Robby Dog Cooks Recipes and stories for my wonderful Nat and our three monkeys, Oliver, TT (Tom) an

Time 2021-01-12 23:11:49

Web Name: Robby Dog Cooks Recipes and stories for my wonderful Nat and our three monkeys, Oliver, TT (Tom) an

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Beef Mince with Chilli, Basil and SnakeBeans January 11, 2021.Reading time 1 minute. Serves: 4There is something so appealing and so comfortable about Thai mince on rice, beef or pork.Fish sauce, plenty of chilli, a fried egg on top.Perfect mid-week dinner territory.I ve typed up very similar, though this one is really quite simple and the addition of the snake beans is always a neat touch.Ingredients6 cloves garlic, chopped2 bullseye chillies, sliced and deseeded4 tbsp vegetable oil plus extra for frying the eggs750gm beef mince2 tbsp fish sauce1 tbsp dark soy sauce1 tsp castor sugar2 cups Thai basil leaves1 bunch snake beans, cut into 5cm batons4 eggsSteam Jasmine rice, to serveMethodHeat a wok over a medium heat until hot and ad the oil. Add the garlic and chilli and stir-fry for about two minutes until fragrant. Add the beef and stir fry until the beef is browned and cooked through.Add the fish sauce, soy sauce and castor sugar and stir fry until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the snake beans and cook for a minute or two.Add the basil, stir through and remove from the heat.Fry four eggs in a separate pan.Serve the mince on steamed rice, topping with a fried egg.For a family picnic today, I was assigned sausage rolls.I know it s easy to love sausage rolls, though is it in reality?It s so hit and miss.The ones from petrol stations are terrible.And patisseries can sometimes nail their brief, though so often they re over the top. Too clever by half, too complicated, too much to process.Sausage rolls are about comfort and flaky, oily pastry. Not something excessively gourmet and challenging: I have a hangover, I just want a coffee and sausage roll amazing-ness.Bourke Street Bakery a bit of a Sydney institution is famous for its pies and sausage rolls. Their pork and fennel sausage roll is pretty amazing.Though it is on the gourmet end of sausage rolls. The beef bourguignon end of pies if you know what I mean.Which is why this adaptation of their sausage roll is genius!It just rolls. It nails true brief.It is what every patisserie should have on offer from 8am on Sunday morning.I d order 6. And several coffees. I really wanted to cook something special when given the sausage roll brief for today s picnic.Why?My sister in law Court (Coco, CD) and her husband Greg (Gweggy) pulled the broader family together for a post-Christmas BBQ; and a casual gender reveal. Yep, they re having baby #1.And it s a girl!Nat and I love these guys.They make us so happy. Long lunches, late autumn nights by the fire, plenty of wines, too much laughing. (Dancing with Court last year at my 40th, I was pushed fell down and limped for a week: didn t even blame her!)We are so proud of you guys. We are so happy for you. You have babysitters for life.As I ve previously said, these guys love their food though assume that during the first few weeks of babydom these sausage rolls will make an appearance at their doorstep. Plus curries, pastas and even a pork shoulder.Go nail this Team K!We love you.Ingredients1tsp fennel seeds, plus extra to sprinkle1 tbsp vegetable oil3 medium brown onions, peeled and diced4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped8 sprigs sage, picked and finely chopped3 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped5 sprigs thyme, leaves picked and finely chopped20gm unsalted butter2 tbsp caster sugar2 tbsp white wine vinegar2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced into 1/2 cm 1.5kg pork mince100gm breadcrumbs1 egg, beatenPuff pastrySea salt and freshly ground pepperMethod Toast the fennel seeds in a large frying pan over a low heat for 2 minutes until fragrant. Crush lightly in a mortar and pestle and set aside. Using the same pan, heat the vegetable oil over a low heat. Sweat the onion and garlic until lightly caramelised. Take as long as you can. This is where the flavour is! Add the toasted fennel seeds, sage, rosemary and thyme and set aside to cool. In a separate pan, melt the butter over a medium-high heat: add the apples and toss gently in the butter for a few minutes until softening. Add the sugar and cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar is lightly caramelised. Add the vinegar to deglaze the pan and set aside. Combine the mince, breadcrumbs, apples and onion mixture. Season well and mix through with your hands until well combined. Thaw your puff pastry from the freezer. You ll need around 7 8 sheets based on the quantity of pork mixture. Divide the pork mixture evening and roll your sausage rolls, with the mixture being a cylinder about 1/3 of the way down each sheet. Ensure that the seam sits under the meat. Make a few fork punctures at the top of each sausage roll. Cut the the sausage roll in half or quarters depending on what you are catering. Beat your egg and egg wash all over the pastry. Sprinkle with fennel seeds. Bake on baking trays lined with baking paper at 180c for 30 40 minutes or until golden brown. -33.813897 151.156964 Neil Perry’s Roast Whole Snapper with Fennel andOlives January 1, 2021.Reading time 4 minutes. Serves: 4This is a smashing Neil Perry dish, delivered by Nat as a late, slow lunch this past week between Christmas and NYE.Served alongside with an amazing avocado salsa (I know!), potatoes with salsa verde, broccolini sautéed with garlic and chilli and a bottle of Champagne, this was a post Christmas super-treat.So fresh, so aromatic, so Mediterranean.I have a particular affection for people that cook and serve whole fish.It says a lot about them.And it dials up any meal. It makes for a special meal.(Explains my affection for Nat.)Dive into this one Sunday lunch and you ll have smiles all around.DedicationWe re dedicating this recipe to our great friends Josh and Leesh and especially their new son. Congratulations on your new, little man Charlie:Josh is the avid fisherman and Leesh is a kitchen wizard.No couple would seem to catch or cook so many whole fish as these two. Looking forward to a long lunch and whole fish once Charlie s a little bit older.We ll bring some solid whites!Ingredients4 small whole snapper (400 500gms) or 1 large (1.5kg 2kg)1 red onion, finely sliced1 fennel bulb, finely sliced2 tbsp oregano, chopped2 tbsp thyme, chopped1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil1 red capsicum, cut in half and finely sliced1 green capsicum, cut in half and finely sliced3 vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled, deseeded and quartered2 tbsp salted baby capers, rinsed and drained6 anchovies150gm Ligurian olives (Nat used green olives)Sea salt1 cup white wine2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsleyFreshly ground pepperNeil s Avocado Salsa1 avocado, ripe though not mushy1/2 red onion, finely diced1 vine-ripened tomato, peeled, deseeded and finely diced2 spring onions, cut into rings1 red capsicum, cut in half, core removed and finely diced2 tbsp finely shredded flat leaf parsleyJuice of 1 lemonSea saltFreshly ground pepper1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil10 drops Tabasco sauceMethodPreheat the oven to 200c. Take a roasting tin and check that it fits your fish. (Use two tins if necessary.) Scatter the onion, fennel, oregano and thyme over the bottom of the tin and drizzle with half the extra virgin olive oil.Put the fish on top and cover with the capsicum, tomato, capers, anchovies and olives. Salt liberally and pour the rest of the oil and wine over. Cook smaller fish for 25 minutes or until cooked, basting every 5 minutes or a larger fish for 1 hour.Place the fish on individual plates or a platter. Spoon the sauce and vegetables over and add the parsley and pepper.Serve with a big dollop of the salsa. (Plus potatoes of some variety, a green of some variety, Champagne, white wine and plenty of cold beer!)Avocado SalsaCut the avocado in half, remove the stone and cut the flesh into a fine dice; put in a stainless steel bowl.Add the remaining ingredients, stir together, check the seasoning and enjoy. Brendan Pang’s Special Crab FriedRice January 1, 2021.Reading time 3 minutes. Serves: 4We both agreed, this is a next notch up Fried Rice.1-hat, super-subtle Chinese cooking.A definite addition to a home-cooked Chinese banquette.Clearly not your local Chinese take away fried rice.The key is the Chilli and Garlic dipping sauce. Poured on top just prior to serving, it adds a cracking zing on top of the crab and egg.Wonderful.Well done Brendan Pang!IngredientsChilli and Garlic dipping sauce1/4 cup white vinegarPinch of salt1/2 tsp superfine sugar2 Birdseye chillies, finely chopped (including seeds)1 medium clove garlic, finely choppedFried Rice4 tbsp vegetable oil6 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger2 cloves garlic, minced2 spring onions, chopped and divided4 cups cold, cooked short-grain ricePinch of ground white pepperPinch of superfine sugar3 tbsp light soy sauceSalt2 large eggs, beaten2 tbsp finely chopped preserved mustard greens (I substituted baby spinach)1 cup cooked crabmeatHandful of chopped fresh coriander, plus more for servingMethodMake the dipping sauce: in a small bowl, stir together all the sauce ingredients until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is well combined. Cover and refrigerate until needed.Make the fried rice: in a wok, heat the oil over a medium-high heat,. Add the ginger and cook, stirring for 30 seconds, followed by the garlic and one of the green onions. Stir-fry for an additional 30 seconds or until aromatic.Add the rice, increase the heat to high and toss with a spatula to combine. Use the spatula to flatten the rice and break up any clumps. Add the white pepper, sugar and light soy sauce. Toss and season with salt to taste.Using your spatula, spread out the rice into an even layer along the surface of the wok. Pour the beaten egg evenly over the rice and stir until all the egg is cooked and broken into pieces. (Nat reckons cooking the egg separately should be the way to go and I don t necessary disagree with this.)Add the preserved mustard greens and crab and toss until combined and the crab is warmed. Add the remaining green onion and coriander and toss until well combined. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce and additional coriander. Spiced Tomato Bucatini with PankoBreadcrumbs January 1, 2021.Reading time 3 minutes. Serves: 4One of the cookbooks we picked up this Christmas was Saturday Night Pasta by Elizabeth Hewson, a self-taught home cook.Her passion is clear.Flicking through around 100 pasta recipes, she provides a wonderful introduction and background to the recipe. Nat and I both sat in the kitchen eyeing each receipt off, reading the background and saying, yep, this is the one until we flipped the page and it all started over.We settled on this particular pasta and it was excellent.The subtle Indian spicing is of course completely unusual, though as Elizabeth puts it, the lesson here is don t knock it until you ve tried it. True that.Ingredients1 cinnamon stick, broken in half to release its flavour1/2 tsp garam masala2 cardamom pods, crushed1 tbsp salted butter1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil2 garlic cloves, finely chopped3 tbsp dry white wine400gm can whole peeled tomatoes (I used cherry)1/2 cup pouring cream1/2 tsp caster sugarSea salt and freshly ground black pepper1 cup panko breadcrumbsIf making fresh pasta (Half the book is given over to pasta making techniques.) Maccheroni a descita, Pici.If using dried pastaGnocchetti sardi, Bucatini.MethodHeat a deep frying pan over a medium-heat. Throw in the cinnamon, garam masala and cardamom pods and toast for 2 minutes or until fragrant. Add the butter, 1 tbsp of the olive oil, the garlic and give everything a good stir for about 30 seconds to until the garlic is soft you don t want it to burn.Pour in the white wine and watch it bubble and drink up the flavours for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cream, sprinkle over the sugar and season with salt and pepper. Give everything a big stir, then reduce the heat to low and leave to bubble away for 30 minutes, allowing the spices to imbue their flavours and the sauce to thinking.Bring a large saucepan to the boil and salt the water. Add the pasta and cook until al denote. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.Heat a small frypan over a medium heat. Add the remaining 3 tbsp of olive oil and the panko crumb and cook until golden.When everything is ready, fish out the cinnamon stock and cardamom pods and throw in the drained pasta. Stir, adding a little pasta water if necessary.Divide into bowls, shower generously with the breadcrumbs and serve. Thomas John’s Snapper with SaffronBroth December 29, 2020.Reading time 2 minutes. Serves: 4This is such a delicate, Spanish, summer-lunch: a recipe my mother shared with me.Seafood, saffron, fish stock and petite vegetables. How could you go wrong?Open a white wine. Pour the wine. Tear some crusty bread.Time is on your side.Enjoy.(And pour more wine! It s summer!)Ingredients100ml olive oil1 stalk celery, thinly sliced1 small leek (white only), thinly sliced2 shallots, thinly sliced12 black mussels, cleaned2 1/2 tbsp white wine2 cup fish stock1 tsp saffron threads4 snapper fillets, skin scored1 large tomato, peeled, seeded and diced1 potato, peeled, cubed and cooked20 asparagus spears, blanched1 bunch English spinach, stalks trimmedSea salt and pepperParsley sprigsMethodPreheat the oven to 160c.Cook the celery, leek and shallots in half the olive oil for 1 minute, increase the heat to high, add the mussels and wine and cover for 3 minutes or until the mussels open.Strain the mixture and return the liquid to the pan and reduce by 1/3.Add the stock and saffron and simmer for 5 minutes.Sauté the fish skin side down in the remaining oil for 2 minutes, turn over and cook for 1 minute and then place in the oven for 2 minutes.Add the potato and tomato to the broth and heat through and season.Add the asparagus, spinach and mussels and simmer until the spinach is just wilted.Divide the spinach and asparagus among bowls and pour over the broth.Scatter the mussels, tomato and potato around and then top with the fish and garnish with parsley. Brendan Pang’s Juicy Chicken Sheng JianBao December 29, 2020.Reading time 4 minutes. Makes: 20 DumplingsWowser, this is a cracking dumpling.One of those dumplings you would order every time you visited your favourite dumpling restaurant. (Which is something we do a lot. Hint: Fangs in Cremorne, Sydney is just awesome and fully BYO.)The recipe is from Brendan Pang s book This is a Book about Dumplings.You might remember him from Masterchef where he continued to blow the socks of the judges with his Asian cooking.Half the key is the Bao bun dough which is both pan-fried and soft from the steam.Served with coriander, soy, black vinegar and plenty of chilli and Champagne.A Christmas-break dream!Ingredients1 cup shredded (Napa) cabbage1 tsp salt350gm skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cubed1 green onion, finely chopped2 cloves garlic, minced2 tsp cornstarch1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine1 tsp sesame oil1 tsp vegetable oilPinch of superfine sugarPunch of ground white pepperVegetable oil, for fryingChopped coriander, for garnishSoy sauce, Black Vinegar and chilli to dipBao bun dough2 1/3 cups cake flour, plus more for dusting1 tsp instant yeast1 tbsp superfine sugar1/2 cup + 2 tbsp milk1 tbsp vegetable oilPinch of saltMethodIn a medium bowl, combine the (Napa) cabbage and salt and massage with your hands. Set aside for 15 minutes and then using your hands, squeeze our any excess water from the cabbage and return the cabbage to the bowl.In a food processor, process the cubed chicken until finely minced. Add the cabbage, green onion and garlic and pulse 3 or 4 times or until incorporated. Transfer to a large bowl and mix in the remaining ingredients, Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.To make the Bao bun dough, in a separate bowl, combine the cake flour, instant yeast and sugar. If you are using a stand mixer, attach the dough hook and turn on at a low speed. Slowly pour in the milk and oil. If the dough becomes a little dry, add more milk a tablespoon at a time until the dough comes together.Increase the speed to medium and knead for 5 minutes (or 10 minutes if doing by hand). Once the dough is smooth, add a pinch of salt and and knead for an additional 2 minutes or until combined and smooth again.Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and let rest for 20 minutes.To fill the dumplings, shape the dough into a 3cm thick log and cut into 20 equal portions. Roll each piece into a ball and allow to rest for 3 minutes. Flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand and then using a rolling pin, roll into a disc about 8cm in diameter. Place one heaped tbsp of filling into the centre of each dough disk.Gather up the sides and enclose the filling, pinching to seal and flipping so the seam side is at the bottom. Seal all the dumplings.Heat a large nonstick skillet with a lead over a medium-high heat and heat 1tbsp of vegetable oil. Working in batches (with fresh oil each time), add the dumplings seam side down. Press down firmly to flatten their base and cook until the base is golden brown: about 3 minutes.Add 1/2 cup hot water to the pan and cover with the lid. Cook for 5 7 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook until the liquid has cooked off and the underside of the dumplings are crisp again; add more oil if necessary.Serve with coriander plenty of side heat and Champagne. Christine Manfield’s Cauliflower PotatoCurry December 20, 2020.Reading time 2 minutes. Serves: 4I have definitely subscribed to the view that vegetarian Indian is the best Indian.This particular curry tells you why.Just so, so good.The mustard oil (don t cut this corner). The fried cauliflower. The curd.Served along a brilliant Christine Manfield Mughlai Chicken, this absolutely took the night over the line.(And for breakfast with some rice the next morning: stop it!)Ingredients4 tbsp mustard oil200gm cauliflower florets2 cloves3 green cardamom pods, cracked250gm, diced and parboiled8 curry leaves2 tsp minced ginger1 tsp ground turmeric1/2 tsp ground cinnamon1/2 tsp chilli powder1 tsp salt1 tsp caster sugar2 small ripe tomatoes, finely diced150gm curd (drained yoghurt)1/2 tsp garam masala2 tsp chopped mint leaves3 tsp chopped coriander leavesMethodHeat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the cauliflower for 2 minutes until just starting to colour. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.In the same pan, fry the cloves, cardamom, ginger and curry leaves for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the potato, tossing to combine and coat with the spices. Return the cauliflower to the pan and toss to combine. Stir through the ground spices, salt and sugar.Add 2 cups of water and bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer. Add the tomato and simmer gently for 10 minutes or until the potato is soft.Add the curd and simmer gently for another 3 minutes. Season with garam masala and garnish with mint and coriander. Alison Roman’s Caramelised ShallotPasta December 20, 2020.Reading time 4 minutes. Serves: 4No question, one of the defining themes of Covid has been food.Cooking it. Eating it. Enjoying it with half a case of wine.And repeat.During lockdown, we had the time on our hands to experiment in ways we had never done. Indeed, given we couldn t eat out, Nat and I would regularly recreate some of the most wonderful restaurant meals we had previously had.I remember one meal where Nat recreated the incredible lobster and four-cheese Macaroni and Cheese from the best steakhouse in Honolulu Mortons and wow, looking back at 1,570 calories a serve Covid really did give us cover to do things culinarily that we wouldn t otherwise do for a Monday lunch!Of course, in Australia, we have moved back to relative normality which made it interesting to read the most popular recipes cooked the past year according to the NYTimes: America truly being the the opposite of our normality.Like so much of our Covid, it kicked off with pasta.Pasta that takes half an afternoon to cook.A pasta that can should be cooked in pyjamas.And a pasta that is on a whole other level of amazing.Two-hat Italian amazing.Slow-cooked onions always deliver though this is your case-in-point. Do this early afternoon, reheat when friends come around and blow them away.(Ensuring all the bottles are in the recycling bin and the pyjamas are swapped for something a bit more acceptable.)Ingredients1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil6 large shallots, sliced very thinly4 garlic cloves, finely choppedSea salt and freshly ground black pepper1 tsp red-pepper flakes1 can anchovy fillets (about 12 anchovies, drained though not rinsed)170gm tomato paste1 pack spaghettiTo serveGood handful of parsley choppedGrated ParmesanFlaky saltMethodOpen a good Pinot. It is a must.Heat oil in a large, heavy pot over a low heat. Add the shallots and garlic, season and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots have become caramelised with golden-brown fried edges. The slower you can cook them, the better, though they will get there.Cook your pasta, remembering to reserve some pasta water: this is important.Add red-pepper flakes and anchovies drained straight from the can; there is no need to chop them as they will dissolve when cooked. Stir for two minutes.Add the tomato paste and season again. Cook, stirring constantly to prevent scorching, until the tomato paste has started to cook in the oil, caramelising at the edges and turning from bright red to a deeper, rusty brick colour: 2 or so minutes.Add the cooked pasta to the sauce pot and slowly start to pour some of the pasta water, combining the pasta with the sauce. Add small amounts of water at a time until the pasta is all coated. Add a little more for when the pasta and sauce cool.Plate your pasta and top with Parmesan, flaky salt and fresh parsley.Christine Manfield s Mughlai Chicken is just another brilliant curry from her wonderful book, Tasting India.It was just luscious, so unique and perfectly executed by Nat. Local Indian restaurant this is not.Served alongside another wonderful cauliflower and potato curry, we had an old friend over for dinner, decanted a cracking red and had a memorable Saturday night in.Doesn t get much better than this.Ingredients1 tbsp vegetable oil50gm finely sliced white onion2 tsp minced ginger2tsp Kashmiri chilli powder500gm chicken thigh, cut into 2cm cubes100gm thick plain yoghurt, whisked300ml white chicken stock3 tsp mint chutney50gm finely chopped spinach leaves100gm spinach puree2 tsp salt20 fried curry leaves, slightly crushed1 tsp ghee, meltedMint Chutney100gm mint leaves75gm coriander leaves2 tbsp lemon juice1 small green chilli, minced2 tsp minced ginger5 tbsp thick plain yoghurt2 red shallots, finely diced2 tsp chat masala1/2 tsp sea saltPinch of chilli powderMethodMint chutneyBlend the mint, coriander, lemon juice, chilli and ginger to make a smooth paste. Stir in the yoghurt, shallot, chat masala, salt and chilli powder. Refrigerate until ready to serve.Spinach puree Blanch spinach leaves in boiling water for 30 seconds, drain and chop then puree in a food processor.Fried curry leavesHeat some vegetable oil to 170c and fry fresh curry leaves in small batches for 20 secondsThe Curry Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion, ginger, garlic and chilli over a high heat until softened. Add the chicken and toss to combine. Fry for a minute and then add the yoghurt. When the mixture starts to simmer, add the stock. Bring back to the simmer and then stir through the chutney and spinach leaves. Cook for 10 minutes until the chicken is tender and the gravy reduced. Add the spinach puree and salt and stir until combined and heated through. Stir in the curry leaves and ghee and serve with steamed rice. -33.814114 151.157260

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