Lime Coconut Chicken

This is a basic recipe. You could also add at the beginning ginger, garlic, lemongrass or chilli. At the end you could add kaffir lime leaves, coriander or mint. 

500g chicken thighs, diced preferably, but also whole
2 tablespoons coconut oil
Juice 1-2 limes
Coconut cream – enough to make it the consistency you want
1 tspn sugar or honey
½ tspn salt

Melt coconut oil, add juice of ½ lime and fry chicken, cooking until it is thoroughly cooked, 10-20 mins.
Remove chicken to a plate and increase heat. Evaporate chicken stock until it is tan in colour. 
Remove the excess fat.
Add coconut cream, a little at a time, until it’s a consistency you like. If serving over rice you may want it runny. If serving by itself you may want it a little thicker. You may need to use a whisk to incorporate the caramelised stock and coconut cream.
Add chicken, remaining lime juice and salt to taste. Also add any precooked vegetables you like. (I like broccoli diced tomatoes and capsicum)
Taste for seasoning adding extra salt, sugar or lime juice as you prefer, then serve.

Mum’s Beef Curry

1 diced onion

2 garlic cloves, diced

2cm piece ginger, minced

pinch of chilli flakes

1kg diced beef

Spice Mixture I like cardamom, cloves and cinnamon. Either use ground spices or grind your own. Or use this combination. 1 cinnamon stick, 6 cloves, 3 Tb garam masala, 2 teaspoons ground coriander. It really is up to you. Most recipes use turmeric and cumin, but I don’t like them so I leave them out. I grind whole spices, but you can easily use pre ground ones.

(optional - 400g tin crushed tomatoes)
400ml can coconut milk

Juice half a lemon

Remaining spice mix

Accompaniments

Rice

Pappadums

Banana

Tomatoes

Cucumber

Apple

Yoghurt

Green coriander

Grated coconut

Chutney

1. Heat oven to 150C. Heat a large fry pan or saucepan which preferably can go in the oven over medium high heat. This uses only 1 pan for the whole recipe.

2. Dice and fry the onion in a little oil – plain or coconut. When it is brown add chilli, garlic and ginger. Heat for 1 minute, then remove from pan.

3. Turn heat to high, add a little more oil and add half of the beef to the pan. Leave without turning so it browns on one side. Stir and remove when it starts to get liquid in the bottom of the pan. Repeat with the remaining beef. This step is optional, but it gives the curry a deeper beefier flavour.

4. Add a little more oil to the pan and gently fry most of your spice mix. Reserve a teaspoon to add just before serving for a fresher spice flavour.

5. Add beef and onion mix to the pan with a little water (or crushed tomatoes) to come half way up the beef mixture. Bring back to the boil and place in the oven for 1-2 hours, depending on the cut of beef used. (It can also be kept on the top of the stove, but the heat is harsher and you will need to stir it to make sure it cooks evenly. Try to stop it from actually boiling, instead have a few little bubbles come up every few seconds.)

6. Add coconut cream and reheat. If it is too liquid, remove the meat and turn the heat high to evaporate the excess liquid.

7. Add lemon juice and remaining spice mix. Stir in well.

8. To serve I like to place the rice around the outside of the plate and place the meat and sauce in the middle. I surround the rice with the accompaniments. 

Oven Frittata

Oven baked frittata

2 potatoes

2 sweet potatoes or equivalent pumpkin

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 bunch chives

9 eggs

½ cup liquid – cream, milk or water

Salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat oven to 220.

Peel and dice potatoes and/or pumpkin into 1cm dice.

Toss in olive oil and salt.

Spread on baking paper on an oven tray.

Roast, turning occasionally, until brown, about 45 minutes.

Allow to cool a little and reduce oven heat to 160.

Beat eggs, liquid, salt and pepper together.

Add vegetables and chives and toss together well.

Heat another tablespoon of olive oil in a non stick oven proof fry pan.

Add egg mixture and allow to heat for 2-3 minutes.

Place in the oven. Cook until it is just wobbly in the centre – about 10 minutes. If it’s not cooked after 10, keep checking every few minutes. How long it takes depends on the temperature of the egg mixture when you put it into the oven, the actual temperature of the oven and the size of the fry pan. Not cooked enough and it will be liquidy, over cooked and it will be separated into egg and eggy water. It’s better to undercook it though because you can always put it back in the oven.

Remove and cool in the pan before turning out. It will continue to cook a little after you take it out of the oven. This is called ‘carry over cooking’.

Serve warm or chilled. 

Chicken, Zucchini and Lime Balls

500g minced chicken
2c grated zucchini, from 2 or 3 zucchini
3 Tbsp oil

Seasonings

2-3 green onions finely sliced
3-4 tbsp mint
1 clove garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp pepper
1 tsp gelatine (this helps keep the meatballs juicy)

Juice from 2 limes

Mix seasonings thoroughly together in a large bowl.

Toss through grated zucchini.

Add chicken mince and mix thoroughly.

Heat olive oil in a non stick pan over medium heat.

Use a small scoop or a heaped tablespoon to scoop meatballs into the pan. Cook for about 7 or 8 minutes on the first side. Flip and cook an additional 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown and the centers are cooked through. You may need to do this in 2 batches.

Remove meatballs from the pan.

Raise heat and reduce the liquid in the pan until it is browned.

Pour off the extra oil.

Add meatballs back to pan and toss to coat.

Serve immediately or serve chilled.

Pine Lime Pork with Coconut

Actually, this sauce is delicious with pork, chicken, fish or tofu. Pan fry the protein, and serve this over the top.

2 tblspn coconut oil

2 thick slices fresh pineapple, cut into 1cm pieces

½ white onion cut into 6 wedges

1cm ginger, julienned

1 small cucumber, cut into 1cm pieces

Juice 1 lime

1-2 tblspns sugar

1/3 cup coconut cream

4 kaffir lime leaves, very finely shredded.

½ cup mint and/or coriander, coarsley chopped.

Heat oil over medium heat and fry pineapple until it looks cooked.

Sprinkle with salt and sugar, raise heat and fry, stirring occasionally, until pineapple is caramelised.

Remove pineapple, leaving remaining oil.

Add onion with ½ cup water and  a pinch of salt. Continue to cook over high heat until water is evaporated and onion is nearly cooked. Add ginger and continue to cook until onion is finished cooking.

Continue cooking on high heat, add coconut cream and kaffir lime leaves. Simmer a minute or two until thickened slightly.

Add pineapple, cucumber, mint and coriander. Heat briefly.

Pour over pan fried chicken, pork, fish or tofu.

Meatballs with Pomegranate, Yogurt and Tahini

This recipe includes two tricks to keep the meatballs moist - a ‘panade’ made of breadcrumbs and milk, and adding gelatine. And as you mix the seasonings into the meat you knead the meat, causing the proteins stick together and create a cohesive texture. 

1kg mince

2 slices bread

1 teaspoon gelatine

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons each ground cinnamon and allspice

1 bunch flat leaf parsley, stalks removed

½ bunch mint, leaves only

100 mls milk or water
Pomegranate molasses (optional)

Tahini Yogurt Sauce

1 cup Greek yogurt

2 tablespoons tahini

1 clove garlic, crushed

Lemon juice and salt to taste

Mix all ingredients together using a whisk or a fork,

Method

Using the cutting blade on a food processor, process the bread until it forms crumbs.

Add garlic and dry ingredients and process again.

Add parsley and mint and process until finely chopped.

Add milk and process until it achieves a thick paste.

Remove this from the processor and in a large bowl combine the bread mixture with 1/3 of the mince until it is thoroughly incorporated.

Add half the remaining mixture and mix again. Then repeat with the last third of the mince. Mixing the seasonings into the meat takes a while.

Roll into balls. I find this makes about 70 small balls that are just right for a single bite. Alternatively, form into sausage shapes or make larger hamburger style patties.

Place on oven tray lined with baking paper and brush with pomegranate molasses.

Bake in the oven at 120C for 10 mins, or until just cooked depending on size. If you see juice coming out of them, they are already overcooked.

Alternatively you could cook them on the bbq or in a frypan.

To serve, place meatballs on a plate and dot the yogurt sauce over. Then sprinkle with a combination of whatever is available - pomegranate seeds, ground sumac, parsley or pistachios. 

Drizzle with a little more pomegranate molasses.  
Spear each meatball with a toothpick and serve.

Quiche Lorraine

This makes a thin quiche with a crisp pastry. So many bases are soggy and not worth the calories. But this is delicious. 
Use a metal tin so the heat from the oven is transferred more efficently. Also, if you have a pizza stone, place the pastry on that.

Shortcrust pastry

250g plain flour

125g butter

Salt and pepper

50-75g cold water

Process flour with salt.

Process half the butter with the flour until thoroughly incorporated.

Cut the other half into cubes and pulse roughly until pea sized pieces remain.

Add water and pulse 5-6 times. It will not come together in the processor, but check it will bind by squashing it together in your hand. If it remains crumbly, add a little more water until it just comes together.

Press into a disk roughly the shape of the tin you will be baking it in. This makes it easier to roll out.

Refrigerate 20 mins.

Roll pastry out. To keep it in the correct shape, and prevent it fraying at the edges, use a knife pushing it against the side. See photo. 
Roll pastry loosely around rolling pin, and ease it into the tin. Lift it up gently at the sides, and ease it down to the bottom.
Cut the pastry a little higher than the tin to allow for shrinkage.

Prick the bottom and refrigerate until chilled.

Preheat oven to 220.

Line with baking paper, weigh with weights and bake 8-10 mins.

Remove weights and paper, return to oven for another 5-10 mins.

Cool before filling.

Filling

200g speck or bacon, diced

150g grated cheese

150 mls thickened cream

75mls milk

3 medium eggs

Salt, pepper and nutmeg

Preheat oven to 200.

Fry bacon.

Sprinkle in the bottom of pastry case with cheese.

Combine cream, milk eggs, salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Pour over bacon and cheese.

Place on a baking tray in case it overflows, and bake 25 mins, or until just cooked.

Rest 5 mins before serving.