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Category: Starter

Area: American

Ingredients:

• 1½ kg Clams
• 50g Butter
• 150g Bacon
• 1 finely chopped Onion
• sprigs of fresh Thyme
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1 tbls Plain Flour
• 150ml Milk
• 150ml Double Cream
• 2 medium Potatoes
• Chopped Parsley

Instructions:

Rinse the clams in several changes of cold water and drain well. Tip the clams into a large pan with 500ml of water. Cover, bring to the boil and simmer for 2 mins until the clams have just opened. Tip the contents of the pan into a colander over a bowl to catch the clam stock. When cool enough to handle, remove the clams from their shells – reserving a handful of empty shells for presentation if you want. Strain the clam stock into a jug, leaving any grit in the bottom of the bowl. You should have around 800ml stock.
Heat the butter in the same pan and sizzle the bacon for 3-4 mins until it starts to brown. Stir in the onion, thyme and bay and cook everything gently for 10 mins until the onion is soft and golden. Scatter over the flour and stir in to make a sandy paste, cook for 2 mins more, then gradually stir in the clam stock then the milk and the cream.
Throw in the potatoes, bring everything to a simmer and leave to bubble away gently for 10 mins or until the potatoes are cooked. Use a fork to crush a few of the potato chunks against the side of the pan to help thicken – you still want lots of defined chunks though. Stir through the clam meat and the few clam shells, if you've gone down that route, and simmer for a minute to reheat. Season with plenty of black pepper and a little salt, if needed, then stir through the parsley just before ladling into bowls or hollowed-out crusty rolls.

Category: Chicken

Area: Indian

Ingredients:

• 2 Juice lemons
• 4 tsp paprika
• 2 finely chopped red onions
• 16 skinnless chicken thighs
• For brushing vegetable oil
• 300ml Greek yogurt
• large piece ginger
• 4 garlic clove
• ¾ tsp garam masala
• ¾ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp chilli powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric

Instructions:

Mix the lemon juice with the paprika and red onions in a large shallow dish. Slash each chicken thigh three times, then turn them in the juice and set aside for 10 mins.
Mix all of the marinade ingredients together and pour over the chicken. Give everything a good mix, then cover and chill for at least 1 hr. This can be done up to a day in advance.
Heat the grill. Lift the chicken pieces onto a rack over a baking tray. Brush over a little oil and grill for 8 mins on each side or until lightly charred and completely cooked through.

Category: Dessert

Area: Polish

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Flour
• 2 Eggs
• 1 cup Milk
• 3/4 cup Water
• Pinch Salt
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 3 tbs Butter

Instructions:

Add flour, eggs, milk, water, and salt in a large bowl then mix with a hand mixer until you have a smooth, lump-free batter.
At this point, mix in the butter or the vegetable oil. Alternatively, you can use them to grease the pan before frying each pancake.
Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat, then pour in the batter, swirling the pan to help it spread.
When the pancake starts pulling away a bit from the sides, and the top is no longer wet, flip it and cook shortly on the other side as well.
Transfer to a plate. Cook the remaining batter until all used up.
Serve warm, with the filling of your choice.

Category: Beef

Area: Thai

Ingredients:

• 85g Peanuts
• 400ml can Coconut cream
• 4 tbsp Massaman curry paste
• 600g stewing cut into strips Beef
• 450g waxy Potatoes
• 1 cut thin wedges Onion
• 4 leaves Lime
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 1 tbsp Tamarind paste
• 1 tbsp palm or soft light Brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Fish Sauce
• 1 red deseeded and finely sliced, to serve chilli
• to serve Jasmine Rice

Instructions:

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6, then roast the peanuts on a baking tray for 5 mins until golden brown. When cool enough to handle, roughly chop. Reduce oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
Heat 2 tbsp coconut cream in a large casserole dish with a lid. Add the curry paste and fry for 1 min, then stir in the beef and fry until well coated and sealed. Stir in the rest of the coconut with half a can of water, the potatoes, onion, lime leaves, cinnamon, tamarind, sugar, fish sauce and most of the peanuts. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook for 2 hrs in the oven until the beef is tender.
Sprinkle with sliced chilli and the remaining peanuts, then serve straight from the dish with jasmine rice.

Category: Seafood

Area: French

Ingredients:

• 450g Potatoes
• 2 tblsp Olive Oil
• 4 Eggs
• 1 tbls Red Wine Vinegar
• 2 tblsp Capers
• 50g Sunflower Oil
• ½ Red Onions
• 100g Spinach
• 400g Tuna

Instructions:

Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Toss the potatoes with 2 tsp oil and some seasoning. Tip onto a large baking tray, then roast for 20 mins, stirring halfway, until crisp, golden and cooked through.
Meanwhile, put eggs in a small pan of water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 8-10 mins, depending on how you like them cooked. Plunge into a bowl of cold water to cool for a few mins. Peel away the shells, then cut into halves.
In a large salad bowl, whisk together the remaining oil, red wine vinegar, capers and chopped tomatoes. Season, tip in the onion, spinach, tuna and potatoes, then gently toss together. Top with the eggs, then serve straight away.

Category: Dessert

Area: Canadian

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Brown Sugar
• ¼ cup Butter
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 tsp Salt
• ½ cup Plain Flour
• 1 1/2 cups Milk

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9-inch pie dish.
Place the brown sugar and butter in a mixing bowl, and beat them together with an electric mixer until creamy and very well combined, without lumps. Beat in eggs, one at a time, incorporating the first egg before adding the next one. Add the vanilla extract and salt; beat the flour in, a little at a time, and then the milk, making a creamy batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pie dish.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes; remove pie, and cover the rim with aluminum foil to prevent burning. Return to oven, and bake until the middle sets and the top forms a crusty layer, about 15 more minutes. Let the pie cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Category: Vegetarian

Area: Japanese

Ingredients:

• 250g Udon Noodles
• 2 tbs Sesame Seed Oil
• 1 sliced Onion
• 0.25 Cabbage
• 10 Shiitake Mushrooms
• 4 Spring Onions
• 4 tbsp Mirin
• 2 tbs Soy Sauce
• 1 tblsp Caster Sugar
• 1 tblsp Worcestershire Sauce

Instructions:

Boil some water in a large saucepan. Add 250ml cold water and the udon noodles. (As they are so thick, adding cold water helps them to cook a little bit slower so the middle cooks through). If using frozen or fresh noodles, cook for 2 mins or until al dente; dried will take longer, about 5-6 mins. Drain and leave in the colander.
Heat 1 tbsp of the oil, add the onion and cabbage and sauté for 5 mins until softened. Add the mushrooms and some spring onions, and sauté for 1 more min. Pour in the remaining sesame oil and the noodles. If using cold noodles, let them heat through before adding the ingredients for the sauce – otherwise tip in straight away and keep stir-frying until sticky and piping hot. Sprinkle with the remaining spring onions.

Category: Beef

Area: Portuguese

Ingredients:

• 1 clove Garlic
• 2 small Beef Fillet
• 2 tbs Olive Oil
• 1 tbs Vinegar
• Leaves Parsley
• 2 Ciabatta
• 2 handfulls Rocket
• Small bunch Basil Leaves
• Small bunch Parsley
• 1 Jalapeno
• 1 tbs Vinegar
• 2 chopped Spring Onions
• 1/2 Garlic
• 1/2 tsp Caster Sugar

Instructions:

STEP 1

Rub the garlic over the steaks then put in a sandwich bag and tip in the olive oil, sherry vinegar and parsley stalks. Smoosh everything together, then use a rolling pin to bash the steaks a few times. Leave for 1-2 hours.

STEP 2

To make the sauce, put all the ingredients into a blender with 1 tbsp water and whizz until as smooth as possible. This will make more than you’ll need for the recipe but will keep for a week in an airtight jar.

STEP 3

Heat a griddle or frying pan to high. Brush away the garlic and parsley stalks from the steaks and season well. Sear the steaks for 2 minutes on each side then rest on a plate. Put the ciabatta halves onto the plate, toasted-side down, to soak up any juices.

STEP 4

Slice the steaks then stuff into the rolls with the green sauce and rocket.

Category: Side

Area: Japanese

Ingredients:

• 300g Sushi Rice
• 1 tbs Mirin
• Garnish Pickle Juice
• Garnish Spring Onions

Instructions:

STEP 1
Rinsing and soaking your rice is key to achieving the perfect texture. Measure the rice into a bowl, cover with cold water, then use your fingers to massage the grains of rice – the water will become cloudy. Drain and rinse again with fresh water. Repeat five more times until the water stays clear.

STEP 2
Tip the rinsed rice into a saucepan with 400ml water, or 200ml dashi and 200ml water, bring to the boil, then turn down the heat to a low simmer, cover with a tight-fitting lid with a steam hole and cook for 15 mins. Remove from the heat and leave to sit for another 15 mins, then stir through the mirin. Remove the lid and give it a good stir. Serve with any or all of the optional toppings.

Category: Dessert

Area: British

Ingredients:

• 225g Medjool dates
• 175ml Boiling water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 175g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 eggs
• 85g butter
• 140g demerara sugar
• 2 tbsp black treacle
• 100ml milk
• 1 scoop ice cream
• 175g muscovado sugar
• 50g butter
• 225ml double cream
• 1 tbsp black treacle

Instructions:

Stone and chop the dates quite small, put them in a bowl, then pour the boiling water over. Leave for about 30 mins until cool and well-soaked, then mash a bit with a fork. Stir in the vanilla extract. Butter and flour seven mini pudding tins (each about 200ml/7fl oz) and sit them on a baking sheet. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.
While the dates are soaking, make the puddings. Mix the flour and bicarbonate of soda together and beat the eggs in a separate bowl. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl for a few mins until slightly creamy (the mixture will be grainy from the sugar). Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in the black treacle then, using a large metal spoon, gently fold in one-third of the flour, then half the milk, being careful not to overbeat. Repeat until all the flour and milk is used. Stir the soaked dates into the pudding batter. The mix may look a little curdled at this point and will be like a soft, thick batter. Spoon it evenly between the tins and bake for 20-25 mins, until risen and firm.
Meanwhile, put the sugar and butter for the sauce in a medium saucepan with half the cream. Bring to the boil over a medium heat, stirring all the time, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Stir in the black treacle, turn up the heat slightly and let the mixture bubble away for 2-3 mins until it is a rich toffee colour, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn’t burn. Take the pan off the heat and beat in the rest of the cream.
Remove the puddings from the oven. Leave in the tins for a few mins, then loosen them well from the sides of the tins with a small palette knife before turning them out. You can serve them now with the sauce drizzled over, but they’ll be even stickier if left for a day or two coated in the sauce. To do this, pour about half the sauce into one or two ovenproof serving dishes. Sit the upturned puddings on the sauce, then pour the rest of the sauce over them. Cover with a loose tent of foil so that the sauce doesn’t smudge (no need to chill).
When ready to serve, heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Warm the puddings through, still covered, for 15-20 mins or until the sauce is bubbling. Serve them on their own, or with cream or custard.