You Say You Want a Revolution….

Layer upon layer upon layer

A quinoa one, that is. Quinoa has been a super food winner for the last couple of years, and I’ve been on that bandwagon since living in Chile, where it has always been a commonly found staple food, and for good reason – it tastes great, is easy to cook, is suitable for those with wheat allergies, and of course is extremely good for you.

There is a plethora (I just wanted to use that word cos’ it’s a cool one!) of quinoa cookbooks around these days, and I eagerly scour through every new one that comes in at my work. The recipe below is adapted from Cabbage Crockpot Casserole, from Patricia Green & Carolyn Hemming’s new cookbook, Quinoa Revolution.

I don’t usually go in for crockpot recipes that involve a heap of pre-preparation – I do like to just throw it all in – but I had plenty of time on this day so was happy to brown the mince before putting it in the crockpot, and it was simple enough to do. Everything else is just layered over the top and then it is switched on and ignored for the day.

I don’t feel the passata on the top added anything really, so next time I will just leave that top bit out – it doesn’t really mix in through the rest, and just stays as a layer of tomato “paste”, when you serve it. Just tinned tomatoes is enough I think.

Layered Beef Casserole

1 tbsp olive oil

500 gms minced beef

1 brown onion, cut into wedges

4 slices rindless bacon, fat cut off, roughly chopped

3/4 cup red quinoa

1 green capsicum, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 green cabbage, roughly chopped

cracked pepper, to taste

400 gm can diced tomatoes

700 ml bottle bought passata

Heat olive oil in a large pan or wok, and saute the beef for a couple of minutes, stirring to break up lumps, until lightly browned. Drain in a colander and if it is a fatty mince, rinse through with hot water.

Place meat in crockpot. Place all other ingredients on mince, layered in the order given.

Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH 4 hours.

If desired, serve with mashed potatoes and a green vegetable, or salad and garlic bread.

Serves 4-6

I don’t think this wins a lot of points for looks, but the flavours are great.

Happy Fooding!

Beef Stroganoff

I’m eating meat again at the moment, although not much, and I couldn’t resist trying this delightfully simple crockpot Beef Stroganoff recipe from Best Recipes, on the weekend. I love this recipe site, and this beef dish will now be a firm favourite. Not only was it easy, but it tasted fabulous and the consistency was perfect – rich and creamy just like a stroganoff should be.

I did it on LOW so all up it was 8 hours cooking time – the 5 hours they say at the top of the recipe is if you cook on HIGH.

This definitely serves 6 as the recipe states, and could actually serve more if you have it as part of other dishes – great for a party buffet. I didn’t bother cooking pasta and green beans, as suggested, because I knew it would be very filling and there’s only me to feed – I just had a little black rice with mine. I have lots of leftovers in the freezer now!

Happy Fooding!

Getting My Irish On…

I made this beef stew with Guinness, on St Patrick’s Day, and OMG it was so delicious.  Of course it made enough to feed an army lol, and there was just me, so I now have portions in the freezer, but with something as yummy as this I don’t mind at all.

There was about 20 minutes of chopping up/prep involved, but once that was done the cooking itself was pretty easy. I do so love things that simmer away on the stove creating gorgeous smells, while you get on with the important relaxation things of life…..in this case I was stitching away merrily on a Henry VIII cross-stitch project that I am obsessed with currently, and watching the Australian F1 Grand Prix.

I keep forgetting to tell you, I have a new Twitter handle for this blog, so feel free to follow me @salmonavocado and share with your friends by retweeting!

A little bit of Henry

Happy Pot of Gold Fooding!

Black Rice

SunRice have recently started selling black rice here, so I had to try some of course. Of course black rice is widely available if you have access to good Aisan markets, but I don’t at the moment.

I cooked it in the microwave (found the instructions here as they weren’t on the packet) and although it takes quite a bit longer to cook than even wholemeal rice (which I usually use as it has so much flavour than white, not to mention being better for you), it was worth the wait. Nutty flavours but not with that bitey “stick” flavour of the wild rice (which is a variety of black rice anyway) you get in a blend sometimes.

Overall I was pretty impressed – it went well with the beef stir-fry I threw together (no recipe, just made it up using whatever I could find) and I will definitely make it again.

Happy Fooding!

Another Greek Review…

I’ve been in Brisbane for 10 days, attending the wonderful Koala Conventions annual embroidery week –  loads of fun, fantastic stitching workshops, and LOTS of food! Last Tuesday night we went as a large group, to Kapsali Greek restaurant.

The food was a banquet organised specially for function groups, so large platters were brought out, first of dips, then hot treats like calamari and saganaki.

Between courses the waiters got up and did some Greek dancing, then they made all of us get up and have a go – in fact the whole restaurant pretty much joined in. Lots of fun.

Main course platters included lamb that just melted in the mouth, and delicious garlic potatoes. By then we were all so full because we had pigged out on the dips and cheese, so quite a bit was left on the platters. I hate to see food go to waste but we just couldn’t eat it all. As for dessert (baklava and fresh fruit) I couldn’t touch a thing.

A great night, lots of laughter and big garlic breath fumes in our room (I was sharing with my mum, who flew to Brisbane from Melbourne to join me for the embroidery week) afterwards!

I fly home to Perth today with mountains of washing to do, 2 new embroidery projects to complete (I did actually finish the 3rd one, which is the first time ever that I’ve been able to do that within the workshop week) and a lot of stuff to unpack. A wonderful 10 days was had by all.

Happy Fooding!

A Mild Curry for a Chilly Winter’s Evening

Simmering away.

My friends are totally used to me pulling out the camera while they’re cooking and saying WAIT I have to take photos before we starting eating, haha. Here is a yummy new dish I had last week, made from a recipe in the latest issue (Jun/Jul Issue 63) of Donna Hay Magazine.

This is not a budget-conscious curry using cheap cuts of meat – it calls for scotch fillet steak. The upside is that it cooks very quickly, so the whole meal is ready in about 45 minutes. The cauliflower is only just cooked and still a tad crunchy, rather than being overcooked and soggy.

The meat was very tender (from a real butcher rather than a supermarket), and despite the curry paste (yellow, which is not fiery like red or green) and green chilli, this is a VERY mild dish, not spicy but just flavoursome.

Beef, Cauliflower & Potato Curry

1 tbsp olive oil

4 x 200 gm scotch fillet steaks, trimmed and sliced

1 red onion, cut into wedges

2 tbsp yellow curry paste

1 large potato, peeled & chopped

2 x 415 gm cans coconut milk (I would use low-fat)

300 gms cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets

100 gms cherry tomatoes, halved

1 long green chilli, sliced

1 tbsp lime juice

fresh coriander leaves, to serve

Place the tomato, chilli and lime juice in a bowl and mix to combine.

Heat oil in a deep-sided pan or saucepan over high heat. Add the beef and cook for 3-4 minutes or until browned. Add the onion and cook for a further 1-2 minutes.

Add the curry paste, potato and coconut milk and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes. Add the cauliflower and cook for a further 10 minutes or until the potato is tender.

Add the tomato mixture and heat through for 1-2 minutes.

Serve with rice, topped with coriander leaves.

Happy Fooding!

Restaurant Review

I’ve been in Melbourne for a few days, to celebrate my son’s 21st birthday. I took he and my daughter to Counting House, a French restaurant in Mornington, for a birthday lunch. The restaurant is a heritage-listed, huge old weatherboard house – room upon room with hallways and a big front verandah/decking. The weather was lovely so we were able to sit out the front, very pleasant indeed.

We chose the $30 per head, 2 course + glass of wine option. I went for an entree and a main, and both of the kids had a main and a dessert. My entree (duck liver parfait) was delicious, a light and creamy pate with homemade brioche slices and a very rich caramelised onion chutney.

For main I had the Moroccan vegetable tagine – it looked small but was super filling – carrot, pumpkin, onion, parsnip, on top of a bed of couscous.

Both of the children (I say children, but they’re 21 and 24!) had the steak, and pronounced them to be perfectly cooked and tender. I tasted the celeriac puree (doesn’t it look great – full marks for presentation!) and it was divine. Celeriac is something I’ve never really used in my cooking, but I am going to try it out after this tasting.

Dessert chosen was the cheese platter x 2 – small but elegant and apparently the French triple brie was delightful.

I didn’t have a dessert but I did have a second glass of wine…..it was a special occasion, after all.

Happy Fooding!

Rendang, Anyone?

OMG. Last week I made the best curry of my life (so far)……I have not yet shared my “up til now best curry” recipe with you, which is a Thai beef curry, because last time I made it I forgot to take photos. And you will love that recipe. But here is a new favourite one!

When living in Suriname I had a half-Indonesian/half-Malaysian Australian neighbour (confusing I know! – I lived in a compound with loads of expats from all over the world) and she made amazing curries, rice dishes and fantastic lemper. I have always wanted to try making my own rendang, and I had an “Indonesian Beef Rendang” recipe pulled out from a magazine from a while back – one of those ones using a “simmer sauce” – sort of a sponsored recipe I guess. It looked so easy that I thought I’d do the cheat’s thing and make it – but when I went to buy the simmer sauce, I accidentally bought rendang curry spice paste instead. So I looked up a few other rendang recipes and then just improvised, and this is what I came up with. It is quite rich and filling, so a little goes a long way.

Beef Rendang

100 gms Indonesian rendang curry paste (if you have time make your own from scratch!)

2 x 400 ml cans coconut milk (low-fat)

2 tbsp ketjap manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)

1.2 kgs chuck steak, cut into 3cm cubes

1 large red onion, cut into wedges

rice, yoghurt or raita and naan bread to serve

Heat the curry paste, coconut milk and ketjap manis in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir until smooth and mixture comes to the boil. Add the beef and onion, stir until combined and mixture comes back to the boil. Simmer for 2 hours, covered, stirring occasionally. Remove lid and simmer for a further 1 hour, stirring occasionally (especially near the end as it thickens and sticks to the bottom).

Serve with rice etc.

This will melt in your mouth!

Serves 4

Happy Fooding!

Thai Beef Salad

In theory it might now be Autumn, but no one has told Perth weather that!  It is still quite hot, which is fine by me – long may it last.

This refreshing, slightly spicy beef salad is easy and full of yummy flavours – the blend of lemongrass, herbs, garlic, chilli and sauces makes for a really pungent and fresh taste. It is also ideal for preparing early in the day, as you can just leave it in a bowl to help the flavours really permeate into the meat.

I have made this a couple of times with kangaroo fillet instead of beef and it was delicious – I think ostrich would work very well too, and when I was eating it this time I also wondered how it would go with prawns…

I have suggested cherry tomatoes and cucumber for serving, but you can use any salad ingredients you like. Avocado and bean shoots would be great.

Thai Beef Salad

2 spring onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 stalk lemongrass, finely chopped (if you can’t find any fresh, use about 1 tbsp of the chopped stuff in a jar)

1 cup fresh coriander, chopped

1 cup fresh mint, chopped

1 cup lime juice

zest of 1 lime

1/3 cup fish sauce

2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

1/4 tsp chilli paste

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1/2 cup white sugar

cracked pepper, to taste

600-700 gms beef scotch fillet

In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients except steak. Mix well until the sugar is dissolved.

Cook the steak in a pan, grill or wok, for 4-6 minutes each side until it is medium-done. Remove from heat and let rest for a few minutes then slice into thin strips. Add the meat and its juices to the sauce mixture and refrigerate, covered, for at least 3 hours.

Serve the meat/sauce mixture over a bed of mixed lettuce leaves, cherry tomatoes and diced cucumber.

Serves 4

Happy Fooding!

No Cooking, But Still Plenty of Food Around…

I’m not really cooking properly at the moment, as I’m moving house this week, so almost everything is sealed up in a box somewhere. And I’ve already taken all of my non-perishable foods to the new place, so my pantry consists of a bottle of soy sauce and some pepper, at the moment! I’m also trying to empty the freezer to minimise how much food I have to keep frozen during the actual move, so I’ve been using up leftovers a lot. I’ve been eating a lot of couscous, made into a kind of warm salad with whatever I can find to use up – a piece of salmon (poached in the microwave) or some grilled chicken.  I’m missing my bread machine – hope I can find the box it’s in, pretty quickly after moving.

Just because I haven’t been cooking much, doesn’t mean I haven’t been enjoying lovely food!  A new bar, The Classroom, has just opened in North Perth, and I went there for drinks with friends on Friday night.  The decor is great – old lockers, blackboards, vintage lunchboxes, old encyclopaedias etc all around the walls, and even a few sets of old-fashioned big headphones, plugged in to some kind of “lesson of the day” – how to speak Japanese, when I was there! In order to eat, you must fill out a school canteen menu by ticking the boxes (pencils and clipboards provided!) and handing it to your waiter. Cocktails are served in unusual shaped glasses, including specimen jars, droppers for adding colour to your drink, and screw top jars with handles on.  Lots of good fun.

The food is bar food so snack-y, tapas-style – small portions, but then the prices were also small, so you could order several things to share and it worked out okay, price-wise.

I chose the smoked salmon & scallop carpaccio (sorry the pic is a bit blurry) as one of the dishes (does that surprise you?!), which actually was a tad tasteless. Can you believe these tiny little blobs are scallops?? They were the size of a 5 cent piece – hmm I wonder at the sustainability issues of that, but we won’t go there….

I wouldn’t order the salmon again, but everything else was lovely. As well as the food in these pics, we also had big thick-cut crinkly chips (served in typical cardboard cups, just like at school – back in the days when they did serve unhealthy rubbish like that at school canteens!), and a serving of beef ribs, the meat from which just melted in your mouth (it was given a huge thumbs up by our Phil the butcher).  The szechuan squid (pictured at the top) was my favourite, it was totally yummy and pepper-y. Apparently the cubes of watermelon were “compressed” and taken through some long-winded process that the waitress explained to us, to make them gourmet blah blah blah – tasted just like a cube of watermelon to us!

I’m really missing all of my kitchen stuff, and looking forward to getting re-acquainted with it all when I start to unpack next weekend.

Happy Fooding!