Paxos fish stew - a Sunvil Supper Club recipe

You may have noticed this dish on my meal plan yesterday. I was asked if I'd like to try this recipe and share my thoughts on it for the Sunvil Supper Club. Sunvil are an independent travel company who specialise in holidays to destinations off the beaten track. Appreciating the local culture in the places their customers visit, they started the Supper Club to share their passion for these destinations using food. Every month, they blog a recipe linked to one of their destinations.

So, this month, the recipe is Paxos fish stew. Paxos is a tiny Greek island, roughly 7 miles by 3 at its widest. Being an island, fish dishes are very popular. This stew is very simple. Usually, it is made with grey mullet or sea bream but any old firm white fish will do, which is good as Asda had neither so I bought some haddock fillets. I actually made something similar last week and was just as simple with a few changes. It relied on paprika, wine, bay leaf and stock for the non-fishy flavours. I love prawns so I bought some to go in the stew as well. They were cold water ones - hardly authentic but I love them, so there.

I found the potato didn't need as long as 20 minutes to cook, so this was made from start to finish  in half an hour. This includes 5 minutes where I hunted for some potatoes that disappeared into thin air, so I may have used a little less than the recipe. The picture makes it look really dry but with the tomatoes, wine and stock, there was plenty of juice. Would have been good to dip in some bread but Monkey was in a ravenous mood after school and polished it off, helped it has to be said by me, equally ravenous.

This is a lovely, healthy meal, yet still warming and tasty. The only thing I was surprised it didn't contain was olives, given that Paxos is well known for its olive groves. Perhaps I'll add those in for me the next time I make it, when I will remember to ensure I have the right amount of potatoes in, and I have a reasonable amount of bread in that won't be wolfed down by a 7 year old beforehand.

(Sunvil sent me a £15 giftcard to cover the cost of buying the ingredients to make this recipe.)

Meal Planning Monday - a quickly cobbled together edition!

Yes, this is me typing as fast as I can as I'm writing this mid-preparations to go to London to the Paralympics. As we're not back until late on Sunday, I thought - stupidly - I'd get a quick meal plan done and then I got sent an Ocado voucher so I've even done the shop to be delivered Monday afternoon.

Don't expect anything fantastic from this - I'm away with the children again on Friday night and not back until late on Saturday so that's another two meals not on the plan.

So, quickly, here's our week

Monday - Moroccan chicken one-pot
Tuesday - Slow cooked pork shoulder with cider and parsnips
Wednesday - Pad Thai with prawns
Thursday - Cheesy lentils
Friday - not here
Saturday - not here
Sunday - Roast chicken (possibly)

Don't forget Mrs M has more Meal Planning Monday entries. What are you having this week?

Meal Planning Monday - the half a week edition

A bank holiday weekend, so what happens? A wedding of course! We are going to my niece's wedding down in Buckinghamshire so we will be away on Friday and Saturday and probably home late on the Sunday. This leaves me only 4 meals to plan for this week. Husband is off work this week so we are still keeping it fairly simple but I can't help sneaking in the odd recipe I've never done before.

Eyes down, look in. This is our (half a) week in meals.

Monday - Chicken, coconut and mango pilau (link goes to lamb recipe)
Tuesday -  Fish finger pie
Wednesday - Pad Thai with prawns
Thursday - Chorizo bean burgers

What are you having?

(Don't forget the linky over at Mrs M's where there are more fab meal planning posts).

Meal Planning Monday - the post-Olympics edition

It's all over (the Olympics, that is) and we are bereft with only the prospect of the Paralympics in a couple of weeks to keep us going. That does mean that we are returning to a kind of normal in the household but it is still school holidays.  I'm trying to keep it relatively simple whilst providing some kind of variety as I get bored so easily with what I'm cooking (if you hadn't noticed).

On with the week.

Monday - Veg and cheesy rice bake
Tuesday - Oriental salmon and broccoli traybake
Wednesday - Turkey chilli jacket potatoes
Thursday - Special fried rice with prawns and chorizo
Friday - Pizza (Homemade)
Saturday - Chicken pesto pasta
Sunday - keeping free

That's us. How about you? What's on your menu this week? Remember that Mrs M has the Meal Planning Monday linky on her blog so you can find more meal planning inspiration.

Thai fish pie - family style

This sounds mad, doesn't it? I first saw it on one of the last episodes of Something for the Weekend and thought I had to give it a go. Unfortunately, on looking at the recipe, I realised I would have to adapt it if I were to make it for all of us as it had fresh chillies in it. With this adaptation in mind, I set about buying the ingredients - and discovered that monkfish was not only difficult to find, it was damned expensive. There were various things about the recipe that I felt weren't quite right (you can tell it was written by a chef rather than a food writer) - like I'm still not sure if it was a typo that 200g butter would be added to the mash. So I've done my own version based on this.

I still add a bit of chilli powder to this, but if you want, you can leave it out. However, I like that it leaves a little bit of warmth at the back of your mouth, just enough for you to know it's there but not enough to have Monkey and Missy Woo grabbing drinks and complaining "It's too spicy." They love this, as do I. If you do want it really spicy, just add some fresh chopped chilli in step 2.

The important ingredients are the lemongrass and the kaffir lime leaves, as they really add flavour. Both are easily bought from supermarkets these days - make sure you buy fresh, not dried, lemongrass.

Thai Fish Pie
Serves 4-6

Ingredients
700g sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
200g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 tbsp vegetable
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 stalk lemongrass, bruised (just bash it with the handle of a knife)
2 kaffir lime leaves
1 tsp mild chilli powder (optional)
400ml coconut milk
100ml milk
400g white fish, cut into chunks
200g salmon, skin removed and cut into chunks
200g peeled prawns, preferably king or jumbo size, either raw or cooked
25g butter, plus a knob of butter for the mash
25g flour
100g frozen peas
1 lime, juice and zest
fish sauce (optional)


1. First, place the sweet potato and potato into a pan of hot water, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer until soft. Drain.

2. Whilst the potatoes are cooking, heat the oil in a large pan and add the onion, garlic, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves. Cook over a medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add the chilli powder, if using, stir and cook for a couple more minutes. Add both milks. If using light coconut milk, turn the heat right down immediately. If you have time, turn the heat off and leave to stand for a while to infuse.

3. Add the white fish and salmon to the pan. If you're worried about the coconut milk splitting, turn the heat off and allow the fish to poach using residual heat, otherwise keep the heat down as low as possible. After about 3/4 minutes, add the prawns if they are raw. They will turn pink when they are cooked.

4. Using a slotted spoon, lift the fish out of the pan and place in your dish, putting the poaching liquor to one side. Your dish needs to be about 25cm x 25cm although I tend to use a small lasagne dish. Scatter over the peas.  Turn the oven onto 200 C /400F / Gas 6.

5. When the potatoes are done, mash them with a knob of butter. I also tend to add a squeeze of lime juice to cut the sweetness. Season. Take the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves out of the poaching liquor before you make the sauce.

6. In another pan, melt the 25g butter, add the flour, and cook for a minute. Add the poaching liquor a bit at a time, whisking constantly. Once it's all added, squeeze in the rest of the juice of the lime and add the zest, bring it up to the boil then simmer gently for 5 minutes, stirring all the time. Season to taste - I tend to do this with a dash of fish sauce, but you can use salt and pepper if you like.

7. Pour the sauce over the fish and peas. Scoop the mash over the fish and rough up the surface in whatever way you choose; I tend to use the back of a spoon. Cook in the oven for 25 minutes. If you like a crispy top (don't we all?), place it under a hot grill for a few minutes.

You can serve with some stir fried greens if you like but it's fine just as it is, and leftovers also reheat well.

Meal Planning Monday

So, first week of the school holidays. As you will see from Saturday's post, I'm a bit daunted - at least last year, Missy Woo still had nursery two days a week so this is the first long holidays we have had with both of them home 7 days a week since they were both babies.

Meal Planning Monday

So, here we are again. And into July! First week of July means Missy Woo's birthday (tomorrow) so the week is slightly different - we're going out for tea for pizza on her birthday and we're taking some of her friends with us to the cinema on Sunday.

Talking to Mark Hix - on food and (prawn) cocktails

Following shortly after I got to interview Gino D'Acampo, I was offered the chance to interview Mark Hix. You might not know who he is but I do! He used to be chef director of the group that runs The Ivy, that favourite celebrity haunt. A few years ago, he left to set up his own chain of restaurants, now in 3 sites across London and one in Lyme Regis. I first came across Mark Hix when watching Great British Menu in 2007. His food was simple, but stunning. His competitor in the heats thought his main course - a rabbit and crayfish stargazey pie - was "pub grub" but both that and another dish featured in the final banquet. I would have loved to have met Mark in person but it wasn't possible to arrange, so this interview took place with the wonders of mobile phones and conference calls. I started by asking Mark about a new dish he's created for his restaurant in Selfridges in conjunction with Bird's Eye. 

Tell me about the Emperor Prawn Cocktail  you’ve created - what’s different about it?

The focus is on high quality ingredients. I used Birds Eye Emperor Prawns as they are frozen very quickly and are very meaty so they are a high quality product  - a bit like frozen peas; because they are frozen so quickly, you can guarantee the quality which you can’t with fresh.

Apart from that, I use high quality ingredients to make a really good prawn cocktail – crisp lettuce, a high quality tomato ketchup and mayonnaise but I’ve also added a bit of horseradish, Tabasco and a little Pernod to the sauce.

Why did you decide to get involved with Bird’s Eye and create the dish?

Everyone loves a prawn cocktail. Back in the 70s and 80s, it was a classic dish so it was good to take the Emperor Prawns and turn it into something high quality, it’s really popular with the customers.

Lots of mums mentioned your Eat Up! Book and how good it is. One of my twitter followers even asked me to thank you for it.

Yes, I get a lot of positive comments about it. It was the first book I published. What I wanted to do was show that adults and children could eat the same things – perhaps with a little bit of adaptation for the children, but that adults didn’t have to cook separate meals for their children.

Did you cook much with your children when they were younger? (He has twin girls)

Yes, I think that’s quite important as it helps to get children to eat proper food.

What sort of things would you cook with them?

Risotto – because that’s an excellent dish for children, and fish fingers – actually, fish fingers is our biggest seller in the restaurants. We make it with sustainable fish like pollock or coley and we serve them with some nice mushy peas and chips.

A chef's lifestyle is not really conducive to a healthy lifestyle. What do you do to stay fit?

I don’t really do anything. I eat fairly healthily – a lot of people who work in kitchens can abuse their diet and not eat a very good diet.  I’m not a health freak or anything – I think it’s about balancing it out.

What type of food do you most like to eat when it’s not you cooking?

It really depends on my mood. Food is all about moods. So I might like some Asian or Indian, something with a bit of spice. Or it might be fish.

What do you think of the standard of restaurant food in this country, both in London and outside?

Well, we’re lucky in London, it’s said to be one of the gastronomic capitals of the world along with New York and Paris. There’s over a hundred different cuisines available. It has improved over the last 10 years. In terms of cooking, I think we’re ahead of the French now. Even beyond London, it’s improved a lot – even in pubs, you can get good food now. There’s still a lot of bad too but that happens everywhere.

What are your favourite restaurants?

My friend has a place called Viet Grill in London.  And places like River Cafe – both are just really good, with no fuss.

You don’t really like the fine dining experience then? 

No. It’s fine but it’s really only for special occasions and it’s not something you can eat all the time. Really good food you can eat any time is what I like.

How do you relax when you’re not working?

Fishing – in fact, I’m off to the coast this weekend to do some fishing.

Mark Hix has created a modern twist on the classic prawn cocktail dish using Birds Eye’s new Emperor King Prawns. The Emperor Prawn Cocktail is on the menu at HIX Restaurant and Champagne Bar, Selfridges during Project Ocean. Emperor King Prawns are Birds Eye’s biggest and juiciest king prawns; cooked in their shell to retain more flavour and succulence and then peeled and frozen within two and a half hours to maximise taste and freshness. http://www.birdseye.co.uk

(I have not been paid for this interview.)

Tapas Tea

We love tapas in this house. If we go to Spain, we virtually live on it - either hopping from bar to bar, or sitting down and trying all manner of stuff in one place. Over time, we have found particular favourite dishes but have also had some fabulously different ones - like the spinach, bacon and chickpeas we ate sat in Plaça del Pi in Barcelona one sunny day, a dish that sticks in my mind to this day. And there is the awful, like the Russian salad we had in Poble Espanyol, also in Barcelona, which was so bad, it was funny. Never believe anyone that tells you that you can be served bad food is the UK. You can get it anywhere.

At home, we go to the usual chains if we want a tapas fix but occasionally, we like to have tapas for tea on a Saturday. This is a special treat for all of us and is usually timed to coincide with some Spanish football on the telly as we are big fans and have been to matches in 5 different grounds in Spain. Tonight has been one such time. There was a triple header of matches on and as it's holiday time, the children stayed up a little late. So, we had tapas for tea in the living room, watching the Barcelona game.

Tapas is great to cook as the dishes are small, so simple to cook and quick to prepare. Some don't require "cooking" at all - it's a case of putting some lovely ingredients on a plate. This morning, Monkey and Missy Woo came out with me to Booths to buy some of them. We bought Manchego cheese, some jamòn (ham), and some chorizo sausage (see below). The cheese is just cut into thin slices and put on a plate with some slices of tomato. Same with the jamòn. I drizzle some nice olive oil on top if I'm feeling fancy. (I wasn't today, in case you're wondering).

The rest of the menu was all fairly simple. We had:

Ensalada rusa - Russian salad. This requires bit of cooking in advance but not much. I peel and dice a medium size potato and place in boiling water in a pan with about 400g frozen mixed veg (the sort where the veg are quite small) and cook according to the packet instructions. At the same time, I hard-boil a couple of eggs, cool and shell them. Once the veg is cooked, I pour into a bowl and allow to cool. I add a tin of tuna which I've flaked to the bowl, with chopped hard-boiled egg. Then, I add in enough mayonnaise (I use low fat) to cover everything and stir together. Then I place in the fridge as it's best nicely cold. In Spain, they always put mini breadsticks in the top. I only do that if I have some in. I actually made double today as it keeps well in the fridge.

Gambas al ajillo - garlic prawns. Just some prawns fried in olive oil until they turn pink with some garlic added to the oil. Careful not to burn the garlic or it tastes bitter.

Chorizo al vino - chorizo in red wine. I slice the chorizo sausage and cook in a hot pan to render the fat, and let them sizzle for a while, turning occasionally. Once they are looking "cooked", I add some red wine to the pan and let it reduce a bit.

Meatballs - I cheat for this! I always have catering packs of Ikea style Swedish meatballs in the freezer, so I just use those and microwave them at the last minute. Proper albondigas are a mixture of minced meat and spices, and they can either be simply fried or cooked in a tomatoey sauce. I prefer my way just to keep it quick and simple.

Spanish omelette - tortilla española. This is the most involved dish of all but worth it as it is fantastic hot and cold. I have tried many recipes but this seems most successful. I peel, halve and slice 2-3 medium onions and peel and thinly slice about 300g potatoes, then heat about 2 tbsp olive oil in a medium deep frying pan until it's smoking. I add the potatoes and onions then immediately turn the heat down, stirring to coat everything in the oil. These are then cooked, covered for about 25 - 30 mins - the idea is to cook them slowly without browning but I rarely manage that - shaking the pan occasionally and turning everything over at least once. Whilst they are cooking, I crack 5-6 eggs in a bowl and beat together, then season with pepper. Once the potatoes and onions are cooked, I add them and mix with the eggs. The pan gets wiped out, put back on a medium heat and more oil added. Once the oil is heated, everything is tipped back into the pan and the heat turned back down. I leave it to cook for about 20 mins on the lowest of heats, occasionally running around the edge with a fish slice, until most of the egg on top has set. At this stage, I put the grill on high and put the whole pan under it. (If you're clever, you can slide the tortilla out of the pan onto a plate and then flip it back into the pan.) It only needs a couple of mins under a grill before it's browned and ready. The Spanish love it in sandwiches - if you go a La Liga match of an evening, the sound of foil being unwrapped from sandwiches at half time is deafening, particularly if you go to places like the San Mamés in Bilbao or the Anoeta in San Sebastián.

And that's it! None of it terribly complicated, most of it pretty quick to make, but a bit heavy on the washing up - thank goodness for dishwashers! I do a lot of wiping out and reusing of pans, plus there is a last minute scramble with the hot things, not unlike finishing off a roast dinner and trying to get everything ready at the same time. There are more complicated recipes but we don't find we need anything fancy. The only other thing I often make is patatas bravas - for which I make jacket wedges in the oven and a spicy sauce on top. I accidentally discovered that mixing barbeque sauce with mayonnaise gives the closest result to what you can get in most parts of Spain.



Before I go, handy hint for you if you do tapas at home. Write a list of what you're making, because it's really easy to forget something in the last few minutes. Many's the time I've found something in the fridge uneaten afterwards. Doh!