What's better than Crackling, Chicken Crackling thats what! What a great family show stopper dinner that will have everyone running to the table!  A simple dinner that is elevated to the highest flavour levels just simply by the the cooking method!  I cook crispy crackling chicken thighs all the time, in fact several times a week as my hubby uses them as (fridglet nibblits) but their never as fully crisped up as this, just a little tweak in the preparation and cooking method has made this our all new family favourite.  Serve with mayo slaw, flat breads and siracha, stuff, wrap ..read more

Big Green Egg Cooking Indirect cooking 200 C - 220 C. Equipment:  Paella pan for two or shallow casserole dish, lid or foil. 10 minutes preparation / 20 minutes cooking Ingredients  (serves 2) 100ml olive oil 1 knob of butter for the prawns 1 tsp sea salt 10 grinds pepper mill fresh black pepper 6 cloves garlic sliced (reserve one for the prawns 1 Spanish onion finely diced 3 chicken thighs skin on, boneless 3 large fresh prawns head and shell on 1 cooking chorizo diced 250g Spanish Calasparra rice 1.3 litres chicken stock 1 good pinch saffron (Spanish La Mancha) 1 tsp smoked ..read more

TARKA DHAL One of my favourite dhals, I love the depth of flavour you get from adding the tarka, a crispy nutty ghee fried garlic, fresh coriander and garam masala mix at the end of the cooking, it really does make all the difference from a plain dhal to a sumptuous dish.  I like to scoop this dhal up with ghee loaded parathas, they are basically a chapati that has been folded and painted with ghee several times which renders them flaky and buttery when cooked, just perfect with this rich dhal TARKA DHAL Ingredients (serves 2-4) The Dhal 1 cup of red lentils soaked 6 cups of water ..read more

BRITISH PIE WEEK  I could not let British Pie week pass without re-posting this recipe as it is very dear to me, firstly it is my most top favorite dinner that my Nan used to make for me, the memories start with the original recipe from my Nan and Nan got it from her mum, it is one of those wonderful recipes of history, my Nan was a great cook who moved with the times hence the addition of curry powder, I won't tell you about Nan's experimental Malibu roast chicken gravy though! PIE GLORIOUS PIE Nan did not make this as a pie, we had this a braised dish with the most cream ..read more

Traditional French Cooking I just love old fashioned cooking, slow and simple, with the most honest and best ingredients, especially if you can source artisan products, no complicated cooking methods that deliver great depths of flavour, rich, decadent and sumptuous elevating all the flavours to their maximum and even more so when shared with family and friends who add that final magical ingredient. I was recently able to source my first free range woodland raised cockerel from COPAS, who I have been buying my annual organic woodland raised Christmas turkey from since I saw their farm on Ric ..read more

 KAMADO BARBECUE COOKING Winner winner family dinner, this spicy succulent juicy smokey chicken shawarma was woofed down by my family, stuffed into flatbreads and loaded with aioli, slaw, salad and pickled kebab peppers, hot sauce not needed as there is a good chilli kick in the chicken marinade. Kebab is such a dirty word in the UK, we have so many mass produced cheap doner kebab suppliers that cheapen the food for people who just crave food and fat after midnight, these cheap doner kebabs have their place and I have had a fair few in my days!  But kebabs are a wonderful food when ..read more

 Where has this dish been all my life!  How could I have not had this, especially as my husband lived in Hong Kong and used to go The Mariners Club where this was one of his favourite dishes! This recipe is easier to throw together after a Chinese feast using particular leftovers, but I did make this from scratch for my husband and it was totally worth the little extra effort braising the belly pork. Ingredients  (serves 4) Chao Fan 200g honey, ginger belly pork (recipe below) 1 thick slice of ham small diced 1 cup of petit pois peas cooked 1 thumb size piece ginger finely ..read more

Best Burger EVER !  Kamado Cooking This is out of bounds as the man himself would say…chuck steak, short rib and ribeye minced together with sweetcure bacon, pickled jalapeños and shallot, seasoned with salt and black pepper, formed into 5 oz  balls, then a single smash (no lace) so make it count, cooked on cast iron over oak and hickory coals in the Big Green Egg Kamado at 230 C / 446 F. Best eaten in private or with people who love you! Burger Ingredients (makes 6 burgers) 500g cold chuck steak diced 200g cold short rib diced 200g cold ribeye diced 3 rashers sweetcure bacon d ..read more

Big Green Egg NEXT LEVEL FAJITAS  This recipe uses natural oak and hickory coals from Big Green Egg and hickory wood chunks to add great smokey and charred flavour to an already marinated Gran Luchito smokey ancho chipotle chicken fajitas.  What takes this fajitas to an over the top level is from charring the peppers, tomatoes, onions, spring onions, jalapeños and lime wedges on the kamado. Ingredients  (serves 4) 4 chicken breasts sliced 1 tbsp gran Luchito Mexican BBQ fajitas mix 1 tbsp gran Luchito chipotle chilli paste 2 green peppers cut into 4 pieces 4 tomatoes whole ..read more

 BIG GREEN EGG Barbecue by Miss Kristi-Lou Aromatic sticky ginger Korean short ribs, marinated in a soy, sesame, ginger, garlic and honey paste, cooked over direct heat in the BGE adding that extra depth of flavour only cooking over coals can give you. I urge you to marinate these ribs over night as this really sets the flavour in and makes a big difference. Ingredients  (serves 4-6) Marinade 5” piece ginger roughly chopped 1 shallot peeled and halved 2 cloves garlic peeled 4 tbs honey 5 tbs soy sauce (gluten free for me) 2 tbs mirin 2 tbs sesame oil 1/2 tsp turmeric 1/2 tsp bl ..read more