Croquetas de Pollo (Chicken Croquettes)

These little deep fried snacks are loved for their sublime symphony of crunchy outside and creamy inside, which, if perfect, will explode in the mouth with rich flavour.

This recipe was adapted from the recipe shown in a great book called Cooking Spanish, by Murdoch books

(Makes 6)

1 small onion, finely chopped
1 chicken breast, cooked & finely shredded
20g unsalted butter
30g plain (all purpose) flour
60ml milk
50ml chicken stock
1 egg, beaten
dry breadcrumbs
oil for deep frying

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes or until soft & translucent. Add the flour and stir over medium heat for 1 minute or until the mixture is dry & crumbly and begins to change colour. Remove from the heat and gradually add the milk, stirring until smooth. Stir in the stock and return to the heat, stirring until the mixture boils & thickens. Add salt & ground black pepper to taste, then transfer the mixture to a bowl and leave to cool completely. Add the chicken to the cooled mixture & stir well to combine.

Roll heaped tablespoons of the mixture into croquette shapes. Put flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs into 3 separate shallow bowl. Toss the croquettes in the flour, dip in egg (drain off excess) then roll in the breadcrumbs. Repeat this with each croquette for a second coating. Put onto baking trays and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Heat oil for deep frying to 170c, or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil browns in 20 seconds. Add the croquettes in batches and deep fry for 3 minutes, turning, until golden brown. Drain in kitchen paper and serve hot.

Delicious served with patata bravas

Tonkatsu Pork

Served with tonkatsu sauce and japanese potato salad

Japanese is my husband, Barry's, favourite cuisine. I love it too, but if I'm honest, I find chinese is far tastier. Hence, chinese is my favourite, as many of you know.

However, sometimes I feel as he is subjected to so much chinese food I should occasionally cook something for him. Does that make me selfish, I guess so LOL

This recipe was adapted from Meals in minutes, Asian I've had this book a long time and having googled it, was extremely fed up to see it's only 1p through Amazon, I paid a whopping 11.90 euros!

1 pork tenderloin
2 tbsps light soy sauce
2 tbsps mirin
1 clove garlic, minced
1 egg, beaten
japanese panko breadcrumbs
sushi ginger

With a meat mallet, gently pound the tenderloin between 2 sheets of plastic wrap until about 2 inches thick, then cut in half to give 2 equal pieces of 2 inch thick pork.

Combine sauce, mirin & garlic in a large bowl. Add the pork and coat well. Dip pork in egg & coat with the breadcrumbs.

Heat vegetable oil in a large saute pan, shallow fry the pork until browned on both sides and cooked through. Drain on kitchen paper.

Slice the pork pieces and serve topped with the sushi ginger, together with tonkatsu sauce.

Tonkatsu Sauce

Tonkatsu sauce is always served with tonkatsu pork



1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
80ml tomato sauce
1 tsp light soy sauce
2 tbsps sake
1 tsp japanese mustard (you can use english)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

How simple is that? Any leftover sauce keeps for ages in a screw top jar in the frigde too.

Japanese Potato Salad (6-8 as a side dish)

Having decided to make Tonkatsu Pork the next decision was 'what to have with it'. As it was a nice hot day and I had all the ingredients in, we decided a simple potato salad would work well.

It did work well with the pork and made a nice change too.

This recipe was adapted from a lovely book called a little taste of japan although having seen it on Amazon for £5.99 I'm truly dissapointed I paid 16.90 euros 3 years ago

500g all-purpose potatoes, peeled
50g sliced ham (I omitted this)
1 small cucumber
Parsley to garnish

Dressing:-
185g japanese mayonnaise (you can use regular)
1/2 tsp japanese mustard (you can use english)
2 tbsps japanese rice vinegar
a few drops of sesame oil
2 spring onions, finely chopped
25g finely chopped parsley
ground white pepper

Cut potatoes into 2cm dice. Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and add the potatoes. Cook 8-10 minutes, or until tender. Drain, rinse under cold running water, then drain again. Crush the potatoes slightly with a fork but do not mash - there should still be some lumps.

Meanwhile, cut the cucumber in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon, then slice very thinly. Cut the ham (if using) into then strips.

Make the dressing. Combine the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar & sesame oil and whisk until smooth. Stir in the sping onion and parsley, season to taste with salt & pepper.

Put the potato, ham, cucumber & dressing into a bowl and toss to combine well. Let it stand for 15 minutes for the potato to absorb the dressing and garnish with extra parsley to serve.

The finished dish with
tonkatsu pork and tonkatsu sauce

October 2009 - An Interview with......

This month, I interviewed Anne of Annes Kitchen

Anne is not only a food blogger, but also another active member of the BBC Food Messageboard which is where we originally met.

So, let's say hi & welcome to Anne...

That's all folks, well not quite.......

Who's next month's victim?

Next month we'll have the pleasure to meet a very well known person! Practically a celeb in my books LOL. Don't miss it. In fact, why not add yourself as a follower of my site & you'll know as soon as it's published!

Lastly, I'd just like to say a big 'thank you' to Anne for being this month's victim.

Debs "Tell us a little about yourself? "

Anne "I’m 27, love baking and all sorts of cooking. I get quite passionate about whatever I’m doing so can be quite focused to the demerit of other things! I work in the community currently, helping people live independently. Its rewarding but bad hours and pay! "

Debs "How long has your blog been going?"

Anne "Annes Kitchen has been running since March 2007. I did originally have another food one but when google acquired blogger, everything went pear shaped and it sort of vanished! Luckily I had backups so re-posted onto this one! I only originally started it to keep track of my recipes, never really realising there was a whole world of food blogs out there!"

Debs "Do you find you get cooking to specifically post something new?"

Anne "Sometimes! Especially if I feel I’ve been a little absent. This year has been all over the place so been a struggle to even find time to post at times!"

Debs "Like me, do you have a list of foods you want to try and are gradually ticking them off? "

Anne "Oh yes! I have a whole excel database devoted to recipes tried and to try! Currently there are 339 on there, separated by meat – veggie – fish – puds – breads and doughs, then split into main, starter, salad etc. This list does exclude probably the 200 odd torn out from magazines etc and currently housed in two ring-binders.. Yes I probably should get out more… Ingredient wise I’ve not got many left to try… "

Debs "What is your most favoured type of cooking?"

Anne "I like laid back cooking, I can be very bad at weighing / measuring, especially with savoury dishes, preferring to taste as I go along. I don’t mind more involved cooking but I have to be in the mood for it."

Debs "Do you, or have you, ever been involved with cooking/food as a career?"

Anne "Not really, unless you count the 4 weeks I spent serving on a hot food counter as a summer job when I left school. It put me off food for a while! "

Debs "What other hobbies do you have?"

Anne "I am a bookworm, always have one or two books on the go, even 3 if I really can't wait to start a new one! I enjoy practicing yoga, however I’m not very balanced!"

Debs "What are your favourite type of foods to eat?"

Anne "I love fish dishes, especially when they have been cooked for me! I also love spicy foods, particularly the better spiced and fragrant dishes. I ate at a Nepalese restaurant a while back and was wowed by the balance of fresh herbs and spices."

Debs "What is the most memorable meal you've ever eaten?"

Anne "I offered to buy my dad dinner one night, as some colleagues had been to a new Chinese restaurant and rated it. Really lovely restaurant, some fantastic dishes including two specials, one being scallops in the shell, coated with tiny slivers of mushroom if a fiery ginger sauce, which was sublime, then a honey bbq duck breast, which melted in your mouth, I’ve never had duck that good ever or since! Unfortunately the bill came to just short of £100, and I only had £50 on me…I had to very nicely ask my dad for the difference and think he nearly choked when I said how much it was! Was really good though!"

Debs " What's the worst meal you've ever eaten? "

Anne "There has been a couple of howlers but most recent without a doubt was a Chinese buffet restaurant in Hillingdon. Apparently the night we visited was its grand re-opening. Imagine the scene: terracotta walls, plastic flowery tablecloths, plastic plates, bright lighting and un-appetizing food sitting under spot lamps too long… It is the only buffet where I’ve only ever picked on one small plateful of food, skipped pudding and paid and left as quickly as I could. The food was cheap and nasty, everything deep fried in varying puddles of gooey sauces, really was eurgh! The overall highlight was trying to park within its vicinity, complete with hooded thugs surrounding the cars. I wouldn’t go back if you paid me!"

Debs "Like all cooks, we all have disaster's from time to time in the kitchen; what's the worst you've had?"

Anne "Nigella’s cranberry bakewell tart. I didn’t do as much cooking back when I made this, however it was Christmas and I wanted to make an effort and tried really hard. Unfortunately it was like scrambled eggs and jam and the whole lot was binned, really threw my baking confidence then! Was utterly vile."

Debs "Tell us, what has been your most successful creation & why?"

Anne "This question had me thinking all weekend but I think I have a winner! Modestly saying, there were a few favourites, however my personal favourite was a risotto made with sweet potato and blue cheese. I had sweet potato left from some fritters, and blue cheese lurking in the fridge, nothing else in cupboards so purely a chance meeting of ingredients. It sounds weird but it just works! Every time I make it now (normally just for myself, lol) I get so happy just thinking about eating it! The soft textures and mmyness of the blue cheese just hit all my happy notes."

Debs "What would be a typical weekday meal for you?"

Anne "I rarely cook the same thing twice, however if I had to pick would involve pasta Bolognese, I tend to batch cook ragu and freeze in portions. If not that then definitely pasta something! "

Debs "Do you ever get cooks block, i.e seem to lose inspiration in the kitchen?"

Anne "Yes! Especially when I changed jobs about 3 months ago, I now do shifts all over the place and it has dented my mojo, but I am slowly mending my ways! The last few weeks have seen a lot more cooking so feel am returning to a happy medium!"

Debs "What would be your after dinner funny story to tell around the dining table?"

Anne "Please refer to next reply"

Debs "I heard from a fellow blogger that you tried to kill your mother in law with chicken; it it's not too shameful, please share the story with us LOL."

Anne "Ha ha yes, didn’t work though lol! (if you read this, I love you really!) We used to live in a small flat, with a very small kitchen, and a very slow electric oven. We invited the ma-in-law and family over for a first ever Sunday lunch, as her partner cut into the roast chicken thigh, a little blood came out…..needless to say polite silence followed, with me sitting there mortified! Luckily about 5 years on and more successful dishes the ‘story’ seems to have been buried….. "

Debs "Where does your inspiration for cooking come from?"

Anne "Not sure can pin-point, desire to be creative I guess! Though as my brother just reminded me, I believe it was discovering that meat a) doesn’t need cooking until cremated b) dinner does not need consist of plain pasta/ potatoes + overcooked ready done meat-cuts (think kiev’s) and frozen veg. Mum I love you, but there are times I am honestly grateful you don’t have internet access."

Chinese BBQ Spare Ribs

I just love these spare ribs. Sometimes I make up a batch and we just sit & eat them whilst watching a film. Not the healthiest meal in the world, but oh so good.

Alternatively, they make a tasty starter to a chinese meal. Especially if you have guests too; everybody tucks into a large plate of ribs whilst chatting and enjoys getting all sticky.

500g pork spare ribs
2 tbs clear honey
2 tbs soft dark brown sugar
2 tbs tomato ketchup
1 tbs worcestershire sauce
1 tbs french mustard
1 tbs wine vinegar
1 tsp five spice

Line a roasting tin with foil. Pour in approx 2 tbs vegetable (or groundnut) oil, add the ribs turning to coat in oil and season with salt & pepper. Place in a preheated oven at 200 for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, put remaining ingredients into a jug and stir well to combine.

Remove the ribs from the oven and pour over the sauce, turn the ribs until well coated. Return to oven and roast for 45 minutes. Turning occasionally.

Lower oven temperature to 180. Turn ribs over again and return to oven for a further 45 minutes or until meat is tender and the sauce is syrupy.

Win "My New Orleans: The Cookbook" by Chef, John Besh

Deb of Kahakai Kitchen was invited to review this cookbook by John Besh and she was accidentally sent two copies. Being the wonderful person she is, she is giving away the 2nd copy to one lucky person.

Read all about it on Debs blog

Deb's review is worth reading, even if you don't want to win the book, she has written so brilliantly about how the book transported her to New Orleans.

She says.......

"A heavy box, full of 374 pages of love, passion and some really incredible recipes landed at my door recently in the form of "My New Orleans: The Cookbook" by Chef John Besh. I had been excitedly waiting for this cookbook to come out for the past few months having heard that Chef Besh had spent five years working on it, and I was not disappointed. As much a love story about New Orleans, its colorful history and its food as it is a cookbook, this is one big, gorgeous book and a fitting tribute to a fascinating city."

Just follow the link here to see the rules for winning.

Oh, one last thing, good luck everyone. Although I'm secretly hoping I'll win of course LOL.

Kris Dhillon

Yesterday was a really nice day, well from a cooking point of view anyway.

Firstly, I received an email from Kris Dhillon author of 2 books, The Curry Secret Book & The New Curry Secret Book.

Kris contacted me to thank me for blogging about her books & recipes and also to inform me that she too, now has a blog. Kris's blog is called The Curry Secret and you link to it from here.

I feel rather honoured to be contacted by a book author, not just one book either, but two to date.

Welcome to blogland Kris.

Secondly, I was asked by the founders of The Grapevine Magazine if I would submit a spanish recipe to them each month for publication in their magazine. Of course I said yes, you can read about it here

My recipes to be published.

Fame at last.

Well nearly LOL. I was approached yesterday by the founders of The Grapevine Magazine to submit a spanish recipe to them each month, for publishing in the magazine.

I'm so pleased to be taking part in this. I've been meaning to widen my repertoire of spanish dishes for sometime and this invitation has provided the motivation I needed.

Each month I will submit a recipe based on traditional spanish cooking. All the recipes will be published on the blog too. So, if you like spanish food and cooking, look in each month for a new recipe.

The Grapevine Magazine is very poplar around the Costa Del Sol areas and particularly so with the villagers of Competa, read about the village here.

Come the 1st of each month, locals make a special effort to go into the village and collect a copy of the magazine. They generally finish up sitting outside one of the bars with their copy to read over a cafe con leche (coffee with milk) or cerveza (beer) and chatting with friends.

So, a big thank you to Helen & Steve, owners/founders of The Grapevine Magazine for this wonderful opportunity and I look forward to working with you.