Prawncrackers

28 flipping quid?! Blimey. David, I bought one last year from Moseley Farmers, i think it was about a fiver. I'll keep my eyes peeled for you this year.

How do you make this?? It's one of my husband's favorite dishes. It's embarrassingly simple to make and kinda like a cupboard clearout for me this time. Prepare your meat: In this dish I used four small chicken thighs, cut into small cubes. Not too fastidious about taking the skin off, if it stayed on then it went into a light marinade of shaosing and soy sauce for half an hour. Prepare your other ingredients: Finely mince one big clove of garlic along with the same amount of ginger. Cut two scallion whites into chicken sized batons. Dry fry half a teaspoon of whole Sichuan pepper with a teaspoon of salt until aromatic then grind into a powder. Reserve a teaspoon of whole Sichuan pepper and a handful of dried chillis. Literally a handful, as if they were selling them by the hand at the market and you only had enough money to grab one handful! I used dried Kashmiri type chillies this time, but ideally you should use the round Sichuan ones. Cook: Just before deep frying the pieces sprinkle them with cornflour, fry them till they're brown, drain and set aside. In two tablespoons of clean oil, gently fry the garlic, ginger and scallion. When they have softened a little toss in the whole Sichuan pepper and chilli and toss everything together being careful not to scorch the chilli. Add the chicken pieces, season to taste with the ground pepper and cook together for a couple of minutes so that the meat picks up all the aromatics. Serve and EAT. Apologies, for such a simple dish I've seemd to have waffled on a bit. By the way, the addition of peanuts or cashews is very good too. Enjoy.

Thanks Kayb! If I ever meet dcarch in person I'll put it to him Here are some meals from recent weeks that I hope will make your board. Mole Poblano guinea fowl, guacamole and red rice. Oh and some sliced habanero to pep things up a little: Chicken with Chillies: Ultimate comfort food - steamed fish (sea bass) and stir fried veg (tong ho) with lap chueng: Finally after a couple of weeks of poor weather, I had the opportunity today to bbq some beef short ribs. As you can see this was nice meaty four ribber, seasoned down with a pepper heavy rub the night before and smoked with mesquite for about four hours then in the oven for three. I managed to transfer it to the serving plate and it fell into big juicy hunks when I cut it up, tasted incredible - it may be the best thing yet to have come off my weber. I called a friend to help devour it and between the three of us we ate every last scrap of it with some potato salad, sweetcorn and guacamole. and because I know you folk like this sort of thing, I took a close-up of the very last delicous morsel - a burnt end that I'd saved:

Freshest solution is to buy live shellfish like lobster or crab. Definitely swanky enough too. I've kept live lobsters in the fridge for up to three days with no problem. If you're in a more fishy mood, then turbot and halibut keep well for a couple of days. Some people even say they're best after a few days out of the water.

I have a 180mm traditional deba and I find it handles domestic sized fish with no problem. From biggish 12lb salmon down to sea bass, bream, sole and sardines. I don't have any commercial pressures so I can take my own sweet time to do as clean a job as possible. I do think though that little chips are inevitable when you're going through fish bones using such sharp knives. Besides like others have said you can limit the chipping to the heel by cutting technique and contain them further by sharpening technique. The real killers for me are crustaceans, in particular splitting live lobsters. You have to be quick and use the point to pierce the head. Then rocking the blade down along the shell causes so much damage along the whole length of your precious edge. After the first couple of times I decided that my trad deba was not the tool for the job. Not that it didn't split the shell cleanly, it did, but it just wasn't worth taking the 600 grit out everytime to fix the chips. So I'm using a heavy Chinese cleaver now with a sharpened point and it does the job but not so cleanly. The chunky belly of the cleaver sometimes crumples the lobster shell rather than splitting it, though the softer steel doesn't chip at all. But now I'm thinking a softer western style, double beveled deba would be the way to go. It just so happens I'm in nyc in October and might just persuade the wife that a trip to Korin might be nice, you know to check out the lovely tableware and oh look this Misono knife is nice too. So what do you guys think, will this wee beasty handle lobster shells without chipping or am I resigned to reinstating one of my crappy sabatiers from storage to do this one job?

Cheers PSB that's good to know. The only thing now is to get the Berkshire pork into my branch.

Is that the same Watermelon curry that's in Camellia Panjabi's 50 Curries book? I've been working my way through it, the last dish i tried was the Malabar Prawn curry: It's the dish that appears on the cover where it looks quite dry and ruby red in colour. I don't know how that's possible with the amount of coconut milk and turmeric in the recipe. Nonetheless it tasted absolutely wonderful like all the recipes I've tried so far. We had some friends visit for the first time recently and as always I spend a couple of days deliberating on what to cook. But in the end I always go for a Cantonese/Pan-Asian spread partly because I enjoy cooking the dishes but mainly because I want to present some real Chinese home-cooking and a little of my personality: From L to R: Fried Prawns in Salted Duck Egg Yolks, Stuffed Three Treasures, Fish-fragrant Aubergines, Steamed Turbot, Tea-Smoked Duck with shredded Daikon and Ox-Cheek Rendang (because it was in the freezer!). We had some of the stuffed treasures leftover so I took a close-up of that dish. The treasures this time were bitter gourd, tofu and peppers, the stuffing was made with cod and prawns so that the non meat eating guest could enjoy them too. They're usually stuffed with pork and prawns but these were lighter and no less tasty: Haven't had Tonkatsu for a while, this one was served up with rice, avocado, daikon and salted duck egg. I don't know if avocado and Chinese salted duck eggs have ever been eaten together before but I do know that they should be more often, it was a suprisingly good combo. Here's a pic before I drenched the pork in Bulldog sauce: I had intended to smoke a rack of beef short ribs the other day. They were rubbed with down the night before but on the day I got caught up running some errands. So instead I slow roasted them in foil for about six hours till tender. Served with guacamole and rice & peas:

I didn't make it as far down as Falmouth but i did manage to eat my own weight in shellfish at The Oyster Shack somewhere in South Devon on my way back home to Brum. But as this is a Cornish topic let's talk Paul Ainsworth instead. Thank you very much all those who recommended No6 in Padstow, we had a really terrific meal. Here are some pics of what we had: Fresh Line caught Mackerel, impossible to eat fresh mackerel inland so my wife always orders it when we're by the sea. Salmon scotch quail eggs with curried mayo was our favourite dish. Deceptively simple sounding but executed perfectly. A dish to try and recreate at home I think. A third starter - raw Cornish beef salad. I loved the shallot rings in this dish, a good thing since the beef itself was very almost overpowered by them. The wife's main was Plaice with Brown Shrimp, Sweetcorn salsa and samphire. The salsa ate very well, the shrimp being the same size as the corn kernels was very visually appealing. I think there was a hint of fennel pollen in there too which lifted the whole dish. As is nearly always the case when she chooses first, she goes for the dish that I would have had. So I plumped for the Bream with Smoked Eel and Beetroot. My only gripe of the whole meal was that my fish was slightly over, having that sticky tooth quality. But thankfully rescued by the ever reliable eel and beetroot combo. To finish we had the dessert tasting, which was a little on the greedy side because we were well and truly stuffed. The doughnuty churros thingies with the espresso dipping sauce deserve an honourable mention though as being particularly delicious. The staff are was very warm and charming. The atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable. I'm already thinking about when we can come back!

Looks like the secret is well and truly out with a very positive review from Jay Rayner. Has he been reading this thread maybe?

Wow thanks for sharing those wonderful photos. They really have made my mind up to put L'Enclume to the top of the must-try list. It looks like every course was a stunner, which were your highlights? Even in the lower light of the evening meal the dishes look so vibrant, great photography. Proof, if it was needed, that you don't need to use flash in a restaurant setting. Just a decent camera & lens & some skilful processing.

The last and only time I was in nyc about 3 years ago, we had a meal at the Plataforma near Times Square. I must have been lurking around the forum and read this thread otherwise I would never have even considered it. Having never come across anything like this in the UK at the time we booked ahead and waited in greedy anticipation. It didn't disappoint, I remember being amazed by the whole set-up, the deliciousness and sheer variety of the freshly charred meat. It brings a smile to my lips when I think about how fast the "chicken and sausage boy", I use the term affectionately, arrived when the counter was flipped over. They must get the fittest, youngest, eagle-eyed carver they have to man those skewers. "Cheekin n sorsage?" he enquired and before my wife could finish saying "yes", he'd whipped them onto her plate. From counter flip to plate faster than Usain Bolt. Faster even than a Hong Kong taxi driver to honk his horn at the car in front when the light turns green. Or in this case when the counter turned green! Sure the suckling pig man must feel like he's everyone's favourite uncle when he wheels his trolley round but props to the Chicken and sausage dude Anyways, I'm rambling, what I've revived this thread for really is that we are back holidaying in nyca and we are looking for REVENGE! You see last time we didn't get our money's worth; having booked an earylish dinner slot around 6:30 we decided to have lunch at one the diners in Grand Central station. Foolishly I put away a reuben sandwich combo and the wife had a chicken caesar salad. I say foolishly because on our first visit to the States we were unaccustomed to the portion sizes. You have a sandwich or a salad for lunch here in the UK and you definitely still have room for a big meal later. We couldn't do it justice that evening and we swore meaty vengeance on our return to nyc. So question is before I go ahead and book the Plataforma again are there any other Churrascarias (preferably Manhattan) that I should consider? Or is the whole scene just so passé and moribund and it's all about Uruguayan grill now?!

Some classic French food from my kitchen in the past week - duck confit, a tart aux pommes and a figgy frangipane tart too: My confit duck has been a little disappointing lately, not melting and falling off the bone enough for my liking. This was no exception, a little tough even though I've been following all the correct processes; curing overnight, confiting for 3hrs at 100c and maturing in the fat for at least 2 weeks. I have a feeling it could be the sudden ready availability of ducks in the past couple of years leading to a poorer quality product. It's noticeable in the breast meat too - very bland.

Hmmm, grilled chicken never fails to satisfy. There is a Jerk cook-off somewhere but this grilled chicken thread has motivated me to get the coals on yesterday. Now usually I would make jerk marinade with Scotch Bonnet chillies but I was given a Naga chilli so i used that instead, my recipe this time for one chicken was: 1 Naga Chilli 1 Lime, juice and zest 5 strips of thyme leaves 2 Fat Scallions - whites only 1 Fat Clove Garlic, same of ginger 1 Tbl Molasses Sugar 1 Tsp Allspice Salt and a splash of Coconut rum Blended together and let the chicken sit in it for 24hrs. My grilling set up is pretty standard indirect heat over a pan full of water. Pimento wood is uncommon around here but I did have some mesquite handy so used a couple of chunks for smoking. It was cooked for exactly one hour covered then finished over the coals carefully to give it the sizzled flavour. Served with coconut rice & peas and fennel slaw:

They sell those little beauties at Waitrose very cheaply too. They're great salted overnight and put into a cassoulet. Cheeks rule, apart from cow and pig, any other fat faced animals out there?

Gosh that deep fried pig skin stuff, haven't had that in years. It's one of those really old fashioned Chinese ingredients that I thought no one eats anymore. But then again I have seen them around in the supermarkets still - big bags of it, cheap as well deep-fried pig skin I suppose! When braised or added to soups it's quite a nice spongy mini-honeycomb texture that soaks up all the goodness. I distinctly remember though that folk used it to imitate fish maw which is ridiculously expensive and unavailable in this country. But as the older generations have learnt about healthy eating, this is exactly the sort of stuff that got abandoned. I'm with the no flash brigade Pam i'm afraid. If you are conscious that it does annoy other diners then why not go a step further and bring your own fold out light box next time to trap all of the flash. Or better still get one with a cloth hood so you can stick your camera and head in too. You'll get great pictures and it won't be any less discrete than standing with your back to the restaurant (what if they sit you in the centre?). Hee hee

In the past year or so I've found myself around Liverpool St station so have had the pleasure of eating at the Viet Grill a couple of times and at the sister restaurant Cay Tre. The food is wonderful but David, I have never ordered any of the dishes you mentioned! A bowl of Pho is indeed a fine thing but it really is meal in itself, even a small bowl, and definitely not suitable for sharing with all that sloshing. No wonder you were so full up. Pho is something you just want to bury your face in (almost literally) and eat on your own in silence. Off the top of my head you must must must, next time, try the Ca Kho (catfish in caramel fish sauce - Hix's favourite apparently), feudal beef and wicked frog legs... and the Cha Ka La Vong... oh and the grilled quail in lime leaves... the piggy aubergine dish is lovely too.

No6 has been booked but without a menu available online what should I look out for? Don't want to miss out on a treat now do we?

That's exactly my set-up too, who actually uses those steak knife slots for steak knives eh?! I used to have a macho chef knife thing where all prep had to be done with the one chef knife (Chinese or Western). In fact the thing was to do the whole cutting prep without letting go of the knife at all. It was a little OCD I know but I got pretty proficient at it. Nowadays having mellowed a little I always pull out the chef knife and a parer. It just makes life easier. I have some cheapo blunt as hell parers used for prising stuff and general abuse. But then I also have a rather fancy little 90mm nenox number which is great for cutting in the hand. It's so thin that it hardly ever needs to be sharpened. I also have an odd shaped Itou 130mm parer that is the perfect mango knife (i eat a lot of mango alright) because of it's very shallow profile. You can follow a large mango stone around without wasting any of the flesh. I can get two perfect halves of mango and nothing is left on the stone - impossible to do with a chef knife.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far folks, I think i'll give No6 in Padstow a call asap. We've decided to stay a couple more nights in St Austell as we wanted to check out the Eden Project, so any recs for down there would be appreciated too.

I have been struggling to remember when the missus and I last had a proper "staycation". Maybe it was Edinburgh about 6 years ago but the memory is getting little hazy. What I do remember was excellent Scottish seafood; a fantastic fruits de mer at Creelers in the old town, an arbroath smokie or two in the new town and mussels at Fishers in Leith. This landlocked Brummie boy was in seafood heaven! So it's with long overdue anticipation that we go on the hunt for great British seafood at the other end of the nation, Cornwall. Her indoors has arranged a couple of days in Bude but I'm up for staying a little longer in the county as I've never been before. So the question is, where's the good seafood to be had? I've just been reading this list in The Guardian about Devon/Dorset and it's exactly the sort of thing that's needed for Cornwall too. I'm not too fussed whether it's fine dining or a crab shack, just that it's good and fresh. Apart from the obvious establishments from Mr Stein what would you recommend?

Thanks guys, these pics turned out great so I just had to share with you. They were only taken on my point & shoot compact but the light was so good that day. Of course it helps that the food is stunning to look at in the first place.

I don't think I can add to what has been said in the last post, so I'll add some pictures instead of a recent omakase meal: 'nuff said.

The instruction to "add one de-seeded chilli pepper" regularly translates to "add as many chilli peppers as you have available".

Sure Bella, I only started making those rings of chorizo this summer as a by-product of making barbecue ribs. I love ribs but I found that the ones I'd been buying just weren't meaty enough. So one day I decided to buy a couple whole sheets of pork ribs skin on and all, and trim them down myself. This left me with just over 1kg of pork trimmings, quite meaty but with a good amount of belly fat. So in a flash of inspiration chorizo was born! It really is such a simple recipe: 1kg pork, medium ground 20g salt 3 fat cloves of garlic, minced 35-40g hot Spanish Pimenton de la vera Mix together and stuff into a casing. That's it, the recipe makes one of those rings and is the perfect accompaniment to chicken and ribs. The key ingredient is the quality and freshness of the pimenton that you use.

Wow Dcarch those are some attractive looking dishes, very stylish - almost architectural. Do you present your food like this for family and friends? I ask because I doubt if my wife would appreciate the effort involved. She wants her food hot and now! We certainly appreciate it here on the forum though, keep up the good work. Been doing a lot of grilling recently, what with all the sunshine we've been getting in the UK (shock). First up is some home-made fresh Spanish style chorizo and smoked chicken: and yesterday I grilled a fantastic rib of Welsh Black beef. It was the best steak of the year so far, it had a light spice rub, grilled over coals and some chunks of mesquite. Cooked to a perfect medium rare, the best i've ever managed over charcoal: The best thing was we had this much leftover for tonight. Thinly sliced in a crusty baguette with guacamole and fennel slaw, brilliant: