The AFF "Chef's Corner" Thread

[vik351]

Where are all the cooks gone...???

Tagine last night...

A bit of duck fat,chopped celery and onion



Fresh mush, Red capsicum of course...Chop ya chook,thigh fillets...I like breasts (.V.) but not chook breasts,tooo dry...



The Stupid jar says use two table spoons only of green curry paste,did that at first...



Pour in the coconut cream, garlic



Pop the secret to cookin in a tagine lid on



Low heat for long time is the trick...!!!



Taste... Tasted like skata so added more curry paste and Moroccan spice...
no chillie cos SWMBO is sharin the dish...



Better



vik...

[DJM83]

Looks quite nice

[TURBOTAXI]

That looks great - I must get a tagine.

[vik351]

Originally Posted by TURBOTAXI

That looks great - I must get a tagine.

If ya do get one,get a unglazed one

http://www.tagines.com/cat_moroccan_cooking_tagine.cfm

They hold a flavour of what was cooked before,very subtle,but that is part of it...

Where the glazed ones are sterile,might as well use a slow cooker

Muzlim joint,and the bloke told me some tricks,none of the soakin in water caper as some say but coat it all over with olive oil,lid as well

Stick it in a oven,cold,then light oven about 180 for 1/2 an hour and Sahibb your uncle...

Never wash with soap,just hot water...

vik... Better than non stick poison...!!!

[vik351]

On a bed of rice...



Season to taste...



cleans up a treat...



vik...Did the same with this beauty...

[Cam]

Thought I'd revive this thread.. I grew up in the hospitality industry, so I love to cook..

Breaky today...
Breakfast.. Ham & Cheese toasted on 1/2 a roll, the other half of the roll is topped with fried eggs, avocado, smoked salmon and bearnaise sauce!

Presentation fail! Cant believe I didn't wipe the plate, my mum will kick my ***..


Dinner..
Salmon with creamy (philli cheese) pepper sauce, on a bed of vegies, consisting of asparagus, capsicum, sno peas with a side broccolini and potatos!

Sorry for the crappy pic...

Tea for 2..

[TURBOTAXI]

Good stuff Cam! I love the egg based sauces. Did you make the Bernaise from scratch? I have a way of making it that is a cheat but it still tastes GREAT!

Cheese and pepper are a great match.

[Fled74]

A lotta great cooks on the forum - just looking at the photos makes me want to eat something.

Here's my contribution:

Poulet au Porto on a bed of rice


Ratatouille with toasted rye sticks


I thought I'd try a bit of French cooking to add to my repertoire of Italian, English, Spanish, Mexican, Japanese and Filipino dishes.

[gossy]

Nicely cooked egg, but I think that bearnaise is from a packet.

Normally, you would be having Sauce Hollandaise with your brekky as Sauce Bearnaise is a lot stronger in flavour due to fresh tarragon, chervil, pepper and shallots and normally accompanies steak etc.

Hey Fled, where are those pics from?

Don't mind me fellas, just the Chef coming out in me.

Keep up the great work lads and it's good to see home cooked meals with some flair.

[Cam]

Thanks TURBOTAXI, but the Bearnaise is from a packet, I may love to cook, but when looking for a hangover feed I'm not that fussy! hahaha

Yeah, you are spot on gossy, but as above. Whatever I can find in the fridge / cupboard is what I work with! I had the Bearnaise for the Salmon actually, but decided to use it with breaky instead! Hang over feeds are the best... lol

[Spudz27]

Well I do not have pics, but I usually sit in bed and come up with ideas of what to cook, I write them in the book and then experiment.

The other day I cooked chicken breast stuffed with, mozzarella and sun dried tomato, on creamy polenta (with a bit of Parmesan) and a garlic sauce. I am sure some chef has already done this.

My other experiments to be made are, Prawn skewers but the prawns will be marinated in olive oil infused with chilli and saffron.

Then Shark steak topped with king prawns and encased in pastry served on rice with garlic sauce.

Oh and finally I need a food processor so I can make king prawn and scallop balls.

[Spudz27]

Originally Posted by vik351

Roll it out...



Dog gets the cooked crusts

Fresh goods,Ninos pizza sausage...



Paste, fresh Basil,chilli flakes,chilli sauce...





Light touch of Mozza...



Barossa ham, cover the Basil



Start again...



Ninos...



Ready



Chook and ham for SWMBO











vik... : : :

Ahh there is nothing nicer than the aroma of a freshly made pizza base as it cooks in the oven. I always make my own dough. My pizzas are not that extravagant but. Usually just chicken, bacon, pineapple, mushroom, olives and jalapenos.

[rubber fire]

love this thread as not being that good a cook more chief tucker f**ker upera
your recipes give me some more interesting things to try an not the borring
same old stuff keep it coming dudes

[DJM83]

Originally Posted by Cam

Thought I'd revive this thread.. I grew up in the hospitality industry, so I love to cook..
Dinner..
Salmon with creamy (philli cheese) pepper sauce, on a bed of vegies, consisting of asparagus, capsicum, sno peas with a side broccolini and potatos!

Sorry for the crappy pic...

Tea for 2..

Thats looks sensational Cam.

[Cam]

Cheers Dallas. Although, I must say my kids are on a pretty good wicket

[DJM83]

Originally Posted by Cam

Cheers Dallas. Although, I must say my kids are on a pretty good wicket

Looks like it mate, i havnt had a good bit of salmon for ages.

[Peuty]

So, whens dinner night next Cam??? That grub looks delish

[Fled74]

Originally Posted by gossy

Hey Fled, where are those pics from?

Hi gossy, I took the photos myself. Nothing special, just an 8MP point-and-shoot Canon IXUS 8015, and I sharpened the detail in Photoshop.
Natural light is best when it comes to food photography.

[gossy]

Is that your watermark in the Poulet photo?

[XR6_661]

Cooked up a good feed last night. Once again no pics…But it’s easy enough.

Made a nice beef salad.

Go to woollies and grab you favourite pre-made salad…I opted for some asian type one or something?

Get yourself some fresh garlic and chilli.

Alrighty, now get a bowl and throw some finely diced up chilli and garlic into it (leave the chilli seeds in). Throw in a good bit of extra virgin olive oil and a dash of lemon juice…Mix it around for a bit, put it in the fridge and leave it for a while.

Once it’s been left for a while…Grab out some steak…I went for just run of the mill rump from the supermarket. Throw them in some kind of a dish and lather them in the garlic and chilli mix…Chuck heaps of freshly cracked pepper on them too for good measure…
Now let them marinade for ages.

Next up, once the steak has marinaded, grab out your salad and prepare that…I chopped up some capsicum and some onion oh and coriander to go with it. Mix it all together then with the remainder of the garlic and chilli mix, throw that onto the salad and mix in…

Cook the steaks to your liking now and then slice/dice up, throw into the salad and toss it all around.

Serve either just as a salad or in a wrap (toasted wrap of course)

The trick of this recipe is to not be shy with the chilli and the garlic, as the way I see it, that’s what gives the flavour to this dish.

[Fled74]

Originally Posted by gossy

Is that your watermark in the Poulet photo?

Yep, it's mine. I took several snaps and just chose the best-looking ones to "beautify" in Photoshop. Nothing beats a digital darkroom to make your work look professional.

I've been cooking for years - ever since I was 12.
I did the chef thing for a while, but I realised that I'd rather cook to relax than do it for a living.
My wife got the Julia Child cookbook "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" which is a brilliant reference for every cook wanting to broaden their knowledge.

If the mods have no objections, I'd like to post scans of the recipes for the 2 dishes above.

[Iggypoppin']

Post away, I'm no mod but recipes in here is what we want!!
Helps expand our horizons, culinarily speaking.

[micky4433]

gday all, im a qualified chef, having been in the trade for 16 years now. from the pics / recipes ive seen within this thread, they all look / sound awesome. its good to see that people are adding thier own ingredients / flair to different dishes. if anyone would like any recipes / advice / tips & tricks etc, feel free to ask as im more than happy to pass on my knowledge. always remember that there are 1001 ways of making the same dish and there really is no right or wrong. here a couple of sauce recipes that i have used for many years, never fail & always recieve compliments on.

Mushroom sauce
mushrooms / butter / white wine / gravy / salt & pepper (white) / cream
cut muchrooms into wedges, lightly sweat ( cook without colouring) in butter. deglaze pan with white wine, add a small amount of gravy, add cream, mix & reduce till sauce coats back of spoon. season to taste ( salt & pepper )

Pepper Sauce
gravy, cream, tobasco, brandy, green peppercorns, cracked black peppercorns,ground white pepper, salt.

add gravy & peppers into pot,, bring to boil slowly. add brandy, tobasco, cream & salt. reduce til lcovers back of spoon. season to taste.

enjoy
mick

[zdcol71]

Last night, I attempted to make an egg plant and mushroom side dish to a pasta dish I put together. (Was going to roast it all) Got carried away yacking to the kids and egg plant ended up over cooked,bottom line ,I blended it with mushrooms, bit of fennel, tomato paste, pepper etc, and ended up being the best pasta sauce I have done for a long time

[micky4433]

zdcol71, excellent that you turned the side dish into something else. many things in the kitchen have more than 1 use. its just really one big experiment in the kitchen, mixing different flavours together to come up something new.

[vik351]

Originally Posted by XR6_661

Cooked up a good feed last night. Once again no pics…But it’s easy enough.

Made a nice beef salad.

Go to woollies and grab you favourite pre-made salad…I opted for some asian type one or something?

Get yourself some fresh garlic and chilli.

Alrighty, now get a bowl and throw some finely diced up chilli and garlic into it (leave the chilli seeds in). Throw in a good bit of extra virgin olive oil and a dash of lemon juice…Mix it around for a bit, put it in the fridge and leave it for a while.

Once it’s been left for a while…Grab out some steak…I went for just run of the mill rump from the supermarket. Throw them in some kind of a dish and lather them in the garlic and chilli mix…Chuck heaps of freshly cracked pepper on them too for good measure…
Now let them marinade for ages.

Next up, once the steak has marinaded, grab out your salad and prepare that…I chopped up some capsicum and some onion oh and coriander to go with it. Mix it all together then with the remainder of the garlic and chilli mix, throw that onto the salad and mix in…

Cook the steaks to your liking now and then slice/dice up, throw into the salad and toss it all around.

Serve either just as a salad or in a wrap (toasted wrap of course)

The trick of this recipe is to not be shy with the chilli and the garlic, as the way I see it, that’s what gives the flavour to this dish.

Hmmm...Never been keen on meats in salads,Just dont think it goes together...

Rather cook a rump hot on a plate,coleslaw with beetroot,bit a garlic butter on the meat,cut off a bit of meat put a bit of beet on top,spear that with ya fork then load up the fork with slaw...

Party in your mouth...

And a salad on the side,plenty of rocket,pinkos onions,cherry tomatoes a bag of salad mix,plenty to choose from now.

Thats the way I see it...

vik... Washed down with a good S.A. red...

[vik351]

Originally Posted by micky4433

gday all, im a qualified chef, having been in the trade for 16 years now. from the pics / recipes ive seen within this thread, they all look / sound awesome. its good to see that people are adding thier own ingredients / flair to different dishes. if anyone would like any recipes / advice / tips & tricks etc, feel free to ask as im more than happy to pass on my knowledge. always remember that there are 1001 ways of making the same dish and there really is no right or wrong. here a couple of sauce recipes that i have used for many years, never fail & always recieve compliments on.

Mushroom sauce
mushrooms / butter / white wine / gravy / salt & pepper (white) / cream
cut muchrooms into wedges, lightly sweat ( cook without colouring) in butter. deglaze pan with white wine, add a small amount of gravy, add cream, mix & reduce till sauce coats back of spoon. season to taste ( salt & pepper )

Pepper Sauce
gravy, cream, tobasco, brandy, green peppercorns, cracked black peppercorns,ground white pepper, salt.

add gravy & peppers into pot,, bring to boil slowly. add brandy, tobasco, cream & salt. reduce til lcovers back of spoon. season to taste.

enjoy
mick

Good stuff Mickey...

But when you say gravy

Just a power packet stuff,or as a chef you would have a big pot made...

I found as a quickie this stuff is ok to add to your pan juices etc...



vik...

[micky4433]

yes vik351, just the packet stuff is fine for home use.in a commercial kitchen, it depends on what type of venue youre in as to wether you use a 7.5kg pail of gravy mix (maggi) or if you make it from scratch. if im working in a pub kitchen, ill use the gravy mix but i add bay leaves, red wine, pinch of nut meg & 6 whole black pepercorns to it.thats based on making 20 litres at a time. gravy is known as one of the 5 "mother" sauces, a base to which other sauces are made from. to make a propper jus (gravy), takes 2 days. roast your mirepoix ( roughly cut veg), & beef bones, add to pot with water,whole black peppercorns, bouet garni (parsley sprigs, sprig of thyme, bay leaves, wrapped & tied in leek leaf) bring to boil, simmer for 8 - 12 hours, strain, cool down, remove fat that forms on top, reduce down to a jus. starting with 100% liquid, you end up with only 10% but the taste is amazing.
to produce a similar flavour as jus, in half the amount of time, add a little tomato paste to your standard gravy mix. that is how i make my gravy at home & tastes good.

cheers mick

[micky4433]

just wondering, is there any other qualified chefs, either still @ the stoves or out of the trade on here?

cheers mick

[vik351]

Originally Posted by micky4433

yes vik351, just the packet stuff is fine for home use.in a commercial kitchen, it depends on what type of venue youre in as to wether you use a 7.5kg pail of gravy mix (maggi) or if you make it from scratch. if im working in a pub kitchen, ill use the gravy mix but i add bay leaves, red wine, pinch of nut meg & 6 whole black pepercorns to it.thats based on making 20 litres at a time. gravy is known as one of the 5 "mother" sauces, a base to which other sauces are made from. to make a propper jus (gravy), takes 2 days. roast your mirepoix ( roughly cut veg), & beef bones, add to pot with water,whole black peppercorns, bouet garni (parsley sprigs, sprig of thyme, bay leaves, wrapped & tied in leek leaf) bring to boil, simmer for 8 - 12 hours, strain, cool down, remove fat that forms on top, reduce down to a jus. starting with 100% liquid, you end up with only 10% but the taste is amazing.
to produce a similar flavour as jus, in half the amount of time, add a little tomato paste to your standard gravy mix. that is how i make my gravy at home & tastes good.

cheers mick

I notice you have a bit of a lissp there... jus...

Try sayin it slooowly ... j-u-i-c-e,as in jooooosse...

You'll soon get the hand of it...



vik...