Cooking club, Mexican may and a bit of Nigel slater

[whatareyoueatingNOW]

Hi all,

Another month gone, so I've set up a new thread

For anyone new (and the more the merrier) the idea is that each month we choose a cuisine to focus on and a cookery writer/ author as well. This keeps the options quite broad so that more can join on and share what they're cooking and any recommendations (though if your anything like me this will cost you in buying cookbooks that others have raved about)

This month the chosen cuisine to cook is Mexican- so any Mexican cookbooks/ websites/ recipes that you can make, add a review / recommendation on here - Thomasina Myers is always a good shout for Mexican so I'll be using her books largely.

Our chosen food writer is Nigel slater - covering any of his books and or his recipes online.

So any recipes that you use regularly or you'd recommend, and anything new that you try , share it here

Pantah- it keeps brilliantly - I've been using mine for 2 years

I made Thomasina Miers Mexican piccadillo yesterday- to eat today, as it benefits from overnight development. It was lovely- though, with apple, raisens and bananas, along with the chipotle and roast tomato sauce, it was very sweet and sour. I'm glad I've tried it, and did enjoy it, but, to be honest- the whole family prefer my "normal" chilli.

Served as suggested stuffed in a roasted pepper and avocado.

That's great news What

I will make the meatballs soon. DS2 has gone off to buy some burgers so he can eat the mayo, will make some Mexican green rice to go with. I have an IP which makes things easier, especially as I'd forgotten to sterilise any jars earlier, popped them in there and they were ready in 10.

Hello, can I join? I started experimenting with cooking around 4 years ago and love trying new recipes

Loving all of these recipes you've been making! This is a little bit of a cheat as I actually made them last Saturday but Hairy Biker's veggie tacos went down a treat when we had friends over last week. Probably not the most authentic but very tasty. I made my own chipotle paste as we didn't have any in - olive oil, cayenne, smoked paprika and chilli powder. I also added more spices to the refried beans as we like a bit of heat in this house

Recipe: http://www.hairybikers.com/recipes/view/veggie-tacos#su4FwE8TCtRQJ7Oi.97

Can anyone recommend the best cookbook for an intro to Nigel Slater please? I've used a couple of his recipes in the Guardian and would like to branch out into a whole book but there are so many I don't know where to start!!

am very tempted to try those meatballs what! Fading - welcome (I'm absent for the BH weekend as we've just bought a smoker so we're spending the weekend bbq'ing and smoking everything in sight!! - today's spatchcocked chicken - a 3 hour smoke attached). In terms of NS - I find his "proper" recipe books like Real Food, Real Cooking an excellent introduction to a range of recipes. His kitchen diaries series are lovely but to be honest, even as a fan of his, I find myself cooking less from these books - but others may have the opposite view.

Fading- i cook a lot from his eat and appetite- but I adore his kitchen diaries, and think the last one (kitchen diaries 3) is the best as a start because it's has more of a balance of recipes and his wonderful writing. That all said- I think there's not much of Nigel that can't be found online

Myrtle - I'm very jealous of your smoker! We had a bbq this evening and I made Thomasina Miers sweet corn with chipotle butter- hardly a recipe but lovely and almost smoky enough to take away a bit of my envy

Nigel slaters olive and thyme focaccia from kd3

This has been descended upon and devoured with such speed that I only got a small piece myself! It's so easy and delicious. My house also smells heavenly - all bread and thyme Best focaccia I've ever made.

We are bbq-ing tonight but have a few things planned this week IF my flipping chilles get here! The focaccia looks lovely what

Fociaccia looks amazing What... I'm now out of our 3 day bbq/smokerthon - it was amazing... But am in need of something not meaty for tomorrow... will look at NS I think but any recommendations do send my way!

I roasted a whole chicken, some Jersey royals and asparagus in my weber Q - very simple, very lazy but oh so tasty!

‘Grilled chicken with cilantro and lemon’ tonight from the bible that is Mexico The Cookbook.
Honestly i can’t imagine it being super super flavoursome but will be nice with rice and a salad I expect. Fine after today’s heat!

Myrtle- www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/mar/15/nigel-slater-five-vegetarian-recipes there's a feta and blood orange salad here that is amazing. It's on rotate in this house March- may (when I can get blood oranges)

I've made Nigel's pork polpetone today - they were good, but very salty savoury. (Certainly not as he describes- the meatball to beat them all!)
I remembered something lighter , more lemony and fragrant - as I've made them before. I suspect that previously I halved the anchovies as 10 is a lot for us. Dh and the girls loved them though.

The chicken was actually lovely. Perfect for spring. I’m glad I served it with jalapeños as it spiced it up slightly and without it might have been too mild. Would make again!

KTD is it worth getting the book? I've got two of ™ books and love them.

The Mexico book?? It’s an incredible book but honestly probably a bit too advanced for me there are so many ingredients I struggle to get hold of. We had a Mexican cooking class with a local Mexican food blogger and she said she has it and even she doesn’t find it easy. That said it looks gorgeous! And I’m making a sea bass dish out of it later this week I think.

KTD- is it the pink covered phaidon Mexico the cookbook?

Yep!

Do you have it what? What do you think?

I don't - it has had a very very memorable set of bad reviews from chefs and bloggers and some very good reviews from food websites and newspapers- Food52 etc- with such a mixed bag, I've not committed to buying it- I've been waiting for the library to get it in.

(The bad reviews centred around the guacamole which apparently includes loads of oil and the corn tortillas which don't have enough water to roll?)

Tonight I did Nigel Slater's Roquefort and Asparagus tart from KD3... I'm an complete virgin at pastry cookery (crumble topping is usually my experience!) and I used my Kitchen Aid for the first time so lots of newness for me...

Tart was lush - (although I reduced oven temp a teensy bit as our oven cooks hot - but not so much tonight) and I felt quite a lot out of my comfort zone with pastry and savoury custard... But hit with DH (served with caraway potatoes - Diana Henry nod- and a garlicky salad). Not the most flattering of photos but it was a delicious dinner - the blue cheese really came through - I think I was most worried that the blue cheese would "boil" over into the custard but it didn't. Looking forward to a chilled slice tomorrow!

myrtle that looks lovely. I’ve never made a tart but might give one a go next week! Not the same flavours probably as I’m not a fan of blue cheese but I’m inspired to try something totally different.

what funnily enough when I first got the book I said to my husband ‘well I’m not making guacamole like that!’ And dismissed it. I wish I’d looked into the reviews a bit more and bought the Diana Kennedy one i was considering instead but I was swayed with how pretty it was
Marinated sea bass tonight. I was going to make the TM one but haven’t got time to make the sauce I need so back to the pink book for tonight. NS tomorrow and over the weekend with aubergine pasta and slow cooked lamb

Myrtle- I wish I'd checked in before hand! I made Nigel's lemon asparagus risotto this evening and think the tart would have been better!
The risotto was very nice, but I halve the lemon quantity and doubling the rice quantity.

Recipe here www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2004/may/30/foodanddrink.shopping

Kt- I can forgive a bad guac if the rest of the book is sound- and the chicken looked and sounded lovely 😊

Ooo Hi everyone can I join

You can't really beat a risotto in my book what - love them (particularly once I accepted that in no way do they cook in the time recipe books say and you just have to give yourself over to the risotto -it will be done when it decides, not you!!)

Welcome Wheely - which do you fancy doing first a NS dish or something Mexican?!

Sea bass from the famous pink book. It was... again pleasant. DH LOVED it but I think honestly it was because it had sea bass and roasted broccoli on the plate and he’s a very easy man to please.
Couldn’t have told you it was a ‘mexican’ dish and honestly did a nice piece of fresh fish need the sauce? Possibly not. Still it was again quite lovely. Wouldn’t have done it with rice as suggested though! We had tomato and avocado salad and the broccoli (which I too love and everyone should make)

I (slavishly following What) made the same focciacia - hers looks a lot better! My first attempt but what I have learned - more and deeper holes and I need to work out how to knead the olives and thyme into the dough better). Still smells and tastes good so enough encouragement to give it another go!