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Braised Duck Legs with Sticky Shallots
This was the 3rd meal we got out of a special offer Duck at £7. So Portion by portion it was better value than a similar sized Chicken and so much better tasting.
Ingredients:-
2 Duck Legs (We also added the Wings, but there’s really not much meat on them)
1 Onion, finely diced
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
125Ml of Red Wine (£1.25 from the local B&Ms – probably not good drinking, but good for cooking)
300Ml of Chicken Stock
1 Orange, Zested, plus the juice of half of it
1 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
1 Bay Leaf
30G of Margarine
2 Tbsp of Balsamic Vinegar
8 Shallots, peeled and trimmed
1 Tbsp of Parsley, chopped (We have a Parsley plant of the undead on the balcony!)
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
5 Tbsp of Water
Salt & Pepper to season
Method:-
(1) Heat 1 Tbsp of Oil over a medium heat. Season the Duck with Salt & Pepper and fry for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
(2) Remove and set aside.
(3) Add the Onions and fry until softened.
(4) add ¾ of the minced Garlic and fry for 20 seconds.
(5) Stir in the Wine, Stock, Orange Juice, Tomato Puree and Bay Leave.
(6) Season with Salt & Pepper and bring to the boil.
(7) Return the Duck Legs to the pan.
(8) Cover and cook for about an hour over a low heat, until cooked.
(9) Add the Oil, Vinegar and Water and season to taste.
(10) Melt Margarine over a low heat in a different pan.
(11) Stir in the Shallots, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
(12) Uncover for the last 10 minutes.
(13) Preheat the grill to a high heat.
(14) Place the Duck Legs on the rack and grill until crisp.
(15) Bring the sauce to a boil and add 10g of Margarine stirring until the sauce thickens.
(16) Mix the remaining Garlic with the Orange Zest and Parsley.
(17) Spoon the Sauce over the Duck and garnish the Parsley.
(18) Serve with the Sticky Shallots.
Duck is quite a fatty meat, which is good, as the flavour and richness mean you don’t feel the need to eat quite as much. This was a restaurant standard meal made from really inexpensive ingredients.
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- Details
- Written by Tony Carson
- Category: Recipes
Another Tagine recipe. Sometimes King Prawns are available from the local Home Bargains at considerably less than the general supermarket price. So while they were to hand the Tagine came out to play…..
Ingredients:-
300g of Cooked King Prawns
Zest and Juice of a Lemon
1 Tsp of Sweet Paprika
1 Tsp of Ground Ginger
A Pinch of Saffron
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Tsp of Cumin
2 Carrots, batoned
1 Onion, sliced
2 Large Potatoes, Par boiled and cubed
A handful of fresh Coriander, chopped
½ a Red and ½ a Yellow Pepper, sliced
3 Tsp of Ras-El-Hanout
2 Tsp of Tomato Puree
1 Tbsp of Honey
4 Large Tomatoes, chopped
A handful of Pitted Green Olives
1 Red Chilli, sliced
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to season
200ml of Water
Method:-
(1) In a bowl add the Prawns, a squeeze of Lemon Juice and stir in 1 Tsp of Ras-El-Hanout.
(2) Stir well and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.
(3) Add a little Oil to the Tagine over a medium heat.
(4) Add the Onions, Peppers and Carrots and cook until softened.
(5) Add the Garlic and stir for a minute.
(6) Add the Potatoes and season with Salt & Pepper.
(7) Stir in the Tomato Puree and Chopped Tomatoes.
(8) Add the Paprika, Ground Ginger, Saffron, Chopped Coriander, Lemon Juice & Zest, Cumin, 2 Tsp of Ras-El-Hanout and stir gently.
(9) Add Water if the sauce is too thick.
(10) Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes.
(11) Add the Prawns, Olives, Honey and simmer until the Prawns are heated through.
(12) Garnish with Chillies and Coriander.
The 3rd Tagine recipe with a real depth of flavour. One we’ll most probably revisit next time all the ingredients are available.
- Details
- Written by Tony Carson
- Category: Recipes
The second in our experiments with the Tagine mum gave us.
Ingredients for the Spice Rub:-
2 Tsp of Ras-El-Hanout
1 Tsp of Ground Cinnamon
1 Tsp of Sweet Paprika
1 Tsp of Ground Ginger
1 Tsp of ground Black Pepper
Ingredients for the main dish:-
6 Chicken Thighs
1 Onion Chopped
4 Cloves of Garlic
A handful of fresh Coriander, chopped
1 Lemon, thinly sliced
8 Green Olives, halved
12 Apricots, halved
A handful of Raisins
3 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
400ml of Chicken Stock
Oil to Fry
4 Tomotoes, chopped
1 Tbsp of Honey
To Garnish:-
1 Lemon, thinly sliced
Toasted Almonds
Chopped Coriander
Method:-
(1) Combine the Rub ingredients and rub over and under the skin.
(2) Place in the fridge to marinade for at least 2 hours.
(3) On a medium heat add a little Oil to the Tagine.
(4) Fry the Onions until softened.
(5) Add the Garlic and fry for a further minute.
(6) Stir in the Tomato Puree and then add the Chicken Stock & Chopped Tomatoes.
(7) Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer.
(8) Add the Chicken, Apricots, Raisins, Olives and Honey.
(9) Simmer for 30 minutes.
(10) 10 minutes before serving add the Lemon & Coriander.
(11) Garnish with Lemon, Toasted Almonds and Chopped Coriander.
We served ours over Rice and it was an outstanding dinner with real depth of flavour.
- Details
- Written by Tony Carson
- Category: Recipes
“Once upon a time in tent not far from here there were a couple who had very little money and were in a bit of an uncomfortable (Read dangerous) situation. They found a Community Share Shelf where allotment holders placed their excess for people to take. The phrase ‘A million ways to cook a Marrow / Courgette’ was coined and will stay with them for life”.
Read into that what you like. However we had some slightly damaged Courgettes which we couldn’t pass on, so I thought we could improve on their rather bland flavour and use them as a side for Fish and Chips….
Ingredients:-
1 Courgette, topped and tailed and cut thickly
Anchovies and Capers, chopped
Ingredients for the Gluten free Batter:-
1 Heaped table spoon of Gram Flour
2 Heaped table spoons of Cornflour
2 Heaped table spoons of Cornflour for dredging
Salt & Pepper to season
A sprinkle of Turmeric for colour
1 Tea Spoon of Baking Powder
Carbonated Water
Method:-
(1) Mix the Batter ingredients to make a smooth but liquid batter.
(2) Heat a fryer to 180c.
(3) With your thumb press a hole in the middle of each Courgette disc.
(4) Mix the Anchovies and Capers and press into the hole with the back of a spoon.
(5) Dredge each fritter in Cornflour.
(6) Dunk in the batter and fry until golden brown on all sides, in batches.
(7) Remove and drain of kitchen paper.
(8) Re-dunk to heat just before serving.
From a rather pitiful Courgette, these evolved into something pretty good. We even repeated them last night as a side for a Surf & Turf gig….
- Details
- Written by Tony Carson
- Category: Recipes
My mum gave us a duplicated Tagine, so we thought we’d have a play with. Very much like the Dutch Oven as a cooking vessel, but it’s set us on another recipe challenge – Moroccan Tagine Recipes…..
Ingredients:-
400g of Diced Pork, diced into good sized pieces
Flour to coat (Gluten free in our case)
1 Onion, sliced
A Thumbnail of fresh Ginger, finely sliced
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
2 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
1 Tin of Chick Peas, drained and rinsed
1 Tbsp of Honey
500ml of Chicken Stock
12 Apricots, halved and de-stoned
8 Prunes, halved
2 Tsp of Ras-El-Honout (You can buy this in the Herbs and Spices section in the supermarket, or find a recipe online and make your own blend)
The Juice of 1 Lemon
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to season
Fresh Mint leave garnish
Method:-
(1) Season the Pork with Salt and Pepper.
(2) Coat in Flour, shaking any excess off.
(3) Over a medium heat add a little Oil to the Tagine.
(4) Fry the Pork until brown on all sides and set aside.
(5) Add the Onions and fry until softened.
(6) Add the Garlic and Ginger and fry for a further minute.
(7) Stir in the Tomato Puree, Tin of Tomatoes, Stock, Honey and Ras-El-Honout, bringing to the boil.
(8) Turn down to a simmer and stir in the Pork.
(9) Cover and simmer for an hour.
(10) Add the Apricots, Prunes, Chickpeas and Lemon Juice and stir in.
(11) Simmer for a further 30 minutes.
(12) Serve garnished with the fresh Mint.
The sweetness of the fruits and Honey work really well with the Ras-El-Honout spice blend. We’ll be pottering with other similar recipes over the next few weeks. Watch this space…...
- Details
- Written by Tony Carson
- Category: Recipes
We had a tub of cooked Glutinous Rice in the fridge, because we cooked far too much the night before! That was the foundation of this dish.
Stir-fry Ingredients:-
200g of skinless Chicken Breasts, sliced
A handful of Cashew Nuts
1 Onion, sliced
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
2 Spring Onions, chopped
1 Chilli Pepper, sliced
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to season
Sauce Ingredients:-
Combine the following:-
1 Tbsp of Oyster Sauce
1 Tsp of Soy Sauce (Gluten free for us)
2 Tsp of Fish Sauce
1 Tsp of Caster Sugar
3 Tbsp of Water
Method:-
(1) Add a little Oil to a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the Onions until softened.
(2) Add the Garlic, Whites of the Spring Onions, Chilli and fry for a further minute.
(3) Add the Chicken and season with Salt & Pepper.
(4) Stir and fry until no-longer pink.
(5) Add the Cashew Nuts, the greens from the Spring Onions and stir in the combined sauce.
(6) Simmer until the sauce thickens.
Thai Egg Fried Rice Ingredients:-
2 Eggs, beaten
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
2 Spring Onions, chopped
1 Tbsp of Fish Sauce
A handful of fresh Coriander, chopped
Cooked Rice
Oil to Fry
Salt & Pepper to season
Method:-
(1) Add a little Oil to a frying pan oven a medium heat and fry the Eggs to something like a thin Omelette.
(2) Remove, set aside and shred.
(3) Add the Garlic and Spring Onions to the same pan and fry for 30 seconds.
(4) Add the Cooked Rice, Fish Sauce and Coriander.
(5) Stir fry until heated through.
(6) Return the shredded Egg and stir in. Season with Salt & Pepper if required.
We served ours with home fried Prawn Crackers and crispy Sea Weed.
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