There’s a particular type of foodie out there who has a bizarre fascination with replicating brand name products at home. I can kind of understand this fascination - I was overjoyed when I chucked some dried oregano into garlic butter and stumbled on what I consider to be a dead ringer for “Pizza Hut” garlic bread.
If you’re sad like me and interested in researching this topic further, check out Top Secret Recipes. It’s a database of recipes for (mostly American) brand name foods. If you’re really insane, you might be interested in following this guy’s mind-bogglingly detailed instructions for reproducing a Big Mac!
I’m currently going through a phase of trying to eliminate as many processed foods from my diet as possible, plus we all know that homemade tastes better anyway. Here then, is my take on Old El Paso’s Fajita Spice mix. I’m not ashamed to say that this product and I go back a long way. Unlike some of the fajita spice preparations available, this one has a deep smoky flavour which I really like. The smokiness in this recipe is provided by the chipotle chili powder. Use Mexican oregano if you have it, but the regular one will do fine.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp caster sugar
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp oregano (preferably the Mexican variety)
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp dried onion powder
- 1 tsp dried garlic powder
- 1 tsp chipotle chilli powder
Mix together the ingredients and store in an airtight jar. This recipe makes about 5 tablespoons of spice mix. I like to use 2 tablespoons when I’m frying chicken and vegetables for 2 people as I like it quite spicy, but you can use more or less. Just hard fry some boneless chicken fillet until it just starts to blacken in patches, then add your vegetables: onions, peppers etc. Now add 2 tablespoons of spice mix and stir-fry for a few minutes until the vegetables and chicken are cooked through. Add a splash of water if you think the spices are starting to burn. I like to serve this in the (cough!) traditional manner with flour tortillas, lettuce, fresh tomato salsa and sour cream.
And you know the best thing? There’s not an ounce of maltodextrin, hydrolyzed soy protein, silicon dioxide, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, sulfiting agents or ethoxyquin in sight. Ay caramba!
I like to cook without resorting to looking up recipes. As such, I tend to adapt all of my soup recipes to use similar amounts. Nearly all of my soup recipes use one litre of stock as standard and most start off by frying onions, celery and garlic. I’ve given my own Tom Kha Gai soup a bit of a Malaysian makeover using some inspiration from Gordon Ramsay’s Malaysian Curry recipe (from his “Sunday Lunch” book. There’s also a good laksa recipe in Nigel Slater’s “Appetite“). I’ve used a red curry paste here and upped the spicing. Try it, it’s really good.
Ingredients
- 2 free-range chicken breast fillets
- 750ml chicken stock (cube is fine)
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 small courgette, chopped
- 2 tbsp Thai red curry paste
- piece of cinnamon stick, 3 or 4 cm
- 2 star anise
- 400ml can coconut milk
- 3 kaffir lime leaves
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1-2 limes, juiced
- 1 cup frozen peas
- noodles, enough for 2 people
- 1 red chilli pepper, thinly sliced
- fresh coriander
- fresh basil
Method
- Cook your noodles according to the instructions on the packet and refresh in cold water, then set aside.
- Bring the chicken stock to the boil, then add the whole chicken breasts. Cover the saucepan, reduce the heat and leave to simmer very gently for about 10 minutes while you get on with making the rest of the soup. I find cooking the chicken fillets whole like this gives the meat a softer and more satisfying texture.
- Heat some oil in a heavy saucepan and stir-fry the onion and courgette for about 3 minutes, until they’re just starting to colour.
- Add the red curry paste, star anise, cinnamon stick and stir-fry for a minute or two to coat the vegetables in the paste.
- Remove the chicken breasts from the hot stock and add the stock to the spicy vegetables. Slice the chicken breasts thinly and add to the soup. Add the coconut milk, lime leaves, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce and the juice of 1 lime. Simmer gently for 5 minutes, adding the frozen peas for the last two minutes.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. (At the very least, you’ll need the juice from another ½ lime, but adjust according to your own taste.)
- Divide the cooked noodles between two deep bowls and ladle the soup over. Garnish the bowls with the sliced chilli and a handful of chopped fresh coriander and basil. You could also garnish this with some chopped roasted peanuts.
Serves 2.
Jambalaya is a spicy rice dish which originated in Louisiana, USA. It was allegedly created by Spanish settlers, eager to recreate paella without saffron, which was unavailable to them. Jambalaya is generally Cajun or Creole, the main difference being that Creole includes tomatoes, resulting in a deep-red sauce. Cajun is generally spicier and involves using the “holy trinity” of onions, celery and green pepper.
Take a look here for an in-depth history of Jambalaya.
I’ve cooked this so many times, consuming other people’s recipes, adding this and that, tweaking here and there, and this is the best I’ve come up with.
Tips:
- Try to use a heavy, cast-iron pot for this, or failing that, a heavy non-stick pot. We need to reduce the risk of burning. Also, cook on a low temperature.
- When it comes to vegetables, anything goes; this is a great way to use up vegetables that might be lying around in your fridge. Apart from the obligatory ‘holy trinity’, I like to use carrots, peppers, peas, green beans, sugar snaps, even broccoli. It might not be wholly authentic, but it tastes great. Remember to adjust your cooking times for each vegetable, e.g. add the peas for just a few minutes cooking.
- This recipe requires a tablespoon of ‘Cajun spice’ which can be bought as a commercial preparation, but I recommend you make your own. Take a look at this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 250g chorizo or kabanossi sausage, sliced (should be about 3-4 sausages worth)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 chicken breast fillets, cut into chunks
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1-2 chilli peppers (depending on how hot you like it)
- 1 green peppers
- 3 or 4 sticks celery
- A selection of vegetables (can be anything, see above, I normally dice a large carrot, a red pepper, some green beans, a handful of frozen peas)
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp cajun spice
- 300g long-grain rice (Uncle Ben’s type)
- 500ml chicken stock
- salt
Method
- Heat olive oil in a heavy pot or casserole. Fry the chrorizo and onion until the onion starts to colour and soften.
- Add chicken and garlic and fry until the chicken is browned. Depending on how much oil is surrendered from the chorizo you may need to add a little more oil.
- Add the celery, green peppers, chilli peppers and any other hard vegetables (such as carrot). Fry for 1 or 2 minutes.
- Add rice and all of the spices, then stir well to ensure the rice is well coated.
- Add chicken stock and good pinch of salt. Cover the pot and bring to the boil. Simmer gently for about 15 minutes or until rice is cooked. Check the rice is not sticking to the pot occasionally, but try not to stir too much.
- Turn heat off and leave covered for another 5 mins. Serve.
Serves 4.
Take 4 chicken breasts, butterfly and flatten out. In a small blender mix 100g cream cheese (i.e. Philadelphia), 50g pine nuts, 1 large clove of garlic and 2 handfuls of fresh basil leaves. Spread mixture on half the chicken breast. Close over and wrap 1-2 slices of parma ham (or bacon) round chicken to close in filling. Cook in oven, 200 degrees for 40 minutes.
Thanks LA !!
