Fried Tofu salad

Fried Tofu salad

Serves 2 as mains or 4 as a starter 

• 70g wild rocket - washed
• 150g beansprouts – blanched & drained
• 200g tofu - fried in caramelised sugar
• 2 fresh tomatoes - Cut and de-seeded
• 1 Teaspoon of Sesame seeds

For the vinaigrette

• 3 tablespoons mustard oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 generous pinch of ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon of caster sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• ½ small red chilli - very finely chopped
• Garlic granules

Prep:

The tofu is sold as a block that will need to be cut and fried. Use the DragonFly pressed tofu as they are much tastier and absorb flavours.

Just cut as in the picture. Dust with salt and ground ginger. In a hot pan, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Leave the sugar to brown slightly. Then add the tofu stick and swirl to allow the sugar to coat the sticks. Allow 1 minute for each side to crisp before turning them from side to side.

Once that is done, set aside and prepare the other components of the salad.

The vinaigrette. In a small jar with a lid, add: mustard oil, soy sauce, ground ginger, caster sugar, salt, garlic granules, and chilli. Shake well to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Now into a large bowl, add: rocket, sprouts, tomatoes and toss. Add the tofu sticks, sesames seeds drizzle the vinaigrette, serve as suggested & enjoy!

 

No comment!

 

Roast potatoes medley

Often wondered about how else you could use left overs roast potatoes in a really tasty and original way… Well, here is one to try at home. Tastes good too!

Get a piece of baguette to clean the plate with...

Dinner for 2

Ingredients (from scratch):

For the potatoes:

·         200grs baby potatoes – Or salad potatoes
·         2tbsp vegetable oil
·         Salt and black pepper

For the tahini “sauce”:

·         1 medium onion, finely chopped
·         3 garlic cloves finely chopped
·         2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil
·         2 tablespoons of tahini paste
·         1 tablespoon of mustard paste
·         ½ knor vegetable stock cube melted in 150ml of warm water
·         1 small bunch of fresh parsley

For the roast potatoes (if you haven’t got let overs)

Take a bag of 200grs salad potatoes, rinse them and cut each one in half. Place them on the oven tray face down with 2table spoons of vegetable oil, salt & pepper. Put the potatoes in the preheated oven at 180C for 30 minutes. The skin should be crispy and the potatoes slightly firm.

In the meantime, prepare the tahini base of the medley:

Chop the onion into really fine pieces, heat 2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil in a saucepan, brown the onions, don’t let them burn. Now add the garlic, tahini paste and the mustard. Stir for 2 minutes then add a glass of water and leave to simmer gently for 5 minutes uncovered. Stir from time to time so it doesn’t stick.

Now, add the potatoes and do not forget to scrape the bottom of the oven tray (more flavour there) and add it to the mix. Stir well and poor in 150ml of stock. Cover and leave on medium heat for 15 minutes. What we are looking for is the sauce to stick to the potatoes. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Now take the pan off the heat and add the chopped parsley. Mix well and serve immediately.

Bon Appétit

Note: This dish was created from some leftover potatoes from dinner the day before. Any leftover roast vegetables could be used in this way. Do not worry if you normally roast your potatoes with other vegetables. No need to separate them, just chuck it all in the “sauce” and enjoy!

Intro to my cooking oils 1/2

Part 1/2 Mustard, Sunflower, Coconut, Olive & rapeseeds oil.

If just looking at oils makes you put on weight, better not read this post… IT AIN’T RECOMMENDED for you.

I have recently taken stock of my collection of oils. It turns out I am a collector… I would have preferred a wine collection to be honest, but there is only so much cooking that you can do with wine. Besides, I am really proud to be a collector of OILS… I don’t know anyone who collects them... Do you?

I am writing this post just to tell you about my oil collection and would like to invite you to try some of them… or should I say “dare you”.

I am going to start with the love of my life… Mustard oil! Mustard oil can be used for cooking although heating it up to fry onion for example might lose the oil’s Omega3 content. I like using it to finish a dish or on salads.

This oil is the bomb! If poured on a hot dish, you better step away as the heat/fumes from it will make your eyes water. This oil is as hot as chilli pepper and apparently it is really good for your health too. The last time I used it, it was do make a vinaigrette; getting the mustard taste and heat with actually using mustard. This oil can be expensive for every day cooking. So, use sparingly. 250 ml of this oil costs from £2.00 to £5.00

The next oil is Sunflower oil… every one’s got this in their kitchen. It is good for general cooking, frying and Also salads. Nothing to write home about. You will usually be able to buy a litter between £1.15 and £2.99.

Coconut oil. I bought this one because it sounded great but I am not that impressed with it. I have used it to cook soups, broths and sauces. I have then had to top them with coconut cream to feel the full hit of coconut. This oil is also used as a biofuel in some country ahaha. … Fear not! It is totally edible. It is also used as a moisturiser for dry skins and as a hair product… It coagulates quite easily (like butter) and has to be placed in a very warm environment before using. I do not recommend buying in bottle format, but in jar. That way, you can just spoon the quantity needed as in when.

Olive oil. Every one rants about this oil and it is almost as if other oils do not exist. And just because it is so widely used, it isn’t my favourite… I love being contrary. Yes I know it is great for health, but here in the UK, we are not in the freakin’ Mediterranean country and we should moderate our consumption… Chefs in UK TV cooking shows pour this oil on their dishes as if it was water… DO NOT COPY THEM! We do not share the same climate. God wasn’t a fool when he placed olive trees in the Middle East and Mediterranean!!!

 

Rapeseed oil. I quite like this one! It sounds great and make some wicked potatoes chips/French fried. I started using it because of it name and the 99p store used to sell a litre of it for £0.99p. Now, they sell it at the same price, but the bottle is much smaller (500ml)… Can’t fill my chip pan with this all the time… need to cut down on chips then.

See you next week for part with Hazelnut, Walnut, Almond, sesame seeds, ground nut, and palm oil.

Ciao!

Roasted butternut squash, spinach & a tahini sauce plus potato rosti

Make it crispy!

Ingredients for 2:

All the ingredients for the dish

·         1 onion

·         1 potato

·         ½ of a small butternut squash

·         1 red sweet pepper

·         50ml of rapeseed oil

·         2 tablespoons of tahini paste (sesame seeds paste)

·         2 tablespoons of mild sugar free mustard

·         8 cubes of frozen spinach leaves defrosted.

·         Salt & pepper

·         3 Brazil nuts

·         3 garlic cloves

 

METHOD:

Roast the butternut squash:
Cut the butternut squash into quarters (with or without the skin) and place in an oven proof dish. Season the butternut with salt, black pepper and a splash of oil. Roast in the oven for 40 minutes at 200C. Once cooked and browned, switch off the oven and leave the dish inside to keep warm.



Frying the rostis

For the potato rostis:  While the squash is in the oven, peel and grate the potato then squeeze the water out of it.  Season with salt and coarse black pepper (there is no need to shape the rostis’).  Heat a non-stick pan and add a dash of rapeseed oil. Deposit a hand full of the grated potato mixture in the pan then flatten with a spatula. Cook each side of the rosti for 2 minutes until golden brown. Then remove and place on a kitchen towel. Repeat until all the rostis’ are done.

For the Spinach: If using frozen spinach cubes, defrost them and squeeze out the water. Chop 1 half of the onion and the 3 garlic cloves, fry them with the 3 finely chopped Brazil nuts until they are brown. Once this is done, add the spinach. Stir with a sponged spatula whilst separating the leaves. Add a bit of salt and pepper then stir again, and add 4 tablespoons of water. Cover and simmer for 2 minutes. That is done

For the sauce: Chop the other half of onion into really fine pieces. Heat 2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil in a pan, brown the onions, don’t let them burn. Now add the tahini paste and the mustard. Stir for 2 minutes then add a glass of water and leave to simmer gently for 5 minutes uncovered. Stir from time to time so it doesn’t stick. The sauce is ready.

Serving suggestion

Now all you need to do is serve before it gets cold. The dish is best served with the sauce on the side.

 Voila!

Mustardy Lentils soup

 Mustardy Lentils soup - Soup served with hard baguette.

Ingredients:

1 onion, 5 garlic cloves

4 medium potatoes

300 grams of lentils – preferably dry

Two chilli peppers

1 stock cube

Mustard oil & black Pepper

Part cooked baguette

Roasted pumpkin and sunflower seeds or poppy seeds

For the lentils:

If using dry lentils, soak them for 20 minutes and bring them to boil with a pinch of salt for another 20. Rinse and drain. Put aside.

For the hard baguette:

Buy a part cooked baguette from any supermarket, cook in the oven following instructions on the package. Slice and leave it to dry and harden or an hour before using for the soup. It could be cooked in the morning and used in the evening. You will find the part cooked baguettes in the bread aisle in Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose or Morrison’s.

Cooking the soup:

Heat 2 table spoons of mustard oil in a cooking pan

Throw in a twig of thyme, chopped onion and garlic.

Add the peeled and cut potatoes, fry until really brown. This will add to the flavour of the soup.

Once the potatoes are brown on all sides, add the lentils, stock, water and chilli peppers. Cover the pot and leave to cook until the potatoes are completely cooked and nearly mushy. Add a bit of black pepper if necessary. Then blend to taste; smooth or with bits. It is ready to serve. 

Once the soup is in the bowl, top with a drizzle of mustard oil and a dust of poppy seed… I just love the way that poppy seeds crush under the tooth…

Yeah! I changed my mind about the seeds.

For best taste, It is better to dunk the bread... uhmmmmm the rush... mouth watering thinking of it again.

Bon appétit!

Nash!