We all have friends who entertain effortlessly. Constantly issuing dinner invitations on the spot and organising the gathering of people over generously home-cooked meals. I am not one of them.
Possibly because I am an overthinker and all the worrying about not repeating the same menu, dietary requirements, ingredient availability, what day would work best for busy schedules and the disorganisation of the house(!) takes a lot of time.
The holiday period gives time for more relaxed entertaining, so rather than overthinking I am thinking ahead by pulling out three favourite recipes that I have served numerous times to appreciative guests who are delighted if they’ve had it before because they enjoy it again.
They are special enough for Christmas if you’re still looking for divine inspiration, or any of the days following. A paella party for New Year’s perhaps? With jugs of fruit-packed sangria. The side of salmon always makes an impression on a pot-luck table and is an easy way to serve fish for lunch or dinner with a warm potato salad and a big green salad or beans and asparagus. I recommend doubling or tripling the quantity of grilled vegetables because everyone becomes a vegetable lover when presented with this medley.
Sit back, relax and enjoy being simply impressive.
Paella
Such a joyful dish should not be reserved for entertaining. There’s nothing scary about paella - it’s a simple one-pan meal that can be adapted to include seafood of your choosing. I like to use a mix of chicken and squid, or omit the chicken to make it pescatarian using fish or vegetable stock.
Try not to stir the paella from step 3 onwards and you will hopefully end up with a crunchy rice crust (socarrat) on the bottom of the pan.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 red capsicum
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 large garlic clove, sliced
½ onion, chopped
¼ cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 tsp sherry vinegar (or use red wine or balsamic vinegar)
2 generous tsp thyme leaves
¼ cup chopped parsley stems
2 tsp Spanish smoked paprika
1 pinch saffron (optional)
¼ tsp salt
1½ cups paella rice (bomba or calasparra, or use arborio)
3-4 cups chicken stock, hot
250g green beans, trimmed and sliced in half
400g chicken thighs, cut in small pieces (or use squid tubes)
12 mussels, scrubbed and steamed until shells have opened
¼ cup chopped parsley
Lemon wedges, to serve
Method
Blend capsicum, tomatoes, garlic, onion, oil, vinegar, thyme, parsley, paprika, saffron and salt until smooth. You will end up with 1½-2 cups depending on the size of your capsicum and tomatoes. You only need 1½ cups for this recipe.
Heat a paella pan (or a large frying pan) over a high heat on barbecue or stove top. Drizzle with oil and add rice, stirring for 2-3 minutes to coat all grains with oil. Add 1½ cups of the blended capsicum mix and stir through the rice.
Add 3 cups of the hot stock and bring to the boil, stirring. Turn down heat slightly and let it bubble, without stirring, for 10 minutes.
Press in the beans, chicken and mussels and cook another 15 to 20 minutes until chicken is cooked. Add more hot stock if the rice is starting to look too dry.
Remove from heat and leave to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving with a sprinkle of chopped parsley and lemon wedges for squeezing.
Vege grill with eggplant and strained yoghurt
I grill vegetables in large quantities through summer to have in the fridge to add to sandwiches and to serve alongside cooked meat and fish for quick meals.
The addition of eggplant spread and yoghurt, which has been strained to form a labneh, takes things up the required notch for entertaining while not putting any pressure on the cook.
Vegetables can be cooked the day before and brought to room temperature for serving.
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 cups Greek yoghurt (I use The Collective Straight Up)
3 eggplants
Olive oil, for drizzling on vegetables
⅓ cup lemon juice
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil plus more for serving
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 small bunch coriander
4 courgettes
3 peppers, mixed colours
2 small fennel bulbs
Method
For the labneh, mix ⅛ tsp salt through the yoghurt and place in a sieve lined with muslin over a bowl (the whey will drain from the yoghurt into the bowl). Cover and place in the fridge for 6-48 hours, depending on how firm you want your labneh.
For the eggplant spread, cut 2 of the eggplants in half and brush the cut surface with olive oil. Cook on the barbecue grill over a medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes until tender. Chop the eggplant into a bowl, mash with a fork and then, using the fork, whip in the lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, chilli and 2 Tbsp chopped coriander stalks. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
Slice the third eggplant into 6 strips lengthways, each courgette into 4 strips lengthways, the peppers into eights and the fennel into quarters (save the fronds to garnish). Drizzle with oil and grill on the barbecue until tender, the peppers and fennel will take longer. Remove the eggplant and courgettes to a plate. Place the peppers in a bowl and cover for 5-10 minutes to steam slightly, making it easy to slip the skins off.
Serve the grilled vegetables on top of the eggplant spread with plenty of coriander leaves and some fennel fronds. Serve the labneh in a bowl with a pool of extra virgin olive oil and chopped herbs for spooning on to plates as desired. Crusty bread is a good accompaniment.
Easy baked salmon
From my consummate entertainer friend Laurie Black who knows a thing or two about understated elegance. This also cooks well in a covered barbecue.
If served in slices with potatoes and vegetables 1.5kg of salmon will serve 8-10 people; 12-14 if broken into chunks and scattered over substantial tabouleh, couscous or rice dishes.
Serves 8-14
Ingredients
1½kg salmon side, skin on, bones removed
1 clove garlic in 2 Tbsp olive oil
Sea salt flakes
2 Tbsp dill
1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges
Method
Heat oven to 180°C.
Line a large oven tray with baking paper. Rub salmon all over with garlic oil and place skin side down on paper.
Season salmon with a little salt, scatter with dill sprigs and add lemon wedges. Bake for 20-25 minutes for medium rare, or 30 minutes for medium.
Check fish with a small knife by testing whether flakes will gently pull apart in thickest section. Medium-rare flakes will still look party translucent below the surface, but medium cooked fish will be opaque.
Remove from oven and rest for 10 minutes (or allow to cool) before serving. Discard lemons.
