Dal or dahl or even dhal is an Indian word for dried pulses that don’t need soaking before cooking. However you spell it dhal dishes are one of my favourites, easy to cook, lots of goodness and perfect as a main or side dish on a curry evening. This sweet potato and spinach dahl is […]
Chef
Durban Curry
Every South African has a favourite Durban curry recipe, closely guarded spice blends and secret ingredients. Served with rice or as bunny chow, no rabbits involved, merely a hollowed out loaf of bread, used to serve the curry in. Durban curry is sometimes served with sliced bananas and desiccated coconut on top. I am not […]
Honey Cake
Many years ago I had a lovely Jewish friend, whose mother was happy to entertain us in her kitchen and answer my multitude of cooking questions. This recipe was one of hers. I haven’t made this in many years, in all honesty I had forgotten it until I came across it tucked into the back […]
Stroganoff
With half the household now being vegetarian I end up cooking two suppers every evening. This tasty stroganoff is very simple and for us meat eaters, I simply added 500g of stir fry beef, which I browned before adding the garlic and paprika, the rest of the recipe was the same. Two pots of equally […]
Crunchies
Crunchies are a South African treat that we grew up with. Everyone had a their own closely guarded recipe, usually on a recipe card, that had been shared through the generations. The recipe was also printed on the Jungle Oats box. To make these gluten free you will need to make sure you use gluten […]
Sausages
John is a huge fan of sausages, me, not so much. While we have been in lock down I have been experimenting with making sausages. Boerewors for my South African roots and some pork and apple sausages. I have about six kilograms of sausages taking up space in the freezer now! This dish is a […]
Barbecue pork ribs and a side of coleslaw
Fall from the bone, melt in your mouth pork ribs are a favourite with John and the barbarian boys. Even the one that is now vegetarian looked wistful when I made these and commented that they had been a favourite! These are easy enough to do, even for a busy weekday, as they can be […]
Strawberry Lemonade
I am sure you all know the old adage, ‘When life gives you lemons, make lemonade’, well life gave us lots of strawberries. As things slowly open up again I took the barbarian boys strawberry picking. 7 kilograms of strawberries later, I needed to find ways to use them up. This strawberry lemonade takes minutes […]
Venison stew with mushroom risotto
I love venison, it is leaner than beef and a so much more flavoursome. We are lucky that there are a number of farm shops near us that sell it in season. Ocado also has it in the flash sales on occasion and I stock up the freezer. Its perfect for a dinner party or […]
Crispy beef stir fry
Sometimes even I don’t feel much like cooking, but negotiating a takeaway is a mine field. You never can tell how seriously they will take the gluten free request. We do have a favourite one that has yet to poison John but most of the time it is just so much easier to cook. This […]