Coriander or cilantro is a love/hate herb that either grabs you with both hands if you love it or uses those same hands to push it away if you hate it. The leaves and stems of coriander have a spicy lemony, ginger aroma and taste that imparts real flavour to salads, cooked foods and dressings, making it a favourite herb used by many countries around the world. Thispestobrings out the…
Gravlax, also known as gravadlax, is a classic and popular Scandinavian delicacy of cured or preserved salmon. It has a clean, fine and fresh flavour and is an easy and elegant dish to impress your friends and family with. Gravlax should always be served as thinly-sliced slivers, showing off the beautiful rosy, translucent colour of this cured salmon flesh. Accompanied by crusty bread and a…
Tomatoes are also affectionately known as love apples and what an apt name for an ingredient so popular and so versatile. They can be used in salads, in sauces, as a garnish, fried, grilled, pickled, dried, made to a paste or passata, canned, and used as a colouring for pasta. Even eaten plucked straight from the vine in the garden, they are most delicious. These days you can find so many…
Summer screams out for you to pluck these little dark berries and what better way to take advantage than with a luscious dessert dedicated in their name? Soft, airy, light and fluffy, this blackberry mousse is healthy and delicious, making the most of the season’s freshest fruit while succumbing to your sweet tooth at the same time. What new kitchen sorcery is this? Blissful…
Salmon rillettes are a delicious salmon spread, almost like a paté but much thicker, made using fresh and smoked salmon. Traditional rillettes were made with long, slow-cooked meat from pork, rabbit or goose and then shredded and mashed with fat to produce a spread. These rillettes are really easy to make and are a very welcome meal for any time of the day, either as a starter or on its own with…
With a consistency halfway between a jam and a relish, chutney is a condiment that goes terrifically well with meat dishes to add a bit of sweetness, a little sourness and a hint of spice. Chutney originated in India where it was served with curries but has since morphed into many different varieties enjoyed across the world. This chutney is at its very best with roast pork but you’ll find…
Fresh oysters are a perfect starter for a special occasion or celebration. These dressings aren’t meant to be cooked but are a perfect way to cut through the creaminess of fresh oysters and to add a zing to complement their natural flavour. Get your oysters shucked for you at your local fish market, place them on a large serving dish on a bed of crushed ice, spoon over a mix of the bright…
Butternut soup is creamy, thick, smooth, silky, nutty, healthy, satisfying and easy to make. When those cooler evenings start, butternut soup with its sunny orange colour is the perfect way to warm up your mood and the cold. Need a starter that’ll get spoons dipping as soon as the bowls arrive? This is it. Looking for a main that’s light and filling at the same time? Ladle a few extra…
Because it’s a mild curry that’s more about flavour than heat, butter chicken is probably the most popular curry dish in the world. Originating in Delhi in India, the chicken is cooked to tender perfection, drenched in a rich buttery sauce, soaked in a unique blend of spices. It’s a delicious alternative to grilled or roast chicken and doesn’t take much more time to…
Focaccia is a divine oven-baked Italian flatbread made with olive oil, quite similar in style to pizza dough. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, focaccia is a popular appetiser because it’s light, easily shareable and a great starter on its own or dipped in olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar. Rosemary focaccia is a simple and delicious classic that you can dress up or down every…