Engagin' Cajun' Jambalaya

Looks pretty good right? Even with the blurry picture...

It tastes good too.

Let's say that you're hanging out at home, maybe you're watching a film on the sofa.

(In this reconstruction of a hypothetical scenario, the part of you will be played by a small wooden Minotaur head.)



When suddenly you get an urgent hunger for something spicy, meaty, fishy, and generally satisfying on a deeply soulful level. They call that feeling "Jambalayawanna", and the only thing you can do to sate it is to make it.

You spring from your seat.



You race to the kitchen and collect together the composite ingredients.



*Note* This dish requires a few things that might not normally be in your store cupboard, so DINNERGEDDON recommends anticipating your Jambalayawanna with as much advance notice as possible.

Here's what you need:

JAMBALAYA
Serves 4

Arborio Rice (I have no idea how much, I just pour it out till it looks right)
4 Chicken Thighs (skin on, bones removed)
8 Raw Prawns (shells on)
Squid Tubes (cut into rings)
Chorizo sausage (diced)
1 Green Pepper
2 Red Onions
2 Spring Onion (sliced)
1 Garlic Clove (sliced)
6 Cherry Tomatoes
1 Chicken Stock Cube
Salt & Pepper
Cayenne Pepper
Chilli Flakes
Fresh Parsley
Fresh Thyme
Fresh Rosemary
2 Bay Leaves
1/2 Carrot (sliced)
1 Lemon
2 Celery Sticks
2 Whole peppercorns
Olive oil

Ok let's get started...

1) We need to make a quality stock to cook the rice in. Apply a sharp blade to one of your red onions. See how the steel glints in the light. Mercilessly cleave the onion into two equal halves.



Put the chopped onion into a medium pan. Peel your raw prawns and add the shells to the onion. Dry fry on a high-heat until the shells become pink. This should only take about a minute.

Add boiling water to the pan, along with one of your celery sticks (chopped), your chicken stock cube, your carrot, garlic, one bay leaf, your peppercorns, and a pinch of chilli flakes. Let it all boil, then reduce to a simmer for at least an hour.

This is maybe a good time to go shopping for cutlery and dining-ware, if you don't have any. It would be terrible to cook this Jambalaya and have to eat it out of the sink just because you don't own a bowl.



Return to your stock. Does it smell awesome?

If it smells awesome, it's basically ready, but the longer you leave it, the better it will be.
Jamabalayawanna can not be dispelled in a hurry.



Pour your stock through a sieve and really press through all the juice. Discard the chunks, and keep your stock warm somewhere. We are now on to phase two!

2) Prepare a heavy-bottomed pan. Do not feel compelled to climb inside it, even though that is what you are doing in this example.



Add all of your rice to the pan and lightly toast it until the colour just begins to turn.



Now add your stock, and some salt and pepper to taste. If you don't have enough stock to comfortably cover the rice, top it up with hot water.

We must now construct a Bouquet Garni.

I know, kind of a drag, but worth the effort. You get to use scissors at least!

With a piece of string, tie a sprig of rosemary, a sprig of thyme, and one bay leaf around a whole celery stick. It might look something like this:



This contraption is your Bouquet Garni, and you can just toss it in the pan like a flavour grenade. It can just sit on top of the rice while it cooks and will smell up the place real nice. Remember to fish it out later though!



Gently pierce the skin of each of your cherry tomatoes, and add them to the mix. As they cook in the rice, the juice will leak out and add to the general moisture and flavouring, but the flesh of the tomatoes themselves will gracefully fade away into the background, like the memory of a long abandoned ambition.

You should now be safe to just let your rice cook away for a bit while you move inexorably onwards to phase three of the plan...

3) Brush the skin side of your de-boned chicken thighs with a little olive oil and salt.



Then, fry the absolute bejeezus out of them, skin-side down. When the skin has achieved ultimate crunchification, and is totally brown and delicious looking, flip them over and let the meat side cook through on a lower heat.



When they are cooked, remove them from the pan, and let them rest. Meanwhile, in same pan, toss in your other red onion (finely chopped) and all of your chorizo. The gloop from your chicken will merge with the red-sausage-juice and form a really great frying sauce for the onions.



Wow, that picture is really terrible.

When the onions are kind of translucent and smelling really incredible, it's now time to add your chopped green pepper and the raw prawns.



Let them do their thing until the prawns have turned pink and you start to get that "I'm ready to eat you now" feeling.

When this occurs, you are ready to throw in everything from your frying pan. Stir it all around real good.

Then slice up your (hopefully still) crispy chicken, and add that too, along with the juice from half a lemon, and as much cayenne pepper as you dare. Then add your raw squid, and let it sit on top of everything until it is *just* cooked.



Lastly, remove the Bouqet Garni and add your chopped parsley, spring onion, and the juice from the other half of your lemon, along with any salt and pepper you feel it may need.



Ask yourself this question: "Om nom?"

If the answer is: "Om nom NOM" then it is ready to dish up.

Serve in an enormous great big bowl.



Phew!

May your Jambalayawanna be kept at bay until next time!

Taro (no es caro)

LONDON

Alright people, no foolin'. If you're hustling around London's Soho and you decide you need some yourself some sushi, there's no shortage of options. The usual suspects are all representing - YO!, Satsuma, ITSU etc. Although their food is on the whole super tasty, I find its not often worth the premium $$$. All the conveyor belts and fancy packaging are not enough to sway me.

But as is so often the case, when delicious and reasonably priced eats are the order of the day, Soho got you covered.

There Are Two Taro's

Taro 1, the OG joint on Brewer Street was where I had my first taste, but its Taro 2, a few minutes away on Old Compton Street, that gets the most of my coin.

The location's not as hot, but the lovely mezzanine interior and full length window make the clean wooden lines of the eating area light, airy and welcoming. Service is hell of fast, and the food is priced low making this a go-to spot for when you're done pounding beers in the west end. The other big plus is the awesome life-size bust of Taro-san which greets you at the door.

Those that know Soho also know that it is a generally awesome part of London for the eats; I usually have one favourite dish in each place I frequent, so when I consult my tum for what is needed, I know exactly where to head. Taro was the place where this personal menu system was born, and the dish that did it is this:

Chicken Teriyaki Don @ Taro

Holy holy holy. The first question I ask myself is: "Am I hungry?" If the answer is a resounding Hell Yes then Chicken Teriyaki Don jumps up the list pretty damn fast. For £5.90 you get succulent strips of chicken with the skin crisped up in teriyaki sauce, all sitting pretty on a bed of delicious sticky rice mixed with the usual fare, beansprouts, peppers etc...

It will not break

A key word for this dish is SUBSTANTIAL. Just look at how it holds its shape in the fun plastic box in which it is served. A great base if the rest of the night will involve beer, I like to get started with an Asahi on the side (they serve both the original 'dry' and the syrupy treat that is Asahi Black). The mix is simple, allowing the bold flavour of the ingredients to shine like a light into your grinning, hungry face.

Gyoza on the side

Today, we rounded this dish off with some simple gyoza. I usually make a point of trying the gyoza in any restaurant that will serve it to me, and Taro's doesn't disappoint. The pastry is not as crisp as some places, but since its all about the filling, this is not a downside in any way. The slightly liquid texture is quite satisfying and allows for more soy sauce take-up than you might usually get.

You can get in and out in under 20 minutes if you wish, and for under £10 you can easily pack enough food in to leave you bursting, if that is your style. Taro also excels at the standard sushi (rolls and sashimi), bento boxes and curries that you would expect, and they are very accommodating if you have any requests for authentic Japanese food not featured on the already varied menu. There is no point booking as the table turnover is really fast, although you will never feel rushed. Just roll up and get your roll on.

Taro 2

10 Old Compton Street

LONDON W1

020-7439-2275

There are literally not enough stars in the sky to even bother giving this place a score. Imagine the whole entire planet as giant smiley face and have done with it.

Peppadewing

According to their website, Peppadews, spicy piqaunté peppers, have turned themselves into a verb. To peppadew. To celebrate this triumph of linguistic fluidity, here is an easy recipe to allow you to join in on this new craze of "peppadewing".

RECIPE: Stuffed Chicken Thighs (Serves 2)

Preparation: 10 minutes

Cooking: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 large chicken thighs, boned

Some hot Peppadews*

100g Chorizo sausage, finely chopped

75g Mozzarella, sliced

4 Basil leaves

1 Green pepper, chopped

1 Red onion, chopped

Soy sauce

Paprika

Black pepper

25g Butter

Demerara sugar

Olive oil

*if you cannot find Peppadews, take a deep breath, then sack up and go for some straight up red jalapeños. You will no longer be peppadewing but, with time, your guests will forgive you. Especially when they taste the delicious food you are about to serve up.

METHOD

Preheat oven to gas mark 6/200˚C.

You will need your chicken thighs boned to allow for a stuffing. If you have never done this before, have no fear, the crazed genius of Chef Paul is here to help.

Stop laughing, you will need your wits about you as you stuff some thighs.

Once you have boned your thighs, lay one slice of mozzarella, one basil leaf and as much chopped Peppadew and Chorizo as you can manage, whilst still leaving room to close the thigh into a parcel. Skewer the thigh with a couple of cocktail sticks to hold it together:

PRO TIP: Cutting the ends off the cocktail sticks will make the thighs ever so slightly easier to fry.

Season the meat with a light sprinkling of paprika and black pepper.

Fry the thighs on a medium heat in some olive oil, for about 3 minutes, or until they are golden brown all over. There will be a certain amount of spillage from the stuffing as you turn the pieces. This is fine.

Transfer to a roasting dish, with some more oil and the butter. Roast the thighs for 10-15 minutes until cooked through.

While the thighs are a-roasting, add the green pepper and red onion to the frying pan, along with a dash of soy sauce and a teaspoon of demerara sugar. Add any extra peppadews you have to hand, so that you can say you really tried. Fry on a low heat, stirring constantly. When the thighs are ready, the vegetables should be sticky, sweet and brown.

Before serving, take out the cocktail sticks, then plate up with a healthy portion of fried vegetables and a drizzle of soy sauce from the pan.

A frosty wheat beer is recommended drinking to accompany this simple dish, packed full of strong flavours.