Lamb Shank Korma
Come in from the cold and sit down to slow-simmered pot roast. Even on the coldest day, these winter slow cooker recipes warm you from your toes to your nose!
Ingredients
6 French-trimmed lamb shanks
1 brown onion, thinly sliced
4cm piece fresh ginger, peeled, finely grated
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 cup korma paste
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
100ml low fat cream (omit for VLED)
1 cinnamon stick
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh coriander sprigs
1 long green chilli, thinly sliced
handful almonds, roughly chopped
Method
Step 1
Place shanks, onion, ginger, garlic, paste, tomato, cream, cinnamon, poppy seeds and 1/2 cup water in the bowl of a 5.5-litre slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper. Cover. Cook on LOW for 8 hours (or HIGH for 4 hours) or until shanks are tender. Using a large metal spoon, skim excess fat.
Step 2
Combine coriander, chilli and almonds in a small bowl. Transfer shanks and sauce mixture to a serving dish. Sprinkle with coriander mixture.
Middle Eastern Chicken with Olives
Ingredients
60ml extra virgin olive oil
8 free-range chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on
1½ tsp sea salt
1 tbsp finely chopped garlic
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp sweet paprika
30g Italian parsley leaves, chopped
30g coriander leaves, chopped
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 pinches saffron, steeped in 30ml boiling water
2 large red onions, peeled, halved and sliced thinly
500ml boiling water (or chicken stock if you prefer a deeper chicken flavour)
400g large green olives, pitted
juice of 2 lemons
coriander to garnish
Method
- Place a casserole dish with olive oil over a medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken thighs with 1 teaspoon salt and sear in the hot oil in two batches to brown the skin – about seven minutes. Remove chicken and set aside. Discard all oil and wipe out pan.
- Using a mortar and pestle (or a blender), crush the garlic, ginger, pepper, cumin, paprika, parsley, coriander and ½ teaspoon salt into a paste with extra virgin olive oil and saffron water.
- Place olive oil in the casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the sliced onion and spice paste and cook gently, stirring regularly, for 5-10 minutes, until onion becomes translucent. Stir in the chicken thighs so that they are coated in the spice mix. Continue stirring while slowly adding the boiling water (or chicken stock). Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, cover the casserole and cook for 30 minutes.
- Add the olives, cover and cook for a further 10 minutes, then stir in the lemon juice. Remove from heat and rest, uncovered, for five minutes. At this stage, you can remove the chicken and reduce the sauce if it’s a little too watery.
- Place chicken on plates, spoon over olives and sauce, garnish with coriander and serve.
INGREDIENTS
Steamed barramundi parcels with Asian greens
4 x 150-200g barramundi fillets, skin removed
¼ cup shredded ginger
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon reduced salt soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 bunches bok choy
200g snow peas, trimmed, shredded
2 bunches broccolini
Coriander sprigs, to serve
Lemon wedges, to serve
Preheat oven to 180°C. Place each barramundi fillet on a sheet of non-stick baking paper and top with shredded ginger.
Place the oyster sauce, soy sauce and sesame oil in a bowl and whisk to combine. Spoon sauce over the fish and fold in the edges of the paper to enclose.
Carefully place the parcels on a baking tray and bake for 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through.
While fish is cooking, bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the bok choy, snow peas and broccolini and simmer for 4 minutes until tender. Drain.
To serve, place the fish parcels on 4 plates. Open the paper and top with coriander. Serve with Asian greens and a lemon wedge.
Fish and seafood provide protein, selenium, zinc, iodine and vitamins A and D as well as omega-3 fats.
Fennel Roasted Chicken and Peppers 🌶
Family Meal !
Ingredients
1 tbsp. fennel seeds
1 tbsp. finely grated orange zest
6 bell peppers (red, yellow and orange), cut into 1-in. chunks
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 tbsp. olive oil
Salt & Pepper
4 small chicken legs 800-900 gms
3 cups baby spinach
30 gms feta cheese, crumbled
Directions
Heat oven to 200°C. In small skillet, toast fennel seeds and orange zest until lightly browned and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to spice grinder or blender and pulse to blend and grind. Set aside.
On large rimmed baking sheet, toss bell peppers and garlic with 2 tablespoons oil and 3/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Transfer half to second sheet and arrange in even layer on both sheets.
Rub chicken legs with remaining tablespoon oil, then with fennel-orange mixture. Nestle among vegetables on one baking sheet and roast both sheets until chicken is golden brown and cooked through and peppers are tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
Transfer chicken to plates, scatter spinach over peppers remaining on sheet and toss until just beginning to wilt. Sprinkle with feta and serve with chicken
Cashew chicken stir-fry with cauliflower ‘rice’
Ingredients
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 tablespoon salt-reduced soy sauce
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 small skinless chicken breasts (400 g) trimmed of fat, sliced thinly
3/4 cup unsalted cashews
olive or canola oil spray
1/2 cauliflower, roughly chopped
1 broccoli head, cut into florets
1 tablespoons oyster sauce
200 g snow peas, ends trimmed
Zucchini sliced
4 small spring onions (including green tops), cut into 3 cm lengths
Method
1. Combine garlic, ginger, soy sauce, pepper and chicken in a small bowl; set aside to marinate while vegetables are prepared.
2. Heat a non-stick wok or large frypan to high. Add cashews and dry-fry for a minute or until browned; remove from pan and set aside.
3. Chop cauliflower very finely or place into the bowl of a food processor and process with blade attachment until it looks like couscous.
4. Transfer to a large microwave-safe bowl, cover and cook on high (100%) for 6–8 minutes until cauliflower grains are tender. Keep covered and set aside.
5. Meanwhile, spray pan with oil and heat to high. Add half the chicken (with its marinade) and stir-fry for 2 minutes until browned. Set aside and repeat with remaining chicken.
6. Respray pan, add broccoli and stir-fry for 3 minutes, until just tender.
7. Add oyster sauce and 2 tablespoons water to the pan along with snow peas, zucchini,spring onions and chicken including any juices; stir-fry for 3 minutes until heated through.
8. Divide cauliflower and chicken stir-fry between plates and serve sprinkled with cashews.
Tips!
Do not discard the broccoli stalk; use a peeler to remove the hard outer layer then dice the remaining vegetable and add to stir-fry.
For more heat add a chopped red chilli to the chicken marinade.
Substitute chicken for kangaroo steak, lean pork, beef or tofu.
Use any combination of vegetables such as asparagus, bean shoots, cabbage, capsicum, carrots, celery, Chinese vegetables, green beans, mushrooms, onion, spinach, water chestnuts!
Enjoy a scrumptious meal .
One-Pan Salmon And Egg Bake
for 1 serving – Ingredients
Salmon, 1 fillet (170 g)
1 egg
1 tsp olive oil
3 cups spinach, roughly chopped (130 g)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lemon, cut into wedges
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
Preparation
Preheat oven to 160°C.
Pour oil into a small, oven-safe skillet. Place the spinach and garlic in the skillet, season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and mix well so that everything is evenly coated.
Place the salmon on 1 side of the pan, then form a well on the other side and crack an egg, making sure it stays intact.
Season the tops of the salmon and the egg with another pinch of salt and pepper.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the salmon reaches an internal temperature of 60°C. (The temperature will continue to rise once it rests out of the oven.)
Squeeze a bit of fresh lemon juice over the salmon fillet for more flavor and let the salmon rest for 5 minutes before serving.
NOTE: If you want a runny egg yolk, follow steps 1-3, then place the skillet in the preheated oven. Halfway through the cooking process (about 10 minutes in), crack a cold egg into the well of the spinach and replace the skillet in the oven for another 10-15 minutes. The salmon will be cooked through, the egg white will show colour, and the yolk will be gloriously runny.
Enjoy!
Chicken cacciatore🥘
A happy healthy hearty meal for the festive season!
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 (about 1.4kg) chicken thigh cutlets
1 large onion, chopped
2 celery sticks, chopped
2 carrots, peeled, chopped
150g sliced pancetta, chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
125g button mushrooms, sliced
100ml dry white wine
800g can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 bay leaf
150mlchicken style liquid stock
1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 tablespoons salted baby capers, rinsed, drained
Chopped flat-leaf parsley, to garnish
METHOD
Step 1
Heat the oil in a large casserole dish over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook until browned all over. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Add the onion, celery, carrot and pancetta to the pan and cook over low heat for 5 minutes until the onion softens. Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook for a further minute.
Step 2
Return chicken pieces to the pan, add the wine and allow to simmer 1-2 minutes.
Step 3
Add the tomatoes,vinegar,herbs and stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the olives and capers and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Step 4
Transfer chicken to a platter, then reduce the sauce over high heat for 5-6 minutes. Serve garnished with the parsley.