List of All Articles with Tag 'food and drink'

Some classics are hard to resist,” says Maunika Gowardhan, author of Tandoori Home Cooking. “This tandoori chicken tikka has been a constant in my cooking repertoire for as long as I can remember. I use the double marination technique here. “Of course, you can grill the skewers without doubling up on the marinade to coat the chicken at the end — it will turn out just as tasty.” Tandoori chicken tikka Serves: 4 Ingredients: You will need wooden skewers soaked in cold water for 30 minutes 640g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces Butter, for basting and cooking Juice of ½ lime Generous pinch of chaat masala For the marinade: 3 garlic cloves 2.5cm ginger root, peeled 6 tbsp Greek yoghurt 2 heaped tsp chickpea flour 1½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder. ¼ tsp garam masala 2 tsp ground coriander ½ tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp saffron strands, crushed 1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi), crushed Pinch of sugar Salt, to taste Method: 1. To make the marinade, grind the garlic and ginger with a splash of water in a blender to a smooth paste. In a large mixing bowl, combine the yoghurt with the chickpea flour. Mix well to get rid of any lumps and form a thick paste. Add the ginger and garlic paste, chilli powder, garam masala, coriander, cinnamon, saffron, dried fenugreek, sugar and salt. Stir well, mixing everything to a smooth consistency. 2. Put two tablespoons of the marinade in a small bowl and set aside. 3. Add the chicken to the bowl and mix well to make sure each piece is coated in the thick marinade. Cover the bowl and leave to marinate in the fridge for two to three hours, or preferably overnight. 4. Preheat the grill to a medium heat. Line a baking tray with foil and place a wire rack over the tray. 5. Thread the chicken pieces onto the soaked wooden skewers and place them on the wire rack. Place the tray under the grill and cook for 17-18 minutes. Turn the skewers halfway through the cooking time and baste with the melted butter until the chicken is lightly charred around the edges and cooked through. 6. Meanwhile, transfer the reserved marinade to a small frying pan. Place over a medium heat and cook, stirring continuously, for five minutes until the marinade reduces and thickens. Add two teaspoons of butter and turn off the heat. Transfer the cooked marinade to a bowl. 7. Take the chicken off the skewers and add it to the bowl with the marinade along with the lime juice and chaat masala. Stir well to make sure the chicken is evenly coated. Serve warm with salad and naan or roti. Recipe from ‘Tandoori Home Cooking’ by Maunika Gowardhan (Hardie Grant, £25). Read More Banging brunch recipes worth getting out of bed for Think pink: Three ways with rhubarb to make the most of the season ‘Indian food is so much more than rubbish chicken tikka masala’ This vegetarian kebab won’t have you missing meat Love wine but can’t afford it? Here’s how to drink luxury for less Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week

Chicken tikka masala is a much-loved dish, but it’s only scratching the surface of delicious food cooked in a tandoor. The tandoor – a clay oven used in a lot of Indian cooking – offers a world of possibilities, and that’s something chef Maunika Gowardhan is keen to uncover. It’s not like there’s just one type of chicken tikka. From murgh malai to reshmi tikka, the options are endless – and Gowardhan, 44, had the best exposure possible growing up in Mumbai. “I grew up on really, really good street food – India is such a vibrant, diverse space. In every region you find some sort of street eat somewhere, and every corner of the country will have some sort of kebab or tikka,” she says. “Sometimes, books can have one or two of those recipes – you can’t have a whole book on just that” – and that’s what Gowardhan has set out to change in her latest cookbook, Tandoori Home Cooking. She wants people to recognise the history of the tandoor: “What really sets it apart, for me, is that it’s a cooking technique that is dated back to the Indus Valley [from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE]. It’s something that is so historic, that has so much of a rich heritage – it’s such a vital part of how we eat, not just in the streets of India or in restaurants, but even in our own homes.” Even though most homes in India don’t have a clay oven, there are plenty of techniques to replicate that smokey flavour. “When you have a look at the way a clay oven works, essentially it’s heat that’s 360 [degrees],” Gowardhan explains. “In our domestic kitchens, the endeavour is to replicate that – conventional ovens provide heat in an encapsulated space. So they are similar, but they’re not the same.” The main difference is the coals at the bottom of a tandoor – when fat drips from any meat or anything else you put in the clay oven, it drips onto the coal and the smoke that is produced gives the food that “charred, grilled smokey flavour”, she says. But how can you get that at home? One of Gowardhan’s genius tips is making smoked butter. “You can store it in the fridge, and when you start basting your food with that smoked butter, you’re getting the charred, smokey flavour that you’re really yearning for in tandoori dishes.” Not that Gowardhan has been perfecting smoked butter from a young age. “I’m going to put my hand up here and say when I first came to England [25 years ago], I didn’t know how to cook Indian food,” Gowardhan, who now lives in Newcastle upon Tyne, confesses. She came to the UK for university, during which she was “thrilled” to be away from her parents with that “sense of freedom”. But after moving to her first house and getting a job in the city of London, Gowardhan says: “It slowly creeps up on you – when you go to an unfamiliar place, what you really miss is that familiarity.” That’s when Gowardhan started to learn how to cook Indian food, because “I craved it and yearned it all the time”, she says. She would ring her mother back in India and ask for simple recipes – daal, rice, green bean dishes. “I cooked not just for sustenance, I cooked because I missed home and I missed good food,” she reflects. Since then, Gowardhan fell in love with food and made her way into the industry, and this is her third cookbook. She now deems it her “calling”, saying: “I knew food was something that was a leveler on every aspect of my life. “When we did really well, my mother would say, ‘Can I make you something?’ If we were really upset she was like, ‘Let me cook for you’.” Gowardhan also suspects some of it comes from her grandmother, who was an “avid cook”. “My grandmother was the hostess with the mostess. In the 1950s in the city of Bombay, a lot of film stars and Bollywood film stars in India would actually come to my grandmother’s house to eat her food. To be a fly on the wall at my grandmother’s dinner parties…” Gowardhan’s grandmother passed down these recipes, and her mother’s passion for food “gave us this effervescence for cooking and eating good food”, she adds. After dedicating the past 20 or so years of her career to Indian food, there’s a major thing Gowardhan would like people to know about the cuisine. “People tend to forget it’s actually a subcontinent. Because it’s a subcontinent, you realise there is so much more, and every community has so much more to say about the food they cook. “Of course, it’s blurred boundaries as you go through every space, but I feel like every 20 or 30 kilometres you’re travelling, the food changes – because the crop changes, because the climate changes, because the soil changes. All of that makes a huge difference.” So, when people ask her to sum up Indian food, Gowardhan says: “It’s like saying, ‘What is your favourite European food?’ Impossible.” ‘Tandoori Home Cooking’ by Maunika Gowardhan (Hardie Grant, £25). Read More Banging brunch recipes worth getting out of bed for Think pink: Three ways with rhubarb to make the most of the season Love wine but can’t afford it? Here’s how to drink luxury for less Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower Gordon Ramsay: ‘I’m going off the beaten track to become a better cook’

No one likes mornings. Whether you’re having a slow start to the weekend, nursing a hangover or need a midweek pick-me-up, easing yourself in with an indulgent brunch is perfectly acceptable. You heard it here first. That’s why we asked Tasos Gaitanos and Alex Large, the old school friends behind London brunch institution Brother Marcus, for some flavoursome, summery recipes to get our days going. Celebrating vibrant Mediterranean cuisine, these recipes are worth getting out of bed for. Baked omelette and halloumi “Omelettes are an all-time favourite at Brother Marcus. We’ve given ours an Eastern Mediterranean touch by adding halloumi and baking it in the oven so it comes out golden in colour and light and fluffy in texture. This is best cooked in a skillet that can then be transferred to the oven for baking, but an ovenproof dish will also work.” Serves: 4 Ingredients: 30ml olive oil ½ a red pepper, diced 2 spring onions, chopped 100g spinach 12 eggs 230ml double cream 30g halloumi, grated Salt and freshly ground Black pepper Method: Preheat the oven to 200C fan. If using an ovenproof dish, place it in the oven to heat up. Heat the olive oil in a skillet, then add the red pepper and spring onion and saut. until softened. Add the spinach and season with salt and pepper, then saut. until wilted. Put to one side to cool. In a bowl, beat the eggs thoroughly with the double cream and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir in the grated halloumi and the cooled veg mix. If using the ovenproof dish, take it out of the oven and quickly brush it with a little olive oil. While it’s still hot, pour in the egg/veg/halloumi mix and put it back into the oven. Alternatively, pour the mixture back into the skillet and return it to the oven. Bake for 10 minutes until the eggs are puffy and golden. Garnish with some more grated halloumi and serve with buttered toast. Rhubarb and cherry porridge “Early spring sees the arrival of the first forced rhubarb, and adding it to this porridge is a delicious way to enjoy it for breakfast.” Serves: 4 Ingredients: For the porridge: 200g oats 500ml whole milk 1 star anise Pinch of ground cinnamon Pinch of ground nutmeg For the rhubarb: 300g forced rhubarb 120g caster sugar 1 sprig of rosemary Juice of a ¼ lemon To serve: 4 tbsp maple granola 4 tbsp sweet preserves 4 tsp finely chopped pistachios Method: Place the oats in a pan with the milk, star anise, cinnamon, nutmeg and 500ml water and stir while slowly bringing the mixture to a boil. Stirring is the key to getting the perfect porridge consistency! Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring all the time, then take off the heat once it is thick. If you need to loosen it further just add a splash of water. Wash the rhubarb and trim the ends off, then slice it diagonally every 2cm to make diamond shapes. Bring a pan of water to the boil and drop the rhubarb into it, boil for a couple of minutes, until just tender, and drain. Place the blanched rhubarb back in the pan and add the sugar, rosemary, lemon juice and 230ml water. Bring to the boil and immediately take off the heat and cover – the idea here is to keep the rhubarb nice and firm while also dissolving the sugar in rhubarby juices. To serve, divide the warm porridge between four bowls and top each with a tablespoon of the granola and a tablespoon of the cherry spoon sweets and their syrup. Arrange some rhubarb pieces on top and pour over some of the juices, then scatter over some finely chopped pistachios. Brother Mary “The Brother Mary is our very popular twist on the classic Bloody Mary, using flavours from countries all around the Eastern Med: Egypt, Syria, Greece and Turkey. It’s a brunch essential.” Serves: 2 Ingredients: 300ml tomato juice 100ml vodka 60ml lemon juice 30ml Worcester sauce 10ml ouzo Pinch of molokhia leaf Pinch of cayenne pepper Pinch of celery salt To garnish (optional): 1 tbsp Aleppo chilli 1 lemon wedge 2 small Turkish green peppers 2 x 300-400ml glasses Ice Method: Take the large Boston shaker and measure in the tomato juice, vodka, lemon juice, Worcester sauce and ouzo. Add healthy pinches of molokhia, cayenne pepper and celery salt, then pour from the big Boston into the little Boston and repeat five or six times. This will break up the molokhia a little. Put the Aleppo chilli onto a small plate. Wet the rim of your glasses by sliding the lemon wedge round them, then dip or roll your lemony rims in the chilli on the plate. Fill the glasses with ice, then pour over the Brother Mary mix and pop a green Turkish pepper on top! Recipes from ‘Brunch with Brother Marcus’ by Tasos Gaitanos and Alex Large (Kitchen Press, £25).

Ava Zonfrillo, the eldest daughter ofMasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo, has spoken out for the first time since his unexpected death on 30 April. The celebrity chef died suddenly at the age of 46. His death was confirmed by Network 10 on 1 May, as well as by his family, who shared a statement. Posting a series of photographs and videos of her father, Ava wrote on Instagram: “Still can’t accept that we’ll be remembering you for more time than we had you, but doesn’t mean we’ll love you any less.” The 22-year-old added: “I love you dad, always.” Her poignant post included a photograph of her as a toddler with Zonfrillo, with both wearing comedy glasses with thick black eyebrows and large plastic noses attached. Other more recent photos show her posing with her father at various events. Ava also shared two clips of Zonfrillo, with one of him blowing a kiss at the camera. Friends of the family sent Ava love and well wishes in the comments. Chef Alex Prichard wrote: “We are all here for you! Love you both.” Meanwhile, Australian designer Collette Dinnigan sent “so much love” to Ava and wine expert Samantha Payne said: “Love you dearly and will be giving you the biggest of hugs soon, my darling friend. We’ve got you.” Zonfrillo was laid to rest at a private funeral two weeks ago. The service was attended by his wife, Lauren Fried, and their four children. A select group of family and friends, some who flew to Sydney from other countries, were also in attendance. During the service, Fried said in her eulogy: “We were two halves that found each other at the exact moment in life when we were ready. “We were ready for that big love to live a life of adventure, to become parents together, to imagine extraordinary things and to actually make them happen.” The late chef, who was born in Glasgow, was found at a hotel in Melbourne on Lygon Street the day before the 2023 season of MasterChef was set to be aired. The show was postponed following news of Zonfrillo’s passing. According to Daily Mail Australia, police believe that Zonfrillo died of natural causes and nothing unusual or suspicious was discovered in the hotel room where he was found. As news of his sudden passing broke, many in the food industry paid tribute to Zonfrillo, including Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White. Pierre White praised his former apprentice chef and said: “Very few chefs have an inquisitive mind, an intellectual mind and a creative mind. That’s what makes him special, that’s what makes him rare.” Read More Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay pay tribute to chef Jock Zonfrillo MasterChef Australia to return with ‘full support’ of Jock Zonfrillo’s family following his death Jamie Oliver shared selfie with late MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo hours before his death

Rhubarb season runs from April through to the end of summer, but it’s a real treat to eat fresh before the hot weather truly arrives. In the UK, it’s best grown in the “Rhubarb Triangle” in West Yorkshire, so we asked two-starred Michelin chef Michael Wignall, who runs The Angel Inn at Hetton, for his favourite ways with the vibrant vegetable. Rhubarb cooked in foil Serves: 4 Ingredients: 400g rhubarb (washed and cut into approx 5cm batons) 5 drops of vanilla extract Zest and juice of 1 lime 100g light brown sugar Aluminum foil Method: Set an oven at 180C. Place a sheet of aluminum foil (approx size of 2 x A4 sheets) on your work top. Lay your rhubarb on one side (ensure they are laid uniform) and leave the other side empty. Mix the zest and juice of lime, vanilla extract and brown sugar together and sprinkle over the rhubarb. Fold the empty side of the foil over the rhubarb to each corner and then fold each side into towards the centre 2-3 times, to wrap the rhubarb tightly, like an envelope (the better the seal the faster the rhubarb will cook, retaining all of its lovely flavour and juices). Place the foil envelope onto a ceramic tray (this is to allow you to use the juices, should any leak out) and cook for approx 25-35 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 5 minutes before carefully opening the bag and serve. Serving suggestions: Serve with warm ginger custard, crème fraiche or clotted cream. Or go savoury with roasted duck or chicken. Rhubarb crumble Serves: 4-6 Ingredients: For the crumble topping: 450g plain flour (sieved) 270g muscovado sugar 250g unsalted butter (diced) 170g ground almonds (replace with oats, if nut free) 60g pecan nuts (chopped fine) replaced with pumpkin seeds for nut free) Zest of 1 orange For the fruit base: 800g of rhubarb (washed and chopped into approx 3cm) 200g blueberries (adds a lovely sweetness and colour) 150g light brown sugar Method: For the crumble mixture: Rub together the flour, sugar and almonds, making sure there are no lumps in the sugar (Muscovado sugar can get quite lumpy). Then add the butter in 3 stages and rub together, until you have a breadcrumb consistency. Lastly, add the pecan nuts and stir in thoroughly. For the fruit base: Add the sugar and rhubarb to a large pan and cook on a medium heat, until the rhubarb has slightly softened. Remove from the heat and lightly stir in the blueberries. Place the mixture onto a tray to cool. Preheat an oven to 180C, divide the filling into individual heat proof ramakins or one large heat proof dish. Sprinkle with the crumble mixture (do not press down) and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden in colour and the filling is starting to bubble at the sides. Serving suggestion: Serve with ginger custard or ice cream. Lemon and ginger posset Serves: 6 Ingredients: 500ml double cream 250ml castor sugar 4 lemons (juice and zest) If you can, source good quality lemons – leafy and unwaxed. Amalfi lemons are the best, if in season. It makes all the difference! 20g root ginger (peeled and finely grated) 2 sheets of bronzed gelatin, soaked in ice cold water Method: Place the cream, sugar and ginger in a medium sized pan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, add the lemon juice and then the soaked gelatin. Stir well and pass through a fine sieve, into a pouring jug. Pour into ramakins or glasses and allow to set in the fridge for 5 hours. Serve with the compote of Rhubarb and vanilla. (Recipe below) Rhubarb compote Serves: 4 Ingredients: 1kg rhubarb (leaves and base removed) 350g castor sugar 1 vanilla pod (split and seeds removed) 50ml water ½ tsp of ground ginger Method: Cut the rhubarb into approx 2cm slices, along the length of the stem. Place a wide thick bottomed pan, onto a medium heat and add the sugar, vanilla, ginger and water. Allow the mixture to dissolve. Add the chopped rhubarb, making sure it is completely coated in the sugar syrup. Cook over a medium heat, stirring often, until the rhubarb begins to break down and turns into a thick mixture (there should be no water remaining). Chef’s tip: Forced rhubarb is best for this, as there is no need to peel, you get a lovely colour. Outdoor summer rhubarb can work well but peel before cutting and cooking and replace the water with 100ml of cranberry juice. Read More Love wine but can’t afford it? Here’s how to drink luxury for less Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower Gordon Ramsay: ‘I’m going off the beaten track to become a better cook’ Gordon Ramsay’s coffee-spiced pork shoulder recipe Gordon Ramsay takes on Louisianian gumbo

McDonald’s lovers had their minds blown after seemingly learning the purpose behind the buttons on the top of drink lids. This week, a video posted on the popular Twitter account Today Years Old went viral after it showed the reason for those fun-to-pop buttons on every McDonald’s soda. The plastic buttons – sometimes labelled “Diet”, “Cola”, “Tea”, and “Other” – allow workers to indicate what the customer ordered so that they’re given the correct drink. For example, if someone ordered a Diet Coke at a McDonald’s drive-thru, they’d be handed a drink with the “Diet” button pushed down on the lid, while the other buttons remained unpopped. However, true fast food fans will also notice the rectangular buttons on the plastic lid. In the viral video, which has more than two million views, a person shocked McDonald’s fans when they pushed down on the wrong circular button and used the rectangular one to correct their mistake. “I was today years old when…” they captioned the clip, which showed that if the rectangular button was pressed, the circle next to it immediately popped up. In the comments, many users concluded that the plastic lid is used like a “reset” button – if an employee accidentally indicates the wrong drink preference, they can use the rectangular button to make sure the customer is given the right drink. “What kind of sorcery is this?” tweeted one mind-blown person after discovering the purpose behind the plastic button. “This is a lie! This can not be true!?!?! Can it???” another user jokingly asked. “At this point I don’t even think I’m breathing correctly,” said someone else. Others took the opportunity to seemingly confirm the purpose of the button, with one person writing: “The cap is to mark what the drink is (let’s say the diff between Diet Coke and Coke) this allows you to redo if you pressed the wrong one.” “There is an undo function,” one person replied, while another said: “Whaaatt? Those were reset buttons?” Most recently, fans of the American fast food chain expressed their disappointment after learning “why McDonald’s fries taste different than everybody else’s fries”. TikTok user Jordan, who goes by @jordan_the_stallion8 on the app, revealed that McDonald’s beloved fries are cooked with “natural beef flavour”, making them not suitable for vegans. “It’s because McDonald’s cooks [its] fries with beef flavouring mixed within their vegetable oil,” Jordan said. “So that’s why the fries taste so good, but also so different from everybody else’s.” @jordan_the_stallion8 #stitch with @youraveragetechbro #fypシ ♬ original sound - Jordan_The_Stallion8 The TikToker then noted that the revelation was probably “bad news for vegetarians”. The realisation upset many vegan and vegetarian customers, with one person commenting: “Wait.. whaaaat!? I’m vegan and all I can eat from McDonald’s are fries.” “WTF. Never again,” another said. Others revealed that it is a well-known fact that McDonald’s fries are not vegan in the US. “I thought everyone knew this,” said one person, while someone else wrote: “This has been known for at least a decade.” The Independent has contacted McDonald’s for comment. Read More McDonald's found liable for hot Chicken McNugget that fell from Happy Meal and burned girl Woman shares dismay over ‘mouse-sized’ panini she purchased for $8 on vacation in Italy McDonald’s fans upset after ‘expert’ claims he knows why fries taste different What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Woman shares dismay over ‘mouse-sized’ panini she purchased for $8 on Italy vacation Gordon Ramsay puts his spin on a traditional Maori dessert

Gumbo is a Louisiana institution. Fusing together flavours from the state’s Creole and Cajun heritage, it’s traditionally a deeply-flavoured stew. After exploring southern Louisiana, this is Gordon Ramsay’s version of a traditional gumbo… Chicken andouille gumbo with rice Serves: 8 Ingredients: For the braised chicken: 4 boneless, skin-on chicken breasts 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken legs, thighs attached 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper 2½ tsp kosher salt, divided 2 tbsp grapeseed oil 4 garlic cloves, crushed 3 celery stalks, diced 2 yellow onions, diced 8 cups chicken stock 3 sprigs thyme 3 spring onions, trimmed and chopped 1 lemon, cut in half, seeds removed For the gumbo base: 227g andouille sausage, cut into 1.3cm-thick slices 108g unsalted butter 125g all-purpose flour 2 celery stalks, finely diced 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 red bell pepper, finely diced 1 green bell pepper, finely diced 1 yellow onion, finely diced 1 tsp kosher salt 1 tsp cayenne pepper ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper 2 tbsp hot sauce For the rice: 341g white rice 946ml water 2 sprigs thyme, picked 2 tsp kosher salt Method: 1. Make the braised chicken: Season the chicken with the pepper and two teaspoons of the salt. In a large pot over medium heat, add the oil. Once the oil is shimmering, sear the chicken on all sides until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Be careful not to overcrowd the pan, and work in batches if necessary. 2. Remove the chicken from the pan and add the garlic, celery, and onions. Cook in the chicken fat until the vegetables begin to caramelise. Season with the remaining salt. 3. Add the chicken back to the pot and cover with the chicken stock. Add the thyme, scallions, and lemon halves and bring to a simmer. Continue cooking on a low heat until the chicken is tender and can easily be pulled apart, about one hour. 4. Remove the chicken from the stock and shred the meat from the bones. Cover the chicken and refrigerate until ready to use. Strain and reserve the chicken stock and discard the vegetables and thyme. 5. Make the gumbo base: In another large pot over a medium heat, add the andouille sausage and cook until the fat has rendered and the sausage has crisped. 6. Use a slotted spoon to remove the sausage from the pot and set aside on a paper towel–lined plate. 7. To the fat in the pot, add the butter. Once the butter is completely melted, add the flour and mix until a thick paste forms to make a roux. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring constantly until the roux has turned a very deep brown, about 30 to 45 minutes. 8. Add the celery, garlic, bell peppers, and onion. Continue cooking until the vegetables are softened, about five minutes. Season with the salt, cayenne, and black pepper. 9. Add the reserved chicken stock and the hot sauce and bring to a simmer. Continue cooking on low until the gumbo base has thickened, about 30 minutes. 10. Make the rice: In a medium pot over a medium heat, add the rice, water, thyme and salt and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook until all the moisture has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork just before serving. 11. Add the pulled chicken and andouille sausage to the gumbo and serve with the rice. Recipe from ‘Gordon Ramsay’s Uncharted: A Culinary Adventure With 60 Recipes From Around The Globe’ (National Geographic, £25). Read More Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower Gordon Ramsay: ‘I’m going off the beaten track to become a better cook’ Gordon Ramsay’s coffee-spiced pork shoulder recipe What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Healthy lemony smoked salmon pasta that takes zero effort

One stop on Gordon Ramsay’s culinary journey around the world was Puerto Rico, where he discovered this recipe for coffee-spiced pork shoulder. It’s accompanied by yuca – the root of the native cassava plant, which was an important ingredient for the indigenous Taino community. Coffee-spiced pork shoulder with sweet potato and yuca Serves: 4 Ingredients: For the coffee-spiced pork shoulder: 2 tsp ground cumin 2 tsp sweet paprika 1 tbsp kosher salt 1 tbsp finely ground coffee 1 tbsp granulated sugar ¼ tsp chili flakes, or more to taste 2 tsp annotto seeds, finely ground (if you can’t find annatto seeds, you can substitute with 2 tsp achiote paste) ½ boneless pork shoulder (about 1.3kg) Extra-virgin olive oil For the sweet potato and yuca: 1 red onion, diced into 1.3cm pieces 1 star anise 3 garlic cloves, crushed Kosher salt 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1.3cm pieces 1 yuca, peeled and diced into 1.3cm pieces 1 cup dark rum 3-4 cups chicken stock Method: 1. Prepare the pork shoulder: In a small bowl, combine the cumin, paprika, salt, coffee, sugar, chili flakes, and annatto. 2. Season the pork shoulder with the rub, rubbing it in with your hands to coat evenly. Set the pork shoulder aside to marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. 3. Heat a large Dutch oven over high heat and drizzle the pork with olive oil. Place the pork shoulder in the pot and sear on all sides until caramelised and golden brown. Remove the pork from the pot and set aside. 4. Make the sweet potato and yuca: To the pot, add the onion, star anise, and garlic. Season with salt. Cook until all the ingredients begin to caramelise and the anise is aromatic, about seven to 10 minutes. Add the sweet potato and yuca and saute for five minutes longer, until they start to brown. Add the rum to deglaze the pot, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon to release all of the brown bits. Simmer until the rum is reduced by half. 5. Finish the pork shoulder: Return the pork to the pot and pour in the chicken stock, making sure the stock comes halfway up the side of the pork, adding more liquid if needed. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer, cooking for about two hours or until the pork easily breaks apart with a fork. Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon. 6. Once the pork is tender, remove it from the pot and set it on a large plate or cutting board. Pull the pork into large pieces using two forks. 7. Reduce the cooking liquid that remains in the pot by half until slightly thickened. 8. To serve, plate the pork and vegetables on a serving platter and drizzle cooking liquid over top. Recipe from ‘Gordon Ramsay’s Uncharted: A Culinary Adventure With 60 Recipes From Around The Globe’ (National Geographic, £25). Read More Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower Gordon Ramsay: ‘I’m going off the beaten track to become a better cook’ What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Healthy lemony smoked salmon pasta that takes zero effort Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry

While we might be most familiar with seeing Gordon Ramsay cooking up a storm in a galley, he says he loves to “get out of the kitchen and get my hands dirty”. That could explain why he’s filmed three series of Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted on National Geographic, giving him the opportunity to explore different experiences and dishes from all over the globe. From snacking on alpaca meat 11,000 feet above sea level in the Peruvian Andes, to eating fish curry in Kerala, south India, Ramsay, 56, has been on a culinary tour of the world. “I always love to get out of the kitchen and get my hands dirty,” he says. “It gives me time to embed into local food communities and get inspired.” In the series, Ramsay switches positions – in many of his previous shows, he’s the teacher, but he’s very much the student in Uncharted. He says this “definitely made me more humble, especially when the locals don’t love my dishes”, but ultimately “experience helps me become a better chef”. Now, the chef is releasing a cookbook-meets-travelogue as an accompaniment to the TV show, with the recipes reflecting the diversity of his travels. Dishes include spicy grilled lobster with coconut and breadfruit from Hawaii, chicken pepper pot from the jungles of Guyana, New Orleans-style BBQ shrimp and spice-rubbed steaks with pele pele sauce from South Africa. We chatted to Ramsay about his approach to travel and food… How important is it to have an open mind when travelling? “Having an open mind really helps you to bed in with the local community. For me, I get to better understand the importance of each dish and ingredient. “It really helped me to craft some of the incredible dishes at our final cooks and now this amazing book. And trust me, I’ve taken all that knowledge and used it in my dishes at my restaurants around the world.” How can adventure help you understand a region’s culture and cuisine better? “If you want to go off the beaten path, you’re not getting on the tube or M5 to get there. You have to have some adventure involved! And as I learned in Peru with the mango tree, some of the best ingredients come from being out of your comfort zone.” Has travel always been a part of your food ethos? “When I was a young chef, I wanted to have all the experience and knowledge to help me be the best. I wasn’t going to places like Laos or Tasmania, but I was travelling and taking in everything I could get from every city I went to. “I may not have been rappelling a cliff or diving while learning in France, but trust me, some of those kitchens were just as intense!” What dish in the book took the most effort to master? “I’d have to say the Pandi curry in India. I’ve made many curries in my time, but this one was truly unique since it used pork. I’ve been to India many times, but never to this region and getting in so in-depth with the local purveyors. “I learned so much from the curry – to the coffee liquor to those spicy pickled vegetables – that said, the biggest challenge for me during that trip had to be getting the ants we used for the ant curry out of my hair!” Did you fail at anything? “Of course I’ve failed. I’ve lost fires, burned protein, disappointed the locals – but I’ve always picked myself up and tweaked and finessed my mistakes. “Mistakes aren’t bad when it comes to cooking, it’s the perfect learning experience. So if you fail with any of the recipes, just learn and adjust and keep trying.” What was the most memorable destination you went to? “That’s so tough, that’s like choosing a favourite child. They were all so unique and beautiful, but I think Tasmania was really memorable to me. The culture of bartering and the incredible seafood really opened my eyes to the incredible bounty that island has.” What’s the biggest lesson you learned from filming Uncharted and writing the cookbook? “Resourcefulness and making sure that we only take what we need. Those principles are very similar to what we are running and doing in restaurants, use what you need, take what you need. And making sure it’s seasonality at its best.” ‘Gordon Ramsay’s Uncharted: A Culinary Adventure With 60 Recipes From Around The Globe’ (published by National Geographic, £25). You can stream all episodes of National Geographic’s ‘Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted’ exclusively on Disney+. Read More Three meat-free dishes to try this National Vegetarian Week How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Healthy lemony smoked salmon pasta that takes zero effort Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry Andi Oliver on turning 60 and channeling her anger into power

National Vegetarian week (15-21 May) is the perfect excuse to give these stunning meat-free dishes a whirl. Full of texture, flavour and colour, you won’t feel like you’re missing out. Mediterranean vegetable and goat’s cheese galette Makes: 1 x 10 inch pie Ingredients: 300g plain flour 150g salted butter, cubed 3 tbsp cold water 1 packet of prepared Mediterranean vegetables (400g) or a mix of fresh – chopped into chunks 150g soft goat’s cheese, cut into slices 1 egg Salt and pepper Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 200C (fan). 2. In a large mixing bowl, rub the flour and butter with your fingers until a crumb consistency is achieved. Add the water and stir together to form a pastry dough. 3. Tip the dough out onto the lined baking tray and roll out into a large oval/circle shape (2-3mm thickness). 4. Arrange a layer of goat’s cheese slices in the centre of the pastry, top with the vegetables and then fold in the edges to encase everything. Place a few additional goat’s cheese slices on top of the vegetables. 5. Beat the egg and use a pastry brush or your finger to egg wash the folded pastry edges before seasoning the whole galette with salt and pepper. 6. Bake for 30 minutes until the pastry is golden, allow to cool slightly and serve. Red pesto and parmesan dough knots Makes: 8 knots Ingredients: 1 packet fast action dried yeast (7g) 220ml warm water 400g strong white bread flour 1 tbsp white sugar 1 tsp salt ½ jar red pesto 170g cheese of choice, we recommend parmesan Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 180C (fan). 2. In the measuring jug, combine the warm water and yeast. Stir and set to one side for 2-3 minutes to activate the yeast. 3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Pour in the yeast and water and stir them together with your hand to form a dough. 4. Sprinkle your worktop with a little flour and knead the dough until smooth, then return to the large mixing bowl, cover and leave in a warm place for at least 15 minutes to prove (this is where it will start to grow in size). 5. Using your fist, knock the dough back (this means push the dough back down to its original size) and tip out onto a floured worksurface before rolling into a large rectangle shape (about 5mm thickness). 6. Spread the red pesto on half of the rectangle, grate a thin layer of cheese on top and then fold the over half of the dough over the pesto and parmesan. 7. Cut the dough into 1 inch wide strips, then, holding each end, twist and knot each one before placing onto a lined baking tray. 8. Bake for 15-20 mins until risen and evenly browned then remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly, grate more cheese on top and serve. Savoury crêpes Makes: 6 crêpes Prep time: 5 mins | Cook time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 2 large eggs 200ml milk 120g plain flour Butter for greasing pan For the fillings: Grated cheese and mushrooms (sliced and pan fried in butter – but these can be made with any filling of your choice!) Method: 1. In the large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk and flour with the whisk to form a runny batter. 2. Place your pan over medium heat and grease lightly with butter before spooning in about 2-3 tbsp of batter and swilling it around to form a thin, even crêpe. 3. Return the pan to the heat and leave to cook for 30 seconds, then using the spatula, or flipping if you feel confident to, flip the crêpe over and cook the other side for a further 30 seconds. 4. Place the crêpe on a plate and repeat steps 2 and 3 until all of the batter has been used, stacking them up as you go. 5. To fill, take one of the crêpes, place it back in the pan and sprinkle with grated cheese and mushrooms. Leave for 30 seconds, then fold the crêpe in half and then half again to create a quarter fold. Flip the whole thing over to brown the other side lightly and ensure all the cheese has melted, then serve. Recipes from the Easy Peasy Baking campaign. You can find more recipes and information on the campaign on fabflour.co.uk/easy-peasy-baking. Read More How to make TikTok’s viral whole roasted cauliflower What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Healthy lemony smoked salmon pasta that takes zero effort Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry Andi Oliver on turning 60 and channeling her anger into power Andi Oliver: Earl Grey tea bags are a gamechanger for barbecue chicken

National Vegetarian Week kicks off 15 May, which provides a great opportunity to get creative in the kitchen. Vegetarians, vegans and people who are just looking to cut down on their meat consumption are always looking for great alternatives for classic dishes such as steak or a classic sunday roast. Enter: the roasted cauliflower. Often seen as a mere side, this viral clip featuring a whole roasted cauliflower with a garlic yoghurt and drizzled with tahini and a chimichurri style sauce, has gone viral, with over 1.7 million views and 108,000 likes. Luckily, we’ve sat down with the creator of this viral clip, professional chef and host of foodie favourite the Desert Island Dishes podcast Margie Nomura, who has shared this delicious recipe so you can impress all your friends this National Vegetarian Week and beyond. “This dish is a perfect centrepiece for any vegetarian meal,” says Nomura. “It’s a great substitute for a cut of meat and is easy to make when you’re feeling lazy. “When you roast a cauliflower whole it takes on this buttery, sweet but salty crust in the oven so make sure you roast it until it is soft enough for a knife to cut through. “For the chimichurri, you won’t use all of this for the cauliflower but it keeps beautifully in the fridge for up to two weeks and is amazing served as a salad dressing or on vegetable kebabs.” Roasted cauliflower Ingredients: 1 medium-sized cauliflower (remove thick ugly outer leaves but leave any smaller more delicate ones) 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp Maldon sea salt For the chimichurri: Mix together: 1 finely diced shallot 1 diced red chilli pepper 3-4 diced garlic cloves ½ cup red wine vinegar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp red pepper flakes ½ cup finely chopped coriander 2 cups finely parsley ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil (more oil as needed to get the right consistency – it should be runnier than a pesto, more like a heavily flavoured chunky oil) For the garlic yoghurt: 4 heaped tablespoons of Greek yoghurt 1 clove garlic crushed Juice of ¼ lemon 2 tbsp tahini to serve Method: @desertislanddishes Whole roasted cauliflower served on garlicky yoghurt, drizzled with tahini and a chimichurri style sauce. It’s SO GOOD. The cauliflower is like butter, you could cut it with a spoon. #cauliflower #tahini #easyentertaining ♬ Jazz masterpiece "As time goes by" covered by a Jazz violinist by profession(962408) - ricca Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Fill a large pot of water and season well with salt and bring to a boil. Place the cauliflower in, cover and let cook for 6-8 minutes, depending on the size. Check to see if ready by poking the stem with a knife, and then remove the cauliflower and place it on a sheet tray to steam dry for around 10 minutes. Cover with extra virgin olive oil and season well with sea salt. Return to the oven and let roast for 45 minutes until charred and golden all over. Remove from the oven. Spoon some garlicky yoghurt onto a serving plate and pop the cauliflower on top. Drizzle with tahini and chimichurri. Cut into wedges and enjoy! Read More What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Healthy lemony smoked salmon pasta that takes zero effort Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry Andi Oliver on turning 60 and channeling her anger into power Andi Oliver: Earl Grey tea bags are a gamechanger for barbecue chicken Caribbean-inspired coconut and lime cheesecake

The King’s coronation times with the very start of British cherry season, making this a gloriously seasonal trifle. The fruit is cooked with cherry jam to give just enough of a jelly effect to please those who like a jellied trifle. Add sponge soaked with the sweet nuttiness of amontillado sherry, lashings of rich custard and cream, and this trifle is definitely fit for a king. It’s incredibly quick to prepare, particularly if you make the custard ahead of time (or just buy some pre-made custard!). Best eaten the day you make it. Coronation sherry cherry trifle Ingredients: For the custard: 450ml whole milk 150ml double cream 1 vanilla pod 6 egg yolks 60g caster sugar For the trifle: 650g cherries (approx 500g pitted weight), plus a few extra for garnish, preferably with stalks 1 jar of cherry (or black cherry) jam, approx 340g 600ml double or whipping cream 100ml amontillado sherry 200g savoiardi biscuits 600ml vanilla custard (see above) 75g dark chocolate Equipment: A straight-sided glass trifle dish, 2.5 litre capacity Method: If making the custard for the trifle, do that first. Pour the milk and cream into a medium saucepan. Split the vanilla pod in half lengthways, scrape out its seeds, and add the seeds and pod to the milk. Bring to a low simmer, then turn off the heat and set aside for 5 mins to infuse. Whisk together the egg yolks and caster sugar in a bowl. Discard the vanilla pod, then pour a little of the warm milk and cream into the egg yolk mix and whisk. Gradually add the rest, whisking continuously, then pour it all into a clean pan. Set over a gentle heat and stir constantly for 8-10 mins, taking care not to let the custard simmer, until it thickens and has the consistency of double cream – it will thicken more as it cools down. Set aside to cool before using in the trifle. Remove the stones from the cherries and put the fruit into a medium saucepan along with the jam and 25ml water. Gently cook for a few minutes, stirring, to soften the cherries. Take the pan off the heat and set aside to cool. Whip the cream in a large mixing bowl. Pour the sherry into a shallow bowl. Dip a third of the boudoir biscuits into the sherry, then use to line the base of the dish. Spoon over a third of the cherries, then a third of the custard, then a third of the whipped cream. Repeat these layers twice more. Put the trifle into the fridge for a couple of hours. Chop or grate the chocolate. Scatter over the trifle before serving, along with the remaining cherries. Recipe provided exclusively to The Independent from Borough Market Read More What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry Andi Oliver on turning 60 and channeling her anger into power Andi Oliver: Earl Grey tea bags are a gamechanger for barbecue chicken Caribbean-inspired coconut and lime cheesecake Can’t-believe-it’s-so-quick aromatic shrimp curry