My collection of favourite recipes..tried and tested!
INGREDIENTS 1/2 kg minced beef 1 egg, well beaten 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1/4 onion chopped 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley Grated nutmeg Salt and pepper DIRECTIONS Pre-heat oven to 210 C. Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well – best done …
INGREDIENTS For the meatballs: 500 gms ground beef 1/2 tsp nutmeg powder 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 egg, beaten 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley Salt and pepper to taste For the sauce: 2 cloves garlic – minced 1/2 small onion – minced Beef cube 1 …
Stews or cocidos, as they are called in Spanish are typical main dishes in Spain, particularly in the central and northern regions of Spain. The Cocido Madrileño is named after the province of Madrid, where it originated.
Cocido Madrileño was traditionally prepared in a large cauldron, simmering away all day long, hardly bubbling. This boiled meat dinner has lots of flavor from the meats, sausage, vegetables and garbanzo beans used in the dish and is well-known as one of Spain’s national dishes. The dish is actually two courses – soup and a main dish.
The soup or “caldo”, is a clear stock which is rich with the juices of the various meats used to prepare the dish. Caldo may be saved to be used in many Spanish dishes but is often served as the first course with a couple of spoonfuls of vermicelli cooked in it.
The chickpeas, meat and vegetables – the cocido – are usually served as the second course with a bit of the caldo ladled over it.
Since we started “eating healthy” we cook Cocido at least once a week. We don’t use all the meats traditionally used in the dish – only chicken and beef and we cut the preparation time by preparing it in a pressure cooker – we still get the same rich taste of the various ingredients used. Another thing we modified is to mince the vegetables before cooking it. We also shred the meat once it is cook because we enjoy eating it as a stew with bread. Really hearty and very low in calories. 1 gm of our Cocido is equivalent to 1 calorie!
INGREDIENTS
Serves 3 as a main meal
250 gms dry chickpeas (garbanzo beans), soaked in water at least 8 hours before cooking
1 chicken breast, bone in, skin on or off
200 gms beef with bones (beef shank is fine)
1 leek
2 medium-sized carrots
2 stalks celery
1 clove garlic
2 Maggi beef or chicken cubes
1/4 tsp smoked paprika powder
2 litres water
Salt to taste
DIRECTION
Clean the chicken breast and beef and leave to dry in a colander.
Drain and rinse the chickpeas in warm water – cold water will split the peas. Keeping root end intact, trim the leek of roots and dark green leaves. Discard the leafy part of the leek. Cut the leek at the top 1/3 and wash the leek to remove any sand particles or dirt.
In a pressure cooker, put the drained chickpeas, chicken breast, beef bones, the whole bottom 2/3 of the leek, Maggi cubes, smoked paprika and the water. Do not cover the pressure cooker. Place on medium heat and bring it to the boil.
In the meantime, peel and wash carrots, celery and garlic. Chop these up together with the top 1/3 of the leek.
Add the chopped vegetables to the rest of the ingredients in the pressure cooker, cover and put the pressure setting to “2”. Boil it under pressure for 40 minutes.
Remove the chicken breast and beef from the pressure cooker, de-bone and shred, then put the meat back into the soup. Discard the piece of cooked leek. Add salt to taste if necessary.
Serve hot with warm country bread.
On our recent trip to Argentina, we went to the Iguazu National Park for a couple of days and on the first day our guide took us to see the falls on the Brazilian side. After the visit he dropped us off for lunch at …
This classic beef dish was invented by a chef working for a Russian general, Count Pavel Stroganov, in the 1890s. Apparently, Count Stroganoff, was also not just a diplomat but also a scion of a wealthy family that owned vast tracts of land and salt refineries in the Urals and later led the conquest of Siberia. It was Count Stroganoff who popularized the family dish in the rest of Europe. The dish is basically tender strips of beef and mushrooms cooked in a sour cream sauce and served over noodles, rice, or even French fries.
When we were in St Petersburg in 2005, we ate the dish in a restaurant right opposite the home of Count Stroganoff!
INGREDIENTS
Serves 2
“Wine substitute” :
DIRECTIONS
Slice beef into strips of 1.5 cm wide by 5 cm long. Its not necessary to wash the meat if you buy it packed from the supermarket but if you prefer to do so, wash then squeeze away the water and place in colander while preparing the other ingredients.
Peel onion and cut into 2 lengthwise then slice 1/2 cm thick across. Drain mushrooms, rinse and slice lengthwise. Prepare the “white wine” substitute by mixing everything in a small bowl and put aside.
In a shallow pan, melt 3/4 of the butter over medium heat – careful not to let the butter overheat and burn. Add the sliced onions and allow it to gently soften, turning it around until it turns a golden brown.
Remove from pan, turn the heat up a bit and add a few pieces of meat at a time to brown them.
When the last portion of meat is brown, return all the meat to the pan, add the onions, the “wine substitute” and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, lower the heat and let it simmer, stirring occasionally.
While that is cooking, heat a smaller pan and melt the rest of the butter. When hot, add the sliced mushrooms and fry them well on medium heat until all the water is gone. (Careful – the mushrooms will jump about if its too hot!)
Add the cooked mushrooms to the meat and let it simmer on medium heat until the meat is tender. Test by cutting a piece and trying it out.
When the meat is cooked, stir in the sour cream and nutmeg, let it just heat through and remove from heat.
Serve hot.
