Iwashi Mirin Boshi (grilled sardines)

Start with a marinade: bring 50 ml soy sauce, 15 ml mirin, 1 tbsp sake, 2 tbsp caster sugar and 1/2 tsp salt to the boil, then take from the fire 

Mix 25g potato starch with 50ml water, mix with the soy sauce, but... by bit and stirring well

Remove the heads from 4 sardines, slice the belly side open, remove the innards, put them skin side down, flatten and remove the spine but leave the tail

Marinade in the soy mix for at least 3 hrs.

Preheat the oven at 230°C

Pat the sardines dry with kitchen paper, put on parchment paper in een oven dish and put in the hot oven for 3-5 mins.

Sprinkle with furikake, serve with sea aster and lemon

Feeds 4

(Recipe by Hokkai Kitchen)

Spiced beef with aubergine

Preheat oven to 220°C. 

Line a baking tray with baking paper. Deeply score cut sides of 2 small aubergines, halved lengthwise, in a 1.5cm cross-hatch pattern. Place cut-side up on tray. Brush with 1 tbs oil, season and roast for 25-30 minutes until browned and tender.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a frying pan, add 250g minced beef and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, for 7-8 minutes until browned. 

Stir in 1/2 onion, finely chopped, 1 crushed clove of garlic, 1 tsp coriander, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/4 tsp of each ground cinnamon, allspice and chili flakes and zest of 1/2 lemon and cook for a minute until fragrant. 

Add 1 tbsp tomato paste and  175 ml beef stock, season and simmer for 10 minutes until sauce is thick. Take off heat and stir in small handful roughly chopped parsley and mint leaves and the  juice of 1/4 lemon.

Mix 100g Greek yoghurt, 1,5 tsp sumac and the juice of 1/4 lemon in a bowl. Season. 

Top eggplant with mince, drizzle with half the sumac sauce, top with pomegranate seeds, roasted pistachios and more parsley and mint leaves  and serve with rocket and remaining sauce.

(Here Shannon Bennets original recipe)

Cherry viennetta

Double line the inside of a 1-liter loaf pan with either plastic wrap, parchment paper, or wax paper. Make sure all the sides are fully covered, and to leave some overhanging the sides. If using plastic wrap, make the lining as smooth as possible. If using parchment or wax paper, tape the overhang to the outside of the container.

Whip 400 ml (1 tin) condensed milk, 250 ml double cream, 250 g mascarpone and the seeds of a vanilla pod

Break up 300g dark chocolate and melt au bain marie, set aside to cool down a bit

Drain a 350g pot of Amarena cherries, keep the syrup.

Spoon 1/3 of the vanilla-cream mix in the pan, use the back of a spoon to smooth the top and add 1/3 of the cherries.

Followed by 1/3 of the melted chocolate.

Put in the freezer for 10 mins

Spoon in another 1/3 of the cream mix, 1/3 of the chocolate and 1/3 of the cherries, freeze for 10 mins

< Repeat this procedure a third time with the rest, use a fork to create a pattern in the chocolate.

Fold the liner over the top and freeze for at least 4 hrs 

Serve as shown with fresh cherries and some of the reserved Amarena syrup

(Here Yvette van Boven's original recipe in Dutch)

Red mullet, veggies a la grecque

Peel and quarter a good-sized bulb of fennel Blanch the fennel until just soft (4 to 5 minutes) in a pot of boiling, salted water.

Finely chop 2 cloves of garlic, peel and dice 1/2 carrot, 1/2 stick of celery and 1 shallot.

Heat a tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil in a clean pan on a moderate hob. Fry the shallots, carrots, garlic and celery for 2 to 3 minutes until all the veg are starting to soften and just about to colour

Then stir in the fennel, 6 crushed coriander seeds and add a bay leaf, a few strands of saffron, 1 tbsp cider vinegar, the juice of 1/2 lemon and 50 ml extra-virgin olive oil. 

Season with salt and pepper and leave to simmer with a lid on for about 20 minutes until all the vegetables are cooked and flavoursome, but still having a bite. 

Add a tbsp oil for frying to a hot, non-stick frying pan. Ensure 2 filets of red mullet (skin on, pin-boned and scaled) are dry and the surface of the pan is covered with oil before gently placing the fish into the pan. Do this slowly, laying the fish skin-side-down, away from you so as not to splash. 

Cook with a little salt and pepper for 2 to 3 minutes, then turn the fish over, remove the pan from the heat and season again.

To serve, season the fennel dish and stir through 1 tsp chopped parsley or chives. 

Arrange onto plates, spooning the sauce over the fennel before placing the fish alongside. Dress with a squeeze of lemon and serve at once.

Feeds 2

(Here Café St Honoré's original recipe)
 

Korean veggie pancakes

Start with the batter: 50g flour, 15g rice flour, 8g corn flour and 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder,1/2 tsp white caster sugar, 1 tsp kurkuma, salt, pepper and 110 ml ice cold water

Finely slice 1/2 carrot, 1/2 leek, 3 spring onions,50g taugé, 1/2 red onion, 50g king oyster mushrooms in long matchsticks

Briefly fry the mushrooms in sesame oil, season with salt and pepper

Use your hands to mix the veggies in a bowl with some of the batter, which should just stick to the vegetables 

Finely slice 1/2 clove of garlic and 1/2 red chili. Mix 50 ml soy sauce, 1 tbsp honey and the juice of 1/4 lime, add the garlic and chili and leave for 10 mins

Make a salad from 2 tbsp coriander leaves, 2 tbsp sliced chives, 5 hacked leaves of mint, 1/2 thinly sliced red onion, the juice of 1/4 lime and 1/2 tbsp sesame oil and 1 tbsp black sesame seeds

Flatten 2 heaps of the veggie mix and pan fry them in some olive oil, 3 to 4 mins per side 

Serve as shown. Feeds 2

(Here Ramon Brugman's original recipe in Dutch, with video)

Chicken Katsu Flatbread

I tried this recipe with tacos, but decided flatbread would be nicer.

First make the dough. In a large bowl, whisk 125g flour with 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp nigella seeds, then add 95g yoghurt. 

Pull together into a ball, tip on to a floured surface and knead for two minutes. Now rest in a lightly oiled bowl covered with a damp tea towel.

If you can't buy it make the tonkatsu sauce yourself: in a small bowl, mix together 30g ketchup, 1 tsp sugar, and 30 g Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.

Make the salad: in a medium bowl, slice 5 romaine salad leaves and toss with 1 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tsp sushi vinegar, and salt until well coated. Season with additional salt if needed. Set aside.

Prepare the chicken: Fill a heavy-bottomed, high-sided skillet with about 1¼ cm of vegetable oil. Heat over medium heat until the oil reaches 180°C.

Place 2 chicken thighs on a cutting board and cover with plastic wrap. Pound the chicken with the flat side of a meat cleaver until the thighs are 4 mm thick.

On the cutting board, season the flattened chicken on both sides with salt.

Add 200g flour, 2 beaten eggs and 200g Panko to 3 separate shallow bowls.

Coat each piece of chicken in the flour, shaking off any excess, then in the egg, then in the panko. Gently press the panko into the chicken to ensure a thick, even coating.

Working in batches, carefully fry the chicken in the hot oil for about 2 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. 

Set on paper towels to drain and immediately season lightly with salt. Keep warm in a 70° oven

To cook the flatbreads, warm clarified butter in a large pan over a high heat. Divide the dough into 2 balls and roll each out on a floured surface to 15-20cm – the thinner, the better. Once the pan is hot, cook each flatbread for a few minutes on each side until puffed up and blistered.

Start plating with 1,5 thigh onto a flatbread. Top with about 2 tbsp of salad, a drizzle of tonkatsu sauce, sliced spring onions and coriander leaves. Sprinkle furikake on top 

Serve with lime wedges alongside. Feeds 2

(Inspired by That's what Bob is cooking, with tacos)

Citrusy chicken, fennel and potato tray bake

Preheat the oven to 200°C fan and line a large baking tray with baking paper. 

The recipe asked for Ottolenghi's citrus and spice blend, which I did not have, so I mixed 1 tsp sumak, 1,5 tsp nigella seeds, 4 tsp lemon zest, 6 heaped tsp toasted ground cumin, 2 tsp palm sugar, 1 tsp garlic powder and some sea salt

Place 30g butter, 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp of the spice mix, 1 tbsp lime juice and 5 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed with the back of a knife in a small saucepan, along with 1 teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper and mix. Warm gently on a low heat until the butter has melted and set aside.

Place 4 chicken thighs onto the tray and arrange a large fennel bulb, halved and each half cut into 4 wedges and 250g red lady potatoes, skin on and sliced in 3 mm rounds around to fit - it’s ok for some of the potatoes to overlap each other (they will shrink as they cook).

Pour over the butter/oil mixture and use your hands to give everything a good coating.

Roast for 40 minutes until the chicken is well browned and the potatoes and fennel are starting to catch around the edges, using the juices to baste everything once or twice during cooking. After 20 mins add some cherry tomatoes

Remove from the oven and drizzle over 2 tbsp double cream, followed by a good grating of parmesan  

Serve with more of the parmesan alongside. Feeds 2

(Here Ottolenghi's original recipe for four)