Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Garlic

I make no secret that I am a fan of Nigella and her no fuss way of cooking.  When I had a chicken in the fridge and wanted to try something different that required very little effort, I gave my spin on her slow roasted garlic and lemon chicken a go.

It really does take a matter of minutes to prepare, and then you let the oven do the rest of the work.   The intense lemon flavour is amazing although try to use unwaxed lemons so the flavour isn't too tart.  

You may want to serve it with some mashed potatoes or kumara to soak up all those lovely juices although I simply served it with a beautiful green leafy salad, using the juices as a dressing.
 
If you don't have a whole chicken, then simply use chicken pieces.

Ingredients
1 x whole chicken cut into 10 pieces
Unpeeled garlic cloves from 1 large head of garlic
2 lemons roughly cut
Some fresh thyme
Enough Olive Oil to coat

1/2 - 2/3 cup of white wine (extras you can drink while you wait)    
Black pepper 

Method 
Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Place the first 5 ingredients into a roasted dish and toss until the chicken is nicely coated.  Sprinkle over the white wine followed by the black pepper, then cover tightly with foil and place into the oven for approximately 2 hours.

Remove the foil, increase the heat to 200°C and cook uncovered for a further 20-30 minutes.  Keep an eye on the chicken at this stage as the smaller pieces of chicken can dry out.

Serve and devour!

Happy living peeps!

 

Smokey Bacon Wrapped Chicken

If you want a simple dish that will wow your guests, then this is for you.  With only 4 ingredients, it takes a short moment to put together before placing in the oven.

I think the smoked paprika brings out the bacon, but if you don't have it, then simply leave it out.  If you want to go all out, you can stuff the chicken breast but I like this recipe just like this.

Ingredients
4 medium boneless, skinless chicken breast
8 slices of streaky bacon
2 teaspoons of smoked paprika
Freshly ground pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 180c.

Season the chicken with the paprika and pepper then carefully wrap each breast with 2 slices of bacon.  You may need to secure it with a toothpick if necessary.

Place on a deep, lined baking tray and bake for 45-60 mins depending on the thickness of the rolls.

Chicken is done when the juices run clear.

Servces 4

Happy living peeps!

Orange & Fennel Pulled Pork

I made this a little while ago and it really is so easy to make.  It melts in your mouth and jam packed with flavour.  It is a perfect dish to prepare the night before, place into the crockpot the next morning and it's all ready to devour that night -  not to mention the aroma that fills the house while it's cooking. 

If you don't have a blender, then don't worry.  Simply chop everything up and throw it all together.  As long as the flavours get into the pork that's all that matters.

Ingredients
1.5 - 2 kg pork shoulder
2 tablespoons of fennel seeds
2 cups of fresh orange juice
1 red chilli - deseeded
2 cloves of garlic
1 knobs of ginger
Sea salt & cracked pepper

Method
Blend all the ingredients (except the pork) in a blender until everything is smooth.

Remove any skin from the pork and pierce as many times as possible.  Place the pork into an oven dish OR crockpot and add the marinade making sure all those wonderful flavours get into the pork.

Cover and cook on 140 c for 6-8 hours until the pork begins to pull apart nicely. Alternatively you can place on low on the crockpot for 8 hours.

In the same dish, pull the meat apart with two forks then cover and leave warm until ready to serve.

Serves 8-10 people

Happy living peeps!!

Chicken With White Wine & Bacon

Nigella has to be one of my favourite cooks, mainly because she's all about the flavour and less about the fancy stuff.  My thoughts are, just get it done so you can sit down and enjoy the food with great company.

This is a prime example of one of her recipes that just so happened to pop up on my instagram feed.  I looked it up online and it had 4 ingredients.  Simple so based on all the great feedback I immediately thought I have got to try this.  

As always, I didn't quite have what she asked in her recipe so I had to improvise.  Her recipe calls for chicken schnitzel, which is simply chicken breasts flattened but I much prefer the boneless thigh because it has so much more flavour.  I also didn't have any garlic infused olive oil so my recipe has 5 ingredients as opposed to her 4.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic - thinly sliced
4 rashes of streaky bacon - thinly sliced
4 boneless chicken thighs
100 mlx of white wine

Method
Add the olive oil to a pan then throw in your sliced bacon and garlic.  Cook until the bacon is nice and crisp, then take out of the pan and set aside leaving as much of the pan juices in the pan.

Making sure the pan is hot, throw in your chicken thighs and cook until the juices run clear.  Make sure you turn so that both sides are nice and golden.  Take the chicken out of the pan and place on a serving platter.

Place the pan back on the heat and add the wine and bacon making sure to deglaze the pan with all the goodness from the bottom of the pan.  Pour everything over the the chicken and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Happy loving peeps!

Butterflied Spiced Lamb

If you are a person who knows what flavours you like and tend to throw a dish together with those flavours regardless of the quantities, then you can definitely relate to this recipe.  

I had a butterflied lamb in the fridge and wanted to cook it with lots of beautiful herbs and spices so I started with some cumin seeds and went from there.  The end result was wonderful and devoured by my family in a matter of minutes.

It's a fairly organic recipe so feel free to adjust the quantities to suit your taste buds, or replace the herbs like thyme with rosemary.   This would also be great done on the BBQ!

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp cumin seeds (or you can used ground)
2 tsp coriander seeds (or you can used ground)
1 tsp chilli flakes
3 garlic cloves - crushed
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
handful of italian parsley - chopped

handful of fresh mint - chopped

juice of 1 lemon 

1 tsp of cracked pepper

1 tsp of sea salt1 x 2kg leg of lamb, butterflied

Method

In a bowl, mix all ingredients together (except the lamb) until well combined.

Pierce the lamb as many times as possible with a knife.

Placed the lamb and marinade in a flat dish OR plastic sealable bag.  Marinade in the fridge for as long as possible - overnight is good.  Before cooking, ensure you bring the lamb to room temperature - this should take about 30 minutes on a summers day.

Place everything in a lined oven dish and bake at 200°C for 30-45 mins or until middle is lovely and pink. Let the lamb rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.

Serve with some greek yoghurt, a leafy salad of your choice and devour!

Serves 4-6 people 

Happy living peeps!

Winter Beef Stew

There's nothing like a beautiful hearty stew on a cold winters day to warm the cockles of your heart.  I made this recipe a few weeks back when we were experiencing some beautiful frosty mornings and chilly days.

It's packed full of flavour and really easy to make and it's very healthy for you!!!  I served this on cauliflower rice, but a nice potato or kumara mash to mop up those delicious juices is just as good.

Ingredients
600 gms of stewing beef, curt into cubes
2 cloves of garlic, bashed
2 carrots, chopped roughly
500 mls of read wine
1 cup of coconut water (or plain water)
1 cup of passata
3 stalks of thyme
1 large stalk of rosemary
200 gms of mushrooms, chopped big
2 tablspoons of arrowroot mixed with 1/2 cup of the wine
2 tablspoons of butter
Salt & Pepper

Method
Throw everything into a crockpot and mix thoroughly.

Put on low for 6-8 hours.

Serve on CAULIFLOWER RICE.

Serves 4

Happy living peeps!

Making My Own Bacon

Years ago, before the food channel was around, I watched a travel programme where the presenter was in Italy and was being shown the italian way of curing meats such as bacon, salami, prosciutto and pancetta.  They even cured a whole leg of lamb.  I was so intrigued with the programme that I knew I would experiment with the techniques one day.

First off the ranks is bacon.  As per normal I did some research on what's the best cut of pork to use, different flavourings and whether to cold smoke the bacon or not.

I decided to go with a nice simple technique first and go from there.  I apologise that the instructions aren't very precise, but I was doing this off the cuff and at the end of the day, that's what food is all about.  Giving something a go with flavours you think you will like.

Ingredients
1 kg of pork belly - whole and without the bone.
Equal parts of sea salt and brown sugar

Method
In an airtight container, place the salt and sugar and mix well.

Get a large airtight container, big enough to lay the pork belly flat.

Sprinkle a handful of the salt mixture on the bottom of the container, then lay the pork belly on top.  Sprinkle another handful of the salt mixture on the top of the pork belly.  Place the lit on the container and store in the fridge for 24 hours.  Repeat this process for 5 days.

Once you have completed the first 5 days,  leave the bacon covered in the fridge for a further 5 days to cure.

On the 11th day, take the bacon out and wash it under running cold water completely.  Pat dry.  At this point you can slice thinly and start to enjoy your bacon which is what I did.

OR you can enter the realm of cold smoking the bacon.  I haven't tried this method yet, but that's definitely on my radar.

Happy learning peeps!

Honey Mustard Chicken

This dish is finger licking good!!  It is so simple to make and I guarantee you'll be wanting seconds. 

If you don't have coconut water, simply replace with water, or you can add some liquid chicken stock. 

If you don't want to use a whole split chicken, you can use about 8 chicken thighs, or pieces, but please ensure to leave the skin on and the bone in.  This ensures the meat is tender and juicy.  Remember to check the time if using chicken pieces as they will cook faster in the oven. 

This takes 35-40 mins to cook and about 5 mins to devour.  Enjoy!!!
 

Ingredients

 

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

3 tablespoon whole grain mustard

3 tablespoons liquid honey

2 tablespoons coconut water

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 sprigs rosemary

1 whole chicken, split and flattened

 

Method

 

Preheat the oven to 180°C

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients except the rosemary and give it a good whisk with a fork.  Taste to see if you need more honey, mustard or coconut water to ensure you get it tasting just how you want it.

 

Heat a little extra olive oil in a large oven-proof pan over medium to high heat. Add chicken, skin-side down, and sear both sides until nice and brown.  Add the mustard mixture and then top with rosemary.

 

Place into the oven and roast for approxmately 35-40 minutes or until the juices run clear, basting once during the cooking process.

Serves 4-6.

Five Spice & Ginger Lamb Shanks

These flavours are amazing!  I can assure you that you’ll be more than happy with your efforts if you serve these shanks up for dinner.

Serve them with lots of mash or rice to mop up all the lovely juices, or for a low carb version serve with some nice greens or a salad.

If lamb shanks aren't in your budget, this works just as well with beef shins or any lower grade cut of beef or lamb.  Simply make sure you allow enough time to let the meat cook so it's lovely and tender.

INGREDIENTS

2 tsp five spice powder

1 tsp dried chilli powder
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup Chinese rice wine
2 tblspn tamarind concentrate
2 tblspn brown sugar
8 cm piece fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 ¼ cup water
8 lamb shanks


METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C

Place the shanks in a single layer in a large shallow baking dish.

Dry fry the five spice, chilli, cinnamon and star anise in a small frying pan, stirring until fragrant.  Add the remaining ingredients and pour over the shanks ensuring the shanks are covered well by the marinade.

Bake, covered turning occasionally for 2 hours.  Remove shanks from the dish, cover and keep warm.  Skim away the excess fat then strain sauce into a small saucepan.

Bring sauce to a boil and serve over the shanks.

Serves 4.

Happy living people!!