Chicken and Puy lentil salad with coriander

Ingredients

• 2 large or 4 small chicken breasts, skinned
• 1 tbsp whole coriander seeds, toasted and ground
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed or grated
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lemon, juice only
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 225g/8oz Puy lentils
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (stalks and leaves)
• 100g/4oz mixed salad leaves, such as rocket, baby beetroot, baby spinach and frisée
• 100g/4oz feta cheese, crumbled
• dash balsamic vinegar

Preparation method

1. Using a sharp knife, make a few long shallow incisions on both sides of the chicken breasts.
2. Place the chicken in a bowl and add the ground coriander, garlic, a pinch of black pepper, two tablespoons of lemon juice and two tablespoons of the olive oil. Mix the marinade with the chicken in a bowl, making sure all the meat is evenly coated in the marinade. Allow to sit for about 30 minutes (or one hour if you have the time).
3. Preheat the oven to 230C/450F/Gas 8.
4. When the oven is hot, spread the chicken out on a baking tray and cook it for 15-30 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken breasts. To ensure the chicken is cooked through, cut into the breast with a knife. Once cooked, take the chicken out of the oven and allow it to rest for a couple of minutes.
5. Meanwhile, place the still-warm lentils in a saucepan, cover with water and boil for about 20 minutes, until cooked through.
6. When cooked, drain the lentils then dress them with the remaining olive oil, lemon juice and chopped coriander, and season with salt and pepper.
7. To serve, slice the chicken thinly and toss with the lentils (they can be still warm) and the mixed salad leaves. Place on plates or in a large bowl and sprinkle with the crumbled feta and a small drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

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Spicy chicken thighs with cucumber and cashew salad

This hot chicken and cool noodle salad combines bright lime and chilli flavours to spice up a summer lunch.

Ingredients

For the spicy chicken thighs

• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled, crushed
• 2 large red chillies, finely chopped
• 2 tsp sugar
• 8 chicken thighs, bone and skin removed
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

For the cucumber and cashew salad

• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 3 tbsp caster sugar
• 200g/7oz vermicelli rice noodles
• 2 cucumbers, halved and thinly sliced
• small handful fresh mint leaves
• 4 spring onions, sliced finely
• 2 tbsp cashews, crushed

Preparation method

1. For the spicy chicken thighs, whisk the fish sauce, pepper, garlic, chillies and sugar together in a bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, pour half the marinade over the chicken thighs. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Reserve the rest of the marinade.
3. For cucumber and cashew salad, make a dressing by adding the lime juice and sugar to the reserved marinade, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
4. In a heat-proof bowl, cover the vermicelli with boiling water and leave for a minute or so until the noodles have softened.
5. Drain and rinse the noodles under cold water. Mix the drained noodles in a large bowl with the cucumber, mint, spring onions, cashews and the dressing until well combined.
6. Remove the chicken thighs from the marinade, shaking off any excess. Fry the chicken thighs in the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. (You may have to do this in batches.)
7. To serve, divide the cucumber and cashew salad among four plates, slice the chicken and place alongside

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Vietnamese-style chicken salad

Try this step-by-step recipe for a tasty and low fat chicken salad.

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 1 x 1.5-2kg/3lb 5oz-4lb 6oz chicken
• 1 onion, quartered
• 2 kaffir lime leaves or bay leaves
• 2 stalks lemongrass

For the salad

• 1 cucumber, peeled and seeded, then cut into long strips
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• 3 stalks celery, cut into long fine strips
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into long fine strips
• ¼ crisp white cabbage, thinly shredded
• a large handful fresh whole coriander leaves
• a large handful fresh whole mint leaves
• 4-6 whole lettuce leaves, such as Little Gem, Cos or Webb's Wonder
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the lime and chilli dressing

• 1 garlic clove
• 1 small red chilli
• 3 tbsp caster sugar
• 2 limes
• 3 tbsp fish sauce

Preparation method

1. Put the chicken into a large deep pan or stockpot with the onion and kaffir lime leaves or bay leaves.
2. Bruise the lemongrass stalks with the back of a knife and add to the pot.
3. Turn the heat on under the pan, add water to cover, then bring gently up to the boil.
4. Cover and simmer very gently for about 45 minutes to one hour, then leave to cool in the liquid.
5. Once cool, take the chicken out, discard the skin, pull the flesh off the bones and tear into bite-sized pieces. Place in a bowl and set aside. (Strain and save the poaching liquid and use it as stock for another dish.)
6. To make the salad, put the cucumber into a clean bowl with the teaspoon of salt. Mix well and set aside for ten minutes.
7. Meanwhile, place the sesame seeds into a small frying pan over a moderate heat (don't add oil) and dry-fry until they turn a shade darker, then take them off the heat and transfer immediately to a cool plate to prevent further cooking.
8. Once the cucumber has been salting for ten minutes, use your hands to squeeze out any excess liquid from the cucumber. Discard the liquid and transfer the cucumber to a large bowl.
9. Add the celery, carrots and cabbage to the cucumber along with the chicken and most of the sesame seeds, reserving a few for garnish.
10. For the dressing, peel and roughly chop the garlic then place in a mortar and pestle.
11. Deseed and roughly chop the chilli and add to the mortar and pestle.
12. Add half of the sugar to the mortar and pestle and pound the garlic and chilli to a rough paste. Add the rest of the sugar and pound again.
13. Juice the limes and add to the paste, then add the fish sauce and a splash of cold water and mix together. Taste and adjust the flavours if necessary.
14. Toss the salad with enough of the dressing to give a lively flavour, starting with about two-thirds of the dressing and adding more if necessary. Add half the mint and coriander leaves and mix thoroughly.
15. Line a serving plate with the lettuce leaves. Pile the salad onto the lettuce, then top with the remaining coriander and mint and reserved sesame seeds. Serve swiftly.

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Parsnip recipes

A sweetly flavoured root vegetable native to Britain, parsnips resemble a bulky, beige carrot. They’re usually treated in much the same way as the potato: roasted, mashed, or made into chips or crisps.

Buyer's guide

Parsnips are in season from October to March, but are usually reckoned to be best after the first frost. For the best flavour, look for parsnips about the size of a large carrot, with firm, unblemished flesh. If the leaves are still attached to the tops, they should still be green and fresh.

Storage

Parsnips should keep in the salad crisper of the fridge for up to a fortnight. To freeze, dice the parsnips (there’s no need to peel and core them unless they are old and woody), blanch, cool and then pack into a container.

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Chocolate recipes

Chocolate is made by roasting and grinding up cocoa beans to yield chocolate 'liquor'. This comprises around 50 per cent cocoa solids and 50 per cent cocoa butter (the fat from the beans). In the labelling of chocolate the cocoa solids generally include the cocoa butter - it's basically all the bits of the chocolate that are from the cocoa pod rather than the later additives such as sugar, milk, lecithin, vanilla, etc.

Recipes using chocolate

Buyer's guide

A huge range of eating and cooking chocolate is available in supermarkets and specialist shops, including chocolate made from organically grown ingredients and coming from Fairtrade sources. The difference between all the various brands depends on the type of cocoa beans used, the proportion of cocoa solids and cocoa butter, the sugar content and the flavourings. Producers of chocolate must meet certain minimum requirements before they can use the names prescribed by law for chocolate and its different types, such as milk chocolate. When buying chocolate, read the list of ingredients. Look at the percentage of cocoa solids and sugar, as this indicates the quality and taste of the chocolate. The higher the cocoa content, the less sugar it contains and the more 'chocolatey' it's going to be.

Seek out quality chocolate - the results will shine through. High-quality chocolate will make a distinctive, crisp, snap when broken, shattering cleanly. It should also start to melt when you hold it in your hand for a few seconds - the quicker the better, as this indicates a high cocoa butter content. (Cocoa butter has a melting point of 37C/99F, just below human body temperature, which is one of the factors that gives chocolate its enduring appeal.) In less expensive chocolate, vegetable oils and shortening have been substituted for the cocoa butter, and may even have been through the process of hydrogenation to lower these fats' melting point and reproduce cocoa butter's essential characteristic.

Legally, all chocolate can contain up to 5% vegetable fat and this must be one or more of the six types of vegetable fat specified by the European regulations.

Storage

Store chocolate tightly wrapped in its original packaging or in cling film in a cool, dry place. Properly stored, plain chocolate will keep for a year; milk and white chocolate will keep for about six months (it will still taste okay after this time, but will not melt as well if kept any longer). If stored at warmer temperatures, chocolate can develop a 'bloom' - a white, filmy residue. This 'bloom' may well be 'cocoa butter bloom', which indicates that the chocolate wasn't tempered correctly, or that it has got too warm and then cooled down again, allowing some of the cocoa butter in the chocolate to separate from the cocoa solids, rise to the surface and re-crystallise. This doesn't always affect the flavour of the chocolate, but should be seen as a warning that it hasn't been stored in ideal conditions. Tempering the chocolate again to realign its crystalline structure can rectify the bloom.

There is a second type of 'bloom', referred to as a 'sugar bloom', which is caused by moisture settling on the surface of the chocolate: this can happen when the bar is stored in a damp atmosphere. Any moisture that comes into contact with chocolate draws up the sugar crystals to the surface; the sugar then dissolves in the water and later re-crystallises on the surface, destroying the texture of the chocolate. The whole appearance and texture of the chocolate will be grey and gritty, and sadly the only place for the bar is the bin. For this reason, take care when storing chocolate in the fridge; it's best kept in an airtight container.

Preparation

Chocolate is used in a wide spectrum of dishes. Cocoa powder provides a concentrated chocolate flavour in cakes, biscuits and icing. Block chocolate is used in richer cakes, chocolate mousses, tarts, cheesecakes, sauces and ice cream. The epitome of chocolate for most chocolate lovers is the indulgent chocolate cake. There are hundreds of chocolate cake recipes and variations, including the classic Black Forest gâteau, the Austrian truffle cake Sachertorte, chocolate fudge cake and chocolate brownies.

A high-quality chocolate with 70 per cent (or more) cocoa solids, with its deep cherry tones, almost liqueur-like tangs and bitter sweetness, can be used with meat dishes to complement rich meats in much the same way as red wine does. Several Spanish Catalan dishes are flavoured with chocolate; Mexico has its mole (a chilli and chocolate sauce that's the basis of several meat dishes); in Italy chocolate is paired with boar and hare - it goes particularly well with game.

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Chickpea recipes

Recipes using chickpea

Chickpeas are a small legume popular in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Indian cookery. They are usually sold pre-cooked in cans, or dried; the latter must be soaked before cooking. Chickpea, besan or ‘gram’ flour, made from dried ground chickpeas, is widely used in Indian and Bangladeshi cuisine.

If buying dried chickpeas, look for firm examples with a uniform beige colour. Choose canned chickpeas stored in water, rather than brine.

Storage

Dried chickpeas can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to one year without deterioration. Cooked chickpeas can be frozen.

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Baingan Bharta

Kalchina Vankaya Masala.

Eggplant is fire roasted till its cooked and charred from outside. Tomatoes and onion are cooked in tempered oil till mushy. Roasted eggplant is then cooked in it along with spices. Baingan bharta can be served with steamed rice or with any flatbread.
Makes: around 4 Servings of Baingan Bharta.

Ingredients:

Eggplant 1 Large
Onion 1 Large
Tomato 3 Medium
Green Peas (Fresh or Frozen) 2 Tbsps
Ginger 1 inch Piece
Garlic 2 Cloves
Green Chiles 3 – 5
Red Chili Powder 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder 1 tbsp
Cumin Powder 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder 1/4 tsp
Cumin Seeds 1/2 tsp
Cilantro Few Springs
Salt to taste
Oil 1 Tbsp

Method of preparation:

Wash and pat dry eggplant.
Place the eggplant directly on the flame turning occasionally until the skin is completely charred on all sides.
Cool the cooked eggplant and remove the charred skin with the help of wet hands.
Remove stem and lightly mash the roasted eggplant.

Remove stems, wash and slice the green chiles.
Peel and finely chop the onion.
Peel, wash and grate the ginger.
Peel and grate the garlic.
Wash and finely chop the cilantro.

Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and fry till it splutters.
Add chopped onion and fry till it turns light brown.
Stir in sliced green chiles, grated ginger, garlic and salt.

Fry for few more minutes, stir in chopped tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes becomes mushy.
Once the tomatoes comes together, stir in cumin powder, coriander powder, red chili powder and turmeric powder.

Fry for a minute, stir in mashed up eggplant, peas and cook covered on low flame for few more minutes.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve baingan bharta with steamed rice.
Notes: Alternatively, eggplant can be microwaved for around ten minutes or cook in oven at 400 F for around 40 minutes.

Suggestions: Make sure to cook the tomato mixture down before adding the eggplant.
Variations: You can also add few pinches of garam masala during the last stage of cooking process.
Other Names: Baingan Bharta, Baingan Bhurta, Baingan Bhartha.

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Fried Eggplant

Begun Bhaja.

Begun bhaja is a famous Bengali dish made with eggplants. Eggplants are thickly sliced and coated with spices. The eggplant slices are then either deep fried or shallow fried till cooked. Begun bhaja is typically served with steamed rice or dal.
Makes: 5 Slices of Fried Eggplant.

Ingredients:

Italian or American / Globe Eggplant 1
Turmeric Powder 1/2 tsp
Red Chili Powder 1/2 tsp (optional)
Salt to taste
Mustard Oil 1 tbsp

Method of preparation:

Wash, remove ends and chop the eggplant into quarter inch thick slices.

Mix together turmeric powder, red chili powder (if using), salt and spread it on a plate.
Dip each eggplant slice into the powder and rub it on each side.

Heat oil in a flat pan on medium heat, carefully arrange the eggplant slices.
When one side of the egglant slices turn brown, slowly turn on other side.
Let the other side turn brown before removing from heat.
Serve fried eggplant with steamed rice or with dal.
Notes: Make sure to cook the eggplant well.

Suggestions: Make sure to chop the eggplant into thick slices. If eggplant is not cooked properly, cook them covered on low flame for couple of minutes before frying.
Variations: Also use black pepper powder in place of red chili powder. Green chile can also be placed on pan along with eggplant slices for some spice. Rice flour or corn flour can be added to the rub for a crunchier version.
Other Names: Begun bhaja, Fried eggplant, Begoon Bhaja.

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