Spicy Shoyu Ramen / Sausage Rolls with Apricots & Whisky-Caramelised Onions / Moroccan Slow-Roasted Shoulder of Lamb + Bramley & Mincemeat Pasties

Blog Post & Recipe: Spicy Shoyu Ramen

If you prefer no spicy taste at all for yourself or young children, you can use regular chili bean paste (doubanjiang) and not spicy chili bean paste (la doubanjiang).

Blog Post & Recipe: Sausage rolls with apricots and whisky-caramelised onions

Anyway, [whisky-caramelised onions are] incredible in these sausage rolls too, together with re-plumped dried apricots and a good pinch of chipotle chilli flakes to play off that smoky thing going on with the whisky. At first I was worried the rolls might be a little on the sweet side with the onions and fruit but god damn if they weren’t just plain sexy.

Blog Post & Recipe: Nigel Slater's mincemeat pasties and lamb recipes

Chunks of meat are all well and good, but few things beat a whole joint, slowly roasted on the bone until the meat slides away at the slightest prod. Lamb shoulder is arguably the king of such joints. It's tough as old boots, but so perfectly fatty that when sympathetically cooked the fat melts through the meat

Moroccan slow-roasted shoulder of lamb ... Bramley and mincemeat pasties

Turkish Coffee - Persian Armenian Style / Hobak Hotteok (Sweet Stuffed Pumpkin Pancakes) / 11 Literary Recipes

Blog Post & Recipe: Turkish Coffee - Persian Armenian Style

My mother learned to make Turkish coffee from her Armenian neighbor when she was just a young newlywed and had moved to a new home and a new town.

Blog Post & Recipe: Hobak Hotteok (Sweet Stuffed Pumpkin Pancakes)

Hotteok is a popular street snack in Korea. It's basically a pan-fried yeast dough stuffed with a brown sugar and nut filling ... Because it's pumpkin season, I've tweaked it a little to make pumpkin hotteok.

Blog Post & Recipes: Enjoy Thanksgiving with Our Literary Recipes Roundup

Enjoy Turkey Day with Biblioklept’s menu of literary recipes

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Turkey Twelve Ways ... Zora Neale Hurston’s Mulatto Rice ... Ian McEwan’s Fish Stew ... James Joyce’s Burnt Kidney Breakfast ... Herman Melville’s Whale Steaks ... Ernest Heminway’s Absinthe Cocktail, Death in the Afternoon ... Vladimir Nabokov’s Eggs à la Nabocoque ... Thomas Pynchon’s Banana Breakfast ... Cormac McCarthy’s Turtle Soup ... Robert Crumb’s Macaroni Casserole ... George Orwell’s Recipes for Plum Cake and Christmas Pudding

3 Juniper Recipes / Ultra-Crispy Roast Potatoes / Pan-Fried Mackerel + Smoked Mackerel Cakes & Tomato Salad

Blog Post & Recipe: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's juniper recipes

Crush a juniper berry between your fingers and its clean, resinous smell perks up a dull brain as effectively as a two-shot espresso. And, of course, its piny sweetness has the clean, bright aroma of gin

Chicken with rosemary and juniper ... Potato and celeriac gratin with juniper ... Rabbit and bacon with juniper and chestnuts

Blog Post & Recipe: The Food Lab Thanksgiving Special: Ultra-Crispy Roast Potatoes

The problem is that with simple roasting, they'll crisp up all right, but the layer of crispness will be very very thin. Within moments, steam from the interior of the spud will cause the crisp bits to soften. So what is it that makes a potato crisp?

Blog Post & Recipe: Pan-Fried Mackerel; Smoked Mackerel Cakes and Tomato Salad

Mackerel is delicious and versatile and can be served hot or cold, smoked, raw or cooked. Due to the rich oily flesh mackerel works best with strong acid flavours such as saffron, lemons, limes, tomatoes, orange, fennel, chilli, ginger and wasabi. The skin of mackerel is thin and therefore crisps up easily and tastes equally delicious. My philosophy about mackerel is to keep it simple; it’s a humble fish

Nigel Slater's Salsa Verde / Warm Chickpea Salad with Cumin, Garlic / How to Smoor a Rabbit

Recipe: Nigel Slater's classic salsa verde recipe

Literally "green sauce", this cold accompaniment is made from olive oil, parsley, capers and garlic. Known as the sauce to serve with Italian boiled meats, it is also appropriate with everything from grilled seafood to baked tomatoes.

Article & Recipe: Warm chickpea salad with cumin, garlic

This salad is one of my favorite ways to turn chickpeas into lunch: crunchy with tiny cumin seeds, punched up with a pinch of red chili flakes. Cool, crisp cucumber nestles in between the chickpeas, and sun-dried tomatoes lend a savory note.

Blog Post & Recipe: How to Smoor an Old Rabbit

‘To smoor’ is a Scots and Northern England verb meaning ‘to smother’, and several references indicate that it was a useful technique used against one’s enemies ... It came to have quite a different usage in the kitchen (although the Oxford English Dictionary does not recognise it), where it means to cook slowly in a closed pot.

To smoore an old Coney, Ducke, or Mallard, on the French fashion.

Ginataang Hipon (Shrimp in Coconut Milk) / John Allison's Toad in the Hole / Quinoa cakes

Blog Post & Recie: G is for Gata and How to Make Ginataang Hipon (Shrimp in Coconut Milk)

Half a cup of coconut milk for a pound of shrimp. Roughly.
Use cream instead of milk, when you can.
Devein shrimp but keep heads and shells on.

Article & Recipe & Drawings: Recipe Comix: Toad in the Hole

Here, Allison's intrepid school-age detectives Lottie and Mildred whip up a version of toad in the hole that will turn us all into excellent housewives, even if we previously thought ourselves thwarted by age or gender

Blog Post & Recipe: Polpete od kvinoje / Quinoa cakes

They are actually vegetarian burgers, they hold up very well and bake nicely ... Quinoa is so versatile, you can use it both in savory and sweet dishes. These cakes are a hit, topped with some poached egg, or simply served wit a yogurt/cream or vegetable dip

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes / Autumn Udon with Vegetables / Poulet Antiboise

Blog Post & Recipe: Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

This combination of lemons, raspberries, and blueberries with some ricotta cheese for tang will have you making this batter again and again. You could even make the batter the night before, and that beats a pancake mix any day.

Blog Post & Recipe: Recipe: Autumn Udon with Vegetables

Tara shared with us a recipe from the book that's perfect for fall: a simple udon noodle served with shredded carrots, spinach and shiitake mushrooms. Like much of Japanese cooking, the beauty and taste lies in the simplicity of the recipe.

Blog Post & Recipe: Poulet Antiboise

I was reading The Financial Times and came across this Elizabeth David’s recipe recited by Rowley Leigh, the in-house cook ... Despite the short list of ingredients, this dish was nothing like I’d tasted before. The onion cooked down to something sweet. The olives were salty shrapnels which went very well with the rather neutral chicken.

Roasted Garlic & Broad Bean Soup / An Interview with Nigel Slater + Summer Squash With Lemon & Mint / Stir-fried Starch Jelly Noodles

Blog Post & Recipe: Roasted Garlic & Broad Bean Soup & a Facelift

This is a simple soup made of broad beans, stock, milk, lemon zest and roasted garlic, nothing more apart from the garnish of paprika and olive oil. If you don’t have broad beans you can also use haricot beans.

Article & Recipe: Nigel Slater, the 'Tender' Cook [ via ]

My most surprising recent meal was at Trullo, a little restaurant that opened just down the road, where they had a strange thing on the menu I'd never had before: grilled ox heart. They cut it finely, grilled it quickly and served it with olive oil and some grated fresh horseradish

Summer Squash With Lemon and Mint

Blog Post & Recipe: Stir-fried Starch Jelly Noodles

Mung bean starch is a strange beast. I found it, at a whopping £3.99 at the Korean supermarket below Centrepoint, after reading Sunflower's post on making Sichuan liang fen (starch jelly) noodles. I had to have it; in her post, she says if you like rice noodles, you'll like these - I LOVE rice noodles.

Fried Zucchini with Agrodolce / Easy Indian Cabbage / Homemade Soybean Milk

Recipe: Fried Zucchini with Agrodolce. The recipe comes attached to this interview with Gabrielle Hamilton — "the winner of this year’s James Beard Award for Best New York Chef."

Agrodolce
3 cups cider vinegar
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. chile flakes
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
1 cup mint leaves

Blog Post & Recipe: Easy Indian Cabbage recipe

Cabbage and cumin seeds are known to help digestion, making this recipe perfect for your stomach!

Blog Post & Recipe: Homemade Soybean Milk ~ 自制豆奶

You will just need soybeans, water, muslin or cheesecloth and of course a blender. Another good thing about making this at home is that you can adjust the amount of sugar you use in the milk or even add some other flavourings like pandan (screwpine) leaves for added fragrance. The important thing to note is that you can't shirk from the straining of the soybean milk as there are lots of remnants of the soybeans left behind. Apart from that, it is very straightforward and extremely easy to make.

Sriracha-Grilled Tofu / Sweet Chilli Sauce / Preserving Olives

Recipe: Sriracha-Grilled Tofu

Make a spicy version of tofu dae-ji, the Korean BBQ dish.

Blog Post & Recipe: mirin

Leng's sweet chilli sauce is not, as you might expect, thick and viscous, rather it is thin, and light and golden, and so very lovely, mostly because it uses quite a lot of mirin.

Sweet Chilli Sauce

Blog Post & Recipe: Preserving Olives

With this method you may end up with olives that are slightly more bitter [than they are when you use a more involved method], but after tasting our friends and considering this process was much nicer on the environment as less salt would be poured down the drains, we were convinced. Also, it’s no where near as much hassle.

And to complement yesterday's interview with Simon Hopkinson, we have an interview with Fergus Henderson.

Asked how he knows when the meat is done, Fergus pushes up his round glasses and says, "It's sort of Jedi Knight, cooking meat. It's—you know Star Wars, the first one? Luke Skywalker's flying down the valley of the Death Star, shooting his missiles, and he hears this voice: 'Luke, put away your sights. Feel the Force.' So he puts away his sights. Feels the Force. Shoots his missile and blows up the Death Star. The same way when you're cooking: You should feel the Force and be a Jedi Knight."

As Fergus puts the Force-felt hunk of meat back onto the counter and tents it with foil, he says, "Now it's resting happily, having an emotional moment."

12 Sardine Recipes / Grill Your Vegetables / 8 Recipes from Simon Hopkinson

Blog Post & Recipes: Healthy & Sustainable: 12 Ways to Eat Sardines

Recipes with Fresh Sardines:

Broiled Sardines with Gremolata ... Crispy Sardines with Lemon & Mint ... Sardines on the Grill ... Sardines with Chickpeas, Lemon & Parsley ... Grilled Moroccan Sardines ... Sardines with Crisp Paprika Crumbs

Recipes with Canned Sardines:

Sardine Salad with Chickpeas & Feta ... Beet & Sardine Salad ... Sardine, Avocado & Radish Salad with Watercress ... Pantry Puttanesca with Sardines ... Beer-Batter-Fried Sardines & Lime ... Sardine Spread

Blog Post & Recipe: How to Grill Your Vegetables

Just don't think you can throw those mushrooms on the grill as is. They need to be spruced up. Oil, and vinegar, and spices, oh my. The rest of the vegetables are really not hard. Brush them with a little olive oil, and add salt and pepper. You're basically going for a nice char-grilled exterior.

Blog Post & Recipe: Simon Hopkinson's Good Cook recipes and an interview with Simon Hopkinson.

SLOW-COOKED RABBIT IN OLIVE OIL, WITH POTATOES AND AIOLI ... MARINATED BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB WITH ASIAN GREEN SAUCE ... AUBERGINES WITH OLIVE OIL, GARLIC, PARSLEY AND FETA CHEESE ... SALAD OF BROAD BEANS, SMOKED COD'S ROE, RICOTTA AND OLIVE OIL ... MARINATED SARDINE FILLETS ... SMALL MERINGUES WITH WHIPPED CREAM ... WARM PRAWN SALAD WITH FLAGEOLET BEANS, ONION, PARSLEY AND OLIVE OIL ... HOMEMADE TANDOORI CHICKEN

Roasted Spring Garlic / Devilled Kidneys / Spiced Coconut Spinach

Blog Post & Recipe: Roasted spring garlic

I remembered the beautiful heads of spring garlic I had purchased before I became sick. And I decided to roast them.

Recipe: Nigel Slater's classic devilled kidneys recipe

This quick way of preparing kidneys is good for breakfast or a light supper. It will also work with rice instead of toast, as a more substantial meal.

Blog Post & Recipe: Spiced Coconut Spinach Recipe

You toast a few spices, add a pile of shredded spinach to the skillet, and finish things off with a burst of lemon juice and some shredded coconut.

Fried Egg with Burnt Sage Butter, Chilli & Garlicky Yoghurt / Scones / Teriyaki Tofu Noodle Bowl

Blog Post & Recipe: Skye Gyngell’s fried egg with burnt sage butter, chilli and garlicky yoghurt

Gyngell gives this rather useless (and weirdly pornographic) advice about how to tell whether your eggs are fresh: ‘Very fresh eggs have bright, shiny yolks that sit proudly on top of bouncy, thick whites as you crack them into the pan.'

Article & Recipe: How to bake the perfect scone

For some tips on how to turn leaden rocks into luscious scones I turned to the organisation responsible for producing tens of thousands of them each year at the Sydney and Melbourne agricultural shows, The Country Women’s Association

Blog Post & Recipe: Teriyaki Tofu Noodle Bowl

Teriyaki sauce is really easy to make at home. Just whisk together sugar, mirin and sake (or vinegar), and let it boil to thicken. You can use this sauce as a marinade on vegetables, brush it over anything you are grilling, or toss it in some rice or noodles.

Guacamole / 3 Vegetarian Recipes from Yotem Ottolenghi / 3 Recipes Inspired by Sri Lanka

Blog Post & Recipe: How To Make Guacamole

This is not just a guacamole recipe and preparation, it’s a broader lesson about aromatics and acid and using seasonal foods.

Article & Recipe: A Chef Who Is Vegetarian in Fame if Not in Fact

[Yotam Ottolenghi's] culinary philosophy might be summed up as “Cook food less.” “I keep an ingredient very close to what it looks like naturally,” he said. “I take a vegetable and blanch it, leave it nearly raw. Or grill it and leave the color and the flavor at the center to enjoy.”

Chard Cakes With Sorrel Sauce ... Pasta and Fried Zucchini Salad ... Watercress, Pistachio and Orange-Blossom Salad

Article & Recipes: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Sri Lankan recipes

I'm getting exotic with the local and the home-grown, spicing up my greens from the garden with Sri Lankan flavours, tossing them with homemade curry powder, finishing them with a dash of coconut milk and dishing them up with improvised sambals. It's not an exercise in authenticity by any means, but by goodness it's delicious.

Spring onions and greens with coconut milk ... Bream curry ... Coconut roti

Cook Quinoa with David Lynch / Tomatillo Hash with Sausage / Confit

Blog Post: "It's the only grain that's a complete, perfect protein"

How to cook quinoa with David Lynch. Part 1, part 2.

Recipe: Desperate for dinner: Tomatillos lead the rescue

In this case, a medley of chopped vegetables, given weight with sausage (rolled into little balls to break the monotony) and perked up with plenty of cilantro. The tomatillos turned out to be a surprise star, enlivening the dish with their tangy way.

Tomatillo hash with sausage

Article & Recipe: Confit method well worth effort

To confit is normally to cook secondary cuts of meat (or other things such as garlic, tomatoes or salmon) so they are preserved. The best-known would be confit duck. The method works particularly well with tougher and cheaper cuts of meat, as they benefit from the long, slow cooking. In a nutshell, it is essentially any kind of food that has been immersed in any kind of fat for flavour and preservation.

Confit goat legs

Pancakes, Dosas, Yorkshire Puddings / Butter Chicken / Roast Beetroot with Balsamic Glaze

Article & Recipe: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's batter recipes, for Pancake Day and every day

For perfection, don't stress the batter. Treat it tenderly and don't overmix, particularly if you're adding seasonings after the resting stage, as with the herby yorkshires. And accept that the first pancake will be rubbish.

Sweet potato pancakes ... Yorkshire pudding ... Dosas ... Classic pancakes

Blog Post & Recipe: Butter Chicken

I once read somewhere that butter chicken was created when a hungry man walked into an Indian restaurant and they had no curry left. The chef decided to whip up a quick meal by throwing a tandoori chicken into a simple gravy of butter, tomatoes and a few spices. And thus, butter chicken was born.

Blog Post & Recipe: Roasted Beets with Balsamic Glaze

They've insisted that roasted beets just taste better than boiled. I have roasted beets. Quite frankly, I haven't been able to tell that big of a difference from boiled. Until now. Now I get it. These beets are great. The long roasting caramelizes the sugars in the beets adding all sorts of awesome flavor. The trick? Make sure the beets are wrapped in foil so they don't dry out, and then forget to set the oven timer so you cook them 20 to 30 minutes longer than you think you should.

Zucchini Fritters / Moong Dal & Red Lentils with Browned Onions / Braised Neck of Lamb with Apricots & Cinnamon

Blog Post & Recipe: zucchini fritters

This batter is beautifully light because of the soda water, but it's also forgiving. Having only one egg, I chucked in a couple of tablespoons of buttermilk last night and by god, it worked. They were even lighter.

Blog Post & Recipe: Dinner Tonight: Moong Dal and Red Lentils with Browned Onions

You could easily substitute all red lentils for this and it would still be pretty good: the real secret is in the fragrant topping, a pile of browned onions, chiles, and spices, bathed in screaming hot ghee and poured over the top of the dish. Once you stir them in, they perfume the humble lentil like you wouldn't believe.

Article & Recipe: Nigel Slater's braised neck of lamb with apricots and cinnamon, and mograbia with bay and cinnamon recipes

I value neck of lamb for its cheap price, sweet fat and almost indestructible nature. The fact that I can make a luxurious supper out of something people boil up for the dog makes me warm to it all the more. Tucked up in a pan with spices and onions, the untidy lumps of meat can cook for a few hours, the toughness and gristle breaking down to soft, spoonable meat and wobbly fat.

Mutton or Lamb Tangine / Split Pea Tom Yum Soup / Recipes For Couscous, Bulgar & Quinoa

Blog Post & Recipe: Mutton Tagine

Mutton ( or Lamb) Tagine , is one of the most recent dishes a long-standing favourite of mine , however I have usually cook it in a Le Cruset in the oven but wanted to see how this dish would work in a slow cooker.

Article & Recipe: How to take soup for lunch: Abandon the Can

She laughed and said, “It’s my new lunch soup. Lentils and vegetables, cooked with some light coconut milk and a bit of tom yum paste."

Related recipe: Split Pea Tom Yum Soup

Article & Recipes: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's couscous, bulgur and quinoa recipes

They may be seemingly insignificant granular particles, but their punch can be mighty, as they're perfectly formed for delivering hefty whacks of flavour, which they steal greedily from herbs, garlic and spices in salads, stir-fries and soups.

Turkish bulgur and red lentil soup ... Quinoa stir-fry with kale chilli and nuts ... Couscous with squash, sultanas and pumpkin seeds

Various General Kitchen Tips / Bacon & Halloumi Sandwich / Marc Bittman's 25 Favourite Recipes

Article & Tips: Kitchen confidential: what every cook should know

Soften butter with a warmed glass, keep potatoes away from onions and other insider tips

Blog Post & Recipes: Bacon & Halloumi Sandwich

You might think the sandwich is a complete salt-fest, but the lemon and lettuce balance and freshen it all up.

Blog Posts & Recipes: Marc Bittman ends his food column at the New York Times and chooses twenty-five of his favourites. The Times has combined all of its food blogs into one "free-range superblog," Diners Journal.

Picking 25 favorites out of more than 1,000 recipes from The Minimalist ... is an awesome task.

RED PEPPER PURÉE ... CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK ... PEAR, GORGONZOLA AND MESCLUN SALAD ... SPAGHETTI WITH FRIED EGGS ... BRAISED SQUID WITH ARTICHOKES ... PASTA ALLA GRICIA ... PUMPKIN PANNA COTTA ... WATERMELON AND TOMATO SALAD ... 45-MINUTE ROAST TURKEY ... CRISP-BRAISED DUCK LEGS WITH AROMATIC VEGETABLES ... SICHUAN CHICKEN WITH CHILIES ... BLACK COD BROILED WITH MISO ... STIR-FRIED CHICKEN WITH KETCHUP ... CORN SALAD WITH SOY AND TOMATO ... PARSLEY-HERB SALAD ... SOCCA (FARINATA) ... STIR-FRIED LAMB WITH CHILI, CUMIN AND GARLIC ... NO-KNEAD BREAD ... SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH SHRIMP ... PERNIL ... SOUTH INDIAN EGGPLANT CURRY ... FENNEL AND CELERY SALAD ... MEXICAN CHOCOLATE TOFU PUDDING ... MORE-VEGETABLE-LESS-EGG FRITTATA

Chard and Onion Panade / 6 Nigel Slater Recipes / 5 Celeriac Recipes

Article & Recipes: Zuni Cafe's Chard and Onion Panade

If you haven't yet had the pleasure of knowing panade, it's a cross between a gratin and a bread pudding, but only sort of. You cook a whole mess of onions until meltingly soft and amber-hued. You cube stale peasant bread and toss it with salt and olive oil and a little bit of chicken stock. You sauté Swiss chard until barely limp and still vibrantly green.

Article & Recipes: Nigel Slater's winter recipes and Nigel Slater's baked pork with cardamom, ginger and yogurt; rice and lentil, and lychee sorbet recipes

I thoroughly enjoy seeking out those ingredients that are not on every supermarket shelf – the lesser-known fruits, vegetables and store-cupboard seasonings that have yet to become mainstream.

CAVOLO NERO WITH SHEEP'S MILK CHEESE AND LEMON ... ROAST PORK BELLY WITH POMEGRANATE MOLASSES ... QUINCE AND APPLE TART ... ROASTED ROOTS WITH VINCOTTO ... CELERIAC AND BACON SOUP

Blog Post & Recipes: In Season: Celeriac

In France, celeriac is used to make remoulade. Sliced raw, it's crunchy and refreshing. Cooked and pureed, celeriac becomes a nourishing side dish.

Apple Celeriac Remoulade With Crab ... Spaghetti with Thyme-Chile Celeriac Puree ... Celeriac Puree ... Celeriac Potato Pancakes With Apple Creme Fraiche ... Perla Meyers' Celeriac Soup

Quinoa, Squash & Leek Pilaf with Runny Eggs / 3 Whole-Grain Pancake Recipes / Gammon with Artichoke & Parsley Sauce

Blog Post & Recipe: A Healthy Start

Quinoa, Squash & Leek Pilaf with Runny Eggs

Article & Recipes: For Whole-Grain Pancakes, Try a Little Tenderness

In bread, it’s difficult to use whole grains exclusively because you usually want the glutens in white flour for stretchiness and toughness. But in pancakes, you’re looking for tenderness.

Bulgur-Ricotta Pancakes ... Cornmeal Pancakes With Vanilla and Pine Nuts ... Cardamom-Scented Oatmeal Pancakes With Apricots and Almonds

Article & Recipes: Nigel Slater's classic gammon with artichoke and parsley sauce, and ham and cabbage fry-up recipes

After an hour and a half on the stove, the meat should fall away with just a tug from the carving fork. This is an unapologetically old-fashioned dish, and the best accompaniments are those of a gentle nature: a cosseting sauce, some floury steamed potatoes and a dab of mild mustard.

GAMMON WITH ARTICHOKE AND PARSLEY SAUCE ... A HAM AND CABBAGE FRY-UP