Chicken Dopiaza

This curry isn't exactly for the faint heart, lots of onion, garlic and a good kick of chilli, but is soothing and soul healing at the same time. This curry is especially brilliant if you have a cold as the garlic, ginger, onion and tumeric all contribute to a better immune system and tumeric is just an amazing spice although not much flavour has a large variety of medical properties! Enough warbling lets get on!

You will need: 4 large onions (2 quartered, 2 sliced)
1 large red and green bell pepper. (bite size chunks)
8 large boneless chicken thighs (skin and excess fat removed cut into bitesize pieces)
2 tsp grated ginger
3 large cloves of garlic
1 tbsp each of coriander and cumin seeds (lightly crushed)
1tsp tumeric
1 tsp chilli powder (or more if you like)
2 large tomatoes finely chopped
1tsp garam massala
1/2 tsp salt and pinch of white pepper
4 tbsp fat free yogurt (to finish the dish, but you can leave it out if you really want)

place the quartered onions, garlic and ginger into a food processor or mini chopper and blend till you get a paste.
meanwhile on a high heat stir fry the sliced onions and peppers until they char a little and the onions become sweeter. (remove to a plate)
on a medium heat stir fry the onion paste until it starts to turn golden brown.
Add in all the spices and stir cooking for 1 minute.
Add the chicken coating in the spice mix.
Add the tomatoes, pepper and salt and a little water, stir and cover letting cook for 20 minutes.
Uncover to let thicken. (this would be a perfect time to sort out your rice)
stir in the onion and bell pepper.
remove from the heat and stir through the yogurt.

This seems long winded but alternately.. you could brown the chicken, sliced onion and bell peppers together to get some colour and put it in a slow cooker, then you could stir fry the onion paste with the spices until it turns brown, add it to the slow cooker then add the tomatoes to the slow cooker, give it a stir and cook for 4 hours on high or 6-8 on low then stir through the yogurt before you serve.

Sweet and sour pork(or chicken)

So okay this has syns but the syns make this dish taste amazing..
you may think i am mad putting baking powder on meat, but, trust me! Its a traditional chinese method! The baking powder tenderises the meat in about 20 minutes and gives a silky smooth texture in your mouth!
The marinade doesn't look especially delicious but hey ho it tastes lush!

So the basics of this sauce has the meat, cubed green pepper and white onion. obviously you can add as much veggies as you like and serve with anything you like but today this is just a basic sweet and sour i hope you enjoy!

serves 4-6 people
400g bite size chicken breast or pork (i used pork loin chops and removed the fat)
1 tsp baking powder (0.5 syn you cannot replace this with anything else and is essential for this dish)
6 tbsp soy sauce
1tbsp cornflour (1syn)
1 grated clove of garlic
1tsp sesame oil (2syns)
4tbsp (i used morrisons which is 0.5 a syn) ketchup
splash of white vinegar
about 1/2 tsp sweetener
generous pinch of salt and pepper.
1 large white onion and green pepper in rough chunks.

mix together 4 tbsp soy sauce, cornflour, baking powder generous pinch of salt and pepper and the meat. leave to the side while you prep the sauce.
mix the ketchup, rest of the soy, sesame oil, garlic, sweetener and white vinegar and set aside.
Once the meat has marinaded for at least 20 minutes get a (preferably non stick) pan on high heat with a generous spritz of low cal spray.
mix the meat one more time then lay out in a single layer. Leave for 30 seconds then flip the pieces. they should be a lovely golden crispy brown colour.
leave for another 30 seconds then when you can see no more pink, (doesnt have to be cooked right through) remove from the pan and add your vegetables. leaving them to char a little before tossing to char the other side. add the pork back in and stir fry for 2-3 minutes before adding your sauce.
Toss throughly to make sure everything is coated and to make sure the sauce thickens.

Ta da.. done! the prep is the longest it only took me about 5-7 minutes in total to cook the sweet and sour (but i did have a lot of other mixed veggies in my stir fry!)

i hope you guys like it!!

Speedy risotto

I will be uploading videos soon and this will be the first recipe video i upload in a long time onto youtube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4ururmkHVMaRmnB7aVAOcA

so i know i would be shot if in italy so i am sorry to any italians reading this!!

so we start off with a low syn microwave rice (the one i have is currently syn free)
but any ole packet will do! serving 2 people or 1 hungry person!

you will need about 100ml of stock
salt and pepper
2 tbsp parmesan (2 syns)
your packet of rice
and i am going with mushrooms in this! a good few handfuls of sliced mushrooms
your base is a finely diced onion and a grated garlic clove and obviously the rice!

So we start by softening the onion in a frying pan with low cal spray.
Add your mushrooms and cook to your liking (you could use any veggies you want or chicken, ham etc)
Add in your rice and stir fry for 3-5 minutes. Add in your stock and stir. cook for 2 minutes, remove from the heat, stir in the parmesan and a generous pinch of pepper and adjust for salt (bearing in mind that the parmesan is salty)
I like to serve mine with a big handful of spinach on top.

I hope you enjoy!

Peking duck

What? you can have this on slimming world too?!
well of course you can my friend! Just in the right way!
So i usually serve this with my 'fried rice' and garlic greens or sometimes it's just as good in a lettuce wrapper!
i don't usually have these with pancakes so i don't know the syns of those but i know blue dragon hoi sin sauce is currently at 1 syn per tbsp (i usually water it down with a little soy sauce or water and toss it with my duck.

This recipe is purely for the duck. i don't know how many syns it would be for cooking it with the skin on but we boil off the majority of the fat first!!

Where to get a duck? usually in the freezer section. I know aldi have had duck in their frozen section for the past 6 months so you must be able to find them in normal supermarkets too :)

So first off, if using a frozen duck i cannot stress the important of defrosting properly before use! DO NOT just sit it in hot water because there is more chance of you getting food poisoning! Get your duck out of the freezer 24 hours before you need it.. put it on a tray and leave it to do its thing.

Now. Get a big pot of boiling water. stab your duck all over with a fork and boil for 45 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 200oC. After the duck is boiled remove it from the oily water and place directly onto a wire rack. (make sure you have a tray with foil underneath the rack!) cook in the oven for 45 minutes. turn off the oven 10 minutes before removing and have your windows open as there will be smoke!

Remove to a chopping board, remove the skin (yes i know its easy to eat crispy duck and chicken skin but think how well you are doing) grab 2 forks and start shredding!
Done!
How easy?!
I hope you give this recipe a try, it will save you a lot of money from the chinese and a lot of syns!

seafood paella (well.. sort of!)

I love seafood but im quite picky about how it is cooked. i recently found some amazing deals on asda for clams and some crab meat, but you might be able to find some clams and crab at your local fishmonger or in all honestly you could use tinned!

This serves one very hungry person or 2 people with a side salad :)

You will need: 2 crab claws (or a tin of crab), 2 good sized handfuls of cleaned clams (or a tin of clams or a handful or two of prawns, squid or mussels!)
salt and pepper (very important in ANY dish)
1 large shallot, 1 celery stick & 1 carrot (all finely diced)
1 large clove of garlic (grated)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 large tomato (roughly chopped)
1 tbsp tomato puree
zest of lemon (and a bit of the juice to serve)
a kettle of hot water (you can make up fish stock if you have it)
and most importantly some form of short grain/ paella or pudding style rice. a generous handful per person!

i used a non stick pan so i could get a nice crust like you do on a paella style dish.

fry the vegetables until they soften, add the garlic & lemon zest and stir until fragrant.
add the tomato puree and paprika with about a tablespoon of water and mix with the vegetables until you get a paste.
stir through the rice and add about 100ml of water along with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.

turn the heat to low and keep cooking, stirring and adding water for about 15 minutes. at this time add a generous squeeze of lemon juice, another 100-200ml of water depending on how dry your paella is looking and top with the seafood. cover with a lid and set your timer for 15 minutes.
Done :)

i hope you give this recipe ago you can really use anything you want. traditionally saffron is used but something in saffron effects my mouth! just add a pinch of saffron 20 100ml of water (the first 100ml you add) and let it steep for 5 minutes before using!

if you have picky children you could always do a chicken paella and top yours off with some grilled prawns or any other preferred seafood :)

crispy chilli beef

Okay, so it may not be JUST like the takeaway version but tastes just as damn good! low fat, low syn.. good for a chinese dinner party whats not to love?
wrapped in lettuce leaves or served with rice and steamed greens this low syn delight is too good not to try!
depending how you serve can serve 4-6 people or it will serve as a brilliant chinese buffet dish if you have a get together.

you will need: 500g beef mince (extra lean/less than 5%)
1 tbsp cornflour ( 1 syn)
2 tbsp light sweet chilli sauce ( 2 syns: if you like spice you can always add some fresh chopped chillies to this too! but i am a wimp!)
1/2 tsp sesame oil (1 syn)
1tsp grated ginger
1 very large clove grated garlic
1tbsp soy sauce
pinch of salt and pepper

Start by frying off your mince you want it to start to turn nice and crispy (you will hear it start to crack and start to turn a lovely brown colour)
meanwhile mix the sweet chilli sauce, salt, pepper, sesame oil, soy sauce and 2 tbsp of water.
Sprinkle the cornflour over the beef evenly. Toss to coat and leave for a little then toss again so the other side gets crispy. do this a couple of times so the cornflour coating the beef turns crisp. (not only will it help it to be crisp but keeps moisture in!)
toss in the garlic and ginger tossing or stirring for a minute or 2 until the smell of garlic and ginger aromatics smacks you in the face like a cold winters day!
pour in your sauce constantly tossing to make sure all the beef is coated. keep cooking until the sauce reduces and completely coats your beef and you are ready to serve!

i hope you guys like my recipes :) i would love to know if you give them a go!

Perfect roast potatoes

something so simple can change so so much! i use this technique for chips/wedges too. (i generally leave skin on my potatoes for extra ruffage)

you will need:
whatever amount of potatoes you are cooking according to how many people you are serving
salt, pepper
fry light.

preheat your oven to 200oC
meanwhile parboil the potatoes until fork tender.
drain and shuffle the colander so it ruffles up the edges.
put the potatoes onto a foil lined baking tray and leave until the surface of the potatoes are dry(important step)
spray generously with fry light and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
put in the oven, cook for 15 minutes. or until golden then turn the potatoes spray with frylight and cook until the other side is golden.

Burrito bowls

So, i saw a recipe in the new slimming world magazine and based my recipe around that.
so we start with the base of the bowl/plate
Rice, perfectly cooked rice is a must!
i will say this recipe is for 6 people because this is how much i did for my family. there are 6 of us!

Just under 2 mugs (tea mug/cup) of basmati rice. (rinse it well to get rid of unwanted starch!)
3.5 mugs (same mugs for rice) of water.
4 large chicken breasts
2 onions
1 small red and green bell pepper. (sliced)
2 limes
2 cloves of garlic
1 can of sweetcorn
1 can of black beans (or buy dried and cook a mug as per packet instruction)
2 large tomatoes
handful of coriander
salt and pepper
1 tsp paprika
1tsp cumin
2tbsp tomato ketchup

i know it sounds like a lot but its all done in advance. we are going to start with the chicken!
grab a sandwhich bag and add 3/4 of a tsp of cumin, the juice and rind of a lime, the paprika, salt, pepper, a grated clove of garlic and 2 tbsp of tomato ketchup.
cut the chicken breast into bitesize pieces, add into the sandwhich bag mix, do up the bag, give it a rub and leave to marinate until you need it.

mix the sweetcorn, black beans (if youve cooked your own make sure to cool them allunder cold water), zest and juice of half a lime, 1/4 tsp of cumin, 1/2 grated garlic clove of garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper.

next chunk up the tomatoes, finely dice 1/2 of one of the onions, add to a bowl with the zest and juice of half a lime 1/2 a grated clove of garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper and the handful of chopped coriander.

To cook the rice add the water and rice to a pot, turn the heat on high, when it starts to boil turn the heat to medium and boil until little holes appear on the surface of the rice. turn off the heat and cover. (20 minutes)

once the rice is covered fry the onion and peppers then add the chicken cooking till cooked through.

i usually serve the chicken on the rice and everything else on the side next to it. i usually chop a little lettuce to have on the side aswell.
its just nice with the chicken and rice you dont need to use the black beans and salsa you could just have lettuce or steamed veggies on the side!

Fried Rice

The essential thing for fried rice? precooked rice. when i make my fried rice i use a brand called veetee as they are only 1 syn. depending on what you get.
Another crucial thing? add what YOU like. this is just my basic fried rice.
the only things you keep the same is the garlic, ginger, soy, sesame, salt and pepper and of course the rice!

you will need
1 pack of veetee precooked rice. (do not cook it in the microwave!!)
1 small shallot finely diced
1 carrot finely diced
handful of thawed (prefrozen) peas
1tbsp soy sauce
1tsp sesame oil (2syns)
1 egg
1 grated garlic clove and the same amount of grated ginger
pinch of salt and pepper.

break up the rice (no we are not cooking as per packet instructions!) so all grains are seperate, coat in the sesame oil and spray and mix through fry light. (this helps if you do not have a non stick pan!)
bring a pan to a very high heat.
add some fry light and the carrot and onion, stir fry for a couple of minutes and add the garlic and ginger.
stir fry for 1 minute or until fragrant and add the rice.
stir fry for 5 minutes,
toss through the peas, salt, pepper and soy sauce.
toss to coat evenly.
push the rice to one side, spray the pan with fry light and add the egg. let it cook till almost set.
break up the yolk and put the rice on top
break up the egg in the rice. (bigger or smaller chunks, completely your preference)
serve while hot.