Make Your Own: Fried Rice

Scrumptiously simple, fried rice can be successfully made at home instead of ordering it take away.

The key is to keep it simple – do not add to many flavours that may make the rice soggy, and always cook your

I always cook my fried rice in a wok as a high heat can be easily maintained while the size and shape is perfect to toss your rice in (without getting it over the entire kitchen).

Ingredients
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
300g cold cooked white rice
5 spring onions, sliced on an angle
1 cup frozen peas, defrosted
1 egg, lightly beaten

Method

In a bowl mix together the sesame oil, soy sauce and oyster sauce and set aside

Heat oil in a wok or large frypan until very hot. Add the rice and stir-fry until grains start to colour slightly.

Add the spring onions and peas and toss. Add the soy sauce and toss to combine.

Make a well in the middle of the rice and add the egg. Stir until the egg is cooked and incorporated into the rice.

Serve either hot or enjoy it cold as a salad version.

Serves 4 as a side.

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Red Onion and Goats Cheese Tart Tatin

Why Onion and Goats Cheese Tart Tatin?

Tart tatin traditionally is a sweet pastry with apples, caramel and buttery puff pastry. Made famous by the Tatin sisters in France – they (like many geniuses) turned a mistake into a work of genius.

Turing this sweet dish into a savoury tart tatin is yet another stroke of genius. Caramelised red onions, fresh goats cheese and oregano are a perfect match encased in a flaky buttery pastry.

Ingredients
6-8 small red onions
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons caster sugar
3 oregano sprigs, leaves picked
120g soft goats cheese
1 x 375g block frozen puff pastry, thawed

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Without peeling and keeping the root intact, slice the onions in half or in quarters depending on their size. Place on a lined baking tray, drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper.

Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the onions are just tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before peeling off the outer papery skins.

Turn the oven up to 200°C.

Meanwhile mix sugar and 2 tablespoons of water in a medium sized saucepan. Place over a medium heat and cook for 6-8 minutes until a golden caramel.

While hot, pour the caramel into a 25cm round cake tin or roasting tin. Sprinkle with oregano leaves and place the onions cut side down and crumble over the goats cheese.

Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface until 2-3 mm thick. Trim the pastry to a 30cm circle.

Fit the pastry over the onions, pushing down and tucking in the edges all round the inside of the pan and cut a small cross in the middle of the pastry.

Bake for 30-40 minutes until the pastry is golden and crisp.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Place a large serving plate on top of the tart and carefully invert.

Serves 6-8.

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Make your own... Rocky Road

The essentials: spongy marshmallows and velvety smooth melted chocolate. The rest of the recipe to creating this favourite confectionary is up to you.

For a simple crowd please use milk chocolate and add nuts, for a traditional favourite use milk chocolate, add nuts and Turkish delight.

Or for a decadent twist (my personal favourite and the recipe below) use a mixture of good quality dark and milk chocolate, pistachio nuts, Turkish delight, bounty chocolate, crumbled biscuits, macerated dates and melted white chocolate for the finishing touch.

This recipe makes around 24 generous pieces of rich rocky road – the perfect amount to share with friends, while having enough left over for the next few days....

Ingredients

300g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
300g milk chocolate, broken into small pieces
1 cup marshmallows
½ cup chopped turkish delight
½ cup toasted and shelled pistachios
1 bounty chocolate bar, diced
½ cup chocolate covered digestive biscuits, broken into small bite size pieces
¼ cup chopped dates, soaked in 2 tablespoons brandy for at least 1 hour
½ cup white chocolate, broken into small pieces

Method

Melt the dark and milk chocolate in a large heat proof bowl over a saucepan with 2 inches of simmering water (make sure the water and chocolate do not touch).

Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

Meanwhile toss the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl to evenly distribute.

Line a 28cm by 18cm baking tin with grease proof paper.

When the dark and milk chocolate is close to room temperature roughly fold through the rest of the ingredients and pour into the lined tin and even out with a spatula.

Leave to set in a cool place.

While setting melt the white chocolate following the same method as the dark chocolate. Once melted, using a spoon drizzle the white chocolate in thin lines over the rocky road.

Leave to set completely (this will take up to one hour at room temperature), before slicing into bite size pieces.

Makes 24 large pieces of rocky road.

Once cut store rocky road in an air tight container for up to a week.

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Gado Gado

Why Gado Gado?

Gado Gado is a popular dish from Indonesia. It translates as “mix mix”, simply being a mixture of cooked vegetables, served cold and dressed with peanut sauce.

I love this dish, having fond memories of it from child hood (it was a dish that my mother would make if she wanted to ensure that my brother and I ate all our greens). To enjoying it on numerous trips to Indonesia, where it was a tasty and filling street food served from small carts along the street side or in local street side eateries.

I still enjoy this dish today, when after a weekend of eating a little indulgently I can feel good about eating a plate full of vegetables – cooked yet with the essential crunch – while enjoying my meal thoroughly.


Ingredients

200g snake beans, cut into 4cm lengths
250g Chinese cabbage, shredded
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled, halved
200g bean sprouts
2 peeled potatoes, boiled, cubed

For the peanut sauce
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 teaspoons vegetables oil
6 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoons palm sugar, grated (or caster sugar)
1 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sambal oelek (or chilli paste)
2 teaspoon lemon juice
Method
Blanch the beans and cabbage separately in salted boiling water until just tender.
Refresh briefly in cold water, then drain.

In a large saucepan add the oil and garlic. Place on a medium heat and allow to cook for 30 seconds to release it's aroma, but not brown. When the garlic is soft add the peanut butter, ½ cup water and coconut milk, palm sugar, soy sauce, sambal oelek and lemon juice. Stir to combine and turn off the heat.

Gently toss with the eggs, sprouts and cooked potatoes and serve drizzled generously with peanut sauce.

Serves 4

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