Couscous salad with peri peri chicken

For ➍
370 g chicken thigh fillets
3 tbs peri peri sauce medium*
300 g couscous
40 cl boiling water**
3 tbs olive oil
2 avocados
190 g vine tomatoes
1 red onion
75 g arugula salad mix
175 g fresh mango pieces

Brush the chicken fillet with the peri peri sauce. Heat the grill pan without oil or butter and grill the chicken over medium heat for 10-12 m.
In the meantime, put the couscous in a large bowl and pour over the boiling water**. Add the oil and leave covered for 10 m.
Meanwhile, cut the avocados in half lengthwise. Remove the kernel and scoop the flesh out of the skin with a spoon. Slice the flesh. Cut the tomatoes in half and the red onion in half rings. Stir the couscous with a fork and season with salt and pepper.
Mix the couscous with the salad mix. Halve the mango pieces. Slice the chicken thigh fillet..
Scoop the couscous on a large plate. Divide the avocados, tomatoes, onion, mango and chicken slices on top.

*Or make fresh peri-piri.
**Add chicken stock power for flavor.
***You can prepare the chicken fillet on the barbecue. Keep the same preparation time.

♥︎Cod with fennel & orange salad

For ➍
800 g cod fillets
4 tbs olive oil
2 lemons
juice of 2 oranges for juice
1 orange in parts
150 g blueberries
20 g fresh dill
2 fennel bulbs, finely cut
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
200 g soft white cheese
1 red onion
1 tbs red wine vinegar
1 pomegranate
pepper & salt

Place the fish in an oven dish. Add the olive oil, the lemon juice and some pepper and salt.
Bake the fish on the BBQ or in an oven at 180°C for 15 m.
Add the orange juice, the orange segments, the blueberries and the fresh dill to the finely cut slices of fennel. Add pepper and salt, mix and let rest.
Add the finely chopped garlic and olive oil to the flat cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix the red wine vinegar with the finely chopped red onion slices.
Take a plate, first place the fennel salad, then a piece of fish, a round spoon of soft cheese, the marinated red onion and some pomegranate on top.

Spiced lamb with pomegranate salad

For ➋
1 garlic clove
a pinch coarse sea salt
1 ts black peppercorns
1 ts coriander seeds
1 ts smoked paprika
a drizzle of olive oil
2 lamb steaks
pomegranate salad

Crush the garlic with a pinch of salt using a pestle and mortar. Add the black peppercorns, coriander seeds and paprika. Add 2 tbs of olive oil, till you have a rough, loose paste. Baste the lamb steaks with the spice mix then set aside for at least 15 m, longer if you can.
Lay the steaks on a hot barbecue to ensure a charred crust and leave to cook for approximately 10 m, turning them occasionally.
When the lamb is cooked, season generously with some coarse sea salt and serve with the  pomegranate & cucumber salad.

*Or try a slow cooking recipe.

Agnello alla griglia con asparagi (grilled lamb chops with asparagus)

For ➍
2 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
2–3 sprigs rosemary*
salt flakes
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
2 tbs white wine
16 lamb chops
16 spears asparagus, trimmed if necessary
mint leaves, to garnish
lemon wedges, to serve

Place the garlic and rosemary in a mortar, add a pinch of salt and pound with the pestle until the garlic breaks down into a paste. Add the olive oil and wine and mix well. Set aside.
Bash the chops with a meat mallet. This process will tenderise the meat as well as increase the surface area the marinade can stick to. Massage the lamb chops with the garlic marinade, making sure they are evenly coated. Place the chops in a non-reactive bowl or plastic container, cover with a lid or plastic film and marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Blanch the asparagus in salted boiling water for 1–2 minutes or until tender, but still firm to the touch. Drain, then rinse under cold water to preserve the vivid green colour. Season to taste with salt, then finish with a drizzle of extra olive oil and a scattering of mint leaves.
Heat up a chargrill pan or a coal barbecue. Cook the chops on both sides over very high heat until scorched but still succulent. The cooking time depends on the thickness of the chops and personal taste, but as a guide, for medium, cook on both sides for 2–3 m. Cover the chops with foil and rest for 5 m before serving.
Arrange the chops and asparagus on a large serving platter, squeeze a little lemon juice over the top and serve hot.
Serve with grilled potatoes.

*Oregano will do as well.

Grilled potatoes

For ➍
1 kg new potatoes, washed & quartered
½ tbs finely chopped garlic
½ ts salt
½ tbs finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 ts finely chopped fresh thyme
½ ts freshly ground black pepper

Place the cut potatoes in a medium bowl. Drizzle 2 tbs of oil over the top and add about half of the seasoning mixture. Stir the potatoes to evenly coat them. Grill the potatoes over direct medium heat on BBQ, with the lid closed as much as possible, until tender, 10 to 15 m, turning occasionally. (Keep the potatoes warm while you grill the lamb).

Cod en papillotte with asparagus & mushrooms

For ➍
4 cod fillets
8 white asparagus
100 g white mushrooms
1 bunch scalions
1 lemon
1 dl cream

Peel the asparagus and keep the peel. Cut the asparagus diagonally. Cook until al dente in boiling salted water.
Cut the mushrooms into quarters and blanch them briefly in the cooking water from the asparagus.
Keep the cooked vegetables separately and add the asparagus peel to the cooking water.
Reduce by half and pour through a sieve. Add the lemon juice and the cream and bring to boil.
Grease 4 pieces of aluminum foil with butter. Put cod fillets on and arrange the vegetables with a few few spoonfuls of sauce.
Close the papillotes. Bake for 10 m on the BBQ.
Open. Garnish with the chopped spring onions and serve immediately.

Read tip on cooking asparagus.

Tenderloin with spinach, tomato & bacon

For ➍
1 pork tenderloin, at room temperature
1 handful spinach leaves
4 cocktail tomatoes, halved or 8 cherry tomatoes
8 slices bacon
cauliflower couscous

Cut the pork tenderloin open so that a rectangle is created. Place the meat between two sheets of foil and beat it into a thin layer with a rolling pin. Remove the foil, season with salt and pepper. Cut the meat into long strips, about the width of the bacon.
Put a few leaves of spinach, cocktail tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes ) on the meat, roll the tenderloin and wrap the bacon around it. Secure with a toothpick.
Brush the skewers with olive oil and grill for 5 to 6 m on each side. Place the skewers on the side of the barbecue and cook for 10 m more or until they are fully cooked.
Serve with cauliflower couscous.

Pasta salad with grilled halloumi & asparagus

For ➍
500 g penne
400 g halloumi cheese
250 g cherry tomatoes
500 g white asparagus
6 spring onions, sliced finely
80 g rucola
a bunch of basil
50 g sun-dried tomatoes
pepper & coarse salt
tomated cold sauce:
10 cl yogurt
100 g Parmigiano cheese, grated
2 eggs
1 clove of garlic, peeled
juice of ½ lemon
40 g tomato paste
1 tbs (sharp ) mustard
1.5 dl peanut oil
a dash of Worcester sauce
few drops of Tabasco
salt

Bring a large quantity of water to a boil in a large pot. Add a pinch of salt.
Cook the penne al dente. [Read tip]. Drain. Plunge in a colander and cool under running cold water.
Put the pasta in a large mixing bowl.
Peel the asparagus. Remove ends.
Fill a pot with enough cold water and add a pinch of salt.
Place the asparagus in cold water. Heat the pot over medium heat and bring the water up to boiling point. When the water bubbles, put the fire out. Keep the asparagus in the warm water for 5-10 m. [Or use microwave].
Drain the vegetables to drain on a clean cloth or paper towel. set aside.
Separate the eggs and put the yolks in a tall mixing cup. Discard the egg whites.  Add a little spicy mustard, and a  clove of garlic.
Add the lemon juice and a tiny splash of water.
Blend the ingredients with a mixer. Trickle the oil in until you are left with a hefty amount of bound mayonnaise.
Add the yogurt and mix. Add the tomato puree, with a dash of English and a few drops of Tabasco sauce. Add the Parmigiano and mix.
Spoon some of the dressing over the cold pasta and mix to cover all pasta.
Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half. Add the finely diced onion and tomato wedges into the bowl with pasta and sauce.
Cut the drained sun-dried tomatoes into thin strips.
Rinse the rucola and basilicum.  Sprinkle the torn basil and sun-dried tomato pieces on top of the pasta salad. Add some pepper from the mill and some coarse salt.
Mix the pasta salad and put them in a large serving bowl.
Drizzle a little olive oil over the asparagus.
Cut the solid halloumi into slices about 1 cm wide. Move the asparagus and halloumi to the hot  BBQ grill of grill pan. Turn the slices of halloumi after 1 m. Remove the asparagus when they have some colour.
Cut the grilled asparagus in 3-4equal pieces. Divide the grilled halloumi into bite-sized chunks.
Arrange the pieces of grilled cheese and asparagus pieces on top of the pasta salad and serve immediately. Put the rest of the sauce on the table.

Turkish kofta kebabs with minted yogurt & kohlrabi & carrot salad

For ➍
900 g minced lamb
2 onions, finely grated
6 garlic cloves, crushed
2 ts dried chilli flakes
1 small bunch of flatleaf parsley, chopped
oil for brushing
2 vine-ripened tomatoes, thinly sliced
salt & freshly ground black pepper
carrot & kohlrabbi salad with minted yogurt

Preheat a charcoal barbecue 40 m ahead of cooking or a gas barbecue 10 m ahead of cooking. If using a cast-iron griddle pan, heat it over a high heat, then lower the heat slightly before cooking.
Cover 8 bamboo skewers with cold water and leave them to soak.
Put the minced lamb into a bowl with the onions, garlic, chilli flakes, parsley, 1 ts of salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Mix together with your hands until bound together.
Divide the mixture into 8 and mould it into long sausage shapes around the drained bamboo skewers.
Brush the kofta generously with oil and lightly oil the bars of the barbecue or griddle. Cook for 5 m, turning occasionally, until browned all over and cooked through.
Spread the minted yogurt over 1 large or 4 individual serving plates. Lay the kofta on top, garnish with the sliced tomatoes and serve with the salad.

Tomato & fennel salad with grilled fish

For ➍
400 g fish fillets (tuna, mackerel, trout)
a handful of fresh marjoram or oregano, leaves picked & chopped
8 nice plum tomatoes or 800g mixed tomatoes
2 bulbs of fennel, trimmed, coarse outer leaves removed, herby tops reserved
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 red chilli, deseeded & finely sliced*

2 lemons
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil

To make the salad, finely slice the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Arrange on your plates. Finely slice your fennel bulb and dress it in a bowl with extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper then scatter over your tomatoes.

Mix together a good lug of extra virgin olive oil, a nice squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Drizzle this all over the fish then pat on the chopped marjoram or oregano. Put your fillets (skin-down) on the hottest part of the clean (BBQ) grill.

If your fillets are 2 cm thick, they’ll only need about 2 m cooking time. If it still has the skin on, cook it skin-side down as it’s less likely to stick. Once cooked, remove to a warm plate. Remove the skin, flake the meat.

Serve salad on 4 large plates. Spoon over the fish. Scatter over the reserved fennel tops, drizzle with the balsamic vinegar and scatter with chilli*.

*optional.

Prawns with yogurt & cucumber salad

For ➍
24 large prawns, thawed*
300 g yogurt
1 tbs paprika
2 ts ground cumin
½ ts curcuma
¼ ts cayenne pepper
1 tbs grated ginger
4 cloves garlic, crushed
½ ts salt
vegetable oil
salad:
1 cucumber
1 tomato
1 green pepper
juice of 1 lemon
75 g freshly grated coconut
salt

Clean the prawns. Remove shells.

Stir the yogurt. Add the spices. Put the prawns in the marinade. Ensure that all shrimp are covered with yogurt. Leave at least 2 h to marinate in a cool place.**

Peel the cucumber. Cut into small cubes.

Halve the tomato, remove seeds and cut into small cubes.

Chop the pepper.

Mix with the cucumber and tomato. Add the lemon juice and coconut. Season with salt.

Put the prawns on 4 skewers. Grill in a grill pan or barbecue.

Serve with cucumber salad and naan or basmati rice.

*Replace with fish with firm meat like monkfish fillets.

**When using the refrigerator, get the prawns out 10 m before grilling to get to room temperature.

Greek lamb & fennel

For ➍
500 g lamb neck, boneless*
sea salt
5 tbs olive oil
1 brown onion
6 golden shallots
2 cloves garlic, sliced
zest of 1 lemon
1 tbs dry oregano
25 cl white wine
200 g natural yogurt
1 tbs honey
1 fennel bulb
6 sprigs flat leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 160°C. Season lamb necks with salt.

Pour olive oil in a deep pot. Put on fire. Seal meat until golden brown on all sides.

Roughly chop onion and shallots. Add to pot with garlic, lemon zest, oregano and white wine.

Cover the lamb with the yogurt and drizzle with honey.

Cover with foil and cook in oven for 1½ hours.*

Once cooked, remove the lamb from the pot and allow to cool. Refrigerate for 1 h. Slice meat into thin strips. Grill strips on both sides (on a BBQ or in a grill pan), then serve.*

Strain the juices from the remaining onions in the pot and place onions in a bowl. Add finely sliced fennel and picked parsley leaves.

Season to taste, drizzle with oil and serve with lamb.

*When using other pieces of lamb, adjust cooking time. You might cut the meat in strips after browning and omit the grilling.

Spreading from the ancient Middle East, sheep was the primary livestock of ancient Greek civilization, for their meat, fleece, milk and wool. It played an important role in myths, like 'The golden fleece'. The god Hermes was believed to avert a pestilence from the city of of Tanagra by carrying a ram round the walls. Hermes Kriophoros (the ram bearer) was venerated in sculptures and paintings like this. The image was adopted by early Christians to represent Christ.
Read tip on cooking meat in the oven.

Sakana no gingami yaki (Japanese seafood & vegetables)

For ➍
4 fillets firm white fish
½ ts salt
1 tbs sake*
8 large raw prawns
4 large dried shiitake mushrooms
12 ginkgo nuts, shelled & skinned**

Wash fish well, dry it, sprinkle lightly with salt and sake and let it marinate for 10 m.
Remove prawn heads and cut along the back of the shell with a sharp knife so that the vein can be removed without shelling the prawns.
Soak dried mushrooms in very hot water for 30 m, then cut off and discard stems and slice the caps finely.
Take pieces of foil about 25 cm square and lightly oil one side.
Put a fish fillet, 2 prawns, 1 mushroom and 3 ginkgo nuts on each square of foil. Fold foil to form a parcel and bake in a moderate oven, 170°C, for 20 m or cook over coals on a barbecue or under a grill. Serve hot in the foil parcel.
Serve with (soba) noodles.

*Use dry manzanilla sherry instead.
**Use skinned maroons or pumpkin bite-size chunks instead. Roast a little before using.
Read risotto with roasted pumpkin recipe for roasted pumpkin how-to.

Pescespada arrosto al salmoriglio (Sicilian swordfish)

For ➍
4 swordfish steaks (200 g each, 2 cm thick*)
olive oil
peperoncini or crushed dried chilies
salt & freshly ground black pepper
salmoriglio sauce

Preheat a griddle pan until very hot.
Prepare the salmoriglio sauce.
Brush the swordfish generously with oil and season with peperoncini or crushed dried chili and salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Place the swordfish onto a griddle pan or barbecue and cook for 4 m on each side, or until completely cooked through*.
Place the swordfish steaks onto plates and drizzle with the salmoriglio.
Serve with good bread, or with roasted potatoes** and tomatoes. Or serve on a bed of freshly roasted zucchini.

*Or use thin slices, and bake lightly.
**Put sliced potatoes in an oven dish with 2 tbs oil, fennel seeds and salt and pepper. Roast for 30 m at 225°C.

Read a similar recipe.
Read tip on grilling and marinating swordfish.
Read more Sicilian recipes: tartar of shrimps & artichokes, a Sicilian salad, Sicilian broccoli, spaghetti with tomatoes, capers & mint.