Red Thai Curry Paste

Red Thai Curry Paste

Thai Curry isn't for everyone's tastebuds, although I'm quite fond of the tangy/zingy-ness it has. One of the nice things about making your own paste is that you can balance the spices to suit you... although thats the same with any kind of cooking. This is waaaaaaay tastier than shop-bought curry paste.

This is also very quick and easy to make, to make Thai Curry simply fry the paste in a wok and add whatever... fry it up, add extra coconut milk and leave to simmer. Despite being a lover of noodles I always prefer Thai Curry with rice as it soaks up the juices better. This could also be used as a marinade.

I use...

1 Shallot

1 stalk fresh lemongrass

4 tsp Corriander (ground)

2 tsp Cumin

2 tbs Tomato purée

3 cloves of Garlic

Ginger... I forget how much. (Sorry)

4 tsp Chilli

Lots of Soy sauce

Coconut Milk to taste

Dice the shallot.

To prepare check out this; http://www.finecooking.com/item/5480/lemongrass

Add your desired amounts of cumin, corriander, ginger, garlic, chili, soy sauce, tomato purée and coconut milk. Remember that you add more coconut milk when you are cooking so the taste will be less intense- coconut milk is the cream of Asia and soothes chili. If it looks a little dry add some oil- I try to use one with little or no flavour. Vegetable oil isn't my favourite thing in the world but does the job.

Stick it in a blender, whizz it up until smooth and you're done.

Orange and Avocado Salad

A simple, well-known but superb salad.

You will need;-

Oranges

Avocado

Shallots

Cucumber

Mixed Salad Leavess

-A dressing to compliment. This depends on what else you are serving the salad with.

I like a squeeze of lemon and lime as this salad goes will with deep, rich and smoky flavours- it provides a welcome burst of fresh and fruity.

Slice the cucumber- do this in a special way however. First slice down the center of the cucumber. Then use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and excess water, finally place the cucumber face-down and slice horizontally to make crescent moon shapes on a slight angle.

Peel the shallots and dice.

Peel and slice the avocado and the oranges- cut the oranges into quarters before slicing horizontally. Try to keep the avocado and the orange roughly the same sizes.

Mix the cucumber and shallots with the salad leaves. Then add the avocado and oranges and mix carefully to avoid breaking them up. Squeeze on fresh lemon, fresh lime juice and you're done.

Black Bean Chilli

Fucking amazing chili. Spicy for those who don't often eat chilli. I'm starting to find it quite mild... it really is worth investing in the proper chillies for this recipe (www.coolchile.co.uk) as they really make this dish. Think smoky, with a warming and complex 'heat' from the chillies and you've got this chilli. It is also incredibly cheap if you have the correct spices in your cupboard- when I make this I only have to buy beans, onions and tomatoes. :)

This can be made into a soup if you water it down, however it is also thick enough to be used as a main course. Try serving it with rice, on a baked potato is very good, I've also had this on toast and in a lasagna. Its really good if you ladle the chilli ONTO the cheese, as then it melts and goes stringy and cheesey when you get to the bottom....yum yum yum Fritters would also be good but I have yet to eat this with fritters. I have also in the past whipped up a simple Orange and Avocado Salad, dressed with squeeze of fresh lemon and lime juice. This really balances out the flavours in the chili.

A recipe from my much-beloved 'The Greens Cookbook'.

Makes 2 litres;

185g Black Beans, soaked overnight

1 Bay Leaf

4 tsp cumin seeds

4 tsp oregano

4 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 Negro/Ancho Chili to make chili powder, or 2-3 tablespoons chili powder

3 tablespoons groundnut or corn oil

3 medium yellow onions, diced into 5mm squares

4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

1/2 tsp salt

675g tomatoes- skinned, seeded, chopped and juice reserved

(using tinned tomatoes is easier but if you have the time grill fresh tomatoes to really play up to the smoked flavour in this chili

1-2 tsp chopped chipotle chili

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

4 tablespoons chopped corriander

Garnishes-

Cheese (smoked cheese is best)

Diced Green chillies, roasted, peeled, diced

Creme Fraiche/Sour Cream

Corriander

Sort through the beans and remove small stones. Rinse well, cover generously with water and leave to soak overnight. (Or use a pressure cooker, be wary of over-cooking however.)

Next day, drain beans- cover with fresh water by 5cm and bring to the boil with a bay leaf. Leave to simmer and prepare the other ingredients.

Heat a small heavy frying pan over a medium heat. Add the cumin seeds, when they begin to colour add the oregano. Shake the pan frequently to avoid burning the herbs. When the fragrance is strong and robust remove from the heat and add the paprika and cayenne pepper. The peppers will only need a few seconds to toast- the heat from the pan will suffice. Grind herbs to make a coarse powder.

Preheat the over to 190c/gas mark 5. To make the chili powder put the dried ancho or negro chili in the oven for a few minutes to dry it out. Cool it briefly and remove the stem, seeds and veins from inside the chili. Tear the pod and grind into a powder.

Heat the oil in a large pan and saute the onions over a medium heat until the soften. Add the garlic, salt, ground herbs and chili powder and cook for a further five minutes.

Add the tomatoes and their juice and a teaspoon of the chipotle chili (or however much pleases you best). Simmer this for 15 minutes; then add the (drained) beans and, if required, enough water so the beans are covered by 1.5cm water.

Continue cooking until the beans are soft -an hour or longer- make sure the beans are amply covered with water.

When cooked, taste and add more chipotle chili if desired. Season to taste with the vinegar, additional salt and the chopped coriander. At this point I have also added the zest and juice of a lime. Lime and chili work together very well in my opinion. :)

Garnish as you please, I normally miss out the other chilies and serve with the cheese, cream and coriander. This is because I can't find the poblano chillies directed by the recipe.

Tagliatelle with Courgette and Cream

Olive Oil

Courgette

Single Cream

A soft cheese

Salt, Pepper

Stock

Other herbs or spices

Tagliatelle

Slice the courgette- or whatever you've decided to put with your pasta. You could put almost anything- tomatoes, mushrooms, aubergine... I find it best to slice it into long, thin strips as if you were cooking a stir-fry- not quite julienne, you need some substance!

Fry in olive oil, with salt, pepper and whatever herbs and spices you choose to use. I used oregano, parsley and chili.

While this is frying put on the tagliatelle in boiling, salted water.

Add stock to the courgette until they and just covered and leave to simmer. When most of the stock water has gone sir in the cream and the cheese to make a sauce. Leave this on a low heat if the pasta is not yet cooked.

...and you're done. I added a handful of chopped olives at the end, something like diced sundried tomatoes would also be very good. :)

Dark Chocolate and Ginger Cake

A ginger preserve cake with dark chocolate for extra indulgence.

Cake ingredients;

200g Butter (Unsalted preferable)

175g Brown Sugar

2 tbs Golden Syrup

1 tbs Black Treacle

175ml Milk

2 eggs

250g Self-Raising Flour

50g Coca powder

2 tsp Ground Ginger

1 tbs Freshly grated ginger

1tsp baking powder

Syrup ingredients;

Fresh Ginger

Water

Sugar

Icing ingredients;

300g Dark Chocolate

200 ml Double Cream

4 tsp Ground Ginger

Flaked almonds

Cake;

Melt the butter over a low heat, add the sugar, golden syrup, treacle and stir thoroughly. Don't let this mixture get too hot or start boil. Set this aside and allow it to cool slightly before adding the milk, lukewarm is ideal. Beat the eggs -one at a time- into the mixture. It is very important the mixture is not at all hot otherwise you will cook your eggs in the sugar-syrup-buttery mix.

Sift the flower, coca, ginger and baking powder together. Stir in the ginger.

Take your wet mixture, and add it bit by bit to the dry mixture.

Fold it in with a wooden spoon to keep the air in it.

Put all of this into a tin which has been greased and lined with baking paper, stick it in the oven at 180c and let it cook for anywhere between 40-50 minutes. Or until its cooked through. Its better to cook this cake slowly on a low heat, it shouldn't dry out.

Syrup;

While the cake is cooking peel some more fresh ginger and slice it. Add this to a pan along with some water and sugar and boil it down to make the syrup.

Once the cake has cooled, use a toothpick or somesuch instrument to pierce holes in the cake. Pour the syrup over the cake. Wrap in tin foil and leave for 2-3 days. I was only able to leave mine overnight and the ginger taste was still very strong, the longer you leave it the further the tastes will mature.

Icing;

Melt the chocolate in a metal bowl over a pan of boiling water. Add the cream and the ginger and stir well.

Then, ice the cake.

Dry-pan the almonds until they are lightly toasted, sprinkle liberally on the top of the cake.

Then sit down and enjoy, possibly with a glass of brandy.