Category Archives: Rice Dishes

Thai Peanut Curry with Chicken Meatballs and Zucchini

Curries are always a great hit in our home, whether it’s just us or whether we have guests joining us for dinner. It’s so easy to prepare, everyone loves a Curry and it can be made in advance. This particular Curry is one I make very often because we love Thai Curries and also because it has Peanut butter in it. We love all things Peanut sauce, have you tried our Sate sauce?

TIP: I usually double the sauce and freeze half for later in small containers, it works so well for a quick dinner.

Prep time : 20 min
Cooking time : 20 min
Serves : 4

INGREDIENTS:

Meatballs
• 1 lb./450 gr. Ground chicken
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. fish sauce
• 1 tsp. Thai red curry paste
• Ground pepper
• Grated lime zest, just a little bit

Curry sauce
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 medium shallots, minced
• 2 inches fresh ginger, peeled and grated or minced
• 3 garlic cloves, grated or minced
• 1 zucchini in bite-size pieces
• 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
• ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 can coconut milk, 13.5 oz./400 ml.
• 1 tbsp. Palm sugar or brown sugar
• About ½-1 cup water
• 1 tbsp. Fish sauce (adjust to taste)
• Juice of ½ – 1 lime (adjust to taste)
• fresh cilantro, rice and chopped nuts for serving

More Thai ideas:

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, add the chicken mince and add the garlic, soy sauce, fish sauce, Thai red curry paste, ground pepper and lime zest. Mix to combine and shape into meatballs about the size of a golf ball, set aside.
2. In a large pot, bring the oil to medium heat. Add the shallots, and cook for 3 minutes, or until translucent. Next add the ginger and garlic. Stir and continue to cook for about 5 more minutes.
3. Now add the curry paste, stir for a minute and add the peanut butter, fish sauce, sugar and coconut milk and water, bring to a simmer. Carefully add the meatballs.
4. Bring to a simmer again and cover partially with a lid, cook for about 15 minutes then add the Zucchini, cover and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes or until Zucchini is bite tender. Check throughout cooking if you need to add more water.
5. Add the lime juice and check the seasoning, add more fish sauce if you want it saltier. I always check that the meatballs are fully cooked by cutting one in half.
6. Serve warm over cooked rice, with more cilantro, lime wedges and some chopped nuts.

Enjoy!

Easy Unicorn Sushi

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How pretty are these Unicorn Sushi? All these beautiful pastel colors are made using only pure natural vegetable and fruit powders. It’s so much fun to make too!
The first thing you do is make the Sushi rice, then divide into smaller portions to color as your heart desires. In this recipe I have only used two colors to keep things “easy”, but you can go all out and use as many colors as you like.

The colors you can use are;

• Beet powder for red
• Turmeric for yellow
• Spirulina for green and blue
• Pitaya for pink
• Poppy seeds for an adorable speckled sushi.
• Pitaya plus blue spirulina = lilac/purple
• Beet plus Turmeric = orange
• Charcoal for grey or back

I like to add very finely grated fresh beet so the colors bleed into each other creating more depth. But you can let your imagination run free.
What I do recommend is that you blend the powders with some water first before mixing it in with the sushi rice. Add a few drops of lemon juice for brightness.

cooking time 20 minutes
prep time 20 minutes
serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups Sushi Rice
• 2 tbsp. rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 2 tbsp. Sugar
• 2 medium Carrots grated
• 1 Cucumber
• 1 avocado
• 1 small beet grated
• 2 medium cans of tuna drained, 2 x 5 oz. (120 gr)/ sub with Tofu for vegans.
• 4-5 tbsp. Mayonnaise
• 8 Nori sheets
• 1 tsp. Spirulina, use more as desired
• 1 tsp. Beet powder, use more as desires

a squeeze of lemon juice for brightening up the colors

METHOD:

1. Start by cooking the sushi rice according to the package instructions.
2. Mix the sushi vinegar, sugar and salt, stir to dissolve.
3. Mix through the cooked warm rice.
4. Let cool completely.
5. Mix your powder of choice with a few drops of water in a small bowl.
6. Divide rice in two and color each one with the powder blends.
7. Add more powder depending on how intense you want the color.
8. Peel the cucumber and cut into long strips, discarding the seeds.
9. Peel the avocado and cut into strips.
10. Mix the tuna with the mayonnaise and set aside. Leave out for vegans or sub with tofu.
11. Place a sheet of Nori on a bamboo rolling mat.
12. Place a few tablespoons of blue rice on the Nori sheet and then some pink rice.
13. Place the filling of choice over the length of the rice.
14. Roll up tight, brush the outer edge of the Nori sheet with a tiny bit of water to seal the roll.
15. Place the finished rolls on a plate covered with cling film until ready to use.
16. When ready to serve, cut the sushi rolls into slices with a very sharp knife and place on a platter or board.
17. Serve with wasabi and soy sauce.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Peppers and Aubergines

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This is a great vegetarian main dish!

During the holiday season you want to be able to serve a great main dish to your vegetarian guests that’s not just everyone else’s side dishes.

Well here to the rescue with this fantastic vegetarian main course. You can prepare it a day ahead and cook it in the oven on the day itself. Leaving you plenty of time to pour those drinks and catch up with your friends and family.

And we both know that it doesn’t have to be Christmas to serve these delicious stuffed vegetables, how about meatless Monday?

So, give this a try and let me know if you miss the beef? I bet you won’t.

Serves 4 as a main dish or 8 as a side

Ingredients.

2 Aubergines
2 red peppers
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic, peeled and grated
1 pack of Quorn mince or vegetarian mince, 340 grs. / 12 oz.
2 cups cooked spelt or brown rice
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 tsp. agave or honey
1 tbsp. flour
1 cup vegetable stock
a handful parsley, chopped
2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1 cup grated cheese like cheddar or gouda or vegan substitute
salt and pepper

Bechamel sauce;

4 tbsp. olive oil
1/3 cup flour
2 cups milk of choice
salt and pepper
ground nutmeg, just a dash

Method;

Pre heat oven to 200° / 390°

Wash all the vegetables, dry them and cut them in half. Cut the core and seeds out of the peppers leaving the stalk on. I actually try to cut the stalk in half too so everyone gets a bit of green.

Remove the flesh from the aubergine leaving about a quarter inch of the sides.

Cut up the flesh.

Put a large frying pan on the heat and add one tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the onion and garlic until beginning to colour. Add the aubergine and celery and add the other tablespoon of oil. Season with the Cajun seasoning and cook for about 15 minutes until the aubergine is soft.

Add the quorn and spelt and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and sweetener. Cook for an other minute.

Add the tablespoon of flour and cook for a minute or two. Add a cup of stock and stir around, it should be getting a little thick, the idea is to bind the filling a little bit so it holds better in the vegetables. Fill the peppers and aubergine halves and place them in a baking tray that has been covered with parchment paper.

To make the bechamel sauce;

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over a low heat.

Add the flour and whisk into the oil until smooth.

Cook for 2 minutes, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and changes to a lighter colour.

Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly to stop lumps forming.

Cook for at least five minutes so the flour is fully cooked.

Season with salt and pepper and nutmeg.

Pour the sauce over the filled vegetables. and cover with aluminum foil, place on a rack in the middle of the oven. After 30 minutes remove the foil and sprinkle generously with the grated cheddar. Return to the oven for additional 20-30 minutes.

If you try this recipe let me know! Leave a comment below and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #thecookingspoon on instagram! You’ll make my day.

Nasi Goreng, my way

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Nasi Goreng is a very popular Indonesian dish. Nasi means rice and Goreng means fried.

It can be served as a complete meal or as part of a “Rijsttafel” (Rice table).

A Rijsttafel is made up out of many different small dishes with different textures and flavors and is mostly served at special occasions.

In The Netherlands we love Indonesian food and the great thing is that you can make this dish in about half an hour. You can also serve it with Chicken Saté (Saté Ajam)

To me this is comfort food at its best. My daughter likes to eat the rice with the prawn crackers instead of a spoon, kids…haha.

Nasi is originally a dish made with leftovers. The rice has to be cooked and cooled so it won’t stick and any leftover vegetables, meat, shrimp and ham can be added.

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp. Peanut oil, also known as groundnut oil or Arachis oil

5 oz. chicken breast

1 tsp. Soy sauce

2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

2 tsp. Sambal Oelek paste, or 1 red chili finely chopped (de-seed if you want).

½ onion, peeled and diced small

1 small Leek, washed thoroughly and sliced thin

1 small red bell pepper, diced small

1 C. shredded cabbage (optional)

1 small carrot, peeled and roughly grated or tiny dice

4 oz. diced cooked ham

2 – 3 tsp. Boemboe Sate (see recipe Chicken Sate )

3 tbsp. Ketjap Manis

4 C. cooked long grain rice, cooled

To serve

- 4 fried eggs

- 1 sliced scallion

- Fried shallots, store bought

- Cucumber slices or sticks

- Krupuk (prawn crackers)

- Seroendeng (fried dried coconut and peanuts, spiced)
- Sate sauce and chicken sate (optional)

Method:

First thing to do is to cut the chicken in small dice and marinate in 1 tbsp. of Ketjap Manis and 1 tsp. of Soy sauce while you are preparing the rest of the ingredients.

Now heat 1 tbsp. of the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat and cook garlic and chili until fragrant, remove to a plate.

Add a little more oil to the wok and add the chicken. Cook until brown and cooked through. Remove from skillet and transfer to the plate with the garlic and chili.

Add the onion to the wok. Cook until translucent. Turn the heat to high.

Add the rest of the vegetables, the ham and the boemboe Sate. Return the chicken, garlic and chili to the wok as well.

Add rice and fry, breaking up the rice then add the sambal and more Ketjap Manis

Transfer rice to a serving platter. Sprinkle with scallions.

Fry the eggs, sunny side up, or to your liking.

Serve the rice with a fried egg on top and add garnishes.

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