Eureka paprika!

Dear readers, before I begin, please excuse my hiatus of about a year. We had some household changes that meant I have been very busy and have not had much time to write, let alone cook, extensively. I hope, therefore, you will forgive me, and support me in resuming a normal service. Now, on to the new post!


Although I have been quite an adventurous cook for many years and am in no way averse to using herbs and spices to achieve bags of flavour, I admit that paprika is a relatively new addition to my repertoire.

I began to use it when I decided to make enchiladas. Having had them only once before, when my friend cooked them for me from a kit, I trotted along to the supermarket to buy said ready-made components. As is frequently the case, however, I baulked at the price and worked out it would be much cheaper to make the sauce and filling myself. I noted the recipe lists and went home to experiment. I couldn’t say how authentic the spicing is meant to be in the kits, but paprika seemed to play an important part, so I added plenty and that was it, I was hooked. The mild paprika I used, made from bell peppers, imparted a delicious smoky savoury flavour that lent a comfort-food quality to the dish. I decided to test out my new best friend a bit further.

Mild paprika is a staple spice in our cupboard because it’s useful to add to general seasoning for things like meatballs and burgers, and to add colour to curries. On the whole, though, it’s just the odd teaspoon thrown in here and there. Finding ideas for increasing its prominence was not difficult, as it is a major player in Hungarian cuisine and thousands of recipes are available. After some experimentation (a theme of this post, it seems) I came up with the two chicken recipes posted below, one baked and one done on the hob. As for the enchiladas, despite them being my muse for these dishes, I’ll cover them another time.

The first recipe, the baked chicken paprika dish, could hardly be easier. In Hungarian chicken paprika sour cream would be more traditional, but in this recipe I suggest plain yoghurt. I like the tang it gives and it’s a good alternative for cooks wishing to cut the calories. If you fancy making a bit richer, sour cream will work perfectly well. I like to serve it with my version of lemon rice. I realise that is really a south Indian speciality, but it’s a great match. Look at me, fusion cooking!

The second recipe was made up pretty much on the spot because I felt as though we had been getting into a bit of a same-old, same-old routine. I found a recipe for a lovely sounding dish that is basically chicken, lots of caramelised red onions and lemon but, while some people feel that simplicity at this level is bliss, I did not think it would not carry enough taste weight for the delectable Mr M. Thus I took caramelised onions idea as a base, looked in the cupboard and created a new monster. To my delight, it went down a storm (not guaranteed when I “create”). Although the paprika counters the sweetness of the onions, peppers and carrots, I served it up with mushroom rice to add a bit of umami balance. Just plain brown rice would be just as good, though.

Well, I hope you're inspired. Ah, it's good to be back.

Yoghurt paprika chicken with lemon rice

Serves 4

For the paprika chicken

Four chicken breasts

2 tbsp paprika

2 tbsp plain flour

50 g butter or margarine

200 g mushrooms sliced

1 large pepper sliced

500 g plain low-fat yoghurt

Juice of a lemon

For the lemon rice

Enough basmati rice for 4 people

Half tsp white mustard seeds

Large pinch fenugreek seeds

2 tsp red lentils

1–2 fresh green chilli chopped or slit long-ways

1 inch fresh root ginger, finely chopped

Half tsp ground turmeric

4 tbsp cashew nuts very roughly chopped

10 curry leaves (optional)

Salt, to taste

Juice of 1 lemon

Heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas. Fry the chicken in a hot pan until golden brown on the outside but not cooked through. Place in a large casserole dish. Lightly fry the mushrooms and peppers just enough to begin softening and add to the casserole dish. Melt the butter or margarine in the pan then add the flour and paprika and combine thoroughly with the butter to make a roux base. Cook for 1 min and gently stir in the lemon juice and yoghurt until the roux is dissolved. Pour over the chicken and vegetables, cover the dish and put in the oven at for 40 minutes.

Cook the basmati rice, drain and set aside to cool. Warm some oil in a saucepan or frying pan. Over a medium heat cook the nuts for 2 min, making sure they don’t burn. Remove the nuts then add the mustard seeds, fenugreek and lentils to the oil and cook for 2 min until the mustard seeds start making a popping noise. Add the chilli, ginger, curry leaves and turmeric and cook for 1 min. Pour in the lemon juice; beware that it might spit at this stage. Return the cashew nuts and add the rice to the pan and stir thoroughly to mix the ingredients well. Serve when the rice is warmed through.

Paprika chicken with mushroom rice

Serves 4

For the paprika chicken

1 tbsp olive oil and 25 g butter (butter is optional)

1 large or 2 medium red onions julienned

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

2 tsp dark brown sugar

2 tbsp paprika

300 mL chicken stock

2 tbsp lemon juice

400-450 g chicken breast cut into strips

1 red pepper julienned

1 large carrot julienned

Chilli powder or finely chopped fresh chillies to taste (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

For the mushroom rice

200-250 g brown wholegrain rice

200-300 g mushrooms roughly chopped

100 g frozen peas

2 tsp mushroom ketchup (optional)

First, put the rice in a large saucepan and salt well. Add boiling water to about three times the volume of the rice, bring back to the boil then turn down the heat. Cover and simmer for 30–40 min.

In a large frying pan on a medium heat, heat the olive oil (and melt the butter if using) and add the onions and garlic. Stir until all slices of onion are well coated and continue to cook on a medium heat for about 10 min, stirring occasionally, until the onion is thoroughly softened and have started to caramelise (brown). Do not let the onions burn. Add the brown sugar, paprika and chilli powder or chillies (if using) and cook for 1-2 min, stirring continuously. Turn up the heat and add the chicken to the pan to brown. Once the chicken is all browned, add the stock and lemon juice, turn the heat down and leave to simmer for 8-10 min to reduce the liquid a little. Meanwhile, fry the mushrooms in separate frying pan on quite a high heat until well coloured, then set aside.

About 5 min before the rice is ready (set a timer or bite a grain of rice to check), taste the paprika sauce and season to taste. Add the red pepper and carrot and stir to ensure they are distributed evenly around the pan. Add the peas to the rice and cook for 2 min more. Boil plenty of water in a kettle, drain the rice and rinse. Return the rice to the pan, add the cooked mushrooms and mushroom ketchup, if using, and stir through. Check the flavour of the paprika sauce and adjust seasoning if required. Serve immediately.

Note: When cooking rice by this method, the water will not all be absorbed before the rice is cooked. This is quite helpful for brown rice, which forms a scum on the top of the water while cooking. Alternatively, follow the instructions on the rice packaging.

A dark and mysterious curry

This post is for curry lovers with time on their hands – that is, if they want to try the recipes I've provided this time. The effort, however, is so worthwhile as the results will be just delicious!

We live in an area with a high concentration of takeaway shops and restaurants. We receive two to four menus through the door every day, of which probably around half are for curry. Many of the curry houses are advertising Bangladeshi cuisine, from where we particularly enjoy the spicy and flavoursome dishes made with naga chillies and the rezala curries. Recently, though, we have been trying more food from the other widely available cuisine in this area – Sri Lankan.

Sri Lankan curries have a distinctive aromatic quality. Although we felt we could identify many of the spices involved, through taste and sometimes appearance (curry leaves and cinnamon sticks), we couldn’t quite put our fingers on what it was that built up those extra layers of flavour. Luckily, Charmaine Solomon’s The Complete Asian Cookbook came to the rescue. The author explained that the base of many Sri Lankan curries is dark-roasted curry powders, and that it is this roasting process that develops the characteristic richness and complexity.

As I have mentioned before, home-made curries feature heavily in the cookery repertoire of this household. Thus, since the book provided a recipe for a basic Sri Lankan curry powder (see below), I had to have a go. Further optional ingredients are 2 tsp chilli powder and 2 tbsp rice flour. I didn’t use them because I didn’t have any and I knew I was going to use fresh chillies in the curry, and I didn’t feel the overall effect would be changed vastly by their exclusion. Nevertheless, I feel I should mention them for completeness. Several points are important to highlight for the powder preparation. First, the time it takes for the different spices to colour varies quite widely, so don’t be tempted to try to roast them together. Second, the coriander seeds take a long time to colour, so be patient and keep the heat low. Third, do stir the spices constantly, even for the small amounts, as they can change from colouring to being burned very quickly.

I used the curry powder to make a slow-cooked lamb curry because we were able to get some lovely reduced-price leg and rump steaks. Full price, however, lamb is ridiculously expensive, and even cut price it’s a bit of a treat. Luckily, beef, is widely used in Sri Lankan cooking and will go very well with this sauce, so I will be using that in the future.

I have provided below instructions for the powder as I did it and for a beef curry in which to use it. Of course, every household in Sri Lanka probably has its own curry powder variation, so do feel free to experiment. Be warned, though, with all that roasting and grinding, 2 days later I could still get a waft of curry scent on opening the kitchen door. If you know someone who doesn’t like it, you might want to make sure they don’t visit for a while!

Sri Lankan dark-roasted curry powder

1 cup coriander seeds

Half cup cumin seeds

1 tbsp fennel seeds

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

2 inch cinnamon stick/half tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp whole cloves

1 tsp cardamom seeds

2 tbsp dried curry leaves

Separately roast the coriander, cumin, fennel, and fenugreek seeds in a dry pan over a low heat. Stir constantly until the spices have turned a dark golden brown colour, being careful not to let them burn. Allow the roasted spices to cool, then use a blender or spice grinder to powder them, in batches if necessary, with the remaining ingredients. Store the finished powder in an airtight container.

Sri Lankan beef curry

Serves 4-6

2.5 tbsp ghee or oil

3 medium onions, finely chopped

2 tbsp fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped

4-5 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

1 tsp ground turmeric

2 tsp black mustard seeds

4 tbsp dark-roasted curry powder

Salt to taste

1 tbsp vinegar 

500-600 g stewing steak, trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes

(alternatively, use lamb leg and/or lamb rump steak)

3 fresh red chillies, seeded and chopped

3 large ripe tomatoes chopped

In a large saucepan gently fry the onions, ginger and garlic in the ghee or oil until golden. Add the turmeric, mustard seeds and curry powder. Fry over low heat for 2-3 min. Add the salt and vinegar and stir well. Add the meat and fry until browned, stirring to ensure it is well coated. Add the chillies and tomatoes. Cover with a lid and simmer on very low heat for about 2 h.

Go just that little bit further

While I have never been extravagant and was brought up to make do and mend (which I actually rather enjoyed), it is true that during the boom of the early 2000s I shed some degree of frugality. In the rather more bust current economic climate, where money is a bit tighter and the price of food is a lot higher, I can feel those old instincts resurfacing.

I don’t really do retail therapy in a spend-hours-cooing-over-clothes-shoes-and-make-up sense. Food shopping is what does it for me. I’m not talking about seeking out the fine or the rare; I understand the best food comes from selecting the best ingredients, but I’m running a house, not a restaurant. My buzz comes from getting more for less while keeping our food nutritious, tasty and exciting.

I have a three-pronged approach to trimming the spending: multi-buys (eg, three for the price of two, or mix and match for a set price); buying fresh food that is reduced because it is nearing its sell-by date; and buying low-cost products to make the more-expensive things and leftovers go as far as possible. In relation to the first tactic, do beware of offers. As a recent Panorama revealed, they are not always what they seem and, if you’re really not careful, they can increase the cost. Keeping track of prices other than by online comparison sites might also land you in hot water, as this article shows. Nevertheless, with a little time, research and planning, you can pull back those pennies and look after the pounds.

I recently found a reduced-price pack of stewing steak. As you might have read, I’m not averse to a bit of slow cooking. The pack wasn’t very large, but it was rather generous to feed two people for one meal, so decided to stretch it to four portions.

I opted to use two ingredients that go very well with beef: tomatoes and chickpeas. The latter is a particularly useful item in my food-stretching armamentarium, although tinned chickpeas have roughly doubled in price over the past year, meaning they are not necessarily the cheap option they should be. To solve this problem I have started buying dried chickpeas and rehydrating batches as I want them. This method saves me about 60% on the price, which drops them right back into the cheap zone. The preparation of dried chickpeas is a long old job, it is true. They need to be soaked in cold water for several hours – at least 4 h, although I find 8-10 h better – then boiled for 2-2.5 h before use. Once cooked, though, they can be kept in the fridge in some water and in an airtight container for a few days, so they could be prepared over the weekend for use mid-week. For the tomato flavour I used passata, which can be bought extremely cheaply.

The finished casserole was probably akin to stifado crossed with a tagine – that is to say it was extremely flavoursome. Each portion does contain only a few pieces of the beef, but the flavour of the meat is detectable throughout the sauce and the chickpeas make it satisfying enough for any carnivore. I have suggested a recipe for flavoured couscous to accompany this casserole, but it’s also great with mashed potatoes.

Happy bargain hunting. It's a great way to inspire you to try new things when an offer is too good to miss.

Spicy beef and chickpea casserole with couscous

Serves 4

For the casserole

350 g diced stewing steak

1 large carrot chopped into 1.5 cm pieces

1 medium onion

1 stick celery

2 cloves garlic

2 red chillies

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp paprika

Half tsp turmeric

250 ml beef stock

500 g passata

350 g chickpeas

Salt and pepper

For the couscous

200 g couscous

240 ml boiling water

100 g frozen peas

Juice of half a lemon

2 tsp dried mint

1 tsp dried parsley

Salt and pepper

Heat the oven to 160ºC/325ºF/gas mark 3. Sear the meat in a hot frying pan a few pieces at a time to avoid reducing the heat in the pan, and place the browned meat in a large casserole dish along with the raw carrots. Use half of the beef stock to deglaze the pan and pour the liquid into the casserole dish. Gently fry the onion, celery, chillies and garlic until the onion is softened and translucent but not browned. Add the spices and cook for a few minutes more, stirring constantly. Transfer the vegetables to the casserole dish then deglaze the pan with the remaining beef stock and add the liquid to the casserole. Pour over all the passata, season well and stir. Cover and cook in the oven for 1.5 h then add the chickpeas and a little water. Cook covered for a further 1-1.5 h until the beef is tender and the sauce is thick.

Remove the casserole from the oven and leave to stand while you prepare the couscous. Put all the ingredients in a heat-proof bowl and leave to stand for 5-7 min until all the water is absorbed. Adjust the seasoning if necessary and serve.

An all-round good dodge

We don’t really buy biscuits. In fact, I can’t remember the last time we did. In no way am I averse to biscuits. In fact, a chocolate Hobnob or any in the range of Digestives is most welcome with my cup of tea. Nevertheless, biscuits are just not items that grace our shopping baskets.

If we fancy some biscuits, I generally knock up a batch of ginger nuts from a 1990s Cranks recipe. They are generous, crunchy-on-the-outside-chewy-on-the-inside cookies and are a particular favourite of the delectable Mr M. However, a bit of variety is always good, and I have been looking for a good alternative recipe for a while.

I tried making this lemon biscuit recipe from JamieOliver.com, but Jamie Oliver recipes and I frequently do not get along. This was no exception. I tried them twice and they looked appetising enough – they are in fact shown in my profile picture – but the texture and taste were awful. I thought it was me. After all, despite being able to bake decent cakes and scones, I have my troubles with bread and pastry. I took heart, however, from my ginger nut expertise and persevered.

I decided one day to make cupcakes but thought I’d have a look around the internet for inspiration beforehand. I spend quite a lot of time looking online at the myriad recipes of something I want to try and descriptions of techniques about which I want to learn; I suppose it’s my version of reading cookery books. In the middle of the list of seemingly endless cupcake variations popped up a recipe for jammy dodgers.

The branded biscuits, Jammie Dodgers, made by Burton’s Foods, hold much nostalgia for children of the 1980s. They comprise two plain cookies, the top one of which has a heart-shaped hole that reveals the red jam sandwiching them together. Simple but scrumptious! Somehow I had never thought of making these biscuits at home, but it suddenly dawned on me that they should be pretty simple.

They were, and there was something deeply satisfying about the resultant pile on the cooling rack, with jewel-like red jam peeking out. 

I’ve made them twice now, once with plain biscuits and raspberry jam and once with lemon biscuits and lemon curd. The biscuit is light and crisp and keeps quite well in an airtight tin. I’m thinking now of trying a lime version with lime curd so that I can have traffic-light biscuits (I’m easily amused).

The recipe for the plain biscuits is below. If you want make a lemon version, just add the zest and juice of a lemon. You might need to adjust the amounts of sugar and flour slightly to compensate for the extra liquid, but that didn’t seem to be a problem when I made them. A 7.5 cm/3 in cookie cutter will produce good-sized biscuits and, if you don’t have an extensive cutter collection, a screw cap from a wine bottle works well for the hole in the middle. Don’t forget to re-roll the cut outs for even more biscuits!

Jammy dodgers

Makes 12

145 g softened butter or margarine

70 g caster sugar

1 large egg beaten

Few drops vanilla extract

230 g plain flour

35 g corn flour

½ tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

100 g seedless raspberry jam

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas mark 4. Cream the butter or margarine and sugar then gradually beat in the egg and vanilla extract. Sift in the flour, corn flour, baking powder and salt and blend with a wooden (not metal) spoon until everything comes together in a ball of soft dough.

Roll out the half the dough to around 3 mm thick (this is quite thin, but the cookies will rise slightly during baking) and use a cookie cutter of the desired size to cut out an even number of biscuits, re-rolling the scraps until all the dough is used; these will form the bases. Roll out the other half of the dough until the same number of cookies is cut. From this second batch cut out small shapes in the centre (eg, circles or hearts); these will form the tops of the biscuits. Place all the biscuits on baking trays and bake for 15 min until lightly browned.

Cool the biscuits on a rack. Spread a small amount of jam on each base and cover with the top halves. Keep in an airtight container for 4-5 days.

Bye gulls!

The title of this post might seem a little odd, but it stems from a discussion I had recently about the correct spelling and pronunciation of bagels. If you live in east London, it’s likely that they’ll be referred to as “beigels”, pronounced ‘bye-gulls’, which is said by locals to be the authentic spelling. “Bagel” (pronounced ‘bay-gull’) is purported, by east Londoners and others, to be an Americanised spelling. However, I have been told by plenty of people in various parts of the UK that they have only ever known this latter spelling. As the original Yiddish word is “beygl”, I reckon that either spelling is fair game. Whatever you call them, bagels have been a bread success story of the 20th century.

Thought to have their origins in Poland in the 1600s, bagels were taken across Europe, to the UK and to the USA by Polish migrants in the late 19th century. Now they are widely available in plain and flavoured varieties – raisin, cinnamon, sesame, poppy seed and onion are probably the most common –­ but all share the dense texture and smooth, chewy crust. Supermarkets give over notable shelf space to them, and a host of outlets have sprung up that toast and fill bagels to order with a wide choice of fillings. The Beigel Bake shop in London’s Brick Lane is a must-do on the tourist attraction lists. People have even gone to the trouble of designing dedicated kitchen gadgetry.

I really enjoy bagels for breakfast and am generally happy to buy the supermarket ones. Having improved my bread-making skills over the past year, however, I thought I would have a go at making them. They hold some mystery because they are boiled before baking, which seems a strange thing to do to bread. This step is, though, remarkably simple and helps to give the exterior it’s slightly leathery finish and beautiful golden colour. I looked around for recipes, which seem to vary quite a lot. Some were rich, including eggs, butter, malt syrup or honey, but some seemed more like straightforward bread recipes. I gather the recipes fall into two main categories in North America: Montreal-style bagels are made from sweet, rich dough and are often flavoured with sesame or poppy seeds, whereas for New York-style bagels the dough is less rich and they have no added flavourings or toppings.

After looking in my store cupboard, I opted for fewer ingredients, thinking that would be simpler. The first couple of attempts, though, were real flops ­– literally! I had the balance of yeast to flour wrong and the dough over-proved, meaning that the bagels completely collapsed during baking. With a bit of tweaking, I came up with a formula that yields consistently good results. I have provided this recipe below along with a tutorial.

You will see that I’ve mentioned the bagels may be kept uncooked in the fridge overnight. The science suggests that this process enables development of long, strongly cross-linked gluten strands without letting the dough over-prove. This is said to improve the texture and flavour of the finished bagels. I have, however, tried my recipe with and without refrigeration, and I didn’t notice much difference, so I would employ this approach for convenience as much as anything else. Convenience is certainly the reason behind the other frequently cited reason for refrigeration, which is that Jews could prepare the bagels before the Sabbath began, avoid partaking in prohibited cooking activities during it, and the bagels would be ready to cook when it was finished. Either way, refrigeration does mean that baking bagels can fit into even tight time schedules, so that makes them a winner for me.

Give them a go.

This turkey is no flop

After the high-fat treat that was dumplings in my last post Leave it to stew, I have gone all healthy and low fat this time. Actually, it wasn’t so much by design, but more by coincidence. A little while ago I cooked a lovely quick, super-low-fat curry and side dish that I wanted to share, but at around the same time the UK government stated that individuals need to be “more honest about what they’re eating”. This made me think about the issue of modern eating. In the UK the average girth of the nation has been expanding for some time and is allegedly among the greatest in Europe. While I appreciate the government’s sentiment to some degree, I can’t help thinking it smacks more of a need to be seen to say something than of a belief that it’ll do any good. 

Food-related habits in the UK have changed enormously over the past 50–60 years. Even with very little thought I can think of a good few reasons for these changes, such as vast improvements in home refrigeration and freezing and in commercial food preservation; altered shopping habits owing to the rise of large supermarkets and decline of local specialised shops; massive increases in the availability and varieties of ready meals and convenience and snack foods; women going out to work; a decline in the transfer of cooking and food knowledge; and a shift in spending habits towards buying meals made outside the home (from the humble sandwich for lunch to takeaways and restaurant meals). There are many more, I’m sure. With the current state of affairs, I imagine that unless eating habits are at the extremes of the spectrum, it can sometimes be pretty hard to keep track of and be “honest” about they are.

Goodness knows I like something indulgent once in a while (as said dumplings illustrate). I could quite happily, for instance, eat a takeaway curry every single week, but I know they can have very high levels of fat (especially saturated fats), salts and sugars (isn’t that what makes them taste so good?). One of the things we try to maintain, therefore, is balance. A favourite trick to keep decadence at bay is to to get a fix by cooking homemade versions of our favourite indulgence foods. This might involve some pre-made elements, such as a shop-bought sauce (I don’t advocate giving up convenience entirely!), but partnering that with healthy ingredients (eg lean meat, fresh vegetables, boiled rice, wholemeal pasta etc) means it’s still a much better choice.

So, you can tell that home-cooked curry is going to be a firm favourite. To help us knock one up whenever we want, we keep the cupboards stocked with the following core kit: curry paste, ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon and garam masala, fresh onions, garlic and root ginger, tinned tomatoes and fresh or dried chillies. Additional options include whole cumin and coriander seeds, curry powder, cardamom, paprika, fenugreek, fennel, curry leaves and various other bits and bobs, but you can certainly get by without these.

For curry in a hurry we would use shop-bought paste or pre-prepared curry base sauce that can be prepared at any time, stored in the freezer in batches and defrosted at the time of cooking. Just add meat, vegetables and/or fish of choice, tinned tomatoes and any enhancements desired, such as chickpeas, lentils, spinach, additional spices, chillies (or chilli powder), yoghurt or soaked ground almonds or cashew nuts. If more time is available we might marinate meat with freshly made paste and yoghurt, if required, for several hours or over the night before cooking.

I’ve provided three recipes below that have health, speed, economy and flavour in mind. The first is a base sauce for freezing. The amounts of spices suit our tastes, but can be easily altered. I’ve also provided recipes for a turkey curry and a side dish. I suggested using turkey because it’s extremely lean and it’s cheaper than a lot of other meats. I know people are often put off turkey because they think it goes dry, but in this recipe it stays moist and tender. Chicken breast would, however, be absolutely fine as an alternative. Serve with a little boiled basmati rice, and naan bread if you have a big appetite, for healthy comfort food (hmm, is that an oxymoron?).

Curry base sauce

Two large onions

1 inch root ginger peeled

Fresh chillies or chilli powder to taste

2-3 cloves garlic

2 tbsp ground cumin

2 tbsp ground coriander

1 tsp cinnamon

Half tsp turmeric

3 cloves

200 g tin chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato puree

Salt to taste

6 dstspn water

In a food processor mince the onions, garlic and ginger (and fresh chillies if using) and place in a large frying pan with the oil. Gently heat for about 10 min until the mixture has turned golden brown, being careful not to let it burn. Add the dry spices (add the chilli powder at this stage if using) and cloves and stir in the pan for about 10 seconds to heat. Add the tinned tomatoes, the tomato puree and salt and stir through. Add the water and cook down until it has all reduced away. Leave the mixture to cool and chill in an airtight container (keeps for a few days) or freeze in sealable plastic bags until use. This mixture provides enough base sauce for four portions of curry.

Tip:

A good way to peel the root ginger is to gently rub the skin off with the edge of teaspoon.

Turkey curry with chole chaat

Serves 4

For the curry

75 g red lentils

350 ml chicken stock

1 heaped tbsp curry powder

2 tsp cumin powder

3 tsp coriander powder

2 tsp garam masala

1 medium onion finely chopped

450 g turkey breast steak chopped into large pieces

100 g closed cap mushrooms cut into large chunks

200 g spinach leaves shredded

1 tbsp lemon juice

Salt and pepper

For the chole chaat

Half an onion finely chopped

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp garam masala

¼ tsp turmeric

2 red chillis finely chopped

2 cm piece root ginger grated

200 g tinned tomatoes

50 ml water

Salt and pepper

For the curry

Put the lentils, stock, onion and all spices except the garam masala into a large, heavy-based saucepan, bring to the boil then turn down, cover and simmer for 10 min. Stir in the spinach a little at the time until it wilts, then add the turkey, mushrooms and lemon juice, season and re-cover and simmer for 20–30 min. Just before serving add the garam masala and check the seasoning and adjust as necessary.

For the chole chaat

Drain the chickpeas. Crush half the chickpeas with a fork and leave the others whole. Cook the onion in a saucepan until it starts to brown. Add the dry spices and cook gently for 1 min, then add the ginger, chilli, tomatoes and chickpeas. Season and simmer for 10 min.

Tip: dried chickpeas are cheaper than tinned, so consider rehydrating them then storing batches in the freezer until use; weight more or less doubles during rehydration, so use half the final weight desired.

Leave it to stew

Well, all, it’s been a while. The past couple of months have been a heady whirl of short trips, colds and crazy work deadlines. Consequently, cooking-wise I’ve relied on easy old favourites and the contents of the freezer. Finally, though, I’ve clawed my way back to the cooking trail.

After the last-ditch effort of summer to show itself, which led to the hottest October day ever recorded in the UK, autumn seems now to be just around the corner. Like a lot of people, the cooler weather and darker evenings at this time of year make me start to think about food that warms the body and the heart, such as a steaming bowl of nourishing beef stew.

During my teenage years my mother taught me some basic cooking skills. Among those were the slow-cooking methods stewing, casseroling and braising (sometimes also called pot roasting). The first two seem to have become amalgamated as one method, but traditionally stews have been cooked on the hob with plenty of liquid, casseroles in the oven with plenty of liquid and braised dishes in the oven with only a little liquid so the meat cooks in steam. Generally, stews and casseroles involve small pieces, such as cubes, chops or steaks, whereas braising is used for larger pieces of meat, from large steaks up to roasting-sized joints.

Slow-cooking meat has several benefits. First, it can be a thrifty option. The meat doesn’t have to look pretty and often contains some fat, sinew and possibly bone, so can cost quite a lot less than the so-called prime cuts. Secondly, said fat, sinew and bone lend loads of flavour. Thirdly, tough cuts of meat can become wonderfully tender. Fourthly, the judicious addition of vegetables, pulses and grains can make the meal go a long way.

Essentially, if you have the time and patience it’s pretty difficult to go wrong with stews – aside from burning them to the bottom of the pan! What seems more relevant is to discuss them in degrees of rightness for you. This article in The Guardian illustrates that there are as many approaches as there are cooks. The key things are to cook it long enough to break down the collagen, which will provide richness and make the meat tender and easy to eat, and to create plenty of flavour.

How slow a slow cook is will depend somewhat on the meat. For instance, chicken pieces on the bone might take about 1 h to 1 h 15 min, whereas a beef or mutton stew could take 2–3 h. This type of cooking, therefore, is not generally suitable for a rushed weekday supper. Taking the time to slow cook properly, however, is worth it. Stews and casseroles can be made in advance and easily reheated. They also freeze well. Another alternative is to invest in a slow cooker, prepare the ingredients in the morning and set it to cook throughout the day. I don’t own one of these, so I can’t vouch for the results. From the accounts of people I know who do have these devices, though, they can take a bit of getting used to, the results seem variable, and the published recipes need quite a lot of tweaking. I prefer being able to watch and amend.

As well as picking up flavours from the meat, the gravy will benefit from additions such as Worcestershire sauce, mushroom ketchup, herbs (eg bay leaf, bouquet garni etc; dried herbs are fine), yeast extract and salt and pepper. Other useful flavours might be tomatoes, wine, cider, celery, cinnamon, ginger... Even apricots are popular in Moroccan-type lamb stews.

Thickening the stew offers its own challenges. I tend to use plain flour, stirred in before the stock is added, and some additional corn flour paste towards the end of cooking if the gravy isn’t thick enough. Don’t add the corn flour too early, though, as the breakdown of collagen and the reduction of liquid during cooking will cause some thickening. Other popular methods are to add arrowroot, lentils, pearl barley or floury potatoes or to add a roux at the end of the cooking. I do like the pearl barley option, but it’s difficult to know how much it will expand and it does sometimes soak up rather a lot of the gravy rather than merely thickening the stew.

Barley and potatoes also serve to stretch the meal. The use of other vegetables will help this cause further as well as creating a tasty-one-pot-meal experience.  I like carrots and swede (also known as rutabaga) because I enjoy the sweetness they lend, but other good options are turnips, beans, celery, peppers, squashes, leeks, mushrooms – whatever is available, really. Add them at different times to prevent them all disintegrating into slush or to get the best flavour out of them

Finally, an optional extra is dumplings. In the recipe for beef stew I’ve provided below, I’ve included cheese and herb dumplings. These should probably, however, be included as a treat rather than every time you cook stew, as they have a high fat content.

Since it looks as though we’re finally heading into autumn, perhaps now is the time to break out that stewpot.

Beef stew with cheese and herb dumplings

Serves 4–6

For the stew

1 large onion chopped

1 large stick celery finely sliced

1 tsp dried thyme

500 g stewing steak diced into 1 inch pieces

150 g baby button mushrooms (optional)

1 heaped tbsp plain flour

1 beef stock cube dissolved in 500 ml water

100 ml red wine (optional)

2 large carrots cut into large chunks

Half a medium swede cut into large chunks

2 dstspn Worcestershire sauce or 1 dstspn Worcestershire sauce and 1 dstspn mushroom ketchup

1 tsp yeast extract (if required)

For the dumplings

100 g self-raising flour

50 g vegetarian suet

25–50 g mature cheddar

1–2 tsp dried herbs of choice (eg thyme, oregano etc)

Pinch salt

Water to mix

In a large heavy-based saucepan, soften the onions and celery until the onion is translucent but not browned. Meanwhile, brown the meat in a hot frying pan then turn down the temperature and gently fry the mushrooms whole until they start to turn golden. Add the beef and mushrooms to the onions and celery then stir in the flour. Deglaze the frying pan used for the meat and mushrooms with red the wine (if using) or water and add to the saucepan. Add the stock, Worcestershire sauce and mushroom ketchup (if using) and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil then turn down, cover and leave to a simmer for around 1 h. Add the carrots and swede. Taste the gravy. If required, add the yeast extract at this point. Re-cover the pan and leave to simmer for a further 1 h.

To make the dumplings, put all the dry ingredients into a bowl and gradually mix in the water until they form a firm dough. Roll the mixture into eight equally sized balls. Place them in the pan so they are floating on the top of the stew. The dumplings will double in size, so ensure there is enough room to allow for expansion. Replace the lid and leave to simmer for a further 20 mins. Serve immediately with some potatoes or fresh crusty bread.

Tip: brown the meat a few pieces at a time to ensure it actually fries, which will ensure the meat is seared, rather than steamed, and enhance the flavour.