Chicken Masala

After my last post of the yellow rice, I then had to make a curry to go with it . I already had the chicken thighs, or you could use breast fillets if you prefer. The thighs are moister, so if using fillets don't over cook them. This is an exceptionally easy curry, maybe not as easy as one from a jar but much tastier I think. The Indians would throw their hands up in horror because I don't use ghee or peanut oil. I just use the Rylstone all the time and it works for me. I know the chefs love the Organic but for me it's the Crooked River for everyday use.


1 kilo thigh fillets, chopped keeping pieces fairly large
Rylstone Olive Oil
1 chopped onion
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
2 teaspoons crushed ginger
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon chilli powder ( if you like it hotter add more )
1 tin crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup cream
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup roughly of chopped coriander

1/4 cup roughly of chopped mint


I used a wok for my curry, but a saucepan or frypan is fine too
Half cook the chicken in the oil and remove and set aside. Next fry the ginger, garlic and onion in the oil. Add the mustard seeds, chilli and garam masala and stir through the herbs.
Add the tomatoes next stir until combined and then add the cream and stir through.
Return the chicken to the pan and cook stirring occasionally. Add the chopped herbs in the last few minutes of cooking.

Fettuccine with Chicken Mustard Cream and Macadamia Nuts

Do not have a fit about the cream in this recipe. There isn't a lot !
Monday night, not much in the fridge, everyone eating at different times, what to cook ?.
I happened to have the remains of a cooked chicken and some macadamia nuts and a meagre lot of vegetables.I always have a bottle of wine and parmesan on hand so I set about making this dish.
Very light and very tasty. You could use any type of pasta, a short penne or fusilli, if you prefer.

Rylstone Olive Oil
2 shallots chopped
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 small onion chopped
200 ml white wine
300 ml chicken stock
1 small capsicum chopped
1 tablespoon grain mustard
4 tablespoons chopped macadamia nuts
150 ml cream
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
300 grams chopped cooked chicken 
200 grams grated parmesan
500 grams fettucine

Cook the macadamia nuts in a little oil to brown and set aside.
Put a large pasta pot on to boil. Cook the pasta according to instructions ie dried or fresh.
Chop shallots, onion and garlic and fry gently on olive oil in a pan on top of stove.
Add the white wine and reduce by half.
Add the stock and chicken pieces. You can use cooked or uncooked chicken. Of course if using uncooked you must insure it gets adequate cooking time. Simmer gently until stock is reduced by half.
Add the cream, chopped capsicum, tarragon and grain mustard. Stir gently and the sauce will thicken slightly. Check seasoning and adjust if needed. Toss the toasted nuts through just before serving.
Serve with  grated parmesan .
If you find there isn't enough of the sauce for you add extra stock and cream. Depending on your pasta
it really soaks up the sauce.
Also use pine nuts if you prefer.

Chicken Pesto Lasagne

Must be my " chicken week " as I made another favourite Chicken Pesto Lasagna. Probably better in summer as you can take advantage of the beautiful fresh basil that is seasonal. I think you will find there isn't a problem finding it now. I like to make my own pesto, but if you don't feel inclined you may use a store bought one. I am not sure where this recipe originally came from as I have been making it for so long, but as with all lasagnas there is many a variation on the original idea.
The tomato sauce or passata is a lovely addition as it cuts through the creamy sauce. A little green salad would be nice with it, or leave it as a dish by itself.
Lasagna sheets come as dried or fresh and cooked and chilled from the refrigerator section, or shelf at the supermarket. They do soak up a lot of liquid to cook, so make sure the sheets are well covered with the béchamel sauce.


1 packet of Lasagna sheets either fresh or dried
4 chicken breasts or 8 thigh fillets you could also use chicken strips.
250 grams mozzarella, grated
100 grams shredded parmesan

PESTO
1 bunch fresh basil leaves or about 1 1/2 cups leaves
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
3 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 cup Rylstone olive oil or similar
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

BECHAMEL

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup plain flour
2 cups milk
1 chicken stock  cube
pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Tomato Passata see Veal Parmigana recipe

You will need a food processor for the pesto. Alternatively a hand blander might do the trick. All in together and drizzle the olive oil in as you blend it.

For the béchamel, melt the butter and stir in the flour to make a roux a thick paste. Warm the milk, if you add cold milk you will get lumps ! Crush the stock cube and add to the warm milk and stir.
Gradually add the milk to the roux and stir as the sauce thickens. Add the pepper and nutmeg.
Lastly add the pesto to the béchamel and set aside.

Cut the chicken into strips about 11/2 pieces and poach them, until just cooked.
Spread a thin layer of the béchamel on the bottom of a dish. Cover this with a layer of lasagna sheets,
pesto bechamel sauce and cover with a layer of the chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella.
Continue layering, finishing with a layer of lasagna sheets, bechamel and parmesan.
Cover with foil and  cook in a 175 oven for 30 minutes or until cooked. You may take the foil off for the last 10 minutes. Serve on a bed of the tomato passata with a sprinkling of parmesan.

Chicken and Green Olive Enchiladas

I have just returned from my sister Philippa's 50th Birthday, which we celebrated in style at the fabulous Il Centro at Eagle Street Pier in Brisbane.  A lovely group of girls, daughters, sisters, sisters in laws and mother with life long friends. The sun was shining, the weather was glorious and it was a wonderfully memorable day.  The food is always beautiful and  the service impeccable .  The event didn't end there we moved across to Mr & Mrs G's and continued on into the evening.
I also managed to get a copy of Marcia Georges cookbook Greek by Heritage Italian by Heart. The book shares with readers the recipes from her parents restaurants and all that have made  Marcia and Andy Georges Il Centro famous for 21 years. All royalties go to  Cancer and Bowel Research Trust and you can get the book on line.
Well after wining and dining in Brisbane for a few days, I came home to a hoard of hungry boys staying here, Rugby again and 21st birthdays. Always a challenge to fill them up, they requested Mexican ! They love it and it does seem to do the trick, for a few hours at least. I decided to do these Chicken and Green Olive Enchiladas. A meal I haven't cooked for years. A long way from the absolutely stunning Sand Crab Lasagna of Il Centro, but far more affordable when feeding a crowd of young men.


1-2 kilos of chicken thighs
6 cups chicken stock
3-4 tablespoon Rylstone Olive Oil
1 cup stuffed green olives sliced
2 cups finely chopped onions
1 large fresh tomato or 2 small ones chopped
3 tablespoons chopped garlic or about 3 cloves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons chilli powder ( you can add up to 5, or you may find it is better to start with only 1 and increase once the chicken is cooked
3 tablespoons plain flour
500 grams shredded pizza cheese 





Place the chicken thighs and the 6 cups of stock in a large saucepan and simmer until cooked. This should take about 20 minutes. Cool the chicken in the stock.
Shred the chicken coarsely and transfer to a large bowl.
Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a fry pan over a medium heat. Add 1 cup of the chopped onion, tomato, garlic cumin and cinnamon. Cook until onion and tomato are quite tender, stirring occasionally. This may take 10 minutes. Add the chilli powder and flour and stir for about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the 6 cups of stock a little at a time to incorporate the roux. Increase the heat and simmer until reduced to about 3 cups, stirring occasionally. All of these steps can be done the day before or the morning of.
Mix 1 cup of the sauce into the chicken.
Spread a thin layer of the sauce in the baking dish you are going to cook them in. You can line them all up in 1 or 2 big ceramic baking dishes or individual dishes, if you choose.
Arrange the tortillas on a work surface and place about 3 tablespoons of cheese in the centre of each, followed by1 tablespoon of the chopped onion and about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of chicken along the top .
Roll up as tightly as you can and place seam side down in your baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Preheat the oven to 175C.
When finished pour remaining sauce over them and sprinkle with more of the grated cheese.
Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake a further 10 minutes or until sauce bubbles.
Remove the foil and let rest for another 5- 10 minutes as they are very hot, before serving
Serve with sour cream and watch them disappear.

Tortillas, Olives Shredded Chicken and Chopped Onion

A small amount of sauce in the bottom of your baking dish

Place cheese onion olives and chicken in the centre of the tortilla.

Finished enchiladas.

Chicken Spinach and Pancetta Ravioli in White Wine and Pea Sauce

Today I had a craving for pasta, which I really love. I found all of the ingredients in the cupboard or fridge except for the gow gee wrappers. These are now readily available at most supermarkets and come in packets of 30. I do have a pasta machine, but pushed for time these little beauties do just as well and taste not quite but nearly the same as pasta. They look like dumplings when finished.This mixture will make 40-45 pieces. Two packets of wrappers or one and half. Serves 4-6 people. You can play around with ingredients, I had all of this at hand and nothing is exact. Give it a try ! One thing I would say be careful with salt. The pancetta, chicken if bought cooked and stock, if using a cube are all salty ,so taste before adding any !  Really easy and very smart !


1 packet of gow gee wrappers ( round in shape )
100 grams of cooked chicken ( leftover barbequed chicken or buy a quarter cooked )
200 grams of chopped spinach or four large leaves ( silver beet is fine too )
100 grams of pancetta ( I used half pancetta and half speck, ham would be fine too )
30 grams grated parmesan and extra for serving
1 egg


 Sauce

1 clove garlic crushed
50 grams butter
5 tablespoons frozen peas
5 tablespoons chicken stock ( I used Campbell's  )
1/2 cup white wine
300 mls light cream

Steam the chopped spinach, drain and squeeze out any excess water. Place all ingredients in a food processor. Process until combined and set aside in the fridge for 1/2 hour. The mixture must be cool to work with or the gow gee wrapper will stretch or tear. You may chop all the ingredients, before adding the egg, but you would have to do it quite finely.
Now the work part...
Place a heaped teaspoon of the mixture in the middle of each wrapper. You can do about 6 at a time.
Fold in half, like the shape of a moon and moisten the edge with a small amount of water. This will help it to stick together. I do it with a washed finger you can use a small brush! Press firmly together and set aside,on a dish covered until ready to use. Try not to overlap them too much or they will stick together and the pastry will tear. Continue until you have all completed. You can make these well ahead.
Boil a large pot of salted water as you would for pasta. Whilst waiting for it to boil, make the sauce.

Saute the garlic in the butter add the chicken stock and frozen peas and simmer for a minute. Add the wine and cream , stirring and simmering gently for a minute or two. If you  cook it for longer the sauce will  reduce and thicken, you can add more stock or wine to thin it out. Turn off whilst cooking the ravioli.

Cook the ravioli in the boiling water until it rises to the top of the pot. It is exactly the same as any fresh pasta. It only takes a couple of minutes to cook. Turn on the sauce to heat whilst draining the pasta.
Serve on flat plates drizzle over the sauce and top with grated parmesan.

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