I don’t speak Arabic, so this is our Pigeon Arabic title. Something like “ Split Black Lentil who-knows-what! “ It can easily be made Vegetarian, if you leave off the Cheese and boiled Egg Vegan too.
Ingredients:-
Urad Dal (100g per person)
Garlic infused Stock (We had this loitering in the fried door, but a Veggie stock cube and some Garlic Powder would have worked equally well)
1 large Onion, Chopped
Cumin Seeds
Mustard powder
Dried Coriander
Dried Basil
Chilli Flakes
A Carrot, batoned
Peas (Frozen are cool!)
2 large Mushrooms, sliced
Pickles Chilli Cauliflower ( Our own Lacto ferment - But shop bought pickled Cauliflower is fine )
Pickled Red Cabbage ( Again this was our own Lacto ferment - Shop bought is fine )
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper
Optional Extras:-
2 Boiled Eggs, sliced
Crumbled Blue Cheese
Method:-
(1) Add the Urad Dal to a large pan and add 1l of Garlic infused Stock.
(2) Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for ¾ of an hour.
(3) Check regularly and add more water when required. The Split Lentils are thirsty little creatures.
(4) Once the Urad Dal has swollen and softened drain and set aside.
(5) In a large frying pan fry the Onions gently until translecent.
(6) Add and fry the Carrots.
(7) Add the Mushrooms last and gently fry.
(8) stir in the Urad Dal and other ingredients excluding the Cheese and Egg.
(9) Plate and dress with the crumbled Cheese and Egg if you are using them.
We have really taken to Urad Dal. It has a very heart texture, is very cheap and takes on flavours really well.
If anybody would like to "Buy us a Coffee" please feel free proceeds beyond our bandwidth cost are donated to local charities.
“Basically butchery of any sort is a reductive cost incremental process.” Easy for my old colleague Geoff the butcher to say! What he actually meant was the more time and effort required in the butchery process, the more you have to charge for the end result. So generally with Chicken for example, you are better buying the full bird and cutting it yourself.
However sometimes in the reductions you find a little surprise. These Wings & Thighs cost us 89p! It's a while ago when we were still living in the tent and had very limited resources, but they made a great meal at very little cost.
Ingredients:-
1 box of Chicken Wings and Thighs
1 Onion
6 Mushrooms
Vegetables – Whatever you have
Gravy mix (We use Bisto Best as it's Gluten free)
Method:-
(1) Chop the Onions and Mushrooms.
(2) Add the Onions and Mushrooms to a pan of water and add 3 table spoons of gravy powder.
(3) Bring the gravy to the boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer until the Onions and Mushrooms have softened. Remove from the heat.
(4) Place the Chicken pieces in a pan of water and broil with a little salt and pepper until they are cooked. Remove from the heat, drain and cover.
(5) Slice or chop your vegetables and boil in salted water until tender.
(6) Add the Chicken to the gravy and gently reheat.
It's not often we have much leftover, but sometimes there are offers at the supermarkets you can't refuse. If you find yourself awash with vegetables of any description and you like pickles, Lacto-Fermenting is your friend.
Basically all you need are 8 level table spoons of salt per litre of water dissolved and cooled to room temperature and whatever vegetables you fancy.
Sue likes pickled Cauliflower, we added a bit of Chilli to spice it up a little. The Dill seeds are added as they act as a 'Starter Kit' and naturally have the desired bacteria. Most vegetables have it on them anyway, so they're not essential. If after 3 weeks in a cupboard the contents of the sealed jar smell like a pickle you're onto a winner. If they smell rotten, then maybe not good eating!
Ingredients:-
Sufficient brine to fill as many jars as you are using.
Your choice of vegetables chopped, sliced, broken up or just shoved into the jars really!
Method:-
(1) Add the vegetables and brine to the bottles.
(2) Seal.
(3) Put away for 3 weeks.
(4) Enjoy.
It couldn't be much easier really and it's a great way of preserving.
Lacto-Fermenation is one of the oldest food preservation methods still regularly used. It is not Witchcraft or Sorcery and it's effective tasty and pretty much bullet proof. If it tastes good, then it's good. Plus the resultant pickles have the benefit of home made probiotics. Lacto-Fermentation has nothing to do with dairy products, the lacto refers to lactic acid. All fruits and vegetables have beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus on the surface. In an anaerobic (oxygen-free) environment, these bacteria convert sugars into lactic acid, which inhibits harmful bacteria and acts as a preservative. It's also what gives fermented foods their characteristic sour flavour. The earliest record of fermentation dates back as far as 6000 B.C. in the Fertile Crescent -and nearly every civilization since has included at least one fermented food in its culinary heritage. From Korean kimchi and Indian chutneys to the ubiquitous sauerkraut.
This recipe uses immature marrow as it's been quite a year for marrow in the Yorkshire area, but the season is coming to an end and you might find yourself with quite a number of small marrows which either are unlikely to ripen, or you've simply had you fill of their fully grow kin! But be adventurous, almost any vegetable can be Lacto-Fermented.
Ingredients:-
8 small Marrows thinly sliced into rounds
¼ of a medium sized red onion thinly sliced
3 garlic gloves smashed
2 teaspoons of grated ginger
About a pint of water
3 tablespoons of Sea Salt. Table salt will do but the anti-caking agents will result in a cloudy solution before the process is completed.
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
Large airtight jar
Method:-
(1) Thinly slice the Marrow into rounds (Use a mandolin to get a nice even slice, but don't slice the ends off your fingers! Or in my case the palm of your hand – Don't ask...).
(2) Add the Marrow rounds to a large jar or split between smaller jars.
(3) Add the red onion, garlic and ginger.
(4) Make the salt water brine by mixing ½ cup of warm water with the salt and stir until the salt has dissolved.
(5) Add the remaining water to the salt water once the salt has dissolved. Add the turmeric and mix well.
(6) Pour the brine into the jar with the Marrow etc. There should be enough to submerge the Marrow under the brine. If not, make more brine and add it to the jar.
(7) Seal the jar and store in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight for 3-7 days.
(8) Once the brine is cloudy, try a Marrow to see if it's ready. It should be sour and smell like pickles.
(9) Provided that the contents are submerged your pickle will last for months. Although this is unlikely unless your really don't like pickles. If this is the case you might ask yourself why you made them in the first place!