Here’s something that I’ve been meaning to make for a while, and thanks to SBS’s Food website, not only is the recipe but the original video from Maeve O’Meara’s exellent series, Food Safari.

I made all of the sauce, but only cooked half of the chicken since it was just me after all, a quarter for dinner and the other quarter for lunch the next day. Even though I have a charcoal BBQ, I don’t have a rotisserie so I just turned it once in a while with some corn and a sweet potato next to it. A little bit of bacon didn’t hurt either!

It’s damn tastier, and healthier than Oprorto and that’s saying something coming from me.

Charcoal chicken with piri piri sauce
1 whole chicken Marinade: 8 cloves garlic, crushed Pinch salt Juice of 2 lemons 1 tsp bay leaf powder 2 tsp paprika 2 shots scotch whisky (80mls) 2 tbsp very soft butter 1 whole chicken Rock salt Piri Piri Sauce: 10 – 12 birdseye chillies, chopped finely (medium size, medium heat) Pinch salt Juice of ½ lemon 100mls olive oil 2 tbsp garlic powder (not crushed garlic as the mixture will be too runny) Mix all ingredients into a thickish dipping sauce.


Mix all ingredients for marinade together. Prepare chicken – trim away excess fat. Then use a sharp knife or kitchen scissors to cut the chicken through the breastbone. Open out, turn over and flatten by pressing down with your hand along the backbone. Make a small cut under each wing to help it flatten further. Make several incisions in the flesh with a sharp knife. This will allow the flesh to absorb the marinade and allow fat to drain. Prick all over with a large fork. Brush both sides with the marinade and sprinkle with rock salt. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 30 – 45 minutes. Cook over a charcoal BBQ (or any hot grill if you don’t have a BBQ) turning frequently and basting continuously with the remaining marinade until both sides are golden brown – approximately 30 minutes. Cut the chicken into pieces with kitchen scissors and brush with Piri Piri sauce.

Tags:Portuguese, Piri-Piri, Chicken, Bacon, Corn, Recipe

Have you ever had one of those moments when you’ve heard a new word two or three times in a week then find yourself using it? Somehow, the arse that hosts Ready Steady Cook taught me the word ‘paupiette’ which is a piece of meat with a pocket sliced into it and then stuffed prior to cooking. I’ve made similar things many times before but I never realised that was a word for it.

So when I had some bacon, camembert and a chicken breast handy a chicken paupiette was called forth.

Chicken Paupiette of Bacon and Camembert

Chicken stuffed with Bacon and Camembert - Serves 2
2 Chicken breasts
4 Rashers of bacon
250g of Camembert, sliced
Salad leaves to serve

Slice a pocket into the thickest parts of the chicken breasts trying to make each pocket as big as possible but not to cutting through to the other side. Lightly hammer out the chicken to as thin as possible without breaking apart the chicken.

Stuff the pocket with half of the cheese and a rasher of bacon then slowly pan fry until the chicken is cooked through and browned on the outside along side the two spare rashers of bacon.

Slice the chicken in half and lay over salad leaves with the extra pieces of bacon.

Tags:Cheese, Chicken, Recipe, Bacon, Frying, Camembert

A little while a go my neighbours recomended a chinese take-away down King Street called Good Wok (587 King Street, Newtown). I’ve always seen a couple of people in it but dismissed it as a cheap dodgey little store that I would end up with the squirts. As it turns out, it’s clean, very clean. Sure it’s got wood panneling, vinyl covered chairs and laminate tables but it’s tasty stuff. A few times this past week I’ve been running much later than I’d have liked to get home so I’ve stopped in and picked up something on the way or had something there.

Good Wok - 587 King Street Newtown

I haven’t spotted anything out of the ordinary or a speciality on the menu, it’s all the usual stuff you’d expect, mongolian beef, cashew chicken and all that but it was the bbq wonton noodle soup that I’ve gone back for. It definitley isn’t the best I’ve ever had but Good Wok’s version is the type of soup you go to when you’re stomach is compleltey empty and you need to fill it with carbs, hot broth, meat and vegetables.

The soup has a good chicken and vegetable stock, fresh bbq pork and some very fresh vegetables including perfectly cooked brocolli. Even I struggle to get mine tender-crisp but this was pretty much perfect not to mention generously served.

Good Wok - BBQ Pork Wonton Noodle Soup

Good Wok Chinese Food
Ph: 02 9565 2175
587 King Street
Newtown

They don’t do delivery but do take phone orders, it’s cash only too.

Tags:Noodles, Wonton, Soup, Asian, BBQ, Newtown, Restaurant, Review

Only in death will the members of Flight Club have a name. His name was Robert Paulson.

Jack (Ed Norton) and Bob (Meat Loaf) at support group in Fight Club

I was considering calling this post “My Meatloaf has Bitch Tits” but that doesn’t really portray the damn fine tasty meatloaf that I made tonight. I know it’s a bit of a tenuous link but Meat Loaf played the character Robert Paulson, the guy with bitch tits that Jack meets at his testicular cancer support group... With torn off pieces of fresh buffalo mozzarella and sun-dried tomato this meatloaf really is a notch above what you’ve probably ever considered a meatloaf could be.

The original recipe for this meatloaf comes from Mario Batali’s father (via Epicurious), which might explain Mario’s own bitch tits. The entire loaf, if made as directed weighs in at 2-3 kg! I intended to make half of this but I wasn’t paying attention when I went to buy the ingredients and bought enough to make the full recipe, luckily meatloaf can be frozen well. Sort of like Meat Loaf’s assets. I cheated a little in this recipe, David Jones had some great looking beef rissoles that had onion, carrot, parsley and a few other bits already mixed through in what looked about the right proportion so I bought that instead of just plain minced beef. For a little more vegetable matter in a meal that will be almost entirely meat I made some balsamic roast vegetables to go along side - just baby carrots, red onion, parsnip etc tossed with some olive oil and a splash of balsamic and roasted along side the meatloaf for the last half hour.

Beef and Italian Sausage Meatloaf with Sundried Tomatoes and Mozarella

Beef and Sausage Meatloaf - Serves 8 or more
1kg of lean beef mince
500g of buffalo mozzarella, torn into pieces
500g of italian sausage, cases removed
2 cups of chopped fresh basil
2 cups of fresh breadcrumbs
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup of sliced sun-dried tomatoes
5 garlic cloves
1½ tablespoons of dried oregano
2 teaspoons of salt
2 × ½ cup of tomato sauce
3 eggs
½ cup of dry red wine

Pre-heat your oven to 190ºC. Thoroughly mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl except one of the half cups of tomato sauce. Mould into a loaf shape and place in a loaf tin and even out the surface. Brush on the remaining tomato sauce. Bake in the oven for about an hour and fifteen minutes or until a meat thermometer reaches 70-75ºC at the centre of the loaf.

Tags:Meatloaf, Beef, Pork, Vegetables, Roast, Baked

In 1867 His Royal Highness Alfred the Duke of Edinburgh was shot in the back while on a picnic in Contarf, which is probably why a pub named after him was built miles away in Enmore in 1876. Well, actually it probably had a bit more to do with the near-by Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, which was built with memorial funds after his assasination attempt (the hospital, not the pub). A little ironic building a hospital since the guy that shot him was hung.

Affie, as he was known by his family was so called because he was affable, easy to talk to and that sense really has been instilled at The Duke. Given it’s prime location meters away from the Enmore Theatre everyone comes here for a beer and a meal before a show ( The Presets drew me here Monday night). If you’re planning on eating get here early because the place fills up fast. On freezing cold nights like last night, the roaring open fire helps too!

I’ve been here a few times, and the place isn’t cheap but the food is good and usually pretty high quality with some very generous servings. I had the mixed grill this time around, sausages, minute steak, bacon and lamb cutlets on chips with sauce of your choice, pepper, mushroom etc, all for the princley sum (get it?) of $17.50. It is just pub food here, steaks, burgers and the good old chicken parma that a friend had, looking equally as delicious and priced.

Mixed Grill @ The Duke, Enmore

Food, 7/10 - Better than most pubs and everything you’d expect on a classic pub menu board
Service, 8/10 - For a pub, you can’t complain - they were happy and friendly
Coffee, 10/10 - Because it was made with hopps and barley and served by the pint
Value, 7/10 - Tough one, but for the location and the generous servings it gets a couple extra points
Location, 9/10 - If you’re going to the Enmore it’s ideal

The Duke of Edinburgh
148 Enmore Road, Enmore NSW 2042
P: 02 9519 1935
F: 02 9557 1381
W: http://www.duke-hotel.com/

Tags:Pub, Enmore, Duke, Mixed Grill, Steak, Sausage, Fries, Lamb, Bacon, Chicken

Tonight was meant to be catching up with a couple of friends for dinner, Adam, Neil and Matt but Matt couldn’t make it. There’s a funny story about Matt. Stoned at a party at Neil’s house people were throwing out some crappy dance moves and talking about some crappy music like The Salmon Dance. Matt pipes up “What’s a salmon?” with the reply being called out, it’s a fish. Funny stuff if you were there - or stoned. Now if Adam wasn’t allergic to fish, we’d be having salmon. So, to keep a theme, we’re having pork because Adam thinks I’m a man-whore.

Roast Pork Loin with Dried Fruit

Roast Pork Loin with Dried Fruit - Serves 4-6
1kg pork loin
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 large shallots, chopped
¾ cup diced dried apples
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup dried mixed berries
¼ cup dried wild figs
1½ cups low-salt chicken stock
½ cup dry white wine


Preheat oven to 220°C. Sprinkle pork with rosemary, salt, and pepper.
Place pork in the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Lower the temprature to 170ºC and continue to roast until thermometer inserted into center registers 65°C to 75°C, about another 35-45 minutes. Transfer pork to platter; let stand 10 minutes.
Add apples, figs, cranberries and berries to the pan with the wine and stock.; stir until fruit mixture is heated through, boil 1 minute, lower the heat, cover and simmer. If thicker sauce is desired, boil until reduced enough to coat spoon. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Slice pork and spoon sauce over.

Tags:Dried Fruit, Pork, Fruit, Tenderloin, Roast

Luckily, days before I had a diabetic friend over the fag and the hag the cook and the chef had an episode dedicated to diabetic recipes. They did make a really good point in that a diabetic diet is really the way everyone should be eating, low fat, low cal and low in sugar. I decided to make their Pearl Barley and Mushroom Soup. I added a couple of ham bones to give it a great meaty quality and removed any reason to add any salt. I've never had a barley soup before but damn it was nice. Even the ass that I call a best friend said it was good.

UPDATE: This soup freezes very well, after two months frozen solid it was brilliant and the barley still had a great texture, as good as when it was first made.

Pearl Barley and Mushroom Ham Soup

Pearl Barley and Mushroom Ham Soup
Serves 4-8 depending on how much stock you add

250g pearl barley
40g butter or 2T of olive oil
200g onion, diced
3 cloves garlic
2 sprigs rosemary
3 springs thyme
3 dried porcini mushrooms (or dried chinese mushrooms)
100g shiitake mushrooms
200g swiss brown mushrooms
2 large ham bones (optional)

Boil the barley and ham bones in 1½L of water for an hour. While that's on the go, chop everything else and fry the onion and garlic until it's translucent then add the rest. When the barley is soft take out the ham bones and chop off any left over meat. Add that and the mushrooms into the pot with the stock and bring it all back to the boil.

Season if needed and serve with some toasted sourdough.

Tags:Barley, Mushroom, Ham

Trawling through the supermarket over the weekend for something to have for dinner I buckled at the knees with the picture of the chicken leek and mushroom pies on the cover of this month's Donna Hay. They looked delicious so I picked up a copy and went right a head and made... The Sticky Hoisin Pork with Steamed Beans, Peas and Rice recipe instead.

This thing was a little messy to make due mostly due to my clumsiness, but I am glad I used a non-stick frying pan. I haven't washed it yet but Im not looking forward to it. Other than that, it was quick, easy and bloody delicious. The pork in the picture in Donna Hay looked a little dry and overdone so I dropped the cooking time back a few minutes and it was extremely tender and the lightest of pink.

Sticky Hoisin Pork with Steamed Beans, Peas and Rice

Sticky Hoisin Pork with Steamed Beans, Peas and Rice
1T of Hoisin sauce
1T of Honey
1T of Soy sauce
450g Pork Loin
250g of Sugar snap peas
250g of Green beans
Rice to serve
Sesame seeds to garnish

Pre-heat your oven to 180℃
Mix the hoisin, soy and honey in a ziplock bag and place the pork loin inside and leave for 15 minutes.
Remove the pork and in a non-stick pan, fry the pork each side for 1-2 minutes. Pour the remaining marinade over the pork and turn to coat. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 15 minutes (the recipe said 15, I cooked mine for 12).
Once the pork is ready, remove and place on a chopping board and rest for 15 minutes.
Steam the beans and peas together.
Slice the pork diagonaly into disks and serve over on a bed of rice with the greens to the side. Drizzle the pan juices over the pork and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

Tags:Hoisin, Pork, Rice, Peas, Beans, Donna Hay

This is the second time that I'm flying business class to Brisbane with Qantas and I have to say the club lounge is a much different experience during peak hour than it was for my previous 11am midweek departure. The demure asian lady that would humbly and politely, but with self respect, that cleared my used glass and plate previously has vanished to be replaced by a rough eastern european woman (perhaps?) that actually grunted when I thanked her for clearing the glass.
Saying that though it still beats being downstairs with the commoners fighting for a bottle of Mount Franklin and the last Whopper. At least here they form an orderly queue to fight for the last re-heated deep fried, umm... I guess it's meant to be a pork dumpling? It's too big for a wonton and it's the wrong shape for a dim sim. Who knows, it was full of reclaimed pork what ever it was.

My flight out, QF548, after boarding at least (the attendant that was relegated to Y Class was quite rude) was splendid under the Cabin Manager I flew with, Julianne. This is the second or third time I've had the privilege of flying with her and I hope I'll be able to again. Service in the business cabin was smooth, efficient and personable, as I'd mentioned before - the simple things of being called by name are the things that really make the difference between service and quality that despite it's industry reputation, factions of Qantas flight crew are actually striving to achieve.

As for the meal, my seat buddy Corey and I we were served a reasonable beef in oyster sauce with jasmine rice and a 'salad'. I say 'salad' because it only just qualified as one. In my opinion a salad needs two ingredients and this only had two different types of lettuce. The spicy asian vinaigrette from Neil Perry that went with it was wonderful, I even put some on the beef because the sauce that had was quite plain. I was actually surprised with the bread roll, it was incredibly soft. I guess Qantas realised they shouldn't arm 200+ passengers with their previous hard as a brick projectiles. The wine was quite nice too - a 2004 Penfolds Shiraz with a deep cherry note.

Tags:Qantas, Club Lounge, Beef, Jasmine Rice, Penfolds, Neil Perry, Shiraz