jalapeño peppers

Delicious cauliflower soup

Posted by Gary

Last week I made a dynamite spicy pumpkin soup. At the time I was also thinking of making cauliflower soup and adding some jalapeño peppers to spice it up a bit. Of course I’d also add my secret ingredient, viz., SPAM®

Tonight I put together a cauliflower soup with a twist. In addition to the jalapeño pepper and SPAM® I added some celeriac. It was delicious.

Delicious cauliflower soup
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • Cauliflower
  • Celeriac
  • SPAM®
  • Jalapeño pepper
  • Lime juice
  • Cream
  • Fried shallots
  • White wine
  • Grapeseed oil
Instructions
  1. Add about 2 tablespoons of grapeseed oil to the saucepan and heat
  2. Dice the SPAM®
  3. Dice the cauliflower and celeriac
  4. Slice the jalapeño pepper
  5. Fry off the SPAM® until it has taken on some colour and is sticking to the bottom of the saucepan
  6. Add the jalapeño pepper slices and fry until softened
  7. Add the celeriac and fry off until softened
  8. Add the cauliflower
  9. Add a splash of white wine and some water to just cover the cauliflower
  10. Bring to a slow simmer and cook for 20 minutes
  11. When the cauliflower is soft blend with a stick blender
  12. Add some cream and blend until smooth
  13. Serve in a bowl and garnish with fried shallots
  14. Keep the leftover soup in another bowl, cover and freeze for another time
  15. Shoot a photograph
  16. Swallow the soup
  17. Clean the dishes
  18. Write the recipe
  19. Blog (verb)
Delicious cauliflower soup with celeriac, SPAM®, and jalapeño pepper
Delicious cauliflower soup with celeriac, SPAM®, and jalapeño pepper

I hope you enjoy this soup if you make it. I love cauliflower soup. It’s so comforting in winter. Tonight in Canberra is going to be 0 °C (32 °F)

Do you fart after cauliflower soup? I do 

Tonight I perfected the roast chicken Maryland dinner

Posted by Gary

Tonight I think I struck gold and made the perfect roast chicken dinner. My mouth is singing with happiness.

I’ve been thinking of tonight’s dinner nearly all day. I think everyone who reads this blog knows how much I love roast chicken and my favourite part of the chicken is the Maryland. That’s the thigh and drumstick. Everyone of late also knows I’ve taken to quinoa. Given we’re about to breach winter in Canberra, roasted vegetables are high on the comfort food scale. This is a combination dinner that just sung in my mouth.

Tonight I perfected the roast chicken Maryland dinner
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • Chicken Maryland
  • Potato
  • Sweet potato
  • Capsicum
  • Jalapeño pepper
  • Grated cheese
  • Olive oil
  • Diced spam
  • Black peppercorns
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Quinoa
  • Rice
Instructions
  1. Place about ⅓ cup of quinoa and rice into the bottom of the roasting tray
  2. Add ⅔ cup of water to the roasting tray
  3. Place a rack in the roasting tray and add the Chicken Maryland which has been rubbed with olive oil, salt and dried mixed herbs
  4. Place the chicken into an oven at 150 °C for 1 hour (use a meat thermometer to ensure food safety)
  5. Cut the potato, sweet potato and capsicum into wedges or batons
  6. Dice some classic SPAM®
  7. Finely dice some jalapeño pepper
  8. Put the jalapeño pepper, potato, sweet potato, capsicum and SPAM® into a large bowl and mix with some olive oil, grated cheese, cracked black peppercorns, and a dash of Worcestershire sauce
  9. Lay out the vegetables onto some baking paper on an oven tray
  10. Place the vegetables into the oven on another shelf with the chicken and cook for 1 hour
  11. Pull the chicken out of the oven and make sure the meat thermometer has achieved the correct cooking temperature to kill most vegetative bacteria (this is 75 °C according to chicken.org.au)
  12. Allow the chicken to rest for about 20 to 30 minutes (resting is really important, it helps ensure a succulent flesh)
  13. Scoop out the quinoa and rice from the baking tray and place half in a bowl in the refrigerator for lunch the next day with some salad leaves.
  14. Keep the rest of the quinoa and rice warm to serve with the chicken and vegetables
  15. Hopefully you’ve timed the cooking of the vegetables to coincide with the end of the resting period of the chicken
  16. When the chicken is rested plate up the vegetables onto a plate, then place the rice and quinoa next to the vegetables. Finally add the chicken.
  17. If you are French you probably made a sauce and lots of it to enjoy with the chicken, me, I’m an Australian. We don’t need sauce.
  18. Shoot a photograph
  19. Inhale the meal
  20. Wash the dishes
  21. Write the recipe
  22. Blog (verb)

The combination of jalapeño peppers in the vegetables made a huge difference. As the vegetables were roasting the volatile odours from the peppers were permeating my small apartment. The rice and quinoa in the baking tray had absorbed all the fatty juicy goodness from the chicken and they stuck together really well to form an old fashioned stack. The chicken was perfectly cooked. The meat was juicy and succulent. I cannot emphasise too much the value of resting roast chicken. Oh, I also added my secret ingredient, viz., SPAM®

If you make this or make a variation of this dish please let me know.

I hope you like roast chicken as much as I do 

Roast Chicken Maryland, Capsicum, Cheese, , Jalapeño pepper, Onion, Potato, Quinoa, Rice, Spam, and Sweet potato
Roast Chicken Maryland, Capsicum, Cheese, , Jalapeño pepper, Onion, Potato, Quinoa, Rice, Spam, and Sweet potato

Quinoa makes a return after #Hawaii #holiday

Posted by Gary

During the ten days travelling through Oahu, Hawaii I didn’t have any quinoa. Quinoa makes a return to my diet tonight. What better way to enjoy quinoa than with roast Chicken Maryland. 

Delicious roasted Chicken Maryland can be made better by cooking quinoa in the baking tray and incorporating the cooking juices from the chicken. 

Delicious roasted Chicken Maryland with kale coleslaw, grated cheese and jalapeño pepper
Delicious roasted Chicken Maryland with kale coleslaw, grated cheese and jalapeño pepper
Quinoa makes a return after #Hawaii #holiday
 
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • Quinoa
  • Chicken Maryland
  • Coon tasty cheese slice
  • Mixed dried herbs
  • Golden syrup
  • Black ground pepper
  • Kale coleslaw
  • Mayonnaise
  • Jalapeño pepper sliced
Instructions
  1. Pour some quinoa in the bottom of a baking tray and add a cup of water
  2. Put a rack in the baking tray and lay on a Chicken Maryland
  3. Put a slice of cheese on the chicken and add some pepper and mixed dried herbs plus a squirt of golden syrup
  4. Cook the chook in an oven at 150 °C for 1 hour
  5. Rest the chook for 20 minutes after it has been cooking for an hour
  6. While the chook is resting prepare the kale coleslaw and mix in the quinoa and some grated cheese
  7. Plate up and add a dollop of mayonnaise
  8. Slice a jalapeño pepper for some added zing
  9. Lay over the Kale coleslaw a delicious roasted Chicken Maryland
  10. Shoot a photograph
  11. Eat the meal
  12. Wash the dishes
  13. Post process the photograph
  14. Write the recipe
  15. Blog (verb)
 

The chicken skin ends up being succulent and crispy. The meat is moist, juicy and tender. The dark chicken meat goes so well with some mayonnaise, it’s like having an open sandwich with shredded chicken meat. 

The quinoa adds a lovely nuttiness to the kale coleslaw while the jalapeño pepper adds a real zing. 

So quinoa makes a return to my meal planning. Do you like quinoa?

Sunday salmon curried with quinoa

Posted by Gary
Curried salmon and quinoa

Sunday salmon last week was a bit of a balls up.

Curried salmon and quinoa
Curried salmon and quinoa

This week Sunday salmon was much more enjoyable.

Sunday salmon curried with quinoa
 
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • Salmon
  • Lime
  • Coconut cream
  • Quinoa
  • Coriander
  • Jalapeño pepper
  • Red chili pepper
  • Anchovies
  • Curry powder
Instructions
  1. Cook ⅓ cup of tricolour quinoa
  2. Cut up the salmon into large dices
  3. Rub with grapeseed oil
  4. Cook on high heat with the lid on for 5 minutes
  5. Add curry powder to the salmon and the anchovies
  6. Add the lime juice and coconut cream
  7. As the cream cooks through add some coriander and stir through
  8. Spread the cooked quinoa onto a plate
  9. Add the chunks of salmon and then pour over the remaining coconut cream
  10. Garnish with the remaining coriander and slices of jalapeño and red chili pepper and the zest of the lime
  11. Shoot a photograph
  12. Eat the meal
  13. Wash the dishes
  14. Write the recipe
  15. Blog (verb)
 
Ingredients for dinner. Lime, coconut cream, quinoa, coriander, jalapeño pepper, red chili pepper, anchovies and salmon
Ingredients for dinner. Lime, coconut cream, quinoa, coriander, jalapeño pepper, red chili pepper, anchovies and salmon
Ingredients for dinner. Lime, coconut cream, quinoa, coriander, jalapeño pepper, red chili pepper, anchovies and salmon
Ingredients for dinner. Lime, coconut cream, quinoa, coriander, jalapeño pepper, red chili pepper, anchovies and salmon
Salmon and curry powder
Salmon and curry powder
Tricolour quinoa
Tricolour quinoa
Curried salmon and quinoa
Curried salmon and quinoa
My friend's quince paste along with some blue cheese, figs and honey
My friend’s quince paste along with some blue cheese, figs and honey

Tinned corned beef quinoa surprise

Posted by Gary
Coriander, Corned beef, Curry powder, Dill, Jalapeño pepper, Lime juice, Lime zest, Mint, Parsley, Quinoa, Red chilli, Tricolour quinoa, Worcestershire sauce

Regular readers know my love of tinned corned beef and other tinned/canned meat like spam and sardines and salmon. Of late, regular readers have also figured out I’m a fan of the superfood quinoa. I like the nutty flavour of quinoa and how it looks. I love the way when it’s cooked it catches the light and reflects it back into the camera lens.

Tonight I put together a treat of tinned corned beef and made a quinoa surprise. 

Coriander, Corned beef, Curry powder, Dill, Jalapeño pepper, Lime juice, Lime zest, Mint, Parsley, Quinoa, Red chilli, Tricolour quinoa, Worcestershire sauce
Coriander, Corned beef, Curry powder, Dill, Jalapeño pepper, Lime juice, Lime zest, Mint, Parsley, Quinoa, Red chilli, Tricolour quinoa, Worcestershire sauce
Tinned corned beef quinoa surprise
 
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • Tin of corned beef
  • Coriander
  • Curry powder
  • Dill
  • Jalapeño pepper
  • Lime juice
  • Lime zest
  • Mint
  • Parsley
  • Red chilli
  • Tricolour quinoa
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Coleslaw
  • Spinach leaves
Instructions
  1. Cook some quinoa and have it ready to go once the corned beef is in the frying pan
  2. Start to heat up the corned beef in a frying pan and add the quinoa
  3. Make sure you have about 1:2 ratio of quinoa to corned beef
  4. Add a splash of Worcestershire sauce and a dessert spoon of curry powder.
  5. Cook through until the meat is easily shredding apart
  6. Add half a cup of mixed lime zest, coriander, mint, parsley and dill and mix in
  7. Add half a Jalapeño pepper and half a red chili and mix in
  8. On a large plate lay down a bed of spinach leaves
  9. Form a circle of coleslaw around the edge of the plate
  10. Add half the lime juice to the cooking corned beef and the other half to the coleslaw circle
  11. Once the corned beef has started to stick to the bottom of the frying pan forming a nice crusty texture, spoon it into the middle of the plate forming a little mountain of corned beef goodness
  12. Add the rest of the green stuff as well as the hot stuff to the mountain of corned beef goodness
  13. Shoot a photograph
  14. Eat the meal and get some of the chili and lime juice in your eye and start making nasty noises
  15. Discover you overdid the jalapeño peppers and red chili and grab a big glass of cold water
  16. Eventually finish the meal once your throat and tongue have stopped burning
  17. Wash the dishes
  18. Write the recipe
  19. Blog (verb) and hope people like this recipe
 

What’s your favourite tinned meat? have you cooked a quinoa surprise?