Onion tahini sauce is a legacy of my student days, when I would make this dish most weeks.
And not just because it was dirt cheap. The tahini, cumin and soy sauce come together in an unexpectedly delicious, savoury, satisfying way, delivering a wallop of what I now know to be umami. Continue reading
Fake soufflé was one of mum’s dinner party staples in the 1970s, but I remember she found the name embarrassing.
As if she was cheating her guests by not providing a “real” soufflé instead of this light, fluffy, delicious concoction.
I think fake soufflé could do with a rebrand. Continue reading
Coating salmon in a sweet-tart glaze before baking in the oven is one of my favourite ways to cook it.
And this combination of crab apple jelly and horseradish is probably my favourite glaze to coat it with.
Crab apples were plentiful where I grew up. They’re not much good for eating, so my mum either pickled them whole or cooked them into a lovely tart jelly.
I occasionally see crab apple jelly for sale in the UK. Whenever I do, I always buy a couple of jars. It also works well with apricot jam.
On our trip to Vancouver last summer, Japadog was on my list of things to do/try while we were in town.
For various reasons, I didn’t manage to eat one until we were at the airport, about to fly home. Probably just as well…
Japanese hot dogs are delicious, extremely moreish, and could definitely see myself working my way through their kurogoma kimuchi dog (turkey sausage with kimchi and black sesame seeds), ebi tempura dog (prawn tempura on rice) and yakisoba dog (“popular Japanese noodles and aribiki sausage”).
Despite doing a science degree at university (or maybe because of it), I find regular moments of magic in cooking.
Egg whites stiffening into peaks, eggs and oil transforming themselves into mayonnaise, sugar melting into caramel – these things bring me genuine, uncomplicated pleasure.
Watching pita breads blowing themselves up like little balloons through the glass door of the oven is another one.
Spinach and water chestnut dip was all the rage in the 1970s, and I adored it.
An unlikely cast of ingredients – spinach, water chestnuts, powdered soup mix and mayonnaise – come together in the most silky, savoury, crunchy way imaginable.
As I remember, it was usually served in a hollowed out bread loaf, surrounded by chunks of bread for dipping. Continue reading
A well-made lasagne is a delightful thing. Unfortunately, the dish that passed for lasagne in my childhood did not fit this description.
According to the index card, mum got the recipe from a neighbour on our block. It calls for an entire tin of tomato paste, Kraft cheese slices, and a large tub of sour cream.
It was years before I ate lasagne again, and was happily surprised to discover how good it can be. Continue reading
