbs Tomato Puree
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Paprika
• 1/2 tsp Mint
• 1/2 tsp Thyme
• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 4 cups Vegetable Stock
• 1 cup Water
• Pinch Sea Salt

Instructions:

Pick through your lentils for any foreign debris, rinse them 2 or 3 times, drain, and set aside. Fair warning, this will probably turn your lentils into a solid block that you’ll have to break up later
In a large pot over medium-high heat, sauté the olive oil and the onion with a pinch of salt for about 3 minutes, then add the carrots and cook for another 3 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and stir it around for around 1 minute. Now add the cumin, paprika, mint, thyme, black pepper, and red pepper as quickly as you can and stir for 10 seconds to bloom the spices. Congratulate yourself on how amazing your house now smells.
Immediately add the lentils, water, broth, and salt. Bring the soup to a (gentle) boil.
After it has come to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot halfway, and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the lentils have fallen apart and the carrots are completely cooked.
After the soup has cooked and the lentils are tender, blend the soup either in a blender or simply use a hand blender to reach the consistency you desire. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if necessary.
Serve with crushed-up crackers, torn up bread, or something else to add some extra thickness. You could also use a traditional thickener (like cornstarch or flour), but I prefer to add crackers for some texture and saltiness. Makes great leftovers, stays good in the fridge for about a week.

Category: Vegetarian

Area: Filipino

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Egg Plants
• 2 tbs Sugar
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 1 whole Garlic
• 3 tbs Olive Oil
• 4 oz Ground Pork
• 3 tbs Rice Vinegar
• 2 tbs Soy Sauce
• 2 Bay Leaf

Instructions:

1. Slice 1 lb. small Japanese or Italian eggplant (about 3) into quarters lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 2"-wide pieces. Place in a medium bowl. Add 1 Tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper. Toss to evenly coat eggplant and let sit at room temperature at least 20 minutes and up to 2 hours.
2. Peel and thinly slice 8 garlic cloves. Add 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil and half of garlic to a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until light golden and crisp, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer garlic chips to a plate; season lightly with salt.
3. Place 4 oz. ground pork in same pot and break up into small pieces with wooden spoon. Season with ¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or Morton kosher salt and cook, undisturbed, until deeply browned underneath, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to another plate, leaving fat behind in the pot.
4. Place eggplant on a clean kitchen towel and blot away any moisture the salt has drawn out.
5. Working in batches and adding more oil if needed, cook eggplant in the same pot until lightly browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate with pork.
6. Pour 1½ cups of water into the pot and scrape up browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Add remaining garlic, 3 Tbsp. coconut vinegar or unseasoned rice vinegar, 2 Tbsp. soy sauce, 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, and remaining 1 Tbsp. sugar. Bring to a simmer, then return pork and eggplant to pot. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover, and simmer until eggplant is tender and silky and sauce is reduced by half, 20–25 minutes. Taste and season with more salt and pepper and add a little more sugar if needed.
7. Top with garlic chips and serve with cooked white rice.

Category: Beef

Area: Chinese

Ingredients:

• 450g Tofu
• 100g Minced Beef
• 1/2 tbs Sesame Seed Oil
• 1 1/2 tsp Doubanjiang
• 1/2 tsp Fermented Black Beans
• 1 tbs Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Sichuan pepper
• 1 tbs Soy Sauce
• 400ml Water
• 2 tbs Olive Oil
• 2 chopped Scallions
• 4 Spring Onions
• 2 cloves chopped Garlic
• 4 sliced Ginger
• 2 1/2 tbs Water
• 1 tbs Cornstarch

Instructions:

Add a small pinch of salt and sesame oil to minced beef. Mix well and set aside.
Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 and ½ tablespoons of water in a small bowl to make water starch.
Cut tofu into square cubes (around 2cms). Bring a large amount of water to a boil and then add a pinch of salt. Slide the tofu in and cook for 1 minute. Move out and drain.
Get a wok and heat up around 2 tablespoons of oil, fry the minced meat until crispy. Transfer out beef out and leave the oil in.
Fry doubanjiang for 1 minute over slow fire and then add garlic, scallion white, ginger and fermented black beans to cook for 30 seconds until aroma. Then mix pepper flakes in.
Add water to the seasonings and bring to boil over high fire. Gently slide the tofu cubes. Add light soy sauce and beef.Slow the heat after boiling and then simmer for 6-8 minutes. Then add chopped garlic greens.
Stir the water starch and then pour half of the mixture to the simmering pot. Wait for around 30 seconds and then pour the other half. You can slightly taste the tofu and add pinch of salt if not salty enough. By the way, if you feel it is too spicy, add some sugar can milder the taste. But be carefully as the broth is very hot at this point.
Transfer out when almost all the seasonings stick to tofu cubes. Sprinkle Szechuan peppercorn powder (to taste)and chopped garlic greens if using.
Serve immediately with steamed rice.

Category: Pasta

Area: Italian

Ingredients:

• 320g Spaghetti
• 6 Egg Yolks
• As required Salt
• 150g Bacon
• 50g Pecorino
• As required Black Pepper

Instructions:

STEP 1
Put a large saucepan of water on to boil.

STEP 2
Finely chop the 100g pancetta, having first removed any rind. Finely grate 50g pecorino cheese and 50g parmesan and mix them together.

STEP 3
Beat the 3 large eggs in a medium bowl and season with a little freshly grated black pepper. Set everything aside.

STEP 4
Add 1 tsp salt to the boiling water, add 350g spaghetti and when the water comes back to the boil, cook at a constant simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or until al dente (just cooked).

STEP 5
Squash 2 peeled plump garlic cloves with the blade of a knife, just to bruise it.

STEP 6
While the spaghetti is cooking, fry the pancetta with the garlic. Drop 50g unsalted butter into a large frying pan or wok and, as soon as the butter has melted, tip in the pancetta and garlic.

STEP 7
Leave to cook on a medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden and crisp. The garlic has now imparted its flavour, so take it out with a slotted spoon and discard.

STEP 8
Keep the heat under the pancetta on low. When the pasta is ready, lift it from the water with a pasta fork or tongs and put it in the frying pan with the pancetta. Don’t worry if a little water drops in the pan as well (you want this to happen) and don’t throw the pasta water away yet.

STEP 9
Mix most of the cheese in with the eggs, keeping a small handful back for sprinkling over later.

STEP 10
Take the pan of spaghetti and pancetta off the heat. Now quickly pour in the eggs and cheese. Using the tongs or a long fork, lift up the spaghetti so it mixes easily with the egg mixture, which thickens but doesn’t scramble, and everything is coated.

STEP 11
Add extra pasta cooking water to keep it saucy (several tablespoons should do it). You don’t want it wet, just moist. Season with a little salt, if needed.

STEP 12
Use a long-pronged fork to twist the pasta on to the serving plate or bowl. Serve immediately with a little sprinkling of the remaining cheese and a grating of black pepper. If the dish does get a little dry before serving, splash in some more hot pasta water and the glossy sauciness will be revived.

Category: Vegetarian

Area: Italian

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp Olive Oil
• 8 cloves chopped Garlic
• 3 tbsp Caster Sugar
• 2 tblsp Red Wine Vinegar
• 3 400g Cans Chopped Tomatoes
• Bunch Basil Leaves
• 2 tubs Mascarpone
• 3 tbsp Milk
• 85g Parmesan
• 2 sliced Mozzarella
• 1kg Spinach
• 100g Parmesan
• 3 tubs Ricotta
• pinch Nutmeg
• 400g Cannellini Beans

Instructions:

First make the tomato sauce. Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the garlic for 1 min. Add the sugar, vinegar, tomatoes and some seasoning and simmer for 20 mins, stirring occasionally, until thick. Add the basil and divide the sauce between 2 or more shallow ovenproof dishes (see Tips for freezing, below). Set aside. Make a sauce by beating the mascarpone with the milk until smooth, season, then set aside.

Put the spinach in a large colander and pour over a kettle of boiling water to wilt it (you may need to do this in batches). When cool enough to handle squeeze out the excess water. Roughly chop the spinach and mix in a large bowl with 100g Parmesan and ricotta. Season well with salt, pepper and the nutmeg.

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Using a piping bag or plastic food bag with the corner snipped off, squeeze the filling into the cannelloni tubes. Lay the tubes, side by side, on top of the tomato sauce and spoon over the mascarpone sauce. Top with Parmesan and mozzarella. You can now freeze the cannelloni, uncooked, or you can cook it first and then freeze. Bake for 30-35 mins until golden and bubbling. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 mins before serving.

Category: Beef

Area: Malaysian

Ingredients:

• 1/4 lb Minced Beef
• 1 Onion
• 3 Eggs
• 1 tbs Chilli
• 1/2 Baguette
• To taste Salt
• To taste Pepper
• Top Mayonnaise

Instructions:

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.
Heat a pan or griddle with a little vegetable oil.
Pour the mixture onto the pan and place a piece of open-faced baguette on top.
Press on the bread with a spatula and grill for 2 minutes.
Turn the bread over to make it a little crispy.
Remove from pan and cut the bread into small portions.
Add mayonnaise and/or Sambal before cutting the sandwich (optional).

Category: Chicken

Area: Indian

Ingredients:

• 1.2 kg Chicken
• 5 thinly sliced Onion
• 2 finely chopped Tomatoes
• 8 cloves chopped Garlic
• 1 tbsp Ginger paste
• ¼ cup Vegetable oil
• 2 tsp Cumin seeds
• 3 tsp Coriander seeds
• 1 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Chilli powder
• 2 Green chilli
• 1 cup Yogurt
• ¾ cup Cream
• 3 tsp Dried fenugreek
• 1 tsp Garam masala
• To taste Salt

Instructions:

Take a large pot or wok, big enough to cook all the chicken, and heat the oil in it. Once the oil is hot, add sliced onion and fry them until deep golden brown. Then take them out on a plate and set aside.
To the same pot, add the chopped garlic and sauté for a minute. Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook until tomatoes turn soft. This would take about 5 minutes.
Then return the fried onion to the pot and stir. Add ginger paste and sauté well.
Now add the cumin seeds, half of the coriander seeds and chopped green chillies. Give them a quick stir.
Next goes in the spices – turmeric powder and red chilli powder. Sauté the spices well for couple of minutes.
Add the chicken pieces to the wok, season it with salt to taste and cook the chicken covered on medium-low heat until the chicken is almost cooked through. This would take about 15 minutes. Slowly sautéing the chicken will enhance the flavor, so do not expedite this step by putting it on high heat.
When the oil separates from the spices, add the beaten yogurt keeping the heat on lowest so that the yogurt doesn’t split. Sprinkle the remaining coriander seeds and add half of the dried fenugreek leaves. Mix well.
Finally add the cream and give a final mix to combine everything well.
Sprinkle the remaining kasuri methi and garam masala and serve the chicken handi hot with naan or rotis. Enjoy!