Nose Bear

Jiaozi Steamed Dumpling Army

Orange and Ginger Chicken

A sweet, delicately spiced dish, with the various reddish colours of the carrots, oranges and tomato purée combining well to create an aesthetic meal.  Recommended for anyone who enjoys sweet and savoury dishes such as sweet and sour pork. 

• 350g chicken, sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 175g carrots, matchsticked
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp ginger root, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 4 tbsp rice wine
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar
• 100ml orange juice
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1 orange, peeled and quartered

Stir fry the onion, carrots and garlic for 3 minutes and then add the chicken, ginger root and ground ginger. Stir fry for 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.

Mix the rice wine, tomato puree, sugar, orange juice and cornflour in a bowl and add to the wok. Heat until it simmers and then add the orange segments. Immediately remove from the heat and serve.

Moroccan Style Kofta

The secret to this dish is the spicing in the meat and the use of cinnamon in the sauce.  Cumin and cinnamon are widely used in Moroccan cuisine and is what makes this dish truly delicious. 

Kofta;

• 400g beef mince
• 1 egg
• 2 slices of bread, crumbed
• 1 chilli, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 onion, very finely chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp salt

Sauce

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 chilli, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp curry powder
• pinch of salt
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato sauce

Mix together all the kofta ingredients with your hands and form into small balls.  Leave to settle in the fridge for 30 minutes. Fry them off in a little oil until browned and cooked through. Place to one side.

Fry the onion off in a pan until it begins to yellow and add the garlic and chilli. Stir fry for 30 seconds and add the spices and the salt. Mix to combine well and fry for 30 seconds. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato sauce and bring to the boil. Add the kofta back in and heat until they are cooked through. Serve with rice.

Sweet and Sticky Salmon with Leeks

A beautiful marinade that doesn’t overpower the flavour of the salmon.  If you want more of a substantial meal, double the marinade and serve with rice, ensuring that the marinade has been sufficiently heated through to remove any bacteria that might be present.

• 400g salmon, sliced
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp tomato sauce
• 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar 
• 500g leeks, thinly sliced

Mix together the garlic, soy sauce, tomato sauce, rice wine vinegar and sugar. Place the sliced salmon into a dish and coat with the marinade. Leave in the fridge for 45 minutes or overnight.

Heat some oil in a wok and stir fry the leeks for about 10 minutes. Remove them and place to one side. Add some more oil and stir fry the salmon and marinade for 2 minutes. Place on top of the leeks and serve.

Steamed Cabbage Buns

A kind of Chinese themed version of the Greek dolma, these cabbage buns are full of flavour. Best enjoyed with a soy sauce, garlic and chilli dipping sauce to add a little extra bite to the rolls.

• 8 cabbage leaves
• 400g minced pork
• handful of pre boiled rice
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Boil a large saucepan of water and add the cabbage leaves. Blanch them for around a minute and a half, take them out and leave to dry. Mix the pork, rice, cornflour, chilli powder and the egg together. Divide into 8 parts and add one part to each of the cabbage leaves.  Wrap the cabbage leaves around the pork and place seam side down in a steamer.

Cook in a steamer for 10 minutes and serve with dipping sauce.

Mushroom Burgers

A delicious vegetarian take on the classic burger. The mushrooms are high in protein and have a nice crispy taste when cooked this way.  Sometimes there is a problem with the burgers falling apart.  This is usually caused by having too large chunks of mushroom or not heating the oil enough before adding the burgers.

• 445g mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 1 large onion, very finely chopped
• 2 slices of bread, crumbed
• 2 tbsp of oyster sauce
• 1 egg
• salt

Cook the mushrooms and onion for about 5 minutes until the liquid is released from the mushrooms.  Add the bread and the oyster sauce and cook for a further minute. Place to one side and leave to cool.

Add the egg and mix everything together. Form into burger shapes and cook in shallow oil.  It helps to pre-heat the oil in order to keep the burgers from breaking up.

Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam)

A delicious Thai dish, commonly found in street markets. Make sure the papaya is unripe and green as this is what gives it its distinctive flavour. The mix of the four main flavours of Thai cuisine; sour, sweet, hot and salty, combine to make this one of the quintessential South East Asian dishes.

• 1 garlic clove
• 2 chilli’s, sliced
• 6 green beans, ends cut off and then halved
• 1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
• 3/4 juice of a lime
• 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 1 large green papaya, matchsticked
• 1 carrot, matchsticked
• 5 cherry tomatoes
• roasted peanuts, crushed, or dried shrimp for garnish

Using a large mortar and pestle, pound the garlic to release the flavour. Add the chilli’s and gently pound. Add the green beans and bruise slightly to release the flavour. Add the sugar, fish sauce and lime juice and mix together. Add the papaya, tomatoes and carrots and pound around 15 times while mixing with a spoon to mix the flavours. Add the chosen garnish and serve.

Shakshouka

Originally a North African dish, it is now a very popular meal in Israel after being taken there by migrating Sephardi Jews. It can also be prepared with cumin or chilli’s for a hotter, more curry-like dish. Delicious served with crusty french bread to mop up the juices.

• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 red pepper, cubed
• 3 eggs
• salt and pepper

Cook the onion on a low heat for 10 minutes until they begin to soften. Turn up the heat and add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds to release the flavour and then add the red peppers. Cook for a further 5 minutes before adding the chopped tomatoes. Bring to the boil, add some seasoning and then lower to a simmer for 5 minutes. Then crack the eggs into the spots where the mixture is boiling up and leave to cook as a seal on the top. If needed you can place into the oven or under the grill just to finish off the top of the eggs. Serve with some nice buttered bread.

Tajine

Tajine is a sweet-ish curry from Northern Africa, popularised through Moroccan cuisine.  And I can see why, the meat is slow cooked so that it just falls apart in your mouth and the sweet flavours of the cinnamon, dates and prunes perfectly cut through the heat from the rest of the spices.  Traditionally many other additions can be used instead of dates and prunes such as dried apricots, preserved lemons, olives, butternut squash and even apple.

• 400g cubed beef
• 1 large onion
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 400g tin chickpeas
• 800ml vegetable stock
• prunes/dates

Cook the onion until it begins to yellow, add the garlic, stir fry for a further 30 seconds and then add the spices. Stir to combine well. Add tomatoes and chickpeas and mix it all together. Add 400ml of the stock and cook for an hour and a half. Add the other 400ml of the stock and add the prunes/dates. Cook for another hour and serve with some crusty bread.

Honey, ginger and garlic pork chops

By far one of my favourite BBQ marinades, it always goes down excellently whenever I make it, which is usually every BBQ as its that good. The salt in the fish sauce will draw out some liquid in the pork and tenderise it, allowing the rest of the flavours to enter the meat. Although there are some very strong flavours in the marinade which may smell overpowering at first, just trust in the measurements here. Once cooked the flavours mix perfectly.

• 4 large pork chops
• 3 tbsp root ginger, roughly chopped
• 4 large garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce

Place all the marinade ingredients into a food processor and blitz. Place over the meat and leave to marinate overnight. Occasionally turn the meat over and place more of the liquid on the top.

These pork chops are better grilled over high heat to help sear on the flavour and as they are tenderised by the salt, will still be succulent and tasty.