Category: Food

This post is in continuation to an earlier post on smorging. Here is a list of recipes for the smorgasbord.

Piri Piri Prawns with Feta

Ingredients:  6 cloves garlic, 2 fresh red chillies, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp dried oregano, 1 dozen tiger prawns, Olive oil, few sprigs of mint and rocket leaves chopped, 2 lemons, 1 tbsp honey, 50 gms soft feta cheese crumbled, sea salt and freshly cracked pepper.

Method: Peel and finely chop the garlic and deseed the chillies and finely chop too. Place in a bowl along with the paprika, oregano, prawns and season with salt and pepper as needed. Drizzle with about 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil, mix well, cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Place the griddle over high heat. Cut the lemon in half. Place the lemons cut-side down in the griddle. Place the prawns on the griddle and cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side until opaque and cooked through. Serve the prawns drizzled with honey.  Crumble over the feta and scatter the chopped mint and rocket. Squeeze the charred lemon juice all over and serve immediately with either peach chutney or some spiced marmalade.

Recipes for Smorgasbord

Festive couscous

Ingredients: 2 ½ cups couscous, 4 cups hot chicken or vegetable stock, ½ tsp. chilli flakes, 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, juice of 1 lemon, finely grated rind, 1 ½ cup frozen peas cooked until tender, 1 small onion finely chopped, 75 gms pomegranate arils, 2 tbsp dried cranberry, ¼ cup chopped pistachios, ½ tbsp. dried tarragon, 2 tbsp small mint leaves chopped.

Method: Place the couscous in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the hot stock, chilli flakes, olive oil, and lemon juice and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 10 minutes. Remove the plastic wrap and fluff the couscous using a fork. Toss the peas, onion, pomegranate, cranberry, pistachios, tarragon, mint and the lemon rind. Toss well and serve with toast.

 Classic Prawn Cocktail

Ingredients: Few martini or wine glasses, 1 small iceberg lettuce, finely chopped, 15-20 large prawns, boiled with tails, ½ tsp freshly ground pepper, 1 tsp tobacco bottled seafood sauce or Thousand Island Dressing Capers as needed, Olives and lemon slices for garnishing.

Method: Line the glasses and fill them with half the lettuce. In a bowl combine remaining lettuce and the prawns, (reserve 1 prawn for each glass and keep aside) capers, pepper, thousand island and tabasco. Gently fold and pour with 2 prawns per glass. Hang the reserved prawn over the edge of the glass and garnish with a lemon slice and an olive. Serve chilled.

Chutneywale Aloo or Potatoes with Chutney

Ingredients:  3 tbsp. vegetable oil. 1 kg baby potatoes peeled, 1 heaped tsp cumin seeds, roughly crushed in a pestle and mortar, 1 medium onion, thinly sliced, 2 tbsp. thick yoghurt, 1 tsp ground coriander, ½ tsp. garam masala. Salt as needed.

Green Chutney: 50 gms cashew nuts, 50 gms mint leaves, 50 gms coriander leaves with stalks, 25 gms ginger chopped, 1 small green chilli pinch of sugar.

Method: Whizz the chutney ingredients with 100 ml water in a blender and set aside. Heat 2 tbsp. of oil in a heavy based non-stick pan over a medium flame, add the potatoes.  Fry for 20-25 minutes stirring often as they begin to brown. Heat the remaining oil in the pan and fry the cumin seeds for about 5-6 seconds until they sizzle.  Add the onion and fry for 8-10 minutes until browned. Then stir in the chutney and fry stirring for a few minutes until slightly dry. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the yoghurt a spoonful at a time, stirring in the ground coriander and chilli powder and return the pan to a low heat and simmer for a minute. Stir in the garam masala and season with salt. Return the potatoes and stir to coat well.

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