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Produce => Recipes => Topic started by: fitzsie on March 28, 2013, 18:47:23
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The Hairy Dieters: How to Love Food and Lose Weight
I bought this book two weeks ago on recommendation, more as a means of healthier cooking rather then for losing weight. I have to say I have used a recipe from this book nearly every night since and not one bad meal have I had !!! The lamb tagine was delish, the chicken and veg stew was soooo tasty and the Spanish Chicken was as well. The recipes are simple to follow and useful for novices upwards. I've never recommended a cook book before but the very fact MOH has made comments on how good the food has been is something to shout about. (He is such a finickity eater !!)
If you are looking for new recipe book then please have a look ( I bought mine from Amazon for £7)
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I'm on the Weight Watchers diet & they are all WW friendly. Everyone raves about the recipes on the WW site.
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We have the book and it is encouraging my son to take a turn in the kitchen, which is an added bonus.
the recipes are really good but not as good as their pie book. nothing beats the Hairy Bikers pie books.
I did the steak and ale for friends and there was a reverential silence round the table as everyone took their first mouthfuls!!! It was tantanount to a religious experience.
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I don't think I have used as many recipes from just one cook book in such a short space of time !!
I shall certainly look at other books of theirs.
Just had their lamb hotpot tonight - so good MOH is finishing it off for lunch tomorrow! Unheard of !! :icon_cheers:
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Try these out on the ol man,he,ll luv em..................
Well,it had to happen,them fat blokes have dedicated some recipes to letting out Mr Thin from the fat closet.
This spice mix is one of the recipes from their New diet book that Jude got us on the Ipad,so thought id trial it today on chicken.
OK......
Cajun spice mix
5 tsp ground cumin
4 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp coursely ground black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp flaked sea salt
spray oil
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN002.jpg)
above ingredients mixed in air tight container
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN003.jpg)
wrap chicken breasts in cling film and flatten to "escalope" thickness
with rolling pin.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN006.jpg)
flattened chick breasts(1.5cm).....ish
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN008.jpg)
sprinkle 1 tsp of cajun spice mix over each chicken breast.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN010.jpg)
3 mins on each side,saw the chick breasts cooked through nicely.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN013.jpg)
I prepped a quick salad and served them in crispy rolls
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/HAIRYBIKERSCAJUNSPICEDCHICKEN014-1.jpg)
Served it with Tzatziki dressing and must say their cajun mix wasnt too fiery but was a subtle warm taste blend that I would have though not only suitable for chicken but may be tasty on pork and sea food.
or this one............................................
Good Ol Hairy Bikers have concocted a tasty Spicey Low Cal Chicken recipe here ,try it and see what you think.
Ingredients
1 x Medium Chicken (skinned and spatchcocked)
FOR THE MARINADE
6 cardamom pods
2 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp coriander seeds
4 whole cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp ground fenugreek
2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp paprika
1-2 tsp hot chilli powder (the more you use, the spicier the dish)
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp flaked sea salt
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
40g/1½oz piece fresh root ginger, peeled and finely grated
100g/3½oz low-fat natural yoghurt
FOR THE MINTED YOGURT SAUCE
200g/7oz low-fat natural yoghurt
1 tsp ready-made mint sauce
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken003.jpg)
1.To make the marinade, split the cardamom pods and remove the seeds. Put the cardamom seeds in a dry non-stick frying pan and discard the husks. Add the cumin and coriander seeds, cloves and black peppercorns and place the pan over a medium heat. Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring regularly until the spices are lightly toasted – you know they’re ready when you can smell the spicy aroma
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken005.jpg)
2.Tip the toasted spices into a pestle and mortar, or an electric spice grinder, and pound to a fine powder. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in the fenugreek, turmeric, paprika, chilli powder, cinnamon and salt. Add the garlic, ginger and yoghurt, then mix well and leave to stand while you prepare the chicken.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken010.jpg)
3.Place the chicken on its breast on a sturdy chopping board and cut carefully either side of the backbone with good scissors or poultry shears. Chuck out the bone and cut off the foot joints and wing tips.
4.Strip all the skin off the bird apart from the ends of the wings (which are easier to remove after cooking). You’ll find this simpler to do if you snip the membrane between the skin and the chicken flesh as you go. Cut off and discard any obvious fat – it will be a creamy white colour. Open out the chicken and place it on the board so the breast side is facing upwards.
5.Press down heavily with the palms of your hands to break the breastbone and flatten the chicken as evenly as possible. This will help it cook more quickly. Slash the meat with a knife through the thickest parts of the legs and breast. Place the chicken in a shallow non-metallic dish – a lasagne dish is ideal – and tuck in the legs and wings.
6.Spoon over the marinade and really massage it into the chicken on both sides, ensuring that every bit of bird is well coated – get your hands in there and really go for it. Cover the dish with cling film and put the chicken in the fridge to marinate for at least four hours or ideally overnight.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken012.jpg)
7.Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Take the chicken out of the dish and place it on a rack inside a large baking tray, breast-side up. Squeeze over some juice from the lime and season with ground black pepper.
8.Roast for 45-50 minutes until the chicken is lightly browned and cooked throughout, tossing the lime quarters on to the rack for the last 20 minutes to cook alongside the chicken. They’ll be good for squeezing over the meat later. The juices should run clear when the thickest part of one of the thighs is pierced with a skewer. Cover loosely with foil and leave to rest for 10 minutes before carving.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken020.jpg)
9.While the chicken is resting, make the sauce. Spoon the yoghurt into a serving bowl and stir in the mint sauce until thoroughly combined.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken015.jpg)
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken017.jpg)
Add a quick side salad of Chopped Red Onion and Tomatoes with Fresh Coriander
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t22/skatenchips/hairyschicken025.jpg)
The Spicey Chcken is complemented with the minty dip and
salad and without all that lovely crispy skin...shame.!!!!!!
The Chicken eats nice cold too !!!
Enjoy
Gazza
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hi Gazza.. looking at all your spices there.. I wondered if you would be interested in the spice company I use.
www.thespicery.com
I found the spices of very good quaility and the chilli powder, I only use a fraction of that from tesco.
pic of my last purchase :)
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2013-02-19114642_zps255f35bb.jpg)
gonna have to try those chicken recipes too.. they look lush, as does your salad with the corriander leaves in :) x
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Gazza, your posts should have a warning with them. They are gastro porn. :happy7: I am sitting here drooling.
I find the best place for spices are the Chinese cash and carry and the local Asian and Mediteranean supermarkets near me.
For stuff that I can't get I use foxes spices although they still don't do online ordering. They do really excellent spice grinders too.
Will have a look at 'the spicery' jessands as I have spotted you have asafoetida and I haven't been able to get that locally.
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Just Ingredients also do asafotedia?????? Goodlife put me on to them & they do lots of weird & wonderful things.
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yer,you can never have enough spice suppliers Jessands, I tend to use ...............
http://www.hampshirefoods.co.uk/
as well as living near Southall its asian market days get me buying 1/2 kilo bags for 50p that are imported in,ok sometimes the spices arnt as refined as jarred jobbies from tesco but they are so pungent,you cant help buy buy em..... :tongue3:
Oh and yes,I do refill my tecso jars as they fit in the piccies better than a load of plastic bags,... :toothy10:
I need bigger cupboards,as judes always pulling out the tea bags covered in something hot and spicy where my bags have split...... :BangHead:
Gazza
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Well Gazza, don't tell Jude, I asked Chriscross to marry me because of his greenhouse, now if you were a free man who knows :love8:. It would be lovely to have someone who loves to cook & can do it soooooooo well. Food is very boring in this house because OH doesn't do spicy. We've been married nearly 46 years & I haven't changed his palate yet so don't suppose I ever will :BangHead:.
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Ohhhhhhhhh......
I dream of having a large walk in kitchen larder.....walls lined with shelves. ... With all my ingredients equipment and spices for cooking.....in glass jars or containers. If I win the lottery My next home will have one or I will build one.
duke :icon_cheers:
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Ill take your offer under advisement Grannyjanny,hang on,Ill ask......."any room for one more Jude"....errrrrrr NO !!!!!!!!!!! :tongue3:
Yer Duke,what a dream,me sis in Norfolk lives in a lovely cottage and has just that,walk in larder,stone floor provides cooling for jarred garden grown fruits and bottled wines,lucky mare.... :BangHead:
We are in the throes of moving to Hampshire/Dorset in the next few months and trying to find a Bungalow with such a kitchen is nigh on impossible unless the property is stone age or £££££££££££££££,plus trying to get a new Plot according to the respective councils is a 10 year wait minimum......
(writes note to self,find home with big garden)
Anyway,we,ll keep sniffing for something suitable.
Gazza
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Don't fall for that wanton woman, Jannygranny, Gazza - marry me. I would love a man who liked to cook really good food and actually EAT it. Same as GrannyJ - married approx 40 yrs. He goes on about his mums cooking so I cooked like her - veg done to death, crispy fried eggs etc and he COMPLAINED.
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Sorry ladies but I think you may have done something wrong with your spouses. In the early days of your relationships you cook all the things you like to eat and serve up all your inedible mistakes when he is deeply in love and wouldn't do anything to upset you and thus get him trained. :sunny:
My OH will eat anything and loves different. I even managed to widen my father's culinary repertoire over the years too. Didn't manage with father in law but there are limits to my abilities. Oh the tales i could tell :BangHead: :BangHead: :BangHead:
Gazza, I keep all my spices in a drawer in the kitchen. Have decanted the spices into the large Sharwoods jars that you get stirfry sauces in. They are square and fit in nicely. Labels are on the top, easy to find, easy organise and kept in the dark. :icon_cheers:
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I agree with you Mrs Tweedy. Sadly us ladies when first married, due to being in lurrrrve, try to please their beloved. Unfortunately this is viewed as a sign of weakness in us weaker sex - thus initiating control.
BTW I keep all my packets of spices in a biscuit/choccy tin and use them from that. No space in my cupboards for any more jars, In fact it is quite an achievement to find anything without jars/tins crashing down.
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Lotty you are a girl after my own heart. The times I hear expletives when OH opens a cupboard & gets hit by something. When we were first married he thought he was being really adventurous if he had spag bol. Our first row was because I wouldn't clean his shoes, 'like his mum always did'. :BangHead: :BangHead: :BangHead:.
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I would like to visit one of the asian markets Gazza, and am going to London in May, Can you advise of one for me to visit? I will be staying in Teddington but will go into the city. Where I live we have no such markets and its definitely not multi cultural here.
I too got a little fed up of all the spices and jars in the cupboard, spewing out and in complete disarray.
So I got a set of 5 of these plastic baskets from the factory store, £2. Now all my spices are in some kind of order and I can just go through a box at a time when I'm searching for something.
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2013-04-01181247_zpseb472924.jpg)
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Maybe we could link up,for a girlie day at the market,(Girlie= jude had 1st 10 years in the kitchen,ive had the last 16.... :tongue3:)
http://www.visitsouthall.co.uk/Local_Info/southall_market.php
Any of its open days are good fun,but weekends can be manic,the great thing about it is that if you cant find what your looking for in the market in the high st,you just walk up the broadway adjoining it and there is a spice haven every other shop,its mind blowing.
http://www.londontown.com/LondonInformation/Shopping/Southall_Market/2deb/
That is an easy map to follow from Southall Train Station,about an 8 minute stroll but its a mainline station that isnt convienient from Teddington,or Teddington is about 15 mins drive to Southall.
Yes,we visit your city every Crimbo for a walk around the Crimbo stalls and into the German Shop for a few bits for the tree,your right though its not very cosmopolitan in an asian context is it.
Gazza
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Are you London based Gazza???
We are.
If so you could go to Billingsgate market for your fish. Sooooo fresh and about half to a third of the price of supermarket and other places. I can let you know the best traders to use.
Spitalfields market for fruit and veg is brilliant too. In the summer you get a whole tray of peaches for £3.
The other week I got 8lb of blueberries for £2.
Down side is you have to get there in the morning early. :BangHead: But it absolutely worth it.
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No Mrs Tweedy,we are Near Heathrow at present,10 mins to Southall for spices,and I have a great Butcher and Veg suppplier 15 mins drive away in Windsor Berkshire,although yuv got me beat with fish as our only supplier comes to Staines every Friday,but never has too much on board.
I wouldnt drive into London and not worth me tubing it in to town for fish,although we will get along to Borough Market one of these days as ive heard it has some great produce.
Gazza
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I have an ambition to go to Borough market too just to see what they have.
I get my spices in a local market but for some, I have to go to Brussels and raid the Chiense and Thai supermarkets near the Bourse - kaffir lime leaves, lemon grass and chutneys.
I've recently branched out and ordered some online from the UK and that has worked well - kashmiri and chipotle chillies and sumach. I looked for kashmiri chilli seeds on line but found none so had a go at sowing some from the dried chillies and bingo, I now have 8 babies. Brilliant.
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Blimey!! Look what this Hairy Bikers link has unearthed - budding cooks everywhere :toothy10:
I'm brilliantly positioned where I live (Newcastle - upon- Tyne) as we have a large Asian community in the west end where I can readily buy all my spices and also fresh asian/chines veg, fresh nan breads, curry shops etc
Also have Chinese community with their supermarkets as well as other ethnic communities too.
I also love cooking, so appreciate how frustrating it must be if you can't get hold of an ingredient due to lack of availability where you live
Give me a shout if you are in need of spices & i'll happily oblige for cost of stamp & spice
Debs x
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Gazza, at 4am the drive through London is a doddle. Shame you aren't nearer, you would love the market. The variety of fish is incredible. I got some razor clams one week which were delicious.
Debs, I think I may be a blossomed cook rather than budding; I have been cooking for more years than I care to admit to.
Obbelix, I get my kaffir lime leaves frozen from the Chinese cash and carry and the lemon grass fresh from the same place. We are so lucky, we live at the edge of Epping forest, but we have the chinese cash and carry, 10 minutes away, Turkish food shops 20mins away and half an hour to the Greek deli's, and 5 mins from several Asian food centres. It is a foodies paradise.
If you have sumach and we get a summer for BBQ's try making a BBQ'd onion salad.
Peel onions and cut in half. Leave the stalk in tact to keep the onion together and thread them onto skewers. Brush with oil and cook until slightly charred.
Remove from skewers and put into a dressing made with olive oil, salt, pepper, a good pinch of sumach, about a teaspoon of pomegranate molasses, teaspoon of wine vinegar and lots of chopped parsley. Eat warm as an accompaniment to kebabs with flat bread.
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Yes Mrs Tweedy,
I too am more of a blossom than a bud :icon_flower:
Debs x
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Or we could be a wonderful matured wine. :sunny:
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Haven't found pomegranate molasses yet but then I do live out in t'country 30 miles south of Brussels so haven't looked locally. However, I can be in Brussels in about an hour depending on traffic and there are so many nationalities and communities of immigrants or diplomats or international business people that there are specialist dellies and shops for every cuisine except maybe north Korean if I want to seek them out and then find a parking space. Sometimes ordering online is just easier.
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You make me glad to be living where I am. :sunny:
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I'm not much of a spicy person, well not in the text your talking about :tongue3: but after reading this thread I ordered the book and it arrived today, I blame you Gazza and stop putting them mouth watering dishes on, they make me hungry even when I've just eaten. I'll read back to see if you explained it Gazza, but if not how do you get the bones out the chicken before cooking it. PS cheers Fitzie. :coffee2:
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Cornykev, I hope you enjoy the book as much as I am continuing to do so! Had the peppered steak this evening and the sauce was simple and so tasty. Had with them the potato wedges which are found in another recipe for chicken. At the weekend I also made the first sweet dish from the book, the carrot cake. Very straight forward and another recipe to recommend. Can't stop using the book ! Enjoy !
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My wife has cooked the Cajun chicken for tea today,i must say it was lovely,thank you for the ingredients.(and she didn't even burn it)
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Ill try and post any recipes on at tea time Kev,that way you should have already eaten fella,and no matter how liptastically delish they may seem youll be full and will only think of it as something to try maybe another day.
Whats that mate,how to remove bones,youve lost me..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Cajun is chicken breasts and the spatchcocked is just that,the whole bird is butterflied open and the paste is smeared over,OK.you can remove the bones but itsa chore mate for the sake of a few mins extra cooking time saved.
Having worked at Heathrow for 25 years,I got to sample plenty of Asian,African cuisine and have to say the majority of the meals prepared for me and my mates on the shift were ""Meat on the bone",no secret there as its accepted that ................
"""The principal effect of cooking meat on the bone is that it alters the flavour and texture. Albumen and collagen in the bones release gelatin when boiled which adds substance to stews, stocks, soups and sauces. The bone also conducts heat within the meat so that it cooks more evenly and prevents meat drying out and shrinking during cooking.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ""
Not my words,just accepted cooking science that our continental partners have known and used for generations,the curries would arrive in huge silver
pots,ok yud get a few namby pambys want it removed from the bone but the asian mums that had prepared it for us said..""Thats why yuv got fingers""
and sure enough we,d sit there gorging ourselves on some fine foods with spicy gravys dribbling down chins and fingers,as we picked the bones clean,so think about what flavour you might miss out on before you get bizzy with the boning knife Cornykev !!!!!!!!!
Gazza
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I love chewing it off the bone, but I misunderstood your butterflied chicken for the whole thing being deboned, I must have mixed this up with another thread where the whole bone comes out and cooks quicker but as you say a bit of a chore. :drunken_smilie:
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yer cant beat it Kev,I think it was me and another member talking about de boning the chicken after spatchcocking it,yer,its easier eating but the Ol cave dweller comes out in me and I enjoy grabbing a bone end and chewing down on the meat,although after eating I dont tend to drag Jude off into the back of the cave by the hair these days,well,especially if the footys on..... :blob7:
I did the cooking on our "Plot Barby" last summer and all the other drunken allotmenteers made short work of all on offer,I just hope we actually have a summer as ill be on the lookout for fresh ideas for marinades from other members that I can do a dry run on before offering it to the locals..... :tongue3:
Gazza
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Oh, no doubt about it meat cooked on the bone is sweeter, especially in curries. I actually don't bother with chicken breast it sticks in my throat. I have serious voice issues. Lost the voice for 2 years and still have to manage it on a day to day basis.
I taught for at a Primary school where we often had international food days. Bliss, I had lots of the mums giving me their secret recipes. Forget an apple for the teacher it was curries and the best naan bread ever.