Jamie Oliver’s Spaghetti con Gamberetti e Rucola (Spaghetti with Prawns & Rocket)

From Jamie’s Italy
Serves 4

Ingredients
455g dried spaghetti
sea salt & freshly ground black peper
extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled & finely chopped
1-2 dried red chillies, crumbled
400g peeled raw prawns
1 small wineglass of white wine
2 heaped tablespoons of sun dried tomato puree or 6 sun dried tomatoes blitzed in a blender
zest & juice of 1 lemon
2 handfuls of rocket, roughly chopped

Method
Cook your spaghetti in a large pan of salted boiling water according to packet instructions. Meanwhile, heat 3 good glugs of olive oil in a large frying pan & toss in the garlic & chilli. As the garlic begins to colour, add the prawns & sauté them for a minute. Add the white wine & tomato puree & simmer for a couple of minutes. When the pasta is ready, drain & reserve a little of the cooking water. Toss the spaghetti with the sauce, squeeze in the lemon juice, add half the chopped rocket, adding a little of the reserved water if the sauce needs loosening a bit. Correct the seasoning & serve sprinkled with lemon zest & remaining rocket.

I am a believer in using leftover pasta and not buy a new pack of spaghetti just for a dish; that’s why I am using fuscili for this. One of my favourite dishes at Jamie’s Italian although the standards appear to have deteriorated over the years. I don’t think my cooking matches the restaurant’s at its best; probably halfway between the standards now and then.

Eula Mae’s Chicken and Ham Jambalaya

From Eula Mae’s Cajun Kitchen – cooking through the seasons on Avery Island
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients

1 fryer chicken (about 3 pounds), boned, skinned, and cut into 1-inch cubes, or 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless breasts and thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 pound cooked ham, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 cup seeded and chopped green bell peppers
1 cup chopped celery
4 garlic cloves, peeled
3 cups chicken broth
One 16-ounce can whole tomatoes, chopped, liquid reserved
1/2 cup chopped green onions (green part only)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 pounds medium-size shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 teaspoon Tabasco brand pepper sauce
2 cups long-grain white rice, rinsed and drained
preparation

Sprinkle the chicken with the salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring, until browned on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large mixing bowl.
Add the ham to the pot and cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the ham to the chicken in the bowl.

Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, and garlic to the pot and cook, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Return the chicken and ham to the pot, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the chicken broth and reserved tomato juice, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes.

Mash the cooked garlic against the side of the pot and blend into the mixture. Add the tomatoes, green onions, parsley, shrimp, and Tabasco and adjust the seasonings to taste.

Add the rice, cover the pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender and fluffy and the liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Eula-Maes-Chicken-and-Ham-Jambalaya-242927#ixzz2s4sMjDWG

Nice one-pot comfort food. I substituted the ham with chorizo as I have quite a bit leftover. The key I think is the tabasco sauce. I added quite a bit of it to give it a good kick!

Seafood tagliatelle Spanish style

Goodfood 101 Mediterranean dishes
Serves 4
Ingredients

large pinch saffron
3 tbsp olive oil
3 boneless and skinless chicken breasts, cut into small chunks
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 bay leaves
2 red peppers, seeded and sliced
175g fresh or frozen peas
175g fresh or frozen broad beans
150ml white wine
650g fresh mussels
425ml chicken stock
400g tagliatelle
450g large peeled raw prawns
284ml carton double cream
large handful chopped fresh parsley
lemon wedges, to serve

Put the saffron in a small bowl and pour over 2 tbsp boiling water. Set aside to infuse. Heat the oil in a large, wide pan, add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes.

Tip in the onion and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add bay leaves and peppers and cook 4-5 minutes more. Stir in peas and broad beans and stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and put aside.

Pour wine into a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Tip in mussels, cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until mussels open. Discard any that remain closed. Drain over a bowl to catch the liquid. Allow to settle for 5 minutes.

Pour the mussel liquid into the pan with the chicken and veg. Add saffron and chicken stock then cool and chill everything until ready to serve. You can prepare this up to 3 hours ahead.

To serve, cook the tagliatelle as pack instructions. Reheat chicken and simmer for 2 minutes. Add prawns, cook for 1 minute, add cream and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Add mussels, parsley and seasoning. Toss to heat through. Drain tagliatelle and add to the sauce. Serve with lemon wedges and fresh crusty bread.

One pot Spanish fish stew

From More One Pot Recipes
Ingredients
Serves 4

Handful of flat parsley leaves – chopped
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
Zest and juice of a lemon
3 tbsp olive oil (plus extra to serve)
1 medium onion – finely sliced
500g floury potatoes – cut into cubes no bigger than 2cm
1 tsp paprika
pinch cayenne pepper
400g can of chopped tomatoes
1 fish stock cube
200g raw peeled king prawns
half a 410g tin of chickpeas – drained and rinsed
500g skinless fish fillets, cut into large chunks

In a small bowl, mix the parsley with ½ the garlic and lemon zest, then set aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large sauté pan. Throw in the onion and potatoes, cover the pan, then sweat everything for about 5 mins until the onion has softened. Add the remaining oil, garlic and spices, then cook for 2 mins more.

Pour over the lemon juice and sizzle for a moment. Add the tomatoes, ½ a can of water and crumble in the stock. Season with a little salt, then cover the pan. Simmer everything for 15-20 mins until the potatoes are just cooked.

Stir through the prawns and chickpeas, then nestle the fish chunks into the top of the stew. Reduce the heat and recover the pan, then cook for about 8 mins, stirring very gently once or twice. When the fish is just cooked through, remove from the heat, scatter with the parsley mix, then bring the dish to the table with the bottle of olive oil for drizzling over and some crusty bread, if you want.

Cataplana seafood stew

From Traditional Portuguese Cookery
Serves 4

Ingredients
200g of monkfish
200g of white grouper
200g of snapper
150g of shrimp
150g of fresh clams, cleaned
100g of chorizo
2 onions
2 cloves of garlic
2 tomatoes
1 pepper
200ml of oil
200ml of white wine
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Season all of the fish with salt. Peel the onions and garlic, chop up the garlic and cut the onions into half moons. Wash the tomatoes and slice it. Cut the peppers into strips without the white skin and seeds. Thinly slice the chorizo.

Place half of the onion, garlic, pepper, tomato and chorizo into the “Cataplana”. Add the bay leaf and season with a little salt and pepper. Sautee at medium heat until softened. Add the fish and cover with the rest of the onion, garlic, tomato, pepper and chorizo, adding the parley. Add the oil and white wine. Close the cataplana and cook the mixutre for 20 minutes at low heat.

After adding the clams and the shrimp. Let it cook gently for another 10 minutes, then the mixture and place the Cataplana on the table. Serve with boiled potatoes.

“A Cataplana is an item of cookware used to prepare Portuguese seafood dishes, popular on the country’s Algarve region. It is traditionally made of copper and shaped like two clamshells hinged at one end and able to be sealed using a clamp on either side of the assembly. The cataplana was invented by Armando Luz (1927-2002), better knowned by its nickname, “Pató”. “Pató” was an artist that work crafting the copper and the stainless steel, and was recognized with an award back were he lived in Portugal, with the key of the town and a silver medal that was offered to him due to his contribution to the Algarve. He was also the inventor of the machine to make cataplanas using stainless steel and was the only one who produced such a product.”

Obviously I don’t have a cataplana and so I used my cast iron pot instead. The stew is effectively a lighter version of a rich tomato based stew (i.e. with a can of tomatoes thrown in) and its the white wine that’s the star of this dish. You can use any combination of fish for this.

Pasta with prawns

From Knorr Recipes
Ingredients

2 Knorr Chicken Stock Pots
250g spaghetti
4tbsp olive oil
3tbsp chopped shallot
1 garlic clove, chopped
Tip of 1 chilli, very finely chopped (optional)
70ml dry white wine
30ml Knorr Chicken Stock, made from a diluted Knorr Chicken Stock Pot
4tbsp very finely chopped parsley
10-12 raw tiger prawns, shelled and de-veined

Method

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. I season my pasta water with Knorr Chicken Stock Pots; the delicate chicken flavour goes well with seafood. Add in the Knorr Chicken Stock Pots, stir until dissolved and bring back to the boil. Add in the spaghetti, bring to the boil, cover and cook until cooked to taste. I like mine al-dente, so I allow around 9 minutes. Stir the spaghetti now and then to prevent it sticking.

2. After the spaghetti had been cooking for 7 minutes, pre-heat a large, heavy-based frying pan to make it nice and hot. Add the olive oil to the frying pan, heat through briefly then add in the tiger prawns.

3. Let the tiger prawns cook briefly, then turn them over so that they cook evenly on each side. As they cook, the prawns will turn opaque and pink. It’s important not to overcook them, so keep a close eye on them. It’s attention to details like this that makes all the difference.

4. Add in the chopped shallot, then the garlic and chilli and fry briefly. Add in the white wine and cook, stirring. Add in the Knorr Chicken Stock and 2 tbsp of the chopped parsley to the prawns. Mix well as you want the olive oil, white wine and stock to blend together to form the sauce.

5. Once the spaghetti is cooked to your taste, turn off the heat under the spaghetti. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the spaghetti from its cooking water to the frying pan. This is the way my mother used to do it. Toss the frying pan, coating the spaghetti in the prawn mixture. Serve at once in two bowls, garnished with the remaining parsley. I’ve used raw prawns here, but, if you prefer, you can substitute cooked peeled prawns or a packet of seafood mix. It’s your choice.

6. Don’t waste your pasta water. It’s got the flavour from the Knorr Chicken Stock Pot in it and starch from the pasta in it, which is a natural thickener. Use it in a gravy, a soup or a stew.

Festive fish pie

From 101 Fish & Seafood Dishes – Tried and Tested Recipes
Serves 6
Ingredients

200g smoked salmon
4 plum tomatoes, skinned, seeded
400g raw king prawns
500g cod fillet cut into 2.5cm chunks
2.5cm piece of fresh root ginger
50g butter
50g plain flour
425ml milk
150ml dry vermouth
142ml carton single cream
3 tbsp chopped fresh dill
juice of 1/2 lime

For the topping
700g potatoes peeled,
good pinch of saffron strands
25g butter

Cut the salmon into strips and chop the tomatoes. Mix these with the prawns and cod in a buttered overproof dish

Chop the ginger. Bring the butter, ginger, flour milk and vermouth to the boil in a non stick pan, whisking all the time until until thickened and smooth. Reduce the heat and simmer for 2 minutes, then season and leave to cool, stirring occasionally. When cooled to room temperature, stir in the cream, dill and lime juice. Taste and season. pour over the fish.

Slice the potatoes and boil in a pan of water with the saffron and some salt until just tender, thend rain. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

Arrange the potatoes, overlapping, over the pie mixture. Melt the butter and brush over. Bake for 30-40 minutes until golden.

Cod and prawn bake in a cheese sauce

From Irish Cooking by Clare Connery
Serves 4

Ingredients
450ml / ¾ pint milk
¼ onion
6 peppercorns
Blade of mace
1 bay leaf
A few parsley stalks
50g / 2oz butter
450g / 1 lb cod fillets, skinned
50g / 2oz button mushrooms, sliced
125g / 4oz cooked peeled prawns
30g / 1 ½ oz plain flour
1 tablespoon lemon juice
125g / 4oz grated Cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Put the milk into a saucepan with the onion, peppercorns, mace, bay leaf and parsley stalks. Bring to the boil, and then remove from the heat and leave to infuse while preparing the remaining ingredients.

Melt the butter in another saucepan and use a little to brush the inside of a 1.6 litre / 2 ¾ pint ovenproof pie dish. Cut the cod into finger size strips, place in the pie dish and scatter the mushrooms and prawns on top.

Strain the milk through a sieve, then discard the contents of the sieve. Add the flour to the remaining butter in the saucepan, stirring to blend. Gradually stir in the strained milk to make a smooth sauce.

Bring to the boil, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper and lemon juice and add two thirds of the grated cheese. Stir until melted.

Pour the sauce over the fish, sprinkle with the remaining cheese, place on a baking sheet and cook in a preheated oven 180C, Gas 4 for 20 – 25 minutes until golden brown.

I love the taste of the white sauce! To the extent I made too much, and that’s why it looks a lot more than it actually is. I am saving up the cheese sauce so that I can have pasta with it.

Prawn pilaf

From Gordon Ramsay’s Best Menus
Serves 4

Ingredients

500ml light chicken stock
4tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1.5 tsp mild curry powder
10 cardamom pods
few thyme sprigs (leaves only)
200g basmati rice
sea salt and black pepper
20 large tiger prawns (in shells)

Heat oven to 200C. Cut a circle of baking paper big enough to cover an overproof pan. Cut a steam hole in the centre. Bring stock to boil in another pan.

Heat olive oil in ovenproof pan, add garlic, onion, spices and thyme. Stir over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, then tip rice in and stir well. Add some salt and pepper and toast the rice for a minute. Pour in the boiling stock and arrange the prawns on top of the rice in a single layer.

Lay the baking paper on top to cover, then transfer pan to oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until rice is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid. Leave to stand, still covered with the paper, for 5 minutes before serving.

Rice was undercooked but the taste was pretty good! More practice required.

Swordfish (Smoked Salmon) Parcels

From The Silver Spoon
Ingredients

Serves 4
250g mussels, scrubbed and beards removed
250g clams, scrubbed
150ml olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 garlic clove
150g raw prawns, peeled and deveined
2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 yellow pepper seeded and cut into large slices
6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
4 swordfish steaks
1 fresh flat leaf parsley sprig, chopped
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Cut four large squares of foil. Discard any mussels or clams that do not shut immediately when sharply tapped, then place the shellfish in a pan with 3 tbsp of the olive oil and the garlic. Cook over a high heat for about 5 minutes until the shells open. Discard any that remain closed. Drain the shellfish, reserving the cooking liquid. Heat 2 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil in another pan, add the prawns and cook for a few minutes. Add the mussels and clams, still in their shells, the tomatoes, yellow pepper, basil, chilli and reserved cooking liquid and simmer for 5 minutes. Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan, add the swordfish and cook for 5 minutes on each side.

Place a swordfish steak on each square of foil, season with salt and pepper and spoon the seafood mixture on top. Sprinkle with the parsley and drizzle with olive oil. Fold the foil over and seal the edges, transfer the parcels to a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes. Place the parcels on a warm serving dish, opening them slightly.

Ok, the recipe is long and complicated if you are not used to managing seafood and well, I didn’t do it that way. Instead, I went to Waitrose and bought a pack of seafood mix. This is after all London, land of expensive and not that plentiful seafood. Ok fine, I am also too lazy to sort out all that seafood. Well, my point is, if you buy a pack of seafood mix, this recipe is ridiculously simple. All you do is dump in the seafood with the vegetables and let it simmer before adding it to the fish. Which brings me to another modification. Again, london, seafood, limited. I used salmon instead, ah but not a normal salmon fillet, a lightly smoked salmon fillet.

The end result of the recipe (and all my modifications): an extremely tasty baked seafood dish, the wonderful flavours of the mussels, squid and prawns combining well with the yellow peppers and tomatoes and most importantly, the chilli (i love baked seafood dishes with chilli and tomatoes) and underneath all that, the smokey taste of the salmon. My first response when I ate it: “this is f****** good!”