Honkman

Curious to try chili with “fake” meat (beyond beef) and it wasn’t actually that bad. Chili made with red kidney beans, red peppers, diced tomatoes, onions, garlic, chipotle in adobo, chili powder, cumin, oregano, tomato sauce

Shalgam Gosht - Braised Lamb with Turnips and Mint - Lamb braised with black cardamom in a sauce made from bin bhuna hua garam masala (made by grinding coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, whole cloves, green cardamom seeds, bay leaves and sirarakhong chili) and puréed caramelized red onions, garlic and ginger. Later you add sautéed turnips, cilantro and a mixture of pounded mint, tomato and dried chili) - served over rice

Two Ottolenghi recipes for dinner tonight - chickpea pancakes (chickpea flour, ginger, garlic, scallions, jalapeno, cornstarch, baking powder, apple cider vinegar, cumin, garam masala) with mango pickle yoghurt (yoghurt, mango, mango pickle, lime zest) and some crispy, fried curry leaves. Served with eggplants with herbs and crispy garlic (oven roasted eggplant mixed with mint, dill and cilantro in a vinaigrette made from garlic olive oil, white wine vinegar and jalapeño and topped with some crispy garlic slices)

Homestyle Tofu from “Woks of Life” with wok-fried tofu, dried wood ear mushrooms, red and green peppers, scallions, ginger, garlic, star anise and a sauce made with cornstarch, oyster-sauce, Shaoxing wine, light and dark soy sauce and sugar

Oven-Roasted Portabella Mushrooms filled with a quick hummus (chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, sumac, thyme) and additional chickpeas. Served on a bed of baby arugula with an olive oil-balsamico vinaigrette and some oven-roasted green beans

Bo Kho-Style Mushroom and White Bean Stew from Andrea Nguyen with mushrooms, carrots, cannellini beans, crushed tomatoes, dried shiitake, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, Chinese five spice, star anise, bay leaf, fish sauce, Maggi and Thai basil

Yes - we liked it quite a lot

Quick, very simple stir-fried rice with shrimps, mushrooms, red peppers, carrots, scallions, mung bean sprouts and soy sauce. Topped with a fried egg

Southwestern Salad - romaine salad, oven roasted butternut squash, black beans, cherry tomatoes, scallion, jicama, avocado, feta, oven fried corn tortilla strips with a vinaigrette made from evoo, lime juice, agave nectar, mustard, chipotle in adobo,

Korean-inspired beef stew - beef chuck braised with daikon, carrots, onions, gochujang paste, red wine, tomato paste, flour, sugar, cilantro and beef broth. Served over rice.

Not really photogenic but quite tasty - greek inspired “pie” based on a recipe from Diana Henry. Zucchini and scallions get roasted in the oven first, before they are mixed with eggs, greek yoghurt, feta, parmesan, dill and garlic and everything is baked in the oven

Curry Cauliflower “rice” (shredded cauliflower cooked with water and curry powder) with seared shrimps and garlic. Served with cucumber salad with olive oil/apple vinegar/honey/fresno chili/dill vinaigrette

Kare Raisu with chicken thighs, potatoes, carrots, ginger, garlic scallions, chicken broth, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and curry paste (which was made from turmeric, coriander, ginger, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon, fennel seeds, fenugreek, garlic powder, brown mustard, sugar, butter, flour and miso). Served with sushi rice and fukujinzuke

Stir-fried fresh udon noodles with pork belly and kale. Sauce made with light and dark soy sauce, hoisin, chicken broth, shaoxing wine, sugar, cornstarch and toasted sesame oil

Lamb meatballs (garlic, chili, cumin, cinnamon, paprika, turmeric) first seared, then braised in a sauce made from crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, onion, garlic, tomato paste, cinnamon, peas, dried dill and mint). Served over mashed potatoes

Lentil Chili sin Carne - red lentils, button mushrooms, king oyster mushrooms, red pepper, kidney beans, onion, scallions, garlic, cumin, paprika cooked in a mixture of diced tomatoes and vegetable broth. Topped with some sour cream.

Arayes (Lebanese filled pita dough) - dough made with AP flour, dry yeast, water, salt, olive oil. Filled with a mixture of ground chicken, onions, garlic , diced tomatoes, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, cinnamon and mascarpone and topped with egg yolk and nigella seeds. Served with Moroccan inspired carrots - steamed carrots mixed with olive oil, vinegar, paprika, ground cumin, cinnamon and parsley and marinated for a few hours

Orecchiette with mushroom ragu (button, shiitake, oyster mushrooms, red pepper, onion, garlic, baked savory tofu (no smoked tofu available today), baharat, parsley, almonds, mushroom broth and heavy cream)

Corn Chowder with Cod - cod, fresh corn, bacon, red pepper, onion, garlic, thyme cooked in vegetable broth and milk

Variation on Mango Masala Curry with sweet potatoes, mango (not too ripe to make it not too sweet and have some sourness ), onions, garlic, curry powder, garam masala, cumin, curry leaves, black mustard seeds, coconut milk, cashew nuts

Old fashioned chicken soup - cooked the chicken together with onions, carrots and chili to make the chicken broth. Later added broccoli, peppers, carrots, chicken meat, chili and ginger.

Cooked separately and mixed at the end

Stifado - beef chuck braised with onion, garlic, plenty of pearl onions, tomato passata, red wine, red wine vinegar, sugar, cloves, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, walnuts, cranberries and feta. Served with orzo pasta

From one of the Ottolenghi books - root vegetables (carrots, rutabaga, parsnip) oven roasted with curry powder, curry leaves, makrut lime leaves, scallions, lime juice and cilantro. Served with some sausages

Szegadin Goulash with pork shoulder, sauerkraut, onions, caraway seeds, regular and hot paprika, tomato paste and vegetable broth. Served with boiled potatoes and sour cream.