Chinese New Year resolve!

We’ve just passed Chinese New Year so a second Happy New Year to you!  Like so many people I made resolutions and am struggling to stick with them.  They aren’t anything particularly exciting and mainly go along the lines of eating more healthily, drinking less alcohol, exercising more and getting further than reading the plot summary of interesting looking books. Yes, I’m trying and, in a hesitant fashion, I’m succeeding.  The problem is that just as I'm starting to work on these resolutions, the season tends to get greyer and colder.  Three weeks in and I hope I can be forgiven for starting to feel a creeping sense of despondency, will it always be this hard? Am I making any progress?  I find that the hardest thing is trying to boost my energy in order to give myself the resolve to keep on track.  I must admit that completing my tax return on time did give me a relief filled boost but that was a pretty short lived high.

When I realised that it was Chinese New year I did get a sense of it being the opportunity for a second ‘fresh start’. It’s all immaterial really, any day can warrant a fresh start but there’s something about an ‘official’ beginning which gets me­­­­­ motivated.  There are a couple of new things on my horizon to feel encouraged by, most immediately will be starting to attend a couple of my local farmers markets.  This is exciting because, for the first time, I’ll be seeing my customers across a market stall rather than via the internet.  I’m happy but a little bit scared because it’s a very new experience. That in itself is the perfect impetus to adopt a new resolution; stepping out of my comfort zone when I can.  For me, that’s a hard thing to do and has probably been the single biggest challenge since becoming self employed a little over a year ago. I’ve moved from the security of working for somebody else to having only me to answer to. In my naivety I thought it would be all about working hard at what I’m good at and reaping the rewards. I hadn’t banked on the fact that I had to become good at things I’d never even done before.  I’ve learned quite a lot over time, especially about talking to people to whom I would previously have worried about sounding like a complete idiot, now I take my idiot status for granted and just get on with it.  The need to relentlessly plug away at things in order to succeed is a lesson well learned.  I’ve realised that nothing happens just because you deserve it.  Chinese New Year has come at a time when I’m finally starting to get a clearer idea of the road ahead.

I love Chinese food and particularly like this recipe because it tastes great, makes me feel virtuously healthy and fresh and appeals to the part of me which loves food in edible packages!  Every culture has them; be it pasta, potato or pastry based. Wantons are wonderful, flexible little packages of tasty flavours and very easy. The wrappers are usually in the freezer section of Asian supermarkets.  This recipe captures the flavours of a Chinese wanton but there’s no reason to stick with that.  The simple broth is wonderfully invigorating, especially when you add the zingy punch of chilli and ginger and the fragrance of fresh herbs.    It’s perfect New Year kick start fuel.

This particular recipe appears on www.allrecipes.com, an American site (which does have a British equivalent).

Ingredients

1/2 lb/200g boneless pork loin, coarsely chopped

2 oz/50g defrosted small prawns, finely chopped

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

1 teaspoon finely chopped spring onion

1 teaspoon of fresh ginger root

Wonton wrappers (about 25)

Chicken stock (quantity to suit the amount of soup you want to make)

Finely chopped spring onion

In a large bowl, combine pork, shrimp, sugar, wine, soy sauce, 1 teaspoon chopped spring green onion and ginger. Blend well, and let stand for 25 to 30 minutes.

Place about one teaspoon of the filling at the center of each wonton skin. Moisten all 4 edges of wonton wrapper with water, then pull the top corner down to the bottom, folding the wrapper over the filling to make a triangle. Press edges firmly to make a seal making sure you don’t leave any air inside the parcel. Bring left and right corners together above the filling. Overlap the tips of these corners, moisten with water and press together. Continue until all wrappers are used.

FOR SOUP

Bring the chicken stock to a rolling boil. Drop wontons in, and cook for 5 minutes.

I like to add flavourings such as chopped chilli, ginger and garlic to the broth and then sprinkle on a little sliced spring onion (or chives) and fresh coriander before serving.

The alternative (and most frequently seen) way to assemble wantons is to place the filling in the centre of the square wrapper before scrunching up the edges to form a pouch.  Chinese cooks tend to steam their wantons before serving and you can also deep fry them and serve with a dipping sauce.  

Conscience salving fish and chips with homemade tartar sauce

I am awake at the ungodly hour of 3am following a lurch from blissful sleep to a state of high alert. Fortunately this isn’t the result of some awful household crisis but rather a vague but strong recollection that there was something which I really should have done before going to bed.

I usually avoid any sort of meaningful activity during the hour or so before going to sleep; it’s the time when my brain’s shutting down, I’m not worthy of any sort of conversation and I’ve probably put the car keys in the fridge.  Yesterday morning I emptied out the contents of my breadbin (a week’s worth of leftover crusts and slightly stale slices) and, not being one for waste, decided to put them into the cooler of my ovens to slowly dry out enough to be turned into breadcrumbs. I intended to take them out that evening but, it not being the most involved of activities, I’d understandably forgotten all about them.  God alone knows what my neurons are up to but for some reason I’m suddenly awake, remembering and investigating the oven with an opportune cup of tea.

I hate throwing food away and the remains of loaves are a particular obsession of mine.  After consuming a seemingly gargantuan amount of bread during the week the remaining dried crusts usually fester unwanted in the breadbin. At this time of year they’re usually accompanied by various half eaten packs of crackers and the occasional digestive biscuit.  When these leftovers begin to outweigh the fresh items they’re put in the oven to dry out before a quick blitz in the food processor turns them into perfect rough, crunchy breadcrumbs. They are then stashed away in a jar ready for use, usually when I get the urge to make fish and chips.

To digress slightly, the cooler oven I mentioned earlier forms part of my aged oil fired range (I must stress we are definitely not talking posh aga here). It comprises two ovens, one hot, one approximately half that temperature. The range ticks over constantly and has been the main source of heat and cooking in my kitchen for quite a few years.  It does have a tendency to behave ‘independently’ which, if I were a character in a country based TV sit-com, would be charming and endearing, but I’m not and it isn’t! I’d always wanted one and, at a time when I was stony broke, it was bought for a song off ebay.  Over the years I feel we’ve got to know each other well but It has been a feat of Heath Robinson style ingenuity to achieve anything like accurate temperatures; I’m amazed that I’ve been able to feed a anybody at all let alone run a business with it. Consequently I was a very happy woman when I finally bit the bullet and took possession of a fabulous new (and controllable!) oven just before Christmas.   I’m still at the stage when I occasionally stroke it as I walk past and I frequently scrutinise it for spillages.  It’s a shiny beacon of certainty in my otherwise erratic kitchen.

Back to the food.

In a continued effort to provide a version of fast food without the hassle of a drive, here is my adaptation of fish and chips.  It’s conscience salving from the point of view that the chips are baked using only a very small amount of oil.  The fish can also be baked but I have to admit to liking the flavour of the quickly fried crumb coating.   I suppose that baking the items in the oven should mean that you can safely award yourself the pleasure of an indulgently rich tartar style sauce but personally I don’t need an excuse.

Conscience salving fish and chips with homemade tartar sauce.

Fillets of white fish (Coley is fabulous; far, far cheaper than cod or haddock).

Flour (just enough to toss the fish fillets in)

Egg

Lemon

Potatoes (Maris Piper or King Edwards are great varieties)

Mayonnaise

Crème  fraiche

Gherkins

Capers

Cooking oil

Dill (optional)

Fish.

Remove any skin and cut the fillets into fish finger size lengths, size is not critical but it’ll cook quicker if the pieces aren’t too big. Have ready a plate of plain flour (seasoned with salt and pepper, a bowl containing one beaten egg and finally a plate of breadcrumbs.  Take each piece of fish, toss it in the flour, dip and thoroughly coat in the beaten egg, then finally roll it in the breadcrumbs  The flour may seem unnecessary but don’t leave it out, it does help the egg adhere to the fish and seems to result in a better final texture.

Heat just under a centimetre of cooking oil in a frying pan. Test it by frying a small piece of bread, when it gently sizzles the oil is ready.  Fry a few pieces of fish at a time until golden brown on each side. Remove and keep warm in the oven whilst frying the rest. Break open a piece of fish if you want to check it’s cooked through. Alternatively you can avoid frying altogether by lightly oiling an oven tray, placing the fish onto it and baking in oven.  Turn after about 10 minutes. Test five minutes later to see if it’s cooked through.  Leave in longer if not.

Chunky chips

Peel as many potatoes as required.  Cut lengthways into four (more if the potatoes are really big).  Toss in just enough oil to coat (a tablespoon will probably be plenty).  Arrange on a baking tray, cut sides uppermost and put into a very hot oven for about half an hour or as long as it takes for the chips to deepen in colour and slightly char along the edges.  They will have a lovely, non-greasy crispness but will be fluffy in the centre.

A variation on tartar sauce

­­­­­­­­­­­Mix crème fraiche and mayonnaise in equal quantities (less or more of one depending on your personal taste).  Slice a gherkin lengthways then across into small dice.  Roughly chop a few caper and add both to the sauce.  I usually add a squeeze of lemon and finally chopped dill but use whichever flavours you like, a little tarragon works well with fish.

Add peas (mushy or otherwise) if you wish but for me a squeeze of lemon over the fish and a generous sprinkle of sea salt over everything is ultimate heaven.

I must just add one brief footnote to all this talk of technical marvelry.  Beautiful though my new oven is I can’t put my dressing gown on top of it and gently warm it through whilst I remove the said breadcrumbs and make that cup of tea.  Comfort is everything so the range stays.

Right, back to bed.

Something for the weekend! Spicy chicken wings.

Spicy baked chicken wings

I love an absolute bargain basement ingredient and chicken wings are a prime example.

I have to admit to having mixed feelings about this product.  Nine times out of ten I would far prefer to buy a whole bird and do what I can with the various bits; it's good value and stretches the brain and the fridge contents. It also feels less wasteful of the original bird. One chicken = three meals (casserole thighs and legs, stir fry the breasts with vegetables and make soup with anything left).  Sometimes I have to admit that I do make an exception.  My lovely local butcher in Winchcombe (quick plug for Browns! http://www.brownsbutchers-winchcombe.co.uk/) always comes up trumps.  If you have a good butcher in the area make friends with them (by good I mean a butcher who doesn't just sell ready shrink wrapped cuts).  Go in frequently and ask their advice.  Don't be afraid to ask what's cheap and what you can do with it. Believe me, they want your business and definitely want you to come back.  If you can afford prime meat fine but there's plenty of other stuff available. At least I know that the butchers have used the rest of the bird to sell as other products (boned, skinned breasts, whole legs and carcasses to the restaurants for stock).

Chicken wings are fabulously cheap and tasty and make brilliant snack food.  I've just finished a mammoth sort out of my freezer and found a bumper pile which I bought before Christmas. Now defrosted I've rubbed them with a whole load of spices before putting them into my fridge until the weekend. Over the next few days they will absorb the various spicy flavours, will be cooked and eaten from a shared from a large platter whilst I put my feet up in front of a film.

To my large bowl of wings I added:

3 dessert spoons of Harissa powder
3 dessert spoons of dried mint

2 spoons of Cayenne

2 spoons of Cumin

2 spoons of Ginger

1 teaspoon of allspice

It's an entirely personal and can be added to or removed at will.  There's definitely scope to up the heat with extra chilli or Cayenne and quantities will obviously vary depending on how many wings you are preparing.  When you are ready to cook the wings tip them into a roasting tin to which you've added about a tablespoon of oil and bake in a hot oven for about 45 minutes or longer (depending on how crispy you want them).  I usually shake over more of the spices and you can add chilli sauce before or after baking.  If you want your wings sticky and sweet then toss them in some honey before cooking.  (If so, put a sheet of foil under the wings, it'll stop the honey burning onto the roasting tin). 

This is THE most fantastic party food (as long as your guests are good at putting the bones into a bowl rather than hiding them under the cushions of your sofa).  

Serve with salad if you like, a spicy vinaigrette (add chives or herb of preference) or, if you prefer a cooler alternative, the easiest yogurt dip ever:

Easiest yoghurt dip in the world

This is a super simple raita style dip. It's a brilliant cool accompaniment to pretty much any spicy food.

Tub of natural yoghurt.

Couple of spoon fulls of mint sauce.

Stir together until the yoghurt is sufficiently minty and you like the flavour.

Roll on Saturday!