r/UK_Food

Chicken, Toulouse sausage, chorizo, saffron and all the rest of the lovely things you'd expect in a paella!

Well I think we have a winner so far! This dish was completely delicious and 100% up my street. Enfrijoladas are corn tortillas rolled around a filling (in my case queso fresco) and topped with a savoury bean-based sauce. I then topped mine with shredded cabbage, avocado, soured cream and more queso fresco, and served it alongside salsa fresca (tomato, onion, jalapeno and coriander leaf with lime juice).

I mainly followed this recipe as best as I could (though there are very few weights, measures and timings!) as this youtube channel had been recommended as a good authentic source in a few Reddit discussions I read. I supplemented with this recipe for some extra direction when needed.

I wanted to use as few substitutions as possible, though this is easier said than done when working with Latin American recipes as genuine ingredients are harder to come by in the UK (or at least in my corner of North East England). I was able to find store cupboard ingredients such as dried Guajillo chilis on Amazon, but had to get creative when it came to the fresh ingredients. I substituted serrano peppers with jalapeno in the salsa fresca (which I believe is also fine to be used), and had to use regular sour cream instead of Mexican cream/crema fresca. I would love to try the proper cream at some point and see the difference that it makes.

I really didn't want to compromise on the cheese though, as it seemed a very integral part of the dish, so I chose to make my own! I followed this recipe and it was much simpler than I expected. Swipe to see my homemade cheese! It was creamy and mild and worked so well in this dish alongside the deep savoury beans and fresh salsa.

I hope they don't play football as well as they cook...

If you are new here, here are the dishes I have made previously:

Krpice sa Zeljem from Croatia

Tatale and Aboboi from Ghana

Arroz Con Pollo from Panama

Pondu, Fufu and Makemba from D.R. Congo

Will it be the last?!

I cooked the steaks in homemade garlic herb butter, and then cooked the mushrooms for the sauce in the same pan to absorb all that goodness

Piri-Piri Chicken

A spicy, adventurous whole chicken feast with a hot zesty sauce. Perfect for that pre football get together. The recipe is inspired by an African dish with Portuguese origins that is now more famously known as Nando's chicken.

This meal will take some time to prepare, but the results are worth it in my opinion for the authentic taste and satisfaction on people's faces that I get when they share the meal with me.

Ingredients

2 red peppers

1 yellow pepper

1 red onion, unpeeled

4 to 6 garlic cloves

4 to 6 chillies

Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon (or 45 ml lemon juice)

15 g smoked paprika

5 g dried oregano

2.5 g dried rosemary

125 ml olive oil (regular olive oil, not extra virgin) or sunflower oil

30 ml white wine vinegar

5 g sea salt

Chicken

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (approximately 1.25 to 1.5 kg)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

To Serve

Handful of freshly chopped parsley

Lemon wedges (for squeeze the juice over the chicken)

Extra piri-piri sauce (optional)

Method

1. Prepare the Marinade

Prepare the marinade at least 5 hours before cooking.

Lightly oil a baking tray with olive or sunflower oil.

Using a pastry brush, lightly coat the peppers, onion and garlic cloves with oil.

Place them on the baking tray and roast for 20 to 25 minutes at 180 degrees. Do not fret if the pepper skin starts to blacken, the more roasted the skin is, the easier it will be to peel. I prefer to place the garlic in the tray when there is roughly 10 minutes of roasting left.

Transfer the hot peppers to the zip lock bags and seal immediately. Leave them to steam until cool enough to handle. Roughly half an hour I have found.

Peel the skins from the peppers.

Peel the onion and garlic skins off.

Place the roasted peppers, onion, garlic and the remaining marinade ingredients into a food processor. Blend until smooth, then season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

2. Prepare the Chicken

Remove the backbone from the chicken.

Turn the chicken over and press firmly on the breast until the breastbone cracks, allowing the chicken to lie flat (spatchcock).

Make several diagonal cuts approximately 2.5 cm deep into the flesh and skin of the chicken breasts and legs.

Season the chicken generously with salt and black pepper. I rub the seasoning into the chicken. My wife likes to watch me whilst I do this. I have no idea why...

Spread half of the marinade into a lidded container and place the chicken flesh side down into it.

Pour the remaining marinade over the top of the chicken, ensuring it is evenly coated.

Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.

3. Cook the Chicken

Preheat the oven to 220°C using the grill setting.

Remove the chicken from the refrigerator.

Place the chicken in a roasting tin and pour any remaining marinade over it.

Roast for 15 minutes until the skin becomes crispy and slightly singed.

Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C and continue roasting for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked. Check whether the thickest part of the breast or thigh reaches 75°C using a meat thermometer.

To Serve

Carve the chicken into portions and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.

Serve with lemon wedges and additional piri-piri sauce if desired

A variation on the misty ricardo chicken saag, but with some fresh mint, a bit more kasuri methi and a bit more heat.

It’s a winner!

Lumpy mash (left over), roasted veggies but I crowded the pan so it’s more like steamed 😂 the chicken (XL) was spatchcocked. I dried the skin really good and then my rub consisted of Worcester sauce, salt, pepper & garlic. Both under the skin and over the skin. Let it roast 20 mins uncovered and then covered for the rest of the roast. The chicken was literally falling off the bone and so juicy. Definitely uglicious.

If using a microwave, add egg whites to your oats halfway through. Won't be able to taste it and adds more protein. Will keep you fuller for longer

Men used to go to war, now we take pictures of our breakfast

Homemade bolognese, made with farm bought steak mince 😋

Marinated chicken thighs with a jerk rub and marinade for 24 hours 👌

I forgot to post this the other day when I did it. Decided to make a little Lebanese feast for a friend and threw together a little Hummus, Tabouleh, and beef Kafta, along with a little flatbreads and some olives / peppers.

Was my first time making hummus from scratch and I stupidly forgot I needed Tahini, so I made some tahini from scratch also lol. Thankfully it all ended up being very tasty.

I need to learn to be less “UK” about the Tabouleh though and get it really really green! Needs even more parsley and mint than is in this one! Next time!