Elaine's Christmas Turkey

I've made this for the last 3 years, so I think I can conclude that to make the perfect turkey, the all important ingredient is.. (drum roll).. Bacon! It's so simple once you involve bacon, as that means there is no basting involved and the turkey can be out-of-sight-out-of-mind while it cooks.

This year I made a turkey to feed about 12 people - so 6.3kg worth. On top of that I purchased about 1.5kg of unsmoked streaky bacon and used that all on the bird.

step 1:
Wash turkey inside and out. I always get fresh turkey, no need to bother with defrosting! Pat dry.
Step 2:
Rub inside of turkey with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Throw in garlic, onions and any herbs you like (mine just has rosemary)
Step 3:
Gently separate the skin on the top of the turkey. insert the bacon rashes under the skin, I think I used 4 or 5 rashes each side of the breast. Make sure it spans as wide as possible. I used a spoon to help me sperate, then it's all hands on deck!
Step 4:
Weave bacon rashes all over the top of the turkey. I make it as tight as I can and cover as much as possible - there's heaps of bacon!
Step 5:
Oil the tray and place some parsnips and onions as a base (not too much!). Place the turkey on top of these. I then place more bacon around the legs and make sure I cover the enterace of the turkey with bacon. Feel free to stuff some bacon inside too!
Step 6:
Place toothpicks all over to hold the bacon weave in place. I placed so many I lost count! Peel onions and garlic and place all around the turkey.
Step 7:
Place a foil tent over the turkey and place in oven for 165degreesC. I cooked mine for 3.75hours and it came out awesome. Though this does depend on the oven and turkey size!
I do stick a thermometer in so I can check the temperature of the meat (thickest part should be at least 165f to eat).

Yum turkey for a Merry Christmas! The bacon comes out crispy and the meat is juicy. Awesome = bacon turkey.

Po-Cha goodness

There is something about spicy food that makes me smile.. And I'm not referring to the forced expression one has to give as a reaction to the chilli explosion that occurs. When it's cold out and we don't have much on, we like to head down to Tottenham Court Station and have some Korean food. There's about 5 such restaurants in a row just behind Centerpoint Tower and sadly we've been to all. Not all deserve your money, but there are a couple which we do return to.

Thinks to order: def get a hotpot. It's warm, yummy and great for the cold weather!
Bimbimbabs are good in most of them. Get it in the stone pot!
Topikko: rice cakes, chilli .. Yum!
Jap chae and pancakes are always a big hit.

Po-Cha.. I give you my money with a smile!

Easy-peasy Pork Rashers

Really yummy, tender and awesome with ingredients you already have! (and unlike the title, there are no peas in this, I promise.) 

What was used:
500g of Pork Rashers (also known as pork belly slices)
3 cloves of garlic
2 Tbsp Sugar
2 Tsp 5 Spice Powder
5 Tbsp Kecap Manis (Sweet Soy Sauce)
1/2 Tsp Ground Pepper
(if you want it a little spicy, add some chilli!)
- Preheat Oven to 180 Degrees.


a) Mix all the dry ingredients together (including the garlic). I used a hand held dicer but I guess you can use a food processor or anything else that chops the garlic to little pieces and mixes everything together.
b) Add in the Kecap Manis to the mix. I just stirred it all together with a spoon and made sure it was evenly mixed.
c) Cut the Pork Rashers into about 4cm pieces (or whichever size you like). I find this size the easiest to eat with rice!
d) Mix the sauce and pork in a bowl, ensure its well covered!
e) Lay on an oven try (deeper is better as there's sauce!), cover with foil and place into preheated oven for 45mins. At this point when you take it out it should be sitting in its own juices and not be burnt at all as its been covered.
f) Flip all your pieces and remove the foil lid. Back into the oven for 15 mins and that should change the colour and texture of the meat as now its direct heat onto the meat.

Smell it!

Mixing meat with sauce - pre cooking

The finished product - it tastes much better than it looks :)

Easy friendly Mash

Potatoes are a super favourite in our household. They are easy to eat, easy to make and easy to prep. Plus they keep well for the next day if you have any leftovers! Win-win all round I say.

What I haven't been able to do is make a good dairy free mash without causing commotion in the kitchen. I hate the mashing thingies with the grid, it causes me post potato stress as the washing is so hard! Plus most creamy mashes call for milk, which is of course not friendly for all..

That day I was making soup so I went a little crazy with purchasing potatos and discovered that by Thursday I had gigantic proportions of potato left. Not that there were many of them, I had 2 giant ones so though I'd make some mash.

I usually just smash my potatoes as it's much easier than trying to make it creamy but this time I boiled them a little longer than usual till they were breaking apart (skinless potatoes). After draining the water from the pot I chucked in a handful of fresh rosemary and a good splash of olive oil. I mixed it a little then covered the lid and left it for a few mins. Using a strong spatula, I stirred while adding in more olive oil till I got the consistency I liked. Salted, a bit of a stir and high praise from JLO!

Rosemary mash
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Chicken for the Emperor

I get a little silly when I go to the Asian supermarkets here, perhaps it's because there is an abundance of Asian grocers in Sydney and here they just aren't the same. I like the massive warehouse sort in north/south London - Wing Yip or See Woo. The variety and prices are so much better than the stores in Chinatown and I tend to buy things I don't really need or will ever use.. Quite the same as hypermarket shopping - I'm just a fantastic impulse shopper!

I found this brilliant little packet of emperors chicken spice mix, which reminds me of what my family had a few times in Malaysia called beggars chicken. Not sure why the emperor is eating the sane thing as beggars (or the other way round?), but it is super yum and really easy to make.

The emperor chicken packet is about £1.50 and in it you get a pouch of powder mix and the necessary wrappers (one plastic wrap and a foil wrap). JLO and I usually get a whole chicken just under 1.5kg off our dinner, so we get some leftover for lunch the next day. I prefer the corn fed organic chicken, it seems to be more tender after cooking.

Wash the chicken, dry and place in the center of the plastic wrap with the foil wrap underneath. Rub all over with the powder mix and (as an extra touch) sprinkle gojiberries all over and place some inside the chicken. Wrap the chicken in the plastic, then the foil. Steam for 2 hours. Simples!

Steaming as opposed to baking is the best as the juices provide great gravy and makes eating any unloved part of the chicken easy. This is easy to make, and makes me look like a regular nigella at home as JLO loves it too.

I'm so glad that's what I'm having for lunch today. Thanks Wing Yip and the magical power of microwaves, without it I couldn't have yummy leftovers!

The magical packet
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Emperors Chicken, in it final glory state
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Burger & Lobster

We've been to this restaurant more than a couple of times now, and the love affair is still going strong!

It all started closer to the beginning of this year, when PMan decided that we should try out this place in Mayfair that only serves lobsters and burgers (surprise surprise). No reservations were allowed and you had to turn up, put your name down and wait for a table. There were 7 of us, so we knew we had a long wait ahead of us! Pman got there at 5pm to put his name down - and JLO and I turned up about half an hour later to meet him at the pub.
Any guesses for what time we got a table? 
10pm. TEN. By the time 9pm came we were at our wits end, but it was either waste the 4 hours or wait for the additional one..

Needless to say we did enjoy it, otherwise we wouldn't still be giving them our hard earned money. Since then they have opened a branch in Soho, which is the one we frequent most often (apparently you can book a table if you have more than 6 people). Turn up at 6 and you shouldn't have a problem getting a table (except fri and sat nights). The menu is fairly straightforward: burger, lobster or a lobster roll. All served with salad and fries, which are pretty awesome as they are skinny! Everything is £20, and you can upsize your lobster if you wish.. But seriously, a normal one is enough even for a lobster lover like me. I go through all the parts, probably why I'm always the last to finish. Am pretty excited that they are opening a third branch soon!

How does this compare to the lobsters in Sydney? Well the ones I've had in Sydney have been at the fish market and I remember it being pretty dry, but the ones I've had at Chinese restaurants have been awesome. How I miss lobster noodles! We've been trying the different lobster noodles here in London, and I think we like the one at Pearl Liang the best. With JLO's allergies, we have to get vermicelli instead of egg noodles and they do it really yum!

While I love Burger and Lobster, it can't compare to the seafood in Aus and the yummy seafood restaurant we go to in Malaysia.. Makes me miss home!

the Burger & lobster bibs
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nom  nom nom nom grilled lobster with fries, salad and garlic lemon butter!
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