The Recycled Cook

The Recycled Cook Chicken Tikka Masala Curry Well if there is one dish that lends itself perfectly to left-over food it is a curry. Today I am making a Chicken Tikka Masala curry, although the chicken should strictly be baked in a traditional Tandoor clay oven. First of all roast off the chicken in the oven, season with salt, black pepper and Garam Masala powder or paste. Frequently Tikka dishes use food colouring but I prefer to keep the chicken looking natural looking but  if you prefer, rub with Tikka paste or powder which is readily available. Chop some onion and garlic and while the chicken breasts are roasting (approx, 12 minutes on 200º C (Gas mark 6) cook the onions and garlic over a medium heat in a light cooking oil or until they just start to brown.. Cook the onion first and add the garlic after about 10 minutes or they will catch and burn if added too early. If you have some available, now is the time to add your pe...

Malaysian Beef Rendang Although this is a beef curry the uniquely Malaysian Rendang sauce can be used for making a chicken, fish or even vegetable curry. As Malaysia is a Muslim country, unlike many other South East Asian countries Pork curries are not really an option. Just like the Mussaman curry the first thing to decide is if you are going to make your curry paste from scratch or simply buy it in a jar which I do sometimes when time is prohibitive. To make the paste from scratch you will need 1 brown onion coarsely chopped, 3 long red chillies (Mild), 3 small red chilies (hot) both deseeded and sliced thinly,  2 stems of lemon grass crushed and chopped (or 1 tablespoon of lemon grass paste), 3 garlic cloves crushed and chopped roughly, 2 teaspoons of finely chopped Galangal (or ginger),  2 teaspoons of ground coriander,  2 teaspoons of ground cumin, 1 teaspoon of turmeric and a splash or two of Fish sauce or salt to taste. To make the Rendang paste...