SIDES
I’ll be honest. I get quite excited about sides. Served alongside a special dish, they can make it spectacular if you get the combination of textures and flavours just right. Or they can transform a simple grilled steak or piece of fish into a great meal. And if you’re strapped for time, several of them – such as the mac and cheese and stuffed green peppers – can be a meal in their own right.
Some of the recipes here are pretty simple – check out the crisp flatbreads and whole roast garlic. Once you have these in your repertoire, like me, you’ll use them all the time. Others, like the dirty rice, have a longer list of ingredients and take a bit more effort, but I hope that these will become part of your everyday cooking too. Of course, you can change the seasonings and ingredients to suit your tastes and what you have in your kitchen cupboards. I’ll be only too pleased if you do so and make these recipes your own.
I’ve also taken this opportunity to share with you my love of all things pickled. If you have a spare couple of hours, knock up a jar or two of soy-brined mushrooms, pickled carrots or pickled celery stalks. Serve them with some bread and cheese for a lovely simple lunch, or let them add their colour, flavour and texture to other more elaborate dishes. You can even scoop a bit of the pickling juice out of the jar and add it to marinades or dressings, or use it just as you would a squeeze of lemon to finish a dish, so nothing is wasted.
Side dishes are your chance to add a degree of complexity and contrast to the main event. If the key dish is roast or grilled meat, serve an unusual side that lends some crunch, such as rice and apple röstis; if it’s spicy, calm it down a bit with cosy tomato and brown rice – you get the idea. Play around, mix and match, until you get the combination that is right for you.
CRISP FLATBREADS
These flatbreads are quick and simple to make. They’re a great base for so many things – put a simple salad on top, spoon on some pulled pork shoulder, or smother with green chilli con carne. I’m sure you’ll find loads of uses for them.
MAKES 6–8
250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 heaped tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
150ml whole milk
Vegetable oil, for frying
Flaky sea salt
Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, add the milk and use your hands to slowly bring the mixture together to form a dough.
Knead the dough in the bowl for a couple of minutes to work into a ball. Cover with cling film and leave to rest at room temperature for 15–30 minutes.
Form the rested dough into egg-sized balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll each one out thinly until about the size of a side plate. Pierce a couple of times with a fork.
Heat around a 2cm depth of oil in a large, deep sauté pan or heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat to 180°C. Use a frying thermometer to check the temperature, if you have one; otherwise drop a cube of dry white bread into the hot oil to test it – if the bread cube turns golden brown in just under a minute, the oil is ready.
Carefully fry the flatbreads, one at a time, for 2–3 minutes on each side until lightly golden and crisp, turning carefully with tongs. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Keep warm in a low oven while you fry the remaining breads, making sure the oil comes back up to temperature between each one.
Scatter a little sea salt over the flatbreads just before serving.
Sautéed Chickpeas with Cheese & Bacon >
SAUTÉED CHICKPEAS WITH CHEESE & BACON
One of the things I really like about this dish is that I usually have all the ingredients knocking around in the fridge or cupboards, so I can make a batch whenever I fancy. It’s a great alternative to mash and, as it’s rich and filling, a little goes a long way. It can even make a nice quick supper on its own with a leafy salad, or try serving it alongside a steak or sausages, or with the dry-rub beef ribs or weekend roast chicken.
SERVES 4
50g butter
200g smoked lardons or diced smoked bacon
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
400g tin chickpeas, drained (liquid reserved) and rinsed
75g crème fraîche
200g strong Cheddar cheese, grated
2 tbsp chopped chives
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Melt the butter in a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the lardons or bacon pieces and sauté for around 5 minutes until the fat is rendered and they have taken on some colour.
Add the onion and garlic, reduce the heat and continue to cook for a further 10 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the onion has softened but hasn’t taken on any colour.
Add the chickpeas to the pan, and allow to cook very gently for 8–10 minutes so that they take on the bacon and onion flavours. Towards the end of cooking, stir in a little of the reserved liquid from the chickpea tin, to loosen the mixture.
Using a fork or a potato masher, gently crush the chickpeas in the pan to form a coarse purée, leaving some whole. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Take off the heat and stir in the crème fraîche, cheese and half of the chives.
Spoon into a serving dish and scatter the remaining chives on top just before serving.
RICE & APPLE RÖSTIS
These are a tasty twist on a classic potato rösti. Nice and crisp on the outside and soft and full of flavour on the inside, they’re great served simply with fried eggs, or as an accompaniment to almost any roast meat. Try them with tea-brined roast duck, weekend roast chicken or spiced roast rump of lamb.
MAKES 8
100g cashew nuts
200g wild rice, cooked until very tender (this often takes longer than you think – up to an hour)
200g basmati rice, cooked
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and grated
3 tbsp chopped chervil or parsley
½ tsp ground nutmeg
Finely grated zest of 1 small unwaxed orange
60g plain flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
A splash of milk, if necessary
Vegetable oil, for frying
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4. Scatter the cashew nuts on a baking tray and place in the oven for 8–10 minutes until fragrant and lightly toasted. Tip onto on a board and allow to cool. Chop the cashews coarsely and set aside.
Place the wild and basmati rice in a large bowl and add the cashews, grated apple, herbs, nutmeg and orange zest. Season generously with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
Sift the flour over the mixture, then mix thoroughly again. You want to make sure the flour is well distributed throughout the mixture. Add the beaten egg and mix well to bind, adding a splash of milk to loosen the mixture slightly, if necessary.
Divide the mixture into 8 portions and roll into balls. Shape these into little cakes, patting and compressing the mixture with your hands so that the cakes hold their shape. Place on a plate, cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 1 hour to firm up.
You will probably need to cook the röstis in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Heat a glug of oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. When hot, add the röstis and cook for 2–3 minutes on each side, until nicely golden brown and crisp on both sides. Drain on kitchen paper and keep them warm while you cook the rest.
Serve the rice and apple röstis on warmed plates as soon as they are all cooked.
DIRTY RICE
Talk about a big mix of flavours! I use minced pork, smoked bacon, chicken livers and lots of peppers, garlic and spices here, but feel free to change the ingredients as you like. It’s a great accompaniment to barbecued food. Try it with blackened Cajun redfish or dry-rub beef ribs.
SERVES 4–6
250g chicken livers, cleaned and trimmed
Vegetable oil, for frying
200g smoked lardons or diced smoked bacon
250g minced pork
2 celery sticks (tough strings removed with a vegetable peeler), diced
1 onion, diced
1 green pepper, cored, deseeded and diced
1 red pepper, cored, deseeded and diced
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
2 green chillies, chopped (seeds and all)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1 cinnamon stick
200g basmati rice
350ml chicken stock
A small bunch of parsley, tough stems removed, leaves chopped
A few spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
Salt
First cook the chicken livers. Heat a splash of oil in a large, non-stick saucepan over a high heat. Once it is hot, add the chicken livers and fry quickly, for about 1–2 minutes on each side until they are nicely golden; be careful not to overcook them. Transfer the livers to a plate to cool.
Return the pan to a medium-high heat and add the bacon. Cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until it is crisp and golden brown all over. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pan and set aside on a plate (not the one holding the chicken livers). Make sure you leave all of the cooking fat and juices in the pan.
Tip the minced pork into the pan and fry over a medium-high heat for about 10 minutes, stirring from time to time, until it’s very crispy. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the mince from the pan to the plate with the bacon, again leaving as much fat in the pan as possible. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
Add the celery, onion, peppers, garlic and chillies to the pan and sauté gently for 8–10 minutes, until softened. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, black pepper and cinnamon stick. Heat for a further minute, then add the rice and stir to coat.
Return the pork and bacon to the pan. Pour on the chicken stock, whack up the heat and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook gently for about 15 minutes, until the stock has been absorbed and the rice is cooked through.
Meanwhile, coarsely chop the chicken livers. When the rice is ready, gently stir through the chopped livers, parsley and spring onions. Taste and season with a little salt if necessary. Pile the rice into a warmed serving dish and serve at once.
TOMATO & BROWN RICE
This is a very versatile rice dish, which goes with so many things. Enjoy it hot with grilled fish, roasts or slow-cooked meats, or cold, dressed in a little good olive oil and vinegar or lemon juice. Hot or cold, you can add other vegetables as you wish – peas, asparagus, roasted peppers, spring onions are all good, but I’m sure you’ll come up with your own favourites too.
SERVES 4–6
Vegetable oil, for cooking
250g smoked streaky bacon, cut into lardons
1 large onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
½ tsp dried sage
½ tsp dried thyme
1 chicken stock cube
250g long-grain brown rice
1 tsp tomato purée
½ tsp cayenne pepper
150ml water
400g tin chopped tomatoes
75g sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 ball of mozzarella, about 125g, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat a drizzle of oil in a large, deep non-stick sauté pan or saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the bacon and sauté for about 4–5 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.
Lower the heat and add the onion and garlic. Cook gently, stirring from time to time, until the onion has softened but not taken on any colour; this will take around 10–15 minutes.
Add the sage and thyme, then crumble in the stock cube. Stir in the brown rice, making sure it’s well coated in all of the seasonings. Add the tomato purée and cayenne pepper and continue to cook for another minute or two. Pour in the water and tip in the tinned tomatoes.
Increase the heat and bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 15–20 minutes until all of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender. You may need to cook it for a further few minutes depending on the rice – be guided by the packet instructions. You want the rice still to have a slight bite to it, and a lovely, nutty flavour.
Remove from the heat, then add the sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella and fork through, so the cheese starts to melt into the rice. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
CHEESY POLENTA DOUGHNUTS
These tasty little savoury doughnuts make a great starter or snack, or you can serve them as an accompaniment to fried fish dishes, such as seared sea bass with roasted pepper salsa or sunflower seed crusted sea trout. I use a mixture of beer and buttermilk to bind the batter, but you could just use one or the other if you like.
SERVES 6–8
300g fine polenta
100g self-raising flour
100g Parmesan cheese, finely grated
A bunch of chives, finely chopped
1 tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
150ml buttermilk
150ml beer (I like to use a wheat beer)
1 egg, lightly beaten
Vegetable oil, for frying
Flaky sea salt, to finish
Put the polenta, flour, grated Parmesan, chives, salt and baking powder into a large bowl. Mix to combine, then make a well in the centre.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, beer and egg. Gradually whisk this liquid mix into the dry ingredients to form a batter. Leave to rest at room temperature for about 10–15 minutes.
Heat about a 15cm depth of oil in a deep-fat fryer to 180°C. Or use a large, deep pan, making sure it is no more than a third full as the oil will bubble up ferociously when you add the batter. Use a frying thermometer to check the temperature, if you have one; otherwise drop a cube of dry white bread into the hot oil to test it – if it turns golden brown in just under a minute, the oil is up to temperature. Keep a close eye on it and never leave the pan unattended, even for a minute.
You will need to fry the doughnuts in batches. Don’t overcrowd the pan, and allow the oil to come back up to temperature between batches. Shape the batter into quenelles (neat ovals) by passing each large spoonful between two tablespoons and then carefully lower into the hot oil. Cook for 3–4 minutes, turning as necessary, until the doughnuts are golden brown and deliciously crisp.
Remove the doughnuts from the oil using a slotted spoon and drain on a plate or tray lined with kitchen paper. Scatter with a little flaky sea salt and serve immediately.
MAC & CHEESE
Is there anything more satisfying than macaroni cheese? In my version, I use four different cheeses – Cheddar for its strength of flavour, Gruyère for its elasticity, mozzarella for its texture and Parmesan for crunch! Serve it with everything from roasts to burgers, or on its own with a crisp salad.
SERVES 4–6
500g dried macaroni
For the cheese sauce
500ml whole milk
A bunch of rosemary, tied with kitchen string
2 bay leaves
35g butter, plus extra for greasing the dish
35g plain flour
1 tbsp English mustard powder
1 tsp ground mace
150g strong Cheddar cheese, grated
100g Gruyère cheese, grated
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
1 ball of buffalo mozzarella, about 125g, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the topping
100g fresh breadcrumbs
100g Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 tsp smoked paprika
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4. Lightly butter an ovenproof dish, about 30 x 25cm and 7cm deep.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook the macaroni for 8–10 minutes until al dente (cooked but still with a bite), especially as it will be going into the oven. Drain in a colander, run briefly under cold water and set aside.
To make the cheese sauce, put the milk, rosemary and bay leaves into a medium saucepan and slowly bring to a simmer. As soon as it begins to bubble, remove from the heat and set aside to infuse for 15 minutes. Pour the infused milk through a sieve over a jug to strain out the herbs.
Melt the butter in a separate, large saucepan over a medium-low heat. Once it stops foaming, reduce the heat slightly and add the flour, mustard powder and mace. Cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring continuously, to cook out the flour.
Slowly pour in the infused milk, a little at a time, whisking constantly to keep the sauce smooth. Simmer gently for a few minutes, stirring all the time, until thickened. Lower the heat and add the Cheddar and Gruyère, and the garlic. Stir until the cheese has melted, then season well with salt and pepper.
Remove from the heat and add the cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce, stirring to coat it evenly. Fold in the mozzarella then pour into the prepared ovenproof dish.
For the topping, mix the breadcrumbs, Parmesan and smoked paprika together in a bowl. Scatter over the macaroni cheese and place the dish on a baking tray.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, until the topping is golden brown, crisp and bubbling. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
STUFFED GREEN PEPPERS
I like to serve these as an accompaniment to a barbecue, or as part of any sort of help-yourself feast. In this recipe, I stuff the peppers with minced beef but you can replace that with any other minced meat, or with cooked rice or diced mushrooms for a vegetarian dish.
SERVES 6
6 large green peppers
750g minced beef
150g butter
2 large onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
300g strong Cheddar cheese, grated
150g fresh breadcrumbs
3 eggs, lightly beaten
4 tbsp Bovril
2 tbsp chopped oregano leaves
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
To prepare the peppers, stand one upright on a board and cut about 1cm off the top, then use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and membrane. Repeat with the rest of the peppers. Give the inside of the peppers a quick rinse under the cold tap to dislodge any stray seeds.
Heat a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat, then add the minced beef, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Dry-fry for about 25 minutes, stirring frequently, until it is well browned and crispy. Tip the mince into a colander to drain off the excess fat, then transfer to a large bowl and set aside. Wipe the pan clean with kitchen paper.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4.
Return the pan to a medium-low heat and add the butter. Once it’s stopped foaming, add the onions and garlic and cook gently for about 12–15 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the onions are softened and translucent. Remove from the heat and add to the bowl with the beef.
Once the onions have cooled slightly, stir in three-quarters of the cheese, three-quarters of the breadcrumbs, the eggs, Bovril and oregano. Mix well to combine. Taste, then season with salt and pepper.
Spoon the stuffing mixture into the peppers, dividing it evenly. Stand them in an ovenproof dish – one that will hold them snugly, so they can stand upright. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs and drizzle over a little olive oil.
Cover the dish tightly with foil. Bake the stuffed peppers for 40 minutes, then remove the foil and return to the oven for a further 15–20 minutes until the tops are browned and crunchy. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.
SOY-BRINED MUSHROOMS
These mushrooms are brilliant to have on standby in the fridge. The dark soy really enhances and deepens their naturally earthy, savoury flavour. They add body and substance to salads, perk up casseroles and are delicious chopped up and stirred into risottos. They’re also lovely eaten just on their own, as a snack. I like to add them to a deep-pan meat feast pizza and one-pot ham, sausage and prawn rice, or serve them as an accompaniment to my beef and beer loaf.
MAKES ABOUT 1.5kg
1kg portobellini or chestnut mushrooms
Vegetable oil, for cooking
4 garlic cloves, peeled and bashed slightly
3 banana shallots, thinly sliced
For the soy brine
1 litre water
250ml dark soy sauce
200ml white wine vinegar
100g caster sugar
100g dried ceps or porcini
3 star anise
3 bay leaves
1 stick of liquorice root (available from health food shops or online)
A small bunch of thyme, tied with kitchen string
To prepare the mushrooms, gently twist the stems of any larger mushrooms to release them and discard; leave smaller ones intact. Halve the mushrooms or thickly slice them.
Heat a large, non-stick frying pan over a high heat and add a dash of oil. Once hot, sear the fresh mushrooms in batches for a minute or two – you want them to keep their shape and texture so don’t cook them for too long or heat them all the way through. Remove the mushrooms from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside while you prepare the soy brine.
Put the water, soy sauce, wine vinegar and sugar into a large saucepan and heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then bring to the boil. Drop in the dried mushrooms, star anise, bay leaves, liquorice root and thyme. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 4–5 minutes.
Take off the heat and stir in the bashed garlic cloves, sliced shallots and fried mushrooms. Leave to cool.
Once cooled, transfer to sterilised jars and store in the fridge until ready to use. The mushrooms will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks.
Pickled Carrots with Orange & Cardamom >
PICKLED CARROTS WITH ORANGE & CARDAMOM
These pickled carrots are awesome! Crisp and crunchy with a fragrant citrus kick from the orange zest, I often eat them on their own, but they’re a really good addition to other dishes too. I like them as an accompaniment to buffalo chicken wings, pulled pork shoulder, and blackened Cajun redfish. Essentially, they add an extra dimension to spicy or rich dishes.
MAKES ABOUT 1kg
6 large carrots
3 banana shallots
30g flaky sea salt
30g caster sugar
For the pickling liquor
250ml water
250ml cider vinegar
150g demerara sugar
2 lime leaves
Finely pared zest of 1 unwaxed orange, peeled in strips with a vegetable peeler
1 tsp cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 star anise
Peel the carrots and slice lengthways on an angle, into 3mm thick slices. Peel and slice the banana shallots in the same way and tip both into a large bowl. Sprinkle with the salt and sugar and mix together well. Leave to stand for about 10 minutes.
Tip the carrots and shallots into a colander and rinse them briefly under cold running water to remove the salt. Shake well to dry and then transfer to a clean, large bowl.
For the pickling liquor, pour the water and cider vinegar into a medium saucepan. Add the demerara sugar, lime leaves, orange zest, cardamom pods, peppercorns and star anise. Place over a medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and bring to the boil.
Immediately pour the hot pickling liquor over the carrots and shallots. Cover with cling film and set aside to cool.
Once cooled, transfer the carrots, shallots and pickling liquor to cold, sterilised jars and refrigerate for at least 3 days before eating so all the lovely flavours develop and intensify. The pickle will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks.
PICKLED CELERY STALKS
I’m a massive fan of celery. There’s so much more to it than something you chop up and use as the base for a soup or stew. Sometimes I like to make it the main event, to take advantage of its lovely floral, botanical flavours. These pickled celery stalks are great simply served with cheese or as a big part of a salad, but they also act as a foil to rich stews or slow-cooked barbecue meats. Try them with dry-rub beef ribs. You’ll need to prepare this dish 2 to 3 days before you want to eat it, but it’ll keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.
MAKES ABOUT 750g
1 head of celery
For the pickling liquor
350ml water
150ml white wine vinegar
175g caster sugar
20g salt
2 garlic cloves, skin on and lightly crushed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 star anise
½ tsp cardamom pods, lightly crushed
Finely pared zest of 1 small unwaxed lemon, peeled in strips with a vegetable peeler
To prepare the celery, cut off the root and separate the sticks. Rinse them under the cold tap, then run a vegetable peeler over each one to get rid of the tough outer strings. Cut the sticks into lengths that will fit upright in the jar(s) you’re going to pickle them in. Place them in a large bowl.
To prepare the pickling liquor, put the water into a medium saucepan and add all of the remaining ingredients, except the lemon zest. Heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar and salt. Bring to a rolling boil, lower the heat and simmer for 3–4 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the pickling liquor through a fine sieve onto the celery.
Add the strips of lemon zest to the bowl, along with a few of the aromatics from the pickling liquor – a bay leaf, a star anise, a few peppercorns, a couple of cardamom pods and a pinch of fennel seeds should do it. Cover the bowl with cling film and set aside to cool.
Once cool, transfer the celery pickle to cold, sterilised jars and refrigerate for at least 2 days before serving. It will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks.
WHOLE ROAST GARLIC
This is such a simple way of cooking garlic – if you haven’t tried it before, the rich, mellow and slightly sweet flavour of roasted garlic is near addictive. You can serve it as a simple side dish with steaks or roasts, or scoop out the flesh from the skins and beat it into butter or cream cheese, or fold through pasta or bake in a bread dough. Roasted garlic is so versatile, I’m sure you’ll find lots of uses for it.
SERVES 6
6 whole garlic bulbs
½ bunch of flat-leaf parsley, stalks only
½ tsp ground mace
2 tsp flaky sea salt
A bunch of thyme
200ml olive oil
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4.
Cut the garlic bulbs in half horizontally, through their equator. Line a small roasting tray with foil and scatter the parsley stalks over the base. Sit the garlic halves on top, cut sides facing upwards, and sprinkle with the mace and salt. Scatter over the thyme sprigs and drizzle with the olive oil.
Place another sheet of foil on top and scrunch the edges together all around to make a well-sealed parcel. Bake for 40 minutes, until the garlic is softened. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly.
Serve the garlic halves hot, as they are, or scoop out the flesh and use in savoury butters, sauces and breads.
You can also push the soft garlic cloves out of the skin into a cold, sterilised jar and pour over some olive oil to cover, then seal and store in the fridge for up to a week.