Cookery book club - July - Hugh F-W Veg and curries by Madhur Jaffrey and the Hairy Bikers (vroom vroom)

[Curioustiger]

Come join the Mumsnet cookery bookclub! Each month we choose two cookery books - one popular, like Nigella / Jamie / Delia, so you probably already have it / can borrow it and one a bit more unusual. We cook a minimum of two recipes each - you choose the recipe, they just have to be ones you have never cooked before- which works out at four new recipes each month.Then we chat about them!

For June our books were:

• Mexican Food Made Easy by Thomasina Miers
• Thirty Minute Meals by Jamie Oliver

And we posted here

For July our books are:

• Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall Veg Every Day
• Madhur Jaffrey Ultimate Curry Bible AND / OR madhur Jaffrey's Curry Easy AND / OR Hairy Bikers' Great Curries

For August, our books will be:

• Fuchsia Dunlop Every Grain of Rice (chopsticks at the ready ladies)
• Dan Lepard Short and Sweet

We will always try to pick at least one book with recipes available on the Internet, and local libraries are great for cookbooks if you can order in advance. We pick books three months ahead so will be choosing September's books this month.

So I have been making a few things from HFW this week

Beetroot hummus- I really liked this - just used vacuum packed beetroot so was very easy.

Yesterday we had been grazing all day at a picnic so just wanted something light for dinner. Made the honey roast tomatoes and had them on toasted French bread - delicious

Today I made the courgette with tahini dressing salad to go with our BBQ. Cooked the courgettes on the BBQ. Really liked the dressing would make this again.

HB arrived a few days ago and as much as I love curry I find it hard to pick out in this hot weather! Thought I would try something light so next week I am going to make Goan fish curry with cod instead of monkfish and the pomegranate and orange salad. From HFW I will try mushroom risoniotto, pasta with raw tomato sauce and the squash an spelt salad but will make with pearl barley as much cheaper. I have never had spelt or pearl barley before so won't know what I am missing!

HB looks great and lots of the deep fried stuff looks good but I have never deep fried anything before and am a bit scared of doing it. Is it difficult? Seems like a lot of oil to use each time.

I've made the beetroot and walnut hummus this weekend too, delicious. I don't normally eat beetroot as I really dislike the colour bleeding into the rest of my food, but this has converted me and I may be trying a few more recipes. Thanks Hugh for expanding my horizons

May I just say: the seekh kebabs from HB are amazing! We had them on the BBQ last night and they went down well with everyone, including DCs. Ridiculously easy to make, too. DH had a little trouble getting them to stick to the wooden skewers, but the mixture should probably have been chilled for a bit longer first. Honestly they were restaurant (well, at least kebab house) quality. Will definitely do again. They went v. well with chicken tikka (also on BBQ) and Afghan aubergine. The sweetness of the aubergine (from the tomatoes? no sugar added) and the creaminess of the yoghurt sauce really complemented both kebabs, and we just had with plain basmati, sliced cucumber and barbecued sweetcorn. Yum.

Normally, the thought of beetroot and walnuts would not appeal, but I will trust you all and give it a go.
Beetroot added to tomorrow's Ocado....

I'm so jealous at the amount of cooking you have all done. I'm finding it too hot to do much of anything.

For a future month could we possibly do a Greek cookbook? If anyone can recommend one worth doing?

I know what you mean pete. I am just not up to speed with everyone else! I started 5:2 today as well in a last ditch effort to shift some post preg pounds before I go back in sept. it is HORRIBLE. Who are all these people who claim not to feel hungry on 500 calories a day? I am so hungry it's making me lightheaded!

Anyway (rant over), tomorrow is not a fast day THANK GOD so I am trying the katsu curry from HB as well. It does seem like a good book from my flick through but I have to say, I love my Reza Mahammad curry bookso much I can't imagine it matching up. But I will start on the katsu curry and see how I go.

Oh also forgot to say pantah recommended Tonia Buxton ages ago as a Greek cookery book. I think she tweeted us as well! What books do we want for September?

Oh that's fab , I'll google it.

Well done doing 5:2. I'd be fine on the non fasting days. Shame about the other 2.

Hurray for the beetroot and walnut hummus! It's nice isn't it? I used vac packed beetroot too. And I thought it might be weird! I will try the HB Goan fish curry tomorrow with cod and report back. Have never had Katsu curry but am tempted. What does it taste like?

Breaded chicken with a lightly spiced sauce, cat. It's comfort food in Japan!

My husband has also reminded me to say that to be authentic we should buy katsu curry sauce in a packet. Making your own is like making your own baked beans... It can be done but hardly anyone does!

Funny tiger lily Is your husband Japanese?

No but we did live in Japan for a year! Best food of my life...

Ooh, lucky . You have inspired me to try the chicken too!!!!!

I made hfw cauliflower and chickpea curry last night. Odd choice I know given that he is not reputed for curry and the alt book is in fact, a curry only book, but in an attempt to involve dh in the meal planning I let him chose.
It was actually very nice, and for a usually only meat eater, it was a new use of cauliflower for me. I had to cook it much longer than suggested or it would have been watery. I would probably make it again, if I wasn't as sure as I am, that though this was very nice, madhur and the hb can offer me more. Dh loved it.

Just made the HFW fish free nicoise but added a big tuna steak on top

I love tuna so it had to be done! Would make again without tuna if I was having it for lunch though.

Looking forward to trying the goan fish curry tomorrow cat did you make that today? Was it nice?

I made the chicken katsu curry tonight but cheated a bit by swapping the made-from-scratch chicken with some turkey twizzlers breaded chicken from waitrose. Ocado were all out of panko and actually I'm glad, as the breaded chicken was pretty cheap, decent quality and tasted just the same as the real japanese version to me. I would do it in the same manner next time as well. I stuck religiously to the katsu recipe and thought it was good, to me it tasted just like the real japanese stuff and it was very easy to make with little washing up. I think it does need a little side salad though, probably dressed with Japanese vinegar, so I will do that next time.

I made the singapore prawn curry from the Curry Bible last night. Was delicious, quite a delicate sauce, but lovely flavour. Made double sauce and froze half, and will try that half with fish.

Well, H F-W's beetroot and walnut hummus was a success! :)
I made it yesterday, immediately ate half for lunch, then fridged it and ate the rest today!
Better today, I think, as the flavours had matured, and the bread and walnuts had softened. I scattered feta over the top and ate it with pittas, lovely.
I would probably omit the tahini next time, as I didn't feel it was necessary, a little overpowering. Also, if you were serving it as a selection of dips, alongside hummus, you would have tahini overload!

Remus, got to ask, how was the black pepper tofu? :)

Tried HB's saag paneer last night. Was a bit underwhelmed tbh, have done a better version in the past and don't think the tomatoes really went did it any favours. Struggling with the idea of the other curries a bit in this weather, so would welcome any tips/suggestions of summer-friendly things from the book.
Love tahini dressing on salad, so may try that out on courgettes and beans from HFW next. Also may do their potato salad for a BBQ tomorrow, to see if it beats my usual one :)
PS Want to add my votes to huevos for Jerusalem's pasta with peas, feta and chilli. An unusual recipe and great for the sunshine!

Chettinad chicken and mushroom bhaaji tonight from Curry Easy. Lovely!

Checking in to request book suggestions for September please...here's the list I have got so far...

• pick a food mag and cook from that (sainsburys and good food mags suggested)
• rose Elliott
• Lorraine Pascale
• Paul Hollywood how to bake
• Tonia Buxton my Greek kitchen
• felicity cloake 'cook the perfect'
• river cafe cookbook or river cafe easy
• tessa kiros
• prashad / veggiestan

HB Goan fish curry. Made with cod used dried curry leaves as couldn't get fresh. Substituted Kashmiri chilli powder with normal and paprika. It was delicious definitely make it again.

Also made pomegranate and orange salad ok wouldn't do again especially as I now have pomegranate stained kitchen walls!

coco on every cookbook club thread so far someone has complained about lack of fresh curry leaves. I don't know why waitrose won't simply do as they're told and get them in stock (drums fingers impatiently in the manner of margot leadbetter).

tiger I got fresh curry leaves from Ocado, they are Natoora brand, would have assumed Waitrose did them too?
The bag is massive, I will have to put the remainder in the freezer, but assume I still use them as fresh, rather than dried