All posts filed under: DO NOT USE

The Good Table review

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This is the age of the foodie. The amount of emerging talent is quite fascinating but there is only really one person who can get me truly excited about cooking, who can make any ingredient sound like king. Valentine Warner burst onto our screens in 2008 with his seasonal ingredients programme ‘what to eat now’ and wowed us all with his cheeky charm and utter passion for fantastic ingredients. But it’s not just watching his adventures that gets me excited, it’s his way with language and the way he describes the dishes in his books. I have all three but was recently sent the newest ‘The Good Table’ by publisher Mitchell Beazley for winning a Twitter competition. From the outside the book is enticing, the graphic simple yet endearing. I also love the title, although I wasn’t sure what it meant until I read in the foreword. I’m glad the polisher let Val role with it. Inside the book is literally jam packed with my favourite kind of recipes. Bold, simple and packed with flavour. …

Quadrille guest post – Enjoying your Fish Responsibly

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You can see this post on the Quadrille website here. Over the last few years, mine and I’m sure a lot of others attention has been brought to the sensitive issue of overfishing, which is happening in seas all over the world. This in turn has lead to a huge shortage of certain species. Celebrated chefs have done their part in educating the masses about which species should and shouldn’t be consumed. Restaurants also had to sit up and realise the problem. And if they continued to serve endangered species, they would be frowned upon. Probably the most well known example is when Nobu continued to serve Blue Fin Tuna, but recommended that their diners either don’t eat it, or ask for an alternative. Odd. You see, if we carry on eating these endangered species, they’ll quickly fade out and we’ll have to kiss goodbye to them forever. What the likes of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver have been telling us is to substitute certain species for ones that do exactly the same job. …

Home made Dim Sum – minced pork dumplings

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My first Dim Sum experience was shortly after I moved to London 6 years ago to embark upon my three year university experience. Well, I actually can’t say too much for a university experience but that’s a whole other story. ‘Lets go to Chinatown on Sunday to get Dim Sum’ exclaimed one of my course mates. Dim Sum I thought, what on earth could that be. Sure enough, when the bamboo baskets full of small pasta looking parcels arrived, I was a bit flabbergasted. I bit into my first one, a crunchy, pork filled morsel and devoured it in seconds. And so went the next and the next and the next until I was totally full and completely satisfied. Where I’m from (Nottingham), the most Cantonese we’d get was a sweet and sour chicken or beef in black bean sauce dish with a side of chips and curry sauce(!?) from the local take away on a Friday night. I don’t think Dim Sum exists in that part of the world! This is one of many …

Hong Kong – Live in London. Monday 12th – Sunday 18th September

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On your marks, get set, GO! Although our experience of the Hong Kong tourism board treasure hunt was not competitive, our fitness levels were sure put to the test as we scurried, Anneka Rice style, around Central London on Thursday evening. It was a good job we put trainers on that morning! So, why did the Hong Kong tourism board have us running around London, gathering clues to inform our next move, with a quick pit stop to sample some delicious Cantonese fusion canapés courtesy of a two-Michelin starred chef before ending up in Aqua, one of London’s chicest bars to sip two of their latest Asian inspired cocktails on a grand terrace overlooking London’s unmistakable skyline? To showcase a few of the many cultural connections between our great city and Asia’s world city and to give us a preview of the week long street festival, Hong Kong – Live in London, taking place in Central London this week. Hong Kong – Live in London will run on South Molton Street from Monday 12th – …

Pan fried duck with damson sauce, bok choi and shiitake mushrooms

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This dish was inspired by my recent London treasure hunt, where I was given an insight into the fascinating culture of Hong Kong. Read more about my experiences here. Ingredients 2 duck breasts 1 star anise 3 sprigs of rosemary 25 butter 10 shiitake mushrooms 1/2 red chilli, cut into rings (keep seeds in) 200g bok choi A few drops of fish sauce 1 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp sesame oil 1 tsp groundnut oil 3 cloves garlic 120g white rice Sea salt and pepper to season For the damson sauce 3 cm ginger, grated 1 red chilli, seeds removed and diced 225g damsons, stoned and halved 75g light muscovado sugar 15ml balsamic vinegar Method For the damson sauce 1. Stone the damsons and place into a pan, along with the balsamic vinegar, chilli and ginger. Cover with the sugar and plase on a medium heat. Let the sugar dissolve and leave to bubble for 5 minutes or until the damsons are soft 2. Blend the damson mixture until smooth and the pass through a …