Chicken Broth. The Basic Ingredient

Both Thai and Chinese eat a lot of soup dishes, in India chicken or lamb is cooked in light broth. I have always liked chinese soups and broths and when I visited Malaysia and Thailand, I had the opportunity to taste many soup dishes. Chicken Broth is the basic ingredient for many dishes, both meat, fish or seafood. I often make this broth at home, specially in winter months as apart from it being very tasty, it is filling too and warms our belly. Chinese call it The Monks' Broth. All the ingredients listed below are of my own way of cooking.

In a deep pot, pour 3 litres cold water, add:
One whole leg of chicken (skinned and fat removed)
1 large Beef Rib
1 small bone (Pork/Beef)
l large onion, whole or chopped fine.
1 large tomatoe, whole or chopped fine
6 teeth of garlic, finely chopped
1 large chunk of fresh ginger finely chopped
l stalk rosemary
2 large bayleaves
1 tbl.spoon Saffron
2 stalks of fresh leek, finely chopped
1 tbl.spoon freshly crushed black pepper
1 Tbl.spoon Cumin seeds, 4 cardamams, 4 cloves, small piece of Cinnamon (In India it is called dal-chini which is the best)all grinded together.

Bring to the boil all the above ingredients and simmer on a very low heat for one hour. BUT PLEASE TAKE OUT THE CHICKEN LEG AFTER 10-15 MINUTES COOKING.
When the water is reduced, take out the beef rib, cut into small pieces and together with chicken pieces put back in the pot. Your basic chicken broth is now ready. You can add:

1. Cooked Chickpeas -Carrots- Beansprouts- Bean Curd (Tofu will do)

2.Shelled Prawns.
Shredded Pork,octopus,calamari,beansprouts,pork balls, dumplings etc(Sauted in Wok). Garnish the Soup with fresh Coriander leaves and a little Pad Thai sauce. It is delicious. A cold beer or Jasmine Tea is the best drink with these Soups.
Enjoy it.

Lobster in Wine and Ginger Sauce

This is my favorite lobster dish, I have eaten it in Chinese restaurants in Soho in London and in Hua Hin Evening Market(Thailand) and prepared it myself.

Take 2 lobsters, cut them length-wise, chop off claws (but keep them)
200gms. baby clams
200gms. giant prawns (shelled but tails left on)
4 cloves fresh thinly chopped garlic
A good slice of thinly chopped fresh ginger
1 stalk fresh Leak
1 medium size onion (chopped)
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 whole dry red chilli to taste
50ml. dry white wine or 30ml dry sherry
4 tbl.spoons olive oil
1 cup Chicken Broth
1 egg
2 tbl.sooons Pad Thai Sauce (available from any Thai/Chinese grocer).

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan, pour in chopped onion, ginger,garlic,red chilli and leak. Stir fry for a few minutes. Add pieces of lobster and giant prawns and claw pieces and cover the pot, once or twice stirring the contents slowly. Now pour in the the chicken broth and wine or sherry and cook on slow heat for 10-15 minutes so that wine is reduced and sauce thickened. If you like thicker sauce, mix one tbl.spoon cornflour with water, mix well and add to the pot. Add freshly crushed black pepper and salt to taste. Garnish with fresh Corriander or mint leaves.
Good Appetite.

Lobster, Lobster, Lobster

When I started this blog about my favorite food recipes, I did not realise that there may be thousands and thousands others with the same idea who could also write about food and their favorite receipts too, put photos on their blogs, thus enticing people to read about them. So I stopped writing, I do not know from where to upload photos of food and wine, I write about the food I have enjoyed, and cook at home. But yesterday I had a look at my blog site and saw visitors who have logged in to it. So I am encouraged to see that some people are viewing my blog with interest, and have decided to update my blog.

Some time ago I stumbled upon a website selling fresh Lobsters online and thought about writing some recipes of cooking lobster. I have eaten lobster many times, in Spain, in England, in India and in Malaysia and Thailand. I too have cooked lobsters a few times.The best lobster I have had was in Thailand and in a Chinese restaurant in London. The usual way to prepare a lobster is either to boil it in water or steam it. The lobster has to be alive to boil, a frozen one will not do. China and India both export tinned lobster heads, which are quite tasty. Some time ago I bought a packet of frozen Cray Fish in Holland, which was also imported from China. It was alright in taste.

For two lobsters of 1/2 kilo each:
500gms fresh baby clams
3-4 cups of water,
50 ml Dry White wine.
1 tbl.spoon butter
2 tbl.spoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 shallots, finally chopped
2 clove garlic
2 cms. fresh garlic
1/2 cup fish stock
1 tbl.spoon dry tarragon or a twig of fresh herb
1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
pinch of cayanne
First chop off the heads of the lobsters, remove the coral and preserve.
Chop off the claws, break their shells. Heat olive oil and butter and add lobster pieces. Cover and simmer until you see that the lobsters have a glowing red colour. Add wine, fish stock, coral shell (to thicken the sauce) shallots, garlic and ginger and baby Clams and put it in the oven, on moderate heat, in a covered dish, for about 20 minutes. The sauce should thickened by the time otherwise add little corn flour and mix it well.

You can add a little brandy to the dish when ready and set fire to it ( a la fiambre) if you like. You can eat boiled rice which is nice with the sauce. A chilled bottle of dry white wine will do nicely too.

Churrascarias and Asaderos

In Brazil, in Argentina and in Urguay charcoal grilled meat is a favorite plate. Young bulls are slaughtered and thick steaks are grilled and served with dips. Argentinian beef has become world famous and is imported in many countries. This food was for the working class, for people living and working in the Pampas. Customers sit in a restaurant and large chunks of meat are served by waiters or the Churrasquero himself who would go round the tables serving the steaks. Who could resist the mouth watering and tempting smell of grilled meat?

In Zurich there are Churrascarias, in Antwerp are Argentinian Grill Restaurants. In Spain they are called Asaderos and are very popular places to eat beef or pork steaks, spare ribs and Chuletones ( cutlets). In many towns, there are restaurants in the slaughter- houses (mataderos) where they serve fresh grilled bull meat and specially in the Bull Fighting Season, demand for meat from bulls killed in the corrida, are much in demand. The meat is slightly darker but very tender and considered to give you strength. In Morrocco in many restaurants whole skinned, stuffed goats are grilled in deep earthen ovens. It takes about four hours to grill the meat, which is then cut into pieces and served with rice and nan bread.

When I was young and living in Spain, for many years I went to Pamplona in the province of Navarra (north Spain) to participate in the Corridas celebrated every year. Outside the city and up in the hills there used to be a restaurant serving fresh meat of the bulls killed in the corridas. The place had a thatched roof and the interior and the ceiling of the house was full of vines. A big log fire was burning and over it were hung large slabs of meat. We barely sat down on low round tables than small tumblers (jaras) of wine were placed, together with fresh warm bread and olives. Small cups of onion soup were served and it broke the ice and you felt welcomed. Then you ordered the size and the side of meat you wanted and it was cut from the slabs and thrown on the sizzling fire. I have never forgotten the food we used to eat there. Some times I went there in winter and the first thing I would do was to meet my friends, have a Tinto or a Pintado ( red wine or red & white mixed) in a bar in the city, have a few tapas and then go to this restaurant. In the evenings it was nice to sit in its warm and cozy atmosphere, a roaring fire in front, drinking Vino de Navarra and eating fresh bread with olives and savor the smell of grilling meat and getting hungry until the food was placed on the table.

Pamplona is famous for its cheese & ham and fish croquates and ice cream and if you ever head towards Navarra, do visit Pamplona. It is a treat of a place.

Grilled Pork Spare Ribs

Now that I have written about the ingredients which I use for grilling meat dishes, I will write about oven grilled pork spare ribs. This is a favorite dish for us all and I am sure you also like it. It is easy to make and with the right ingredients it will taste good. For one kilo of spare ribs (trimmed of all fat) take:

4 tbl spoonful Tandoori Paste
1 tbl spoonful coriander powder
1 tbl spoonful cumin powder
1 teaspoonful ginger powder
2 teaspoonful mixture of cardamom seeds,cloves and cinnamon
1 teaspoonful thyme or oregano
2 cups plain yoghurt
1 cube beef stock dissolved in 1/2cup warm water
1 teaspoon black powder
Salt to taste

Marinate spare ribs in the above ingredients for at least one hour. Preheat oven at mark 250 and in an aluminum foil covered oven tray, pour in the ribs and marinade. Grill the ribs at gas mark 180 for 30 minutes., turning over once. The ribs will be ready, richly browned all over. Serve with baked or boiled potatoes, green beans or mixed vegetables and green salad. A light red wine will do nicely.

What is in my kitchen cupboard

If you enjoy cooking for yourself or your family and friends, the ingrediens for different dishes are important. These give flavour, colour, aroma and taste which you like.There are some herbs which I use for all dishes, beef, lamb, poultry, pork, vegetables. Then there are herbs which I use in winter dishes for making them warm in taste. So I will first list here the names of herbs which will go with every dish:-
Dried Herbs (Pounded,grinded or whole)

Coriander powder- Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,fish,vegetables
Cumin powder- Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,fish,vegetables
Basil - Beef,lamb,weal,poultry
Marjoram - Beef,weal
Thyme - Beef,lamb,pork,weal,fish,shellfish
Oregano - Beef,lamb,pork,weal,pizza,pasta,fish,carrots
Anise (seeds) - Pork,poultry
Tarragon - Beef,pork,fish
Rosemary - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,game
Cinnamon - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,game,fried pillaf rice,briani
Cloves - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,game,fried pillaf rice,briani,vegetables,
cabbage,sweet pickels
Cardamom - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,game,vegetables,sweet pickles.
Bay leaves - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry,cabbage,spinash
Black Pepper - For use in all vegetables and meat dishes
Ginger Powder - Beef,lamb,pork,poultry and game
Mustard seeds - Fish (I use these seeds when I prepare a light sauce for fish)
Tandoori Powder - For grilling beef,lamb,pork,poultry and game and fish

Apart from coriander and cumin seeds, I have also a mixture grinded cloves,cinnaman stick and cardamom seeds which I use in marinade for grilled beef,lamb,pork,game and poultry dishes. This mixture is very aramtic. I use it in mince meat to make meatballs,kebabs and koffte.

Fresh Ginger - For all dishes. Fresh ginger has effect of warmth, I use it liberally in food, sweet and other pickles
fresh Garlic - Use for all dishes.

CousCous with Lamb Curry & Vegetables

From Morroco with Love.


CousCous is a traditional North African dish made from Durum (hard) wheat Semolina and prepared with meat, lamb or chicken curry and vegetables. This is a delicious dish if prepared properly, not the packet variety which you soak in boiling water for five minutes. The wheat is pounded into granules and soaked in water for a few hours and then dried, sifting the grain through your fingers until it is smooth. I first tasted CousCous in Tangier in the mid sixties and used to eat it whenever I visited Morocco. But the best CousCous I ever had was in Casablanca, prepared by an stranger who held me captive for two days.

It was the autumn of 1964 and I went to Casa blanca on a periodical visit. I arrived there early in the morning and having checked in a hotel, shaved and showered and changed into fresh clothes, and came down and stood at the front entrance of the hotel. It was early and I was contempleting whether to go to the people I had come to visit or have some breakfast and strong moroccan coffee first. I had barely stood for five minutes there when a woman in a long kaftan, its hood covering her head, her face covered with an scarf and only her eyes visible, approached me. She came to me purposefully, stopped in front of me and gestured with her hand that I follow her. She was of medium height, slim looking through her kaftan and there was an animal agility about her. A woman covered from head to feet or shrouded in burka, is no strange sight in Morocco, however I was taken-a-back a little but without hesitation followed her. She walked briskly and I followed her at a little distance.

In ten minutes we had plunged in the depth of Casa blanca's drab, dirty, broken down alleyways, the din of daily life drowning the softness of the morning. In my mind ran the thought that I may be taken to some place and robbed or even killed. This had happened to me on a previous visit when I had hired a taxi one evening to go to the beach. It was late in the evening and there were few people, some women with small children playing in the sand. The driver stopped his taxi at some distance, I got out and he took out a knife and asked me to hand over all the money I had. I panicked and gave him all I had but told him not to leave me there alone. I told him the name of the person whom I had come to visit and gave him the address. Now it was his time to panick when he heard the name of the person. He pushed the money in my hand, shoved me in the back of the taxi and driving as if the Devil was on his tail, dropped me a few metres from the place I had told him. When I told my host about the incident, he nodded his head and cautioned me not to go anywhere without first telling him about my destination.

Now the woman leading the way entered a narrow alley, children and dogs lolling in the dirt, a man repairing bicycles in the middle of the street. Abruptly she stopped in front of a small door, opened it with a push and beckoned me to follow. I did and found myself in a huge hall, in the middle were water taps where women were filling water jugs, washing clothes and a few men lounging and smoking. It crossed my mind that this was a Zennana, women's quarters, but before I could react to my surroundings, my guide was climbing the stairs and when I reached her, she opened a door and entered. I followed her. Then she locked the door. She stood there before me and extended her hand. I understood the gesture and gaver her a 1000 Pesetas Note (Spanish money), a large sum at that time. She took the money and left, closing the door behind her. Not a single word had passed between us. I edged towards the door and found that it was locked from the outside. My heart missed several beats.

After what seemed a long while, the lady of the house entered the room, closed and locked the door. In her hand was a large basket full of groceries. She had also brought a 1/4 bottle of White Label whisky, soda water and three bottles of cold beer. Now her head was not covered and her hair was thick and the colour of dark chestnut. Then she took off her scarf and I was pleased to see that she was very good looking, on her cheeks were tattooed small dots. She took off her kaftan, unzipping it all the way down and emerged in a knee length embroidered shirt. She was a slim young woman, about seventeen, with thick eyebrows. She came to me, touching my body with hers, and gave me a very passionate kiss on my lips. Still no word was spoken.

What followed was a flood of erotic passion, sweating bodies entwined and crushing into each other.The day passed in a whirlwind of love making, I sitting on the cot drinking cold beer, whisky & soda and she bustling about in the small room. She went out, brought a bucket of fresh water and bathed me. Then she showered and sitting naked on the floor, started cooking. It was CousCous with lamb curry and vegetables. And it was delicious, I had never tasted such tasty food anywhere in Morocco. The door was locked again and no word passed between us.

I stayed the night with her and next morning when I woke up, she had already brought fresh bread and butter, Nan and olives and had brewed strong and sweet tea. To my surprise, she was singing Indian movie songs. Indian songs are very popular in Morocco. Afterwards we made love and took a nap. Late in the evening,when I indicated to her my wish to leave, she clung to me and would not let me go. So I stayed there the second night too, eating grilled goat meat with rice and nan, chickpeas and harissa (hot chilli paste). In the morning, after two nights's stay, I got ready and followed her all the way to the hotel. Without stopping or saying goodbye, she indicated the hotel and walked on, without looking back. Although I stayed in the same hotel many times and stood near the entrance door expectantly, nobody in a kaftan with head and face covered, ever approached me.

To prepare CousCous:
In a bowl put 300gms semolina, cover with cold water and leave for 20 minutes.

In a deep pot with steamer (a seive will do) heat olive oil and pour in :
2 large onions, peeled and coarsly chopped
1 large tomatoe, chopped
4 teeth of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 piece (3cm) ginger, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon thyme
1 green chilli
100gms Chickpeas (soaked over night in water. You can use canned or bottled ones too).
1/2 teaspoon saffron powder or some whole saffron twigs. OR 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric powder.
1 teaspoon each Cumin seeds, Corriander seeds, 4 pods Cardaman seeds, Black Pepper and salt to taste (all the spices could be used whole or pounded or grinded).

Fry the contents for 2 minutes and add lamb, trimmed of any fat and cut into cubes and fry for another 2 minutes. Add little water to mix the ingredients and then pour in 2 cups of more water, enough to cover the contents and some more. The idea is to make a thick curry but not too watery. Bring it to boil and simmer on very low heat.
Drain semolina and put it in the steamer and let it steam over the pot.
In the meantime,
peel and cut into cuarters 2 medium size potatoes
1 large turnip (also peeled and cut)
1 large zuccini (cut into large cubes)
1 medium aubergine (eggplant)
100gms fresh green beans
3 medium size carrots
100gms Okra

After 10 minutes cooking, take off the steamer and rub semolina with your fingers, smoothing the grains with little cold water. Add salt to taste and some olive oil. Put the steamer over the pot again and let semolina absorb the juices steaming under it. Repeat this process two-three times. The lamb will take 20 minutes to cook, so add all the vegetables in the pot after 20 minutes and simmer for 10 minutes more. Mix well the contents of the pot before serving.

CousCous is traditionally served on a large plate and meat and vegetables poured over it and eaten with fingers or with an spoon. Cold beer or red wine will go nicely with this tasty dish. You can serve Nan or Pitta bread, olives, humus, harrisa (red chilli paste) and you will have a feast.

If you would like to make CousCoous with vegetables only, prepare the vegetables with onions and a tomatoe and steam the semolina the same way. The choice is yours.