Be Excellent To Each Other

Following up from the best fluffy pancakes I've made yet (in BnB the other day), this morning we made Japanese pancakes.

Not bad but needs some work; they stuck to the side of the chef's ring (hence they have scruffy sides) and they take bastard ages to make.

Got to say, they don't look like they'd be very nice. They look really heavy.

I'm making a recipe website, but Android Chrome has put me off

Awesome work. You really are quite the chef mate.

I made Mrs C a crab linguine last night; one of my absolute faves because it's so easy, yet seriously scrumptious even if I do say so with my usual modesty lol.

Secret ingredients include starting off by briefly frying off a jar of anchovies in oil, before adding 8 (yes, eight) dried and finely snipped Kashmiri chillies, seeds and all, together with 4 cloves of pressed good purple garlic. Fry these for a minute or so before adding a sploosh of extra virgin olive oil and the next secret ingredient - a peeled and grated courgette, fry over medium to high heat adding more oil and a generous bunch of finely chopped coriander stalks. Now stir in one 50/50 white and brown Waitrose crabmeat and three of the white crabmeat, keeping on the heat and stirring in, heating through (only another minute or so, keeping everything quick to conserve delicate flavours and textures). Now, add a few tablespoons of pasta water (unsalted, from the 3 minutes max cook time for fresh linguine), squeeze in a lemon, take off heat and stir in the freshly drained linguine (I use a very large, shallow paella pan btw). Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves and serve immediately with a super chilled, bone dry 1er Chablis, move pan to centre piece of candlelit table, Zeppelin playing chilled romantic tracks in the background.

IMO it does not get any better than this and makes the soul soar and be happy you're alive.

Very important to get the Kashmiri dried chillies online from an Asian supplier. If you substitute it will not have that lovely warmth but will be far too hot and ruined.

Not at all. About 50% of the batter volume was egg whites whipped to stiff peaks so there's loads and loads of air in there. Texturally, they were almost all the way to a light sponge cake.

Your being a bit hard on yourself, looked for a recipe for these online and accompanying picture looks just like yours (minus butter and syrup )

I do now want crab linguini, however - a jar of anchovies? Seems an awful lot.

Billy Connolly popped into my head even as I was reading that sentence

https://youtu.be/g7ou4nagOck?t=2m54s <<< Direct link to Kasmiri Chillies.

It's only a tiny little glass jar, about 80g only I think.

Heh. Yes I know this sounds poncy but it's true: these particular dried chillies impart a completely different flavour - and heat - to normal shop bought dried chillies, let alone fresh. Honestly.

It's not a snobby thing because they're as cheap as chips.

That crab linguine sounds excellent.

Thank you sir. Mega-easy compared to Doc's stuff though, I wouldn't even attempt that.

I'm in the chair again tomorrow cooking for all my girls (Mrs C and both TAs) - roast forerib of beef with all the trimmings (and I mean all lol, fat bastard that I am )

Time to set both fires for max winter cosyness

Most of my cooking is not as complex as the stuff I write about; the stuff I write about is the most interesting of it, that's all. The "best" thing I cook, in the sense that I'm happiest with it, is carbonara which is very simple (five ingredients, five steps, pretty similar to your crab in simplicity.)

Having said that I do have from-scratch cornmeal dough proving downstairs for deep dish (Chicago style) stuffed pizza later.

And to think I feel exhausted after shoving a Co-op spag bol in the MAGNETRON.

I've no idea how you guys do it.

I mean, I know how to cook, and I'm generally alright at it (although I have very little technical knowledge) but I just derive no pleasure from it at all. I blame my upbringing.

Will you cook that in your oven or do you have something else? I have pizza cooker

Not this model but its similar https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ferrari-G10006 ... zza+cooker.

I also have a pizza stone for my Green Egg, never got around to deep dish pizza although I think there is something you can buy just for this from the Green Egg website.

Do they need different cooking than say thin crust? I do this on the Egg at around 500-550F with a nice hot stone, cook for 6-10 mins depending on how loaded the pizza is with toppings.

It was in the oven for about 40 minutes at 200 deg C. Deep dish pizzas aren't cooked like fast and hot like thin pizzas, they are more like pies; comparatively low and slow. I mean they're inches thick, so they'd still be cold if cooked for a few minutes.

Splendid Chinese takeaaway style curry, using just a few simple ingredients.

INGREDIENTS:

1) One sachet Mayflower chinese style frozen curry sauce
2) One onion
3) Two fresh chillies (Kashmiri not required, dried crushed chillies will suffice if fresh not available)
4) EVOO (This is how fancy types refer to Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
5) Black pepper
6) Your choice of pouched microwavable rice (I find the Tesco pouches of basmati rice to be perfect, and reasonably priced. A controversial choice of rice given the dish perhaps, but I feel it works)
7) Your choice of oven chips (Standard McCain's are ideal, a good robust chip, but you can use whatever you want)
8 ) Half a mug of frozen garden peas or petit pois (Petit pois are for if you're feeling posh. Really, they're all just peas)

PREPARATION:

Put your sachet of frozen curry sauce into a pan of boiling water, this will take 20 minutes to cook, which is ample time to prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Microwave your half mug of peas in water for 3 minutes and put to one side.

Chop the onion to your taste, you want reasonable sized pieces. Put the chopped onion in a glass bowl with some EVOO, the chillies, and some black pepper. Give it a good stir, microwave for 30 seconds (900W), give another good stir, and set to one side, this will allow the onion to relax and take on a spectacular infusion of the various flavours.

When the curry sauce is cooked, turn off the heat, drain the water from the pan, and empty the curry sauce back into the pan. Add the onion mixture and drained peas, give it all a good stir, cover, and put to one side.

You have now prepared a wonderful reheatable curry, perfect for after an evening on the beers playing online games with your chums.

WHEN READY TO INDULGE YOURSELF:

Reheat the curry over a gentle heat whilst your oven chips are cooking. (You may need to add a small amount of water to the pan to give the curry the perfect consistency.) Towards the end of the cooking time, heat your rice in the microwave according to the instructions on the pouch.

Present the dish with the rice on one side of the plate, the chips on the other side (season to taste), and then lovingly smother both with your delicious Chinese style curry.

Finish with seasoning and a sauce of your choice (black pepper and a hot sweet chilli sauce work very well).

Bon appetit!

Please note picture below is for illustration purposes only and was prepared by a trained chef. Individual results may vary.

For a really tasty breakfast, chuck a muffin in the toaster. While that's cooking, take a regular mug, pop in a spot of butter and microwave it to melt. Add a dash of milk, break in a single egg, grate some cheese and season with salt and pepper. Quick whisk and then microwave for 70 seconds. Place egg in muffin and eat.

If you are feeling really adventurous, add a sausage patty or slice of bacon for the full McMuffin experience.

This is a visual experience thread, I wish to see pictorial evidence of your bespoke McMuffin.

How do you get a convincing Maccy D's style sausage patty?

If you just skin a couple of sausages and form it into a patty before shallow frying, you'll be most of the way there. Although I think McD's seasoning blend isn't quite like any other sausagemeat I've ever had.

My "how takeaway shit is made" book says:

500g ground pork (mince)
½ tsp dried ground sage
½ tsp dried thyme
1 tsp onion powder
¾ tsp black pepper
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp sugar

I've been making Chili quite a lot recently. I only have a small kitchen with two gas rings and a kettle as my only cooking equipment, and I'm pretty lazy with cooking so I like stuff I can make in a big batch and freeze.

I get 1kg of fresh tomatoes, boil them to peel the skin off, then chop them up and stick them in a big pot.
Fry some garlic and onions, and add them to the pot, with some fresh basil and chopped chilies (I do about 8/9 of the tiny little chilies).
Leave it on the lowest heat, and let it cook for ages, mixing it & checking it's still moist about every half hour. I add water and a little red wine.
About an hour in I add 500g of ground beef.
Then add whatever veg I'm using (pureed pumpkin is nice, also oyster mushrooms, grated carrot and obviously kidney bean).

The longer you cook it the better it gets. Pretty simple recipe, but it's healthy, cheap and delicious.

Asda sell something similar, but not as nice.
https://groceries.asda.com/product/butc ... 0002379577

I'll photograph the next breakfast for you

Pretty much the same as how I do it every day so that you eat something more than packets of crisps and haribo.

That's quite the touch of class there, Hearthly. Microwave pouch rice, McCain oven chips... but obviously make sure it's extra virgin olive oil that's used... one shudders at the scale of faux pas which would doubtless ensue getting *that* crucial detail wrong, eh.
A trip to FarmFoods must be an epicurean voyage of unending discovery par excellence, huh.

These have the seasoning, texture, everything of the McD's patties I think 100% bang on: http://m.tesco.com/h5/groceries/r/www.t ... =289706028

That image is verging on plagiarism.

"Just add muffin"? I can at least see eggs and cheese there too.

Hash browns too.

ALTFAX

Looks like a trip to Tesco is in order. Thanks Mimi.

I know I shouldn't laugh but have to say I do find it a little unfortunate that in just one short page we have gone from the highs of Doc's magnificent Japanese pancakes to oven chips, microwave rice pouches and DIY McMuffins.

I mean it is food AND cooking, guys - it has to be both. (Man alive, if any Chinese I went to tried to palm me off with that "curry", I'd likely chin them )

So you've gone from "not being a snob" to "being a snob" in one page. Congrats.

This is life changing news.

Yawn.
Yeah, sorry for liking fine food and good cooking; I don't feel the need to reinforce my working class credentials by taking exception to the use of 50p's worth of dried Kashmiri chillies or whatever. I'm not that insecure.

I realise I'm wasting my breath but even when I was utterly skint and a bachelor, even then I made the effort to source healthy food which I cooked myself, because you know, by and large I didn't want to eat shit then, any more than I do now.

By and large I don't have any problem with people living off McDonalds, microwaved chips or whatevs but don't call me for making the effort to source interesting spices or whatever else. I wouldn't feed that shit to my dogs, personally (which is just as well, because if I did, the RSPCA would likely be on to me)

"Snob".... lol. I mean really, just listen to yourself.

Each to their own perhaps? I'd genuinely rather eat my fab Chinese style curry than your crab linguine or that uncooked steak that DocG posted a pic of the other week.

You might think it's 'shit' but I rather like it

Pffft

Oh I agree, but if you're honest, you certainly had quite an issue with the humble Kashmiri chilli didn't you! (you mention it multiple times in multiple posts - bizarre). I find this funny yet sad; if only people tried these things they'd realise, as I did many years ago, the dusty shite you get in a Schwartz spice jar (assuming they even get this far), packet mix or whatever is a pale imitation of all the wonderful, CHEAP spices you can actually source if you're bothered; it's just so easy now with the web, too.

I don't like snobbery, but I dislike chip-on-shoulder inverted snobbery and the attendant insecurity and wilful, crass philistinism much, much more.

There must be something wrong with beex as I don't have hearthly on ignore and these multiple posts aren't showing for me.

You forgot to microwave it, you silly snob.

Comprehension isn't your strongest suit, is it?




Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some poncy, snobby home-made Chicken and Rosewater Biriyani with Balti Vegetable Sauce waiting for me at home. Go me.

That is hearthly contextually referring to Kashmiri chillis.

This is hearthly having quite an issue with something over multiple posts. search.php?keywords=Parktronic&author=Hearthly&sf=all&sc=1&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&style=26&submit=Search

Sheesh, a couple of lighthearted digs (complete with smiley) which clearly had no malice intended lead to this reaction? Blimey.

I haven't accused anyone, least of all you of malice; I am merely mildly bemused and have pulled your leg (ever so gently) over it.
You've commented loads of times before about my "foody" stuff; when I mentioned I'd cooked humble fresh scallops some other place or other you positively went into overdrive IIRC, same goes for a Vongole. I may be mistaken but there does seem a bit of a theme, which if so is a shame - for you, not me. I'm as happy as Larry!

It doesn't make me angry, I was laughing about it - but seriously I think you're missing out? It's your call though obv.

Wow!

I wouldn't eat that, only as I don't like peas and curry is one of those things I'll eat happily but wouldn't be top of my list to make. The chips no problem!

I do put a bit of effort into our food, its maybe the one thing my wife and I agree on. I get the best meat and fish I can find, also get my veg when in season from a local pick your own place as well as growing some stuff in my greenhouse\garden.

I also have a couple of sous vide and a big green egg and will do a lot of cooking with those time and weather permitting, also make all our own bread via a bread machine (so not that impressive), will use it for pizza dough as well, also make my own pizza sauce from scratch.

Sometimes I like to eat fish fingers, oven chips and beans though because its nice Tonight's dinner is a tuna pasta bake which my wife is making, my son loves it and its easy when you have a busy day with a 3 year old.

The other day I cut a lot of the effort out of pizza, I bought some flat breads that my sister in law recommended for bases and used pre made sauce. It was a much nicer experience, instead of me running around covered in flour and focusing on the cooking we were able to be more relaxed and have my son help make them.

Overall our goal is to be a fresh as possible with our food, but I don't mind cutting some corners to save some time, or even the odd Domino pizza its all about moderation really.

We never eat pre made supermarket food and my son has never had a single pre made baby meal either. Whilst I would never judge anyone on their eating habbits as it none of my business I don't get why some people would rather heat a ready meal in the oven over something like some chicken pieces and vege etc

I was dreaming last night about growing my own tomatoes (exciting times). Haven't done it for a few years. Might make the effort again this year.

I would make sure you get F1 hybrids, I get these from Suttons normally, they are a pain for delivery as they just say "May" or "June" and they turn up on your door at some point that month.

Last year we were on holiday for a lot of May so I bought some plants locally, they were not F1 or super disease resistant, the crops were ok but not as good as I had previous years, also had disease on the fruit and plants as well.

I used to get all my seeds from http://www.realseeds.co.uk/ - imagine that'll be the way I go this year too.

Do you have a really sunny garden, Jem? I'd love to grow tomatoes but they demand full sun and we have hundreds of overhanging trees like birches, willows and mature oaks partially blocking the light esp. during mornings and evenings when the sun is lower in the sky (and filling the air with moisture via their transpiration, nothing dries on the washing line lol). It's also a terrible blight area, I get very little luck even with so-called blight resistant grafted varieties, let alone seed-grown. Gutted, as there's nothing as gorgeous as fragrant, freshly harvested ripe, red, organically grown garden tomatoes on the vine. Bizarrely, I've found out that cucumbers *love* it here though, I grew one as a 'lucky dip' last season and it went berserk, cropping about 30 beautiful, sweet-smelling ridge cucumbers off just one plant plonked outside in a patio pot. Just kept watering the bugger.

Jamie Oliver does a great tomato salad recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/jami ... ecipe.html

All that lovely Vitamin C etc. and bursting with goodness, makes you feel great.