Chinese Style scrambled eggs

I thought it apt to share one of my favourite dishes with you for Kitchen Exile's 12th birthday. I came across this dish while travelling around China many years ago. It's not a complicated dish, but the marriage of tomatoes and soy sauce with the eggs is delicious. It's become one of my favourite breakfast/brunch dishes. I used to call it "Chinese train eggs" as I was on a train the first time I had it and had to know what the recipe was, luckily the guide managed to find out for me. 

To those of you who have been following my food journey all these years, a huge thank you! I hope you are enjoying the trip and the recipes. 

Serves 2 people, I usually aim for 2 eggs and 1 tomato per person

4 eggs beaten

2 tomatoes, hulled and roughly chopped
2 spring onions, whites finely chopped and green cut on the diagonal 
15ml dark soy sauce
10ml oil for frying

In a pan on medium heat, add the tomatoes and the whites of the spring onions and cook until they have softened and have dried out a little

Turn up the heat and add the eggs and mix well with the tomatoes in the pan

Add the green from the spring onion and the soy sauce and continue to cook for a further five minutes, stirring constantly

All that's left for you to do is plate up and enjoy

Roast sardines with tomato and piment d'espelette

Celebrating the last of the tomato season which was much extended this year. This is a great simple dish which is easy to put together and place on the grill, without the worry of the fish sticking to it. You will however need a perforated vegetable grill tray. This makes it easier to cook the dish on the barbecue. If you are using your grill in your interior kitchen then use a baking sheet with oiled tin foil.

4 sardine fillets

2 tomatoes sliced thinly

1 small red onion thinly sliced

5g piment d'Espelette powder

Salt and pepper to taste

20ml olive oil 

Set your barbecue up for direct cooking at 200c or set your indoor grill to medium

Oil the bottom of the vegetable tray (or tin foil on the baking sheet if cooking indoors) 2- 3 tomato slices on the tray or sheet depending on the size of your sardine fillets

Place the sardines on the tomatoes skin side down, and season with salt and pepper

Sprinkle over the piment d'Espelette, the oil and the onions 

Cook for 10 minutes and enjoy

Tomato, ginger and chilli Ketchup

This year, I decided to grow tomatoes and chili peppers in my garden, and of course, I'll have plenty of them. I like to make my own ketchup and I wanted something different. The ginger adds a delicious touch of heat, and the chili pepper enhances the flavour. I use Espelette pepper for its mildness, sweetness and pleasant spiciness, which doesn't overpower the ketchup.

1 kg roughly chopped tomatoes

3 cloves roughly chopped garlic

2 Espelette peppers roughly chopped

100 g fresh ginger, peeled and grated

2 red onions roughly chopped

300 g jam sugar

50 ml cider vinegar

2 g salt (I use Maldon salt)

4 sterilized 350 g jam jars

Spice mix

4 whole cloves

5 g allspice berries

2 cinnamon sticks

5 g coriander

5 g cumin

Toast all the spices in a pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, let cool, then grind to a fine powder.

Method

Place all the ingredients in a pan and stir.

Simmer over low heat for 30 minutes.

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Preheat the jars in the oven at 50c

Pour the ketchup into the jars and close the lids.

The ketchup will be ready to use within a week. 

Once opened, store in the refrigerator.

Brioche pain perdu with fig leaf

Taking pain perdu up a notch with a rich brioche version. I use the fig leaves to infuse the base egg and milk mix, they have a wonderful "toasted coconut" like flavour. 

10 slices brioche (Stale is better for this recipe)
2 eggs
100ml milk
10g caster sugar

Pinch of Salt

30g unsalted butter

5 slices nectarine

5 fig leaves stem removed and roughly crushed to bring out the aromatics

Beat the eggs together in a bowl, add the milk, salt and sugar, stir to combine

Add the fig leaves and place in the fridge overnight to allow the flavours to infuse

Next day, remove the leaves

Heat the butter in a heavy bottomed frying pan

Soak the slices of brioche in the egg and milk mix and add to the pan

Cook in a medium heat for 3 minutes each side or until nice and golden

Chermoula

 This is a great accompaniment to grilled or fried fish such as mackerel or sardines. It has a fresh vibrant flavour that cuts through the oiliness of the fish. There are many different versions of chermoula, depending on the country or region it comes from. I like to keep my version as fresh as possible with lemon juice, rather than vinegar.

1 clove garlic
10g fresh coriander
10g fresh parsley
1 red chilli (de-seeded)
Half a red onion finely chopped
Juice of one lemon
50ml extra virgin olive oil
5g cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the clove of garlic in a small bowl and pour over just boiled water to cover, leave for 2 minutes before removing and finely chopping

Finely chop the parsley, coriander and chilli

In a pan over medium heat, toast the cumin for 1 minute before roughly crushing ( either with the flat of a knife or with a mortar and pestle)

Place all the ingredients except the salt and pepper in a bowl and mix well to combine, allow sit for an hour to allow the flavours to infuse

Season to taste before serving

Scallop and mushroom brochette

 One of the joys of moving to a new country is learning the language. When it comes to French, it's a relearning process. After 11 years in the Netherlands speaking Dutch, I lost a lot of my French, which is annoying because I used to speak it quite fluently. One way to learn a language is to watch cooking shows; I find it helps a lot. That's actually where I discovered this recipe while watching Top Chef. Here's my interpretation of a Paul Pairet recipe, a simpler and more accessible version. It's still just as delicious. I replaced the teriyaki marinade with an oyster sauce, soy sauce, and mirin marinade. The trick is to cook it over direct heat, not on the griddle.

10 ml soy sauce
10 ml oyster sauce
10 ml mirin
2 g freshly ground black pepper
10 medium sized scallops
5 mushrooms
2 large metal skewers (I used these for cooking and not the wooden ones featured in the picture)

Cut the scallops in half to obtain 2 rings

Cut the mushrooms in the same way, so that you get round slices that match the shape of the scallops. Make sure there are no holes in the slices; they should be whole.

In a bowl, mix the mirin, soy sauce, oyster sauce and black pepper.

Place the scallop slices in the marinade and let stand for 15 minutes

Begin threading the scallops and mushroom slices onto the skewers, alternating between the scallops and mushrooms. Make sure they are threaded evenly and centered on the skewer. You'll want to leave some space at each end so you can rest the skewer on the edge of the grill.

Prepare your barbecue for direct cooking at 200°C

Remove the griddle and place the skewers on the edges over the coals (make sure you wear heat-resistant gloves when doing this!)

Cook the scallops for 30 seconds on each side, basting them with the marinade as you turn them over. Continue cooking for about three minutes to cook them thoroughly.

Banana parfait

This is my recipe for Kitchen Exile's 11th anniversary. Banana ice cream was a childhood favourite of mine, so it's a great way to celebrate with one of my favourite desserts. This recipe is a grown up version of the ice cream I used to have and is a great way of using up over-ripe bananas. The more over- ripe, the better as the flavour is more intensified. 

Once again I'd like to thank all of my readers and followers for supporting me over the many years. This year brings a big change to Kitchen Exile's website. I've begun the task of translating all my 400+ recipes into French, so for those of you viewing the site in English, you'll start to notice that there are two versions of recipes. In time I hope to provide the ability to select your language (French or English) when viewing the site, so you'll just see your preferred language. This will take some time, so please bear with me. 

 
3 very ripe bananas peeled and pureed
2 egg whites
Pinch of table salt
100g sugar
50ml water
100ml cream lightly whipped


Mix the cream and the banana puree together using a stick blender and place in the fridge
In a clean pan pour in the sugar and water and start to bring to the boil until it reaches 120c
At the same time the sugar is on start to whisk your egg whites until firm
Once the sugar has reached temp, continue whisking the eggs and pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites, try and avoid getting it on the whisk
Continue whisking until the egg whites have cooled down
Mix the egg whites with the banana and cream
Set your ice cream maker up and select the ice cream function and set the paddles going, pour the mixture into the bowl and start to churn

Pesto au basilic, persil et ciboulette

 Le pesto est une recette facile à réaliser. C'est parfait quand on a trop de basilic dans son jardin à cette période de l'année. Pour moi, il évoque l'été et se marie parfaitement avec de nombreuses viandes, légumes et poissons. On ne l'utilise pas seulement pour les pâtes. Il se conserve bien au réfrigérateur pendant quelques semaines et j'aime en préparer une grande quantité pour en avoir sous la main si j'ai envie d'un plat rapide. J'ai légèrement modifié la recette traditionnelle en y ajoutant de la moutarde de Dijon et j'utilise principalement du parmesan plutôt que du pecorino ; je trouve que la moutarde fait ressortir le goût du fromage.

1 gousse d'ail (à faire tremper dans de l'eau bouillante pendant 2 minutes pour éliminer le côté cru)
100 g de parmesan râpé
50 ml d'huile d'olive
jus d'un demi-citron
sel et poivre
100 g de feuilles de basilic frais
20 g de persil 

10 g de ciboulette

1 cuillère à café de moutarde de Dijon
50 g de pignons de pin ou de noix

Fouettez tous les ingrédients ensemble dans un robot culinaire, ou si vous souhaitez le préparer de manière traditionnelle comme je le fais parfois, vous pouvez utiliser un mortier et un pilon

Monica Galetti's Chocolate and peanut butter fondants

 As you know by now, I have a few recipes from other chefs that are staples in my kitchen and this recipe is one of them. I've made a few changes to the original recipe over the years. Chocolate and peanut butter are a wonderful flavour combination, I tend to make my own peanut butter for the recipe as I can control what goes into it (peanuts and nothing else). I've included the method for this too should you wish to make your own. I won't hold it against you if you use shop bought. I usually make these ahead and store in the fridge until I wish to make them, you just need to adjust the cooking time if you do this. I also make these fondants using small dariol moulds rather than going through the faff of lining pastry rings, you can also use ramekins instead.

40g salted butter
80g smooth peanut butter
45g/dark chocolate, minimum 65% cocoa solids
80g caster sugar
2  eggs
35g plain flour
10g melted butter for lining your moulds/ramekins

Peanut Butter

80g roasted, unsalted peanuts

Place the peanuts into a food processor and whizz until the peanuts turn onto butter. 
This usually takes around 10 minutes

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas Mark 4

Butter 4 dariol moulds or ramekins, well and set aside while you make the fondant mixture
Melt the butter, peanut butter and chocolate in a medium saucepan
Remove from the heat and whisk in the sugar, eggs and flour
Pour the fondant mixture into the moulds/ramekins until three quarters full.
Place in the fridge until you are ready to cook them
Bake for 8-10 minutes
Once ready you can tip them out onto a plate
I like to serve these with some crème fraiche  

Barbecue - not just a guy thing!

You may have noticed I like to barbecue. On average now I barbecue 3-4 times a week (and not just in summer, all year round), not to mention using my Kamado Joe to hot smoke meats and fish. Even before I switched to Kamado style barbecues I used to barbecue pretty regularly.  I wouldn't say I'm fanatical but I love the depth of flavour you get out of meat, vegetables and fish and being able to play with different types of woods to either smoke or accentuate what you put on the grill.

I've signed up for a few forums, followed a few podcasts and live Instagrams associated with barbecue and it seems to be a mostly male preserve, even all the advertising is aimed at men. There is very little in the way of diversity when it comes to advertising.  All the barbecue tools are quite large (man sized) and for a woman with small hands not easy to handle. 

Good heat proof gloves are a nightmare to find in small sizes and when I did find a good brand they only colour for women was hot pink! Thankfully now Grill Heat Aid have expanded the colour choice and I now have some nice black ones, but I did have to order these from the US as no European brands seem to stock anything other than "one size fits all". We don't need pink barbecue tools just possibly ones that are of a manageable size. 

This isn't a feminist rant, but a comment from a friend of mine got me really thinking about this. We were discussing inviting people over for a barbecue at some point and she mentioned that I'd get a break from cooking as my other half would be doing the barbecuing. I replied that it wouldn't be the case as I was the one who did the barbecuing in our house. She was genuinely surprised at this and her reply inferred that it was strange for me to do so. Even more so when I pointed out that my other half has never cooked on the barbecue, it's always been me. 

I started off with a weber barbecue over 25 years ago and even then I cooked on that BBQ and not my other half, even my male housemates were happy for me to do all the grilling. My preference is if I've gone to a lot of trouble to prep certain dishes, I really don't want someone else to cremate it. Also my housemates attempts at barbecuing ended up with a bout of food poisoning, so I thought best to take over. 

Now I'm no stranger to all male environs, I grew up with four brothers. My first job after graduating in the city of London was pretty male dominated. In some kitchens I worked in I was the only female chef. Not to mention a stage as an assistant sommelier in a Michelin starred restaurant, which is not exactly renowned for being a female dominated profession.

When I lived in the Netherlands, I bought the Pitt Cue cookbook in Dutch mainly because the meat cut charts would prove useful for my next trip to the Butchers (names for meat cuts differ big time in the Netherlands and the UK and Ireland). I know my meat cuts well but the names do vary from country to country, so best to know that I'm getting the right cut when I order. The book in English is called the Pitt Cue Co cookbook, in Dutch it's called  "Het Mannenkookboek". I'm not inferring it should be called the "Vrouwenkookboek" but you see where I'm going with this. 

I've spoken to many women who grill as well and they find barbecue books or advertising off putting. In barbecue magazines, there are little if any pictures of women actually doing the cooking, maybe sitting nearby or eating the food. 

I was recently interviewed for a barbecue edition of Entree Magazine in the Netherlands and I was the only female in the section out of 20 chefs. Is it too much to ask that women are included more in the advertising and the magazine interviews both online and in magazines? It's inclusion, not feminizing that we are looking for. There are quite a few women who do barbecue out there and maybe its time that companies started to target them too and I'm not talking about a token picture of a woman wielding tongs. 

For those of you who enjoy BBQing and want to take it that one step further, do consider a Kamado Joe. I've been using Kamado style barbecues for over 10 years now and of all the ones I've had, the Kamado Joe is the best option for quality and price, you get a lot more accessories with the barbecue itself in comparison to other brands where you have to buy them separately. 

The engineering and thought that has gone into how you use it is fantastic. The heat control is one of the best I've encountered. 

They may be expensive, but you won't be buying another barbecue ever again as it's a lifelong purchase, you also get a lifetime warranty with it too on certain parts. It is so versatile as you can grill, slow cook, smoke and make a really great pizza on it.

If you do buy a Kamado then consider getting the following accessories:
Deflector plates - great for indirect cooking and long slow cooks
Long handled tongs and turner
Cast Iron griddle - gets a good char on steaks and burgers
Pizza stone - don't buy a cheap one, it will only crack in the high temps needed for cooking pizza
Meat thermometer - essential to ensure the meat is cooked properly, thermapen is a good reliable brand
Grill cleaning brush - only takes a few seconds to clean the griddle down after BBQing
Silicone brush for basting your meats

If you do take the plunge and have got the accessories you now need to arm yourself with some good cook books:  

Hangfire Cookbook by Sam Evans and Shauna Guinn

Rodney Scotts World of Barbecue - Rodney Scott

Goat - James Whetlor
Serious BBQ by Adam Perry Lang 

Hot Coals: A User's Guide to Mastering Your Kamado Grill ( a great beginners guide to Kamado cooking)
Pit Cue, the cookbook by Tom Adams and Jamie Berger

More importantly get to know your cuts of meat, what cooks slow and what cooks quick, what does and doesn't work on the barbecue. 
You'd be surprised at simple things like the variance in cooking different types of steak. Some steaks only work best cooked medium rare, any further, and then it's like chewing shoe leather. Find a good butcher or local farmer that sells direct and make friends with them, they will be happy to give advice if you're not sure what cuts are suitable for what type of cooking.

Don't get suckered into buying cheap charcoal either, some brands will have accelerants in them to help them light and please don't use lighter fluid, it will taint your food. There's nothing worse than eating meat or veg that tastes of lighter fluid. Try and aim for sustainable brands or if you are lucky to have a local charcoal producer them look at the range of charcoal you can buy. Every type of wood has it's own cooking characteristic so you can tailor your cook a lot better. 

Sign up for groups in Facebook which are good communities with good advice and tips. Follow people on Instagram that inspire you. 

If there are any women (or men who haven't tried BBQing yet) out there who want to try their hand at barbecue then go for it, you never know, you might enjoy it!

Kamado Joe - Joe Junior review

Many of you may have been wondering about the sudden change a few years back that happened in my outdoor kitchen. The change from a certain green brand of Kamado style barbecue to Kamado Joe was not a snap decision, but one that had been weighing on my mind for a few years. I attended a hospitality trade event a few years back here in the Netherlands and I spotted the Kamado Joe stand. When I lived in the Netherlands you didn't see them in many of the outdoor outlets or kitchen shops sadly, so it was an opportunity to have a closer look at the kit. I walked away from that stand very impressed and with feelings of regret that I hadn't bought a Kamado Joe all those years ago when I first made my foray into Kamado cooking.

So it's been several years now with both my classic III and Junior and I've been putting them though their paces on a thrice weekly basis (at least). I thought It would be a good idea to share my experiences and thoughts on the kit for those of you who might be considering investing in a new barbecue. Please note this is not a sponsored post in any way as I bought my KJs myself. In this article I will review the Joe Junior as it turned up first when I ordered them. The Classic III will be reviewed in another article at a later date. 

I bought this model for smaller cooks for myself and my other half. It's a lot taller than some of the smaller kamado models from other brands, The height gives it the advantage that it has better airflow underneath and therefore enables better temperature control. The 34cm diameter width will quite happily hold about 6 burgers, 2 sheets of ribs a 2kg chicken or roasting joint. So you can quite happily cook for a small group of people for simple barbecue. It comes with a cast iron stand, a stainless steel griddle, a deflector plate for indirect cooking, an ash tool and a grill gripper as standard so unlike other brands you do not have to purchase other accessories to begin with. It's a complete starter package from the get-go and comes in at a lower price than other similar models.

It weighs in at just over 30kg, so a little heavier than other brands. It also comes in at half the price of other brands that are the same diameter, so is a great bargain. Its a well put together study piece of equipment, the ceramic interior is very high quality as are the vent and daisy wheel. After a year of outdoor use in all weathers, there is no sign of rust on any parts. 

Dimensions for the Junior are as follows: Width - 50cm, Height - 69cm, Depth -  53cm this includes the stand which comes as standard. 

So what is it like to cook with?

The temp control with any smaller Kamado model will take some time to get used to. It's very quick to get up to temperature and will hold well, it does take some time to figure out what your daisy wheel and lower vent settings should be for the various temps, like any kamado. You do need to watch for temperature drops when putting in ingredients but it comes back up to temp relatively quickly. 

I tend to use the Junior for simple cooks that don't require long slow cooking or complicated temperature changes. Unlike the other brand I used to use, it doesn't get stuck at certain temps and then not budge for quite some time, the temperature adjustment is easy. Cooking direct it's a great little number. 

Cooking indirect, I have found you need to keep an eye on the underneath of whatever you are cooking, because it's so close to the deflector plate it gets a little more radiated heat if cooking for a lengthy period of time. The only accessory that I bought for my junior was the kick ash basket, which makes it easier to clean out and empty ash. If I was to buy other accessories it would probably be a cast iron griddle for steaks, kebabs and burgers, but you still get a nice char with the stainless steel griddle. 

In late 2023, they brought out an upgrade to the Junior, in the form of the chariot with wheels and side tables similar to that on the classic III. It's a great addition and raises the height of the junior and makes it easier to cook on and move around. I would say the only downside is that the side tables could be a little higher in line with the band around the edge similar to the design on the Classic III, but that's a personal preference.

So all in all I'm very happy with my "Wee Beastie" as he has come to be called. 

Vanilla and passionfruit martini

This is my take on the famous porn star martini which is one of my favourite cocktails. Every bar has their tried and tested version normally served with a shot of champagne on the side. Sometimes I like to serve this cocktail as a base topped with champagne on special occasions. There's been many versions of this cocktail chez kitchen exile over the years, this one is my favourite. I prefer to use a citrus heavy gin and cachaça which compliments the tart notes of the passionfruit. The vanilla rounds it out quite nicely adding a good base note to the drink.

5ml vanilla extract
30ml gin
30ml cachaça
20ml passionfruit liqueur
5ml sugar syrup
10ml lime juice

Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice cubes
Pour in all the ingredients and shake for 30 seconds
Serve in a traditional martini glass

Harissa wings

Since it's Kitchen Exile's 10th anniversary I thought it would be a good excuse to bring you a new recipe or two! Hard to think it's been a whole ten years already, they certainly have flown by. Looking through the website I've managed to write 400 recipes, I never thought there would be so many. I certainly hope you've enjoyed them and it's always good to get feedback from you. I'd like to thank you all for your support over the past 10 years. 

Many of you know I'm a big fan of chicken wings and I wanted to try something a little different rather than old school barbecue style. The rub is very summery in style and complements the harissa quite nicely and you also get a nice kick from the piment d'Espelette. 

Recipe
8 chicken wings
10ml oil for cooking

Rub
2g tomato powder
2g piment d'Espelette
1g oregano
1g celery salt
2g smoked paprika
5g dried onion flakes

Mix all the ingredients together and rub all over the chicken wings.
Cover and place in the fridge and allow to marinate for at least 12 hours

Harissa paste
2 red peppers
2 cloves of garlic
3 red chili peppers
5g cumin seeds 
2g coriander seeds 
2g fennel seeds
50ml olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

I like to first chargrill the peppers on the BBQ, direct heat at 200c, keep turning until you get an even black char all over

Then setting the BBQ up for indirect cooking at 160c place the peppers chilies and garlic on a cast iron roasting tray and cook for a further 30 minutes

Place the garlic to one side

Put the peppers and chilies in a plastic bag while still hot and close the bag, it makes it easier to peel and de-seed

Once they have cooled, remove from the bag and peel and de-seed the peppers

You can also peel the chilies, but up to you if you wish to remove the seeds too

Toast the cumin, coriander and fennel seeds in a pan on a medium heat for 5 minutes

place in a mortar and pestle and grind to a rough powder

Place the peppers, chilies, garlic, oil and spices in a blender and pulse until you get a smooth paste

Season to taste with the salt and pepper

Pour the harissa into a sterile jar and place the lid on, it will keep for two weeks in the fridge

Cooking the wings
Set your barbecue up for dual zone cooking (direct and indirect) at 200c, or oven at 190c fan or 200c normal for those wishing to cook using this method
Oil the wings lightly and place on the griddle on the direct side for 15 minutes, turning halfway through

Baste the wings with the harissa on both sides and then place back on the griddle on the indirect side and cook for a further 20 minutes

If cooking in the oven, place the wings on a baking tray and cook for 35 minutes

Smoked Chicken and sweetcorn soup

Kitchen Exile is 9 years old today, so it's happy birthday to me. 

A lot has happened in the last year the main big change was my move to Poitou Charentes in France. I'm certainly getting inspired by all the wonderful produce in the region. Like any move to a new country, there's always the element of finding your new butcher, grocer, baker, cheese monger and wine merchant and getting to know them and their products. Here in Poitou Charentes there's no shortage of quality ingredients and each new season brings plenty of surprises. The markets here are amazing and it's lovely to see lots of local farmers trading their wares. 

We've got some big changes coming up with our house in the form of renovations and me finally having a decent kitchen. The reason for not posting regularly is that I haven't had a proper kitchen to use and am reliant on a one hob induction plate and my barbecues for cooking. Which has meant getting very creative! The kitchen here is tiny so I haven't been able to unpack a lot of my kitchen equipment. 

Once again a big thank you to all those who have supported me over the past nine years and to all of you who follow me and read my recipes. I hope you've enjoyed them so far and I promise next year I'll be back to posting recipes on a more regular basis. 

So here's a simple recipe celebrating sweetcorn as it's now coming into season, there's certainly plenty of it in the fields in the area. 

Chicken and sweetcorn are a marriage made in heaven, add a little bit of smoke and it amps up the flavour significantly.

2 cloves garlic chopped
1 celery stick chopped

2 chicken breasts skin on

2 husks of sweetcorn 
50ml crème fraiche
1 small onion roughly chopped

1 litre stock
Salt and pepper
Oil for frying

Oak wood chips

Set your BBQ up for dual zone (direct and indirect) cooking at 180c

Add the oak wood chips and wait until you get thin blue smoke

Place the chicken breasts on the direct side and cook for 1-2 minutes each side to get a nice char

Transfer to the indirect side and cook for 15 minutes or until you get a core temp of 65c

Add the sweetcorn on the direct side and cook for 15 minutes turning every 2 minutes to get an even cook

Set the chicken and sweetcorn to one side to cool for a couple of hours and to allow the smoke flavour to infuse

Roughly chop the chicken up

Remove the husks from the corn and cut off the kernels

In a saucepan sauté the onion, celery and garlic until soft
Add the stock, chicken and sweetcorn and simmer for 10 mins
Place the soup in a blender, whizz until smooth and return to the pan
Add the crème fraiche and stir through
Season to taste

Grilled oysters with pickled apple and whiskey

I've always been a big fan of oysters and they work so well on the barbecue. When we lived in the Netherlands oysters were a rare purchase, on moving to France they are more readily available and not very expensive. That doesn't mean we are quaffing large quantities, we just get to enjoy them more often chez Kitchen Exile. This is a relatively simple, yet very tasty recipe, the pickled apples adding a sweet and sour kick in contrast to the saltiness of the oysters. The whiskey brings a subtle depth to the finish. 

Grilled Oysters with pickled apple and Whiskey

8 oysters unopened

Half a granny smith apple chopped into small cubes 10ml cider vinegar 20ml Teeling small batch whiskey

Method

Set your barbecue up for direct cooking at 170c

Place the chopped apple into a small bowl and pour over the vinegar

Mix well and leave for at least 1 hour

Place the oysters on the griddle and cook for at least 10 mins until they start to open slightly. You don't want them to open too much otherwise they dry out.

Remove the oysters from the barbecue and place to one side until they have cooled enough to handle

Open the oysters leaving the flesh inside

Place 10 or so cubes of pickled apple into each oyster

Pour 2ml of the whiskey into each oyster

And enjoy!

Corned beef, not as Irish as you think...

 For this dish, you will need to give yourself a week before you get to taste the results. I tend to use cheaper cuts such as brisket for my corned beef. In this article there's a little bit of history before you get your recipe.

Growing up in Ireland, this is one dish we never actually ate. My first experience of it was when I moved to London and came across salt beef bagels in Brick Lane. 

Corned beef is not and never was never an Irish staple, you may be surprised to hear. In the past beef was considered an expensive commodity and therefore pork, which was cheaper, was more commonly salted. It became popular in America with Irish emigrants as beef was cheaper to buy in the states. It was called "corned" because of the salt kernels used in the curing process. 

Corned beef was produced in some areas in Ireland, but only for export, so may have been eaten in those areas, but not so prevalent. So because of emigrant traditions, in America the dish is associated with Ireland and corned beef and cabbage is a traditional American dish for St Patrick's day. In Ireland however, we're still eating boiled bacon or spare ribs and cabbage. 

Enough of the history lesson and now for the recipes!

The brining is relatively simple as you make a 10% solution, which is 100 grams of salt to one litre of water, and add whatever aromatics you'd like to the brine.The amount of meat you wish to brine is up to you. This time I added cloves, peppercorns and bay leaves. Do make sure the brine covers the meat and it is a good idea throughout the week to turn the once a day in the brine.

One the meat has had at least a week in the brine, you have several options for cooking. The cut of meat is up to you what you would like to use. I tend to go for cheaper and tougher cuts such as brisket.

Slow poach
Cooking it in water and adding aromatics such as bay, thyme, rosemary, cloves etc...
I also like to add onions, garlic and carrots along with the aromatics for more flavour
Poach for at least 3 hours on a low heat
Allow to rest before serving.
Serve American style with boiled potatoes and cabbage or allow to cool and serve with mustard in a sandwich.

Or you can make Corn beef hash with fried eggs and beans

300g cooked salt beef  (I used brisket) - cubed
1 onion sliced
1 clove of garlic grated
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cooked potatoes cubed
1 tin baked beans
2  fried eggs
Oil for frying
Salt and pepper to taste

Fry the onion and garlic till soft and remove to a plate
Next brown off the cubed potatoes and remove to the same plate as the onions
Brown the salt beef
Then add the spuds and the onion back into the pan
Add the Worcestershire sauce and stir
Last add the beans and heat through 
Season to taste and serve with fried eggs on top.

Ragoût d'épaule de chèvre aux anchois

 Comme beaucoup d'entre vous le savent maintenant, la chèvre est l'une de mes viandes préférées et elle est si polyvalente qu'elle s'accorde avec de nombreux profils de saveurs, de la Méditerranée au Moyen-Orient en passant par les Caraïbes. Son goût est comparable à celui de l'agneau jeune et du mouton plus tard. Vous pouvez découvrir mes nombreuses recettes dans ma  section « Goatober »  sur Kitchen Exile. De nombreux bouchers et agriculteurs du monde entier mettront la chèvre à l'honneur pendant le mois d'octobre, alors n'hésitez pas à consulter vos producteurs locaux pour découvrir leur offre. 

300 g d'épaule de chèvre coupée en cubes

10 g de brins de romarin frais finement hachés

5 g de thym frais haché

5 g de ciboulette finement hachée

2 gousses d'ail râpées

5 g de persil frais haché

5 g de menthe fraîche finement hachée

5 g d'origan frais finement haché

40 g d'anchois à l'huile d'olive finement hachés

2 g de poivre noir fraîchement moulu

150 ml de vin blanc

100 ml de bouillon d'agneau ou de poulet

2 tomates finement hachées

20 g d'olives noires finement hachées

Mélangez l'épaule de chèvre avec les herbes, l'ail, le poivre et les anchois et laissez mariner toute la nuit au réfrigérateur.

Préchauffez votre four ou préparez votre barbecue pour une cuisson indirecte à 140°C

Fouettez les tomates jusqu'à obtenir une pâte lisse.

Mettre tous les ingrédients dans une poêle en fonte et cuire pendant 3 heures

J'aime servir ce plat avec du riz, du couscous ou du taboulé.

Goat shoulder stew with anchovies

As many of you now know goat is one of my favourite meats and so versatile as it suits so many flavour profiles from Mediterranean to Middle Eastern to Caribbean. The flavour can be compared to that of lamb in it's younger stages and mutton in it's later stages. You can check out the many recipes that I have in my Goatober section here on Kitchen Exile. Many butchers and farmers world wide will be showcasing goat meat during the month of October, so be sure to check out your local producers to see what's on offer. 

300g goat shoulder cubed

10g fresh rosemary sprigs finely chopped

5g fresh thyme chopped

5g chives finely chopped

2 cloves garlic grated

5g fresh parsley chopped

5g fresh mint finely chopped

5g fresh oregano finely chopped

40g anchovies in olive oil finely chopped

2g freshly ground black pepper

150ml white wine

100ml lamb or chicken stock

2 tomatoes finely chopped

20g black olives finely chopped

Mix the goat shoulder with the herbs, garlic, pepper and anchovies and marinate overnight in the fridge

Preheat your oven or set your barbecue up for indirect cooking at 140c

Whizz the tomatoes up to form a smooth paste

Place all the ingredients in a cast iron pan and cook for 3 hours

I like to serve this with either rice, couscous or tabbouleh

Thai hot and sour soup

I've always had love affair with Thai food, simple fresh, tasty, what more could you want. The great thing about Thai food is its simplicity, but the trick is getting the flavours right. Where the recipes may require quite a few ingredients and the method isn't difficult, the complexity lies within getting the right mix of hot, sour, salty and sweet.

I was lucky enough after my year at Leiths School of Food and Wine to travel to Thailand and experience the food first hand. It was one of the countries that I'd always wanted to visit just for the food and I wasn't disappointed. I also spent a day at the Chiang Mai cookery school and got to meet Sompon Nambian who runs the school and whose TV program I used to follow religiously on a UK TV food channel.

I don't think I can convey enough how much I love Thai food. I'm quite happy to spend a fortune on ingredients to make the paste from scratch (and yes it makes all the difference). I like to make the pastes in a mortar and pestle. A little tip when dealing with fibrous ingredients such as ginger, galangal and lemongrass is to grate them using a fine grater as it means you don't have as many fibres in your paste or curry.

As well as Thai green or red curry I love to make Hot and Sour soup and also a variation with coconut milk. I love this soup and its my go-to when I don't don't feel like strenuous cooking. It is a case of throwing the ingredients in a pot of water and giving it a bit of time and minimal effort to come out with something tasty and rewarding. I usually make the broth the day before and leave all the aromatics in overnight, it makes for a more flavoursome soup.

To make the broth
2 sticks lemongrass, crushed
15g ginger unpeeled
2 cloves garlic crushed
30g coriander stems or roots
2 shallots, quartered
1 tomato quartered
5 Lime leaves
4 mushrooms quartered
2 chillies (red or green)
1 litre of water, chicken stock or fish stock

Place all ingredients into a pan
Add the water or (flavoured if using stock) and bring to the boil and then simmer for an hour on a low heat
Let the broth sit for a few hours with a lid on, or even better overnight, before straining


For the soup
4 Lime leaves
20g coriander chopped
1 Tomato cut into eighths
5 mushrooms thinly sliced
Juice of one lime
10ml Fish sauce
1 red chilli finely chopped
5ml soy sauce
5g palm sugar
Mange tout julienned
1 medium carrot julienned
100ml coconut milk (optional)

You can then add the following dependent on if you are going to make a fish or meat soup

10 uncooked prawns 
Leftover roast chicken breast or thigh (chopped)


Bring the stock to a simmer
Add the tomato, mushrooms, chilli and lime leaves and simmer for 5 mins
Season with the soy, fish sauce, sugar and lime juice (you are looking for hot, sour, salty and sweet so add more of any of the seasoning to get the flavour you want)
Add the prawns or chicken and cook for another 5 mins
If adding coconut milk, then pour it in now and stir through, adjust the seasoning if necessary
Garnish with the coriander

Leftover lamb with curried rice

I love to do a slow cooked leg of lamb on my barbecue, because of the size you have to buy and with there only being two people in our house, there's always leftovers. I do enjoy slow cooking and love the results it yields. Especially with something like lamb, as it will normally come right off the bone with no effort needed to carve. Now I could have gone for the leftover staple of Shepherds pie, but I like my curries and have plenty of spices to play with in my ingredients drawer. Monday's dinner became an improvised "Biryani" with the leftover lamb, the leftover spuds and some rice.

Leftover lamb meat and whatever leftover spuds you may have and chop into chunks
1 onion finely chopped

1 red chilli finely chopped
100g cooked basmati rice
15g garam masala 
Heaped teaspoon cumin seeds
Heaped teaspoon black mustard seeds
Juice half a lemon
Coriander leaves for garnish
oil for frying 
Salt and pepper to season

Sauté the onion and chilli until they are soft and glossy, 

Add the mustard and cumin seeds and cook for one minute
Add the garam masala and about 30ml of water to help cook out the spices and prevent the spices from burning, cook for about 5 minutes
Next add the lamb and cook for about 2 minutes
Then add the potatoes and rice and cook for a further 5 minutes (you could also add some frozen peas at this stage too)
Finally switch off the heat and add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and stir through
Garnish with the coriander