No-fry moussaka

The most famous Greek dish involves a lot of hands-on frying and, if we don’t get the temperature right, if can end up very heavy and oily.

This is an oven-based version that we assemble in five 20-minute stages.
Aside from the roasting pan, we use a frying pan for the ragu and a saucepan for the bechamel. That’s it.

It’s very reheatable, very work-lunchable and totally tops.

Ingredients

Bechamel

• 100g plain flour
• 100g olive oil
• 750ml milk
• 2 tablespoons grated pecorino
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Ragu

• 500g lamb mince
• 1 cup all purpose tomato salsa (if we don’t have such a thing in your fridge at all times, use a can of chopped tomatoes and add herbs and garlic)
• 3 cloves
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick

For the roasting pan

• 1 sliced onion 
• 3 sliced potatoes 
• 1 sliced egg plant 
• 1 sliced zucchini 
• .5 cup olive oil 
• Salt, pepper, thyme, crushed garlic

Method

Preheat the oven to 200º C
Lightly oil a roasting pan about 30cm by 20cm
For the slicing, I use a mandolin (mine’s a V-slicer) as the final product benefits from being evenly cooked.

Wash, halve and slice the potatoes (I don’t peel them - I don’t see the point)
Peel and halve the onions, and slice them.

Oven 1

Place the potatoes and onions in an even layer in the roasting pan with crushed garlic, salt, pepper and thyme.

Drizzle with olive oil and place in oven for 20 minutes.

While this stage is happening, get onto our ragu.

Get olive oil in our frying pan to just start smoking, then add the lamb mince.

Brown the mince, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. There should be some caramelisation and crunchy bits - we are browning, not greying.

Add the salsa and make sure we scrape up all the crunchy stuff from the bottom of the pan.

Add bay leaves, cloves and cinnamon

Drop the heat and simmer.

This needs to be reduced down to a ragu - a dryish sauce - not runny. Don’t worry, there is plenty of time.

Top and tail, and slice the egg plant.

Remove the roasting pan (the potatoes should be browning and slightly bistering).

Oven 2

Add the egg plant in an even layer with crushed garlic, salt, pepper and thyme, and drizzle with olive oil.

Return to oven for 20 minutes.

Bechamel time!

Add the olive oil to the saucepan and bring to a medium heat.

Stir in the flour to make the roux (the basis of our white sauce).

We are looking for a smooth consistency and the right colour.

It starts faily pale, then turns golden, and then a deep golden - and that’s where we stop it. Before it
becomes choclaty.

Remove from the heat and add the milk all at once.

Using a whisk, stir until the mixture is smooth, then return to the heat and bring to a gentle boil, stirring continuously, until the mixture thickens.

Remove from heat.

Stir in egg yolks and pecorino.

Oven 3

Remove pan from oven and add the sliced zuccini, crushed garlic, salt, pepper, thyme and drizzle with olive oil.

Oven 4

Remove pan from oven. Remove cloves, cinnamon stick and bay leaves from ragu and spread the ragu evenly over the top.
Return to oven for 20 minutes.

Oven 5

Spread then bechmal evenly over the top, and sprinkle with some more grated pecorino. Return to the oven.

Now we have to pay attention.

Set the alarm for 10 minutes.

We don’t want it to burn - but we don’t want it to be blond.

What we are after is some deep, chocolaty brown blistery areas.

After 10 minutes, rotate the pan and continue wer cook until it looks just right.

Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.

Eat

Serve with a big, green salad.

Watermelon and ouzo is optional (but not really).

Condimentally yours

What to do with the last of the summer veggies and fruit? Pickle time!

Here’s one for eggplant (aubergine) that I had fun with on my last no-child weekend. It’s a good time of year for this as young ginger is widely available in Asian grocers.

Ingredients 

• 3 onions, chopped
• 100g chunk young ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 tbsp black mustard seed
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 10 curry leaves
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 3 tbsp tomato purée
• 3 tbsp tamarind paste
• 1kg egg plant, diced
• 150g currants
• 200g palm sugar
• 250ml apple cider vinegar
• Salt to taste

Method

Put the onions, ginger and oil in a large saucepan or wok and gently cook for 15 minutes until soft. 

Stir in the spices and curry leaves and fry for a 5 minutes, then add the tomato purée and tamarind and fry for 5 minutes more.

Stir in the egg plant, currants, sugar and vinegar. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved, then simmer for 30 mins until the mixture has thickened and egg plant is soft. 

Remove from heat and leave for 10 mins, then spoon into sterilised jars and seal. 

The pickle can be eaten straight away and keeps if properly sealed for weeks.

We belong together

I still love exploring Greek flavours and food styles, and combining them with the Asian cooking that consumed me in my first bachelor shift.

Here is a meal of spiced lamb rissoles, fried zucchini with balsamic vinegar dressing, yogurt and mint sauce, with lime and saffron rice pilau.

Throughout this, the mint, chilli, citrus all have fun playing nicely with their foodie buddies.

Let’s start with the easy bit - the sauce.

Yogurt and mint sauce

Ingredients

• 200g Greek style yogurt
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh mint
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds

Method

Combine ingredients in a bowl. Add some extra ground coriander seeds last. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Zucchini with balsamic vinegar dressing

Ingredients

• 4 medium zucchinis
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp Korean chilli flakes (“red pepper flakes”)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• .5 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• .25 cup torn mint leaves
• 4 tbsp olive oil

Method

• Heat oil in a frying pan on medium-high
• Top and tail the zucchinis and quarter them, halving them long first and short second
• Once the oil is hot, fry the zucchinis cut-side down for three minutes, then turn for another three
• Remove the a plate and keep warm in the oven
• In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, vinegar, chilli flakes and syrup, stirring to dissolve the syrup
• When read, serve zucchinis with scattered tomatoes, mint leaves and a good splash of the dressing.

Lime and saffron pilau

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups basmati rice
• 3.75 cups vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 lime roughly chopped
• .5 tsp saffron strands soaked in about a tbsp warm water
• 2 tbsp slivered almonds
• 2 tbsp currants
• 1 tsp salt

Method

• In small to medium saucepan, heat the low to medium (no oil). Add the almonds, tossing every minute or so until golden brown. If any get burnt, chuck ’em. Remove almonds to a small plate or bowl
• Add oil to pan and bring to low to medium heat then sauté the onion for two minutes, then garlic for another two
• Add the rice and sauté for 5–10 minutes until translucent
• Add lime and saffron (including the water it’s been soaking in), stir and sauté for another 2 minutes
• Tip the mixture into your rice cooker (this is against my general principle of not using two pots when one pot will do - but I love my rice cooker…)
• Add the stock and salt, cover and set to “cook”
• Once cooked, turn the cooker off and stir through the almonds and currants
• Cover until ready to use

Spiced lamb rissole

Ingredients

• 500g Lamb mince 20% fat
• 1 Small onion finely chopped
• 2 to 3 chilli peppers, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 egg, beaten
• ½ tsp Salt
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 4 tbsp vegetable oil

Method

• As with all food prep, especially when it involves meat, take the ingredients out of the fridge early so that they are close to room temperature
• Combine all the ingredients except the oil in a bowl and mix evenly
• Divide the mixture into six even balls, then flatten into patties
• Bring oil to a medium to high heat in a frying pan
• Fry patties two minutes each side

Sausage rolls rough puff

This is a delicious, fun recipe based on this one by Gill Meller https://youtu.be/oKWNqzG0kko

A warning though - the amount of water in the ingredients for the YouTube video and the River Cottage website version (as noted by one among hundreds of positive comments) is way wrong. I’m guessing a zero got dropped off. Follow my recipe instead!

I know the recipe looks kind of long, but it’s really quick and simple once you get going. Pastry part 1 takes no more than 10 minutes and part 2 just five. And the filling is even simpler - stick everything in a bowl and mix it up.

Ingredients

Filling

• 1kg finely minced pork, fairly fatty
• A small bunch of chives, finely chopped
• 1 tsp each chopped thyme, lemon thyme, mint leaves
• 1 tsp chopped lemongrass stalk
• 1 long chilli, seeded and chopped
• 75g dried breadcrumbs
• 1 tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Pastry

• 175g unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small cubes
• 350g plain flour (about 2.5 cups)
• A good pinch of salt
• About .5 cup iced water, to mix

Assembly

• Egg wash (1 beaten egg mixed with a tbsp of milk) for the seal and to glaze
• 1 tsp each fennel, cumin, sesame seeds.
• Ground salt

Method

Pastry part 1

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt and butter cubes.

Add water a little at a time until the dough comes together. I find the amount is between half and three quarters of a cup.

Roll out the dough on a floury work surface until its roughly a rectangle about 40cm by 20cm.

To get a layered and fluffy pastry, fold it longways into thirds by taking one end and folding it into the middle, then the other end folding on top of that. Make a quarter turn, and now you have a new long side, and you roll it out again.

Do this another three or four times, gradually making your rectangle shape more and more even.

Cover with cling wrap and pop it in the fridge to rest for 1 hour.

The filling

Combine the filling ingredients in a bowl and mix through evenly.

Cover and leave at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Pastry part 2

Take the pastry from the fridge and leave at room temperature for about 15 minutes until it starts to relax (you don’t want to be rolling it when it’s all stiff straight from the cold)

On a floured work surface, roll it out into a long rectangle about 2mm thick and about 20 cm by 80 cm.

Assembly

Grab about half the filling mixture and, starting at one end shape the mixture towards the middle, and about 2cm back from one of the long edges. It doesn’t have to be super even - just so long as there aren’t any gaps.

Now take the other half of the mixture and, starting from the middle, work it towards the other end.

Brush the egg wash along the long, narrow edge of the pastry.

Now fold the other edge over so that it holds the mixture snugly, tucking the pastry in towards the mixture where the two sides meet.

Trim at each end, and down along the side. I always retain the strips of pastry and any bits of filling that stick to the knife and give it to the kids to make into shapes. They’re 14 and 16 now - and they still like doing this.

Your great big sausage roll should be 80cm long, possibly a little more.

Glaze the length of it with the egg was, and sprinkle with the seeds and a little salt to finish.

To divide into 12 good size rolls, find the middle and cut right through. Then find the middle of those to pieces, and cut right through. Now you’ve got four pieces, and you divide each of those pieces into three.

Line a baking tray with baking paper (the tray I used was 40 cm by 27 cm and it all fitted perfectly). Gently place the rolls on the paper evenly, most likely three rows of four. Then place in a preheated oven at 180º C for 40 minutes, turning the tray about halfway through.

When they’re golden brown, remove the tray from the oven and use tongs to move the rolls to a wire rack to rest. This help the bottoms get crispy.

After about 10 minutes, they’re ready to serve.

Yields 12 rolls (serve two with veggies for dinner or one with salad for lunch)

Punjabi chicken curry

This is based on a recipe given to me by a work friend and belonging to her mother. All up, it takes about half an hour, and it’s delicious! For vegetarian (see image from my work buddy) - just leave out the chicken. You can also leave out the chicken if you’re using it as a side dish for an Indian feast!

Ingredients

• Fresh ginger (about 2cm cube)
• 1 tomato
• 3 eschallots
• 3 whole dried chilies (more or less to taste)
• 6 curry leaves
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds
• 1 tablespoon crush garlic
• 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• 1 teaspoon black poppy seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon black pepper corns
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons garam masala
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 chicken thigh fillets
• 1 medium potato
• 1/3 of a medium sweet potato
• 1 cup green beans cut into 3cm lengths (if using snake beans cut into 1cm lengths)
• Juice of half a lemon
• Salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil

Method

It looks complicated at first, but basically it is just - prepare a whole bunch of ingredients and mix them together in four stages. The prep time is a bit more than 15, the assembly about less than 15.

If your pantry doesn’t have the spices in the list - a quick trip to your local Asian grocer will reward you for many months to come!

Preparation

• Put the tomato in a bowl, cut around and remove the stalk end, and microwave on high for 3 minutes. Remove to cool
• Peel the potato and sweet potato and cut into 1cm cubes. Top and tail the beans and cut as described above
• Place veggies in a bowl with a pinch of salt, a squeeze of lemon juice and the bay leaves. Cover and cook in microwave of high for 10 minutes, removing to mix up the ingredients about halfway through. While this is cooking, get on with the rest of the assembly. Once the veggies are done, just remove from the microwave and set aside still covered. Don’t uncover - the fragrance of the veggies and bay is just flavour lost
• Chop the ginger into smaller chunks and pound in a mortar with a little water until it’s part chunky part pasty. Set aside
• Heat oil in a frying pan on medium heat and add the eschallots, pealed and cut into 2 cm chunks. Cook until the begin to brown and soften
• Once the tomato is done you will be able to easily remove the skin with tongs or a fork (or your fingers if you let it cool enough). The flesh and juices should have pretty much collapsed together by now, so just give it a quick whisk with a fork and set aside
• Once the eschallots have softened, pound them in a mortar until they are part chunky, part pasty
• Slice chicken fillets about 3cm by 1cm

Assembly

And now it’s action stations…

1. Bring the pan you used for the eschallots back to medium heat, add chilies, cumin, poppy seeds, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves, almonds and pepper corns. Once the seeds start to pop and the almonds begin to brown, add the crushed garlic and eschallot paste. Stir through and cook for 2 minutes
2. Add chicken to pan, and stir though. The the flesh will collect all the spices and the aromas will be heavenly. Turn up the heat so the chicken browns at the edges. About 2 minutes
3. Add the turmeric, garam masala and tomato. Reduce heat and stir through and cook another 5 minutes
4. Add the veggies, stir though, and cook for 10 minutes

Garnish with coriander leaves and lemon slices. Serve with rotis or rice.

Serves 4