Chicken Orzo Risotto (Chorzotto?)

Melt some butter in olive oil. Add chopped onion & garlic. When soft, add pieces of chicken thigh. Size is up to individual taste - I like big chunky pieces.

When chicken is browned add chopped courgettes, peppers, carrots, celery, green beans, sweetcorn, mushroom and / or any other veg you prefer. Add the veg one at a time and stir for a minute before adding the next. Stir for 5 mins after adding last veg. Mix in a bit of rosemary & sage.

Add enough hot stock to cover, meanwhile put the Orzo in boiling water for about 5 mins. It should be undercooked when you drain.

Add the orzo to the chicken / veg mix, ensuring there is enough liquid. You can add more if necessary but use hot water or stock.

Stir until the orzo is cooked, and the liquid is the required thickness. Top with a nice grated cheese & a squeeze of lemon juice.




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Random Chickpea curry

Fry off finely chopped onion, garlic & grated fresh ginger (about 3cm) in nut oil. Don't have oil too hot, mix should slowly go transparent, not darken.

Add 1 tbsp crushed coriander seeds, 2 tsp crushed cumin seeds, 1 tsp crushed fennel seeds. Mix well

Add 1 tsp fenugreek, 1/2 tsp tumeric & whatever chilli you want. Mix in

Chop some okra into big chunks & stir in. Could also add finely chopped peppers, courgettes and/aubergine.

Add drained tin of chickpeas (or 2 if you want it thicker)

Cook for at least 20 mins, longer if you can. If it dries, just add a touch of water.

Serve with chopped coriander leaves & a squeeze of lemon juice

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The best tomato sauce in the world

This is modified from a recipe seen on Two Greedy Italians. There is a lot of meat so use a big pan. The meat should be put aside for (lots of) sandwiches or salad or any separate meal

1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
Tin anchovies
About a pound of your fave sausages
Pound of pork ribs
Half a pound of a cheap cut of beef
Half a bottle red wine
Big handful fresh Basil
About 3-4 tins chopped tomatoes
About 3tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp Marmite

Gently fry the onion, garlic & anchovies in olive oil until the onion is clear & the anchovy has disintegrated.

Add all the meat and quickly brown. Pour in the red wine and add the basil. Warm up the liquid. Add the tins tomatoes. You can add fresh toms in addition if you like.
Finally add the tomato puree & marmite. Bring to boil and simmer.

You want to reduce the liquid to a thick sauce. This will take hours.

When it is done, remove the meat. It should flake apart easily. Break it up and add a little bit back into the sauce. You will probably get about 3 meals from he meat alone.

The sauce can be portioned off and frozen or chilled. It is very rich and flavoursome so you only need a small amount. It will go a long way.
Serve over pasta with some chopped olives, use for a delicious spaghetti bolognese or lasagne. Use on a pizza base or as a warm rocket & basil salad dressing with some of the meat. Delicious.


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