Day 16: The Hamburger

Day 16:
Uruguay 2 South Korea 1
Ghana 2 USA 1

With it origins from Hamburg, Germany but its widespread appeal coming from America there is nothing tastier than cooking up your own burger and of course your own favourite garnish.

A quarter pounder is a little over 100g so a safe bet is to give yourself 100g of mince per burger. Making the burger itself is just a matter of combining everything in the right order. Starting with the mince and the egg yoke, when you add the egg yoke you can straight away feel the change in the texture of the meat as the egg infuses around it.

Day 15: Tortilla de Patatas

Day 15
Portugal 0 Brazil 0
Ivory Coast 3 North Korea 0
Spain 2 Chile 1
Swizerland 0 Hondoras 0

Yet another one of my Tapas recipes for you to enjoy, this Spanish Tortilla recipe is very simple but the most important element to it is having a non-stick frying pan. As you are cooking the egg for long period on a low heat you want to be 100% sure that it will not stick to the pan otherwise you have a disaster on your hands.

This recipe is a perfect lunch/brunch on a weekend or serve with other accompanying tapas recipes.

Day 14: Pepper & Pesto Pasta

Day 14
Slovakia 3 Italy 2
Paraguay 0 New Zealand 0
Netherlands 2 Cameroon 1
Japan 3 Denmark 1

Disaster for the blog.......Italy are out of the World Cup. I was so confident they would get thru that tonight I prepared something Italian that is quick and easy, not one of my more complex meals that I could of done. Ah well, at least Japan are thru....food wise that is.

Day 13: West African Chicken Stew

Day 13

England 1 Slovenia 0
USA 1 Algeria 0
Germany 1 Ghana 0
Australia 2 Serbia 1 

Since I started this World Cup Kitchen idea I have wanted to try and cook something authentic from Africa….I had penciled in either an Ivory Coast or Ghana game for this recipe. From my reading and understanding of it, it sounds very authentic but also open for improvisation in its ingredients and will work well in a Western Kitchen as all of the main ingredients are readily available.

Day 12: Souvlaki

Day 12 
South Africa 2 France 1
Uruguay 1 Mexico 0
Argentina 2 Greece 0
South Korea 2 Nigeria 2

World Cup Kitchen for today is Greek Souvlaki.

Today was the last game for 4 teams at this World Cup. I had a choice of Greek or South African so I decided on the Greek option....in one of the off days later on in the tournament I will cook something from South Afica in homage to hosts of this World Cup.

Souvlaki can be eaten a number of ways….as a main course meal with accompanying salads or like I had it tonight in a fast food style wrap with chips, tzatziki and salad. 

When marinating your meat for best results leave it overnight to enhance the best flavour from the meat. Also when cooking over a BBQ wait until the coals have been burnt right through and the temperature is not searing hot so the chicken will cook slowly and will remain moist and tender

Day 11: Korean Bulgogi

Day 11
Portugal 7 North Korea 0
Chile 1 Switzerland 0
Spain 2 Honduras 0

Bulgogi is a marinated beef recipe, although other meats such as chicken and pork can also be used.

It is made from very thin slices of prime cut beef, today I used ribeye. The meat is marinated with a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil & seeds, garlic & chilli. This is then combined with a selection of vegetables. I used scallions, onions, carrots, peppers & sugar snaps. (you can use of course mushrooms and other vegetables to your own taste)

When serving it can be served with either rice or noodles. For todays meal I served it with some sticky Asian rice and full heads of iceberg lettuce so that I could make lettuce/rice wraps with the bulgogi in the middle

Pavlova

Day 10
Paraguay 2 Slovakia 0
New Zealand 1 Italy 1
Brazil 3 Ivory Coast 0

World Cup Kitchen is New Zealand’s favourite: Pavlova
 

I absolutely love Pavlova, the crisp sweet meringue with sweetened cream and fresh fruit with a drizzle of warm caramel on top – it is absolutely delicious and is actually not as hard to make as you might think.

Day 9: Seared Beef Sashimi with a Gyoza sauce

Day 9
Netherlands 1 Japan 0
Australia 1 Ghana 1
Denmark 2 Cameroon 1
 

 
World Cup Kitchen today is Japanese: Seared Beef Sashimi and a crisp vegetable salad with ginger and coriander served with an accompanying Gyoza Sauce

I love this fresh and colourful salad that is perfect for a weekend lunch or a light dinner. The crispness and spiciness of the vegetables compliments the peppery beef and is all served with a chilli and soy sauce.

Day 8: Serbian Cevapcici

Day 8

Serbia 1 Germany 0

Slovenia 2 USA 2

England 0 Algeria 0

World Cup Kitchen is a Serbian Cevapcici  

This kebab like sausage originates from the Balkans and is considered the National Dish of Serbia and is also common in Slovenia. The ingredients differ from country to country but in essence it is a combination of minced meats and spices.

Day 7: Irish Stew

Day 7 

Argentina 4 South Korea 1
Greece 2 Nigeria 1
Mexico France 0 

With the French playing their second game of the World Cup the choice of World Cup Kitchen today was an easy one. I decided on Irish Stew! 

My Irish stew is a bit of a labour of love so I would set aside some time for it. The process of cooking it is not difficult but the flavours need time and low simmering heat to come to the fore. Also when using stewing meat the more time the better is normally the thought process when cooking with it. 

Day 6: Muslitos de Pollo

Day 6
Chile 1 Honduras 0
Switzerland 1 Spain 0
Uruguay 3 South Africa 0

As Spain are my favourites for the World Cup I thought it would be a nice idea to do one of my favourite Spanish recipes. Normally this recipe would be accompanied by other Spanish Tapas but it stands up as a meal by itself and unlike the Spanish performance today it will not disappoint.

Very simply it is Chicken Drumsticks cooked in red wine…..you cook the chicken until it is falling off the bone and you can serve it with rice or mashed potato. 

Day 5: African Devil Chicken (Piri Piri)

Day 5

New Zealand 1 Slovakia 1
Ivory Coast 0 Portugal 0
Brazil 2 North Korea 1

For tonights meal it was a very easy choice with the Portuguese influence and also with the World Cup being in Africa I decided to go for Chicken in a fiery Piri Piri marinade.

Day 4: Broodje Kaas (Delux)

Day 4

Holland 2 Denmark 0
Japan 1 Cameroon 0
Italy 1 Paraguay 1

World Cup Kitchen will be a Dutch Cheese Sandwich…well a super deluxe version!

Very simply the sandwich is marinated tomatoes (olive oil, chilli & garlic) with fresh basil leaves and a white cheese (port salut, gruyere, fontina) all toasted on a pan on very thick fresh wholemeal bread.

Day 3: Chicken & Leek Pie

Day 3
South Korea 2 Greece 0
Ghana 1 Serbia 0
Germany 4 Australia 0

World Cup Kitchen is an Australian Meat Pie -  a Chicken & Leek pie

When I lived in Australia the one thing I loved more than anything was their meat pies. Shakespeare Pies in Newtown, Sydney was a regular of mine and since I have returned to Europe I do miss the widespread availability of a good meat pie.

Therefore it was logical that in Australia's first game I would try to best create a Aussie Pie. They are best prepared in individual pie dishes but I have looked all over Amsterdam for them but with no success, so I just prepared them in a larger baking tray/dish.

Day 2: Shepherds Pie

Day 2

South Korea 2 Greece 0
Argentina 1 Nigeria 0
England 1 USA 1  

World Cup Kitchen is an English Shepherds Pie 

A Shepherds Pie is very simply minced lamb with a crust of cooked potato. If the pie is made with beef it is called a Cottage Pie.

World Cup Kitchen starts with.......Prawn Fajitas

The World Cup starts today June 11th and will be in our lives for good or bad for the next 30 days
 
I thought it would be a great idea to every day when I am cooking in the kitchen to cook something from one of the countries that is playing that day. During the week it will be something quick and easy and when I have a day off or the weekend I will do something a bit more complex.

Day 1

South Africa 1 Mexico 1 
France 0 Uruguay 0

World Cup Kitchen is Mexican: Prawn Fajitas

Its very easy…you prepare a few dips: Guacamole, Sour Cream, Fresh Salsa

Prawns are marinated in small amount of olive oil, lemon & spices and cooked on a very hot dry pan

All served in warm tortillas

Tuna Melt

There are many ways to make a tuna melt so there is no right or wrong way. 

My way has been tweaked over the years but the basic principles of it remain the same.

Buffalo Chicken Kebabs

For the first BBQ of the summer I really wanted to try and find a spicy marinade that would compliment the Coriander Chicken Kebabs that I had already decided upon. 

When I lived in Toronto many moons ago we use to all love Buffalo Wings so I decided on trying my hand at a Buffalo wing marinade but to use chicken breast instead of wings as I wanted 2 types of chicken kebabs.

Tzatziki

Tzatziki is super easy to make and is perfect for the summer season with BBQs and fresh bread

It can be made with many different flavours but essentially it is a combination of:
- Greek Yoghurt 
- Cucumber 
- Garlic
- Fresh Herbs

I assemble it all in a food processor so it is super easy to make

Coriander Marinated Chicken Kebabs

One of my aims for the summer is to perfect the BBQ. In the past I too often have just gone for the easy option and bought my meat already marinated but not anymore. I have a couple of books on BBQing and in it they explain everything you need to know. So let this be the first of many BBQ related posts...

First up a short introduction on marinades: marinades come in 3 components: acids, oils and aromatics

- The Acids help break down the tough muscle fibers, tenderizing the meat

- The Oil coats the exterior of the meat, keeping it from drying out during cooking

- The Aromatics, which can include chopped vegetables, fresh or dried herbs, ground or whole spices and/or condiments add cannon blasts of flavour

Put them together, and there isn’t a food out there that can resist their transforming powers.

First up for my BBQ segment is Coriander Marinated Chicken Kebabs. I used the Oil method as I was using chicken breast. This method leaves the meat completely tender and the flavours nicely balanced between the acidity of the yoghurt and the light sweetness of the chicken.

If you don’t like Coriander look away now!!

Cayenne Onion Relish

This relish has become a personal favourite of mine so I have given it, its own post so I can hyperlink it within other posts when/if I need too. 

Very easy to make and it goes with sandwichs, BBQ's, wraps and much more