Feeling ballsy.
A few years ago, a copy of the Stylist was thrust in to my hand as I made my way to work.
Read moreBBQ Carne Asada
BBQ Superstar.
This is a cracking recipe that really has the wow factor without breaking the bank. Bust it out at a BBQ party and it’ll be the star of the show.
Read moreMonte Cristo
To the library.
I’ve no idea if this originated on the island of Montechristo or if it appears the literary classic that shares the same name, but it’s bloody good.
Read moreKorean beef salad
You have been evicted.
The offender in question was a rib of beef that had been languishing in the freezer for longer than intended. You see, roasts don’t get much of a look in round these parts (I know, call myself English? Tut tut).
Read moreBeefy empanadas
Glutton without prejudice.
Minced beef crispy pancakes, remember them? Yeah me too. They were one of my pikey penchants during my teenage years, glutton without prejudice that I was.
Read moreHot and sour soup
A trip down memory lane.
Round these parts, when illness strikes of the cold and flu variety, the first thing my mind turns to is soup. Nope, not chicken soup (though I am partial to a good chook broth) but aromatic, zingy, spicy Thai soups.
Read moreHarissa chicken meatballs
Ibizan delights.
I’ve been in a bit of a recipe rut of late, but our recent family holiday to the beautiful white island has proven a new source of food inspiration. Ibizan food it seems is having a moment in the sun, scuse the pun.
Read moreBeef bo kho
A sexed up stew.
As the cold snap continues it seems only right that I continue with some not so cold snap. See what I did there? Sorry, it’s the chill, it’s getting to me.
Read moreBeer braised short ribs
Bigger, bolder, beefier.
Beef cooked on the bone always tastes better — it’s bigger, bolder and well, er, beefier. Shame it’s usually super pricey.
Read moreBeef and horseradish crostini
A very British canapé.
Beef and horseradish are best friends that hold a special place in many a Brit’s heart. But contrary to popular belief, they don’t only have to put in an appearance at Sunday lunch. Oh no.
They go a treat on a delicate little crostini too, making them ideal snackage for parties, soirees or any good old fashioned booze-ups you might be planning for this coming festive season. I created these beefy little bites for Superfood Magazine’s Christmas special along with 9 others.
Read moreMini tortillas
Picnic perfection.
Picnics are a great playground for the cooks imagination. As we swap our sofas and dining tables for the great outdoors, it’s chance to not just take indoor food outside, but to get inventive with ingredients as we have a bit more fun in the sun.
Read moreFragrant stir fried lamb
New ways with lamb.
I’m fairly new to cooking lamb Chinese style at home. Beef and chicken are my go-to meats of choice for stir fries, but lamb makes a tasty change, especially with white pepper and fresh coriander root.
Read moreWild boar ragu
Big bold boar.
We’ve all done it, come back from the food shop with random things you didn’t plan on buying, only later to find yourself wondering “what was I thinking?”.
Read moreSpicy beef wontons
A must-have Chinese ingredient.
There used to be a little dim sum shop in my home city that I liked going to after work sometimes. I was young and too self conscious to eat on my own in restaurants, so I’d drag whoever I could get to come with me from the office and order a basket of the spicy beef dumplings and scoff them down, trying to remember to share them.
Read moreMexican chicken pibil stew
I really enjoy sussing out flavours.
Picking up on ingredients in dishes when I’m out and about and figuring out what’s in them and how their tastes fit together, banking them in my head for future reference when I’m in my kitchen at home. But there are times when try as I might, I haven’t the foggiest what the flavours are that I’m tasting — like the first time I ate the Mexican pibil.
Read moreHam and herb rolls
High on protein, light on carbs.
As you can probably tell from my twitter feed and recipes, I’m not a member of the no carb crew. In fact, after reading recently that our brains can’t produce serotonin without them I tucked in to a loaf of bread with abandon and rejoiced that carbs it seems, do actually make you happy.
Read moreProper chicken stew and dumplings
Us Brits aren’t famed for our culinary treasures.
Leaf through a historical cook book and you’ll find all sorts of strange dishes (deer kidney with dates, anyone?). But there are some gems that we’ve held on to, like shepherds pie, toad in the hole, the roast dinner, and good old fashioned stew and dumplings.
Read moreSpicy turkey pasta
Fast, flexible and fail safe.
With the nights drawing in and my commute feeling ever longer, it’s more and more important to get a bank of fast and cockle warming recipes I can turn to when time in the kitchen is limited.
Read morePersian pulled lamb
Pig isn’t the only meat you can pull.
Some ingredients have magical properties, the ability to change a dish completely. Like smoked paprika, a pinch of saffron, a chunk of chocolate, a sprinkling of truffle salt or a zingy preserved lemon (or two), though obviously not all at once. That’d be dinner disaster.
Read moreSpanish cod one pot
A dish that needs little introduction.
Cod simmered in chorizo and saffron spiked broth with chick peas, lemon and parsley. Just typing it makes my mouth water.
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