How quickly a year goes by! I can hardly believe that I’ve already been running this little old blog for a whole year already. So I think it’s time to look back at the most popular posts of the year.
Top 10 most popular posts:
1. 29th June 2011 - Recipe Road Test: Atul Kochhar’s Parsi Lamb Curry http://snigskitchen.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/recipe-road-test-atul-kochhars-parsi.html
Atul Kochhar is the most innovative Indian chef operating in the world right now. His Michelin starred Benares restaurant serves superb ‘Indian-food-with-a-twist’, influenced by the best of Europe. My number one post is my testing of his recipe for Salli Ma Karu Gosht, a northern Indian lamb curry with matchstick potatoes. A great recipe, full of flavour and easy to follow, it hardly surprises me that this is as popular as it is.
2. 14th October 2011 – Recipe Road Test: Ching-He Huang’s Nutty Chicken Cool Noodle Salad http://snigskitchen.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/recipe-road-test-ching-he-huangs-nutty.html
Ching-He Huang has been behind a resurgence of interest in cooking Chinese food at home. This wonderful recipe requires cooked chicken, and I’ll confess we often have roast chicken on a Sunday just so we can have this amazing salad later in the week! A spicy peanutty dressing, crispy vegetables and exotic mango makes this a delicious meal which will convert anyone who still believes salad to be ‘rabbit food’.
3. 10th May 2011 – Review of Gordon Ramsay’s Great Escape Part 1 – Cambodia
This review of Ramsay’s TV ‘Travel-cum-cooking’ show has been stumbled upon by many, many people. It would appear that ‘anger wat’ or ‘anger wat cambodia’ are the search terms which have led far and away the most people to my humble little blog. Others were interested to know about food shortages in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge years and were drawn in by google recognising they might want to see pictures of deep fried tarantulas. Whilst Ramsay might not have captured all the myriad faces of this amazing countries, his journey of discovery of Cambodian cooking was nevertheless fascinating.
4. 22nd March 2012 – Back to School: Leluu’s Vietnamese Cooking Class
Writer, food blogger, supperclub host, photographer and film-maker Uyen Luu (nickname Leluu) manages to fit in Vietnamese cooking classes into her busy schedule (she is currently writing a book on her native flavours and cooking techniques). I thoroughly enjoyed my time learning about Vietnamese ingredients and dishes. It would appear that my readers were also very interested too.
5. 7th May 2011 - How to make baked camembert
Posted on my first day as a blogger, this was actually a recycled piece I had originally posted Facebook on Monday, 28 June 2010. It is a gastropub classic, and is one which can easily be recreated at home. Perhaps it was cheeky to ask the Cirencester chef how to make it, but aren’t you all glad I did?
6. 20th June 2011: Review of Taste of London 2011
Taste of London is one of the premier foodie events of the year. It was a superb day out, and it isn’t surprising that many readers have wanted to know all about it. 2012’s event will again be in Regent’s Park from 21st June to 24th June and is booking now. I was chuffed to meet some real food heroes: Atul Kochhar, Richard Corrigan and Jun Tanaka.
7. 31st January 2012: Italian Style Barley Salad
Everyone wants to eat a little healthier. But I think many of us find it difficult to find the right combination of healthy, tasty and simple to prepare. Italian food, with its ripe tomatoes, flat leaf parsley, lemons and olive oil, seems to lend itself to flavourful healthy eating. The addition of wholegrain goodness is, I hope, what has made this recipe so well read. Thanks everyone!
8. 21st May 2011: How to make Thai Inspired steamed fish
This was another recipe I had first posted on facebook on Tuesday, 17 August 2010, long before I ever thought of having a food blog of my own. This is a triumph of taste and simplicity. The use of steaming as a cooking technique is very forgiving – the fish does not lose any of its moisture and hence does not overcook. An simple one to try at home if you’ve never tried cooking a Snig’s Kitchen dish before.
9. 25th November 2011: Reggae Reggae Litigation: The High Court Verdict
Levi Root’s High Court defence of his Reggae Reggae sauce was always going to attract attention, particularly after his public triumph in the Dragon’s Den. In the end, Levi was not found to have infringed Tony Bailey’s intellectual property rights to the famous sauce. Not that it was a complete victory; both were criticised by the judge, who felt neither had really been up front. A thrilling legal battle, for foodies as well as those with an interest in all things legal.
10. 7th April 2012: Brain food
I wrote this post very much with my students in mind. In the midst of their revision, I must admit I was perhaps being a bit of a ‘Mother Hen’ worrying about them, but I wanted to be sure they were looking after themselves. This piece seems to have struck a chord, with many other people wanting to know if you can improve your acuity, memory, stamina and intelligence through diet. Yes, you can, provided you are looking after the rest of you.
I’d like to express my gratitude. Firstly, to all of you who read this blog. Whether you read regularly or dip in and out, thank you. It is you readers who keep me writing. Big thanks go to all of you who email me, send comments via the blog, facebook or twitter about my various posts. It’s great to have a dialogue with you, so please keep doing what you are doing. My king-size gratitude goes to Matt Seys-Llewellyn and Uyen Luu for their fantastic guest posts and to Karin Struyk and Raymond Medhurst for their recipe posts. If any readers have any ideas for guest posts or recipes, I am always receptive to new ideas – email me!
I will be doing my best to keep blogging for another year. I hope to keep you all interested with more reviews, food thoughts and original recipes. If there is anything you think I should cover or you would like to see, do let me know!
Just wanted to say, keep blogging!
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your encouragement!