Korean food is rich in nutrition, balanced in content, and low in calories. They say you can eat as much Korean food as you like without gaining weight! Rice, either plain or mixed with other grains, is the staple of all Korean meals, and is accompanied by a variety of side dishes. Soy sauce, soybean paste, red pepper paste, ginger root, and sesame seeds are the essential seasonings added to Korean food. When dining, keep in mind that Koreans eat their rice and soup with a spoon and side dishes with chopsticks. Other common traditions of Asian dining apply in Korea, such as not spiking your chopsticks into the rice (this symbolizes that the rice is reserved for the dead) and waiting for the oldest person to begin a meal before starting yourself. Kalbi: Short ribs of beef or pork. They are grilled at the table and restaurants that serve good pulgogi also serve good kalbi.
Chocolate & Almond Cake from Positano the combination of chocolate and nuts in a dessert, and seek out such cakes especially. They love almonds in Positano and hold an annual festival for the harvest. This cake is an example of how the Italians do sweet things so well.
Method Preheat the oven to 180°C. Butter a 23cm-diameter loose-bottomed tin and line it with baking paper.
Break the chocolate into small pieces, place in a bowl over a pan of simmering water and heat until melted. Add the butter in pieces and gently stir in. Add the sugar and stir to a creamy consistency. Remove from the heat and cool slightly then add the egg yolks. Stir in the almonds.
In a large bowl whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form, not too dry or the cake will have a hard crust. Add the lemon zest and gently fold in the chocolate, ensuring you don’t overmix.
Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 30-40 minutes until the cake is a lovely dark brown, has a light crust and is shrinking away from the sides of the tin.
When cool, turn out on to a wire rack and dust with icing sugar. I serve it with mascarpone with a Grand Marnier mixed in to taste.
Ingredients 200g 64-70% chocolate (must be fine dark chocolate like Valhrona) 200g unsalted butter 200g caster sugar 5 eggs, separated 250g peeled blanched almonds, pulsed to fine meal finely grated zest of 1 lemon icing sugar for dusting
Meanwhile bring the potatoes and garlic to a boil in salted water, and cook until tender. Drain and mash. Heat the milk with the butter and beat these into the mash until it is fluffy, then fork through the parmesan and adjust the seasoning with salt if necessary.
Serve a spoonful of mash on each plate with a sausage, and a ‘knot’ of watercress sprigs that have been dressed Chicken Sausages, Mash, Watercress & Chilli Tomato Relish 14 / 12 / 00 Laurie Black Photography: Bruce Benson Comfort food that’s smart enough to share with weeknight guests. You’ll find good chicken sausages at poultry shops, and some supermarkets and butchers.
Method Prick the sausages then gently cook them in a pan with a little olive oil until browned all over and cooked through. Finish them in a 175ºC oven if they are catching and tending to burn.
with a squeeze of lemon juice. Offer a bowl of relish as an accompaniment
| Ingredients |
| 6 large pure chicken sausages |
| olive oil |
| 4 large agria potatoes (or other good mashers), peeled and cut in half |
| 4 cloves garlic, peeled |
| 3/4 cup milk |
| 50g butter |
| 2 tablespoons grated parmesan |
| 1 bunch watercress, broken into sprigs |
| salt |
| wedge of lemon |
| chilli tomato relish – buy a good one, or use |
The potatoes in this recipe take on the spicy flavours beautifully - our idea of the perfect veggie supper. Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until softened, stirring occasionally. Tip in the potatoes, carrots and parsnips, turn up the heat and cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring, until the vegetables are golden.
Stir in the curry paste or powder, pour in the stock and then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, add the lentils, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the lentils and vegetables are tender and the sauce has thickened.
Stir in most of the coriander, season and heat for a minute or so.Top with yogurt and the rest of the coriander. Serve with naan bread.
Per serving
378 kcalories, protein 14g, carbohydrate 64g, fat 9 g, saturated fat 1g, fibre 10g, salt 1.24 g