Vegetarian jeera 'chicken'

Jeera chicken as a dish originates from the Indian Kenyan community which included my gran in the 1950s. Jeera means cumin. I was reminded of it this weekend when Gipsy Spread was looking for a chicken curry to cook. He decided against jeera chicken for something a bit more saucy, but I was reminded of this dish when I spotted a reduced pack of quorn 'chicken pieces' in Waitrose. I don't normally buy these, as I generally don't buy vegetarian ingredients trying to replicate meat, but the promise of jeera 'chicken' the first time in 20 years was too much for me to ignore. Also, having now done this, I could also have been doing this the whole time with paneer aswell. D'oh!


What you will need
2 table spoons cumin seeds
5-6 black corns
4-5 cardommon
4 green chillies
3 cloves garlic
A thumb sized piece of ginger
1 tea spoon ground coriander
2 tea spoons ground cumin
450g 'chicken pieces' (I used quorn)
4 table spoons plain yoghurt (optional)
1 tea spoon garam masala
2 table spoons chopped coriander


Begin by toasting 1 table spoon of the cumin seeds in a dry pan for 1 minute. When toasted, set aside and break up slightly.

 

Next place the other table spoon of cumin seeds in a pan with 2 good table spoon of oil, the black peppercorns and the cumin seeds. Heat through for 1-2 minutes.


Next stir in the crushed garlic, grated ginger and chopped chillies, cooking for a further minute before adding in the ground cumin and coriander. 


After a minute when the spices become fragrent, stir in the 'chicken pieces' and cook for 3-4 minutes, until starting to take on some colour.

Finally stir in the yoghurt (if using), half a gls of water and the garam masala. Cook for 810 minutes to reduce the sauce/evaporate the liquid.

Before serving, stir through the toasted cumin and plenty of fresh coriander.

Serve with some hand made chapatis.

Est.india, Southwark, London

The team was going around the corner from our office last week, to the Globe to see Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra. This of course necessitated a pre-theatre dinner, after which we were going to be sat on hard wooden benches in the open top site. It was whilst researching somewhere new to go (having exhausted many of the local eateries), that I stumbled upon this tiny little local gem tucked away on Union street. I’m a huge fan of dosas and you can’t find them at every Indian restaurant, but Est.India was clearly like no other Indian restaurant.

We made an early evening booking and arrived with our local workers buzz card in hand, which gave us 25% off the already reasonable prices. We were seated promptly at the modern wooden interior. There were five of us eating, but we were waiting for a colleague. Having looked at the menu all afternoon in the office deciding what we were going to have, we were chomping at the bit to exit the starting gate – so poppadums’ it was. These were wonderfully crisp (and not greasy) and came with a tomato, fresh mango and yoghurt chutney. We crunched, nibbled and chewed on these whilst awaiting the arrival of our colleague.

The street food feast began at this point; with three of my colleagues all keen to try the Desi burger and masala fries. I opted for the vegetarian dosa, whilst another colleague chose chicken. I had worried that these might get mixed up on the way out, but no fear, we received the right ones.

The dosas were exceptionally light, with really crisp, thin pancakes which were almost translucent. These came with the traditional coconut chutney and sambal and mine was filled wonderful Indian spiced potatoes and chickpeas. It was deceptively filling for both of us dosa eaters.

The Desi burger went down equally as well, with all those having ordered it being enamoured. We felt very well nourished for the show ahead and left (having paid our discounted bill) content with visions of coming again to sample of their wonderful street food offerings. In fact there was talk of lunches as they do lunchtime tiffin boxes and naan rolls, as well as takeaways being delivered to the office. I bet they’re heaving at lunchtime and we already have a date in the diary to visit Est.India again. What a fabulous addition to the local culinary landscape.

La Strada, Agios Nikolaos, Crete

You may well have thought that you had now read the last of all of Gipsy Spread's birthday shenanigans. Well, you were wrong. I also can't guarantee that this will be the last post about it. But, further to the US Road trip, the Cotswolds and the Eco-camping, we also took an all inclusive trip to Agios Nikolaos. Now, I'm not going to write about the all inclusive buffet, but rather the bijou little family run restaurant we visitied the two times we at out in the Town.


All restaurants in Crete have extensive menus, incorporating both all the Greek specialities with a full range of Italian dishes. This might seem a bit odd, but does in fact harp back to the colonisation of the Island by the Italians.


So, we were ambling around the harbour and the picturesque little town when we stumbled across La Strada. The owner who spoke to us told us that, whilst the restaurant did not have the best views (it was not in the tourist centre around the lake) that it did have the best food in the town at the best price.


We took away the menu and said we'd take a look and come back. We, of course did, the menu had various options for both of us (Gipsy Spread wanted fish) and so we booked the best table in the restaurant and returned of an evening, having all ready chosen our courses. Our table was reserved for us and we sat in the centre of the rustic taverna, with the table facing outwards onto the street.

I had chosen the cheese saganaki as my starter (partly because I loved saying the name). It was on the promise of some fried cheese, which I knew would not be feta and which I thought be reminiscent of halloumi. I  was not wrong. What I had not anticipated was the size of the starter. It was huge. Gipsy Spread had the mussels al pesto as he was after a fresh fish dinner. We both thoroughly enjoyed our starters.

 

I had already ordered the vegetarian lasagne, not having anticipated the size of the dishes. It arrived and was massive. I was daunted. I, however, dug in and it was most possibly the best vegetarian lasagne I have had. The sauce was so rich (was it a reduced wine sauce?) and the pasta so fresh, it was a wonderous delight and quite a surprise to find here in Crete. Sadly I only managed, even at a push to eat half of it. If I'd been at home, it would have most definitely constituted a doggy bag.

 

 

Gipsy Spread continued his fishy feast with the white fish in a rich creamy sauce, which he also revelled in however, by that point, it was a fairly rich dish as we had both eaten too much.

 

 

The food was truly delicious and the owner had been right, the restaurants around the lake with the views had similar menus, but at a much higher price. Also, we didn't know if the food was going to be any better. So, as we had enjoyed the food, the atmosphere and the excellent service at La Strada, we returned for our final supper in Agios Nikolaos on our last night. We had learnt our lesson though and so ordered a selection of mezze dishes to share with the delicious freshly made rosemary bread and another bottle of the local rose wine. We also noted the many conversations around us, with returning and regular diners, each praising the quality of the food.

 

So, if you're ever in this sleepy little harbour town, a visit to La Strada is highly recommended. It can be found just off the main square of the town, and you will smell the delicious aromas of he cooking before you see it.



The Ebrington Arms, The Cotswolds

It was a few weeks ago now that we were in the Cotswolds celebrating one of the many Gipsy Spread birthday shenanigans. We had a hired a bijou little cottage in the picturesque village of Bourton on the Hill and the owner had made a few recommendations for dinner. I had already exhausted one, when I did my best Withnail impression of having ‘come on holiday by mistake’, so it was the Ebrington arms we headed to for the birthday boy and his sister’s joint celebration.

We bimbled along to the rustic looking former coaching inn, I’m guessing. The dining room was delightfully laid out with wooden panels, flooring and tables and chairs. It was minimal, but warm and cosy, inviting the food to speak for itself. There were also large inglenook fireplaces, which sadly as we were there in September, were not lit.

We all perused the eclectic menu with excitement and indeed all found far too many dishes we wished to try than we had the capacity for at that time. Regardless, we all made our choices and eagerly awaited the plates which promised to be joyful. We were not disappointed. Every dish came out wonderfully dressed. In fact Brother in law Spread threatened to ‘do a Greg and John’ and destroy his pretty plate in the offing.

Regardless, I gently teased through my gorgeously earthy, slightly sweet and salty beetroot and goats cheese macaroon, with delightful beetroot additions. Others had the potato and grapefruit salad and the carpacio of tuna.

The main I picked because it promised some unusual combinations, flavours and textures and I again was not disappointed. It was the special with chickpea cakes, an olive fritter and olive puree for me. Others opted for the classic cod dish, the chicken and the steak.

I think all of us were pleasantly surprised by the high calibre of the food, its presentation and what great value for money it was. I did feel like I had been transposed outside of London, but received a London quality meal, at a fraction of the cost. I also took pleasure in the fact that I knew the ingredients would have been farmed locally and were seasonal. The vegetarian dishes in particular were extremelly creative and I appreciated the thought and techniques put into these. For those that ate meat, that the animals would have had a ‘good life’ assuaged their conscience.


Now, we were all full, but again, the creative combination of banana mousse, parsnip toffee and peanut butter ice-cream lured us in and we all had to try one between us. It was a fabulous combination of tastes.

I’d highly recommend this bijou little spot if visiting the Cotswolds’, a better meal, you won’t find. I shall remember this little pub and re-visit next time I’m in this beautiful part of the Country.