Recipes

I'll have to get around to it eventually.

Sag-Aloo (serves 4)

Ingredients

1 onion – chopped

1 chilli – finely chopped and de-seeded

1 ½ tbls cumin seeds

2tsp coriander seeds

1 ½ lb Potatoes, diced

1 tsp salt

15g coriander leaves- chopped

12 oz spinach –frozen (try to get whole leaf rather than chopped spinach)

crush the coriander seeds and cumin seeds, and put into a pan with a little oil. Fry for 2 minutes.

Add the chilli and onion and fry until soft.

Meanwhile, cook the potatoes. You can boil them, or microwave them for 5 minutes in a covered bowl with a little water.

Add the potatoes to the onion and spices, and mix well.

Add the coriander, spinach, and salt to taste. If your spinach is chopped and frozen in blocks, you will need to defrost it first. Whole leaf spinach can be cooked from frozen

Cover and cook on a low heat for about 15 minutes.

Serve with rice and/or unleavened bread.

This dish can be kept for a few days in the fridge, or frozen.

Dahl

Ingredients

1 onion – chopped

2 tblspn oil

1 clove garlic crushed

1/2in ginger chopped

1 small can chopped tomatoes

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp coriander

8Oz frozen spinach (whole leaf)

8Oz yellow lentils

15g coriander leaves

Soak the lentils overnight.

Fry the garlic and ginger in a large saucepan with the cumin, coriander, and onion until the onion is transparent. Add the lentils, turmeric, tomatoes, and enough water to cover the mixture, and cook slowly, covered until the lentils begin to dissolve into a puree (about 20-30mins), stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Add the salt, spinach and coriander leaves and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the spinach is cooked and all the water is absorbed. The dish should be a very soft puree.

Korma (serves 3)

Ingredients

13Oz Frozen Peeled Prawns

8 Oz Frozen or tinned sweetcorn

1 onion – chopped

7fl Oz coconut milk (or equivalent in creamed coconut made up with water)

2 tomatoes – chopped

1 desert spoon of sugar

15g coriander leaves – chopped

3/4 inch of fresh ginger – chopped finely

1 clove of garlic – chopped

1 level teaspoon turmeric

Garam-masala to garnish.

Put a little oil in a pan and gently fry the onion. Meanwhile, mix the coconut milk, turmeric, ginger, coriander leaves, sugar and garlic to form a thick sauce. Add the sauce to the onion, then add the sweetcorn, and tomato. Cook gently for 10 minutes, then add the prawns. Cook for another 5 minutes until the prawns are done. If the sauce is too thick, add warm water.

Garnish with Garam-masala and serve.

Note: This dish improves by being kept for a couple of days in the fridge to allow the flavours to mix.

Try replacing the prawns with mushrooms for a vegetarian option.

Unleavened bread

Ingredients

8 Oz SR Flour

Water

2 tblsp plain yoghurt

A pinch of salt

Simply mix self raising flower, water, yoghurt and a little salt to form a dough. Roll this out into a thin disk, and grill (or fry) for a couple of minutes on each side. Try adding coriander leaves to the mixture for a little flavour.

Mutta-paneer

A well known mild Indian dish. Paneer is a cheese a little like tofu in that it does not melt when fried.

8Oz Paneer cubed

1lb frozen peas

2 onions – chopped finely

1 chilli – chopped and de-seeded

1 inch of ginger – chopped

1 clove of garlic – crushed

1 tsp turmeric

1tsp coriander

1 small tin chopped tomatoes

2 tsp oil

2tblsp fresh coriander leaves – chopped

cube the paneer, and fry it quickly to make it golden brown.

Fry the onions, garlic, ginger, and chilli, and add the turmeric, and coriander.

Add the tomatoes and a little salt, and cook with a little water until the tomatoes dissolve into a puree. Add the paneer and peas, and just cover with water. Cook the dish until the sauce has thickened (20 mins) then stir in the coriander leaves, and serve.

Note: If you can’t get paneer, you can use tofu, or less effectively cheddar (which some Indian take-aways use) – this can’t be fried because it melts, so you need to just cube it, and drop it into the dish just before serving.

Mango chutney

Ingredients

2 mangoes, diced

2 onions – chopped.

1 ½ wine glasses of vinegar

1 ½ wine glasses of sugar

4 Oz currants/raisons

4 or 5 cloves

A pinch of chilli seeds

Soften the onions in a little oil over a low heat until they are transparent

Add the rest of the ingredients

Cook slowly for about 20-25 minutes or until the mixture thickens.

If you like the chutney sweeter or sharper, change the ratio of vinegar to sugar.

Pour the mixture into a clean jar, and seal it. Leave in the fridge to cool.

Chutneys and pickles improve with age. A few days or weeks in the fridge will thicken the mixture, and strengthen the flavour.

Egg in mustard and coconut sauce

2 eggs

4Oz Mushrooms

½ pint Coconut milk (or equivalent in coconut extract made up with water)

1 tsp Mustard

Pepper

Cut the mushrooms up into small chunks, and fry in oil or butter until quite concentrated. Add coconut cream and mustard. Warm through sauce gently.

Hard boil, and peel the eggs and cut them in two. Sprinkle with pepper, then pour the sauce over.

Serve on a bed of rice.

Squid and pineapple tempura (serves 3-4)

Ingredients

1lb squid

½ a pineapple

6oz flour

1 egg

½ pint of milk

oil for deep frying.

Prepare the squid by removing the tube, and tentacles, and cutting them into bite sized chunks. Discard the rest of the squid. Cut the flesh of the pineapple into similar sized cubes.

Meanwhile, mix up a very thick, lumpy batter by whisking the egg and milk together with the flour. Don’t worry if there are lumps in the batter – there are supposed to be! Put the batter in the fridge for about ½ hour, and give it a quick whisk when you get it out again.

Meanwhile fill a saucepan ½ full of oil, and heat it to boiling point (if you drop a piece of batter in, it should become crisp and bubbly immediately if the oil is hot enough.

Dip the squid and pineapple pieces in the batter, then place them into the fat using a slatted spoon. Give each piece just a minute or so to cook, then remove it and place it on some kitchen paper to drain off the excess oil.

Serve with rice, and perhaps a chilli dip.

Note: you can make a tempura with anything – try mushrooms, king prawns, and chunks of fish.

Stir fried sea-food (serves 4)

200g Tiger Prawns

300g squid tubes

200g scallops – ideally queen scallops – but we’re all on a budget!

300g mussels

1inch Ginger chopped finely

3 Cloves garlic chopped finely

Sesame oil

Lemon juice

Salt to taste

Remove the heads and tails of the prawns, and take off their shells. Pull out the blue vein running along the length f the body. Cut the squid tubes into rings.

Heat a wok or frying pan until very hot. Add about 1tblsp of oil.

Add the garlic, ginger, prawns, squid, scallops and mussels. Fry very quickly, until the prawns turn pink. Add a little lemon juice, and a sprinkling of sesame oil.

Remove from the pan, and serve immediately with rice.

Note: For a cheaper version, use any fresh white fish to bulk up the mixture

Sesame prawn toast

1 egg

6 Oz prawns – cooked and peeled

4 tblsp sesame seeds

salt

4 slices of bread

cut the prawns into small pieces, and add them to the beaten egg with a little salt.

Spread the mixture on the bread, then cover the top with sesame seeds.

Press the covering down with a bread knife to make it firm, then put it in the fridge for ½ hour

Heat a little oil in a frying pan until it is very hot, then fry the bread on both sides until golden brown.

Sweet and Sour fried cabbage (serves 2)

1/2 Cabbage cut into short, thick strips

1 tblsp Ginger pure

3 tblsp flour

4 oz Small mushrooms halved.

Put cabbage and mushrooms into a plastic bag, and add ginger puree. Shake the bag to coat veg then add flour. Shake again to coat the veg, then drop into 1/4 in of very hot oil. Fry for a couple of minutes, then drain on kitchen paper.

Serve with rice and Sweet and sour sauce.

Pasta and avocado (serves 3-4)

2 large avocados

12 Oz mushrooms

4 fresh tomatoes

10 Oz Pasta

2 cloves of Garlic - crushed

1tblsp Balsamic vinegar

1 tblsp fresh basil, chopped

13 Oz cheddar cheese (try Mozzarella as a variation)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Chop the mushrooms into large chunks, and fry with garlic in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.

Meanwhile, boil the pasta until al-dente (about 15 minutes depending on type)

Chop the avocados, cheese and tomatoes into chunks.

Add the pasta to the mushrooms, and drop in the avocados, tomatoes vinegar, and seasoning. Warm all the ingredients through.

Finally, add the cheese chunks and serve immediately as the cheese is softening, but not melted.

Aubergine layers (serves 3-4)

2 medium sized aubergines

4 cloves of garlic - crushed

1 14g tin chopped tomatoes

6Oz cheddar cheese – grated

2tblsp tomato puree

1 tsp mixed herbs

2Oz Flour

salt

Oil

Cut the aubergine into slices about ¼ in thick. Salt, and leave in a colander for 30 minutes. This draws out any bitterness in the vegetable.

Place them into a sealed plastic bag with the flour, and shake it to coat the slices.

Heat about 1/8 in of oil in a wok or frying pan until very hot, then fry each piece of aubergine to brown the flour (You may have to add more oil as you go along). Remove and place on kitchen paper to drain excess oil.

Mix the garlic, tomatoes, puree and herbs in a blender to create a sauce.

In a large dish, create a layer of aubergine followed by a layer of sauce, then a layer of cheese. Keep layering until you run out of aubergine. Finish with the remaining sauce and cheese.

Bake in a medium oven for 20 minutes, then grill to brown the cheese on the top.

Serve with rice, roast potatoes or salad

Note: Try alternating layers of aubergine with pasta or cous-cous.

Easy Pizza

Base

6 Oz plain flour

2-3 tblsp Olive oil

warm water

¼ tsp salt

Topping

2 cloves of garlic

I 14 g Tin chopped tomatoes

1 Tbsp tomato puree

3 Oz mozzarella cheese

3 Oz Mushrooms

1 red pepper

1 tsp mixed herbs

Put the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add oil and small amounts of water and keep mixing it in until the mixture holds together as a dough.

Place on a floured surface, and roll out to a roughly circular shape (many people use yeast in the dough which makes a more elastic mixture. This can be tossed to get a round shape. I just stick to the oil, flour and water mix for a quicker, simpler pizza).

Meanwhile, mix the tomatoes, puree, garlic and herbs to form a thick mixture.

Place the base on a baking tray, and spread the tomato sauce over it. Add chopped mushrooms, pepper, and cheese or any other combination you like.

Place in a hot oven for 15 minutes. Or until the topping is browned

Home made Pasta parcels (serves 4)

Pasta

2 eggs

8oz flour

filling

1 tin tuna

3 Oz mushrooms

1 clove garlic

2oz cheese - grated

½ tsp dried basil

pesto sauce

3oz fresh basil leaves

4 tblsp olive oil

1 clove garlic (chopped)

2oz pine nuts

1-2 oz parmesan cheese

sieve the pasta into a bowl, and add the eggs. Mix lightly to form a dough.

Roll out on a floured surface until very thin.

Using a pastry cutter (or the top of a large glass!), cut the dough into circles around 2-3 inches in diameter.

Meanwhile, cut the mushrooms up small, and fry them in the garlic and a little oil. Mix with the tuna and grated cheese, and place a small amount onto each circle of pasta. Fold the disk over and squeeze the edges to seal the mixture into the pocket. Moistening the edges of the pasta disk may help them to seal.

Place the pasta into boiling water with a little salt for 5-7 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the pesto – simply place the basil leaves, oil, garlic, parmesan cheese and pine nuts into a blender, and blend them thoroughly. If the mixture seems too dry, add more olive oil.

Finally, mix the pesto and the pasta together, and serve.

Salmon Omelette

3Oz salmon fillet - skinned

3 eggs

1 oz grated cheese

t tbsp fresh basil

pinch of salt

pepper

1 clove garlic - crushed

cut the fish into small chunks, and put into a hot frying pan with a little oil for 3 minutes. Beat the eggs, and add the basil and garlic, and pour over the fish.

Add the salt, and pepper, and sprinkle the cheese.

Cook until the underside is browning, then turn the omelette over. Serve when the egg is just cooked

Peppers stuffed with anchovies and tomato

1 large pepper

1 tomato

2 cloves of garlic – roughly chopped

1 tblsp olive oil

3 anchovies

a few leaves of basil or rosemary

cut the pepper in half lengthways, and remove the seeds. Cut the tomato in two

Place the two halves of the pepper in a shallow dish with a tomato half inside each.

Put the garlic, anchovies and herbs inside the pepper, and pour a little oil into each.

Place in a very hot oven for about 45 minutes until the peppers are soft, and the skin slightly blackened.

Note: Try adding mushrooms to the pepper

Grilled fish

1 whole mackerel or herring - gutted

1 tblsp balsamic vinegar

1 clove garlic – chopped

1 tblsp olive oil

½ tsp dried basil

Make diagonal cuts down the side of the fish into the flesh.

Mix up a vinaigrette of the vinegar, oil, garlic, and herbs.

Spread this inside, and over the fish

Place under a grill for about 12 minutes, turning once.

This very simple way of cooking fish is ideal with fried potatoes, rice, or just simply with bread. To make it even simpler, try using pesto, or mustard instead of the dressing.

The simplest Veggie Lasagne in the world (Serves 4)

Pre-cooked lasagne sheets

1 Large tub of plain yoghurt

6 Oz cheese – grated

1 can chilli-beans

1 can chopped tomatoes

1 tsp dried mixed herbs

1 large onion – chopped

Mix the onion, tomatoes, and chilli beans (if you don’t have chilli beans just use kidney beans, and mix in a little Tabasco sauce) with the herbs in a bowl. In a large cooking dish, put a layer of lasagne, a layer of the tomato mixture, and another layer of lasagne. Then pour on half the yoghurt and a little cheese.

Follow this with the remaining mixture, another layer of lasagne, and the rest of the yoghurt and cheese.

Bake in the top of a moderate oven for 30 minutes until the lasagne has softened and the cheese has browned.

Note: You can elaborate this very easily with mushrooms, peppers, sweetcorn, courgettes, or whatever you have to hand.

Pepper and mozzarella toast

1 pepper

2 Oz Mozzarella cheese

1 clove garlic – roughly chopped

1 tomato

1 tblsp fresh basil

salt and pepper

1 small ciabatta bread

1 tblsp olive oil

Halve the pepper, and remove the seeds. Either boil it until soft, or put it in a covered dish in a microwave with a little water for 5 minutes. The pepper should be very soft.

Cut the pepper and tomato into strips, mix them with the garlic and basil, and place onto the bread. Add salt and pepper to taste, and lay chunks of the mozzarella on the top.

Grill until the cheese melts.

Note: Try using an avocado instead of the pepper.

Sea-food risotto (serves 3-4)

1½ coffee mugs of risotto rice

2 glasses of white wine or cider

2 tblsp balsamic vinegar

200g mussels – in the half shell

200g peeled, cooked prawns

100g squid rings

200g scallops

2 onions

15g coriander leaves – chopped

2 tblsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves – crushed

6Oz button mushrooms

fry the garlic and onion gently in the oil. Add the rice stirring well to coat all the rice in oil. Now add the wine, and mushrooms. Scrub the mussel shells, and add these too.

Simmer slowly for 10 minutes, then add the squid, scallops vinegar and a little water.

Cook slowly until the rice is cooked, adding more water (or wine) as necessary.

Finally, add the prawns (if you add them too early, they will shrink to nothing) and coriander, and season to taste. The rice should absorb all the liquid, and become sticky.

Note: Try pouring the risotto into a shallow dish, grating cheese on the top, then grilling it until golden brown. Also, try replacing the coriander with a couple of spoonfuls of pesto sauce.

Guacamole

2 avocados

2 tomatoes

1tsp paprika

3 cloves of garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Simply blend all the ingredients together, and serve!

Tortillas and re-fried beans

1 14g tin Pinto beans

2 tsp cumin

1 onion

1 14g tin chopped tomatoes

Tabasco sauce

cornflower

1 tblsp oil

mix the cumin and pinto beans in a bowl, mashing the beans a little with a fork.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, fry the onion in the oil.

Add the pinto beans, tomatoes, and a few drops of Tabasco sauce. Simmer for 20 minutes.

If the mixture is too thin, mix up a spoonful of cornflower with a little water into a thick paste, and stir this in as a thickener.

Serve with flour tortillas, grated cheese, rice, guacamole and natural yoghurt.

Veggie shepherds pie (serves 3)

1 ½ lb potatoes.

1 Tin chopped tomatoes

1 Tin Chilli beans

4 ox mushrooms

1 onion

1 tsp mixed herbs

2 Oz – grated cheese

1 tblsp sesame seeds

boil, then mash the potato, adding a little butter, and pepper to it.

Meanwhile, fry the onion until transparent in a little oil, then add the chopped mushrooms. Fry for 5 minutes, then add the tomatoes, chilli beans, and herbs.

Cook gently for 10-15 minutes to concentrate the mixture stirring occasionally (add a little paste of flour and water to thicken if the mixture is too liquid).

Pour the mixture into a large ovenproof dish, and cover with mashed potato. Sprinkle the cheese and sesame seeds over the top.

Cook in a moderate oven for 30 minutes.

Fish and chips (serves 4)

4x 6Oz fillets of cod, haddock, or other white fish

3oz flour

1 ½ lb potatoes

5 cloves of garlic

2 sprigs of rosemary

salt

4 tblsp of oil

for the sauce:

1 pint milk

2Oz butter

2Oz flour

1 glass white wine

2 oz cheese

pepper

Chop the potatoes into cubes about 1in in size. Microwave them in a covered dish with a little water on high for 5 minutes (or boil them)

Heat a little oil in a large saucepan or wok until very hot, then drop the potato cubes into it.

Cook – turning often to prevent burning until the potatoes are browned, adding more oil if necessary.

Chop the garlic into thin slices, and add to the potato along with the rosemary, and a sprinkling of salt. Keep stirring until the garlic is browned, then cover, and remove from the heat.

Coat the fish in flour, and fry to seal it in a separate pan until the outside is cooked. Turn the heat down, and cover, allowing the fish to cook through (for about 10-15 minutes).

Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, over a low heat and stir in the flour to form a paste. Gradually add the milk a small amount at a time, stirring constantly to make a smooth sauce. Continue to stir until the sauce begins to thicken, then slowly begin to add the wine. Finally, stir in the grated cheese, and add pepper.

Pour the sauce over the fish, and serve. With the garlic potatoes.

Veggie lentil loaf

Try this for a tasty vegetarian roast dinner.

Ingredients:

12 oZ red lentils

4 Oz cheese

4 Oz breadcrumbs

2 Onions - chopped

2 cloves of garlic - crushed

4 0z mushrooms

1 tsp mixed herbs

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp yeast extract

fry the onion and garlic in 2 tblsp of oil until transparent. Add the mushrooms, and fry for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, boil the lentils in 400 ml of water until soft (about 20minutes).

In a large bowl, mix the cooked lentils with all the other ingredients, and spoon the mixture into a large loaf tin. Bake in a medium oven for about 30 minutes.

Serve with roast potatoes and some onion gravy.

Super eggy fried bread

2 eggs

4 slices of bread

2 cloves of garlic

2 tblsp coriander leaves

salt and pepper

Beat the eggs, and mix in the garlic, coriander, salt and pepper. Soak the bread in the egg mixture, then fry on both sides until golden brown.

Easy Mushroom and tuna pasta serves 3-4

10 Oz of any pasta

1 large tin condensed mushroom soup

1 onion - chopped

3 Oz cheese – grated

1 tin of tuna

3 Oz frozen sweetcorn

1 tsp mixed herbs

Boil the pasta for 15 minutes until al-dente.

Fry the onion until transparent.

Put into an oven dish with the soup, herbs, tuna, sweetcorn and onion.

Grate the cheese on the top.

Put at the top of a medium oven for 15 minutes, until the cheese is browned.

Sandwich pickle

4 onions – chopped.

2 peppers – chopped and de-seeded

1 ½ wine glasses of vinegar

1 ½ wine glasses of sugar

6 Oz currants/raisons

fry the onions and peppers in a little oil for 5-10 minutes.

Add the rest of the ingredients

Cook slowly for about 20-25 minutes or until the mixture thickens.

If you like the chutney sweeter or sharper, change the ratio of vinegar to sugar.

Pour the mixture into a clean jar, and seal it. Leave in the fridge to cool.

Chutneys and pickles improve with age. A few days or weeks in the fridge will thicken the mixture, and strengthen the flavour.