Cooks of 419eater...

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Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

Don't be shy - come out of the closet!

Following a Skype conversation with our very own Nurse Nasty (prick), we began to speak about cooking/food. We both love to try out new things, so maybe this can be the place to share recipes & techniques with other members?

Lemon is the best for flavour, smell, tenderising meats e.t.c Who can top it? Laughing

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 1:05 pm

Pork marinated in stout. beers!

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 1:16 pm

Having worked in India, and 'lived it native style', here is the Kari (curry) secret.

1. Cook anything from a decent authentic recipie.
2. Cover and leave for 2 days.
3. Heat and eat!

Inker's CurryHouse Tip: Ask if they have a staff curry. It's the best thing you'll ever taste.

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

Info on a staff curry here:

http://www.thecurryplace.com/spice/press/tam-cowan-daily-record.html

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 1:23 pm

Thanks Craig, it's usually links that prove me WRONG!

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 1:27 pm

Great, there goes my tough, rough'n'tumble image... One second we're talking about turbulence and grenades, and then we're swapping recipes.

I have a couple of favourites that are easy to prepare and great tastes. This is a NN original, tested and true for the untrained and trained palette.

Fresh mango. I can't stand the smell of it, but if you puree one and chop another into fine slices. You can add this to your chicken breasts, or even a whole chicken. Instead of stuffing. Roast it a little first to control the sweetness.

Take your whole chicken breasts and slice horizontally about halfway through. Sit them in a glass bowl or tray.

Take the mango puree and add paprika (Hungarian), chives, shallots, tea spoon of balsamic vinegar (for tartness) Salt and pepper - warm it in a pan and melt a good knob of butter. Once mixed, allow to cool and pour over the sliced chicken breasts. Put in the fridge for a few hours, or prepare 24 hours before for a great marinade.

Side dish is couscous, with finely diced (roasted) bacon and red and green peppers (capsicum). You want the bacon crispy. Not too crunchy, crispy... Mix in with the couscous.

Cook the chicken in extra V olive oil. You can grill it if you like, depends how you like your chicken. Heat up the remaining sauce, add a little cream if you like.

Now take the slices of mango and cook in butter and add a sprinkle of sugar. Once cooked serve warm. Pour the remaining sauce over the chicken and .... yum.

You should be able to soon find the Craig and Nurse cookbook at all good outlets.. We think we have a career as celebrity chefs. Very Happy

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 2:09 pm

Can't fault that NN. It has complementary ingredients, simple preparation and just by reading it, you have a fair idea what the end result will be. I will try that and give a critique!

Just don't come anywhere near ME with bloody couscous. Hate the stuff!

I'm about to start the usual Sunday Roast. This week it's Lamb and I find it best done in a closed roasting pan using WATER and not oil. Cook for an hour and then dress with preferred herbs. I cheat and use gravy granules so the water from the lamb is perfect for this. Ahhhh Bisto - Arrrgh FAT!

On the subject of which; If you like to feed the birds during the winter, half fill a disposable container with bird feed and then pour in any leftover fat (George Foreman run-off). Allow to cool and then pop in the back of the freezer ready for winter.

Master Baiter Joined: 07 Oct 2008 Posts: 200 Location: UK

I love cooking and yes lemon is a wonderful tenderizer (as is lime).

Here is my quick cheatie chicken and lemon pesto with pasta supper:-

Finely shred chicken breast
Marinade with 1 crushed garlic clove
Juice of 1 lemon
tsp of fresh green pesto

Cook some penne pasta for 6 mins

Meanwhile, heat a frying pan and quickly stir fry the chicken. Stir in the marinade.

When pasta is cooked, drain. Stir in chicken mixture and another tbsp of pesto. Slap some grated parmesan on it and serve.

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 3:17 pm

Mangos or any fruit with sugar works as a tenderizer for meats but the best are papayas and pineapples. They have enzymes that hydrolyze the proteins. I like to marinate even the best cuts for a day or two. Two weeks ago someone served me a chicken breast that was moist yet so tender I had to ask how it was done. The marinade was a papaya puree. Last weekend I had calamari that did not fight back. The cook had used commercial papain, the enzymatic extract of papayas to tenderized the squid before she fried it.

My military son is coming home for a few days on leave so I've been soaking a few pounds of beef tenderloins since yesterday. The trick to any marinade is to turn often and "fork it".

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 3:45 pm

Male cooks!

happy crowd

That is something that Lovey does not do. Sad

Master of Master Baiters Joined: 06 Feb 2008 Posts: 720

Corned beef hash

Sliced onions and potatoes boiled together

Mashed with milk, butter and corned beef , stir in sweet corn

Place in baking dish bung in oven

Serve with fried egg

Not very sophisticated but tastes great

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

^^^

I should amend the first post: DECENT, TASTY, NON-VOMIT INDUCING, NON-BASIC dishes Wink

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 5:55 pm

Chilli con Carne.

Fry Minced Beef with Chopped Onions and Fresh Chillis in a little Olive Oil.
Throw in a bit of Diced Red/Green Pepper and Chopped Garlic and fry.
Chuck in some Kidney Beans.
Bung in a can of Chopped Tomatoes and a little Beef Stock.
Mix in a bit of Tomato Puree or a squirt of Tomato Ketchup.
Add a dash of Worcesteshire Sauce, a teaspoon of Cocoa (or a couple of squares of chocolate) and a teaspoon of Cumin. (Sometimes I'll chuck in a handful of sweetcorn at this point too).
Add Chilli Powder/Sauce and Salt to taste.
Simmer for 20 minutes and serve with Rice and Nachos.
Occasionally, I'll boil the Rice with a teaspoon of Tumeric - gives it a little colour and takes away the blandness.

edited cos i forgot the kidney beans. Embarassed

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 6:39 pm

1. Cross room and pick up telephone.
2. Call pizzeria.
3. Order large pepperoni, sausage and mushroom.
4. Wait 30-45 minutes.
5. Pay driver.
6. Open bottle of Ravenswood Zinfandel.
7. Serve.

Voila, a delicious, foolproof recipe that works every time!

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 6:44 pm

Modified Pad Thai made with things I grow

1 1/2 cup peanuts, toasted
three cups coconut milk, fresh
Half a head of garlic, fresh
1/4 cup ginger, fresh
table spoon toasted sesame oil
2 table spoons toasted sesame seed
1/2 cup leaves of moringa, fresh
half a habanero pepper, fresh
+-table spoon salt/some soy sauce, to taste

Place in blender. Hit frappe for one minute.

This can be adjusted to taste. Moringa very high in protein. Peanuts high in protein. Ginger, pepper and garlic, high in antimicrobials, immune boosters.

Place over chow mein noodles, cooled. Garnish with sliced cucumber.

Serve cool.

Wash down with ginger beer/ginger lemongrass tea. Best with friends and candle light.

Edited to LOL about Juans "recipe"

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 7:25 pm

Step 1: Marry a Thai woman
Step 2: Enjoy

I gained 30 pounds in my first year of marriage, and I enjoyed every second of it. Very Happy

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 7:38 pm

My all time high: roast chicken with lemon and rosemary roast potatoes.

Rub the chicken inside and out with a generous amount of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Do this in the morning if possible, then cover the chicken and leave in the fridge until you're ready to start cooking it for lunch or dinner. By doing this, you'll make the meat really tasty when cooked. Preheat your oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Cut the potatoes into golf-ball-sized pieces, put them into the water with the whole lemon and the garlic cloves, and cook for 12 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for 1 minute (this will give you crispier potatoes), then remove the lemon and garlic. Toss the potatoes in the pan while still hot so their outsides get chuffed up and fluffy – this will make them lovely and crispy when they roast.

While the lemon is still hot, carefully stab it about 10 times. Take the chicken out of the fridge, pat it with kitchen paper and rub it all over with olive oil. Push the garlic cloves, the whole lemon and the thyme into the cavity, then put the chicken into a roasting tray and cook in the preheated oven for around 45 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate. Some lovely fat should have cooked out of it into the roasting tray, so toss the potatoes into this with the rosemary leaves. Shake the tray around, then make a gap in the centre of the potatoes and put the chicken back in. If using the bacon, lay the rashers over the chicken breast and cook for a further 45 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked and the potatoes are nice and golden. (You can tell the chicken is cooked when the thigh meat pulls easily away from the bone and the juices run clear.)

I like to remove the bacon from the chicken and crumble it up over the potatoes. Then I remove the lemon and garlic from inside the chicken, squeeze all the garlic flesh out of the skin, mush it up and smear it all over the chicken, discard the lemon and rosemary and carve the chicken at the table. Heaven!

I hate to brag, but this one even made to one of JO's cooking books. Laughing

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 9:11 pm

Juan Freizwidatt wrote:

1. Cross room and pick up telephone.
2. Call pizzeria.
3. Order large pepperoni, sausage and mushroom.
4. Wait 30-45 minutes.
5. Pay driver.
6. Open bottle of Ravenswood Zinfandel.
7. Serve.

Voila, a delicious, foolproof recipe that works every time!

Juan, m'épouserez-vous ?

(We might have to negotiate the mushrooms though. Wink

)

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 9:13 pm

Foolproof* Melt-in-your-mouth Yummy Roast Lamb
*If they rave about bout mine, they'll rave bout yours too

Lean leg of NZ (where else?) lamb
Cup of dry white wine
Zest of one lemon
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Fresh rosemary sprigs
2 Tbsp olive oil
Garlic cloves, qty to suit
Rock salt
Space in fridge for roasting pan or large glass dish
Glass or 3 of merlot to help with preparation

Note- qty's (merlot incl.) are estimates as things just happen when I comendeer the kitchen.

- Trim lamb of any ramaining fat
- Using a paring knife make deep slits in the lamb, all over, and stuff each one with 1/4 of a garlic clove and a 4 of 5 leaf 'mini-sprig' of rosemary
- Rub lamb all over with lemon zest and rock salt
- Mix oil, white wine and lemon juice in the pan and poor over lamb, total coverage (don't forget the ends)
- Sprinkle with any remaining rosemary leaves
- Cover and put in fridge for no less than 24 hours, 48 preferred
- At breakfast, dinner and bedtime, turn lamb and spoon the oil/wine/juice mix over.
- 6 hours before cooking take out of fridge
- Roast slowly at 160-180 degC in covered pan until almost done, basting two or three times.
- Remove lid of pan to brown
- Rest, serve with your favourite roast veg and enjoy!

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

Great response guys - I will certainly be trying some of these out!

I suppose I had better share one of my own, easy, but tasty:

Tandoori Chicken (An Indian would probably kill me, but...)

Serves 4

2 chicken breast fillets
1 Garlic clove
Root ginger (grated)
50 ml Greek Yoghurt
Tsp Clear honey
Tandoori Spice
X - Pitta Breads
Lemon juice
Half onion, finely diced
Ingredients for a side salad of your choice to accompany.

Score chicken fillets, and place in a bowl. Add garlic, ginger, yoghurt, honey, tandoori spice (as much/little as you can handle), onion and season well. Marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes, longer if possible.
Grill or fry as you prefer.
Place chicken in communal serving bowl (pre-heated)
Warm pitta breads in oven, and serve.
Serve with side salad of your choice, drizzle in balsamic vingegar.

If you are going to be a real ponce, make your own Tandoori spice:

Ginger, Coriander, Cumin, Paprika, Salt & Cayenne Pepper (can be omitted)

Lemon gives a nice tartness to chicken, whilst the balsamic tartens the salad.

Season everything as to your liking.

Place chicken in Pitta bread, fill with salad, and top with additional youghurt.

You can also BBQ the chicken, which adds a more authentic taste (So I'm told)

Standby for my fajita recipe, complete with Bacardi Shocked

EDIT: @ SOOI Chilli & chocolate DOES go really well together Very Happy

Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 10:48 pm

DoraTheExplorer wrote:

Juan, m'épouserez-vous ?

Well, Dora, if we're going to be intimate enough Embarassed

to discuss that, you can certainly tutoie me -- no need for the formal vous. Wink

Quote:

We might have to negotiate the mushrooms though.

I'm flexible on that issue, the only non-negotiable points are sausage (yes) and onions (no).

Baiting Guru Joined: 29 Jan 2008 Posts: 2531 Location: AU

I love my seafood.

especially because its fresh and free

a good simple one i discovered

nice hot pan with a dash of butter.

get your scallops and add a touch of mint and pepper
throw them in the pan for about 20-30 seconds each side.
best if they are slightly undercooked.

Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 12:47 am

Juan Freizwidatt wrote:

Well, Dora, if we're going to be intimate enough Embarassed

to discuss that, you can certainly tutoie me -- no need for the formal vous. Wink

You know, mon cher, I can only use google French. Maybe you could teach me non-google French while we discuss our engagement? Wink

Quote:

I'm flexible on that issue, the only non-negotiable points are sausage (yes) and onions (no).

Sausage (yes) Onions (I can go either way)

Would a Hawaiian Pizza be pushing it too far? Very Happy

Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 1:29 am

For YW:

Tastes Good Prawns n' Stuff
Yummy with different textures

Note: This recipe contains built-iin flavour and requires no added salt!

500g large uncooked prawns, beheaded for treason
2 large cloves garlic (or more!), crushed
150g brown button mushrooms, sliced
2 large stalks of celery, sliced
1 large onion, cut into 6 segments and delaminated (there is probably fancy term for this but I'm not that much of a wok snob)
1/4 cup or 100g soft honey
2 tsbp lightly toasted sesame seeds and a little sesame oil
400g tin of bamboo shoots, sliced
200g tin of water chesnuts, halved
Handfull of snow peas
Large dash or two soy sauce

- Heat some oil in a wok or large pan and stir-fry the garlic for 1 minute
- Add onions and celery
- When onions just start to soften add mushrooms, bamboo & water chesnuts, snow peas, stir-fry until mushrooms pretty much cooked (2-3mins)
- Add prawns and stir-fry until start to change color
- Add soy sauce and enough seasme oil to give a little aroma followed by the most important ingredient, the honey, to taste
- Celery and bamboo should now be tender, so stop messing about and serve with white rice

Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 1:49 am

Macaroni and cheese? Very Happy