Recipes

In one of my other lives, I write a weekly television review. US swamp-related documentaries grab my attention from time to time, and it was from these that I learnt about chicken-fried steak, a delicious Southern-style beef dish. Let’s get cookin’, folks…

This delicious dish is melt-in-the-mouth, and is a superb way to mark any occasion.

I come from an ancient family tradition in which we never ate pork. But when I became a man, I cooked like a man, and pork found a minor but significant role in my diet. Pork belly gets its best attention in the cooking of Asia, specifically the south-east. Here’s a delicious meal that will satisfy a hearty appetite – and, if you choose, set your tongue on fire.

Most of us spend time and effort on making dips, rather than on the dip vehicle, call it what you will. This results in first-class dips smeared on sometimes stale, industrially made dip chips made of 90% salt and 10% very old oil. Here’s the best dip chip in the history of the world.

A banana cake is just like banana bread, only better, and it’s one of the best ways to begin your personal adventure into baking. Not only do you get a brilliant cake in a pretty short time, but the opportunity to modify and enhance the basic recipe is just begging for your good ideas.

Penne pasta is designed to convey the most flavour from plate to mouth. These palate-tempting ingredients allow the flavours to come through rich and strong.

This, fellow kitchen mechanics, is a gazpacho. It is not simply a soup; it is a new way to combine the freshest vegetables and herbs to produce a memorably delicious meal.

Stir frying is the quickest way to make food that will please almost anyone. Here’s a starter recipe using only three main ingredients.

If detective stories set in New York are true, every second NYPD policeman lives on a diet of spaghetti and meatballs. This Italian-influenced American dish is one of the many examples of the internationalisation of food.

‘Vindaye,’ say my Friends Of Mauritian Origin (FOMO), ‘is not just another KZN fish curry.’ I think a Durban fish curry is a marvellous thing, but FOMO disagree. So here is an island take on a great series of tastes and aromas.

My first guinea fowl of the year was klapped by an Isuzu on a dirt road near Karkloof. The next two were expertly hunted by a good friend and perished with all their adrenalin safely in their adrenals. Boy, oh boy, were they tender.

There’s not much one can do when cauliflower au gratin makes its umpteenth comeback to the dinner table, except to look hopefully in the general direction of the kitchen. Perhaps there’s something else to come? Alternatively, give this recipe the attention it deserves.