Takeaway options can be overprocessed and overpriced. With lockdown restrictions on menu choices, there’s never been a better time to get to grips with your cooking utensils and ingredients. Why not add some flair to your go-to fast food order during the lean times between here and Christmas? If, on top of recent deadline stress, you find yourself worrying over the amount of times you’ve entered into a drop-and-dart with your delivery driver, pencil in these recipes to lessen risky encounters and save you some cash. They’re easily tossed together with a few basic ingredients from the supermarket and whatever’s left in the press.
Chicken Chow Mein
Ingredients:
3 nests of medium egg noodles
1 large chicken breast
3 clove of garlic
1 red pepper
Matchstick carrots
4 spring onions
100g bean sprouts
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp soya sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
Sesame oil
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
Method:
First get the sauce out of the way. Crush two cloves of garlic into a medium sized bowl. Whisk in the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil and tomato ketchup before setting it aside.
Next, put a saucepan of water on the hob, add a pinch of salt and toss in the noodles for about 10 minutes. Rule of thumb – if you toss it against the wall and it sticks it you’re on the right track. For a less authentic method, read the back of the packet.
Slice the chicken breast into small strips with a sharp knife, follow suit with the peppers before dicing a clove of garlic and the spring onions.
Now, heat the olive oil in a wok or a large pan over a moderate heat and add the chicken, moving it around consistently. When the chicken is sealed or has turned white all over, add the garlic and pepper and continue stirring. When the chicken begins to brown, add the sauce to the wok.
Toss in the matchstick carrots and bean sprouts from their packets and then slowly begin to add the noodles and spring onions to the wok for a couple of minutes. Serve and eat from a cardboard box for the full effect.
Margherita Pizza
Ingredients for base:
300g strong white bread flour
1 tsp dried yeast
2 tsp fine sea salt
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Ingredients for tomato pizza sauce:
120g tomato purée
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
handful of fresh basil or 1 tsp dried
1/2 tbsp dried oregano
1 garlic clove, crushed
Pinch of salt
Shaved parmesan to finish
Ingredients for the topping:
150g mozzarella, sliced into 1/2 inch thick pieces
Method:
Preheat the oven to 240C. For the base, sieve 300g of flour and 1tsp of sea salt into a large bowl and create a well shape in the middle. In a separate bowl pour in 200ml of lukewarm water followed by the yeast, 1 tsp of salt, the olive oil and then mix.
Pour the mixture into the well of flour, gradually incorporating the flour from the sides into the liquid until you have created soft, relatively wet dough. If the dough is too wet, you can add a bit more flour. Roll out the dough. Knead it and roll it out into two large circles, keeping it very thin.
For the sauce and topping, combine all the ingredients for the pizza sauce in a bowl and mix. No cooking is necessary. Then spread the sauce over the two bases and add the mozzarella and parmesan. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is brown and bubbling and delicious.
Fries
Ingredients:
3 potatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Method:
Peel the potatoes and slice them into wedges or thin strips – I won’t enter into the thick cut vs. skinny cut argument just yet. Add the potatoes to salted boiling water and leave them for 6-7 minutes or until they are just slightly soft. Remove the potatoes from the boiling water and place them on a non-stick oven baking tray before leaving them in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 240C before removing the potatoes from the freezer and drizzle in oil, make sure they’re well coated and then season with salt. Bake the potatoes for 25 minutes, after which take them out, give them a turn and another dash of seasoning. After another 15 minutes take them out – all sizzling and crispy – and enjoy!
