Grow It, Catch It, Cook It

growing

Marjoram

Marjoram is a member of the same genus as Oregano and has a similar flavour but is milder. Like oregano it is easy to grow.

It is an ingredient in ‘Italian Herbs’ and ‘Herbes de Provence’, both popular spice mixes. I use it primarily in pasta sauces and sprinkled over pizzas.

If you are starting a herb garden from scratch this is a good choice. Both the leaves and the flowers are usable and it transplants easily. With Perth’s mild seasons it survives all year round.

Enjoy,

PK

Here are more herbs, spices and ingredients posts.

View recipe: Marjoram
cooking

Welchy’s Wanton Prawn Stack And Salsa
In the spirit of Good Friday and sticking to my parents tradition (and somewhat of my own), I took the opportunity to make something new and exciting. Growing up my brother and I used to dowse fish in tomato sauce or insist the fillets were bread-crumbed just so we could eat it. Dial ahead 12 years and I am finally in a position where I a) enjoy fish and b) can repay my parents by cooking for them … albeit with a little more culinary bravery this time.

The prawns are cooked in a lime sugar syrup, then layered between crunchy golden Wonton sheets and topped with a cucumber, tomato and avocado salsa. The prawns and salsa are fresh, light and sweet and just what you need to offset the richness of the wonton wrappers on each layer. For those that are a little more adventurous, have a go at popping a few chili slices on top as well for that extra punch of flavour.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

Stack
- 18 Wonton sheets
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and diced
- 3cm piece ginger, peeled and diced
- 1/3 cup coriander leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, loosely packed
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 600g prawns, peeled and de-veined
Salsa
- 2 tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 small cucumber, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 small avocado, finely chopped
- 2tsp lime juice
Steps:
1. Add enough oil to the pan to shallow fry, about 2cm deep should do. Heat over medium heat, and cook the wonton sheets 2 at a time for 30 seconds or until golden and puffed. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and continue on with the rest of the sheets until all cooked. Set aside.
2. Add garlic and ginger to the oil. Cook until golden (should be about a minute). Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside. Add the coriander to the oil, cooking for 30 seconds or until crisp. Transfer to the plate with the garlic and ginger.
3. Heat a large pan over high heat. Add the lime juice and brown sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Cook the prawns in batches and stir for 3 minutes or until the prawns change colour. Transfer to a bowl and continue with the batches until all the prawns are cooked.
4. In a bowl, combine the chopped tomato, cucumber, avocado and the 2 teaspoons of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine.
5. To serve, place a wonton sheet on the plate. Place two to three prawns on the sheet, drizzle a spoonful of the tomato mixture and a sprinkle of the garlic and ginger mixture. Continue with another wonton sheet, prawns and tomato and garlic mixture. Finish with a wanton sheet and the tomato mixture, and top with a few slices of chili if you choose. Squeeze a lime over the entire stack for an additional pop of flavour!
I served this with squid rings marinated in a bush spice rub and a garden salad, but with the salsa in the stack this dish would be just as good on its own! Fresh, zingy, zesty and creamy…what more could you want from a dish?! Now to sit back with a glass of wine and the comfort of my family…Enjoy!

Love Welchy.

Here are some seafood posts and more from Welchy:
View recipe: Welchy’s Wanton Prawn Stack And Salsa
cooking

Welchy’s Prawn Stack
In the spirit of Good Friday and sticking to my parents tradition (and somewhat of my own), I took the opportunity to make something new and exciting. Growing up my brother and I used to dowse fish in tomato sauce or insist the fillets were bread-crumbed just so we could eat it. Dial ahead 12 years and I am finally in a position where I a) enjoy fish and b) can repay my parents by cooking for them … albeit with a little more culinary bravery this time.

The prawns are cooked in a lime sugar syrup, then layered between crunchy golden Wanton sheets and topped with a cucumber, tomato and avocado salsa. The prawns and salsa are fresh, light and sweet and just what you need to offset the richness of the wanton wrappers on each layer. For those that are a little more adventurous, have a go at popping a few chili slices on top as well for that extra punch of flavour.

Serves 6

Cooking skill: Beginner/Intermediate cooks

Ingredients:
- 18 Wanton sheets
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and diced
- 3cm piece ginger, peeled and diced
- 1/3 coriander (fresh is best but dried is also fine)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, loosely packed
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 600g prawns, peeled and de-veined
  
  Salsa
- 2 tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 small cucumber, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 small avocado, finely chopped
- 2tsp lime juice
Steps:
1. Add enough oil to the pan to shallow fry, about 2cm deep should do. Heat over medium heat, and cook the wanton sheets 2 at a time for 30 seconds or until golden and puffed. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and continue on with the rest of the sheets until all cooked. Set aside.
2. Add garlic and ginger to the oil. Cook until golden (should be about a minute). Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside. Add the coriander to the oil, cooking for 30 seconds or until crisp. Transfer to the plate with the garlic and ginger.
3. Heat a large pan over high heat. Add the lime juice and brown sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Cook the prawns in batches and stir for 3 minutes or until the prawns change colour. Transfer to a bowl and continue with the batches until all the prawns are cooked.
4. In a bowl, combine the chopped tomato, cucumber, avocado and the 2 teaspoons of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine.
5. To serve, place a wanton sheet on the plate. Place two to three prawns on the sheet, drizzle a spoonful of the tomato mixture and a sprinkle of the garlic and ginger mixture. Continue with another wanton sheet, prawns and tomato and garlic mixture. Finish with a wanton sheet and the tomato mixture, and top with a few slices of chili if you choose. Squeeze a lime over the entire stack for an additional pop of flavour!
I served this with squid rings marinated in a bush spice rub and a garden salad, but with the salsa in the stack this dish would be just as good on its own! Fresh, zingy, zesty and creamy…what more could you want from a dish?! Now to sit back with a glass of wine and the comfort of my family…Enjoy!
View recipe: Welchy’s Prawn Stack
growing

PK’s Working Garden

A working home garden (or kitchen garden) is one where the emphasis is on the growing of herbs, vegetables and fruit. There may also be areas for composting and hopefully a system of natural pest management aka insecticide free bug control.

They can be just as visually appealing as any other type of garden. However, their beauty may be more in the eye of the beholder and the smile on your kid’s face as you hunt for caterpillars together. If it was up to me I would have one giant vegetable garden, a few benches and a hammock :).

Indeed, it is becoming increasingly difficult, much to my wife’s dismay, to see where my kitchen garden stops and the “other” garden starts. For now I am getting away with it :).

There is something uplifting in getting an ingredient straight out of the garden as you cook. It is a great way to briefly slow down the pace set by modern life.

Enjoy,

PK

Here are a few photos:

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View recipe: PK’s Working Garden
growing

Limes
I love cooking with Persian limes (these are a common cultivar in Australia) just as much as I do sharing limes from the tree in my kitchen garden. No one in Perth will turn down the offer of a bag of limes.

Fresh lime juice, zest and leaves are essential to southeast asian cooking so I will always grow them and their Kaffir lime cousins. I believe my friend Ben has a key lime tree that produces lovely yellow fruit for eating and pickling.

There is even a lime tree in my driveway that is constantly being cross pollinated with an adjacent lemon tree. It makes for fruit that are magically different again, thank you bees.

Here is what I have learned about lime trees (in fact most citrus).
1. You can’t over prune them. I keep them low to keep the fruit accessible.
2. Feed them 3 times a year only (this might take some will power) with way more than you think you need of dynamic lifter (blood and bone) and a complete citrus fertiliser. Spread it to the edge of the canopy line, keeping it away from the trunk somewhat and water in well. I don’t bother mixing it into the soil.
3. Water them daily during the hot months.
Oh and it doesn’t hurt to inherit an awesome tree :).

Plant:

Flower:

Fruit:

Enjoy,

PK

To see all the ingredients on the blog click here.

Here are some recipes using limes and more ingredients:
View recipe: Limes
growing

Lime Common
I love cooking with limes (and adding slices of them to Gin and Tonics) just as much as I do sharing limes from the tree in my kitchen garden. No one in Perth will turn down a home grown lime, they are that prized.

There is even a lime tree in my driveway ,that is constantly being cross pollinated with an adjacent lemon tree, that gives a slightly different flavour. Thank you bees :).

Here is what I have learnt about lime trees (in fact most citrus).
1. You can’t over prune them. I love a good hedge and it keeps the fruit accessible.
2. Feed them 3 times a year only (this might take some will power) with way more than you think you need of dynamic lifter (blood and bone) and a complete citrus fertiliser. Spread it to the edge of the canopy line, keep it away a bit from the trunk and water in well. I don’t bother mixing it into the soil.
3. Water them daily during the hot months. Just like on a Passionfruit vine, outwardly nice looking fruit might be dry inside if you don’t. Worse still, you might get lots of flowers that then drop off and this is heart breaking to watch.
4. Pee on surrounding soil (some wives’ tales are true) for soil acidity.
5. Keep the soil slightly acidic if the tree is not naturally doing this (dropping leaves and fruit that compost naturally) or the above measures are not doing so. You could use some burnt wood ash if you are still worried but the slowly slowly natural approach is better in my opinion.
Oh and it doesn’t hurt to inherit an awesome tree :).

Enjoy,

PK

Related Links:
- see more lime posts here
- see more citrus posts here
- See citrus preserving ideas here
- go to all ingredients
View recipe: Lime Common
cooking

Make Your Own Herb And Garlic Butter
A really simple chives and parsley flavoured garlic butter that goes well with anything. You can even add some dill to make it the perfect partner with seafood.

Bring together your desired amount of butter or margarine or butter blend and add some:
- parsley
- chives
- dill (optional and great for seafood use)
- thyme
- minced garlic
I bring the butter to room temperature to make it soft and workable. Then I finely chop the rest of the ingredients and fold them in. I then roll it all into a ball shape and pop the mix into the fridge to solidify.

Enjoy,

PK

Here are more ways to use butter and ingredients posts.
View recipe: Make Your Own Herb And Garlic Butter
cooking

PK’s NoRecipe Garlic Butter
A really simple chives and parsley flavoured garlic butter that goes well with anything. You can even add some dill to make it the perfect partner with seafood without fear of it taking over in the taste department. I suppose it would probably keep for a while in the fridge but I have only ever made enough to use straight away.

Bring together your desired amount of butter or margarine or butter blend and add:
- parsley
- chives
- dill (optional and great for seafood use)
- thyme or lemon thyme
- minced garlic
I bring the butter to room temperature to make it soft and workable. Finely chop the rest of the ingredients and fold them in. I then roll it all into a ball and chill the whole lot again.

Roll and chill (it will last a few days in the fridge):

My usage suggestion:

Enjoy,

PK

I like making infused butters and here are some other butter posts.
View recipe: PK’s NoRecipe Garlic Butter
growing

PK’s Worm Farms

Although this is my first ever worm farm, I am already hooked and singing their virtues.
View recipe: PK’s Worm Farms
cooking

Easy Chicken Katsu Udon
Chicken Katsu Udon is an amazingly versatile dish, perfect for snacks, sides or a main meaIs. At is simplest it consists of a bowl of noodles, vegetables and broth topped with crumbed fried chicken.

It is very easy to make and friends of mine have even made it on a camping trip.

This recipe will feed two adults for lunch. Add more noodles, chicken, vegetables and broth to bulk it up for dinner.

You will be:
1. Preparing the chicken.
2. Frying the onion toppings.
3. Preparing the other vegetables.
4. Cooking the noodle broth and crumbed chicken
5. Serving.
You will need:
- Ingredients
  
  1 large chicken breast, butterflied
  
  Ground rock salt, to taste
  
  Ground black pepper corns, to taste
  
  White flour, enough to coat the chicken breast
  
  Panko bread crumbs, enough to coat the chicken breast
  
  1 egg, beaten egg
  
  1 brown onion, sliced
  
  1 cup Asian greens e.g. bok choy leaves and stems
  
  1 small handful torn coriander (cilantro) leaves
  
  1 packet of soft Udon noodles
  
  4 cups home-made chicken stock
  
  Olive oil and/or chili oil, enough to cover the base of the pan to half the depth of the chicken breast and a splash for frying the onions
  
  A handful of sliced shitake or enoki mushrooms
- Equipment
  
  several chopping boards
  
  a long sharp knife
  
  a rolling pin or meat tenderiser
  
  two large plates
  
  one medium sized bowl for coating the chicken breasts
  
  a medium sized saucepan for the broth and noodles
  
  a deep frypan for shallow frying the crumbed chicken
  
  paper towel to absorb excess oil
  
  deep bowls for serving
  
  tongs for cooking the chicken in the oil
  
  tongs for adding the hot noodles to the serving bowls
Preparing the chicken
1. Take your chicken breast and butterfly it. I completely separate the halves at this stage, place them on a chopping board and bash the stuffing out of them using a rolling pin. This makes them really tender and easier to cook through without burning the outside crumb coating. This dish also works really well with chicken tenderloins (these are the pectoralis minor of a chicken and they don’t need tenderising).
2. Salt and pepper them to taste and then successively coat them in flour, dip them in the egg and roll them in the panko crumbs.
3. Refrigerate them for 30 minutes or as long as it takes you to prepare the rest of the dish.
Fry the onions
1. Thinly slice the 1 brown onion.
2. Heat the oil in your deep fry pan.
3. Add the onions and crisp them up, moving them continuously.
4. Pop them into the fridge after soaking up excess oil with paper towel.
5. Clean the fry pan with some paper towel so you get rid of any burnt onion bits.
Prepare the vegetables
1. Roughly chop your Asian greens and other vegetables of choice. No need to cook the greens as they will quickly steam as you add them to the hot broth at serving time.
2. Tear the coriander leaves to make a nice garnish.
3. Hot Tip – Bring the crumbed chicken breasts out of the fridge at this point and allow them to return to room temperature. This will allow you to cook them golden brown on the outside and avoid a raw center.
Cook the noodle broth and crumbed chicken

You are going to have to keep an eye on two processes here. Sorry 🙂
1. Add the stock and noodles to the saucepan.
2. Heat the oil in the deep frypan so it is lightly bubbling.
3. While you are lightly frying the chicken, slowly bring the noodle broth to the boil.
4. When golden brown on both sides, remove the chicken from the oil and pat dry with paper towel.
5. Slice the chicken.
The panko crumbs are so light that I prefer a longer slower fry:

Cooking the noodles in the broth as it comes to the boil:

The sliced chicken:

Serving
1. Add the desired amount of noodles to each bowl using tongs.
2. Add the desired amount of greens and vegetables to each bowl.
3. I add the slices of mushroom now.
4. Pour in the desired amount of broth to each bowl.
5. Top with some of the torn coriander and the fried onions.
Happy slurping,

PK

Here are more soup recipes and Japanese cuisine posts:
View recipe: Easy Chicken Katsu Udon