Category: Main courses (Page 5 of 13)

Beef and Blue Cheese Pie

26/11/2019 / Neville

The blue cheese really adds an extra mmmm to this pie. This recipe also includes a standard short-cut I use to cook the filling in a One Pot pressure cooker, which makes the toughest meat tender without cooking all day. This makes a big pie for four people.

One Pot method:

750g beef (shin, casserole, braising, stewing steak) cut into cubes
Tablespoon of oil

Put the oil in the onepot and heat to saute. Add the beef and brown all sides. Remove.

1 onion chopped
2 carrots, cubed

Add to the pot and saute until soft. Add the beef back in.

2 tbs flour

Mix in.

2 tbs tomato puree
350ml beef stock
1 bay leaf
pinch of dried thyme or 1 tsp fresh
salt and pepper
dash of Worcester sauce

Turn to Meat/Stew setting, seal and cook for 45 mins to 1 hour depending on how tough (cheap) the meat is.

When done, allow to depressurise naturally. Spoon the veg and meat into a pie dish. Add enough of the stock to juice up your pie, you may not need all of it. Keep what you don’t use for extra gravy.

Blue cheese (as much as you like!)
Puff Pastry sheet
1 beaten egg

Crumble blue cheese over the top of the pie mix. You can have a little for a slight tang or go mad if you really like a blue cheese sauce. Lay over the pastry and trim. Brush with beaten egg to glaze.

Cook in the oven for 35 minutes at 180C. Serve with mashed potatoes and a green veggie.

Chilli Cornbread Pie

05/11/2019 / Neville

This is basically a chilli with cornbread on top. Cooked together – what’s not to like?? You make your chilli first, then mix the topping and bake it like a shepherd’s pie. For four portions:

1 onion chopped
dash of oil (rapeseed preferably)

Gently fry until soft

2 garlic cloves crushed and chopped

Add to the pan and fry briefly

450g lean minced beef

Add to the pan and stir about. Fry until coloured (no pink)

2 x 400g cans chopped tomato
2 x 400g cans chilli beans (or regular red kidney beans plus 1 tsp hot chilli powder)
250ml beef stock

Here’s a general tip, if you are adding tinned tomatoes followed by stock, use the stock to swill out the tin so nothing is wasted. Season the mix and simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile make the topping.

Preheat the oven to 180C

150g cornmeal or fine polenta flour
150g self-raising flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

Mix in a bowl

2 eggs, beaten
300ml buttermilk (or plain yoghurt mixed with milk at a pinch)

Mix in a jug. Then pour into the flour mix, and mix to a runny batter. It needs to be “thickly pourable” if that is any guide. Not too runny, but it needs to move.

When your chilli mix looks cooked, it needs to be still liquidy, with liquid to the top of the meat/beans, not drying out and lumpy. If it isn’t wet enough, add some water and stir about. This is because the cornbread will suck up moisture and you don’t want a dry pie do you? Check the seasoning – if it’s not spicy enough consider adding some chopped jalapenos or minced chillies.

Now find a suitable oven-proof tin or casserole dish and put the chilli in. Now carefully cover the top of the chilli mix with your cornbread mix. This is why you want it runny enough to cover the surface. Now bake for 35-40 minutes. It’s probably worth a check after 25, because you want to top browned not blackened. If it is still looking pale stick a skewer in the topping. If it comes out dry it is cooked. If it comes out with batter on it needs more time. If it comes out covered in chilli you stuck it in too far.

This needs the traditional accompaniments of cold beer, soured cream, maybe avacado, chopped tomato, shredded lettuce, grated cheese and more jalapenos. This is an Ainsley Herriot recipe and he just said salad. That’s a missed opportunity in my opinion.

Crispy Chicken Wings

24/10/2019 / Neville

These are cooked to crispy first, then smothered (or not). See our other recipe for Buffalo Wings for an alternative. For 1Kg of wings:

2 tbs of baking powder
Salt
Pepper
1/2 tsp onion or garlic powder

Take a large plastic bag and put the baking powder in it. Pimp it up with the seasonings – you can play around and experiment with what you add at this point.

1 kg chicken wings (£2.49 from Tesco)

Cut away wing tips and feed to the dog (they can eat raw chicken bones). Cut through the joint to make two sections per wing. Dry on kitchen paper. Toss in the bag to coat with the seasoned baking powder.

Turn the oven up to 200C (fan). Place the coated winglets on an oiled grill rack placed over a drip tray. You could probably use a cake cooling rack for this. Bake for 50 minutes turning once at mid-point. You might think this is a long time – it is, they will be cooked long before this but it makes them extra crispy. Just watch they don’t burn.

You could use them at this point to dip into sauces but if you want to make fiery finger food, carry on:

1 tbs hot sauce (or more)
1 tbs honey
1 tbs melted butter

Mix, then paint all over the wings, or pour over and toss the wings about to coat.

Now get dipping with spicy wings!

Very veggie dhal

09/09/2019 / Neville

This makes a great main-meal dhal, which can be vegan, vegetarian or meaty depending what you put on top of it. It can also be a curry side. This serves 6 or more but you can scale it down.

1 Tbs oil
1/2 an onion
2 cloves garlic
1.5 Tbs ginger, freshly grated
1 red chilli, finely chopped

Heat the oil in a pan and gently fry unil soft. Add

1 heaped tsp turmeric
1 heaped tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin

Fry for one minute. Add

3 cups split red lentils
2 courgettes grated

Fry one minute. Add

1.2 litres water

Simmer for 20 minutes. Keep an eye on it and add water if it looks like it is drying out. Then add

3 cups roughly chopped spinach
1 x 400g can chick peas
1x 400 ml can Coconut milk
1 tsp tamari or soy sauce or salt

Simmer for another 10 minutes until thick. Adjust the seasoning, you may need more salt. Meanwhile, in another pan heat

1 Tbs oil
1 tsp chilli flakes
1.5 tsp cumin seeds

Fry gently until the aromas are released.

Serve into bowls, topped with the chilli/cumin oil. You can serve as it, with rice or breads (vegan), or

Top with hard-boiled egg and youghurt (vegetarian), or

Serve with a dry meat curry or tandoori grilled chicken or lamb

Tomato Tabbouleh Salad

02/09/2019 / Neville

This is an easy lunch salad as long as you plan ahead with the bulgur wheat! You can us a variety of proteins for this to make it a more substantial dish, or you can use it as a side. For 2 portions (main) or 4 portions (side):

100 gm Bulgur wheat
400ml water

Simmer 15 minutes covered, turn off the heat and leave for 10 minutes. Meanwhile

1tbs olive oil
1 tbs tomato puree
1 tbs lemon juice
1/4 tsp ground allspice

Mix to make a dressing. When the bulgur is cooked, fluff it up. It should have absorbed all the water. Mix in the dressing and leave to cool.

2 dried figs or dates, chopped
2 spring onions chopped, or chives
250g cherry tomatoes, halved
handful of mint leaves, shredded
handful of parsley, chopped
Optional – 1/4 cucumber cubed

Mix up with the cooked bulgur to make a salad. If you are serving this as a main course salad, you can top with:

fried halloumi (vegetarian) or…
Smoked mackerel fillets, or…
Falafel (vegan), or…
Grilled chicken breast, or…
beef mince kofta, or…
Lamb meatballs

and a few fancy lettuce leaves alongside. Pittas, yoghurt, hummus, Lebanese pickles all start to make this look like a feast.

Awesome Moussaka

17/02/2019 / Neville / 0 Comments

Recipe from a Greek guy. I saw almost the exact recipe on Hairy Bikers too, from a Greek Orthodox priest so it must be authentic. It was his mum’s recipe. Serves four very generously.

olive oil
1 large courgette, sliced
2 aubergines or 1 giant one, sliced

Pan fry gently until coloured on both sides. Set aside.

1 onion diced
1 garlic clove crushed and chopped

fry gently in the oil, add a bit more if you need to. When softened:

500g lamb mince

Fry until coloured

1 tbs tomato puree
0.5 tbs fresh thyme

Cook briefly. Add

400g can chopped tomatoes
pinch cinnamon
pinch ground cloves
10 basil leaves chopped
10 sprigs parsley, leaves only chopped
salt and pepper

Add to the pan with a dash of water. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile make a Bechamel sauce:

100g butter
100g plain flour

Melt the butter, add the flour and stir around. Add

750ml milk

Heat and stir until thick. Add

100g grated parmesan
pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper

Stir until the cheese is melted. Add

3 egg yolks

Stir madly with a whisk to blend thoroughly. Now assembly time (plus 1 more ingredient)

3 potatoes very thinly sliced.

Layer the potatoes over the base of an oven-proof dish. Now layer over the sliced cooked aubergine, then the sliced cooked courgette. Tip in the meat and tomato mixture and press down over. Top with the bechamel sauce mix. Finally

25-50g grated parmesan

Sprinkle over the top. Now bake for 35-40 minutes at 180C but keep an eye on it and turn the heat down a bit if it is looking scorched. It is a meal in a dish with plenty of vegetables inside. When cooked, leave 15-20 minutes to rest, it will taste even better.

An alternative and very good recipe is Lamb and Artichoke Moussaka from BBC Good Food. This is very similar, but using artichoke hearts and not courgette. Layer with potato first then half the mince then aubergine, then half the mince, then fried artichoke heart. Top with bechamel sauce and bake.

Smoked Salmon Pasta

29/12/2018 / Neville / 0 Comments

Great for Christmas leftovers. Serves 2. You can play with the quantities, this is just a guide.

170g pasta (spaghetti is good)

Boil according to the pack instructions. Meanwhile…

2 eggs
100ml cream
25g-50g parmesan cheese grated

Beat to a creamy sauce. When the pasta is cooked, drain, add the creamy sauce are return to a gently heat. Stir until the sauce thickens

150g smoked salmon bits
1 tbs parsley, chopped

Stir into your sauce. Adjust seasoning and serve.

Kinda Cassoulet

03/12/2018 / Neville / 0 Comments

Apologies for the photo, that is Wikimedia’s not mine.

If Jamie Oliver can do Kinda so can I. Although to be fair, he has earned the right and I haven’t. This recipe evolved from having some stray meat items, an Instant Pot and a desire to make something quick and wholesome. This is a convergence of several recipes, and I am sure the French who take three days to make a cassoulet would be horrified. It would be disingenuous to say I cared. Here’s what we had: leftovers from a roast duck, leftovers from a gammon and a couple of sausages. The rest are store cupboard items. Serves 2 but easily scaled.

200g canellini beans

Soak 8 hours or Instant Pot equivalent (20 mins pressure)

Half an onion, chopped
One carrot, cubed small
2 cloves garlic
Dash of oil

Soften in the Instant Pot on Saute. Meanwhile take a frying pan and brown

2 sausages

Add to the Instant Pot with:

2 cooked duck legs
Cubed gammon, we had the equivalent of a pork steak sized bit
1 tbs tomato puree
500ml chicken stock
drained soaked beans
1 tsp fresh thyme chopped, or a pinch of dried
1 bay leaf

Add to the Instant Pot. Cook 20 mins. You could serve at this point but it may look a bit watery. To make it amazing, turn the whole lot into a stove-top pan and bubble away to reduce the liquid and intensify flavours. Adjust the seasoning – it probably won’t need much adjusting, a bit of pepper maybe.

To make it slightly more authentic top with breadcrumbs and brown under a grill but that is a bit of a faff, skip that and serve with fresh crusty bread.

If your meat supply doesn’t match the above list, try

Cooked chicken legs instead of duck
Bacon lardons instead of gammon chunks but make them meaty. You could even go for small chunks of pork belly, browned
Any variation of sausage – traditional British or smoked or Continental but not too preserved – steer away from salami

This recipe is awesome. Try it.

Arroz al Horno (baked rice)

04/11/2018 / Neville / 0 Comments

A meany, beany paella really, and pretty good. Quick, easy and cheap. Ticks all the boxes there!

Quantities serve 4, easily scaled up or down. You will need a large stove-top-to-oven pan, I used my largest le Creuset casserole dish.

4 lean pork belly strips, halved
olive oil

Sear in your pan until they are brown and crispy each side. Remove.

2 slices black pudding, cubed
4 thick slices bacon, cut into lardons

Fry in the same oil until coloured. Remove.

1 small onion, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced

Fry in the same oil (add more if you need to) until soft.

4 garlic cloves, chopped

Fry a bit more.

1 tomato, chopped

Fry until it breaks down. You could use tinned actually, if you have a use for the remainder of the tin.

Tin of butter beans or canellini beans
Sprig of fresh thyme or rosemary, chopped
2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes

Stir in. Add back your nicely browned meaty things.

200g paella rice

Stir in.

525 ml chicken stock

Add to the pan. Heat to bubbling then put in an oven at 200C/180C Fan. Leave 20 minutes and then have a peek. If the rice isn’t soft or there is too much liquid, leave another 5.

Serve with lemon to squeeze over if you like. Our home-made bacon is quite salty so it didn’t need more. You may need to adjust the seasoning.

Quick steak and mushroom stroganoff

14/10/2018 / Neville / 0 Comments

(Wikimedia image) Serves 2, easily scaled:

230g sirloin steak, trimmed of fat
1/4 tsp paprika
seasoning
oil

Season your steak, oil it and sear in a hot pan both sides. Turn the heat down and cook each side for two minutes. Set aside. In the same pan add

1 small onion sliced

Cook gently until softening Add

250g sliced chestnut mushrooms

Cook until soft. If it looks too dry add a pat of butter. When cooked, add

100ml beef stock
1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Simmer until reduced by about half. Add

2 tbs single cream

Slice your reserved steak, and add to the pan with the cream and any resting juices. Heat through but don’t boil the cream.

Serves with mash or pasta (tagliatelle or linguini is best). Scatter over some chopped fresh parseley for poshness.