Chicken and Roasted Vegetables

Sometimes you get fed up doing the same thing with vegetables. This time I diced the vegetables (carrot, onion, potato and garlic) and put them in a casserole dish with a drizzle of rapeseed oil. Cooked in the oven for half an hour, lidded, and then another twenty five minutes without the lid. The slices of chicken were cooked in a lidded pan with arrowroot (as a thickener) and chicken stock, for about twenty five minutes. Served with black pepper. 

Chicken Minestrone

Minestrone has always been a dish based on using up various left-over ingredients. This version used left-over diced roast chicken and carrot. With added garlic and some red chilli. I used arrowroot as a thickener. Great dish!
 

Beef Chilli with Roast Potatoes

Ground beef, browned for twenty five minutes in sunflower oil along with diced spring onion, Then simmered in water for two hours under glass at a lowish heat. After which the vegetable stock is added, the chilli, the diced yellow pepper, and the haricot beans and tomato puree.

Arrowroot was mixed with some water and added during the last ten minutes (it functions as a thickener). Stirred thoroughly through the beef.

Roast potatoes were cooked in an oven preheated to 190 deg C. Cooking times will vary. These took fifty minutes, drizzled in sunflower oil. Judge by eye. Turned once to ensure even browning. 

 

Garlic Sausage Casoulet

A straightforward casoulet made with chunks of Polish garlic sausage, along with red pepper, potato, diced onion, fresh coriander, and diced flat mushroom. With a little red chilli. Cooked originally with sunflower oil. The gravy was thickened with a dessert spoonful of arrowroot powder. 

 

Carrot Soup with a Garlic and Coriander Naan Bread

 A couple of medium sized carrots grated in a rotary grater I bought from Aldi many moons ago, and diced one small onion. Cooked together in a small pan with some water for about two hours at a low heat under glass. I added some arrowroot mixed with water (cornflour will do as well). Plus two bay leaves. Then I added a pinch of paprika, a pinch of turmeric, black pepper, and some dried coriander leaf. Allowed to cook for a further ten minutes. 

Served with a piece of garlic and coriander naan bread, toasted for a couple of minutes in a standard kitchen toaster. 

Ground Beef with Black Pepper

A great dish which largely cooks itself after you have browned the minced beef and diced the vegetables. Brown the beef at a medium heat until it begins to spark, stirring frequently. Then add the diced vegetables and cook for another five minutes, having turned the heat down to low. Then add boiling water, the beef stock, and some arrowroot (or cornflour) mixed with water, to produce a thicker gravy. Add a generous amount of freshly ground black peppercorns, according to taste. Stir together, and once thoroughly mixed, simmer under glass for about forty-five minutes. 

Serve with basmati rice. 

 

King Prawns in a Lime and Tomato salsa

The rice for this dish was prepared first. A small handful of Thai black rice was boiled for twenty minutes, then drained and set aside. Basmati rice was cooked in a little turmeric at a low heat for about half an hour (the black rice was added after ten minutes), until most of the water had been soaked up, and the rice grains became stuck together (easier to eat rice with chopsticks that way).. 

The lime and tomato salsa was made with arrowroot, water, tomato puree, a pinch of turmeric, and a teaspoonful of lime pickle (a squeeze of lime juice would do just as well). I also added a red finger chilli for heat, and a pinch of basil. Simmered for ten to fifteen minutes until the salsa thickens.

The rest is easy. 140g of Nicaraguan King prawns were steamed for about seven minutes. I cut a quarter of a red pepper into strips, and diced a purple onion. The dish was assembled with a  lettuce salad. The prawns were added, and dressed in the salsa before serving. Delicious!

 

Chicken Gumbo with Green Beans and Red Pepper

Not an authentic Louisiana dish, but inspired by Cajun gumbo recipes. Chicken goujons from the fridge refried until slightly browned in olive oil. I added julienned onion (two small ones), half a diced red pepper, and about 75g of diced green beans.

I made the sauce with a teaspoonful of arrowroot powder in water (normally cornflour or flour), half a 400g can of chopped tomatoes, a teaspoonful of Cajun seasoning, a teaspoonful of paprika, and half a teaspoonful of red chilli powder. Then I added some chicken stock. Cooked for fifteen minutes. 

The sauce was added to the chicken and vegetables, along with about 100g of boiling water. Cooked slowly half under glass until the sauce thickened again. 

Served with some steamed basmati rice, originally cooked with diced root ginger. 

Sweet and Sour pan-fried Chicken

Basmati rice cooked with finely diced root ginger. Pan-fried chicken goujons, cooked slowly (mostly under glass). Plus a sweet and sour sauce which had been in the fridge for a few days, which I made for a previous dish (essentially two teaspoonfuls of tomato puree, a dash of fish sauce, a little sugar, and diced pineapple I added arrowroot as a thickener). I added diced spring onion. Served with a little white pepper and a dusting of coriander leaf. Delicious!

Sweet and Sour Roast Pork

Sweet and sour roast  pork served with brown basmati rice. 

The sweet and sour sauce was made from scratch, with a teaspoonful of arrowroot (as opposed to corn starch or cornflour), two squirts of tomato puree (ketchup will do fine), fish sauce, half a teaspoon of chillli powder, and three teaspoonfuls of sugar. Plus three diced rings of pinapple from a tin, along with a couple of dessert spoonfuls of pinapple juice.

The pork came from two previously roasted pork steaks, which were cut into strips and fried in sunflower oil until slightly browned.  Excellent dish.  

 

Chicken and Brussels Sprout Soup, with Herbs

Fabulous soup made with roasted diced chicken breast (one half). Plus water, chicken stock, and three Brussels sprouts, diced Italian style. Plus one julienned white onion. Cooked together for at least forty-five minutes. Thickened with a teaspoonful of arrowroot.  The herbs tarragon and sage were added ten minutes before serving. 

The chicken breast was cooked with two others in a casserole dish for at least 45 minutes at 180 deg C on the middle shelf of a preheated oven. 

 

Sweet Potato Soup

Made with diced leek, carrot, red pepper and yellow pepper, and sweet potato.

Cooked for half an hour until the vegetables were soft, and then mashed. I added some arrowroot powder as a thickener. Plus vegetable stock, paprika, oregano and coriander.

Cooked for another forty-five minutes before serving, with some white pepper.

This is a simple soup capable of endless variation - tomatoes, tomato puree, spinach, courgette, green peas, sweetcorn,  etc.

Ham and Brocolli Soup

A simple but delicious dish made with ham (actually course cut smoked bacon), white onion, and half a head of brocolli. Plus pork stock.

The ham was fried in its own fat for twenty minutes, starting at a high heat, and then reduced to a low heat. Then the julienned white onion was added, and cooked with the ham for another twenty five minutes at a medium heat, stirring occasionally.

I diced half a head of brocolli into small chunks, including most of the stem, and added the pieces to the pan. Cooked for ten minutes, stirring frequently. Then boiling water was added to the pan, along with the pork stock.Plus a dessert spoonful of ground arrowroot, to thicken the soup.  Cooked slowly for an hour and a half.

Served with potato bread.

Beef Chilli, with Red Kidney Beans

Made with ground beef, chickpeas, red kidney beans, sweetcorn, red pepper, red chilli, tomato puree, chestnut mushrooms, diced leek, potato, garlic, and spring onion.

The ground beef was prepared first, browned in a little sunflower oil at a medium heat for about 25 minutes, stirring frequently. Then boiling water was added.

Thickened with half a teaspoonful of arrowroot, and flavoured with beef stock. The sweetcorn came straight from the cob, though tinned sweetcorn will do just as well.

The dried chickpeas and the kidney beans were soaked overnight, drained, and then cooked in fresh water with powdered red chilli and crushed garlic. Then simmered with the beef, sweetcorn, diced red pepper, mushrooms, tomato puree, potato, and chopped spring onion. The beef stock and another half a dessert spoonful of red chilli powder were added last.

Serve with plain boiled basmati rice, or with a chilled Greek yoghurt.

Spicy Mushroom, Chickpea and Sweetcorn Stew

Made with chickpeas, sweetcorn, red pepper, chestnut mushrooms and spring onion. Thickened with half a teaspoonful of arrowroot, flavoured with herbes de Provence and vegetable stock. The sweetcorn came straight from the cob, though tinned sweetcorn will do just as well.

Dried chickpeas were soaked overnight, and then cooked with powdered red chilli and crushed garlic. Rinsed, and then simmered with the sweetcorn, diced red pepper, mushrooms, and chopped spring onion. The vegetable stock and the herbs were added last.

Served with a mixture of Thai black rice, and basmati rice. The black rice was cooked for fifteen minutes, and then drained. Fresh boiling water was added to the pot, and then the basmati. Half a teaspoonful of turmeric was added.  I used an ice-cream scoop to create the rice balls, as they do in Korean restaurants. Wonderful vegetarian dish!

Chicken Stew with Sweetcorn and Peppers

A simple and tasty dish, made to use up the meat from two roasted chicken drumsticks in the fridge.

First I fried some diced carrot in a flat pot, along with spring onions. Cooked until soft at a low heat under glass (about half an hour), and then the chicken pieces were decanted into the pot. Then after that, about two hundred mls of boiling water.

I added the peppers (cut into think strips - one third of a pepper each), boiled potato pieces, some diced brocolli stems, the sweetcorn (cut from the cob), two red chillies (deseeded), some diced button mushroom pieces, and the chicken stock.

Mix some cold water with half a teaspoonful of powdered arrowroot, and add to the pan. Stir through thoroughly. Simmer under glass for another forty minutes or so.

Served with basmati rice cooked with a small pinch of powdered turmeric. Add some fines herbes or tarragon if you like.

Chicken and Ham Pie

A chicken and vegetable soup made a couple of days ago was augmented with some diced roast unsmoked gammon from the joint I cooked yesterday.Thickened with a teaspoonful of arrowroot (you can use cornflour instead - mix while the soup base is cold).

Placed in an ovenproof glass dish, along with some boiled potato, and covered with a square of pastry dough, rolled flat, and crimped around the edges. Make a hole in the centre with a sharp knife, to allow steam to escape from the dish.

Preheat an oven to 180 degrees, and cook on the middle shelf for between 45 to 50 minutes. Watch carefully, and turn the heat down a little if the pastry browns quickly. Served here as the pie emerged from the oven. Delicious!