Griddled chicken with paysanne veg and basil oil

Okay so you have to admit, all that tricky prep makes for a pretty slick looking dish. We learnt the art of French trimming our chicken after jointing it and removing the wishbone (errm not that end Donna). Plus giving our cherry tomatoes these little Gary Rhodes hairdos. All topped off with a basil infused oil and deep fried basil leaves.

Khao soy - yellow curry

I had this dish for the first time in Thailand in November. Elbowing a little Thai granny out the way to get a seat at a very crowded food stall, then perching on a little Thai-person sized stool. Hmmm and then the problem of ordering when I don't speak Thai. Aaah but it was all worth it, Khao soy is available all over the north of the country and above is my version (hey the boyfriend made this one, nice one Stokesy!).

And for once I'll give the full recipe.....first make your paste........oh and please don't look at this and think 'it's too long, there are too many ingredients'. I taught this at my Thai cookery day and everyone got to grips with this no problem and agreed it was way easier than it seemed from the first glance at the recipe.

Yellow paste:
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp lemongrass
½ tbsp ginger, grate or finely chopped
3 large red chillies, deseeded and chopped
½ tbsp garlic, chopped
1 tbsp shallots, chopped
2½ tbsp curry powder, garam masala
½ tsp salt

Dry fry the cumin and coriander seed in a pan over a low heat. Crush in the mortar to a fine powder.
Add the lemongrass and ginger, pound until smooth. Then add the remaining ingredients and pound into a paste
NB: This can be stored in a glass jar in the fridge for 3 months

Now make your dish

2 tbsp groundnut oil
2 tbsp coconut milk
1 ½ tbsp Khao soy yellow curry paste
2 x chicken thighs, 2 x chicken legs - all bone in
2 cups coconut milk
2 cups water
100g flat egg noodles
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp fresh coriander
Add Khao soy accompaniments – lime wedges, pickled greens and finely sliced shallots

Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the coconut milk and curry paste and cook over a very gentle heat to release the flavours and fragrance. Skimp on time at this stage and the flavour will be compromised.
Add the chicken, coconut milk and water and boil gently until the chicken is cooked (about 30 minutes).
Cook the noodles in boiling water according to packet instructions. Then refresh in cold water to stop them cooking too much.
Going back to your curry….Add the stock powder, sugar and fish sauce. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes then serve.
To serve: put the boiled noodles in a bowl, spoon over the curry. Garnish with coriander. Your guests should help themselves to the accompaniments and add them to their bowls.

The authentic version added deep fried noodles as a final topping but I leave that stage out because I burn them without fail.

Little pies

Today I did some final testing for a party next week. One of the items they're having are cute little 2-bite size chicken and leek pies. The testing was to determine the amounts I'll need for next week. Portion control plays a big part in catering, too much and you're wasting money. Too little and people go hungry, not good. I'm still learning about portion control and all the amounts get written in my little book for future reference.

Plus my mum (Wee Jan) was coming round for lunch so it was nice to make these for her. Wee Jan makes very good what I would call classic food and I'll add her stuff to posts the odd time as well. Let's hope she makes her amazing Eve's pudding (gooey apple sponge stuff) sometime soon. When me and my brother used to come home from boarding school that was always our request for the first meal at home.