Karan Gokani’s Sri Lankan Jaffna Curry Powder

This Sri Lankan curry powder recipe is from Karan Gokani’s Hoppers The Cookbook, where it features in many of the book’s recipes including the very delicious Lamb Shank Curry. Read my full review of Hoppers: The Cookbook by Karan Gokani. Typically dishes from northern Sri Lanka tend to be a lot hotter than from the ... Read more »

Karan Gokani’s Unroasted Curry Powder

Cucumber Curry Featuring Karan Gokani's Unroasted Curry Powder

This fragrant curry powder recipe is from Karan Gokani’s Hoppers The Cookbook, where it features in many of the book’s recipes including the very delicious Sri Lankan Cucumber Curry. Read my full review of Hoppers: The Cookbook by Karan Gokani. This recipe is also known as thuna paha in Sinhalese, which literally translates as 'three ... Read more »

Leena’s Sri Lankan Cucumber Curry

Leena's Cucumber Curry from Hoppers The Cookbook by Karan Gokani

In the UK cucumbers are predominantly eaten raw or pickled. A backbone of British salads, or dainty finger sandwiches, or combined with yoghurt in dishes such as raita, tzatziki and cacik. But they are also fabulous to cook with, as evidenced by this very quick and easy Sri Lankan cucumber curry from Karan Gokani’s Hoppers ... Read more »

Lebkuchen

Lebkuchen on a plate

Lebkuchen are one of my favourite festive biscuits; German Christmas-time cookies redolent with ginger and mixed spices. This recipe from Mark Diacono’s Spice: A Cook’s Companion is a delight, easy to follow and so good it needs to be enjoyed throughout the year! Read our full review of Spice: A Cook’s Companion by Mark Diacono and you ... Read more »

Amok Peanut Vegetable Curry 

Amok Peanut Vegetable Curry

This is the Van Life Cookbook’s adaptation of a classic Cambodian dish, called Amok. Although it’s commonly made with fish, the richly spiced peanut butter sauce lends itself well to a vegetarian version. Although the ingredients list looks long, many go straight into the curry paste, which can be made in a mini food processor ... Read more »

Budget Supermarket Pasta

Budget Supermarket Pasta

In Van Life Cookbook authors Danny Jack and Hailee Kukura share a collection of recipes designed to be cooked and enjoyed in the small kitchen spaces of campervans and caravans, or in the great outdoors. They are also budget conscious, and eat a predominantly vegetarian diet. This Budget Supermarket Pasta recipe includes anchovies and cheese, ... Read more »

Menemen: Turkish One-Pan Eggs

Menemen Turkish One-Pan Eggs

Although it’s commonly served for breakfast, Menemen – aka Turkish Eggs – is also excellent as a quick lunch or light evening meal. This one-pan recipe comes from the ‘Van Life Cookbook: Resourceful recipes for life on the road: from small spaces to the great outdoors’ by Danny Jack and Hailee Kukura. This recipe is ... Read more »

Turkish Ezme

Ezme Salad

For many years, ezme has been one of my favourite side dishes when visiting the many Turkish restaurants of North London. A simple cold dish of chopped tomatoes, onions, cucumbers and red peppers with lots of parsley and mint, ezme is the perfect foil to kebabs such as adana kofte, chicken and lamb cis, and ... Read more »

Kashmiri Vers Masala Spice Cakes

Kashmiri Vers Masala Spice Cakes

All across India you will find regional spice blends (known as masalas). Vers masala hails from Kashmir and is commonly made and stored in small round cakes or tablets. Depending on the recipe (and the volume you are making), you can add either a small piece of Vers masala or a whole cake; usually towards ... Read more »

Ruangan Chaman | Paneer in Tomato Curry

Ruangan Chaman - Paneer in Tomato Curry

This Himalayan recipe for a simple paneer in tomato curry is a revelation. Slicing the paneer into thin strips rather than cubes (as is more typical in the Indian cooking I’m familiar with) means more surface area to be fried. It really changes the textural mouthfeel of the paneer! The recipe is from Romy Gill’s ... Read more »