Uyen Luu’s sticky rice with Chinese sausage
Serves 4
glutinous rice 400g
dried shiitake mushrooms about 3 tbsp
dried shrimps 3 tbsp
cooking oil a dash
Asian shallots 3, chopped
spring onion 1, thinly sliced
lap xuong Chinese sausage 1 (45g), thinly sliced (or use Italian cured sausage)
sugar ½ tsp
pork or vegetable bouillon a pinch
To serve
sliced spring onion, pickled shallots and lotus roots, thinly sliced Vietnamese ham
Put the rice in a bowl, cover with warm water and soak for 1 hour. Put the shiitake mushrooms in a bowl, cover with warm water and soak for 20-30 minutes or until soft. Put the dried shrimps in a bowl, cover with warm water and allow to soak for 10 minutes. When ready, drain the rice, shiitake mushrooms and shrimps and pat them all dry.
Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the shallots and spring onion until softened. Add the sausage, shrimps and mushrooms and fry for 5 minutes. Add this to the rice in a large bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper, sugar and bouillon, and mix.
Get the steamer ready with simmering water. Put the rice mixture in the steamer in a ring shape to allow the steam to rise through the middle. Steam for 30–40 minutes on medium heat, stirring every 10 minutes so that everything cooks evenly. Check there is enough water in the base. Remove from the heat and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Serve hot with the spring onion, pickles and ham.
From My Vietnamese Kitchen by Uyen Luu (Ryland, Peters & Small, £16.99). Click here to buy a copy for £12.99
Andrew Wong’s Hainanese chicken rice
Serves 3
ginger 5 slices
spring onion 1
corn fed chicken 1 (around 1.1kg)
sesame oil to brush
For the chicken poaching liquor
water 3½ litres
Chinese mixed spice 10g
sea salt 80g
sugar 40g
Chinese rice wine 100ml
ginger 2 pieces, bruised with the back of a knife
spring onions 2
For the rice
jasmine rice 500g
poaching liquid 720ml
To serve
ginger and spring onion sesame oil (see recipe below)
smacked cucumber
For the ginger and spring onion sesame oil (makes about 280ml)
fresh root ginger 1 tbsp, peeled and very finely chopped
vegetable oil 225ml
sesame oil 1 tbsp
salt 2 tsp
sugar 1 tsp
spring onion greens 3 tbsp, finely chopped
To make the ginger and spring onion sesame oil, mix all the ingredients except the spring onion greens until well combined. Store in a sterilised airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to a month, adding the spring onion greens to the oil just before serving.
Add all of the poaching liquor ingredients to a saucepan large enough to hold your chicken. Bring to a gentle simmer for 15 minutes and then leave to cool.
Stuff ginger and spring onion into the chicken cavity. Lower the chicken into the poaching liquor for 10 seconds then remove and wait for the stock to come back to the boil, then lower it again for another 10 seconds. Repeat this process 5 times, then turn off the heat, cover with a lid and leave for 30 minutes.
Turn the chicken over, bring the stock back to the boil, then turn off the heat and leave covered for another 20 minutes. Using a meat thermometer, check that the chicken’s internal temperature has reached 75C. If it hasn’t, return it to the boiling stock for another 5 minutes. Remove chicken and place in ice water for 15 minutes. Remove and brush with sesame oil before setting aside. Chill for 2 hours before cutting.
For the rice, follow the settings on your rice cooker, using the chicken poaching liquor and chicken fat instead of water. Cook the rice until it is light and fluffy. If you don’t have a rice cooker wash the rice under cold water until it runs clear. Add the stock and bring to the boil. Turn the heat to low, cover the pan and gently simmer for 15-20 minutes. Remove the pan from the stove and leave to sit for 5 minutes. Using a fork, lightly fluff the rice before serving.
Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces with the bones intact. Serve with the rice, ginger and spring onion sesame oil and smacked cucumber.
Andrew Wong is head chef of A.Wong, 70 Wilton Road, London SW1V 1DE. Click here to buy a copy of A.Wong - the Cookbook (Mitchell Beazley, £25) for £20
Sam and Sam Clark’s roast shoulder of lamb stuffed with saffron rice
Serves 4-6
shoulder of lamb 1, about 1.6-1.8kg, boned and trimmed of most skin and fat
olive oil 3 tbsp
water 75ml
orange-blossom water 4 tbsp or finely-grated zest and juice of 1 orange
For the saffron rice
unsalted butter 80g
cinnamon stick ½
green cardamom pods 5 whole, cracked
black peppercorns 3 whole
basmati rice 200g, washed and soaked in salted water for 3 hours
pistachio nuts 2 tbsp, roughly chopped (optional)
barberries 2 tbsp (optional)
saffron threads 1 good pinch (about 100 threads) infused in 4 tbsp boiling water
To serve
home-made or Greek yoghurt 200g, thinned with 2 tbsp milk, with ½ crushed garlic clove and a good pinch of salt
To make the saffron rice, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium to low heat. Add the cinnamon, cardamom and peppercorns and gently fry the spices until their aromas start to be released (about 4 minutes). Drain the rice well, add it to the butter, and stir to coat for a minute. Turn up the heat to medium to high. If you are using pistachios and/or barberries, stir them in now. Pour enough water over the rice to cover it roughly by 1cm, and season with salt. Rest some greaseproof paper on the surface of the water, then place a lid on the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Lift the lid and paper off the pan and drizzle the saffron water evenly over the rice. Replace the paper and lid. Turn down the heat to medium to low and cook for 4-5 minutes. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 220C/gas mark 7. Place the shoulder, skin-side down, on a board and open out fully. Put half, or as much as will fit, of the saffron rice into all the pockets of the boned lamb, roll up and tie with string. Place a large roasting tray on the hob, over a medium heat, add the olive oil and brown all sides of the lamb until sealed. Season the lamb with salt and pepper, place in the oven and roast for 1-1½ hours or until the meat is pink inside. Remove, transfer the lamb to a board and let it rest for 10 minutes loosely covered with foil.
Meanwhile, make the gravy. Pour off any fat and return the roasting tray to the hob and heat over a medium heat. Add the water and orange-blossom water (or zest and juice) and bring to a gentle simmer, scraping the meat juices off the bottom of the pan. Taste for seasoning, transfer to a small saucepan or bowl and keep hot. Slice the lamb and serve with the orange-blossom gravy over the top, the rest of the saffron rice (warmed) on the side, some braised chard or spinach and a little yoghurt.
From Moro: The Cookbook by Samantha and Samuel Clark (Ebury, £20). Click here to buy a copy for £16
Claudia Roden’s seafood paella
Serves 4
large onion 1, peeled and finely chopped
olive oil 5 tbsp
garlic 2 cloves, peeled and crushed
tomatoes 2 (about 200g), peeled, chopped
sugar ½ tsp
pimentón dulce or sweet paprika 1 tsp
saffron threads a good pinch
squid 4 small, cleaned, the bodies sliced and tentacles left whole
medium-grain Spanish or risotto rice 400g
fish or chicken stock 750ml, plus more if needed
dry white wine 250ml
raw king prawns 12 large, in their shells
mussels or clams 16 or more, cleaned
Fry the onion in the oil in a 40cm paella pan over a low heat until soft, stirring often. Stir in the garlic, and before it begins to colour add the tomatoes. Add salt, the sugar, pimentón or paprika and saffron, stir well, and cook over a medium heat until the tomatoes are reduced to a jammy sauce and the oil sizzles. Add the squid and cook, stirring for a minute or so, then add the rice and stir until all the grains are coated. (You can do all this up to 2 hours in advance – no longer, because of the squid.)
Bring the stock and wine to the boil and pour on the rice, then add salt (the broth can taste a bit salty but it will not be salty when it is absorbed by the rice). Stir well and make sure the rice is evenly distributed in the pan, then do not stir again. Cook the rice over a low heat for 18 to 20 minutes, moving the paella around on the hob so that it cooks evenly. Lay the prawns on top of the rice after 10 minutes and turn them over when they turn pink on the bottom side. Add a little more hot stock towards the end if the rice seems too dry and you hear crackly frying noises from the bottom of the pan before it is done, and cover the pan with a large piece of foil. Steam the mussels in a pan with a tight-fitting lid with a finger’s depth of water. As soon as they open they are cooked. Throw away any that have not opened and arrange the ones that have on top of the rice.
From The Food of Spain by Claudia Roden (Michael Joseph, £30). Click here to buy a copy for £24
David Tanis’s speckled sushi rice with nori
Serves 4-6
sushi rice 400g
dried kombu 5 cm square, rinsed
rice vinegar 3 tbsp
sugar 2 tbsp
salt 1 tsp
mirin 1 tbsp
seedless cucumber 225g (around ½), peeled and cut into thin half-moons
shiso leaves 2 tbsp, snipped
fresh pickled ginger (see below) 1 tbsp, finely chopped
toasted sesame seeds 2 tsp
spring onions 6, thinly slivered
toasted nori sheets to serve
For the fresh pickled ginger (makes around 25g)
sugar 1 tbsp
salt 1 tsp
rice vinegar 3 tbsp
ginger 7½cm piece, peeled, sliced thin
red beet 1 slice (optional, for colour)
For the fresh-pickled ginger, combine the sugar, salt, and vinegar in a small jar and stir to dissolve the sugar and salt. Add the ginger and beet, if using. Make sure the ginger is completely submerged. Leave at room temperature for at least an hour, or up to several hours, before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers.
Wash the rice well and drain. Bring 600ml water to a boil in a small pot, add the rice and kombu, and let simmer for 1 minute. Put on the lid, turn the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the rice from the heat and let rest, covered, for 5 minutes. Transfer the rice to a baking sheet and spread it out so that it cools quickly to room temperature.
While the rice is cooking, combine the rice vinegar, sugar, salt, and mirin in a small saucepan, bring to a simmer, and simmer for 1 minute. Let cool.
Put the rice in a wide shallow bowl. Pour the seasoned vinegar over and fluff gently. Garnish with the cucumber, and sprinkle with the shiso, pickled ginger, sesame seeds, and spring onion. Serve with the toasted nori sheets for making simple hand rolls.
From One Good Dish by David Tanis (Workman, £17.99). Click here to buy a copy for £14.39
