Tag: red cabbage

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Chicken Flatbread

I have always enjoyed the Kurdish wraps from Matina in the St Nicholas market in Bristol. The star of the show is the freshly baked flat bread, but the salads and pickles that you get in that bread are also really tasty.

I tried my own version of the wrap. Not an identical copy, one that was inspired by the Matin wrap. They were delicious, so I decided to do something similar again. Instead of lamb, this time I did chargrilled chicken.

flatbread

I made some red cabbage slaw, this was thinly sliced red cabbage dressed with white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. This I made about thirty minutes in advance.

I also did some pickled red onion. In a pan I heated some vinegar, added salt, sugar and pepper and then added some sliced red onion. I kept it on the heat for a minute or so, then took it off the heat.

I took some Middle Eastern laffa bread from Waitrose, these are handstretched flatbreads from The Levantine Table range.

I spread some chilli jam, hummus, tzatziki, on the flatbread. I then added the chargrilled chicken, which I had seasoned and cooked on my griddle. I then added some shredded romaine lettuce heart, sliced cucumber, and coriander.

Really good result.

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Cooked Red Cabbage

red cabage
Image by eurippon from Pixabay

For Sunday lunch I cooked some red cabbage. I didn’t have all the ingredients in the house for my festive red cabbage recipe, so I did a variation of it.

Ingredients

knob of butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, finely sliced or chopped
1 x 500g (or half a) red cabbage, shredded finely using a food processor (white core discarded) or with a knife.
2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
splash of red wine
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp soft brown sugar
1 apple, peeled, cored and diced

2 tsp cranberry sauce

Method

Heat the butter and oil in a lidded saucepan. When hot, add the onion and fry gently until softened. Stir in the cinnamon and season. Add the cabbage and fry for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy. Stir in the sugar, apples and Balsamic vinegar, cranberry sauce, add a splash of red wine. Cover with a lid and let it cook gently for 30 minutes.

If you aren’t using the cranberry sauce, taste the cabbage and add a little more sugar if it’s too tart for your taste.

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I knew that

I have always enjoyed the Kurdish wraps from Matina in the St Nicholas market in Bristol. The star of the show is the freshly baked flat bread, but the salads and pickles that you get in that bread are also really tasty.

I tried my own version of the wrap. Not an identical copy, one that was inspired by the Matin wrap.

lamb kebab

I made some red cabbage slaw, this was thinly sliced red cabbage dressed with white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. This I made about thirty minutes in advance.

I also did some pickled red onion. In a pan I heated some vinegar, added salt, sugar and pepper and then added some sliced red onion. I kept it on the heat for a minute or so, then took it off the heat.

I took some Middle Eastern laffa bread from Waitrose, these are handstretched flatbreads from The Levantine Table range.

I spread some hummus, tzatziki, on the flatbread. I added some shredded romaine lettuce heart and sliced cucumber.

The lamb was some boned leg, which I had cubed and seasoned with rosemary, salt, and pepper. I chargrilled the lamb on my griddle. The cooked lamb was added to the flat bread, and I finished off the dish with the red cabbage slaw and the pickled red onion. The lamb was really tender and tasty.

Though I really enjoyed this meal, it wasn’t as good as those from Matina, but then I knew that.

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Roast Venison at The Georgian Townhouse

I was in Norwich for a workshop and staying at The Georgian Townhouse on Unthank Road close to the city centre.

I have no idea if I had been to Norwich before, I thought I had, possibly on a school trip, but if I had it was over forty years ago. I really don’t think I have been there. I did live in East Anglia in the 1970s and 1980s but moved to the South West in the early 1990s. I visited lots of places in East Anglia, and in Norfolk. I knew I had been to Hunstanton, Thetford, Dersingham, and Kings Lynn. But I am not sure if I had been to Norwich. If I had then it would have been once.

The Georgian Townhouse is a really nice hotel, part of small chain of boutique hotels with three hotels in Norfolk, one in Mumbles, Wales, and one in London. The rooms are a real nice mix of modern and old. 

I went down to the restaurant, which has all the character of a lovely old pub, and was given a nice warm welcome. I looked over the menu, well I had in fact already checked out the menu when I booked the hotel. 

I decided to have the roast venison loin, with sticky red cabbage, horseradish puree, fondant potato, rosemary jus, spiced seed granola.  It wasn’t too long before the food arrived.

This was a very dark red plate of food, and I think it needed something else to give it a bit more variety of colour on the plate.

I couldn’t find the horseradish puree, and the spiced seed granola had been replaced by some roasted mixed nuts. The fondant potato was okay, not quite what I thought it should be though. The venison was slightly pink, tender, and had a nice flavour. I also enjoyed the sticky red cabbage which had a nice intense flavour, and wasn’t too sweet. It was a nice contrast to the venison. The nuts added some interesting texture to the dish.

I really do think though the dish needed some more vegetables, to add texture and colour. I was reminded writing this, of the venison dish I had at the Hazelwood Castle Hotel near to York.

The venison was lovely and tender, and full of flavour. I enjoyed the vegetables, though I think I would have enjoyed having some more jus with the meal.

I think even some kale or green beans would have made the dish much better at The Georgian Townhouse.

I did enjoy the food, and I am being a little picky, but this wasn’t a cheap meal, and I think some slight changes and additions would have made this a much better dish.

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Festive Red Cabbage

As we approach Christmas I am reviewing my processes and recipes for Christmas dinner.

Red Cabbage
Image by Ralph Klein from Pixabay

For Christmas lunch this year I am planning to make some festive red cabbage.

Ingredients

knob of butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely sliced or chopped
1 x 500g (or half a) red cabbage, shredded finely using a food processor (white core discarded) or with a knife.
2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
splash of Port
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp soft brown sugar
3 eating apples, peeled, cored and diced
2 tsp redcurrant
2 tsp cranberry sauce

Method

Heat the butter and oil in a large lidded saucepan. When hot, add the onion and fry gently until softened. Stir in the spices and season. Add the cabbage and fry for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy. Stir in the sugar, apples and Balsamic vinegar, add a splash of port. Cover with a lid and let it cook gently for 30 minutes.

At this point I set it aside while I cooked the rest of the lunch. Ten minutes before I served lunch, I put it back on the heat and stirred.

Stir in the redcurrant and cranberry sauce (you don’t need to use both, you could use one or none) and cook for a further 10 minutes. If you aren’t using the sauce, taste the cabbage and add a little more sugar if it’s too tart for your taste.

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Lamb Hotpot

Needing an evening meal and not having much choice I ate in the bar at the Copthorne Hotel in Salford in Manchester. There is a typical bar menu, this time I ordered the lamb hotpot.

The dish comprised the lamb hotpot covered in sliced potato, some red cabbage slaw and some toast.

lamb hotpot

The lamb hotpot wasn’t half bad, the lamb was tender and there was a good portion, it was quite tasty. The potato slices in my mind needed to be cooked for a little longer and I prefer my potato crispier. The red cabbage slaw was nice, I think it would have been easier to eat if it had been sliced thinner. I wasn’t sure about why there was toast, then I worked out it was for mopping up the sauce.

In the end it was just okay, nothing special.

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Time for Christmas Red Cabbage

Red Cabbage
Image by Ralph Klein from Pixabay

For Christmas lunch this year I did some festive red cabbage.

Ingredients

knob of butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely sliced or chopped
1 x 500g (or half a) red cabbage, shredded finely using a food processor (white core discarded) or with a knife.
2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
splash of Port
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp soft brown sugar
3 eating apples, peeled, cored and diced
2 tsp redcurrant
2 tsp cranberry sauce

Method

Heat the butter and oil in a large lidded saucepan. When hot, add the onion and fry gently until softened. Stir in the spices and season. Add the cabbage and fry for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy. Stir in the sugar, apples and Balsamic vinegar, add a splash of port. Cover with a lid and let it cook gently for 30 minutes.

At this point I set it aside while I cooked the rest of the lunch. Ten minutes before I served lunch, I put it back on the heat and stirred.

Stir in the redcurrant and cranberry sauce (you don’t need to use both, you could use one or none) and cook for a further 10 minutes. If you aren’t using the sauce, taste the cabbage and add a little more sugar if it’s too tart for your taste.

This I served with roast festive meats.

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Time for some red cabbage

red cabbage
Image by RitaE from Pixabay

The way I cook red cabbage, usually for Christmas, but nice for anytime of year.

Ingredients

knob of butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely sliced or chopped
1 x 500g red cabbage, shredded finely using a food processor (white core discarded)
2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
splash of Port
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp soft brown sugar
3 eating apples, peeled, cored and diced
2 tsp redcurrant or cranberry sauce (optional)

Method

Heat the butter and oil in a large lidded saucepan. When hot, add the onion and fry gently until softened. Stir in the spices. Add the cabbage and fry for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy.

Stir in the sugar, apples and Balsamic vinegar, add a splash of port. Cover with a lid and let it cook gently for 30 minutes.

Stir in the redcurrant or cranberry sauce (if using) and cook for a further 10 minutes. If you aren’t using the sauce, taste the cabbage and add a little more sugar if it’s too tart for your taste.

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Homecooked Thai style stir fry

Thai Stir Fry

This is a recipe I cook quite often, it was inspired by visits to Sais’ Thai in the Oxford Covered Market. Though it has similarities to the dish I had at Sais’ Thai, it’s not quite the same, actually it’s quite different, but I don’t usually use the ingredients they do.

I cook some cubed pork belly in the oven, for about twenty minutes I then remove from the oven and stir fry in a wok with some soy sauce and fish sauce, along with finely chopped garlic and ginger. You could add chilli as well, if you like a bit of heat in your stir fry. I then take a range of vegetables, including but not always limited to: ribbons of carrot, pak choi, red cabbage, courgette, mushrooms (shitake and brown), baby corn, and onions. These are added to the wok. And cooked for a couple of minutes. I then add spinach and basil. I would prefer to use Thai Basil, but I have had trouble either finding it locally or growing it in the garden.

The dish is then served with a sprinkling of cashew nuts. It works well with rice, but I have also served it with noodles as well.