Pan fry your steaks and serve them with an earthy mushroom sauce brightened by shallots and dijon mustard

steak with mushroom cream sauce

Beef, mushrooms, white wine, cream and a bit of dijon mustard.  Steak with mushroom cream sauce is a classic restaurant dish. Shallots lend a hint of sweetness countered by the bite of dijon. Nicely balanced against the earthiness of the mushrooms and steak.

Meltingly tender braised lamb shanks are perfect for that special occasion dinner.

braised lamb shanks

Braised lamb shanks. Meltingly tender, rich, delicious. And hard to mess up. Browned meat, aromatics and stock. Simmer gently for a couple hours and you have a meal worthy of a special occasion. Slow food is good food.

Bowl of fresh garlic ginger paste on a board with raw garlic and ginger from above.

garlic ginger paste

Garlic ginger paste is easy to make at home. And it is way tastier than anything that comes in a jar. Seriously. If you are looking to turn up your Indian cooking you need to start making your own.

Roast duck with parsnip puree and port wine sauce.

roast duck with parsnip puree and port reduction sauce

 

Roast duck with parsnip puree drizzled with a rich port reduction is an elegant meal you can serve at any fine dinner party. It’s flashy enough for New Year’s Eve. And it’s not that hard to make. Do it ahead of time. Make the sauce during the afternoon. Reheat the parsnip puree over low heat.

Prep the duck legs ahead of time using sous vide technique. All you have to do is brown them in a pan or under the broiler just before you serve dinner. Restaurants prep everything ahead of time. So can you.

Lime, soy and tahini dress this healthy kale salad.

asian kale salad

Massaging the kale and a bit of tahini and honey in the dressing are the secrets to this healthy asian kale salad. A big handful of cilantro lends a nice bright note.

Chicken with sun-dried tomato cream sauce. It's a blast from the past!

chicken with sun-dried tomato cream sauce

Chicken with sun-dried tomato. A dish that used to be on every menu. A fad that came and went. It’s too bad. Sun-dried tomatoes are a great ingredient. Little tomato flavour bombs in whatever dish they’re used in.

Chicken tikka are little tandoori flavour bombs. Marinate the chicken, skewer and grill and you have a great starter to any Indian meals.

chicken tikka

Chicken tikka. Boneless tandoori chicken. Bite sized even. What’s better than that? Seriously. How can you not want to put that in your mouth?