katskuisine-blog

[katskuisine-blog]

Beginner’s cookbook

Being passionate about food from an early age means that I have spent hours and hours pouring over cookery books, finding recipes and dreaming up menus. Recently I have had a number of friends asking for recipes of dishes I have put together. When you have been cooking for a number of years you get to the point that you have staple dishes that you cook, simple, mid-week cooking, but at the same time not sacrificing on flavour. 

I am going to publish a recipe every week with a simple yet delicious dish that anyone can cook.  The ideas behind the recipes are to be accessible to beginners, so they can build up their library.  Some of the dishes I will share are classic and simple, but often you do not find in cookery books.  

The recipes are for 2 people, but you can always increase them if your are cooking for more. I will also keep measurements as easy as possible, not many people weigh out ingredients. 

Prawn linguine 

The dish above was cooked by my lovely friend Melissa and was the reason I started this blog again. Prawn linguine was something I started to cook at university. Over the years I have found numerous recipes for this, Jamie Oliver has a beautiful more complex recipe in his Comfort Food book. However, the recipe I have put together can be done in 30 minutes, from preparation to the plate. 

Ingredients 

Glug of olive oil 

175g king prawns - cooked or uncooked - small pack 

1 red chilli - or to taste

3 cloves garlic 

3 banana shallots - or 1 red onion

1 lemon

100g linguine - approximately 

10 cherry or plum tomatoes 

3 tablespoons half-fat creme fraiche 

Handful of parsley 

Handful of rocket 

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Chilli/garlic oil (optional) 

Equipment

1 meduim sauce pan

1 frying pan

Chopping board

Knife

Spatula 

Bowl 

Spoon 

Method

Boil the kettle for the pasta. While the kettle is boiling put the linguine and a generous pinch of salt in a medium sauce pan. 

Chop the garlic, chilli, shallot/onion as finely as you are able. I personally like spicy food so do not deseed my chillies, if you aren't a fan deseed and include half a chilli.  Tip: When dicing an onion I skin it, cut it in half but leave the root on, slice vertically from the root, and then holding the onion together slice horizontally. 

Place a frying pan on the heat and add a glug of oil. 

Pour the boiling water on the pasta and put onto a high heat - when you pour the water on the pasta this will soften it and you will then be able to fold it all into the pan. Stir regularly and cook to instructions - serve ideally al dente - which means with a bit of bite, or literally “to the tooth”!

Your frying pan will now be heated and ready to add the garlic, chilli and shallot/onion.  Stir frequently cook for 4 minutes. 

Meanwhile, half or quarter the tomatoes and finely chop the parsley. 

Wash the prawns and drain. 

When the pasta is half-way-through cooking add the tomatoes, parsley and prawns to the frying pan. 

Juice the lemon and in a bowl combine the lemon juice, creme fraiche, sprinkle of salt and lots of black pepper - Tip: the reason for combining this in a bowl is it stops the lemon juice splitting the creme fraiche in the pan. 

Turn down the heat of the frying pan to low and add the lemon and creme fraiche sauce.

If you are using raw prawns they cook quickly and turn pink when they are cooked.

Test to see the pasta is cooked. Take a laddle of the starchy pasta water and add to the frying pan - Tip: You can do this with any pasta dish, the starch will thicken sauces. Drain the pasta and add to the frying pan and stir. 

Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning if necessary. 

Serve  by adding a handful of rocket on the top and a drizzle of chill/garlic oil (optional). 

I hope you enjoy the first recipe. 

[katskuisine-blog]

My road to Gin discovery

I have been a gin enthustist for a number of years now.  My road of discovery started like most gin drinkers.  I started with good old Gordon’s, then progressed to Bombay Sapphire.  I was introduced to Hendricks by a family member and we have been in a loyal relationship for the last four years.  

However, as with some long term relationships, I have been feeling for sometime that there are new and attractive alternatives out there, and maybe, just maybe it is time for a change.  This is something that I have considered for some time and not something that I have rushed into.  And in the spirit of discovery I teamed up with a fellow gin enthusiast for an evening of gin tasting.

I thought I knew my gin; but after speaking to Cheryl, my fellow gin lover, I realised I had merely touched the tip of the aromatic iceberg .   This woman takes the love of gin to the next level.  To date, she is the only person I know that has a table gin, which is of higher quality than most people drink .  I knew that there was no better equipped side kick to embark on this evening of frivolity and discovery.  

So the research began. There were some big questions to answer:

1. Which varieties of gin would make the shortlist.

2. Accompaniments.

3. The tonic.  

Now the last was the easiest to answer, with Fever-Tree’s Naturally Light Tonic being the obvious choice.  

The first question, I took guidance from my host who over the years has collected an impressive assortment of high quality gin.  

The accompaniments took some research; however, we compiled to final list, ensuring that the accompaniments complimented the flavours and characteristics of the individual products.  

As with any journey, the anticipation is hugely important.  With this in mind, we wanted to start simple and build up to a crescendo of flavour and enlightenment.  

And so here is the list:

1. Bulldog served with Fever-Tree Tonic and Lime.

2. Special Edition Bombay Sapphire with Fever-Tree Tonic and Lemon.

3. Hendricks with Fever-Tree Tonic and Cucumber.

4. Adnams with Fever-Tree Tonic and Grapefruit.

5. Gin Mare with Fever-Tree Tonic, Mango and cracked Black Pepper.

We discovered that the accompaniments was a whole topic on its own.  I have always been a firm believer that if you put anything in a glass of Hendricks that isn’t cucumber, then you are committing a sacrilege act.   

The vast majority of us gin drinkers, would pair the refreshment with lime and for some lemon.  From our reading, we found that out of the two that lemon is better suited, as according to some it marries with the lemon peel essence in the spirit.  

According to drinks scientist Stuart Bale, from his extensive research the most complimentary pairing is mango.  This was a bit of a surprise, I have come across Tanqueray and grapefruit, and up until this evening the most adventurous I had been was Old Tom Gin with rosemary and fig.  

What we discovered after our thorough and relentless investigation was that every single one of them tasted amazing.  I myself preferred the pairing of Adnams and grapefruit as I am a fan of sharp, bitter flavours.  However, the Gin Mare accompanied with mango and black pepper was also extremely enjoyable for the sweeter tooth’s out there.  

I think the most enjoyable part, apart from the great company and the singing towards the end of the night, was discovering the array of truly delicious, aromatic delights that you can create with Gin.  It is one spirit that I do not think I could ever get bored of.  With this is mind, I am now going to order a bottle of the winner of the evening, Adnams and in the meantime pour myself a glass of the old favourite Hendricks to quench my thirst until it is delivered.  

I can only recommend to all of my fellow gin lovers, put the Gordon’s down and embark on a road of discovery to the endless possibilities of gin.  

And with that last pearl of wisdom, it’s Gin o’clock!