September 2022 favourites list

Hello readers,

Welcome once again to my virtual kitchen table! I hope you have been having a great September. 

As an academic whose main work is teaching, September is my "new year". My strange little January. I am armed with my new academic year diary, new white board pens and I am getting used to running around from building to building on campus with all my books and papers.

My new students are getting used to a course which will be teaching them unfamiliar areas of knowledge and new, highly practical skills. Obviously, what they have to get used to is far more complicated and difficult than my challenges.

Teaching skills as I do often reminds me of cooking. When you are cooking savoury dishes, you build up the flavours bit by bit, rather than shoving everything in a pan and hoping for the best. Often, a dish will start by frying off an onion... then the garlic.... etc. When you are baking, you might rub the fat into the flour before bringing in the "wet" ingredients.

Taking things bit by bit, keeping things manageable, planning ahead, getting your preparing done in advance... as important with cooking as they are with courtroom advocacy.

Welcome to this month's favourites list. I've collected together some food I have enjoyed cooking and eating, along with my selections of food writings and recipes. This month I have opted to choose two articles to help manage the cost of living, in the hope they may be of a small amount of assistance. The cultural pickings are brief this month, as I have been kept busy with other things.

I hope you will enjoy this month's selection. And yes, I know it is a little bit late.

Food writing

What's in season in the UK in September; salads, tomatoes, courgettes, cucumbers and runner beans.  https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/whats-in-season-september

If you are keen to avoid food waste, here are 14 foods you can safely eat past their best before date. Please note carefully that you shouldn't eat other foods beyond either BBE or use before dates. https://metro.co.uk/2022/09/01/what-foods-can-you-safely-eat-past-by-the-best-before-date-2-17284684/

Bought a brand new stone mortar and pestle and want to start using it? You'll need to get rid of any remaining stone dust and dirt. Here is how: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-season-a-mortar-and-pestle

Can we let go of the term ‘fusion cooking’ once and for all? Food is food! https://www.latimes.com/food/newsletter/2022-08-27/tasting-notes-letting-go-of-term-fusion-tasting-notes

Everything you want to know about Paneer, the young and fresh Indian cheese you can either make at home or buy in the supermarket. By food writer and curry philosopher Sejal Sukhadwala: https://www.lovefood.com/news/58760/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-paneer

 

What is "katsu", the famous Japanese dish? @ElsaEats starts with what it definitely is NOT. Katsu is not a sauce. http://www.elsaeats.com/katsu-is-not-a-sauce/

A guide to the many different varieties of chilli and when to use them: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/sep/13/which-chilli-to-use-when-kitchen-aide

Cost of living

 

As the cost of living is increasing, energy for heating our homes, cooking our food and powering our appliances is becoming more expensive than ever. Here are some energy myths exploded, to help you save money: https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/ten-energy-myths-busted-leaving-27876932

Here are some more tips with a cooking emphasis, to help you keep your energy costs down. https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/aug/30/cheap-heats-microwave-cooking-tips-to-save-you-time-and-money

 

Recipes

As the new academic year begins, here are 54 healthy student recipes: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/healthy-student-recipes

From a brand new cookbook dedicated to butter, this is a recipe for Lancashire butter pie made from pastry, potato and onion, traditionally served with braised red cabbage: https://www.nigella.com/recipes/guests/lancashire-butter-pie

Chinese Cooking Demystified is a great YouTube channel with recipe demonstrations and ingredient explanations. I made their Beef Mala Sauce recipe, which was delicious and you can find here: https://youtu.be/krag7AWtTmA  

 

Spanish almond chicken, a one pan wonder to serve with crusty bread: https://www.saveur.com/recipes-by-cuisine/almond-chicken-recipe/

Wanting a change from chick pea hummus? This is a recipe for beetroot hummus from a pre-prepared pack, for convenience: https://www.thekitchn.com/beet-hummus-264798

 

While sweetcorn is still available, here’s a recipe for a late summer Chorizo, orzo and sweetcorn stew:  https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/chorizo-orzo-sweetcorn-summer-stew

Film

Don’t Look Up

TV

The Cavern Club: The Beat Goes On

Classic Albums – Pieces Of A Man (Gil Scott-Heron)

Stranger Things (Series 1)

 

Please note: as with every monthly Favourites List, all of these items have been selected by me simply because I love them. I do not receive any money, benefits in kind or other incentive for posting these links or recommendations.

August 2022 favourites list

I am back with another monthly list of wonderful stuff! I hope you are all doing well.

There have been days this Summer when it has been much too hot to cook, and standing over a steaming saucepan or blasting grill has been too much to take. As a result, I've been doing a few salads and continuing my obsession with Chaat. I blame Sejal Sukhadwala, the renowned food writer, for my chaat fixation after she compared it to salad, given the presence of fresh raw vegetables, sprouted seeds and coriander leaf. One day I will blog some of my favourite chaat recipes. 

This month's photos are some of my food adventures, inventions and homecooked dishes. There's no theme at work here. Just the things I have been eating. 

I hope your cooking exploits and foodie escapades are going fabulously!

Singapore chicken rice

Food writing

August brings some wonderful fruit and vegetables into season in the UK. Here’s what’s in season this month. https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/whats-in-season-august

If you grow your own, here is a list (with tips) of the veggies to plant this month for enjoying in Autumn, Winter and Spring. https://metro.co.uk/2022/08/10/what-vegetables-can-i-plant-in-august-17159616/

If you are in Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games, here is a guide of where to eat in Brum: https://www.olivemagazine.com/travel/uk/west-midlands-travel/best-places-to-eat-and-drink-in-birmingham-birmingham-local-foodie-guide/

The much loved Honey & Co has moved to Lambs Conduit Street. Delicious magazine interviewed Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovic about the move, about their favourite food and more:  https://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/five-minutes-with-honey-co-s-itamar-srulovic-and-sarit-packer/

Beetroot and peach salad

For me, the best thing I've heard about the Bollywood Forrest Gump remake is the re-writing of "life is like a box of chocolates" to a comparison with golgappa! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-62427992

Got an air fryer but only using it for chips? Here are some other ideas, with lots of helpful advice on getting the most from your air fryer. https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/will_it_air_fry

Whether you’re a flexitarian or committed carnivore, the cost of meat, like all food products is rising. Here’s some advice on how to save money on meat:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/save_money_meat

Chicken satay and cucumber salad

 

"Portable soup" (the boiled down gelatinous solids obtained from stock making) was used on the high seas for cooking. It might have been tasty, but it didn't help avoid scurvy and malnutrition at sea. Some food and nautical history: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/portable-soup

To me, one clove of garlic in a recipe is definitely not enough. But does the perfect amount of garlic in a dish exist? https://www.eater.com/23306398/best-garlic-quantity-in-recipes-how-many-cloves-ideal

Vivek Singh talks about his secret ingredient, Sattu (roasted chick pea flour/besan). Used in both Indian and Burmese food.  https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/aug/21/vivek-singh-secret-ingredient-sattu-roasted-chickpea-flour 

Recipes

Looking to shake up your salad dressings? I’ve been stuck in a vinaigrette rut, so this is useful for me. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/10-salad-dressings-you-can-make-minutes

Beef and aubergine fatteh, a Nigella Lawson recipe of which she says “Is it too terrible to say that I think of it as Middle-Eastern nachos?” https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/beef_and_aubergine_46108

Avocado toast: not just for millenials!

Recently, I’ve been obsessed with Chaat, Indian snacks which combine salad with spice and crunch. I just discovered a Mexican street food equivalent; Dorilocos. “Crazy” Doritos, with salsa, peanuts, veg and maybe even gummy bears, eaten straight out of the packet. Want! https://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/dorilocos

The Korean pancake dish Pajeon is one you can make at home to use up unused veg to avoid food waste: https://www.bonappetit.com/story/how-to-make-pajeon-from-leftover-vegetables

TV

Sherwood

The Undeclared War

The Control Room

 

Maccaflower cheese

Please note: as with every monthly Favourites List, all of these items have been selected by me simply because I love them. I do not receive any money, benefits in kind or other incentive for posting these links or recommendations.