Perfect roast beef with demi-glace sauce is a dinner party worthy dish. A serious dinner party dish. For when you really want to impress. When you want to pull out all the stops. It’s not hard. It’s done restaurant style. Do your prep and it will all come together. Big wow factor. Low stress factor. Not a bad combination. A strip-loin means no bones to deal with either. I love prime rib....
This quick Mexican slaw is perfect when you need something awesome to go with your star attraction but you don’t have a lot of time. Cabbage, onions, carrots, jalapeños and a slightly sweet and tangy dressing come together in no time flat. With tacos. With grilled meats. Or even a spicy rare tuna steak. It’s also a great way to work on your knife skills. Don’t have knife skills? Today is a good day to start....
Restaurant style pathia curry is the perfect balance of hot, sweet and sour. It may not be a curry that comes to mind immediately but once you try it you will be hooked. This is a curry you don’t see in all Indian restaurants. That’s because they all make the same 15 curries. Why is that? Tell me I am wrong. It’s like they all got together and printed the same menu to save money....
This is the best Caesar salad I know how to make. Homemade dressing. Homemade croutons. Fresh grated parmesan. Delicious. It pulls out all the stops. It’s serious business. Scratch cooking. This is not your run-of-the-mill toss it on the table Caesar salad. It’s an undertaking. Be sure of that. A commitment. Old school. But the results speak for themselves. I love a gutsy salad. Lots of big flavours. Assertive dressing. The croutons are crazy good....
Think rich. Creamy. Complex. A little spicy. And completely over the top. That is chicken changezi. Chicken changezi is a curry unto it’s own. There’s nothing like it. That I know of anyway. The spice cuts through the cream. It has bite. A lush curry. Special even. This might not be the chicken changezi you’re expecting. It’s on the bold side. Big flavours. Shouldn’t be a surprise though. This is glebekitchen....
Concentrated veal stock is a wonderful, wonderful thing. Any veal stock is good. Use it in your cooking. But concentrated veal stock – that’s magic. Concentrating it makes it easier to store in the freezer. That way, it’s just there and ready when you need it. And you will need it with beef and with lamb. It’s not full blown demi-glace but it adds that unbelievable richness to sauces. Roast the bones before making the stock for a dark rich flavour....
Malaysian curry laksa or curry mee is one seriously tasty meal in a bowl. Big curry flavours. Coconut milk. Lemongrass. Chicken. Or shrimp. Or both. And noodles. There’s nothing here not to love. It’s spicy. Creamy. Deeply satisfying. It’s soup that eats like a meal. One big bowl of delicious. Call it what you want. It’s just good eating. Curry mee please I love everything about curry laksa. Even the name is perfect....
Korean beef bulgogi doesn’t have to be hard. Make a simple sauce. Slice some beef against the grain. Stir fry briefly. Add the sauce and finish cooking. Eat. Just as easy as that. Sometimes easy is just delicious. If you’ve never heard of beef bulgogi it’s time to learn. This is one of Korea’s national dishes. It’s been around for a couple thousand years. It means “fire beef”. Beef bulgogi can be grilled or stir fried Traditionally it’s grilled....
Hotel style makhani gravy. Want to make butter chicken like you dream about? This is the first step. The first step to other great dishes too. Makhani gravy is a foundational sauce. Think French mother sauces. Just like hotel gravy. A step on the path to a finished dish. The right tool for the job. This one is for butter chicken. Or anywhere you want to bring big, spiced tomato flavour to your dish....
Nadan chicken curry or nadan kohzi is a peppery chicken curry from the Kerala region of India. It’s got all the big South Indian flavours going on. Pepper, green chilies, coconut and curry leaves. Just really tasty. You see nadan chicken curry on South Indian inspired restaurants. Funkier places. It’s getting more popular. And it’s about time. South Indian cuisine has it going on. I’m not saying give up on Madras and chicken tikka masala....
Panang curry. Rich. A bit sweet. Spicy. A great mix of south east asian flavours. It’s the Thai curry you should be making. Never heard of panang curry? This is a dish you need to learn about. It’s on the menus at most every Thai restaurant. And yet everybody wants the red curry. Or maybe the green. There’s lots more to Thai cuisine. If you have heard of it, this is how I was taught to cook it....
Sausage with peppers. A classic American-Italian dish. Fry some sausage. Add peppers and onions. A bit of garlic. Some dried oregano and basil. Pile it on a hoagie. Melt some cheese. That’s downtown. Roast sausage for colour. Sweat peppers and onion slowly until melting. Add white wine. Reduce. Now the tomato. Simmer. Add the browned sausage. Simmer a bit more to bring the flavours together. Serve on polenta enriched with butter, cream and fresh grated parmigiano-reggiano....
Making tonkotsu ramen at home is truly a labour of love. This isn’t some 15 minute miracle insta-ramen recipe. This isn’t even some one day recipe. Making authentic tonkotsu ramen takes time. It takes effort. You have to be a bit crazy to go there. But it’s so good. It’s totally worth it. There are restaurants in Japan that do nothing but make tonkotsu ramen. Just big wonderful pots of the most amazing broth....
Cool rice noodles. Marinated chicken. Fresh herb salad. Sweet, salty nuoc cham dipping sauce. Vietnamese lemongrass chicken noodle bowl can’t be beat for dinner on a hot summer night. This is Vietnamese bun – the classic noodle bowl. Bun ga nuong to be exact. And I am a big fan. Doesn’t matter if it’s chicken, beef or pork. I like it all. Bits of super flavourful grilled meat on a bed of cool rice noodles just works for me....
Birria de res con consomé is one of the truly great dishes from Mexico. Beef and chilies come together in a way you have to experience to really understand. This is a world class cooking. I’d put it up against any stew. Or daube. Or gulyas. You name it. Complex chili flavours. Really deep beef flavour. Think about that for a second. That is a serious combination. Birria is like nothing out there....
Chicken tortilla soup is a soup that eats like a meal. It is loaded with chicken, tortillas and lots of garnishes. This is pretty authentic chicken tortilla soup. There are a couple of tweaks that might get me in trouble with purists. But if you want a satisfying bowl that’s better than your local Mexican joint read on. Poach the chicken in chicken stock This is soup. And the backbone of soup is stock....
Mexican comfort food. Well, maybe somewhere between Mex and Tex-Mex. Doesn’t matter. Chicken with tomatillo sauce is all about simple, satisfying flavours. Tomatillo, jalapeño, garlic, onion, chicken. That’s just good living. This is a house favourite. Been around forever. I know I didn’t invent it. Maybe I evolved it though. I can’t remember. I owe somebody out there. But I don’t know who. Chicken with tomatillo sauce starts with a good tomatillo sauce Tomatillo sauce is a super versatile ingredient....
Chickpea salad with sun-dried tomato vinaigrette is the perfect side dish for those summer dinners on the deck. Serve it with a nice rotisserie chicken and some tzatziki and a glass of chilled white wine. With anything grilled really. The perfect summer meal. It’s super easy to make. Toss some sun-dried tomatoes in the blender along with lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper. Toss together some chickpeas with a some red peppers and onions....
Weeknights don’t need to be boring. You can whip up a Korean beef bowl in around 40 minutes. Dinner on the table in less time than it takes to order in. A whole lot less expensive too I bet. And it scales. Feed a crowd if you need to. No problem. Just up the quantities. Might need to cook the beef in batches. So it browns instead of steams. But everything else scales perfectly....
Neapolitan lasagna is a delicious baked pasta dish made with a rich rag and fresh mozzarella. It is a lasagna for when your regular lasagna just won’t do. Lasagna is the king of pastas. There’s something magical about how the layers of pasta and sauce and cheese come together to make something so satisfying. Wonderful stuff. So many wonderful types of lasagna And there are lots of styles to choose from....
