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Chicken thighs are marinated briefly with turmeric, ginger-garlic paste, yogurt and a pinch of red chilli. A dry-roast of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, coconut, fennel, coriander and dried red chillies is ground with a splash of water into a coarse paste. The base is built with shallots, curry leaves and tomato; the chicken is browned in stages; and the masala paste is folded in for the long, gentle simmer. Tamarind and a curry-leaf temper finish.
Chicken poaches in a heavily spiced broth (saffron, ginger, cinnamon, lemon). The shredded meat returns to a reduced sauce thickened with beaten eggs to make a soft set. Toasted almonds with sugar and cinnamon form a layer. Everything wraps in butter-brushed filo, baked golden, and dusted with icing sugar and cinnamon.
Beef Bourguignon is the quintessential French braise, tender beef cubes slow-cooked in a Burgundy wine sauce enriched with pearl onions, mushrooms, and lardons. The combination of wine, beef stock, and a delicate flour thickening creates a deeply savory sauce that clings to the meat. This dish exemplifies classic French technique: patient cooking, careful skimming, and the balance of richness with restraint.
Strips of fillet or sirloin sear hard in a hot pan and lift out so they don't overcook. Onion and mushrooms cook in the same pan with butter; brandy or wine deglazes; mustard, stock and soured cream make the sauce. The beef returns at the end to warm through, off the heat to keep it pink.
A wide shallow pot is brushed with beef fat, the warishita sauce (soy-mirin-sake-sugar) is poured in, then thinly sliced beef and a colourful array of vegetables, tofu and shirataki noodles are added in batches as people eat. Each piece dips in raw egg yolk before going in the mouth. A portable hob at the table is traditional but not required.
The defining British dinner-party showpiece, somewhere between French haute cuisine and English roast tradition, made famous in the modern era by Gordon Ramsay even if the Iron Duke himself probably never ate it. You sear a centre-cut beef fillet hard for colour, smear it with English mustard, wrap it in a tight blanket of mushroom duxelles and prosciutto, then encase the lot in all-butter puff pastry and roast at high heat. The pastry insulates the beef so it cooks gently to medium-rare while the crust crisps to deep mahogany above. The one technical trick the recipe insists on is drying the duxelles thoroughly so the pastry stays crisp underneath rather than going soggy from leaking mushroom water. Sliced at the table into thick rosy rounds, with a red-wine jus and roasted root vegetables on the side, the kind of plate that makes the evening feel like a special occasion before anyone says it.
Each vegetable cooks separately and gets dressed with sesame oil, garlic and soy. They arrange in colourful piles around a mound of rice; an egg fries on top. Gochujang sauce on the side. Diners mix vigorously before eating.
Bread is soaked in milk; mince is browned with onions; curry powder, turmeric and Cape Malay spices bloom. Apricot jam, mango chutney, vinegar and lemon balance the spice with sweet-sour notes. Raisins, toasted almonds and the soaked bread are folded through. The mixture is pressed into a baking dish; eggs are whisked with the leftover milk and poured over; bay leaves are stuck into the surface; the lot is baked until the topping is just-set with a faint wobble.
The Southern Sunday dinner that defined a region. You start the night before, sinking bone-in chicken pieces into a buttermilk brine spiked with hot sauce and garlic so the acid tenderises the meat and the seasoning works its way deep. The next day comes the double-dredge: a roll through heavily-seasoned flour, a brief dip back in the buttermilk, then another roll through the flour, which is what gives the finished bird its craggy, almost lacy crust. Into 175°C oil for twelve to fifteen minutes per piece, turned every few minutes so the crust browns evenly. You're done when the coating is deep mahogany and a thermometer in the thigh reads 75°C. Drain on a wire rack rather than paper so the steam escapes and the crust stays shattering. Eat hot with a stack of pickles, a soft biscuit and a bottle of hot sauce on the table; cold the next day at the kitchen counter is its own justified American ritual.
This dish exemplifies the Chinese penchant for contrasting textures. Tender succulent pieces of chicken are paired with sweet, crunchy cashew nuts and a delicate sauce. While the original Chinese version would have used peanuts (as cashews were not traditionally featured in Chinese cookery), this adaptation showcases how the cuisine evolves while maintaining its core philosophy of textural harmony.
A hearty Spanish soup featuring sweet chestnuts paired with spicy chorizo sausage, caramelized vegetables, and warming spices. The saffron adds a subtle earthiness, creating a comforting autumnal dish with rich, smoky flavors.
When cooking Chinese food, it's essential to think about the flavours and textures of ingredients working in harmony. Juicy chicken combined with succulent baby corn, tender vegetables, and salty, crunchy cashew nuts create a balanced dish where each element complements the others. A glossy sauce ties everything together without overwhelming delicate flavours.
Chicken thighs poach with onion, saffron, ginger, cinnamon and orange-flower water until tender; the meat is shredded and the cooking liquid is reduced to a concentrated stock. Whisked eggs are scrambled gently into the reduced stock with the chicken, making a creamy, intensely savoury filling. Toasted blanched almonds are pulsed with sugar, cinnamon and a tablespoon of orange-flower water into a coarse sweet rubble. A round springform tin is layered with overlapping filo sheets brushed with butter; almond rubble goes down; chicken-and-egg goes on; more filo seals the top. Baked for 30 minutes at 200°C until deep gold. Dusted with icing sugar and finished with cinnamon stripes.
A bright and spicy Sri Lankan-inspired curry with a curry-house spin, featuring aromatic spices, coconut, and fresh curry leaves. It works beautifully as a banquet dish and can be extra hot with extra bird’s eye chillies and chilli powder. The subtle sweet-tang tuning makes it a favorite with rice and mild dhal.
Spicy, thin jungle curry from Chiang Mai, traditionally made with jungle ingredients and game meat. No coconut milk; features a clear, flavorful broth with chicken and vegetables. Serve with sticky rice.
A creamy, nutty British-Indian korma that uses both block coconut and coconut flour for depth and body. This curry is rich yet balanced, with mild heat and a hint of sweetness from sugar, banana and rose water. Serve with white rice and a mild dhal for the full experience.
British-Indian Pasanda is a mild, creamy curry based on almond and coconut richness with a slight sweet edge from sultanas. Traditional pasanda uses flattened and tenderized meat; this version uses thinly sliced chicken breast and can be made with tandoori chicken if preferred. A splash of red wine is optional and adds depth.
This is a hugely popular dish at Thai restaurants and takeaways, and my family love it. It is important to cut the chicken pieces so that they are about the same size as the cashews (although this is more for presentation as large chunks also work fine). You can mix the sauce and fry the cashews, chillies and chicken a day or so in advance, making this a dish you can cook up very quickly after work with little mess. The first time I tried making this recipe, I burnt the cashews and chillies. Don’t make the same mistake or you’ll have to start all over again. They don’t take long to colour in the oil and cashews aren’t cheap, so keep an eye on them. Although there’s nothing stopping you from doing so, the dried and fried chillies are not meant to be eaten. I like to serve this curry with jasmine rice.
A xacuti masala is built by dry-roasting fresh coconut to a deep mahogany brown alongside a long list of whole spices (Kashmiri and byadgi chillies, coriander, cumin, fennel, peppercorns, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, mace) and grinding them with onion, garlic and ginger into a black-brown paste. The chicken is browned briefly, the paste added, water poured in to cook the chicken through, and tamarind stirred in to finish. The trick is in the roast: the coconut should be almost-burnt, with the bitterness offset by the tamarind.
Plain steamed rice (often last night's leftovers) is the base. A hot temper of mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, cashews, dried red chilli and curry leaves is bloomed in coconut oil, then fresh grated coconut is folded in and warmed through. The rice is tossed through everything off the heat, so the grains stay separate and pick up flavour rather than soften.