I often do roasted veg and chickpeas, either to mix with salad leaves, have alone as a main, or as a side to accompany chicken.
The summer before my older son went to university, every Friday he had to decide what to cook for dinner, go to Waitrose and buy the ingredients (if we didn’t already have them) and cook it for the family later. Both my sons could cook before going to uni, the younger one is a very enthusiastic cook, and I was surprised how many of their flatmates hadn’t been taught basic cooking skills.
My youngest son wants to be a chef, and the oldest can just about do beans on toast. But he did produce edible stuff in Food Tech so I think he will probably be ok.
Both are getting to the hollow stage, and I agree it gets expensive!
My youngest son wants to be a chef, and the oldest can just about do beans on toast. But he did produce edible stuff in Food Tech so I think he will probably be ok.
Do we share a house? Child 1 would eat instant noodles every day. Child 2 would have instant noodles, with a fried egg, whip up a chorizo thingy and use the oil on the noodles.
Perhaps it was my parenting where I was so knackered after the second one that I gave up cooking nice food slow he picked up the slack! (I don't believe this at all)
I'm really not sure - my children have very different personalities and interests, so I think it was going to happen.
Child 2 wants to make cookies now so we have weekend snacks - not arguing!
I was putting together my usual chickpea, sweet potato and onion mix for the oven earlier. I got my spices out, usually smoked paprika, ground cumin and ground coriander.
Unfortunately I reached for nutmeg instead of ground cumin. And put a whole teaspoon in.
@Firenze was it you who had preserved lemons to use up? This NYT recipe for pasta with preserved lemons sounds interesting. Also as someone who today remembered how much they love an extra-lemony hummus, I bet some preserved lemon added to either homemade or shop-bought hummus would be amazing. Personally I like to make hummus with split chana dal so as to avoid bothersome chickpea skins - the flavour is a little different because chana dal is made from desi chana aka Indian black chickpeas, rather than the Mediterranean kabuli chana aka white chickpeas, but once you've added tahini and lemon and olive oil etc there's not enough difference to really notice.
Definitely add the lemon to houmus - though likely shop-bought tbh. I did make my own, but ended up with too much (Mr F doesn't eat it).
Tomatoes, particularly in sauces, are a bit of a cusp ingredient for me, with the capacity to tip into disagreeable/actively revolting. Sugar helps, as would dairy - but this past w/end birthday binges (cheese fondue, Potatoes Dauphinoise) are showing up on the scales.
Soup of the Day. A carrot, onion, fresh red chilli, tinned butter beans, veg stock. Simmer the veg and half the beans until tender - about 15 mins. Liquidise, add the remaining beans and heat through.
Soup of the Day. A carrot, onion, fresh red chilli, tinned butter beans, veg stock. Simmer the veg and half the beans until tender - about 15 mins. Liquidise, add the remaining beans and heat through.
A dash of lemon juice goes well.
This sounds lovely.
I've seen lots of people using jarred beans, rather than a tin. Does anyone know if this a new trend, or is there a benefit to jarred ones?
The jarred ones are definitely superior, certainly when it comes to butter beans and chick peas. At least the Spanish ones are. The haricots blancs are also very good. In all cases, creamier in texture, and making a genuinely smooth puree if that is what you are aiming at. Tinned pulses - indeed most pulses - tend to a certain essential graininess.
Tomorrow's comestible is Sweet Corn and Crab Soup. @Clarence is the chef, so she can post the recipe if she chooses. Next weekend is my turn, Wild Venison and Port Stew. Here followeth the lesson:
Prep time 10 mins
Cooking time 2 hrs
Serves 4
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup flour
500g diced wild venison (or kangaroo)
1 onion, sliced
1 tsp tomato paste
1 sprig rosemary
250ml port
250ml red wine
500ml beef stock
Salt and pepper
3 sprigs of parsley, leaves finely chopped to serve
Steamed potatoes and carrots, to serve
HOW TO COOK IT
Lightly dust flour all of the wild venison (or kangaroo) pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a stew pot and sear the meat all over. Remove and place on a plate.
Add the onion and cook until golden. Then add the tomato paste and fry off for a minute before adding the rosemary, port and wine. Bring to the boil and then return the meat and cover with stock. Cover with a piece of baking paper and a lid and cook on a low heat for 1½ - 2 hours or until the venison is tender.
Garnish with parsley and serve with potatoes and carrots.
Thanks for that @ThunderBunk. Looking at the prices, I will either stick with the tins or perhaps buy dried and soak them. Now I understand why my mother used to do that!
Anyway, dinner tonight will be something simple, and most likely a 'bung it in the oven' type - possibly fishcakes and roasted broccoli.
If you do cook your own, I would generally say it takes longer than people think. I don't think that the Spanish company uses bicarbonate of soda, which is often touted as the way of softening the skins during soaking (because it's not on the labels), but if they don't, I can only assume that they cook fresh(ish) pulses, of their own selection, and they do so for longer than generally suggested.
If you're going to make your own hummus, the jars can be a justifiable expense. Certainly no more expensive than pre-made. And the silkiness is very welcome.
I can highly recommend a pressure cooker for cooking pulses fron dried - especially an electric pressure cooker like an Instant Pot (and they now make small ones suitable for single people!) as they are much safer. You can then freeze cooked pulses for using just like canned - freeze in a single layer first so they don't form a big frozen block. They also sell frozen edamame which can work well as an alternative depending on the recipe, also split pulses like chana dal or split peas which are much quicker to cook.
My Lebanese friend warned me against using a pressure cooker for chick peas. He discovered that the skins can block the safety valve, the consequence thereof being expensive ceiling repairs.
My Lebanese friend warned me against using a pressure cooker for chick peas. He discovered that the skins can block the safety valve, the consequence thereof being expensive ceiling repairs.
Instant Pots and other electric versions will just turn themselves off in that case. I wonder if the dark Indian type of chickpea is less prone to this as Indian people use pressure cookers to cook chickpeas all the time.
@Foaming Draught - that sounds very much like what I've just had, but I did mine in the slow-cooker and cooked the carrots and potatoes (and a few mushrooms) in with it, and it came out rather nicely, washed down with a glass of Malbec.
My Lebanese friend warned me against using a pressure cooker for chick peas. He discovered that the skins can block the safety valve, the consequence thereof being expensive ceiling repairs.
I have never had a problem cooking chick peas in a pressure cooker. Our pressure cookers are quite large, so I doubt if they have been more than half full, even when the chick peas are cooked.
My mother used to relate an experience with rice pudding that clogged her pressure cooker so that half of it ended on the ceiling.
I generally adjust the heat so that there is only the smallest amount of steam escaping the pressure valve. Any more will not reduce cooking time. That way, any liquid will only have minimal frothing.
If you add a little oil to the pot of beans, that prevents frothing - not much at all is needed. The Indian YouTuber I follow (Curries With Bumbi, a lovely lady from Kolkata who is based in the US) always adds a teaspoon's worth of oil when making dal in the pressure cooker (either the Instant Pot or the stovetop pressure cooker).
My dahl recipe uses red lentils, which cook quickly in an ordinary saucepan.
My pressure cooker is a stove top type. Fortunately, it works on our induction stove, but I am still finding it trickier to use than gas.
Comments
The summer before my older son went to university, every Friday he had to decide what to cook for dinner, go to Waitrose and buy the ingredients (if we didn’t already have them) and cook it for the family later. Both my sons could cook before going to uni, the younger one is a very enthusiastic cook, and I was surprised how many of their flatmates hadn’t been taught basic cooking skills.
Both are getting to the hollow stage, and I agree it gets expensive!
Do we share a house? Child 1 would eat instant noodles every day. Child 2 would have instant noodles, with a fried egg, whip up a chorizo thingy and use the oil on the noodles.
Perhaps it was my parenting where I was so knackered after the second one that I gave up cooking nice food slow he picked up the slack! (I don't believe this at all)
I'm really not sure - my children have very different personalities and interests, so I think it was going to happen.
Child 2 wants to make cookies now so we have weekend snacks - not arguing!
I was putting together my usual chickpea, sweet potato and onion mix for the oven earlier. I got my spices out, usually smoked paprika, ground cumin and ground coriander.
Unfortunately I reached for nutmeg instead of ground cumin. And put a whole teaspoon in.
I've cooked it, but very nervous to taste it.
@Firenze was it you who had preserved lemons to use up? This NYT recipe for pasta with preserved lemons sounds interesting. Also as someone who today remembered how much they love an extra-lemony hummus, I bet some preserved lemon added to either homemade or shop-bought hummus would be amazing. Personally I like to make hummus with split chana dal so as to avoid bothersome chickpea skins - the flavour is a little different because chana dal is made from desi chana aka Indian black chickpeas, rather than the Mediterranean kabuli chana aka white chickpeas, but once you've added tahini and lemon and olive oil etc there's not enough difference to really notice.
Tomatoes, particularly in sauces, are a bit of a cusp ingredient for me, with the capacity to tip into disagreeable/actively revolting. Sugar helps, as would dairy - but this past w/end birthday binges (cheese fondue, Potatoes Dauphinoise) are showing up on the scales.
A dash of lemon juice goes well.
This sounds lovely.
I've seen lots of people using jarred beans, rather than a tin. Does anyone know if this a new trend, or is there a benefit to jarred ones?
Prep time 10 mins
Cooking time 2 hrs
Serves 4
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup flour
500g diced wild venison (or kangaroo)
1 onion, sliced
1 tsp tomato paste
1 sprig rosemary
250ml port
250ml red wine
500ml beef stock
Salt and pepper
3 sprigs of parsley, leaves finely chopped to serve
Steamed potatoes and carrots, to serve
HOW TO COOK IT
Lightly dust flour all of the wild venison (or kangaroo) pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a stew pot and sear the meat all over. Remove and place on a plate.
Add the onion and cook until golden. Then add the tomato paste and fry off for a minute before adding the rosemary, port and wine. Bring to the boil and then return the meat and cover with stock. Cover with a piece of baking paper and a lid and cook on a low heat for 1½ - 2 hours or until the venison is tender.
Garnish with parsley and serve with potatoes and carrots.
Anyway, dinner tonight will be something simple, and most likely a 'bung it in the oven' type - possibly fishcakes and roasted broccoli.
If you're going to make your own hummus, the jars can be a justifiable expense. Certainly no more expensive than pre-made. And the silkiness is very welcome.
Instant Pots and other electric versions will just turn themselves off in that case. I wonder if the dark Indian type of chickpea is less prone to this as Indian people use pressure cookers to cook chickpeas all the time.
I have never had a problem cooking chick peas in a pressure cooker. Our pressure cookers are quite large, so I doubt if they have been more than half full, even when the chick peas are cooked.
My mother used to relate an experience with rice pudding that clogged her pressure cooker so that half of it ended on the ceiling.
I generally adjust the heat so that there is only the smallest amount of steam escaping the pressure valve. Any more will not reduce cooking time. That way, any liquid will only have minimal frothing.
I will try it for chick peas.
My dahl recipe uses red lentils, which cook quickly in an ordinary saucepan.
My pressure cooker is a stove top type. Fortunately, it works on our induction stove, but I am still finding it trickier to use than gas.