TBK Cooks - Three more "One pot recipes"

                         One pot cooking in the Philippines in days gone by

During Ramadan we did a blog on One pot recipes . As I transition to my retirement in the Philippines I realise that many people around the world still only have one pot to cook with. My friend Brian reminded me he used to do one pot cooking in his bedsit in the UK many years ago. Chester said most of the cooking he does is done in one pot. Some people do not even have electric rings or a gas stove as the picture above shows ( Thanks to the PHILIPPINES OLD PHOTOS AND MEMORIES group on Facebook) . I remember when I stayed in Barutaan with Jhoanna in 2020 we cooked like this and I made Adobo for her and Making in one pot. So, for those with only one pot, and everyone else.... here are 2 more of my favourite old one pot recipes and one new one I gained in Bahrain.

         My old 1976 handwritten recipe book ( and some cold tomato soup!)

The recipes came from my 1976 recipe book and , for those who missed it on my old blog, here is the story behind it:

Back in 1976 my mother gave me a recipe book to put all my favourite recipes in. It has been so well used over the years that it was falling apart and my favourite recipes were covered in tomato sauce, cherries, flour and other ingredients. In December 2102, when on holiday in Sydney, Australia I decided to start to type all the recipes and add photos of the dishes as I made them. The huge task was finally finished in December 2014 and I had it professionally designed and printed and distributed 50 copies to my friends around the world. The feedback has been great so I thought I would share some of my favourite recipes with you in this blog.

This is a favourite and one that is simple to make- an Italian dish- Spaghetti Bolognaise. One of my friends from my University days ( 1978 - 1981) reminded me the other day that I used to cook this for her and she still uses my recipe- Thanks Jane for 40 years of friendship!

I can always tell the recipes I cook the most by the amount of food stains on the recipe book and I have to say it’s actually now hard to read this recipe in my original book as I have been cooking it regularly since 1977!

 

          This picture came from my 2015 Blog- BritinBahrain

So this is how you make it:

Chef Neil’s Spaghetti Bolognaise

 Ingredients:

1 onion

1 red pepper

1 clove garlic

4 oz. / 112 grams mushrooms

1 Tbsp oil

1 oz. / 28 grams butter

1 bay leaf

4oz. / 112 grams raw minced beef

1 tin plum tomatoes

2 Tbsp tomato paste

Cumin, tarragon, thyme and marjoram

12 oz. / 337 grams spaghetti

Parmesan cheese

                                 

                      First cook the onion and garlic in the oil and butter

 Method:

 1.    Chop onions and garlic finely, place in fry pan with oil, butter and bay leaf. Fry for 5 minutes.

 2.    Add pepper, meat, tomatoes, paste and seasoning. Cook slowly for ½ hour.

        Needed a bigger pan for the clever ( matalino) readers who noticed!

3.    Cook spaghetti in hot boiling salted water for 20 minutes. Drain.

 4. Add the mushrooms to the sauce mixture and cook for 5 minutes, before serving on top of spaghetti.

5.     Cover with grated parmesan cheese

So lets end this section with my new Italian cookery Blog Footer designed by Chester in 2020.

        Italian Chef uniform by Corleen, Photos by James, Design by Chester!

Below is the apron that Corleen made for me in 2015- photographed by Adam 

 

Just for Nostalgia's sake , Chester sent me this, my old BritinBahrain Blog footer- photo by Corleen.

When we finally signed out of the BritinBahrain blog we had 250,000 readers

Back to the present and here is a new recipe I found in Bahrain Confidential which is a twist on a classic-

Chili Con Carne

      Only the electric plate on the right works so I had to cook one at a time!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp. canola oil
• 5 lb.(2.2 Kg) boneless beef chuck, fat well trimmed and meat cut into 1/2″ cubes
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 1 head garlic, peeled and crushed
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tbsp. chipotle chili powder
• 1 tbsp. ground cumin
• 1 (28-oz.) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp. packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
• Sour cream, for serving
• Shredded cheddar, for serving
• Thinly sliced green onions, for serving
• Lime wedges, for serving
• Tortilla chips, for serving

                The only ingredient I forgot to buy was the chili powder!

DIRECTIONS

1.    In a large pan over a medium-high heat, heat the oil. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Working in batches, sear meat until golden brown, adjusting heat as necessary. Transfer to a plate.

2.    Lower the heat to medium and cook onion and garlic until softened and deeply golden, about 5 minutes, scraping up caramelized bits with a wooden spoon. Add tomato paste to pot and cook, mixing constantly until it is darkened in color, about 2 to 3 minutes.

3.    Deglaze pot with 4 cups water and add oregano, chili powder, cumin, seared meat, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer and cook until meat is tender and falling apart, about 2 hours, adding more water as needed. 

4.    Stir in sugar and vinegar and season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Serve with sour cream, cheese, green onions, limes, and chips. 

Just for a bit of background to this dish I searched in Wikipedia and found that:

"Chili con carne, meaning "chili with meat", is a spicy stew containing chili peppers, meat, tomatoes and kidney beans. Other seasonings may include garlic, onions, and cumin. The dish originated in northern Mexico or southern Texas. Geographic and personal tastes involve different types of meat and other ingredients"

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chili_con_carne ( accessed 8.5.21)

( I hope my dear readers appreciate all the research and sweat that goes into each blog !)

Special thanks to my Butcher at Alosra in Rifa Palms who converted the original recipe from 5 lbs. to 2.2 kg in his smart phone and then cut the beef into cubes and trimmed off the fat for me. This one was really difficult to make with only one electric ring and one pot! I had to cook three batches ( and each one needs to cook for 2 hours, so it took 6 hours to make! I have refrigerated it and will serve it during the week microwaving it and adding the cheese, lime, sour cream and tortilla chips. Looks like there will be enough for me and 6 Phillipino's!

Back to the Nostalgia....

            Back then we did not just flick a switch and make our coffee!

Finally a recipe that was in an earlier Blog- Tuna Rice....

This is one of my all-time favorite recipes and one that is simple to make and healthy as Tuna contains Omega 3. This recipe is dedicated to Patrick, one of my great friends, who loves this dish with lots of Chili flakes on top to make it really spicy!

                 The British Kabayan makes Tuna rice- one pot was not enough!

Here is the recipe from 1976:

Chef Neil’s Tuna Rice- Serves four

Ingredients:

4 cups cold cooked rice

1 small can tuna ( fresh tuna has more Omega 3 if you can get it)

3 to 4 eggs

2 onions sliced

1- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons cooked green peas or green pepper

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Salt and Pepper to taste

 Method:

Remove the bones from the tuna and separate the meat. Beat the eggs. Cook the onions in the oil in the wok until transparent. Remove. Cook the rice in the wok, turning frequently. Add the salt and fry for 5 minutes and then mix in the onion. Make a well in the rice and add more oil and add the eggs. Stir eggs until almost scrambled and then mix together with the rice and continue frying for a few more minutes. Add the tuna, peas and soy sauce. Continue frying and mixing in all the ingredients. Correct the seasoning and serve

Well that's all from The British Kabayan's kitchen for this week! However I wanted to share a little tip I learnt from Jake while he was preparing the peppers and onions for the Tuna Rice. I melted my plastic chopping board last week when I was making paratha for Mad Max in a very hot frying pan which I then placed in the chopping board melting it and ruining my one frying pan! So he showed me how the Phillipino's chop things if they are short of space or don't have a board, on an upturned plate . Matalino ( smart) eh?!

       I reckon Jake learnt this on his jungle survival training as a secret agent!!

As I am 3 feet taller than Jake I adapted his technique by using an upturned bowl!

This is the British Kabayan signing out and wishing you all Ingat Palagi ( stay safe) while you collect the wood for a fire to cook your new one pot recipes on!

               In the old days we had to collect the wood for the fire as well

 After we ate, having fetched the cold water from the well, we had to wash up too

I hope you enjoyed our look back on the old days in the Philippines and our new recipes. We will be back with more one pot recipes and Philippines nostalgia soon!

Until then...