During this World Food Day, we would like to take you on a culinary journey around the world by sharing typical recipes from the countries where our team members come from. We will go from Central America and the Caribbean, all the way to Europe and then finally, we will finish in China. First stop:
Costa Rica – Our colleague, Daniela, will show you how to prepare ¨Gallo pinto¨ which translated into English means: spotted rooster. This recipe contains black beans and rice and it is the main component in a traditional Costa Rican breakfast.
Gallo Pinto (4 portions)
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil (olive, canola, sunflower)
½ large red bell pepper, chopped
½ large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons of coriander, chopped
2 cups cooked rice, preferably a day-old and refrigerated
1 can black beans, drained
2 tablespoons Salsa Lizano (special Costa Rican sauce, could be ordered online or you could use Worcestershire sauce instead)
Salt and pepper
Instructions:
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the peppers, onions, garlic and coriander for 5 minutes.
- Add the rice. Let it get warm (2-3min). Stir constantly.
- Add the beans and the Salsa Lizano (or Worcestershire sauce).
- Mix everything together. Turn heat down to low-medium heat. Let it cook for 5min.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with eggs, crème fraiche, avocado, white cheese and/or fried plantains.
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 285kcal; Fat – 3.8g, of which saturates – 0.6; carbohydrate – 50g, of which sugars – 5g; fibre – 7.1g; protein – 9.3g; salt – 0.78g.
Barbados – Our colleague, Kathryn, will show you how to prepare ‘Bajan Fish Cakes’. While fish cakes are quite a common dish, Bajans (what we Barbadians call ourselves!) make them slightly differently. The recipe contains salted cod which is referred to locally as ‘salt fish’ and can be eaten mainly at breakfast, but it is not unusual for them to grace the menu as an appetizer at a formal event or finger food at a cocktail party.
Fish Cakes (6 portions)
Ingredients:
1 medium (150g) onion, diced
1 cup of flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 small (20g) chilli pepper, finely diced
4g of parsley, chopped
4g of thyme, chopped
0.6g of dried marjoram
1 lb boneless, skinless salted cod
1 cup water
1 cup vegetable oil for frying
Instructions:
- To prepare the salted cod, boil the cod in water twice, changing the water between each boil. Drain, rinse and flake the cod with a fork.
- Combine the flaked cod with the other ingredients and stir until a thick batter forms. You can add more water or flour as needed to get the right consistency. The batter should be thick but pourable.
- Deep fry the batter by dropping a teaspoonful into oil over medium heat; ensure the pan is not crowded as the fish cakes will swell!
- Cook until golden brown on both sides, remove from the oil and drain over paper towels.
- Best enjoyed while still hot!
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 171kcal; Fat – 3.7g, of which saturates – 0.5; carbohydrate – 17g, of which sugars – 1.8g; fibre – 1.5g; protein – 16g; salt – 1.2g.
United Kingdom – Jenny from the team is lucky enough to have some ancient apple trees in her garden which make a delicious apple crumble, a traditional English autumn dessert, served hot with custard or ice-cream.
Apple Crumble (4 portions)
Ingredients:
For the crumble
300g plain flour
175g brown sugar
200g unsalted butter, cubed
A hand full of rolled oats
For the filling
450g apples, peeled, cored and cut into lumps of around 2 cm
50g brown sugar
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
- Place the flour and sugar in a large bowl, rub in the butter and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
- Either place the apples, sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan with 2 tbsp water and gently simmer for 5 minutes, which will soften the fruit (Jenny does this with her home harvested apples of unknown variety)
- Or, if using cooking apples place the apples, sugar and cinnamon into an ovenproof dish, sprinkle the crumble mixture on top and the rolled oats on the top of that.
- Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the crumble is browned and the fruit mixture bubbling.
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 939kcal; Fat – 43g, of which saturates – 26; carbohydrate – 126g, of which sugars – 65g; fibre – 5.6g; protein – 9.1g; salt – 0.06g.
Poland – Krupnik, a barley soup from Poland, is Maja’s chosen recipe. You should not confuse it with Polish honey vodka with the same name! Traditionally, a plate of soup is eaten every day as a first course of Polish obiad (lunch). Therefore, Polish cuisine is a good source of soup recipes – we make them from all sorts of ingredients such as fermented beetroots, rye, sauerkraut, or pickled cucumbers. While these may seem like a bit much for foreigners, the barley soup should be a gentle introduction into the Polish art of soup.
Krupnik (5 portions)
Ingredients:
500g pork ribs (you could also use 2 chicken legs instead)
456g (4 medium) potatoes
120g (1 large) carrot
150g (1 unit) parsley root/parsnip (in Poland we use parsley root, in the UK you can substitute with a parsnip)
150g (1 medium) onion
2 liters of water
Salt and pepper
3 cloves of allspice
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon (3g) of dried lovage (you can substitute it with a tablespoon of soy sauce)
3 tablespoons (30g) of dried pearl barley
Parsley leaf, to garnish
Instructions:
- Put meat with spices (allspice, bay leaf, lovage, salt and pepper) and water in a big pot and boil. After it boils, reduce the fire and cook with a lid on for around 1.5h, or until the meat is cooked and soft.
- In the meantime, prepare the vegetables. Peel and dice the potatoes, peel the onion and peel and slice the carrot and parsley root (or parsnip).
- When the ribs are cooked, take them out of the pot. Take the meat off the bone and dice it. Put it back into the pot together with chopped vegetables and pearl barley.
- Boil on low/medium fire under a lid for around 40 minutes, until pearl barley and vegetables are cooked. Season to taste.
- Serve the soup with chopped fresh parsley leaf.
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 308kcal; Fat – 11g, of which saturates – 4; carbohydrate – 29g, of which sugars – 6.1g; fibre – 4.7g; protein – 22g; salt – 0.16g.
Greece – Maria chose a very well-known Greek recipe, Moussaka. It contains beef, potatoes, aubergine and a creamy white sauce (béchamel).
Ingredients:
3 potatoes
5-6 tablespoons olive oil
2 zucchinis, medium
2 eggplants
For the ground meat
1 medium (150g) onion
2 tablespoon(s) olive oil, for sautéing
1 clove of garlic
3 pinches granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 level teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon tomato paste
500 g ground beef
400 g canned tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
For the béchamel sauce
100 g butter
100 g all-purpose flour
750 ml milk, 3,5%
½ teaspoon pepper, ground
1 pinch nutmeg, ground
100 g parmesan cheese, grated
3 egg yolks
Instructions
Place a deep pan over high heat. Add the olive oil and let it get hot.
Peel the potatoes and slice them into thin rounds.
Slice the eggplants and zucchini into thin rounds and fry in a separate pan for 5-10 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a baking pan lined with paper towels. Allow to drain from excess oil.
For the ground meat
Place a pot over high heat and add the olive oil.
Coarsely chop the onion and add to pan.
Finely chop the garlic and add to pan along with thyme and sugar. Sauté for 2-3 minutes until they caramelize nicely.
Add the ground meat and break it up with a wooden spoon. Sauté until golden brown.
Add the tomato paste and sauté so that it loses its bitterness.
Add the chopped tomatoes, lower heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes until the sauce thickens.
Remove from heat and add the parsley and coarsely chopped basil. Season with salt and pepper.
For the béchamel sauce
Place a pot over medium heat.
Add the butter and let it melt.
Add the flour and whisk until it soaks up all of the butter.
Add the milk in small batches while continuously whisking so that no lumps form.
As soon as the béchamel sauce thickens and bubbles start to form on the surface, remove from heat.
Add the nutmeg, salt, pepper, 100 g parmesan and 3 egg yolks. Whisk thoroughly.
To assemble
Preheat oven to 180* C (350* F) Fan.
In a 25×32 cm baking pan, spread a layer of potatoes, cover with a layer of eggplants and top with a layer of zucchini. Season in between layers.
Add 2-3 tablespoons of béchamel sauce to the ground meat mixture and mix. Spread the ground meat over the vegetables.
Cover with the béchamel sauce, spreading it evenly and sprinkle with 50 g of grated parmesan.
Bake for 35-40 minutes.
When ready, remove from oven and allow to cool.
Serve with fresh herbs and olive oil.
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 572kcal; Fat – 37g, of which saturates – 16; carbohydrate – 30g, of which sugars – 11g; fibre – 5.1g; protein – 26g; salt – 1.1g.
China – Liangzi, who recently joined our group, will show you how to prepare ¨馄饨¨ which translated into English means: wonton soup. A simple, light ‘Chinese dumpling’ soup that will bring you the mysteriously delicious taste of the Far East…!
Wonton soup (8 portions)
Ingredients:
½ pound boneless pork loin, coarsely chopped
2 ounces peeled shrimp, finely chopped
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon finely chopped green onion
1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger root
24 (3.5 inch square) wonton wrappers
3 cups chicken stock
⅛cup finely chopped green onion
Instructions:
- In a large bowl, combine pork, shrimp, sugar, wine, soy sauce, 1 teaspoon chopped green onion and ginger. Blend well, and let stand for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Place about one teaspoon of the filling at the center of each wonton skin. Moisten all 4 edges of wonton wrapper with water, and then pull the top corner down to the bottom, folding the wrapper over the filling to make a triangle. Press edges firmly to make a seal. Bring left and right corners together above the filling. Overlap the tips of these corners, moisten with water and press together. Continue until all wrappers are used.
- FOR SOUP: Bring the chicken stock to a rolling boil. Drop wontons in, and cook for 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped green onion, and serve.
Nutritional value per portion:
Energy – 121kcal; Fat – 5.6g, of which saturates – 1.9; carbohydrate – 7.3g, of which sugars – 1.5g; fibre – 0.6g; protein – 9.7g; salt – 0.85g.
