"Japanese" panko chicken salad

It's thanks to Masterchef Australia season two - and namely, one of its finalists Alvin - that I am now familiar with the wonders of a very special version of bread crumbs.  I remember well his double crusted fish and chips, made all the more crispy by using Japanese panko flakes.

So I went and bought some.  And then they sat in the pantry for a while until I stumbled across them this week.  I was inspired by watching Nigella recently.  She explained that her creative inspiration often comes from random ingredients or objects from different countries.  She then tries to do something easy with everyday "English" ingredients but reminiscent of the traditions of that culture.

I had the idea of a crispy chicken panko salad because it's nice to have a crunch contrasting with salad - sort of like croutons.  I chose a soft buttery lettuce and coated it lightly with some lime juice and good quality olive oil, salt and a little white pepper.

Put enough oil in a deep frying pan to shallow fry the chicken, and heat.  In the meantime, get three bowls: one with plain flour (seasoned with salt and pepper, and whatever else you feel like - dried herbs, chilli flakes - up to you!), one with two lightly whisked eggs, and one with half a pack of panko.

I use chicken tenders because they cook quickly and crisp up nicely, but you could use larger chicken pieces if you like.  First toss them in the flour, then shake off the excess and dip in egg.  Then transfer to the panko and coat well, gently pressing the flakes into the chicken.  Once the oil starts to shimmer in the pan, fry the chicken in batches until golden brown (turn to fry each side) and drain on paper towel.

Arrange them on top of the lettuce so they retain their crunch.  It's always nice to have some sort of dressing - keeping to the Japanese theme, I put small dishes of "kewpie" mayonnaise, mixed with a little wasabi paste on the side.

The two week birthday celebration with a boeuf bourginon finale

<---- Chocolate Guinness cupcakes with marshmallow "head" (Nigella recipe)

Where to begin?  Almost two weeks ago I turned 33; since then it's been a series of highs and lows.  High:  a long anticipated night with my husband in Arthur's Seat at an amazing B&B with views over Melbourne.  Low:  aforementioned husband coming down with food-poisoning an hour after arrival at the B&B, which lasted five days.  High:  friends, food and cocktails around an outdoor fire with perfect weather on a Saturday evening.  Low:  learning about some dodgy U.S. food practices via the movie "Food Inc.", leading to general household paranoia about the food we buy, source, eat (but on further reflection, this is probably a good thing). 

Rather than post up two weeks worth of recipes, here are some highlights and pictures, let me know if you'd like any recipes and I'll post it up:

Sitting around the fire while our neighbour Greg tries to coax one of the local, very fat, possums down from a nearby tree with a banana (he was later successful, at a cost of one inadvertently gnawed finger).

A lovely Sunday evening spent with hubby and our friend K; citrus glazed poached chicken resting on a bed of steamed beans and butter-roasted fennel.

One lazy Sunday morning, I threw together a damper loaf using ginger beer - very crumbly and crunchy outside crust; lovely and soft inside.

Today started with some fresh organic leeks pulled from the garden...

...and ended with a lovely, rich, boeuf bourginon (recipe below).

I made this lovely garlic and rosemary studded foccacia to mop up the bourginon gravy, which complimented the garlic and rosemary flavours in the stew.

Boeuf bourginon using mum's relish:

1 kg diced steak (you can use a cheaper cut - the cooking time will ensure it becomes soft)

two smashed garlic gloves

three leeks, washed and sliced (white only)

four medium carrots, chopped into big chunks

7 chat potatoes, halved (unpeeled)

handful of large sized button mushrooms, quartered

olive oil

one cup red wine

a jar of random relish or chutney from your pantry - I used one of my mum's many contributions, a sweet plum relish (you could buy one from the supermarket or local farmer's market if you don't have any)

2 cups beef stock

salt and pepper

plain flour

3 tsp cornflour mixed with water to make it a paste

two stalks rosemary

Method:

Coat the beef in flour seasoned with salt and pepper, brown it in a heavy bottomed casserole dish with a splash of olive oil and set aside.  Saute leeks, then add beef and all other ingredients back into the pan.  Put the lid on and place it into a 160C oven for 1 & 1/2 hours.  Take it out and give it a stir, add the mushrooms and the cornflour mix, then put back in the oven for a further 20 mins.

Vietnamese cold noodle salad with chilli & mint dresing

Using last night's leftovers, I made a cold Vietnamese salad.  I arranged the rice noodles, bean shoots, torn mint leaves (from our garden) and chopped chicken on a plate, then made a tasty dressing.  Start with 1/4 cup sweet chilli, then 'layer' those typical Vietnamese ingredients until you have the right flavour.  As a general guide, add to the sweet chilli sauce: 2 tsp sugar, 1 spring each chopped mint and coriander, 1 tbs light soy sauce, 2 tsp fish sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, 1 small chopped red (de-seeded) chilli, juice from 2 limes or lemons.  Chopped peanuts would have made this dish, but in lieu of those I sprinkled over some sesame seeds which tasted fine.

Home made prawn and chicken rice paper rolls

On those days when I'm in a hurry and happen to run past an asian takeaway, I'll scoff down some rice paper rolls as a healthy and delicious option.  For the first time tonight, my husband and I made our own - and they were just like the ones you buy in the shop (although perhaps not quite as pretty).

Rather than tell you how to make them and what ingredients to use, the best thing is for you to just buy some rice paper wrappers and wing it yourself.  Look in the asian food section of your local supermarket - usually the pack will have some suggestions and folding instructions on the back.  Good luck!

The Dumpling Queen

For all my pontificating about dumplings, I had never actually attempted making them - instead choosing to cook them up from pre-frozen or via dining in restaurants.

Well, tonight I put my dumpling making phobia to bed; and it's much easier than I thought!

Ingredients:

• 500g chicken mince
• ginger & garlic (i didn't have fresh so used the stuff in jars)
• light soy sauce
• sesame oil
• fresh coriander (again, no fresh stuff on hand so used the tube variety)
• brown vinegar
• Wonton wrappers (20)
• fresh chillies
• chopped spring onions (3)

Method:
Put the chicken in a large bowl, and stir in approx 2 dessert spoons of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons each of minced garlic & ginger, sesame oil, brown vinegar, spring onions and coriander paste (if using fresh, use the whole bunch - you can never have too much coriander.)
Put some cold water into a cup and keep it close by. Take each wonton wrapper and put a heaped teaspoon-ful of chicken into the centre, then dip your finger into the water and moisten the edges (as shown). Bring together each corner, pinch together at the top of the dumpling and then fasten the sides together so that the wrapper sits snugly around the mixture.
Line a steamer with some baking paper and steam the dumplings for about 5-6 minutes. Serve with light soy sauce & fresh chopped chillies.
Trust me: uber-easy and tasty - worth it!