Hugh's Pot Roast Poultry

By Helen
Main Ingredients:

• Guinea fowl
• Chorizo
• Butter beans
• Butternut squash

First things first: this recipe was actually for pheasant but I still live in East London and am largely reliant on Tesco.

While staring at the supermarket shelves the guinea fowl seemed about the right size - and I have to admit that cutting each one in half and plonking on a plate was a lot easier than carving a chicken for four (surely the worst bit of the usual roast?)

The birds were browned on each side in a frying pan and pot-roasted with onions, thyme, garlic, wine, chicken stock, a tin of butter beans and half a chorizo. Today was Hugh-inspired from start to finish as I accompanied the birds with mashy squash (with sage and garlic) and buttery greens. Plus the carrier bag of greengages I was given by my parents at the weekend was turned into a clafoutis - basically a sweet toad-in-the-hole where the halved fruits were baked in a batter of flour, eggs, milk and sugar til it was set.

I hate to say it but to me the meat didn't taste that different to chicken, although I very much approve of the way it was cooked. The chorizo was rich and sweet and the beans absorbed lovely cooking juices and mashed into the gravy nicely. Plus the pudding was a surprise hit too - even plum-phobic Chris enjoyed the custardy, sweet, tart-without-pastry effect.

At £3.16 a head it wasn't the cheapest meal but definitely worth trying - all in all a different take on a roast chicken which felt like a real treat.

Taken from... Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - River Cottage Every Day
Best for... Treating some good friends who have moved out of the city
Chris says... Very nice and rich, but I wouldn't have noticed if it was chicken instead...

Jamie's Steak Indian Style with Paneer and Spinach Salad

By Chris
Main Ingredients:

• 900g Rump steak
• 200g Baby spinach
• 200g Paneer Cheese
• Curry paste, yoghurt, coriander and grated carrot

This recipe was something of a throwback, harking to our first ever New Food Monday, as a Jamie recipe that did clever things with steak. Like the Rib Eye Steak and Dan Dan Noodles, this recipe was full of flavour and exciting sides. Unlike the previous recipe, it massively overestimated the amount of steak you would need. I had to check and double check the amount - 900g of steak between four? Really?! 

Incredulity aside, I ploughed on with what turned out to be a very straightforward recipe. The steak was marinated quickly in oil, the juice of half a lemon and a quarter of a jar of curry paste, for an Indian kick. After a quick soak, they were fried in a pan for six minutes, turned regularly, then left to rest on a board.

Eschewing the traditional accompaniment of rice, two shop-bought naan breads were baked to fulfil the role of carbs, while a herby selection of sides was knocked together as part of Jamie's classic spread of dishes that you could assemble according to your tastes.

On one hand, there was Greek yoghurt, mixed with the other half of the lemon, shredded mint leaves and oil. At the other end of the scale, there was another quarter jar of curry paste, simmered with coconut milk. To top it off, we had a light salad of baby spinach, shredded carrot, coriander and cress, with Paneer cheese fried with sesame seeds.

Overall, this made for a very satisfying, simple and quick meal, which more than lived up to the 30-minute meal manifesto. However, my one reservation is the overcatering in terms of meat, which could have been easily scaled back and brought the price per head below the slightly eye watering £4.25.

Best for... A light low-carb treat on a Friday night in with a movie.

Taken from... Jamie Oliver - 30 Minute Meals

Helen says... Delicious, messy, rich, herby - we polished our plates with the last of the naan!

Hugh's Overnight Home Cured Bacon Chops

By Chris

Main Ingredients:

• 4x Pork chops
• Carrots, butternut squash and potatoes
• Leeks and cabbage
• Salt, pepper, sugar, juniper berries and bay leaves

This is the first recipe in a while that I got properly excited about and it turned out to be one of the best yet. As an avid fan of bacon, the name of this recipe jumped out at me as a challenge that had to be accepted and, overnight curing aside, this was quite straightforward.

Four normal pork chops were cured in a mixture that was 2/3 salt and 1/3 sugar. Shredded bay leaves, crushed juniper berries and ground black pepper was added for a bit of variety, but little of that was noticeable at the end. After roughly 24 hours in the fridge, the salt had drawn much of moisture out of the chops and it was washed off.

The chops were then grilled for six minutes on each side and served with three-root mash and some lovely buttery greens, as suggested. I was initially worried that the chops would be too dry without gravy, and bought a jar of wholegrain mustard to accompany the chops. We didn't even open it, and I'm a massive fan of mustard.

This has to go down as one of the tastiest and most satisfying meals I've done so far, with the tangy, salty pork being perfectly complimented by the sweet mash, which was topped with nutmeg (a seemingly left-field suggestion, which really paid off). 

At £2.36 a head, this was very reasonable, and I'd say you can leave out the juniper berries if you don't already have them and you won't miss much. 

If you've got the time to do it, I definitely recommend giving this a try - Like bacon? You'll love this!

Best for... Bacon lovers who are willing to try something a little different.

Taken from... Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - River Cottage Every Day

Helen says... Really tasty, not too fussy and worth all the effort

Hugh's Roast Chicken with Pearl Barley

By Helen
Main Ingredients:

• Whole chicken (obvs)
• Pearl barley (natch)
• Dried apricots
• Onion and garlic

Pudding month over and one of my least-new New Food Mondays so far.

My former housemates will tell you I'm no stranger to a roast chicken, but I don't usually bother with stuffing since it makes the whole thing take even longer and I'm not a fan of the slightly slimy sage and onion variety.

This recipe appealed as Hugh claimed that the barley, gently simmered with the onions, garlic, cumin and carraway in chicken stock would turn into a lovely risotto which would mean no need for potatoes, and which would seem all the more special once I stirred in chopped dried apricots, walnuts, parsley and lemon.

Unfortunately as Josh (...and Chris and Rowena and Andy) will tell you, I am also no stranger to kitchen clumsiness, and I managed to utterly ruin the first batch of stuffing by grinding pepper a little too enthusiastically and accidentally emptying a whole tub of peppercorns into the lovely mixture. Once that was binned I could move onto attempt two - which may have been a little less carefully prepared but still had a really good mix of flavours - sweet apricots, warming spices and sharp lemon.

As promised, the mixture (once stuffed) absorbed chickeny juices and swelled up into an arancini/porridge consistency which prompted even the most traditional eater at the table to go back for 'more of that cereal stuff'.

Overall a lighter, summerier stuffing than usual which will make a good packed lunch with the last of the chicken this week. Cost: only £2.30 a head, including three vegetables and a free-range chicken.

Tastiness: 3/5
Easiness: 2/5
Value for Money: 3/5
Feelgood Factor: 4/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Best for...Making a chicken go a long way without feeling cheated
Taken from...Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - River Cottage Every Day
Chris says...Nothing (away on business)