If I had a pound for every time I’d heard somebody say, “I don’t like squid ‘cos it’s rubbery”, I’d be a rich man. It isn’t!! Especially if it’s cooked correctly, i.e. hot and fast. This marinated squid makes the…
Category: Main
Sea Bass with a Black Olive Crust
This recipe is based upon one in Nico by Nico Ladenis. My main change is to use wholemeal breadcrumbs instead of white and, rather than pressing and refrigerating the crust mixture before use, just to press it roughly straight onto…
JC’s Seafood Risotto
I just love risottos and this is one of my favourites. The trick with risotto is to adjust the cooking heat such that the stock, added gradually, is absorbed over a period of about 20 minutes to make sure that…
Shrimp Etouffée
This is basically Paul Prudhomme’s crawfish etouffée from his Louisiana Kitchen made with large prawns, which are a more readily available substitute for rarely seen freshwater crayfish. (One day, I must make a crayfish trap for use in the local…
Tarragon Chicken
A swift Internet investigation of either Tarragon Chicken or, in French, Poulet à l’Estragon reveals that there seems to be no standard way to prepare, or even to describe, such a dish. This idea for a roasted whole chicken version…
Hasenpfeffer
The classic germanic hare stew taken from French Regional Cookery – Alsace , or so I thought. (Well, Alsace does suffer from a French/German identity crisis.) Before I’d cooked this, given my basic knowledge of German, I thought that the…
Fish Crumble
Yes, I know this might sound strange to those accustomed to an apple crumble but trust me, this savoury crumble works well and has always proved immensely popular with those for whom we’ve cooked it. The savoury cheese crumble mixture…
Thai Chicken Red Curry
This has developed from a couple of sources including Nigel Slater and Muoi Khuntilanont’s Kitchen. The colour associated with the so-called curry paste is really just down to the colour of the chillies used, though the colour can be enhanced…
Roast Pork Loin stuffed with Prunes
One to try from the childhood archives of the excellent monsieur Raymond Blanc courtesy of his mother, Maman Blanc. I might even try this in my good ol’ trusty Weber grill. Planning serves: 6 preparation time: 6 hrs cooking time:…
Gurnard with Nettle Butter
This is a little curiosity I came up with in Cornwall where the gurnard (red or grey, it matters not) are usually excellent. We’d taken to travelling to Cornwall in the spring when the stinging nettles are at their prime,…