Salmon Wellington

A fish version of a famous beef dish, accompanied by a refreshing flavour of Thai basil. Commonly, duxelle (i.e. finely chopped mixture of mushrooms sautéed in butter) contains onions or a shallot, but here it is not strictly necessary.

You'll need:
French puff pastry
a piece of fresh salmon
mushrooms
butter (for frying)
black pepper
a handful of fresh Thai basil leaves
one shallot (optional)

1. Start off by preparing the duxelle, as it will have to cool down before you can use it: peel and finely chop the mushrroms, dissolve some butter on the pan, add the mushrooms and fry them over medium heat together with a very generous dose of black pepper. If using the shallot, put it on the pan before the mushrooms and let it soften.

2. Put the salmon on the pastry, season with salt and then proceed to put a layer of duxelle on top, followed by a generous dose of chopped Thai basil.

3. Tightly close the pocket using another layer of pastry (or close it off like a calzone), but cut some holes on top to allow the moisture to go out.

4. Put in the oven pre-set to 180 degrees and leave it there until the pastry turns golden brown. For a nice colouring of the pastry, you can brush it with an egg or milk.

Buon appetito!

Grandi gnocchi di ricotta

Welcome to episode one of lockdown cooking! What better way to spend your time at home than cooking? Maybe it's actually a good time to turn to those traditional grandma recipes that take hours to cook? Now might be the best time to oversee a slow cooked ragu alla Bolognese or take the time to prepare a proper ramen broth that takes 36 hours to cook... Anyway, for the time being I start with something a bit more modest that can be done in next to no time - gnocchi di ricotta con spinaci, prosciutto e pomodori secchi. Come to think of it, my comeback to more classical Italian flavours mind be a sign that mind is far away from Brussels...

You'll need:

250gr ricotta (or Polish twaróg)

1 egg

around 70gr flour

pepper

a bowl of fresh spinach

4cm ginger

prosciutto (my favourite is san daniele)

sundried tomatoes

grated parmigiano regiano or grana padano

1. First prepare the gnocchi mixture by mixing the ricotta cheese (or twaróg) with the egg and flour, adding a generous dose of black pepper. Once kneaded a bit, put it aside in the fridge to harden a bit for around 30 minutes.

2. Finely chop the ginger and the fry it on a pan for 30 seconds or so, before adding the spinach leaves. I usually chop the leaves a little bit even if it is baby spinach to make them more manageable to eat. Don't forget to rinse them first though! Quite often there will be sand on them and you really want to avoid that sort of crunch in your mouth.

3. Boil some water in a pot. Form the gnocchi with the use of two teaspoons into a shape of a quenelle. Add salt into the boiling water before transferring in the gnocchi. Boil them for around two minutes.

4. Assemble the ingredients together, sprinkle some parmigiano/grana padano on top, an extra sprinkle of freshly grated black pepper e voila!

Buon appetito!

Thai style baked salmon

I called it Thai style baked salmon, but probably it's far from authentic, for some of the ingredients used, such as shimeji mushrooms are more typical for Japan than Thailand. Yet, the coriander, chili and lime combination might be seen as more emblematic of Thailand. Either way, it is very easy and quick to make, which is great when you don't have too much time for cooking.

You'll need:
a piece of fresh salmon, no skin
soy sauce
lime juice
fresh coriander leaves
chili flakes
finely chopped ginger
finely chopped garlic
shimeji mushrooms
pepper
butter

1. Mix the soy sauce with ginger, garlic, lime juice, coriander leaves and chili flakes and pour over the salmon.

2. Put in the oven set for 175 degrees for around 20 minutes, depending on the size of the salmon piece(s). No need for a cover, for as long as you don't keep it there for too long, it should still come out nice and moist.

3. In the meantime, dissolve a spoonfull of butter in a pan and fry your shimeji mushrooms on it, seasoning them with black pepper.

4. Assemble everything on a plate et voila! I also added a light valeriana salad on the side, simply sprinkled with olive oil and red wine vinegar. For a bigger hunger, you could of course add some (jasmin) rice too!

Itadakimasu!

Okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is a Japanese savoury pancake. Okonomi means 'how you like' which goes to show that it can be served with a variety of ingredients. One thing that's always there is cabbage. Two other elements that to my mind are indispensable to making okonoiyaki are Japanese mayonaisse (kewpie) and brown sauce that bring all the other ingredients together. Typically, it would also have dancing bonito flakes on top and powdered nori. The rest is left to the imagination of the cook, it can be meat, veggies or seafood. Just as the English do on pancake day, Okonomiyaki is good for dealing with leftover food. Hiroshima style it would also include noodles in the pancake base, but today I'm doing it Osaka style, with a prawn filling. It would be easier to prepare on a grill, but it can be done in home conditions on a pan as well.

You'll need:

250gr flour

water

1 egg

4 napa cabbage leaves, finely shredded 

3 spring onions

prawn tails

ginger

red peppercorns, crushed

Japanese 7 spice mix

Kewpie mayo

brown sauce

Bonito flakes

nori powder

some oil for frying

1. Prepare the pancake batter. It should be the same consistency as for the European pancakes, i.e.  the batter should not float out immediately from a spoon. Add salt. I also add some red pepper to it, to add a bit of spice, but this is optional.

2. Add cabbage and finely grated ginger to the mixture.

3. On a grill, the prawns would easily cook together with the pancake, but this can be more difficult to achieve on the pan, when turning a layered pancake becomes more difficult, so I fry the prawns first, seasoned in Japanese seven spice mix. I will later make the pancakes on the same pan, allowing the flavours to mix.

4. pour the pancake batter into the pan. Once it turn golden, turn it to the other side.

5. Add spring onions and prawns on top.

6. Pour kewpie and brown sauce on the pancake and then sprinkle nori powder and bonito flakes on top. These ingredients are not so widely available and might require a trip to a japanese or Asian store, but they do make all the difference to the dish.

Itadakimasu!

Sunday special: scrambled eggs with a secret

At my house it's always eggs for breakfast on a Sunday. And so it was this Sunday as well. Scrambled eggs is one of those things that anyone can do and everyone has their preferred way of doing  - scrambled vigorously or just a little bit, well-cooked or runny. And then there are numerous things that you can add to them, not just butter. I share with you my new favourite way: what you see in the picture is not just bacon and chive. The secret ingredient here is coarsely ground (or hammered) pepper and coriander seeds to add a little twist to it.

First you fry the bacon, cut into smaller pieces or pre-cut into cubes.Then you add the eggs, chives, pepper and coriander and mix it together over medium heat. Smoked bacon is usually already quite salty, so I skip the salt, but you need to know your bacon.
To my mind, the best way to eat scrambled eggs is on a piece of fresh bread with butter, allowing the butter to melt underneath warm eggs.

Buon appetito!

Gyoza

Continuing on the Japanese theme. If using ready made gyoza wrappers, these little pockets of delight can be made within minutes. They are different from the ones I ate in Utsunomiya, but also very good. Ponzu sauce is an absolute must.

You'll need:
300gr pork mince
3 pak choi leaves, finely chopped
spring onion, finely chopped
3cm ginger, finely chopped
sriracha sauce or chilli flakes
Worchestershire sauce
20-25 gyoza wrappers
ponzu sauce to serve with

1. Mix the pork mince with pak choi, spring onions, ginger, chili and a sprinkling worchestershire sauce and season with salt.

2. Put a spoonfull of the filling in the middle of the gyoza wrapper, wet the edges with some water and close into a half moon shape. Pinch the edges. TIP: do not put too much fillling inside - gyoza wrappers are not as elastic as dough for Polish pierogi or Georgian chinkali and so they would break if overfilled.

3. Heat up some oil on the pan and fry the gyozas until golden brown and then add some water to the pan (1-2cm), cover with a lid and steam the dumplings for a minute or two (no more as they become soft very quickly). This way they will be both crunchy and soft. Serve immediately with ponzu sauce!

Buon appetito!

Japanese beef and mushroom wok

I recently set off on a culinary journey to Japan and came back full of new inspirations, having discovered some new extraordinary flavours and ingredients that were previously completely unknown to me. So, today I propose a dish that uses some of the classical Japanese ingredients and plays on Japanese flavours, even if the end result might be far from authentic. I found pak choi and the different mushrooms in a supermarket around the corner, so depending on where you live, they might not be as difficult to get as it may first seem. Mirin and Japanese seven spice mix might be more difficult to get, but luckily I found a great Japanese store here in Brussels (to buy the former, I brought back with me lots of spices from Japan as is my usual habit when travelling abroad).

 Udon and soba noodles from a Japanese shop in Bxl (Tagawa, I highly recommend it)

You'll need:
a beef steak
soba or udon noodles
one baby pak choi
spring onion
one red chilli
4cm ginger, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
lime zest
Japanese 7 spice mix (shichimi togarashi)
epoki mushrooms
shiitake mushrooms
chestnut mushrooms
dark soya sauce
mirin
salt

1. Start off by preparing all of the ingredients, the cooking time is very short so there won't be time to prep while it cooks.

2. Season the beef in salt and shichimi togarashi and quickly fry on a hot pan. Remove from the pan and let it reston the side.

3. Put the sliced mushrooms on the same pan on which you just fried your beef. Add ginger, garlic, chilli and lime zest.

4. Boil the noodles. One minute before they are ready (follow the instructions on the packet, they should take a just a few minutes to soften) add pak choi and spring onion.

5. Slice your beef, add it to the pan with the mushrooms. Add soya sauce and mirin. Add noodles with the vegetables and stir so that the sauce covers everything, et voila!

Bon appetit!

Oyster mushroom quesadillas with jalapeño sauce

With the summer nearly over, diet is of no consequence anymore, certainly not with this dish, but it's really worth it, maybe on your cheat day?

You'll need:

two tortillas

1 chicken breast

250gr oyster mushrooms

250gr grated cheddar cheese

1 long yellow pepper

chipotle chili pepper

smoked sweet paprika

cumin

garlic powder 

a spoon of butter

For the sauce:

one marinated jalapeño

2 spoons of mayonnaise

smoked sweet paprika

ground cumin

dried onion 

1. The jalapeño sauce is really easy to make, simply chop the jalapeño and mix it in with the rest of the ingredients, adding a little bit of liquid from the marinated jalapeños.

2. Cut the chicken breast into thin slices and fry on a pan, seasoned with chipotle chili, smoked sweet paprika, cumin, garlic (optional) and some salt. Towards the end of the frying, add yellow pepper, also cut into thin slices.

3. Remove the chicken and pepper from the pan, and then use it to fry oyster mushrooms, cut into small pieces, not forgetting to add some butter to turn them golden brown.

4. Warm one tortilla on a grill pan, then remove it and put the other one on. Make sure the pan is not completely dry, but at the same time do not allow the tortilla to drown in oil.

5. Add cheese on top, followed by chicken and pepper and the mushrooms, making sure that the ingredients do not to overflow and removing any excess liquid from the filling beforehand.

6. Add some of the jalapeño sauce and cover with another layer of cheese before covering with the other tortilla.

7. Squeeze down and wait for the cheese to melt, e voila!

TIP: To make sure that your quesadilla does not fall into pices at the end, (i) do not overload it with the filling, (ii) do not load with the filling to the very edge (iii) cut the ingredients into slices,(iv) make sure there is loads of cheese inside to glue everything together, (v) do not put too much oil, (vi) consider using a plastic flat spoon to pick it up, they are usually thinnner, making the exercise easier.

Buon appetito!

 

Taste of Switzerland: mountain style rösti

This hefty rösti dish was inspired by one servered in one of Bettmeralp's restaurants. It should fill not only a farmer's appetite, but also one of a hungry hiker after a long day of walking. Rösti are simply potato pancakes, but this one is served with onions, bacon, an egg and loads of cheese. The Swiss cheese I used melted beautifully with the egg.

You'll need:
2-3 coarsely grated potatoes (can be bought ready in Swiss supermarkets, ready with potato flour and already salted)
one red onion
a handful of bacon cut into cubes
one egg
cheese (I used mild Swiss Vacherin Friboureois)
sweet paprika
nutmeg

1. Slice the onion and fryit over low heat, adding a bit of water once it starts to take colour. Once soft, add the bacon cubes to the onion and fry for a few more minutes until crispy.

2. Transfer grated potatoes into a separate, small pan and fry the potato pancake pressing the potatoes to the pan in the process. Season with some nutmeg (best freshly grated) and sweet paprika. Once it turns golden brown (it will be visible on the edges), turn to the other side with the help of the pan cover.

3. Once nearly ready (depending on the potato pancake thickness, it should take around 12-15 miuntes for both sides), sprinkle the onion and bacon on top of the pancake and then add grated cheese and an egg in the middle. Cover the pan with a lid and continue frying for another two minutes, et voila! You can add some greenery for decoration and transfer carefully into a plate or eat straight from the pan.

 

 

En Guetä! 

(Buon appetito!)

Three cheese mushroom soup

This is not exactly a summery recipe, but I had some leftover mushrooms and this solution came to my mind. I used three different cheeses to go with it (making it even more filling), including French mimolette, which is a traditional cheese coming from Lille. Its distinct orange colour comes from annatto, which also gives it a slightly nutty taste. If you don't have access to mimolette, cheddar or gruyere should go well here too.

You'll need:
400-500g mushrooms (champignons de Paris)
1 medium size gold onion
1/2 carrot
2 medium size potatoes, or 1 big one
400ml broth
3-4 spoons of cream
3-4 mozarella mini balls
grana padano
mimolette (or other cheese)
a few ciabatta slices
salt&pepper
butter

1. Add chopped onion into a pot and fry over medium heat for around 5 minutes. 

2. Add thickly sliced mushrooms and a generous dose of pepper and fry for another 3-4 minutes, before adding grated carrot.

3. When the carrot is already in the pot, peel and cut the potatoes into small cubes.

4. Add the potatoes, allow to fry for another minute or so, and then add the broth. I used beef broth, but you can use any kind of broth. cook until the potatoes are soft.

5. Add cream and blend.

6. Grill the bread slices with some butter. You can also grill a few mushroom slices for decoration.

7. Put the mozzarella balls in a bowl, pour the soup over them and sprinkle with grated mimolette and grana padano. Serve with grilled ciabatta slices and grilled mushrooms.

Buon appetito!

Lamb yoghurt curry

It takes some time to prepare this dish, but it's definitely worth it. Deliciously warming smooth sauce covering soft pieces of lamb will make you reach for another helping.

 You'll need:
600gr lamb leg or shoulder cut into 3-4cm chunks
2 onions
3 cloves of garlic
4cm of ginger
6 cloves
5 green cardomon pods (seeds only)
garam masala
chili powder
150 ml greek yoghurt
200gr chopped tomatoes
fresh coriander (to decorate)

1. Roughly chop the onions and put to a blender with a bit of water. Transfer the mixture into a deep pan and fry over medium heat together with some oil for around 10 minutes.

2. In the same manner, blend the garlic and ginger. Add to the pan.

3. Stir in half of the yoghurt and add the meat. Brown the meat.

4. Grind the cardamon seeds and cloves. Add to the meat together with garam masala and chili powder. Add the rest of the yoghurt and simmer for around an hour with a lid on.

5. Stir in the tomatoes and simmer for another 30-40 minutes, et voila!

6. Serve with chapatis or naan bread.

Buon appetito!

Saag aloo

Saag aloo is a great Indian side dish to accompany your tandori chicken or meat curries. It works very well as a lunch idea as well, even on its own.

You'll need:

4-5 waxy potatoes

2 big handfulls of fresh baby spinach

1 onion

a clove of garlic

3cm of ginger

brown mustard seeds

cumin seeds

chilli flakes

oil for frying

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes. Boil in salted water 'al dente' that is 2 minutes less than what is needed for them to be fully cooked (which depends on the potato variety and the size of the cubes).

2. In the meantime, toast mustard seeds and cumin on a hot pan before adding chopped onion. As the onion is on its way into becoming golden brown, finely chop the garlic clove and ginger.

3. Add ginger, garlic and chili flakes to the pan. Add the potatoes and then spinach, shredded into smaller pieces (don't forget to wash it beforehand). Stir and cover the pan with a lid and wait around half a minute for the spinach to soften, et voila!

Buon appetito!

Lentils salad on the run

A little salad for a rainy Autumn day that needs next to no preparation. Although popular in many cuisines (including India, see my recipes for a lentils curry or masoor dhal), lentils are still rarely used where I come from. They are very filling and a lentil salad could make a very nice packed lunch. I also make a version with boiled carrots instead of sundried tomatoes. 

You'll need:

a can of green lentils

sundried tomatoes

fresh parsley

a few rashers of bacon

red wine vinegar

red pepper

1. Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry on a pan.

2. In the meantime, rinse well the lentils and transfer them into a bowl.

3. Cut the tomatoes and chop  a generous dose of parley and add both to the bowl.

4. Add a splash of red wine vinegar and some freshly grated red pepper.

5. Add the fried bacon, mix everything together, et voila! Serve with fresh buttered bread.

 

 

Buon appetito!

Red onion marmalade

Preparing a red onion marmelade requires some patience. It takes time, you cannot really speed it up, but it's really worth it. It's a perfect element to go on canapés, together with pâté or with duck. Today I propose to serve it in combination with pâté, goat cheese, and fresh thyme. I found inspiration for this little snack during my trip to Strasbourg, the land of foie gras and many other culinary delights.

You'll need:

5 red onions

3 spoons of sugar

4 spoons of balsamic vinegar

a glass of dry red wine

cardamon 

anise (optional)

For the canapés:

fresh bread/baguette

pâté

goat cheese 

fresh thyme (I used lemon thyme)

1. Slice the onions and put over a low heat together with some olive oil for around 10 minutes.

2. Add sugar and continue to simmer over a very low heat for another 10 minutes or so. 

3. Add half of the red wine and balsamic vinegar and reduce over a low heat. It should take around 20 minutes at least.

4. Add spices, the rest of the wine, and reduce again.

5. Assemble the elements on fresh baguette, et voila!  

Bon appétit!