Meal Thirty Five - Stir Fried Beef with Hoisin Sauce and Noodles

Back to basics using the ingredients I'd already got to hand, it's my first stir fry in years.
Usually associated with dieting, certainly in my case, they're very often a dish I've steered clear of.

The steak I'd bought over the weekend was ideal for this recipe as it was a little thin so by packing it out with some crunchy veg and some meaty mushrooms, it made quite a wholesome meal.

The classic combo of ginger, garlic and soy sauce brings this dish together nicely and the hoisin sauce, though fragrant, really works. A nice week night tea.

Methods for the most recent recipes to follow as the PC is playing up at the moment. X

Meal Thirty Four - Sirloin Steak with Beer Battered Onion Rings and Crunchy Fries

Nice easy tea tonight. Gone for the steak and chips option.
We have a retailer near us called "The Meat Man" and he sells good quality meat at an affordable price.

I picked some sirloin steak up yesterday along with a punnet of mushrooms with the intention of doing it for a blokes tea while the good wife went away to see some friends but I never got around to it.
Instead, Sam came back early today and we decided to have it for tea tonight.

You can't beat a good steak, especially when it's served up with mushrooms, onion rings, chips and peas! A classic tasty combination!

Meal Thirty Three - Spicy Chicken Wraps (Fajitas)

Sam and I popped into town for a coffee, and just to get out the house, after this miserable Bank Holiday, but after a distinctly average drink at the local coffee shop and finding out that not much in town was open, we decided to come home a little peckish.

A quick trip to Sainsburys across the road and we grabbed some vitals. We saw some tortilla wraps on offer and instantly I thought of a dish that would warm us up.

Ingredients:

6 chicken thigh fillets, thinly sliced

1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced

1 green pepper, thinly sliced

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1 red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped

6 spring onions, very finely chopped

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp easy garlic in white wine vinegar

1/2 carton chopped tomatoes with garlic, olive oil and herbs

a bunch of flat leafed parsley, roughly chopped

a small punch of coriander, roughly chopped

olive oil

lettuce

guacamole

sour cream

cheddar cheese

tortilla wraps

Method:

1. Add the strips of chicken to a mixing bowl and add the chilli, garlic, paprika, cayenne pepper, worcestershire sauce, tobasco sauce and both chopped herbs then mix thoroughly. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

2. Add a splash of olive oil to a pan and bring up to heat. Add the red and green peppers and the onion and then fry for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the chicken mixture to the pan and fry off for about 10 - 15 minutes before adding the chopped tomatoes. Saute off for another 10 - 15 minutes

4. Lay a tortilla wrap on a flat surface and add a spoon of the chicken mix. Sprinkle with some lettuce and cheese then smooth over a spoon of guacamole and sour cream. Roll the wrap and tuck up into a pocket shape. Serve.

Meal Thirty Two - Baked Chicken and Tomato

I didn't have the intention of doing another dish on the pub night, but after opening up the pack of chicken for the Chicken & Bacon dish, I noticed that the expiry date was the day before, and I didn't fancy waiting another day on top before cooking.

Not unlike the previous dish, I didn't really have the time for messing around, so wanted to do something where I could just assemble and leave in the oven whilst I got ready.

I was very pleased with the outcome of this dish and it incorporated some of the ingredients that I'd used with the steak tartare.

I'm glad I cooked another dish, as by the time I got back from the pub later on, it was a much better option to tuck into that a greasy burger or pizza!

Ingredients:

4 chicken thigh fillets

1/2 carton of chopped tomatoes with garlic, onion and herbs

2 pickled gherkins, finely sliced

6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved

6 anchovy fillets

handful of fresh basil

125ml rose wine

olive oil

Method:

1. Remove the basil storks, tear the leaves and place into an ovenproof dish.

2. Add the sliced gherkin and anchovy fillets with a touch of olive oil. Add the halved tomatoes, chopped tomatoes and herbs, chicken fillets and the wine then spoon over a bit more olive oil.

3. Pop into the oven for 10 minutes, then stir the ingredients and ensure that the chicken thighs are now covered with the sauce. Bake for another 10-15 minutes then serve.

Meal Thirty One - Chicken and Bacon

I was due to go out to the pub and thought I'd best line my stomach before having a "drinkypoohs", but as I didn't have any bread in the house, I thought I'd better raid the fridge.

I had the usual bacon, chicken and some herbs and didn't really want to spend an eternity on the hob so quickly threw together this dish.

This dish is so simple but still has enough flavour in there to make you think you've spent some quality time on it.

Ingredients:

2 chicken thigh fillets

2 rashers of smoked bacon

4 cherry tomatoes, halved

6 basil leaves

2 slices of mozzarella cheese (or a spoon of cream cheese will do)

Method:

1. Open up the chicken thigh fillets and lay on a flat surface over the top of a rasher of bacon. Place one basil leaf in the chicken and pop a slice of mozzarella on top. Place a couple of the tomato halves on the cheese and then place another basil leaf on top.

2. Roll the chicken up and take care in not allowing the inner ingredients to fall out. Tuck the bacon rasher ends underneath which will stop the fillet opening up in the oven.

3. Pop into an ovenproof dish and place into a pre-heated oven (170 deg. celsius) for approximately 20 minutes.

4. Serve with salad or a side dish of your choice. (Mashed potatoes and a chicken gravy goes down very well!)

Meal Thirty - Steak Tartare avec Frites

Well tonight I'm a third of the way through my blog so I thought I'd celebrate by cooking an absolute classic - Steak Tartare avec Frites!
I use the term "cooking" loosely, as foodies alike will already know that this dish is raw.

I've had this dish once before in an authentic Parisian bistro and it was absolutely beautiful. The flavours were strong yet delicate and as each mouthful passed, it got better and better.

So tonight I try to recreate the experience that I will never forget. Failure will have to fall on Simon Rimmer's (of TV fame) shoulders as I have used his adaptation. A couple of differences against the traditional method are that his recipe uses red onion rather than shallots and he instructs the cook to mix the egg rather than have it plonked on top of the raw pattie.

So, voila, the meal is done. Simon - it's spot on. The flavours take me right back to fair Paris.
Steak Tartare isn't everyone's cup of tea but for me, being a fan of rare steak, this really is a special dish.


Mr Rimmer? Merci beaucoup!

Ingredients:

2 x 175g aged beef fillet steaks

2 free-range egg yolks

1 lemon, juice only

100ml extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 gherkins, very finely diced

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 red onion, very finely diced

2 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed drained, very finely chopped

French fries, to serve

Method:

1. Using a very sharp knife, slice the steak into thin slices, then cut across the slices to created strips of meat.

2. Turn the strips of steak and cut across again into tiny cubes. Place into a bowl.

3. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, olive oil and Worcestershire sauce and whisk well to combine.

4. Add the steak pieces to the dressing along with the gherkins, mustard, red onion and anchovies. Stir well to combine and season well with salt and black pepper.

5. To serve, place a 10cm/4" chefs' ring onto each of two plates. Spoon equal quantities of the tartare mixture into the rings and press down into the edges.

6. Remove the rings and serve with French fries alongside.

Meal Twenty Nine - Gino's Spicy Prawn Linguine with Garlic, Tomato & Herbs

Last meal of the night, I promise!

I fancied some pasta, as I've not had it for a while and after performing my usual Google search for some ingredients I had in the fridge, it came back with Gino D'Acampo's linguine dish.

This is very quick dish, but has a cracking taste to it. I'd have to say by using the right wine (Italian Pinot Grigio) this is a bloody lovely dish. Not too overpowering as it's a only a pinch of chilli - but still enough in there to say, "yeah....that's chilli!"

The wife thoroughly enjoyed this one and I had to serve her a second portion! (Steady!)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

3 garlic gloves, crushed

1 pinch of chilli flakes (or 2 ;)  )

4 tiger prawns (or king prawns if not available)

6 cherry tomatoes, halved

50ml white wine (Pinot Grigio in my case)

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

1/2 lemon, juice only

150g linguine, cooked according to packet instructions (tonight - 6 mins in boiling salted water)

Method:

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the onion and garlic for 3-4 minutes, or until softened, then add the chilli flakes and prawns. Cook until the prawns have turned pink and are just cooked through.

2. Add the tomatoes and wine and cook for 2-3 minutes, then stir in the herbs and lemon juice. Add the cooked linguine and stir well to coat.

3. Pile the linguine onto a plate and serve.