Chicken and bacon pasta
Beef Wellington
Tilapia salad
Chicken and broccoli stir fry
Chicken, chorizo and prawn paella
Beef stroganoff
Stuffed tomatoes
Spaghetti/pasta carbonara
Chicken and bacon stew
Chilli
Chilli beef with broccoli and peppers
Gammon and Potato Hash
Fried risotto balls – coming soon
Pork fried rice – coming soon
Stuffed peppers – coming soon
Italian stuffed peppers – coming soon
Beef Wellington
This can be quite a difficult dish to make but if you can nail it, it’s very impressive. I always use puff pastry and refuse to use anything else. With some really good advice from my butcher, the pastry has always been a success as well so I’ve impressed a few guests with this one! This recipe is one of Gordon Ramsey’s originals but he’s changed this since I first started making it. I stand by this version even though its quite time consuming. It’s certainly worth it in the end.
Overall Time: 2.5 hours
Serves: 6 people
Ingredients:
1 kilo beef fillet – preferably from your butcher
3 tablespoons olive oil
250g chestnut mushrooms – chestnut mushrooms are good as they carry less water than normal closed cup mushrooms
50g butter, unsalted
1 large sprig of thyme
100ml dry white wine
12 slices prosciutto
500g puff pastry
flour – for dusting
2 egg yolks, beaten with 1 teaspoon of water
Method:
- Pre-heat your oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7
- Brush a roasting tray with olive oil and season with pepper. Put the beef fillet on the roasting tray and brush the top with oil and season again with pepper
- Roast the beef joint for 15 minutes for medium-rare or 20 minutes for medium.
- When the beef is cooked as you’d like it, remove it from the oven and let it chill in the fridge for 20 minutes
- While the beef is cooling, finely dice the mushrooms. You can use a food processor to do this if necessary but make sure the mushrooms don’t become a wet paste so pulse chop them only.
- Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan and add the mushrooms on a medium heat with the thyme. The point of this is to take as much water out of the mushrooms as possible
- Season the mushrooms and pour over 100ml dry white wine. Cook for another 10 minutes until all the wine has been absorbed. When done, the mixture should hold it’s shape
- Remove the mushroom mixture from the heat and discard the sprig of thyme
- Put a large piece of cling film over a work surface and lay the prosciutto on the film, slightly overlapping, in a double row
- Spread half the mushroom mixture over the prosciutto, then sit the fillet on it and spread the remaining mixture over the top
- Roll the prosciutto around the fillet using the cling film, twist the ends of the film to make a sausage and tighten
- Chill the fillet and brush a baking tray with olive oil. Put the tray in the oven to heat it up. This is so the oil gets hot and almost seals the pastry when it is first placed on the tray so that it doesn’t become soft
- The beef is in the fridge, the baking tray is in the oven so now it’s time to roll out the pastry
- Use the flour to dust your work surface and roll out a third of the pastry into a strip to act as the bottom of the Wellington, put it to one side. Roll out the top of the Wellington using the rest of the pastry. After 10-15 minutes in the oven, take the oiled tray out and unravel the fillet from the cling film. Place the strip of pastry on the tray and put the fillet in the middle
- Beat the egg yolks and water and brush the pastry edges. Wrap the rest of the rolled out pastry around the fillet. Push the sides down well and trim the joins to about a 4cm rim. Seal the rim with the edge of a fork or spoon handle, brushing the top and sides with the egg wash
- Chill for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. Heat the oven the 200C/fan 180C/ gas 6
- Brush the Wellington again with the egg wash and cook until golden and crisp – 20-25 minutes. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving so the pastry has a chance to harden before slicing and enjoy!
Tilapia Salad
This recipe is from a mixture of going to visit family in Taiwan to an old Hello Fresh recipe I once received. It’s very light and healthy but scrummy too!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 2 people
Ingredients:
2 tilapia fillets
1 onion, finely diced
3 sprigs of dill, roughly chopped
150g washed Charlotte salad potatoes (midi/new potatoes of any kind but I find Charlotte are the best to use)
1 lemon, sliced in half
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
250g pea shoots and leaves
flour
sea salt
ground black pepper
rapeseed oil
olive oil
Method:
- Cut the potatoes into the same size portions. Pop them in pan of boiling water. Cook for roughly 7-9 minutes until the potatoes are soft (don’t overcook as you don’t want them to fall apart in your salad). Drain the potatoes and put to one side to allow to cool
- Mix flour with salt and a generous amount of pepper on a large plate
- Pat the tilapia with kitchen towel and rub each side with the lemon. Use the flour mixture to coat both sides of the fillets
- Heat a non stick frying pan on a high heat and use 2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil. Add the fillets and fry on one side for 3-4 minutes or until crisp. Turn the fish over and turn the heat off. The residual heat from the pan will cook the other side
- Make a vinaigrette by mixing the juice of the lemon, olive oil, salt, pepper and mustard. Use an old jam jar to shake them all together
- Put the potatoes in a bowl with the raw onion, pea shoots and dill. Pour over the vinaigrette and mix together
- Serve the salad on one side of the plate, take the tilapia out of it’s pan and serve to the side
Chicken and broccoli stir fry
This is a lovely light dish that makes you feel like you’ve had a healthy night. And you have! But is lovely and filling at the same time. It’s again something I had from HelloFresh and I’ve changed it a little since then as they incorporated peanut butter which I dislike. I’ve added the honey to balance the soy sauce instead
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 2 people
Ingredients:
300g chicken breast
rapeseed oil
5 spring onion
1/2 lime
1 red pepper
3 tablespoons light or dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
2 cloves garlic
1/2 red chilli (when it’s in season and hot)
1/2 head of broccoli
2 dried egg noodles
water
Method:
- Heat 2-3 tablespoons of rapeseed oil in a large frying pan on a high heat. Add the chicken and cook for roughly 10 minutes, stirring regularly. When the chicken is cooked, transfer it to a bowl to leave to one side
- Peel and mince the garlic in a press (or finely dice if you don’t have a press). Thinly slice the spring onions and halve the chilli and finely chop.
- Zest the lime and cut into wedges then chop the broccoli into florets and halve them
- Halve the pepper and dispose of the core and seeds. Slice into thin strips
- Put the frying pan back on high heat and fry the broccoli and pepper for 4-5 minutes
- In the meantime, put a saucepan on the hob half full with water and bring to the boil. Once boiled, take the saucepan off the hob and add the noodles. Let them absorb the water and soften over the next 5-6 minutes
- Add the garlic and chilli to the broccoli and pepper mixture. Stir fry for another minute and add a splash of water to semi-steam the vegetables and cook
- Add 3 tablespoons of soy sauce and 2 tablespoons of honey to the pan, stirring it all together
- Add the chicken back to the pan with the noodles, mix everything together well for the next 2-3 minutes
- Once cooked, divide between 2 plates and sprinkle over the lime zest and spring onions
Chicken, chorizo and prawn paella
Yes, I know, people keep telling me I can’t call it a paella if there is meat in it and not just seafood. But there, I did it. I first got a similar recipe from the Good Food website. However, it’s changed so much since the original, it’s basically just my recipe now I think!
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 2 people
Ingredients:
1 red pepper, diced
1 white onion, diced
1 chorizo ring, sliced
2 chicken breasts, diced
150g paella rice
800ml chicken stock
flat parsley, roughly chopped
200g raw prawns
rapeseed oil
Method:
- Heat a frying pan on a high heat and add rapeseed oil. Once the rapeseed oil is hot, turn the heat down a little and add the red pepper and onion. Stir until they’ve softened and remove them from the pan
- Add the slices of chorizo to release the oils and when they’ve cooked on one side, turn over and cook on the other
- Once the chorizo is fully cooked, add the rice and let it absorb the oils before adding the red pepper and onion back to the pan
- Add the chicken and stock to the pan, turn the heat down to let it all simmer together for roughly 25 minutes
- Once everything is almost cooked, add the prawns right at the end and cook for a further 2-3 minutes
- Once you’ve split the mixture onto two plates, sprinkle the parsley over the top
Beef stroganoff
I say ‘beef stroganoff’ but to be fair – I’ve only used one recipe so far and I’m not convinced this is my final article yet. This is more like a creamy beef sauce for rice or spaghetti. I’ll keep using different recipes and update this as I go I think
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
1lb steak – I’ve used fillet steak but try anything from rump to ribeye and just see what works for you! Slice the steak into strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
0.5 medium onion, finely chopped
0.5 chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, minced (I really like my garlic so I always use a lot)
1 tablespoon plain flour
250ml beef stock
180ml double cream
60ml sour cream
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
0.5 teaspoon salt
0.5 teaspoon black pepper
300g pasta/spaghetti/rice
Method:
- Place a pan of salted water on the stove and boil. Once a rolling boil has been reached, add the pasta/spaghetti or rice
- Place a large deep pan on medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoon oil and once oil is very hot, add the beef and cook for 1 minute without stirring
- Cook the steak until it’s browned and no longer red. Remove the beef to a plate and cover to keep warm
- Add the butter, onion and mushrooms. Sautee 6-8 minutes or until liquid has evaporated and the onions and mushrooms are slightly browned
- Add the garlic and sautee for a further minute. Add the flour, mixing it all together
- Pour in the stock and stir together, add the cream and then simmer for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened
- Pour the sour cream into the pan slowly so it doesn’t curdle
- Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Add the beef back to the pan with any of it’s juices from the plate and bring to a simmer until the beef is heated through
Stuffed tomatoes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Serves: 2 people
Ingredients:
4 beefsteak tomatoes
100g cooked rice, using 1 chicken stock cube
rock salt
1 small onion, diced
3 tablespoons butter
100g brie or mozzarella, diced
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon basil
Method:
- Add water to a pan and set to boil. Add the stock cube and wait for it to dissolve. Add the rice and cook until soft
- Cut the top off the tomatoes and scoop the insides out into a bowl to use later
- Sprinkle the insides of the tomatoes with salt to dry them out as much as possible and turn upside down on some kitchen towel to drain
- In a small sauté pan, melt two tablespoons of butter and add the onions, cooking until tender
- Add the tomato pulp and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated
- Remove from the heat and stir in the rice, cheese, parsley and basil
- Stuff the mixtures into the tomatoes and put the remaining butter on top of each. Place the tomatoes in a baking dish uncovered at 180 C for 15-20 minutes or until heated through
Spaghetti/pasta carbonara
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
100g pancetta, diced
50g pecorino cheese, grated
50g parmesan, grated
3 large eggs
350g spaghetti/pasta
2 plump garlic cloves, peeled and diced
50g unsalted butter
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
- Put a large saucepan of water on to boil
- Mix the cheese together in a bowl
- Beat the 3 eggs in another bowl and season with freshly grated black pepper. Set everything aside
- Add 1 teaspoon of salt to the boiling water and add the spaghetti or pasta – whichever you choose to use. When the water comes back to the boil, cook the spaghetti until it’s al dente
- White the spaghetti is cooking, fry the pancetta with the garlic. Drop the butter into a large frying pan or wok and as soon as the butter has melted, tip in the pancetta and garlic
- Leave to cook on a medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden and crisp
- Keep the heat under the pancetta on low. When the pasta is ready, lift from the water with a pasta fork or tongs and put in the frying pan with the pancetta. Don’t worry if a little water drops in the pan as well and don’t throw the pasta water away yet
- Mix the cheese and eggs together (leaving a little cheese to the side to sprinkle on top later)
- Take the pan of spaghetti and pancetta off the heat. Now quickly pour in the eggs and eggs. Using the tongs or a long fork, lift up the spaghetti so it mixes easily with the egg mixture, which thickens but doesn’t scramble and everything is coated
Chicken and bacon stew
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 90 minutes
Serves: 8 people
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 chicken thighs
140g smoked bacon, chopped
4 carrots, thickly sliced
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons plain flour
1 tablespoon tomato puree
75ml white wine
1l chicken stock
5 bay leaves
4 tablespoons double cream
600g new potatoes, halved
20 chestnut mushrooms, halved or quartered depending on the size
fresh chives, chopped
Method:
- Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6
- Heat the oil in a large casserole dish with a lid (one that can also go in the oven). Fry the chicken pieces in batches for 5 mins on each side until well browned, then transfer to a plate and leave to rest
- Add the bacon to the casserole dish for a few mins until beginning to crisp. Stir in the carrots and onions, then cook for 5 mins until starting to soften
- Stir in the flour and tomato purée and cook for 1 minute more
- Add the white wine and stir well for 1-2 minutes until the alcohol has burnt off from the wine
- Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer
- Add the bay leaves and cream
- Add the chicken back to the pot and scatter over the potatoes, turning everything over a few times so that the potatoes are immersed in the sauce. Put the lid on and place in the oven
- After 40 mins, remove the dish from the oven and stir in the mushrooms. Cover again and cook in the oven for 20 mins more until the chicken is cooked through and falling off the bone
- Sprinkle chives over the top and serve
Chilli
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
1 large onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon oil
1 heaped teaspoon hot chilli powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
500g lean minced beef
3 beef stock cubes (I always used Oxo)
400g can chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoon tomato puree
To Serve:
50g rice per person
Method:
- Put a large deep pan on the hob on a high heat and the oil to heat up.
- Once warmed, turn down the heat between medium and high before adding the onion, garlic and pepper and cook until soft – just so they don’t burn
- Put another pan on the hob with 50g rice per person with twice the amount of water. Bear in mind that brown rice cooks twice as longer as white rice
- Add the hot chilli powder, paprika and ground cumin. This will give you a slight kick to the chilli. If you want it hotter, add double the amount. If you don’t like spice, add half the amount. Whatever you decide, now is the best time as the bitterness etc needs to be cooked out of the spices before finishing the chilli.
- Cook for 5 minutes before adding the minced beef. Turn the heat up to full so the mince fries instead of stews in the juices.
- Once the beef is browned throughout, crumble the 3 cubes of beef stock into the pan and stir so its mixed in well
- Add the can of tomatoes and tomato puree adding seasoning with salt and pepper, stirring well
- Simmer gently and bring the whole thing to the boil, giving it a good stir. Turn the heat down so it bubbles for the next 20 minutes
- Check the pan every few minutes to stir the mixture and it doesn’t stick to the bottom. If you find it sticking, add a few teaspoons of water. The mixture should be thick, moist and juicy before deciding to serve
Chilli beef with broccoli and peppers
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
500g 28 day aged sirloin steak
2 tablespoons soy sauce
five spice powder
2 tablespoon shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
1 red chilli, sliced into rings
2 tablespoons cornflour
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
2 peppers, seeded and cut into bitesize chunks
150g tenderstem broccoli, trimmed into bite size pieces
200ml chicken stock (I always use Oxo cubes)
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
Rice or noodles to serve
Method:
- Marinade the beef in a bowl with the soy, a teaspoon five spice powder, rice wine, chilli and cornflour seasoning with black pepper. Leave for at least 30 minutes
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok until hot. Add the beef and fry for about 3 minutes until brown. Scoop onto a plate to rest so you can cook the rest of the ingredients
- Add the final tablespoon of oil and heat until ready to add the peppers and broccoli for a minute and then pour over the stock and add the oyster sauce
- Simmer everything together for 1 minute and add the beef back to the wok. Boil until the sauce is thick and serve with rice or noodles
Gammon and Potato Hash
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Serves: 6 people
Ingredients:
50g butter
1 small gammon joint, boiled and diced
500g new potatoes, halved or quartered so they are smaller than bite size pieces
4 banana shallots, finely diced
1 green bell pepper, finely diced
4 spring onions
ground black pepper, to season
dried thyme, to season
Method:
- Put the gammon joint in a pan and cover with water – boil the joint until cooked through. This will take a lot of the salt out of the gammon but not all so it will add salt to the overall dish without you having to add it yourself (normally roughly 45 minutes or so to cook depending on the size)
- Leave the skins on the potatoes and boil them for roughly ten minutes or until they are slightly soft
- Melt the butter, add the pepper and shallots to fry until soft before adding the potatoes and gammon
- Mix well and cook for the next 10 minutes or until the potatoes are browned
- Take off the heat and add the spring onion and stir them in
- Add black pepper and thyme and stir well and dish up to your guests!