Vegetable Thai Ratatouille

I have adapted this recipe to suit the vegetable I can purchase in my local market. you could add chilli if you liked.

[ra-tuh-TOO-ee; ra-tuh-TWEE] A popular dish from the French region of Provence that combines eggplant, tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, zucchini, garlic and herbs-all simmered in olive oil. The vegetables can vary according to the cook. They can be cooked together, or cooked separately and then combined and heated briefly together. Ratatouille can be served hot, cold or at room temperature, either as a side dish or as an appetizer with bread or crackers.

Ingredients.

mix of any root vegetables,

1 carrot,
2 red onion,
1 red bell pepper,
6 small purple aubergine,
6 small apple aubergine,
4 cloves garlic,
2 tablespoon olive oil,
3 large red tomato.
cup of water,
salt to taste.
2 tablespoons tomato paste.
1 bunch fresh basil,
1 bunch celery leaves,

Recipe,
wash, peel and cut into large pieces all vegetables, add oil and garlic, onion to pan, fry till brown, add red pepper and aubergines,fry for 2 minutes, add tomatoes, carrot, water, paste, simmer till vegetables soft, add herbs, stir and serve.

Makhuea Pra (Thai Aubergine Recipe’s)

The Thai eggplant, locally called ma keua is a variety of eggplant which is used in the Thai traditional cuisine. The Thai eggplants are characterized mostly by a white or apple green color and a medium round size. This kind of eggplants is among the most popular ones, as they are easy to recognize and easy to prepare as boiled, baked, fried or roasted. In the various cuisines of the world, the eggplant is also called melongene or aubergine. The Thai eggplant is rich in carbohydrates and vitamin, as it includes A and B vitamins and C-complex. Besides these, the Thai eggplant is low in calories, so it helps in low calorie diets and healthy culinary habits. The most popular eggplant dishes in Thai are the ones that include curry, which used a lot in the local cuisine of Thailand. Among these, there is the red curry, which defines a recipe that includes eggplant cut in quarters in a spicy and flavored curry sauce, lime leaves, coconut milk and fish sauce.

Aubergine with green curry paste

8 green thai aubergine, quartered.
2 teaspoon green curry paste.
bunch basil leaves.
spoon of oil.
fish sauce to taste.
1/2 teaspoon palm sugar.

Recipe

Add oil to wok, add curry paste and fry till dissolved, add aubergine fry couple of minutes, add fish sauce and palm sugar, stir in basil leaves and serve,

Pad Pak Rua Mit (fry mix vegetables)

Ideal side dish, can use any combination of vegetables, omit oyster sauce or use vegetarian sauce for a true vegetarian dish.

Ingredients

2 clove garlic.
2 tablespoons oil.
1 carrot sliced.
1 onion sliced.
8 snow peas.
1/4 cabbage sliced.
baby sweet corn.
water.
cornflour to thicken sauce.
soy sauce light
oyster sauce. palm sugar, to taste.

Add oil and chopped garlic to wok, and fry, add carrots, onion hard vegetables first, fry for 2 minutes, if start to stick add few spoons of water, once all the vegetables become al dente but not soft add palm sugar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce and mix, thicken with cornflour to get a thick dark sauce. serve.

Thai Tomato spicy Eggs

Great for a quick breakfast, fast and easy to make.

2 eggs
1 tomato.
1 clove garlic.
6 -8 sweet green chilli.
fish sauce.
1/2 teaspoon sugar.
oil.

add oil to non stick frying pan, fry garlic, add sliced de seeded chilli, slice tomato length ways add, mix eggs and add and stir, add sugar and fish sauce once eggs have set , serve with steamed rice.

Spicy Thai Tuna Noodle Salad

This is really a variation on the tuna salad but can be made with any quick cook noodle, ideally with glass noodle. ideal with prawn, tuna, seafood or vegetables. You are looking for that spicy ,sour, salty taste.

1 Pkt glass noodles. (any thin noodles)
2 small red sliced onion.
1 bunch Chinese celery leaf (cut 1 inch)
1 tin tuna drained.
3 stalk lemon grass finely sliced.
2 lime juiced.
fish sauce to taste.
3-8 red chilli. ( up to you)

Recipe.

boil noodles as required, let them cool down, normally 3 minutes. add tuna to mixing bowl, add sliced lemon grass, fish sauce and chilli and lime mix and taste. adjust to personal taste. once you get the required taste add celery leaf. onion and noodles, serve and enjoy.

Missing Ingredients !!!!

We all get frustrated when we see a recipe picture, or find an exclusive recipe, but we cant find that secret ingredient.

I want to know what are the most sought after ingredients.

Where you are?

What about the recipes on TV or in books that are just that 1 step to far, because of Ingredients or cost.

Or the recipes that are just to far from the mark !

Or just tell me what your favourite ingredients are.

Thanks and remember cooking should be FUN.

Colcannon

source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colcannon
Colcannon (Irish: cál ceannann, meaning “white headed cabbage”) is a traditional Irish dish made from mashed potatoes, kale or cabbage, butter, salt, and pepper. It can contain other ingredients such as milk, cream, leeks, onions, chives, garlic, boiled ham or Irish bacon. At one time it was a cheap, year-round staple food.[1]
An old Irish Halloween tradition was to serve colcannon with prizes of small coins concealed in it, as the English do with Christmas pudding. This is still done today and small amounts of money are placed in the potato.[2]
It is similar to the modern version of the English dish, bubble and squeak. In Atlantic Canada (especially Nova Scotia and Newfoundland), a local version of the dish is popular among those raised in rural communities. Brought to the provinces by Irish and Scottish settlers, the recipe consists of potatoes, milk, butter, diced carrots and turnip mashed together. This gives it a distinct orange and white colour (as opposed to the green of the Irish version). Some also add onions, garlic and even chopped up bacon. It is routinely served during large holiday meals like Christmas, New Years Eve, Robbie Burns night and Canadian Thanksgiving.
The Dutch also have a dish that is similar called stamppot boerenkool,[3] made from potatoes and kale mashed together with milk, butter, salt, and pepper, and often served or cooked with a large sausage. A condiment of pickled pearl onions is common.
The Welsh “cawl cennin”, pronounced vaguely like colcannon, means “leek soup”, literally “broth (of) leeks”, but this is just a coincidence of forms.[4] The full etymology goes back to Irish cál ceannfhionn (shortened to cál ceannann), literally “cabbage head-white”, as indicated above.[5] Welsh cawl also can mean cabbage, however the usual word is bresych. Irish cál ceannfhionn would be Welsh bresychen benwen.

My recipe uses left over roast potatoes or mash, I had half a cabbage left over, so I have boiled it and mashed in the left over potato with another onion, fry in frying pan with butter till brown. another way is to make the bubble and squeak and add a tin of corned beef and 1 onion makes a lovely corned beef hash.

Tom Yum Hed(Thai mushroom soup)

This spicy Thai mushroom soup is a great vegetarian dish, like the famous Tom Yam Gung (shrimp) I use tomato and onion to give it more depth. you can make it as spicy or plain as you like, taste should be spicy, sour and a little salty. for vegetarian use salt instead of fish sauce, or mushroom soy sauce.
If you like coconut milk tom yum nam khon makes a creamy special soup.
Aside from being one of the most popular soup in Thailand, Tom Yum Soup has many health benefits, due its potent combination of herbs and spices. In fact, this Thai soup is currently under scientific study, as it appears to have immune-boosting power as a natural remedy for cold and flu viruses.

Ingredients

200g mushrooms any variety. I have mixed oyster and shiitake.
1 red onion.
1 tomato.
piece of galangal.
1 bunch lemon grass.
6 kaffir lime leaves.
1 or 2 limes.
coriander leaves, for decoration.
fish sauce to taste.
chopped chilli to taste.
water.

Recipe

cut and soak the mushrooms. boil a pan of water, break the lemon grass with back of knife to bruise it, peel and slice galangal. add to water, boil for 2 minutes to release aroma, add onions,tomato and mushrooms. add kaffir lime leaves, cook for 1 minute turn off heat.
In your serving bowl add crushed chilli(1 or 2 for mild, more for spicy) 2 teaspoons fish sauce, and juice from 2 or 3 limes, add the hot soup and stir, add more chilli, lime or fish sauce depending on your taste. top with coriander leaves and serve.

Snow pea in oyster sauce.

pea and mushroom in oyster sauce.

This simple side dish can be as simple as you like with 1 vegetable to many (pad pak rua mit) (fried mixed veg). This one uses snow peas and shiitake mushroom to give it a meaty flavour. If you want vegetarian omit the oyster sauce and use bean sauce or just soy sauce.

Recipe

50g snow pea’s.
50g shiitake mushrooms.
2 cloves garlic.
teaspoon oil.
tablespoon oyster sauce.
splash soy sauce.
1/2 teaspoon palm sugar.
water.
spoon cornflour mixed in water.

Add oil to hot wok, add chopped garlic and fry, till slightly brown, add mushrooms ,whole if small, and snow peas, fry on high heat for approx 1 minute, add oyster sauce, soy sauce. and little amount of water, reduce slightly, add sugar to taste. add spoon of cornflour mix and stir to thicken.
This is a quick stir fry dish, dont let it stew or the peas wont be crisp.
serve and top with a little pepper. for chinese mixed veg, use cabbage, carrot, onion, and hard vegetable.

scrambled eggs with pickled cabbage

scrambled eggs with pickled cabbage

This simple dish is of a Chinese origin, enjoyed by Thai’s as a breakfast dish served with boiled rice and dried fried fish and peanuts. I personally personally would add some mushroom or other vegetables.

Recipe

2 Eggs.
1 packet or 1/4 head of a pickled cabbage.
1/2 piece Garlic.
Oil.
light soy sauce for seasoning.

Beat the eggs and place in a bowl, drain the pickled cabbage and roughly chop up. chop the garlic, add oil to frying pan and add garlic, add the cabbage and fry till warm add the egg mix and stir, add soy sauce for seasoning, keep stirring till the eggs are cooked and serve. season with a little pepper.