Citrus Mexican Rice

The classic combination of lime, fresh coriander (cilantro) and tomatoes conjures up memories of my time in Mexico, every beachside bar or cafe seems to have their own speciality based around these key ingredients. Often served as a side to fresh fish barbequed whole with the sun beating down and a tequila cocktail not too far away!

This can work equally well with or without the chicken, if making a vegetarian version I would suggest adding some stock to the cooking water with the rice to boost the flavour.

A great accompaniment to meat or fish also as a side to burritos or enchiladas.

Serves 2

100g brown rice

1 Chicken Breast (optional)

1 Onion (sliced)

1 Avocado (peeled and sliced)

A Few Cherry Tomatoes

Lime juice (either fresh or from a bottle)

A small bunch of Fresh Coriander (chopped)

1 Tbsp Rapeseed (Canola) Oil

Salt and Black Pepper

Put the rice on to cook by placing in a saucepan with enough water to cover and salt to taste. Brown rice can take up to 40 minutes to cook so do this before any preparation to save time.

Next slice the chicken breast into strips and fry on a moderate heat in a small amount of rapeseed oil to seal and give some colour and caramelised taste, remove from the pan and keep to one side.

Reduce the heat and scrape any caramelised residue off the base of the pan to prevent burning, sauté the sliced onion, you may need a little more oil at this stage . Keep the temperature low and allow the onion to sweat.

Meanwhile halve the tomatoes and peel and slice the avocado, dowse the avocado with the lime juice as soon as possible after removing the skin to prevent browning.

Chop the coriander, retain a few attractive leaves as a garnish but the remainder including the stalks can be chopped and used in the dish.

When the onion is translucent, return the chicken to the pan along with the tomatoes and stir to heat through.

Season to taste with salt and pepper and mix in the rice and the chopped coriander stalks.

At the last minute, add the avocado and stir through.

Garnish with the fresh coriander leaves and serve.

Spicy Spanish Butter Beans

Spanish cuisine makes great use of beans in either their fresh or dried state and is often combined with tomatoes and either chilli or paprika. Here is a chilli version of a classic peasant tapas dish, any colour peppers can be added, as could sweetcorn, courgette, aubergine....experiment with whatever you have available. If you prefer a milder version just substitute the chilli for paprika. 

Most supermarkets now have tetra carton packs of tomatoes with onion, herbs, chilli and other combinations. I find these very useful and tasty; a real time saver not just with preparation but a far greater depth of flavour can be achieved in a fraction of the cooking time therefore saving money on fuel too.

Serves 2

1 Can Butter Beans, drained (or 100g dried beans soaked overnight)

1 Can Tomatoes

1 Fresh Chilli

 (or a tetra pack with chilli is very good)

1 Green pepper

1 Onion

1 tablespoon of Rapeseed Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

If using dried and soaked beans, a much longer cooking time will be needed.

Allow the beans to cook in the tomato on a low heat. Season and add a little boiling water too to prevent it drying out.

The beans may take up to an hour to become soft.

Start by sautéing the onion in the rapeseed oil on a low heat.

When translucent add the tomato and butter beans, (if the beans are dried follow the instructions above). Continue by adding the green pepper and chilli and allowing to simmer on a low heat for about 20 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper if needed and serve.

Makes a great addition to a selection of tapas or may accompany meat dishes or works equally well with rice and a fresh tomato salad.

Packed with protein and fibre, in combination with the antioxidants from the tomato and peppers this is a real super food!! 

Tuna and Courgette Fettuccine

This is a super quick and tasty supper or lunchtime dish.

Fresh with citrus and chilli yet hearty and satisfying;

Serves 2

200g Fettuccine (dried)

1 small can of Tuna in oil

2 Courgettes (ribboned)

1 Can of plum tomatoes

1 Onion (chopped)

A few chilli flakes

A dash of lemon juice

1 tablespoon of Rapeseed Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese to serve

Start by gently sautéing the onion in the rapeseed oil, on a low heat so that the onion doesn't brown. Then add the can of tomatoes, black pepper and the chilli flakes. Cook gently for 10 minutes or so.

While this cooks, ‘ribbon’ your courgettes.

This is best done with a potato peeler, lay the courgette flat and run the peeler down the length of the courgette to create a ribbon like piece. Repeat as much as possible, the remaining pieces can be finely chopped and added to the tomato sauce.

Speaking of the sauce, if you have a handheld blender then excellent, if however your equipment doesn't stretch that far then a potato masher will work fine. Mash the tomato sauce to achieve as smooth a consistency as possible. Return to the heat but keep it low.

For the pasta, bring a pan of salted water to the boil. With any pasta the most important thing to get right is to use a large enough pan of water. There must be enough room to allow the pasta to move around and for the strands to separate and cook evenly.

    So maybe that ought to read, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.

When the water is boiling add the fettuccine, if it’s too long to fit in the pan, allow one end to soften and then gradually and gently push on the other end so that the pasta bends around the side of the pan. Once submerged, stir to separate the strands and allow it to return to the boil. Lower the heat slightly and simmer until ‘al dente’ or in other words cooked but not too soft and slimey. This will only take about 10-15 minutes.

The only sure fire way to get this right is to taste it periodically until it’s how you like it, with practice you will be better able to gauge it visually but until that time better to err on the side of caution.

While the pasta cooks, add the courgette ribbons and the drained tuna to the pan of tomato sauce along with a good dash of lemon juice. Just allow the courgette to wilt a little and the tuna to warm through, don't overdo it.

Drain the pasta and either swirl the sauce through and place in a serving dish or simply pile up straight on the plates.

Serve with a grating of parmesan cheese and a twist of black pepper.