Tag Archives: Himalayan salt

Homemade Fajita Seasoning.

Spice mixture for fish curry

I love nothing better than seeing my spics all measured out and ready to mix into a beautiful fajita mix or a curry the smell is awesome.

My homemade Fajita mix … was always very popular when we had our restaurant in Phuket.

Since living here in Thailand there are a lot of foodstuffs which I used to buy and can no longer buy as no one stocks them here. Some I get bought over by visitors others I have learnt to substitute with another vegetable or product or make it myself.

I have also been very surprised at…..

1. How easy some things are to make.

2. How little they cost for a larger portion and no nasties.

Hence this Fajita Mix was born...You just measure out your ingredients and mix together, put in an airtight container and voila…Done!

Ingredients:

  • 3 tbsp Cornstarch.
  • 2 tbsp Chilli Powder.( I use dried chillies ground to a powder)
  • 1 tbsp Salt.( I use Himalayan pink salt or mineral salt which is produced locally)
  • 1 tbsp Sugar.
  • 1 tbsp Paprika
  • 2 1/2 tsp Powdered chicken stock/seasoning.
  • 1 1/2 tsp Onion Powder.
  • 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder.
  • 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper.
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin Powder.

Let’s Cook!

Mix together and seal in a container. This makes equivalent to 3 packets of Fajita Mix.

It is also very easy to double the quantity.

To keep this mix as natural as possible I dry my own onions and garlic to make into a powder and buy organic powders where I can if I cannot make them myself.

 

How easy is that???

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Blog: https://blondieaka.wordpress.com/

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Until next time have a lovely day the weekend is nearly here again…What have you got planned ???

 

 

Home made Mustard.

Who doesn’t love mustard on your Ham or other cold meats??

wholegrain mustard 1

I can get it here on occasions although as it is imported and I know you can’t have everything at local prices… Once it disappears from the shelves…stock control is not great here…It could be months before you see it again and yes we could stockpile but only so much…

A big cheer went up from me…Well, that didn’t last… I have got the mustard seeds from here before…but not anymore it’s that black hole of…” we no have, madam”

I tried online and unless I wanted to buy a minimum of a Tonne..yes this is not a typo a tonne of Black mustard seeds.  Or it was we don’t deliver to your area…. mmm

Then salvation came along in the guise of our friend Jan and he posted me some… Oh for good friends…I owe you a jar Jan 🙂

Well, the recipe didn’t go quite as planned however the result is a very nice whole grain mustard… but I now know why my Indian friends dry roast their spices it is not only to release their lovely flavours but to dry them out and then you should get a nice powder.

It took a while and a few tweaks but thank you for the recipe, Rex.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup cold quality vinegar (wine vinegar, rice vinegar etc.)

1/2 a cup of cold water

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 of a cup of mustard seeds

 

Let’s Cook!

 Mix together the water, vinegar, salt, and turmeric, then chill this in the refrigerator for a half hour to an hour.

 Grind the mustard, then pour the cold liquid over the ground mustard immediately. Set it in the refrigerator overnight before using, for the best flavour.

If you don’t want yellow mustard, simply omit the turmeric.

The reason for the emphasis on cold vinegar and water is because this retains the flavour of the mustard,  otherwise, it loses its pungency quickly. Let it stand overnight as this reduces the bitterness although I found 2/3 days was much better.

Also, as it chills, it should thicken up. This is the reason that store-bought mustard can be difficult to get out of the container if it comes directly from the refrigerator and isn’t at room temperature.

 This mustard will keep in the refrigerator for about a year due to its vinegar content.

Home made mustard

My second batch as you can see from the photo is smoother but I think I need to either dry my seeds in the oven or in the sun as dry frying it is so easy to burn them..which I did with the first batch so had to start again. However on doing a little research of my own I have found another recipe which recommends soaking the mustard seeds for 24/48hrs and then putting them in a small food processor and you will have a smooth paste after then passing the paste through a fine metal sieve however if you want a grainier mustard then pass on the final step.

My quest for a smooth mustard like the famous Colman’s mustard is not yet over but a work in progress……I will keep you updated…

In the meantime, my son taste tested …we had a little Colman’s mustard left so he used both on his dinner and said he really couldn’t taste any difference so it got the thumbs up from him and as he is a very good chef that was praise indeed!

About me and my cooking:

I use natural ingredients wherever possible. I do not use packet or bottled ready made mixes. I also do not use a microwave ( for personal) reasons.

I cook as far as it is humanly possible with fresh, home grown or home made condiments. I support local farmers as much as I can. Saying that I am not fanatical and on occasions, I buy a bottle of salad cream…I just don’t buy ready meals or meals in a packet or tin I like to make my own.

To be honest, a lot of foodstuffs which I used to buy are so easy to make, more flavoursome and cheaper and importantly better for your health.

Once I have perfected this mustard I will be attempting to make Worcestershire sauce. Will it taste like the famous Lea & Perrins sauce? Which I buy at the moment but intend to add it to my repertoire of homemade sauces etc…The list is growing.

N.B. I have added a clickable link on mustard seeds which will give you further benefits and uses of this little seed.

Until next time enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Carol’s Perfect Crispy Crackling

The Recipe Hunter has very kindly shared my post for the BEST crispy Pork Crackling ….This is my failsafe method and it works everytime…I can always be found screaming at the TV screen every time these cooks on Masterchef or My Kitchen Rules have trouble with their crackling…TURN up the oven! …….

EsmeSalon

TRH Carol's Perfect Crispy Crackling2

Nothing is better than perfectly crisp Pork Crackling.
How to achieve it, well, It’s easy!

View original post 265 more words

Egyptian Lamb Flatbreads

Lamb is very expensive here and a treat for us…Monday we had a lovely butterflied shoulder and had some leftovers ..cold lamb is not very nice so decided to make some flat bread..a first time for me and I was really pleased with how they came out..very quick and easy to make and use the leftover lamb. Hence my Egyptian Lamb flatbreads.

Egyptian lamb flat breads (2)

Ingredients:

Flat Bread:

flat-bread-easy-recipe

Flatbreads

  • 1/2 cup water.
  • 1/4 cup of milk
  • 2 cups flour.
  • 1 tbsp Baking Powder.
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt.

Filling Mix:

  • 300 gm leftover cooked lamb…can use beef, pork or chicken.
  • 1 lemon finely zested.
  • juice half lemon.
  • 2 tsp black pepper.
  • 1 tsp oregano or marjoram.
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • I tsp Paprika.
  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted.
  • 2 eggs beaten.
  • 1 tsp sea salt….I always use Himalayan salt.
  • 4 Spring onions finely sliced.

Let’s Cook!

To make flatbreads.

Sift dry ingredients together. Add liquids and mix thoroughly…I used my food processor and it took literally 2 mins…. if that and formed a ball. If it is too sticky add little more flour. Divide into 8 pieces. Flatten with the heel of the hand and roll out very thin.

My first attempt at this and I didn’t roll mine out thin enough to start with.

Heat pan and cook 2/3 minutes each side turn over with tongs or fish slice and done… finito..ready to fill…easy peasy.

flat-bread-uncooked-esy-recipe

 

Lamb Filling:

Chop lamb into rough little chunks and pieces. Put in large bowl with lemon zest and squeeze half of the lemon juice into the mix. Add all your spices, the eggs, salt and pepper and most of the spring onions..retain some for garnish. Mix together thoroughly.

Layout flatbreads and cover half with filling, then fold over and press together. You get half-moon shape.

Get 2 large baking trays rub one with Olive oil Lay flatbreads on an oiled tray, lightly rub other tray and pop this on top of flatbreads. Put trays into the preheated hot oven and cook 6-8 minutes. This way the flatbread will get lovely and crispy on top. If you have small trays you may need to do in batches.

Depending on the size of flatbreads cut in two …I left mine whole as I served individually( see picture) and not on a large serving plate but for a party or just because you want to….. serve on one dish with Houmous… Just as a little note it was my young grandson(11) who arranged these on the plate for me…didn’t he do well?

Ehyptian-lamb-flatbreads

.Recipe  for hummus can be found on a previous blog ..published June 18th ..titled ..If you think sunshine brings you happiness, then you haven’t danced in the rain.

https://blondieaka.wordpress.com/2015/06/18/if-you-think-sunshine-brings-you-happiness-then-you-havent-danced-in-the-rain/

The yoghurt dip was made with some chopped mint, good squeeze lemon juice and a pinch of salt.

Scatter over reserved onions, sprinkle with little cumin. Serve with lemon/ lime wedges.

Voila ………… Eat and enjoy!