The Hangry Chef

You will need... 12 green banana prawns, peeled 10 cherry tomatoes, halved 3 medium zucchinis 3 cloves garlic 1 lemon, zest and juice 1 shallot, washed 2 sprigs basil salt pepper olive oil Method Prepare your zucchinis, wash and trim the ends then spiralize them to your desired thickness (I prefer to keep them thicker as they stay crisp and don't go soggy so quickly Zest and juice your lemon, removing any pits Crush the garlic, slice the shallot Wash, pick and chop the basil Mix the garlic, a Tbsp olive oil and half the lemon zest with the prawns, add a pinch of salt and pepper (you can do this in advance if you would like to marinate them!) Heat a pan on high. Add the prawns and let brown before turning. While pan is still on high, add the shallots and tomato and toss to coat.  Quickly add the zoodles and then the lemon juice, salt, pepper and another dash of olive oil. Toss and allow to cook briefly for 3-5 minutes until zucchini is just warmed. Sprink...

You will need... 1 kg chicken thigh, bone out, skin off 1 tin diced Italian tomatoes 1/2 cup water 1 pkt taco seasoning (30gr) or you can make your own recipe link at bottom of post. 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp white sugar 1 tin black beans 1 brown onion olive oil Method Preheat slow cooker to high Peel and dice the onion. In a non-stick pan, sweat off the onion over a low heat in 1 Tbsp of olive oil until transparent Remove the onion and then turn pan heat to high. Add the chicken, careful not to overcrowd the pan. Sear until brown on both sides then transfer to slow cooker with the onion. Drain and rinse black beans, add to slow cooker, add remaining ingredients then stir to coat thighs. Cook on high setting for 1.5-2hrs. This will depend on your slow cooker, ideally you want the thighs to easily be pulled apart with tongs or a fork. Remove chicken thighs, place in a tray and pull into desired sized chunks. Leave sauce to simmer in slow cooker if you would lik...

You will need 1 x 165ml tin of coconut milk 3/4 cup basmati or jasmine rice 1 cup water pinch salt Method Rinse and drain rice under cold water Combine coconut milk and water in a heavy based saucepan and bring to a simmer Add rice and salt, allow to come to the boil then cover with a lid and place on a very low heat for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside for 5 minutes. Serve Image credit https://www.livestrong.com/article/409614-the-health-benefits-of-coconut-milk/

This recipe is a revelation and once you make it it will end up being a staple in your cooking rotations. You will notice that I keep the beef and sauce separate, and only combine the two when reheating. The reason I do this is so that I can make a large batch, portion the beef into zip-lock bags and freeze them, along with pouring the cooking liquid into ice cube trays, freezing and then also into zip lock bags for portion control.   This way I can reheat the beef and sauce whenever I like. Also, keeping the beef separate to the sauce means that it can be used in a whole different manner of ways. I've used it in curries- cooking veggies in coconut milk with red curry paste and then adding the beef at the end as an easy week night dinner. It can be added to salads, pizzas and even stir-frys.  Or you can just eat it once cooked with the sauce over a bed of rice or with some vegetables or roast potatoes on the side as I did with our meal. I highly recommend making...

If you are new to cooking salmon, heres a great little resource for pan-frying a really good bit of fish----> http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-perfect-salmon-fillets-230150 I would recommend using this method for most fish and meats. Bringing seafood or meat to room temperature before cooking and using a hot pan is key for ensuring your protein doesn't 'seize' up and go tough while cooking. Also, I recommend resting EVERYTHING before you serve it. Most people know to rest meats like beef and lamb but not many people know that fish and chicken also require a good rest time to ensure tenderness and juiciness. Always cook the side you intend to serve facing up first (chef trick), and if you are a fan of crispy salmon skin then ensure you salt the skin (just like you would crackling) and cook it first in a good bit of oil. As you can see from my images, I didn't serve skin side up as we passed on the skin this time- but it always adds a nice bit of crunchine...

Image from taste.com I've noticed a lot of my friends having to turn to gluten-free diets for various reasons of late. These days 'gluten free' has just become the  norm, and even my local supermarket have an entire isle dedicated to gluten free products.  I'm quite partial to some gluten free recipes, like my gluten free brownies , chocolate cake and probably one of my favourite desserts; the orange and almond cake . This recipe has been adapted from a recipe found at taste.com, the original recipe was double the amount of ingredients (I had a half-sized bar tin) and had a mix of soy flour and rice flour, but I found soy flour hard to source and the end result with just gluten free self raising and rice flour works well. You can double the recipe if you have a deep loaf tin or two smaller pans. Ingredients... 125g Nuttelex spread 1 teaspoon vanilla essence ¾ cup caster sugar 2 eggs ¾ cups self-raising gluten-free flour ¾  cup rice flour...

I've probably mentioned this before, but scallops are my favourite seafood. A Costco recently opened up about 50 minutes drive from my home and we make the trip every 3 months or so to stock up on items that we use on a regular basis and can buy in bulk (it's just me and the hubby and two puppies at home so we don't need a lot of stuff in bulk- except dog food!), so because Costco stocks fresh and frozen seafood at really compatible prices, I always buy a tray of scallops while I'm there to keep in the freezer. Other seafoods can work well in this dish, like prawns or even lobster if you're feeling fancy! You will need... (2 serves) 2 Tbs olive oil 1/2 small brown onion 2 cloves garlic 1 cup of Arborio risotto rice 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock 30gr butter 30gr parmesan salt and pepper 1/2 cup corn kernels 50gr chorizo sausage, skin removed and diced 8 scallops, with or without roe- your choice, removed from shells, quickly rinsed and patted dr...

Caesar salad is definitely my go-to salad if I'm out for a light lunch. I love it with some grilled chicken, and its only good if its put together the traditional way- I've seen it served with whole lettuce leaves and  slices  of sourdough bread. NO. The lettuce needs to be chopped, it needs crisp squares of bacon and proper croutons. The egg can be coddled, poached or boiled, but if it has a hard yolk I like it added at the end as a garnish and not mixed through because that chalky yolk through my salad does nothing for me. As you can see I'm quite particular about my caesars and to be honest I was a little apprehensive when I embarked on this journey of making a vegan caesar dressing. The Thug Kitchen Cookbook  is vegan so the recipe is basically just lettuce and croutons with this dressing, and while I went to the effort of making the vegan dressing my husband wasn't going to be content with a bowl of lettuce and toasted bread so I did the boiled eggs, parmesa...

I have adapted this recipe from several different poached chicken salad recipes over the years. I like to utilise the poaching liquid with all its flavour and coconutty goodness as part of the salad dressing. Image Taken From Karenmartini.com This recipe is great for family-style eating on a warm spring or summers day, and goes beautifully by itself or along side other Vietnamese dishes such as Banh Xeo (Viet Crepes), Stir Fry , or grilled fish or other  seafood dishes . You will need... For the poached chicken 2 cups coconut milk 1/2 cup chicken stock 1 lemongrass stem, bruised 2 kaffir lime leaves 2 tbs fish sauce 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp white pepper 300gr chicken breast or thigh, trimmed For the salad 1 small packet of vermicelli rice noodles 1 Tbs sesame oil 1 bunch of fresh vietnamese mint, washed 1 bunch of fresh coriander, washed 1 carrot, peeled and coarsely grated 1 large red chilli, thinly sliced 1 large green chilli, thinly sliced (optional) 150gr...

Again I'm going with the healthy theme, this is a great dish I made up to utilise some of the absolutely delicious organic veggies I purchased. You can add whatever vegetables you like to this Pad Thai, and if you don't like pork you can always use chicken instead. This is a great way to get more serves out of a small amount of meat, and cramming as many veggies as possible into your meal. You will need.. (serves 4) 2 trimmed pork cutlets (again, free range), use any kind of pork you like, I opted for cutlets and trimmed off the fat for a leaner cut of meat (you could just buy the eye fillet if you like, 300gr would suffice) For the pork rub... 1/2 tsp peppercorns 1/2 tsp coriander seeds 1 large garlic clove 2 tsp lemongrass (1 inch piece of stalk) 1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes (or fresh chilli if you prefer) For the stir fry... 1 packet Pad Thai rice noodles 2 tsp peanut oil (feel free to use coconut or an alternative oil if you have an allergy) 1/4 head broccol...

You will need... (2 portions) 1 chicken breast, cut into small cubes 1 tbs lemongrass paste* 2 garlic cloves 1 red chilli pinch salt 2 tbs rice-wine vinegar 2 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp fish sauce 2 tbs peanut oil 200gr noodles - I used a Hokkien style even though Hokkien are Chinese, but you could use thin rice noodles if you prefer to keep to a more Authentic Viet style stir fry. 8 green beans, top & tails removed, cut into 1in lengths 1 carrot, peeled, cut into 1inch matchsticks a few small broccoli florets capsicum, baby corn, bamboo- whichever veggies you like really! 1/2 cup coriander and mint, washed and roughly chopped 2 large iceberg lettuce leaves 8 slices cucumber more red chilli and coriander for garnish Method... 1. Crush the garlic and roughly chop the chilli, mix with the lemongrass paste and rub all over the chicken, season with some salt and sprinkle a little bit of the rice vinegar over. Cover and leave in the fridge to marinate for ...

You will need... 300gr green beans, ends trimmed and cut into 2inch pieces 1 cup finely shredded iceberg lettuce 1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced 1/2 red capsicum, thinly sliced 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced 1/2 cup bean sprouts, washed and drained 1/2 bunch of coriander, washed and picked 1 sprig mint, picked 2 shallots, sliced finely 1 small packet of vermicelli rice noodles 400gr beef rump For the marinade... 1/2 bunch of coriander, washed and roughly chopped 1 shallot, sliced finely 2 dried chillies, chopped (use fresh if you wish) 2 tsp lemongrass paste (or 1 tsp ground lemongrass) 1 large clove garlic, crushed 1 2cm knob of ginger, minced (I peel the ginger then squish it in the garlic crusher) 1 kaffir lime leaf, finely sliced juice of 1/2 a lime 4 drops fish sauce 2 Tbs soy sauce salt & pepper For the sauce... juice of 1 lime 1/4 cup soy sauce 2 Tbs hoisin sauce 1 tsp shaved palm sugar 1 dried chilli, chopped 1 clove garlic 1/2 cup water ...

It wasn't too long ago that I posted my No-Bake-Brownie recipe... But seriously, this recipe makes that recipe look like poop in a pan. And I'm not afraid to admit it. This brownie is almost like a cake, it's that soft and moist. And when you eat it you can easily forget that it's gluten-free. I'm warning you now though, its definitely not fat or sugar free! You will need... 3 eggs 200gr sugar 100gr gluten-free plain flour, I used ORGAN all-purpose plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 100gr margarine 150gr cooking chocolate, I used Callebaut dark chocolate 100gr walnuts (optional) Method... 1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees celsius. Grease and line a 13 x 9 inch brownie pan with greaseproof paper. 2. Beat the eggs and sugar together on high for 5 minutes until light and creamy 3. Sift the baking powder together with the flour and fold into the eggs and sugar 4. Melt the chocolate and margarine together in the microwave, should only take about 20 seconds....

This is a recipe from Delicious Cookbook, I'm so glad I made it because everyone loved it and it was so simple! The recipe called for trout, but salmon was easier to find and I felt I'd already gone to enough trouble braving the xmas hoards at the shopping centre so I wasn't going trout hunting too. You will need... for 6-8 serves 1 cup rice- I used Basmati but you could use Jasmine or plain long grain 1/2 lemon, zest and juice 1 1/2 cups of fresh peas 250gr hot-smoked salmon or trout salt and pepper 1 large sprig of mint to garnish For the pesto... 1 clove garlic 100gr toasted pine nuts 1 bunch basil (roughly 3 cups picked basil leaves) 2 sprigs picked mint (3/4 cup leaves) 100gr freshly grated parmesan 100ml olive oil salt and pepper Method... 1. Cook the rice according to the packet absorption method- 1 cup of rice normally to 1 1/2 cups cold, salted water, bring to the boil, then simmer covered for 10-12 minutes, then remove from the heat and le...

It's tasty and we can just pretend its healthy by adding the word 'salad'.... You will need... (for 2 serves) 2 duck breasts 1 clove garlic (I used smoked garlic) 1 sprig thyme 1 star anise, broken up salt & cracked black pepper 200gr of chopped pumpkin 1 pear 1/2 cup hazelnuts, roasted and peeled 1 tsp caramelised balsamic 1 tsp red wine vinegar (I use Forum) 2 Tbs olive oil 2 cups peppery rocket Method.. 1. Marinate the breasts for an hour with the thyme, garlic, star anise, salt and pepper. 2. Par-boil the pumpkin. Then remove from the water and leave to steam dry. 3. Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius 4. Remove the duck from the fridge, heat a non-stick pan on low and place the duck skin-side down in the pan. Cook for about 20 minutes like this or until the fat under the skin has rendered down by about half. Carefully pour out the excess fat liquid into a pan, and flip the duck to cook for a further 7 or so minutes on its flesh side. Rem...