Sweet Chilli Pork Patties and Mincing your own Meat!

This recipe came about as a result of trying out my shiny new Multi-function mincer by Judge.  I had to mince something to test it out and as pork came to mind - sweet chilli pork patties had to happen. 

    I never buy prepacked ready made burgers because you just don't know what you're going to get.  I always buy good quality mince but it has to be said there's nothing better than to mince your own meat so you know exactly what you're eating!

Print Recipe

 To make 6 to 8 small patties you will need:
a glug of vegetable oil for frying
360g minced pork (approx 3 pork loin steaks)
3 spring onions - chopped
1 red chilli pepper - de-seeded and finely chopped
2 nice fat cloves of garlic - finely chopped
1 egg - yolk only and free range of course
2 teaspoons of Mirin - Japanese sort of sweet rice wine
2 teaspoons of Ketjap Manis - Indonesian sweet soy
salt and black pepper to season

How to do it:
Chop your ingredients and either mince your pork loin steaks in the Judge Mincer (after removing all the fat) or use ready minced pork with a low fat content.
Put the mince into a bowl along with the spring onions, chilli, garlic, egg yolk, Mirin and Ketjap Manis along with a good pinch of salt and black pepper.
Mix together well but don't over mix or the mixture will become 'over processed' and look quite horrid.

Shape into 6 or 7 small patties or of course 2 nice fat burgers - whichever takes your fancy.
Heat up a frying pan large enough to cook them all at the same time.
You can fry a tiny amount of the mixture and have a taste to check the seasoning if you wish.
Fry the patties until they're nicely cooked through.  The exact time of course will depend on how big you make them, so I'll leave that to you to decide.
Whatever, don't over cook as there isn't any fat they will soon end up dry.
I served my patties in warm pitta bread with salad and skinny chips.

 Well here's the mincer by Judge:

This easy to use hand powered rotary mincer by Judge has steel mincing plates giving you the choice of course and fine.  It also comes with a four-shape cookie press.

It is relatively easy to clean although the mincer isn't dishwasher safe and so personally I'd recommend using an antibacterial spray after washing and before rinsing again.

 And on to the test:
The mincer was easy to assemble. There's a clamp to hold the mincer in place whilst in use.  It will stick to many different work surfaces - I tried wood and that worked too.
 However, I found the rubber suction doesn't work for more than a minute or so without making the rubber bottom damp and the instructions didn't mention that.  Paul the husband that never ever cooks a thing, said it was obvious to him that you would need to make it damp.....Okay, well he was correct and the problem was remedied in a second!
Once the rubber bottom was made damp by wiping with a cloth the mincer wasn't moving for anyone until you released it by the clamp of course.
Ten out of ten for good grip!

And now the mincing:
 Too easy to use - cut your choice of meat into cubes trimming off any fat and pop into the top along with the plunger thingy.  This was one of the pork loin steaks I used to make the patties.   

Attach the handle, and away you go.

 Make pork patties knowing you're eating only good things.

This mincer retails at around £16 for more information can be found over at www.judge.co.uk
Thank you to Pam for sending me this to review.

Camembert Baked in the Box with Bacon Dust

Melty, sticky, gooey cheese that oozes from its box and topped with bacon dust.  Ready in no time and all that's needed is fresh crusty bread and you're all set to dive in. 
With some bacon in the fridge in need of being used up what to do but make bacon dust!

  Having had a bit of a Google I think I just might have invented this as there seems to be no other baked Camembert with bacon dust recipes to be found. 

Aubergine Tomato and Goats Cheese Stacked on Garlic Bread

Slices of aubergine, tomato and goats cheese all stacked together on toasted  garlic bread - a lovely starter to a meal.

In my fridge was a nice beef tomato an aubergine and one round of goats cheese, I came up with this.  It's really easy to do too.

Leek and Carrot Soup

 I've had this recipe written down for an age but have only just got round to making it.  I now can't remember where I found the original recipe, so I'm unable to give the person or book a mention and give credit to them.

What I can tell you is it was delicious!  The addition of oregano I think really sets it off.

Jan's Chicken Teriyaki Skewers

Now these were nice, very nice indeedy!  Moist tender chicken with lovely charred bits of sticky goodness.

They're really very easy to do and all you need to serve them is some nice pita bread and salad.  Although greedy us had some skinny chips with them too!

Parma Ham Pizza with Two Cheeses, Pear and Honey Caramelised Onions

Discover the Origin is a campaign promoted by the European Union, Italy, France and Portugal and achieved by the office representative of five key European products: Burgundy wines, Port and Douro Valley Wines, Parma Ham and Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese. 

This scrummy Pizza was total yum on a plate!

Recipe taken from the book - Discover the Origin which sadly, isn't available to buy, I was very kindly sent a Promotional copy.

The aim of all of them is to enhance knowledge of the PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) among consumers, distributors and food professionals and to educate on the benefits of the provenance indicator schemes, the relevant checks, controls and traceability systems that are put in place to ensure ongoing quality, and to differentiate the products and raise their profiles.

All five of these products carry a guarantee of their provenance and quality: the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) for Parma Ham and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, AOC for Burgundy wines and DOC for Port and Douro Valley wines.  If you see these labels on any food or drinks, you can rest assured that you will be rewarded with excellent quality.

Over at the Discover the Origin website you can learn more about the campaign and also watch a video of chef Lesley Waters making rather yummy looking 'Parmigiano-Reggiano and Parma Ham Polenta Muffins'

Thank you to Louise for sending me the book.

If you would like the recipe for the Parma Ham Pizza click continue reading:

Spiced Lamb Koftas with Minted Yoghurt from Cookery School Book

I've very kindly been sent the Cookery School book by Michelin-starred chef Richard Corrigan.  Richard wrote the book to accompany 'Cookery School' the Channel 4 television series in which he stars along with Gizzi Erskine and is shown every week day at 2.05pm.

Scummy yummy lamb kofta kebabs with a mint and cucumber yoghurt dip.
The book is so easy to follow and as it's title suggests.  Many of the recipes and cooking techniques have step by step instructions with pictures. 
The only thing that the book is missing is a ribbon book mark!  But that's just my suggestion and no big deal at all, as it is of course, easy to use a piece of paper as a bookmark.

The book is well laid out and as I said very easy to follow.  It covers recipes and techniques in different categories, Basic, Intermediate, Advanced and super Advanced.  I think this book is excellent, not only for absolute beginners in cookery but also for people like myself that it always wanting to learn more.

Everything is covered from how to cook clams, down to when to serve a cheeseboard and what it should include.
I say it's a seriously great book for anyone to have, excluding of course, Richard Corrigan himself!  

Click 'continue reading' for the recipe.

'Recipe extracted from 'Cookery School', brought to you by Channel 4 with recipes by Richard Corrigan. Published on the 3rd March (Penguin HB, £20)'

Pork Chestnut and Madeira Terrine

 With Christmas almost upon us, why not start getting prepared now and have a go at making this terrine.  Full of lovely rich ingredients - Merchant Gourmet Chestnuts, pork, juniper berries and Madeira.  

Impress your guests, it's easy to make and would be an excellent starter for either Christmas or Boxing day, at New Year or of course, at any dinner party.

    This terrine can be made in advance as it will freeze nicely - just double wrap in kitchen foil.

Camembert Baked in the Box with Tiny Bruschetta for Dipping

Sticky gooey Camembert baked and oozing from it's box.

Serve with tiny bruschetta for scooping or dipping, perfect for sharing.

I've posted this Camembert recipe before (way back) but I made it last night and decided to give it an update now that I use a proper camera these days and not my mobile phone as I used to!

Baked Figs with Goat's Cheese Balsamic and Pistachios

Sweet and Jammie Turkish Black Bursa figs.  Warm from the oven having been baked with pistachios and chives, drizzled with Balsamic vinegar.

The figs were from M&S - they sell them ready to eat and they are totally Delicious.

Tandoori Style Chicken Skewers

A perfect starter to an Indian meal which is easy to make and looks amazing. 

Marinading the chicken in the lime juice makes the chicken nice and tender.

Parmesan and Spinach Polenta - Pan Fried with Crispy Bacon

Merchant Gourmet very kindly sent me some of their 1 minute Polenta -  Marvelous stuff!  

No more standing over the stove top, stirring for an age to get perfect lump free Polenta. However, the pack of Polenta came with a challenge!

To come up with a simple easy to make recipe that could be made from start to finish in 20 minutes and that was to include preparation time!

See over for the recipe:

Feta, Pistachios and Leaves with a Balsamic and Honey Dressing

Crumbled feta and pistachios and a salad of baby leaves with balsamic and honey dressing.

   I came up with this yesterday while I was drying my hair (as you do) and yes I do have food on my brain all day long!

Thai Style Salmon Fishcakes

I felt the need to make Thai fishcakes. I only had salmon (no white fish) and I was limited to what I had in my cupboards and fridge, I came up with these.

I really wanted the outside to be crispy, so seeing as I had a bag of potato starch living in my cupboard (as you do)!
I wondered what would happen if I coated the fishcakes in it before frying.
A marvelous idea - it worked! You don't want much - just a coating.



Print this Recipe

You will need:
250g of salmon fillet - cut into chunks
1 tsp Thai fish sauce
1 tbsp red curry paste
2 kaffir lime leaves -shredded very finely
1 green birds eye chilli - deseeded and finely chopped
1 egg - yolk only
1 tsp palm sugar or muscovado sugar
½ tsp salt 2 spring onions, finely chopped
1 tbs of cornflour - if needed to thicken
**optional - a couple of spoons of potato starch to give extra crunch
a glug of sunflower oil - for frying

How to do it:
Put the fish in a food processor with the fish sauce, curry paste, kaffir lime leaves, egg yolk, sugar and salt. Process until smooth.

Put the mixture into a bowl. Add the cornflour (if you need it) to thicken the mixture.
Stir in the chopped spring onions and the chilli.
Divide the mixture into 4 pieces - or 8 if you want baby fishcakes .
Using your hands, roll each one into a ball and then flatten into rounds.
Roll each one in potato starch (optional).

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the fish cakes in (in batches if you need to) for a minute or so on each side depending on their size.
You want them nice and golden brown. Once they're cooked, remove and drain on kitchen paper.
Serve immediately with a nice dipping sauce. Mine was a sweet and sour dipping sauce.

Goats Cheese and Red Pepper Pastries with Pesto

I had one of those long pointed sweet red peppers in my fridge. So, not really knowing what to do with just one pepper and seeing as I had some goats cheese too, I came up with these individual goats cheese pastries.

On with the pastries......

Goats Cheese with Red Onion and Chilli Marmalade

Oooh yummy yum yum - I love goats cheese! I made a red onion and chilli marmalade to serve with it which turned out to be really good.



This makes a really nice starter and would be great at Christmas. It's also very easy to make too.

To serve 2 you will need:
1 glug of olive oil
2 red onions - sliced thinly
half of a medium heat red chilli - chopped finely and seeds removed
1 star anise
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar
100ml of red wine

2 rounds of goats cheese

Heat the oil in a medium sized saucepan and add the onion and the chilli.
Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes over a low heat. You don't want the onions to brown very much.
Now add the star anise, sugar and red wine vinegar. Cook for a bit and then add the red wine.
Cook over a low heat for a good while (30 minutes plus) until you're happy with the consistency and it is all nice and glossy. Remove the star anise before serving.

I served mine with the goats cheese while it was still warm.

Pop two rounds of goats cheese under the grill for about 5 minutes. Keep an eye on them and remove just before they start to melt.
I sprinkle a little brown sugar on top of each cheese and finish with a cooks blowtorch.
Just gives me an excuse to get that gadget out - I love it!

Scallops Baked in Their Shells - Fantastic Starter Dish

This is a Martin Blunos recipe for scallops baked in their shells - a fantastic starter course to a meal.
A couple of post back you will see that I cooked them at the Miele Cookery Experience at the BBC Good Food Show.

Print Recipe

For each person you need:
3 nice and fat diver caught scallops, removed from their shells keeping both side of the shell
250g of ready made puff pastry
1 small carrot
1 small leek
1/2 a stick of celery
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon black onion seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
olive oil
a good glug of Noilly Prat or dry white wine
100ml fish stock
1 egg yolk
50g butter

To serve you will need: lemon wedges
rock salt - enough to cover a plate

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F or Gas 4
Cut about 4cm from the end of the peeled carrot and slice it very finely into matchsticks. Do the same with 4cm pieces of leek and celery, and keep each pile separate.
Now heat about a tablespoon of butter and a little olive oil in the bottom of three separate small saucepans.
Now add a half teaspoon of the seeds to each pan making sure you put a different one in each pan - don't mix the seeds together!

Cook for a minute or two until fragrant, then add the carrot to the pan with coriander. Add the leek to the pan with black onion seeds and the celery to the pan with the cumin.
Add a splash of Noilly prat (or white wine) and a little stock to each pan and cook gently until the vegetables are softened.
Take the orange roe from the edge of each scallop, removing and discarding the membrane that attaches it to the flesh at the same time.
Put the roe into a blender with the egg yolk and whiz briefly till you have a smooth intensely coloured egg mixture.

Flour a board and roll out the pastry into an oblong roughly 30cm by 12cm then cut into three matching long strips, you need each strip to be long enough to wrap around each scallop shell.
When the vegetables are softened add about a teaspoon of diced butter to each pan, then shake the pans about a bit to emulsify the liquids to make a sauce.
Make three 'doughnuts' with kitchen foil on a baking tray so you can rest the finished scallops - you need them to sit straight in the oven. Place three half shells on a tea towel so they sit flat.
Spoon the leeks into one, carrots into another and celery into the third. Slice the scallops - each one into three pieces and put the scallop slices on top of each of the vegetables.
Spoon over the corresponding butter sauce.
With a pastry brush make a generous ring of the egg roe wash around the outside edge of one of the empty scallop shells.

Now it gets a bit tricky!
Make a ring of the egg mixture around the outside of the shell that is holding the leeks and scallops.
Take one of the strips of pastry and put the two shells together, seal all the way round the shell.
Put the finished shell onto one of the foil rings on the tray. Repeat this with the other two scallops.
Carefully put the tray into the oven and cook for 8-10 minutes, till the pastry is puffed and golden.


Serve on a bed of rock salt with lemon wedges and the idea is you pull of the pastry and dip it into the buttery vegetable mixture in each opened scallop.

Nice and Spicy Tomato and Red Lentil Soup

Nice and spicy tomato and red lentil soup. The Cayenne pepper and crushed chillies really make this soup - don't try to make it without!



To make about 6 bowls you will need:
340g red lentils - get the ones that have no need to soak first
water
a good glug of olive oil
2 medium onions - diced
1 celery stalk - diced
4 cloves garlic - chopped finely
1 x 400g can of good quality tinned tomatoes
900 ml vegetable stock - made from 2 Knorr vegetable stock cubes
2 teaspoons of Tabasco sauce
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 and a half teaspoons cayenne pepper
1teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
a good pinch or two of crushed chillies - depending on your taste
Double cream to serve - if you want to be all fancy that is

How to do it:
Put the lentils and 900ml of water into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Now turn off the heat.
Put a lid ob the saucepan an leave the lentils covered for about 20 minutes to absorb some of the water.

While that's happening, heat the olive oil in big stockpot or large saucepan.
Add the onions, and cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes, until they are nice and soft. But be careful not to let them brown.

Now add the celery and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until soft.
Stir in the Tabasco, turmeric, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper and crushed chillies. Let it cook just for 30 seconds whilst stirring so nothing burns. Now pour in the tomatoes along with their juice and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the vegetable stock and 250ml of water.
Cover and bring to a simmer - if you think the soup is too thick add a little more water.

Drain the lentils, discarding the water and add just over half of the lentils to the pot. Using a (stick) blender or a jug blender, puree the soup till nice and smooth.
Now you can add the remaining lentils to the pot.
Turn the heat back on and simmer for about 20 minutes till nice and hot.

Serve with a drizzle of double cream and a few chilli flakes and nice crusty bread.

Grilled Goats Cheese with Balsamic Leaves and Strawberries

Goats cheese, grilled then finished with a cooks blow torch. A few leaves in a balsamic dressing and strawberries. So simple to make.

First make a quick balsamic dressing for your salad leaves.

Balsamic Dressing:

3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar
a teaspoon of runny honey
a teaspoon of wholegrain mustard
salt and black pepper

Whisk the lot together, then give it a taste and adjust the seasoning, you might want to add a pinch of caster sugar.
If you don't have a whisk put it all in a clean jar with the lid on and give it a good shake which will do the same trick.

You can have your salad leaves at the ready in a bowl but only when you're ready to serve can you put the dressing on them - if you do it in advance the leaves will go soggy and taste oily.

So, when you are ready, pour a little of the dressing over the leaves and carefully mix together with your hands.

The Goats Cheese:

Put your goats cheese onto a shallow tray and put them under the grill for a couple of minutes (don't try turning them) there is no need to.
Grill until they just start to bubble.
Finish the top with a cooks blow torch.

Add some slices strawberries - job done.

I tried to be fancy and do a squiggle with Balsamic glaze, which is a reduction of balsamic vinegar.
No I didn't make it - I cheated and brought it ready made in a squeezy bottle from Asda at £2.00 for 250ml it was a bargain!

Feta, Sweet Peppers, Tomatoes and Onions Baked in Foil

Greek Feta, roasted sweet peppers, onions, garlic and cherry tomatoes with roasted chilli pepper to add a little heat.

I've made something similar before see here but I like this more as I like both the heat the chilli gives and the roasted pepper.

All baked together in foil parcels. Such a lovely and easy dish to make. It can also prepared ahead of time and baked in the foil when you're ready.

Serve in the foil parcels - the smell is amazing and it's a doddle to make too!

Nothing more is needed than a chunk of crusty bread to mop up the juices.

You will need to serve 2:

2 sweet pointed peppers and 1 green chilli pepper of medium heat (both of which need to be roasted, skin removed and deseeded) more on than in a bit.

2 large sheets of kitchen foil

Good Greek Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

1 block of Greek feta cheese - cut in half and each half into 3 pieces

1 medium red onion - sliced really thinly so it gets cooked

2 garlic cloves - finely chopped

a handful of cherry tomatoes - halved

salt and black pepper to season

A nice glass of red wine to be drunk whilst preparing, and another for when you're eating of course.A chunk of fresh crusty bread for mopping.

Preheat your oven to about 200C/400F/Gas 6

Sip the wine - then rub the sweet peppers and the chilli all over with a little olive oil. **Be sure to prick them a few times with a sharp knife - or they will explode in the oven and you'll end up cleaning all day.

The idea is to roast them until they start to blacken which gives them a lovely flavour and makes removing their skins really easy.

Now put them on a baking sheet and roast for about - I don't know say 15 to 20 minutes tuning half way through. You'll find the chilli pepper is done first so you will have to remove it from the oven.

I find they don't blacken all over as much as I'd like so I take to using my cooks blowtorch to them which does the trick. Now place them into a plastic bag and leave to sweat for a few minutes.

You will find once removed from the plastic bag that the skin peels off really easily. Don't fuss if there are little bits of blackened skin remaining - they all add to the taste - seriously.

Remove the skins and the seeds from both the sweet peppers and the chilli pepper.

Cut the sweet pepper into strips and chop the chilli pepper as small as you can - just so that someone doesn't get a huge lump of chilli pepper that's all.

Below - ready for the oven.

Have another sip of wine and get yourself two large sheets of kitchen foil and bring the sides up a little. Drizzle a little olive oil and start to layer the ingredients.

You can start with onion, then a slab of feta and garlic - add a strip of sweet pepper and a little chilli pepper.

Add a couple of the tomato halves and season with a little black pepper. You really don't want much salt so save the salt till the end.

Drizzle again with a teeny bit more olive oil and repeat until you've used everything up. Now you can season with a little salt and more black pepper.

Pull the foil up round in each four corners to form a loose parcel. Place each parcel on a baking sheet and put in the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Put each foil parcel on it's own plate and serve immediately with nice crusty bread and the wine.