Month: August 2015

RK Paella

RK Paella

Paella

Having spent a month in Spain, I ate a few lush paella. The key to paella is the crust or ‘Socarrat’ from the Spanish word ‘Socarrar’, meaning to toast lightly. Anyone familiar with cooking a risotto will be tempted to stir…resist!! I admit that I do give the veggies a quick mix in, after that I leave it to Socarrar!

If like me, you don’t have a proper paella pan, just use a pan with a nice heavy base.

Serves 5

1 Onion finely chopped
500g Paella Rice
A Large Handful Green Beans, chopped into small pieces
2 Big Handfuls of Petit Pois
1.2l Chicken Stock
4 Chicken Breasts cut into small slices
Olive Oil
Sazonador paraPaella or
A Large Pinch of Saffron
2 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp Garlic Salt
Salt and Pepper to taste
Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
1 Lemon Cut into Segments

Heat the oil (3-4 tbsp) and then add the onion for 5-8 mins to soften.

Add the Chicken and cook until it has a golden colour.

Add the rice and stir until well covered in the oil.

Add all of the seasoning and the stock and stir.

Turn the heat down and. Cover with tinfoil for 15 mins.

Add the veggies, give them a cheeky stir.

Cover with the foil again and leave on the low heat for around another 15 mins until all the stock is absorbed.

Turn off the heat and leave covered for another 10 mins.

Sprinkle with parsley and arrange lemon pieces.

Serve with a nice glass of Rosé!
I have stuck to chicken as my kids don’t like prawns, feel free so add some huge big raw prawns around 10 mins before the end.

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Tomato Chilli Jam

Tomato Chilli Jam

This wee number is fairly quick to throw together and definitely worth it!  I served it with the Yoghurt Spiced Chicken Kebabs I put on my blog a couple of days ago, but it works with so many different things!  Gorg with a gourmet burger, a posh dog or even some nice white fish to add a bit of extra special flavour! 😋❤️

Tomato Chilli Jam

4 Punnets Cherry Tomatoes, halved
220ml White Wine Vinegar
4 tbsp Caster Sugar
½ tsp Dried Chilli Flakes

For the jam, place all the ingredients into a saucepan and bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer for up to an hour until jam-like.

Cool and serve with spicy chicken, burgers or hot dogs for something a little bit different!

Yoghurt Spiced Chicken Kebabs

Yoghurt Spiced Chicken Kebabs

Spiced chicken kebabs

I live in Belfast, so you kinda have to forget about the weather when planning a barbecue! Pick a day and go for it!!😂 These wee babies are tastalicious and super healthy….result!

Serves 6

6-7 Chicken Breasts

For the Marinade

900ml natural yoghurt
4 tsp Ground Cumin
4 tsp Ground Coriander
Large Pinch Maldon Sea Salt
2 tsp Turmeric
3 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
4 tsp Ground Ginger
3 tsp Onion Powder
2 tsp Ground Cloves
1 tsp Chilli Powder
Wooden Skewers*
For the marinade, mix all the ingredients together.

Slice each chicken breast into five strips, and add them to the marinade.

Stir to combine, and leave to marinate overnight.

Remove from the fridge and thread the chicken strips onto wooden skewers.

Heat a large griddle pan until hot or a barbecue, then add the chicken skewers.

Cook for three minutes on each side until browned and cooked through.

*A handy hint for wooden skewers is to soak for at least an hour in water, then freeze them in order to have them prepped ahead ready to use!

#chicken #healthyeating #barbecue

A Little Random Stir Fry

I’ back!!  Home from a month away and not as organised as I normally am hence the need to rock up this simple little beauty!

A Little Random Stir Fry

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serves 5-6

4 Chicken Breasts, finely sliced
1 Red Onion, finely sliced
1 Red Pepper, finely sliced
12 Spears Asparagus, finely sliced
8 Tender Stem Broccoli, cut into pieces
250g Chestnut Mushrooms Sliced
1 Red Chilli, finely sliced
1 Clove Garlic, sliced
1in Fresh Ginger, finely chopped
5 Nests of Fine Egg Noodles
1 tbsp Top Quality Black Bean Paste – the Chinese supermarket one! Mix this with 2 tbsp water
2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
Chicken Stock Cube
Pure Coconut Oil
Begin with the noodles. Bring 2 litres of water to the boil, add the noodles and boil for one minute.

Add the broccoli and boil for a further three mins.

Drain and set aside.

Add some coconut oil to a wok (I try to get away with as little as possible) heat well and add the chicken.

Stir fry until well browned then remove.

Heat a touch more oil and tip in the rest of the veg, garlic and ginger and quickly stir fry for a couple of mins. Add a dash of water to prevent them burning. It keeps it healthier as it requires less oil. A kind of steam, stir fry approach!

Return the chicken to the wok and heat through.

Add the soy and the black bean mixture and stir well.

Finally tip in the noodles and broccoli and make sure it is well combined.
You may need to add a dash of water to loosen.

Put in a bowl and top with chilli. Simple and delish!