Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall believes that we eat too much meat. This recipe, taken from his latest book, River Cottage Veg, shows just how versatile vegetables can be.  If you want to make it ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze it, leave out the yoghurt and add it at the last minute, just before serving. It is very similar to one that we do at Wickedfood Cooking School in our Indian cooking class.  You can substitute spinach or kale for Swiss chard. Instead of potatoes, you could use any root vegetable or cauliflower.

3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
3cm piece of ginger, peeled and chopped

About 500g Swiss chard
2T  sunflower oil
1 onion, halved and finely sliced
1t garam masala
½t mustard seeds
½t ground cumin
¼t ground turmeric
3 cardamom pods, bashed
350g new potatoes, quartered
250g plain (full-fat) yoghurt
1½T tomato purée
A small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
A small handful of almonds, cashews or pistachios, toasted and chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper

1. Pound the garlic, chilli and ginger together with a pinch of salt to a paste.
2. Separate the chard leaves from the stalks. Cut the stalks into 2–3cm pieces and roughly chop the leaves.
3. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the onion and fry until just golden.
4. Add the pounded garlic paste and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes.
5. Tip in the rest of the spices and stir for a minute or two.
6. Add the potatoes and chopped chard stalks and fry, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, so that they are well coated with the spice mixture.
7. Pour in about 400ml water – enough just to cover the veg. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 10–12 minutes until the potatoes are just tender. Add the chard leaves, stir and cook until just wilted.
8. In a bowl, whisk together the yoghurt, tomato puree and some of the hot liquid from the curry.
9. Remove the curry from the heat, stir in the yoghurt mixture, return to the heat and warm through very gently (if it gets too hot, the yoghurt will curdle).
10. Stir in most of the coriander. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
11. Scatter over the toasted nuts and remaining coriander, then serve with rice and naan or chapattis.

Serves 4

For more recipes from River Cottage Veg,  click here

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Asparagus is one of the first spring vegetables to arrive on the shop shelves. We are loving them at Wickerfood Cooking School cooking classes. They are now at the height of the season, with prices coming down all the time. Buy local, the fresher the sweeter. Here are two simple recipes, one for white and the other for green asparagus, as well as a delicious easy-to-prepare sauce.

Sauteed Asparagus

Cooking asparagus in a heavy-based frying pan, preferably cast-iron,  with a tight fitting lid, concentrates its flavour rather than diluting it, as in steaming or boiling. This recipe works best with green asparagus, especially the thinner ones.

1kg asparagus
2T  butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Rinse asparagus in cold water and trim off tough ends of stalks.
2. Put butter in a heavy cast-iron frying pan, with a tight-fitting lid and heat until butter is foaming.
3. Lay asparagus in the pan and shake from side to side to coat asparagus gently with melted butter. Cover tightly and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes. Check asparagus and turn as needed to make sure the stalks cook evenly and don’t burn.
4. Continue cooking 5 minutes longer, or until asparagus is tender but still crisp and bright green.
5. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve hot.

Serves 4

Preparing Fresh White Asparagus

Unlike its green-skinned counterpart, white asparagus has a tough, bitter peel that needs to be removed before cooking. The following is the classic way of preparing white asparagus (alternatively, they can also be steamed).

4L water
2T  salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3T  butter
1kg fresh white asparagus

1. Bring water, salt, lemon juice, and butter to a simmer in a large pot over medium heat.
2. Meanwhile, trim about 2cm from the ends of white asparagus. Lay spears on a work surface, then peel thin skin from each with a sharp swivel-blade vegetable peeler, starting 4cm from the top and running the length of the spear. (Spears are brittle and can snap when peeled in midair.)
3. Gather spears into 2-4 bundles, tie loosely with kitchen string, and lower into simmering water. Cook, increasing heat to medium-high to maintain a simmer if necessary, until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 8-10 minutes, depending on thickness of asparagus.
4. Lift bundles from simmering water with kitchen tongs and drain on paper towels.

Serves 4

Olive Oil Sabayon

This is a delicious light, yet elegant sauce to serve with asparagus or artichokes (also great over steamed fish).

1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Place wine and vinegar in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce by three-quarters, cool, then transfer to the top of a double boiler.
2. Add egg yolks to wine reduction. Set over simmering water over medium heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until yolks thicken enough to fall into thin ribbons when whisk is lifted from pan.
3. Remove from heat and gradually whisk in olive oil. Thin, if necessary, with 1–2 tbsp. water.
4. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

For more asparagus recipes  …. click here

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

This recipe from the Ottolenghi cookbook, is delicious as a side dish, particularly with poultry, or at room temperature as a picnic salad. It is now sweet potato season, so enjoy them. In the original recipe, they use maple syrup, but as the original is fairly expensive in South Africa, at Wickedfood Cooking School, we use honey instead (if you’re going to use maple syrup, then don’t get the flavoured substitute).

2 sweet potatoes (about 900g in total)
3T olive oil
35g pecans
4 spring onions, roughly chopped
1/4 cup roughly chopped parsley
2T roughly chopped coriander
¼t flaked chilli
35g sultanas
Salt and pepper

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil
2T honey or maple syrup
1T sherry vinegar
1T lemon juice
2T orange juice
2t grated fresh ginger
½t ground cinnamon

• Preheat the oven to 190ºC. Start with the sweet potatoes. Don’t peel them! Cut into 2cm cubes, spread out on a baking tray and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper, mix well with your hands and roast in the oven until the potatoes are just tender, about 30 minutes. Turn them over gently half way through the cooking.
• In a separate tray, toast the pecans in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove and chop roughly.

Dressing

• While the potatoes are roasting make the dressing. Whisk together all the ingredients in a small bowl. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
• When the potatoes are ready, transfer them to a large bowl while still hot. Add the spring onion, parsley, coriander, chilli, pecans and sultanas.
• Pour the dressing over and toss gently to blend, then season to taste. Serve at once or at room temperature.

Serves 4

Click here for more recipes from the Ottolenghi Cookbook.

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Potato pancakes, or latkes in Yiddish, are traditionally associated with Hanukkah, especially among Ashkenazi families, as they are prepared by frying in oil. There is a custom of eating foods fried,preferably olive oil, as the original miracle of the Hanukkah menorah involved the discovery of a small flask of pure olive oil.

At Wickedfood Cooking School, latkes have become a firm favourite in a number of our cooking classes, served as a snack with smoked salmon and the mustard dressing, or as a side dish with roast pork and apple sauce. Don’t overcrowd the pan while frying these latkes.

4 medium russet potatoes, peeled

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and finely chopped

2T  matzo meal or flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper oil for frying

1. Grate potatoes on the large holes of a box grater, into a bowl of cold water. Allow to stand for at least ten minutes, completely covered, then drain and wash well which will remove most of the starch.
2. Working with small handfuls at a time, squeeze out moisture from potatoes and transfer potatoes to a large bowl. Add eggs, onions, matzo meal/flour, and salt and pepper to taste and stir until well combined.
3. Heat oil in a large deep pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Working in small batches, shape potato mixture into loose 8cm disks, and fry in hot oil, turning once, until golden brown and crisp on the outside, 2–3 minutes per side.
4. Transfer potato pancakes with a slotted spatula to paper towels to drain.
5. Season potato pancakes to taste with salt while still hot or serve with sour cream and/or apple sauce, if you like.

For more see Jewish inspired recipes see Jewish Delis Around the World

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

This Vietnamese chicken salad is one of the favorites at Wickedfood cooking school’s Vietnamese cooking class as well as our Asian cooking classes.  Vietnamese cuisine is considered by many as one of the healthiest cuisines in the world.  This chicken salad demonstrates that perfectly.  Although the ingredients list might seem rather long,  don’t be put off, it is a quick salads to make, and remember to serve it immediately.

Chicken

1 x 1.5-2kg chicken

1 onion, quartered

2 kaffir lime leaves or bay leaves

2 stalks lemongrass, bruised

Salad

1 cucumber, peeled and seeded, then cut into long strips

1t salt

2T sesame seeds

3 stalks celery, cut into long fine strips

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into long fine strips

¼ crisp white cabbage, thinly shredded

a large handful fresh whole coriander leaves

a large handful fresh whole mint leaves

4-6 whole lettuce leaves, such as Little Gem or Cos

Dressing

1 garlic clove
1 small red chilli
3T caster sugar
2T lime juice
3T fish sauce

Chicken

• Put the chicken into a large deep pan, together with the other ingredients, and cover with water.  Bring to a gentle boil, cover the pot and simmer on very low for 20 minutes. Allow to cool in the liquid.
• Once cool, take the chicken out, discard the skin, pull the flesh off the bones and tear into bite-sized pieces. Place in a bowl and set aside. (Strain and save the poaching liquid and use it as stock for another dish.)

Salad

• Put the cucumber into a clean bowl with the teaspoon of salt. Mix well and set aside for ten minutes.
• Meanwhile, place the sesame seeds into a small frying pan over a moderate heat (don’t add oil) and dry-fry until they turn a shade darker, then take them off the heat and transfer immediately to a cool plate to prevent burning .
• Once the cucumber has been salting for ten minutes, use your hands to squeeze out any excess liquid from the cucumber. Discard the liquid and transfer the cucumber to a large bowl.
• Add the celery, carrots and cabbage, together with the chicken.

Dressing

• Peel and roughly chop the garlic then place in a mortar and pestle.
• Deseed and roughly chop the chilli and add to the garlic.
• Add half of the sugar and pound to a rough paste. Add the rest of the sugar and pound again.
• Add the lime juice  and fish sauce to the paste, mix well, then add  a splash of cold water. Taste and adjust the flavours if necessary (you should have a good balance between sweet, salty and sour.)
• Toss the salad with enough of the dressing to give a lively flavour, starting with about two-thirds of the dressing and adding more if necessary. Add half the mint and coriander leaves and mix thoroughly.
• Line a serving plate with the lettuce leaves. Pile the salad onto the lettuce, then top with the remaining coriander, mint and toasted  sesame seeds. Serve swiftly.

Wickedfood Cooking School, Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.