Pho Beef Soup

Fresh ginger

2 x onions

7 x star anise

2 cinnamon sticks

8 cloves

2 cardamon pods

3 tbsp fish sauce

Vegi stock

1 tbsp sugar

Rice noodles

1 x beef fillet

Bean sprout

Spring onions

Lime wedges

Thai basil and coriander leaves

In a hot frying pan cook ginger and onions until brown

Transfer into a stock pot along with the star anise, cinnamon sticks, cloves and cardamon.

Add stock and bring to a simmer, cook for one hour.

Strain stock and remove ginger, onions and seasonings

Return stock to the hot and bring back to a simmer. Add fish sauce, sugar and season.

Add noodles, thinly sliced raw beef.

Garnish with lime, spring onion, bean sprouts and herbs.

Fish Noodle Soup

Bok choy

Egg noodles

Vegi stock

Soy sauce

Fish sauce

Sugar

White fish fillets

Spring onions

Coriander leaves

Fried shallots

Chillies

Put stock in a pan and bring to the boil.

Add soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar and season.

Add noodles and boil until cooked.

Add bok choy and fish and cook for two minutes.

Divide into bowls and sprinkle with spring onions, chillies, shallots and coriander leaves.

Meatball Soup

Mushrooms, sliced

Glass noodles

Ground pork

Coriander leaves

Spring onions

4 x garlic cloves

Vegitable stock

1 tsp sugar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tps balsamic vinegar

Combine pork, coriander, spring onions in a bowl and season well. Wet hands and shape mixture into small balls.

Fry garlic in a frying pan.

Bring stock to a boil in a large saucepan, add meatballs and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Add mushrooms, sugar, vinegar and soy sauce and season.

Add noodles.

Pour garlic and oil over soup and sprinkle with coriander leaves to serve.

Lemongrass Beef with Noodle Salad

1 x Beef steak

2 x Lemongrass stalks, chopped

3 x garlic cloves

1 x onion

1 tbsp fish sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

Noodles

Bean sprouts

Mint leaves

Coriander leaves

1 x small carrot

1/2 shredded cucumber

2 x iceberg lettace leaves

Lime wedges

Fried shallots to serve

Nuoc Cham

2 red chillies

2 garlic cloves

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp lime

3 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp vinegar

Made marinade from lemongrass, garlic and salt and pound into a paste

Stir in fish sauce, black pepper, chopped onion and sugar

Marinade beef for as long as possible

Soak noodles in hot water for 10 mins to soften

Drain and place in a large bowl

Add bean sprouts, mint, coriander, carrot, lettuce and cucumber and mix gently. Toss in Nuoc Cham

Fry beef in a little hot oil.

Place salad in a bowl and position hot beef ontop.

Serve with coriander leaves, lime wedges and fried shallots

Simmered fish with sake and ginger

White fish fillets
1 chunk fresh ginger
1/2 cup sake
1/2 cup water
4 tbsp soy sauce
Honey

Pat the fish dry and lightly score the flesh
Slice ginger thinly
Combine sake, water, soy, honey in a pan and bring to a boil
Add fish and cover pan
Cook for 7-10 mins, basting often
Serve with gailan

Foil-baked fish with mushrooms

1 cup fresh chopped mushrooms
Olive oil
Halibut or cod fillets
Salt & pepper
4 tsp sake
4 tsp butter
Lemon or lime
Soy sauce to taste

Chop mushrooms into thin strips
Prepare sheets of foil
Place piece of fish on foil, season
Add mushrooms on top, 1 tsp sake and 1 tsp butter
Fold into a packet
Bake on high heat for 10-15 mins
Serve in foil with lemon or lime wedges

Fish with Miso Glaze

Fish - halibut, salmon etc
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup sake
Honey
1/2 cup water
1 tbp miso paste
1 tbsp sugar
Mustard to take

In a shallow pan, combine soy sauce, sake, honey and water and bring to a boil, reduce
Add fish and cover pan, simmer for 10 mins basting occasionally
Mix miso paste with water, dash of sake, honey and sugar
Add this sauce to the pan and simmer for 3 more minutes
Serve with gailan

Clams in Sake

2 lbs fresh clams
1/2 cup sake
2 green onions, finely chopped
Soy sauce to taste

Scrub clams until clean and remove beards
Place clams in stove pot, pour in sake and cover, cook for 5 mins
Take lid off, remove from heat and stir in green onions
Season and drizzle with soy sauce

Onion Soup

1 tbsp butter
4 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
Salt & pepper
1 tbsp brown flour
1 12oz bottle of dark beer or ale
Bouquet garni
8 cups beef stock
Thyme
Baguette
1 cup Gruyere
1/4 cup grated parmesan

In a large soup pot, melt butter over a medium high heat
Add onions, garlic, salt and cook down, stiring frequently. Cook for 10 mins
Add flour and stir for 2 mins
Add beer, bouquet garni and thyme
Add stock and reduce to low heat, simmer for 30 mins
Season
Preheat oven to 450'
Float a couple of pieces of toasted baguette on top of the soups and generoulsy grate cheese on top
Bake in the oven for 10 mins, then grill for 3, until cheese has browned on top

Salsa Verde

1 garlic clove
2 anchovy fillets
Zest of two lemons
Salt & pepper
Parsley
Mint
Chives
Basil
Olive oil

Using a pestle and mortar, blend ingrediants together until they form a smooth paste
Add herbs last of all, mixing with olive oil as you go, until emulsified

Spicy Papaya Salad

1 green unripe papaya
2 small red chillies
2 garlic cloves
2 chopped shallots
salt
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp sugar
roasted peanuts

Peel the papaya and cut in half lengthways, remove seeds and finely shred
Put chillies, garlic, shallots and salt into a pestle & mortar
Add quarter of papaya and pound gently until softened
Add rest of the papaya and continue pounding until soft
Transfer to a bowl and add lime juice, fish sauce and sugar
Toss and garnish with peanuts and more chillies

Spicy shrimp and lemongrass soup

2 lemon grass stalks
2 pints fish or vegetable stock
8 kakfir lime leaves
3 fresh red chillies
Salt & pepper
3 tbsp fish sauce
3 tbsp lime juice
8 oz prawns
2 spring onions
Fresh coriander

Chop lemongrass stalks into 3inch chunks and crush
Bring stock to a simmer and add lemongrass
Simmer for 10 mins then remove lemongrass
Add lime leaves, lime zest, salt & pepper, fish sauce, lime juice
Add shrimp, remove from heat and add prawns. Stand for 10 mins.

Warm fava bean and feta salad

Fava beans
Olive oil
Red peppers
Garlic cloves
Feta
Dill
Black olives
Salt and pepper

Boil beans in salted water, drain and set aside
Heat olive oil in frying pan and add red peppers
Add feta to the pan and toss all ingredients together
Add olives and dill, season and serve

Halibut Batons

Thin fish fillets
eggs
Breadcrumbs
Flour
Salt & pepper
Vegetable for frying
Tartar sauce and lemon wedges

Slice fish in thin strips
Break eggs into a shallow dish and beat
Pour flour in a bag of flour and season
Dip fish strips into the egg, coat well. Pop into the bag of flour and shake
Dip in the egg wah again, then the breadcrumbs, coating well.
Place on a baking tray, rest for 10 mins
Shallow fry in a sauce pan over a med-high heat
Drain and serve with tartar sauce and lemon wedges

Potted Shrimp

2 cups shrimp (or chopped prawns)
1 cup butter
1 pinch nutmeg
salt & pepper
Cayenne pepper
Dill sprigs
Lemon wedges
Brown toast

Chop shrimp
Melt 1/2 cup butter in a pan, carefully skimming off foam from the surface
Stir shrimp, nutmeg, salt, pepper & cayenne into the pan
Heat gently
Pour mixture into molds and allow to cool
Heat remaining butter in a clean saucepan can spoon clear liquid onto the shrimp pots
Leave to set, placing a dill spring on the top
Fully set in the fridge
Bring to room temperature before serving

Sausage stew

Ingredients
5 sausages
4 cloves of garlic
1 red onion
1 tsp of harissa
1 glug of red wine
1 tbsp of mustard
1/2 stock cube
1/2 cup water
8 mushrooms
1 can beans
Paprika
Salt & pepper

Brown sausages
Add red onions and saute
Add garlic and red wine
Cook for 10 mins
Add mustard, harissa, stock cube, water and mushrooms
Add beans ad paprika
Cook for 30 mins with the lid on, checking frequently
Season and serve with greens

Asian Trout

Asian Trout

1 inch chunk of ginger

3 garlic cloves

1 shallot

1 chilli

1 inch chunk of lemongrass

1 squirt fish sauce

1 squirt soy sauce

2 squirts sake

1 squirt lime juice

1 whole large trout

New potatoes

Broccoli

Place all paste ingredients in a food mixer and blitz

Wash trout thoroughly

Place trout in a foil bowl

Smother paste over and inside fish

Fold up corners

Place in a steamer for 8 minutes

Place broccoli beside fish and cook for another 3 minutes

In the meantime, boil potatoes

Open foil and pull fish off the bone. Serve on plate with buttered potatoes and broccoli.

Drizzle sauce over whole dish.

Fabulous Falafels

Falafels

1 can chick peas

2 shallots

2 garlic cloves

Lime juice

coriander

1 tsp coriander seeds (crushed)

1 tsp cumin

2 tbsp flour

1 tbsp olive oil

Oil for frying

In a food mixer, put garlic and shallots and blitz.

Add chickpeas and blitz.

Add lime juice, olive oil and flour.

Add spices and coriander.

Blitz until a smooth paste.

Form into small balls with your hands and set aside.

Fry in a hot frying pan until crispy on both sides.

Serve in pita breads with crated cheddar, lettuce, grated carrot, sliced red pepper and sour cream.

Marvelous Moules

Marvelous Moules

4 shallots

4 cloves garlic

Olive Oil

Salt and pepper

1/2 bottle dry white wine

2 lbs fresh mussels

Thyme

Scrub and wash mussels thoroughly. Remove beards. Remove any that are open.

In a large, heavy pot add a glug of olive oil and shallots and fry for 2 mins.

Add garlic and fry for 1 min. Add 4 branches of thyme.

Add wine and simmer for 2 mins.

Increase heat, add mussels and put lid on. Cook on high heat for 3 mins.

Open lid and mussels should have opened.

Serve in deep bowls with fresh crusty bread.

Mmmmmmm........

Fragrant Thai Soup (Dan's favourite)

Fragrant Thai Soup (Dan's favourite)

Paste
1 cm chunk of lemongrass, crushed
1 green chilli
1 red chilli
4 cloves garlic
2 cms ginger
2 glugs soy sauce
2 glugs fish sauce
squirt lime juice
bunch coriander stems
4 kakfir lime leaves
1 shallot
1 glug olive oil
1/2 tsp pepper
salt

Soup
1 can coconut milk
2 cups veg stock
1 rib-eye steak
1 pack bean sprouts
1 bunch coriander leaves
1/3 savoy cabbage

In a small food mixer, blend all past ingredients until smooth.

Season steak and in a frying pan, sear and leave to rest. Steak should be rare to blue as it will cook further in the hot soup.

In a non-stick deep pot fry paste for 2 mins.

Add coconut milk solids and fry for 1 minute.

Add coconut milk and stock and stir well.

Simmer for 10 minutes.

In meantime, stir fry cabbage in same pan as steak, season.

Add meat and cabbage at last minute and serve in deep chinese bowls.

Serve with fresh coriander, raw bean sprouts and thinly sliced red chilli.

Seattle

Pike Place Market

Seattle, Washington State

Bread!

Bread!

3 cups flour (mixed)

1 tsp salt

2.5 tsp dry yeast

2 tsp sugar

1 cup warm water

Extra four

4 tsp virgin olive oil

Fresh rosemary

Tip warm water into a bowl and sprinkle over sugar and yeast.

Stir and leave for 10 mins until bubbles start to form.

In another bowl add flour, salt and finely chopped rosemary.

Stir in olive oil to yeast mixture.

Add the dry ingredients to the yeast mixture and mix together with your hands.

Kneed the mixture to at least 10 mins on a floured surface. Form into a ball.

Rub olive oil round a baking pot and put dough ball into the bowl.

Put the oven on low, put baking pot ontop of oven and cover with a clean tea-towel for at least an hour.

Once risen, punch down and kneed on a floured surface for 5 mins.

Place back in the olive oil covered pot and leave to rise again.

Once risen, season with salt and pepper and bake in an oven for 40 mins at 425 degrees.

Turn out onto a rack and allow to cool.

Serve still warm with butter.

Delish!

Halibut with bacon and clams

Halibut with bacon and clams

Two pieces of Halibut

1 lb of fresh clams

Four slices of smoked bacon

2 cloves garlic

2 shallots

1 cup white wine

Thyme

Salt and pepper

Season Halibut and place in a pan, in olive oil, skin side down. Fry til crisp. - 2 mins.

Turn over and cook for another 3 mins. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add chopped bacon to the pan and fry for 2 mins. Add garlic and shallots, cook for 2 mins.

Add white wine, thyme and simmer for 2 mins.

Scrub clams and wash several times. Discard any open ones.

Add clams to pot and cover. Cook for 2 mins.

Open lid and place halibut in the liquid to serve,

Serve with stir-fry rapini or spinach.

Fabulous Fish Pie

Fabulous Fish Pie

1 piece fresh salmon (or any fish will do)

8-10 tiger prawns

2 leeks

1 chilli

4 Potatoes

Butter

Flour

Milk

Salt

Pepper

Parmesan

Peel, chop and boil potatoes in a pan. Strain and mash with a little milk.

Chop and fry leeks and chili in a pan with a little olive oil until wilted.

Place leeks in an oven dish and pad out to the corners.

Chop salmon into chunks and place on top of leeks. Do the same with the prawns.

Put a knob of butter in a pan and melt. Add tablespoon of flour and whisk. Slowly add milk until it forms a creamy, thick sauce. Add tablespoon of dijon mustard and season.

Pour sauce over fish and leeks.

Top with mash potatoes and season again.

Grate parmesan and sprinkle over the top.

Oven for 10 minutes. Grill for 10 minutes.

THE Best Burgers

THE Best Burgers

Pack of mince

2 cloves garlic

1 chilli

1 tsp grain mustard

1 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp garlic salt

Pepper

Chopped coriander

1 egg

2 crumbled water biscuits

Flour

Buns

Lettuce

1 Red Pepper

Grill red peppers.

Mix chopped garlic, chilli, flour, mustards, egg, salt, pepper, paprika, coriander and crumbed biscuits together in a bowl.

Add mince and mold together.

Form into three burgers with flour.

Fry on a medium heat for four minutes in a non-stick pan.

Plate on buns with grated cheese and grill red pepper on top.

Serve with lettuce.