Category Archives: Main Courses

Pork Steaks with Cheese Crust

Holidays, Main Courses, Pork

  • 4 ready sliced pork escalopes, about 125g/4oz each
  • Ground black pepper
  • 11/2 slices white bread, processed into breadcrumbs
  • 50g/2oz strong, tasty, hard cheese, mature cheddar or Gruyere coarsly grated
  • 25g/1oz butter, melted
  • 75g/3oz soft goat’s cheese, such as Chavroux
  • Slice of lemon to serve

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes

1. Put the escalopes between two sheets of clingfilm and bat out with a rolling pin. Season with plenty of pepper.

2. Mix together the breadcrumbs, grated cheese and melted butter.

3. Grill the pork for 3-4 minutes, fairly close to the heat, until it changes colour and feels firm. Spread the goat’s cheese over the pork, leaving it thick in places. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture on top and pop under the grill, slightly further away from the heat, for 3-4 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and breadcrumbs are golden. Serve with a slice of lemon.

Serves 4

Dorothy’s Cuban Chicken

Chicken, Main Courses

  • 1/2lb rice
  • 4lb chicken
  • 1 pint chicken stock
  • 3 tbsp dry white wine
  • Pinch saffron
  • 4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 3 tsp lard
  • 3 tbsp cooked peas
  • 8 small tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 small onion, sliced
  • 1 green pepper, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • Parsley, chopped
  • Strips of red pepper to garnish

1. Cut meat off chicken and boil skin and bones for stock. Fry meat slightly in hot lard. Add to stock.

2. Add tomatoes, parsley, green pepper, onion and garlic. Season and add wine. Cook for 10 minutes.

3. Dissolve saffron in 1tbsp of stock and add to chicken. Add sauce now and bring to boil. When chicken is nearly cooked add rice and cook for 1/2 hour.

4. Add peas and decorate with strips of red pepper

Spiced Rice with Chicken

Chicken, Holidays, Hot & Spicy, Main Courses

  • 1.4kg/3lb oven ready chicken
  • 75ml/5tbsp vegetable oil
  • 175g/6oz onion, skinned and sliced
  • 15ml/3 level tsp ground coriander
  • 1.25ml/1/4 level tsp chilli powder
  • 2.5ml/1/2 level tsp ground turmeric
  • 2 141g/5oz carotns natural yoghurt
  • About 350ml/12fl oz chicken stock
  • Salt and milled pepper
  • Parsley sprigs to garnish

1. Carve off and cut up chicken flesh into fork size pieces discarding skin and bone. Using a flameproof casserole, brown well in the hot oil, half at a time. Remove from the fat and put aside.

2. In the residual fat lightly brown the onions, then stir in the remaining seven ingredients and season well. Bring mixture to the boil.

3. Replace the chicken, cover tightly and bake at 170C/325F/Gas 3 for about 35 minutes, or until the rice and chicken are tender and the liquid absorbed.

4. Turn the rice with a fork and garnish with parsley sprigs to serve

Roasted Vegetable Paella

Main Courses, Side Dishes, Starters, Vegetarian

  • 75g/23/4oz courgettes, cut into 2.5cm/1in chunks
  • 75g/23/4oz aubergines, cut into 2.5cm/1in chunks
  • 1/2 red onion, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 1 small stick celery, cut into 2.5cm/1in chunks
  • 1/2 red or yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 75g/23/4oz cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 small clove garlic, chopped
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 small sprig rosemary
  • 1 small sprig thyme
  • 2tbsp virgin olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 75g/23/4oz basmati rice, washed and drained
  • 300ml/1/2 pint chicken or vegetable stock
  • Chopped fresh herbs to serve

1. Preheat oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Put all the vegetables in a large roasting pan or shallow ovenproof dish with the garlic and herbs. Sprinkle with olive oil, season well with salt and pepper and roast for about 45 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown slightly at the edges.

2. Put the rice in a small ovenproof dish, put the vegetables on top and pour over the stock. Cook in the oven for about 1 hour or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender. Serve on hot plates sprinkled with fresh herbs.

Lamb with Aubergines

Lamb, Main Courses

  • 900g/2lb lamb neck fillet
  • 2 hot red chillies
  • 675g/11/2lb onions
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 5cm/2in piece of root ginger
  • 1 tbsp dried oregano
  • 10 rosemary leaves
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 150ml/5fl oz olive oil
  • 3 sweet red peppers
  • 225g/8oz potatoes
  • 450g/1lb small aubergines
  • 450g/1lb tinned chopped tomatoes
  • Salt and pepper
  • Handful of coriander leaves
  • Handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves

1. At least 5-6 hours before serving: cut the lamb into 5cm/2in cubes and put into a bowl. Deseed the chillies, cut the flesh into thin strips and scatter them over the lamb. Peel and thinly slice the onions. Peel the garlic and cut into paper-thin slices. Peel the ginger and cut it into julienne strips. Sprinkle all these over, together with the oregano, rosemary leaves and crumbled bay leaf. Grind about 1tsp of black pepper over all. pour over the olive oil and turn to coat and mix. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave to marinate at room temperature for 3 hours. You can prepare the dish to this point and refrigerate it for up to 24 hours but, if you do, remember to bring it to room temperature at least 2 hours before cooking because the olive oil will set in the refrigerator and not work as an effective marinade.)

2. When ready to cook: preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Char the peppers over an open flame until blistered, then put in a covered bowl for the skins to steam loose. Peel, deseed and cut the flesh into strips. Add to the meat.

3. Peel and cut the potatoes into 2.5cm/1in cubes. Cut the aubergine into cubes the same size. Stir the potato and aubergine cubes into the meat together with the chopped tomatoes with their liquid. Season with slat. Transfer to a casserole into which all the ingredients will just fit and cover with the lid. bake for 30 minutes, then lower the temperature to 160C/325F/Gas 3 and continue to cook for a further 11/2 hours, checking from time to time that it is not drying out. If it does, add a ladleful of water, but this should not be necessary.

4. Remove from the oven and try a piece of the meat. it should be meltingly tender and moist. If necessary, cook a little longer and add more salt if you think it needs it. Serve in bowls, scattered with whole coriander and parsley leaves.

Serves 4