Hey dhal!

Stokesy got on the case getting dinner ready while I was having my massage. It's a hard life isn't it. So I came home to lentil dhal, cumin/coriander cauliflower (cauli from the veggie box) and real poppadoms (fried by me).

For the cauliflower........cut into small florets then boil until tender. Drain and allow to dry. Heat some oil in a pan, then add cumin and coriander seeds until they crackle. Now chuck your cauli back in and stir fry until hot. finish with a big pinch of salt.

The secret to getting lovely crispy and non-greasy poppadoms is to get your oil really hot before you throw them in the pan. then they are in the oil for the minimum time.

Red fried rice

Hmmm Monday night dinner, always a tricky one. Especially tricky when you crash out on the sofa til 9pm oops! And watching trash TV too........'How clean is your house', I love those girls.

So peeling my eyes open at 9pm and responding to my growling stomach.......modern woman hunts for leftovers in the fridge. Aha some rice (short grain brown, gorgeous texture), red curry paste (made in a large batch last week).

In a big frying pan fry this lot for 5 minutes.......the curry paste, a little coconut milk, pinch of stock powder and splash of fish sauce. Now add the rice, mix mix mix and heat very thoroughly so you don't get food poisoning. for the last couple of minutes add the prawns and some finely sliced peppers. We had this with a pile of steamed kale and a big squeeze of lime juice.

Mmmmm......Spiced Turnip

We all went rock climbing yesterday (Me + Stokesy, The Dictator and her husband - The Combat Wombat). We went with Kierron from Adventurous Experiences, he's the guy in the 'Visit Isle of Man' advert. He does loads of cool trips...check it out http://www.adventurousexperiences.com/


On our return wanted something warming. Man those rocks are cold! A quick rummage in the veggie box and hey presto Spiced Turnip.


Chop the turnip into chunks then boil until soft. In a big fryig pan.......fry 1 tbsp sunflower oil, 1 green chilli (finely chopped), 1 tsp mustard seeds.....add 1tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1/2 tsp salt......then add the turnip. Mix mix mix. then finish with some finely sliced ginger and fresh coriander.

We had the turnip with lamb curry and rice (as above) but the lamb curry was all that tasty. I should have spent more time trying to get the flavour right but was too sleepy after all that fresh air

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.

Basil's Valentine Meal

As it is the international night of romance/cards/flowers/expensive meals out we decided to ignore all that commercial b*llocks and have lovely dinner at home with Wee Jan and Basil in attendance. Basil gave me Indian Cooking Made Easy* for Xmas so we broke that out and cooked a few dishes from it.

*It should be noted at this point that the only reason Basil bought me that cookery book was because he wants to do bad stuff with the author, Anjum Anand.

For main it was 1. Coconut and Chilli Halibut 2. Tandoori Salmon

On the side 1. Toasted chickpeas 2. a really refreshing cucumber/tomato/green chilli/peanut/coconut salad combo 3. cucumber raita

Then for puds it was a baked concoction, combining condensed milk/greek yoghurt/ cardamon/raisins. I just love that hint of cardamon. This recipe was taken from Atul Kochar's Simple Indian, if you're into Indian food you have to get this. The flavour combinations are incredible. One thing people often say to me is that they don't like Indian food because they think it is too oily. Aaargh not true.......Get this book people!