Dongpo pork is a famous Chinese dish, believed to be created some 900 years ago in Hangzhou by Chinese poet Su Dongpo (苏东坡).
There are a few ways to make Dongpo pork, as the original recipe of the Dongpo pork was probably not documented properly. The common traits of the dish are the aroma and the tenderness, where the fat of the meat would melt in your mouth without the greasiness.
The general ingredients for Dongpo pork are pork belly, wine, ginger and Welsh onion; and it involves a long cooking time (2-3 hours) to give the tenderness.
My first attempt on Dongpo pork, had to make shift a bit as I didn’t have the proper ingredients.
It’s also a Hawksmoor Salt Caramel Rolo. Like those beautiful chocolates in the photo above we also got it Air Street, but ours (wrapped to take away because we were stuffed) spent about 3 hours on the floor of the Prince of Wales Theatre, then a further 5 hours travelling by tube and car back to the North West.
Luckily we did get to try them a few days later when we went back to Seven Dials during Frightfest. They’re just as amazing and delicious as you’ve heard.
Jan Ellis was a well-known Springbok rugby player in the 1960s and 70s, and held the record for most-capped Springbok player of all time when he retired (38 caps). Legend has it that this was his favourite pudding and to this day it bears his name. I have to say that the man had good taste.
The pudding itself is a fairly dry, cake-like affair that baked to a nice almost crispy crust. Still, I was a little dubious about the texture… until I poured generous amounts of the creamy, caramelly syrup over it. Oh my. It’s rib-sticking, warming comfort food at its very best and the pudding just soaks up the syrup like a sponge – even my desert-avoiding husband liked it!
This recipe is perfect. I wasn't sure about all the liquid, but I think it all thickens up when the potatoes release their starch. Was precisely seasoned, a crowd pleaser, and a good amount too!
Béarnaise and steak are a match made in heaven, but this sauce has a few other divine uses. Try it spooned over poached eggs or spread over roast fish.
I googled 'flapjacks' and got a whole plethora of recipes for a type of oat inspired biscuit (like a 'crunchie') – that wasn’t right… so I added the words 'south african recipe' and was beyond happy when I found what I was looking for on the All4Women platform.
The recipe is super easy… and doesn’t take long to whip up and serve. The other benefit is they can be served as is, or with jam/syrup/honey or even just a little bit of sugar & cinnamon!
For such a simple dish, French onion soup should be easy to make great. And yet so many versions taste like a cup of burnt-onion tea with melted cheese trying its best to cover up the flaws. This recipe develops great flavor with a long, slow caramelization of the onions, then punches it up with cider vinegar, fresh chives, and a surprise ingredient: fish sauce.
Making your own spice mix is a rewarding experience that adds a whole new level of satisfaction and secrecy to any recipe you conjure up in your kitchen. For authentic Indian cooking and dishes with heaps of personality and flavour, this homemade garam masala, made with the Jimmy Public Garam Masala Spice Set, will see you right.
Heston: "This is one of my signature dishes at The Fat Duck. What makes it so special is being able to make instant ice cream at the table with the help of a little dry ice. Dry ice can also be used to turn bought smoothies and custard into ice creams and sorbets. I serve this dish with marmalade because its bitterness and acidity cut through the richness of the ice cream."
Heston: "By flipping the meat every 15–20 seconds, the steak will develop a crisp flavoursome exterior without being overcooked in the centre. After cooking, it is important to remove the old oil from the pan and then, after a couple of minutes, to add the new oil while the pan is still warm. A good heat is required to get the flavour of the garlic, lemon and rosemary but if it’s too hot it will lose the freshness."
As an alternative to the mammoth turkey, a brace of pheasants is an elegant choice for Christmas lunch. In Italy, game is popular throughout the winter and is often the choice for Christmas Day. Careful timing, lots of butter and a moist stuffing all help to keep the naturally lean meat succulent.
These instructions are for making the stew in a slow cooker. If you don't have a slow cooker and would prefer to make the stew in the oven, cook everything in a large Dutch oven. After you add the liquid, bring it to a simmer on the stovetop then put it, tightly covered, in a 225°F oven for 6 hours (or a 300°F oven for 4 hours).
Note that different people have different sensitivities to bitter flavors. If Guinness Stout tastes bitter to you, then the stew will taste bitter as well. If it doesn't taste bitter to you, the stew should not taste bitter.
You can either use celery root, young turnips or potatoes in addition to parsnips and carrots. If you use turnips, make sure you only use young turnips, which are smaller and sweeter than regular turnips. Regular turnips can be quite bitter.
The easiest and, arguably, tenderest pulled pork comes out of the slow cooker. Here, we coat pork shoulder with a spice rub of dark brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, and cinnamon, then cook it on a bed of garlic and onions moistened with chicken broth. Six to ten hours later, the juiciest pork imaginable is ready to be shredded and served atop Pulled Pork Nachos, or in a sandwich with your favorite Barbecue Sauce (for the best version ever, make your own Hamburger Buns). This no-fuss, versatile recipe makes enough to feed a crowd, and the leftovers—should you have any—freeze well.
I fell in love with Sabudana /Sago when my mom made Sabudana Kichidi for me. The Maharashtrian style Sabudana Vada then came into my world followed by the South Indian version Javvarisi Vadai. Marriage saw me trying out Sago (Sabudana) Idlis and loving it too. All in the same order. For some reason, I cannot recall when was the first time I had this payasam, although it was one of those things which I knew I would like right away.
I made it so many times in my first year of marriage that my husband wondered if I knew to make any other kheer at all :) Guess that shows you my love for this one. Something about this pudding is comforting to me. That chewiness combined with the creaminess that it imparts makes it extremely satisfying for me.
There are variations in the way it's made from family to family ( and quality to variety of sago). I chose to show two methods I usually resort to. The pressure cooker method happens when the craving for it exceeds the patience for soaking the s
Halwa are lush and rich Indian desserts that have a pudding like texture. They are made with all kinds of ingredients (even ones normally associated with savoury foods!) ranging from lentils and veggies to fruits and grains. Easy to make and so delicious, Sooji Ka Halwa (made with semolina) is a personal family favorite! We almost always request it when we are at my parents' home because both my Mum and Dad make it so well! Sooji Ka Halwa is one of those very satisfying desserts that hit the sweet spot every single time! It is simple to make when you know how so I thought I would share my Father's recipe because nobody makes Sooji Halwa like my Dad! The trick to getting Shoji Ka Halwa right is in the browning of the sooji/ semolina and in the proportions of liquid to sooji, so follow the recipe exactly to get the best results.
"Only try this recipe if you're going to use some killer, end-of-summer, super-sweet tomatoes. There just isn't any substitute, so happy hunting, and I hope you find some so you give this a try."
Over the last few months I have seen a couple mentions of no churn ice cream, which is ice cream that does not require an ice cream maker. Since my freezer is currently packed such that I couldn’t fit the bowl of my ice cream maker in between the other frozen foods I was intrigued. I used the no churn recipe from Wisconsin Cheese Talk, swapping out only the fruit mix-ins in their recipe for a peach preserve I am currently enjoying.
Instead of the custard base of a typical ice cream, this no churn variety uses whipped cream as the base, with added creaminess from mascarpone cheese. The texture is just as smooth as the churn-type ice cream and the flavor was a hit with my test audience (OK, my husband). The prep was so simple that anyone could make this ice cream. If I am in a time crunch but craving a frozen treat, this no churn ice cream will be at the top of my list of recipes to make!
South African Curry is very different from its Asian counterparts. And an east coast Durban curry, is different from a west coast Cape Malay style curry. Durban curries are generally more hotter, possibly, because they have evolved from migrant Indian labourers, and we also have the L.M. Mozambique Peri Peri influences filtering down the coast.
If you grew up in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and are the kinda foodie that ventures off the beaten track, or went to the beach somewhere up Zululand way, chances are, you’ve stopped in La Mercy and tasted the best prawn curry on the east coast of Africa – from Seabelle Restaurant of course.
Really, I am not exaggerating, this is award winning curry we’re talking about. So, I am in no way claiming that this curry is of Seabelle’s standard, but it is pretty good. The trick is to not brown the onion. Like any pukka durbs curry, it’s best served with plain brown rice, or if you want to get really fancy, a savoury rice.