 Pumkin Hummus Tips: pop the pumpkin in a microwave for 2 minutes to make it easier to work with and choose pumpkins with a deeper colour, they have more flavour. Ingredients 500g cooked pumpkin or squash, seeds and skin removed Handful of roasted cashew nuts, 150g toasted sesame seeds, Generous handful chopped coriander, 2 tsp light soy sauce, Juice of 2 limes 2 tsp palm sugar (or demerara) 1 cucumber sliced Crush everything together in a pestle and mortar and add soy sauce, sugar and lime to taste. Tip: try to balance the sour (lime) sweet (sugar) and savoury (soy) flavours – you may not achieve spiritual balance but your taste buds will achieve heaven. Garnish with sesame seeds and serve with sliced cucumber and traditionally with nam pla – fish sauce with chopped garlic and chillies Thai Pumpkin Custard For a stunning family friendly dessert, flavour a custard with coconut and vanilla pods and pour into a hollowed out pumpkin, put the top back on and bake for 1 ½ hours. set aside for 30 mins. to cool. use a good quality thick coconut milk and the custard should set. slice, serve and pour over a little brandy. |
 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1 large onion, sliced 1 pack of Chantek masaman curry sauce 1kg lean diced leg of lamb 350g potatoes, cut into rounded chunks tbsp roasted peanuts or cashews Method 1. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened. 2. Add the lamb and brown 3. Stir in the curry sauce and bring to boil 4. Add potatoes, stir well then cover and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, until both the lamb & potatoes are tender. Stir in the peanuts. 5. Serve the curry in bowls, garnished with fresh coriander and accompanied by jasmine rice or Chantek special fried rice. Chefs Tip: slow grill finely sliced onion and sprinkle over curry to serve We recommend serving with: White - Wombat Hill Classic Reserve Chardonnay Australia Red - New! Chantek Reserva Malbec 2006 Argentina (order from Chantek) |
 After many happy years of tasting and refining this is my ultimate hot and sour soup – this will send colds away and your energy levels rising. Try it on your friends, they'll love it as a as a quick and easy dinner party starter. The secret to this recipe is using a really good homemade chicken stock and adjusting the seasoning to taste at the end. You don't need any Thai pastes. Ingredients Chicken Stock: good quality chicken on the bone, garlic, ginger, a green chilli, onions, dash soy sauce. Boil chicken for 5 minutes, then discard water and boil again with fresh water adding remaining stock ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour. Skim off any scum as it rises. Jam as much chicken into the pan, so that the stock is really flavoursome. Ingredients for 4 Bunch fresh coriander chopped 10 cherry tomatoes finely chopped 2 green chillies very finely chopped Dash of fish sauce Juice of 4 limes. To make: Prepare a large soup bowl for each serving. Into each bowl put some shredded chicken meat from the stock pot, and a small handfull of fresh coriander, green chillies to taste, juice of a lime and the tomatoes. Fill up the bowl with stock and add a dash of fish sauce. Tip: add the fish sauce bit by bit, as each dash changes the taste and has the dish jumping around on hot coals changing its name in a multitude of different kitchens and dialects. Feel free make up your own name for it. Cold beater. Vegetarian Tip: simmer sugar snap peas , mushrooms, bean sprouts and baby corn in a veg broth for 5 minutes, substituting soy sauce for fish sauce. tofu works well too. |
 Ingredients for 4 4 duck breasts – lightly grilled and cut into slices 40g of tamarind pulp 300g of pak choy 30 g ginger cut into julienne strips 2 red chillies chopped 2 cloves of garlic chopped 2 tablespoons oyster sauce 1 tablespoon fish sauce 2 tablespoons palm or brown sugar 6 spring onions chopped 50ml chicken stock Fresh coriander and roasted cashew nuts Cooking instructions Soak tamarind pulp in boiling water until dissolved, strain through a sieve, reserve pulp, discard solids left. Heat some oil in a wok and stir fry the ginger garlic and chillies for 2 mins, add duck and stir fry for further 2 mins. Add tamarind, sauces, sugar and stock and bring back to boil, add pak choy and spring onions and fry until tender. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and cashew nuts. |
 Ingredients Gilt head bream Stuffing - fresh coriander, chopped garlic, lemon slices, sliced red chillie Sliced cherry tomatoes Ask the fish monger to clean the fish. Make 3 diagonal cuts on each side of the fish and rub the stuffing mixture into the cuts and also into the internal cavity adding the cherry tomatoes too. Wrap in foil and precook for 15 mins. on the grill, then for another 10 minutes on the hottest part of the grill. Tip Lightly brush the fish and the grill with oil before cooking, leave the fish for at least 5 minutes on one side on the grill and flip just once to avoid sticking. |
 Ingredients 1 kg pork mince Chop 2 onions, half a bulb of garlic and a knob of ginger Herbs: handful of fresh coriander and chopped kaffir lime leaves 2 tablespoons of curry powder or red thai curry paste. Mix ingredients well and shape into small patties. Slovenians prefer thin sausages, thais thicker ones, I made mini zeppelins instead!. Cook on a high heat for 5 minutes until cooked through. Feel free to throw a bit of beer ontop while they are cooking. It is a tradition for many countries where pork is involved, so just join in! Tip Kaffir lime leaves can be hard to track down, so buy more than you need and pop them in the freezer. |
 Ingredients 7 tbs. rice flour 3 tbs. sesame seeds 4 tbs. palm or brown sugar Pinch of salt to taste 4 egg whites 400ml canned coconut milk 4 slightly green bananas Oil for deep frying Mix the flour, sesame seeds, salt and sugar in a bowl. Add the egg whites and mix again, and then add enough coconut milk to form a thick batter. Peel a banana and wrap in a plastic sheet and flatten with a pan, if you have children to hand, they will enjoy this bit but don't let them puree the banana! heat the oil till hot in a wok or deep pan. Dip a few of the bananas in the batter and fry in the oil until crisp and golden. repeat for all the bananas and serve immediately. |
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 Ingredients 1 honeydew melon Knob fresh ginger 2 tbs honey 1 lime and Orange curacao or brandy Chop the ginger and mix in a small pan with lime juice, brandy and honey, and heat a little to make a marinade. Cut the melon into thin slices, removing seeds and peel. Pour marinade over and set aside. To cook, place on grill and brush over remaining marinade. Bbq Tip Wait until your grill is very hot. To give your marinade an asian twist, use sweet soy sauce as an alternative to honey or sugar. Use tamarind as an alternative to vinegar and use limes instead of lemons. |
 The evenings can be a little on the chilly side, so what better way to warm up, than with a well spiced punch – and we're not talking about the one you'll get if you stumble into the highlands golf club in the wrong attire! no, this is spicy cinnamon drink to fire you up for that after christmas dinner jungle walk. Malay Ingredients for 4 2 shots of dark rum 4 shots of calvados apple brandy 300 ml of apple juice. We recommend Cornish orchards apple juice, but any good apple juice will do. 3 teaspoons of honey Juice of a lemon Good sixed knob of ginger sliced One cinnamon stick To make Pour all ingredients into a saucepan and heat slowly, the adventurous can add a red chilli! don't boil as the alcohol will evaporate. Adding bit of orange peel will also go well with the cinnamon. Sieve into a chunky glass tumbler and serve with a twist of citrus fruit. |
 What to do with left-over tamarind? try a bollywood-inspired aperitif onyour guests. Bombay now hustles for attention with the other Asian bighitters of Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok. Mix one shot of the best Tequila you can find, with strained tamarind pulp (or table spoon of tamarind concentrate) and sugar syrup. Serve over crushed ice and in a frosted glass dipped into cinnamon sugar orchillie powder. Enjoy! |
 Ingredients for 4 2 oz light rum 1 oz lime juice 5 strawberries 5 cubes of ice 1tsp sugar Instructions Blend ingredients together until they reach a sorbet like texture andpour into a chilled glass. Tip for garnish Freeze some tropical fruitpieces and thread onto a cocktail stick to add to finished cocktail – Enjoy! |
 2cl dark rum 2cl white rum 2cl 1cl orange curacao or cherry brandy Juice of a lime 25ml grenadine Mix vigourously in a shaker and pour into a cocktail glass. Garnish – melon, cherry & a straw Tip Garnish with an exotic flower and a sprig of mint on the rim of the glass |
 Whether you have too many pumpkins, a Halloween hangover or hungry kids this is a tasty and easy way with fried rice.
How to prepare: 1. Chop the pumpkin into small pieces and cook in boiling water until barely cooked. |
 Sophie from Shropshire asks 'how do I use lemon grass and how do I store it?' Lemon grass is an aromatic citrus flavoured staple of the Asian kitchen. Many supermarkets stock it and it keeps well in the fridge for a week or so, but it is better to freeze it, so as to preserve the aromatic oils. I chop up the lemon grass and make ice cubes to freeze so it is easy to use.
Lemon grass also goes well in tea. To banish the winter blues, I make a hot tea with the juice of a lime, chopped lemon grass and brown sugar. (you can ask for lemon grass tea in Chantek). Lastly for those of you with green fingers, our chefs find that lemon grass grows quite happily in the Cornish climate, you will just need to splice off a bit from a living plant. |
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 A simple yet heavenly concoction. Apple, orange and cinnamon are natural partners, the aromatic cardamon lifts the drink out of the ordinary and into the heady markets of Kerala and the ginger wine adds plenty of punch and cheer.
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 Tired just thinking about mince pies and sugared almonds? Try these prawns for finger food instead. Sweet and tasty on their own and even better with a sauce. Lime works very well and if you can find a pomelo, the crunching and popping flesh is sensational with prawns. Any helpers will have fun eating up the rest of what is the largest citrus fruit.
How to prepare: 1. Preheat covered grill or grill pan to medium-high. Using a sharp pair of scissors, cut down the middle of the prawn tail shells to reveal and remove the central vein. Season prawns liberally with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Grill about 2 to 3 minutes per side, until just done. Transfer to a platter to rest a few minutes. 2. In a small mixing bowl, combine oil, lemon juice, and basil. add the pomelo pulp and mix well. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Drizzle the dressing over rested prawns and serve immediately. |
 Ingredients (Serves 5) 6 - 8 whole Kaffir lime leaves or 1 lemon grass stalk How to prepare: Stir fry the onions in the oil until nearly brown. Add the garlic, lime leaves and spices and cook for a further 2 minutes, stirring and taking care not to burn. Add the lentils, coconut milk and water. Heat the oil in a large pan and add the onions, chili, garlic and lemon grass. Cook for 5 minutes or until the onions have softened but not browned, stirring occasionally. Add the lentils and spices. Pour in the coconut milk and water, and stir. Bring to the boil for 5 minutes and stir, then reduce the heat and simmer for 35 minutes or until the lentils are soft and mushy. To serve add the lime juice, spring onions and fresh coriander. Tip - Garnish with a drizzle of coconut milk and some dried grilled onion |
 If there was a competition for best aromatic addition to a kitchen, then kaffir lime leaves would be top of the league. Showing off a knobby skin, the fruit it is not to be confused with key limes which are yellow or regular Mexican or Indian limes. The leaves are widely used in South East Asian cuisine and as such are popular at Chantek.
The kaffir lime tree is native to Indochina and Malaysia. Across Thailand and Laos it is a key ingredient for the broth of hot and sour tom yum soup and in the foothills of Chiang-mai it is found flavouring a roast duck red curry. In the south of Thailand the leaves come into their own, in the subtle liquorice flavoured panang curry, (prawn panang is my favourite version). We recommend trying these at Chantek, where we use only fresh not dried lime leaves - you will notice the difference! In Indonesia, looking off a balcony at night, you will be serenaded by all manner of night time noises, I suggest joining in with a big 'jerek purut'! You will not only blend in but have the added bonus of practicing the local word for lime leaves. Balinese food is hard to find outside of home cooking, so try this at home, add lime leaves to steamed fish in banana leaves with galangal and fresh turmeric if available. As if the above wasn't enough, Kaffir limes have the rare distinction of gracing the big screen in the 2006 Indonesian horror film - ' The Ghost of Jerek Purut ' ! Watching this film with a batch of lime leaf infused tequila (right) might be an experience to remember! The leaves should be used whole when simmering in soups and curries, and may be shredded for use in fish cakes or stir fries. The zest of the kaffir lime adds citrus elements when making a Thai or Lao curry paste. Strips of lime leaf make a good marinade too. In Chantek's signature dish ' crispy fish with 3 spices ' we marinade a whole sea bass with lemon grass, kaffir lime leafs, chillie and garlic, before char-grilling. Tip - frozen leaves keep very well, buy frozen and store until needed. Tip - Kaffir lime leaves can also be added to jasmine rice when cooking to add flavour and for an Asian bouquet garni - make up with kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass and ginger and use to flavour stock. To make a cocktail with a difference try Kaffir lime leaf with Tequila. There are two possibilities. Either buy the best tequila you can ( its well worth it), infuse deeply with whole lime leaves and serve with a little bit of honey to taste. Alternatively add kaffir lime leaves to sugar overnight and use the sugar to make a syrup the next day and add to your tequila cocktail. Recommended at any time in 2012! |
 What is the connection between Scandanavia, the Arab world and the East? The answer is cardamon , which features in all these cuisines. Cardomon is an plant native to India and Bhutan with aromatic seed pods and is related to the ginger family.(Zingiberaceae). It lays claim to being the third most expensive spice in the world, after saffron and vanilla.
It has to be said at this stage, that we are talking about green cardamon, which is what a recipe refers to when it asks for cardamon. Black cardamon is a different beast, larger and knoblier, with a flavour akin to mint and with the somewhat dubious reputation of adding a bacon flavour to vegetarian dishes! Perhaps there is even an undiscovered cardamon, that adds the flavour of root vegetables to meat? we wait with baited breath. Green cardamon has an intense flavour with a citrus aroma and hints of menthol. It is widely used, depending on the culture you are in, as a breath freshener, to get rid of excess wind, as a cough medicine or even as a love potion! Given that your late night cough remedy might turn you into a sweet smelling, fart free, love monster, it is surprising that cardamon is not featured more often in advice columns of ' Mens Health Magazine'! It is perhaps unsurprising therefore, that Arabic countries partial to the use of a hookah (waterpipe) often take cardamon in their coffee, in fact 60% of world cardamon production goes into cups of coffee in Arabic countries. Cardamon is also widely used as a spice in baking and it is the traditional flavour for the decadant Indian ice cream Kulfi. How does cardamon fit into south east Asian cooking? Traders from Indonesia bought cardamon to Thailand, where it is found in the Muslim dish, Masaman curry. The name 'masaman' is derived from 'musselman', an archaic word for Muslim. Spices and herbs can be divided into two groups. The warm and aromatic spices of cardamon, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves form the base of Indian cooking, and kaffir lime leaves, lemon grass and galangal form the basic of Thai food. Most of the time these spice groups are cooked with separately, so when they are mixed together it is genuine fusion food. In the same way that the world club championship of football represents a fusion of the best of the European league and the best of the South American league. Most of the time they dont mix but when they do it can be intoxicating! Try this fusion cuisine at Chantek with our specialities of masaman lamb and beef rendang. |
 At this time of year when the cold weather bites I make masala tea. The spicy sweetness brings back Christmas and makes winter seem warm and cosy again. Ingredients: Tip - grind your own cardamon - crush the pods in a pestle and mortar and pick out the pods and grind seeds in a coffee grinder. Open the lid and wow your guests with the smell, then serve after dinner cardamon coffee. If coffee is supposed to be the most recognizable smell in the world, cardamon must be the most evocative. |
Seasonal Recipe: Malasa Tea + Ingredient of the month: The cardamon