Andy works side-by-side with wife Anna at their Bannockburn Hotel restaurant serving lunch and dinner five days a week so, with no-one at home cooking meals, Andy gets organised by preparing a four-night batch of rice that becomes a version of fried rice which either of them can whip up as required. Thinking it’s rather clever, I asked him to go in to further detail for the benefit of this column.
At this point, Andy was mortified that of all the gastronomic delights that keep diners returning to the Bannockburn Hotel, microwave fried rice, sausage and peas will become his legacy. He graciously agreed to share, if it’s made clear that this is not proper fried rice and that traditional is not a word to be used. He sends his apologies to the entire nation of China, past, present and future, and God help us if Uncle Roger (Google it) sees it.
Instead of reaching out to other chefs for their go-tos, knowing that I wanted more than just cheese on toast and not wanting to put anyone else through the angst (sorry Andy), I realised that I have a soba noodle dish that fits into this quick and comforting category and a chilli dumplings assemblage that has spread like wildfire through friends’ kitchens for its convenience.
Traditional should not be used in these instances either, but it’s somewhat intriguing that we have leaned heavily on Asian flavours to whip up a batch of quick, delicious meals. I have included brand names where appropriate to help navigate the swathes of product that we thankfully have available to us in Asian supermarkets. Most of the products have long shelf- or freezer-lives, so the cupboard need never be bare.
Chilli dumplings
I refer to this recipe as Chinese whispers because it came from a friend, who has lived in China, making it for a friend who made it for their friends (including me) who now all make it — each with their own variation — and so it goes on. The original friend’s dumpling recommendation is Wonderful Dumplings pork, chives and prawn dumplings and Laoganma chilli in oil. They are excellent and readily available at Asian grocers, but please use your favourites. There’s a good level of heat to this dish, but also a level of comfort that makes it addictive.
Serves 2
Ingredients
10-12 frozen dumplings
2 Tbsp chilli oil
1 small clove garlic, minced
3 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp rice wine vinegar
150g greens (I use bok choy or spinach)
Chopped coriander, spring onions and roast peanuts to serve
Method
Boil the dumplings according to packet instructions.
Meanwhile, whisk the chilli oil, garlic, soy and rice vinegar together in a bowl large enough to hold the dumplings.
Add the greens to the dumplings for the last minute or two of cooking.
Drain the dumplings and greens and toss through the bowl of sauce. Serve with a sprinkle of coriander, spring onion and peanuts.
Peanut soba noodles
This comes from my 100 ways to use leftover cooked chicken file. It also works with leftover roast pork, sliced rare beef, crispy tofu or chopped toasted nuts and pumpkin and sunflower seeds. Add as many or few vegetables as you like. It’s a real "use what you have, don’t worry about what you don’t" dish that comes together quickly if you have a pre-mixed jar of sauce in the fridge, because soba noodles only take a few minutes to cook.
Serves 2
For the sauce
¼ cup peanut butter
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp (generous) honey
1 Tbsp lime or lemon juice
1 tsp sesame oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp sriracha or chilli oil
100g soba noodles
1 cup cooked chicken
2 spring onions, chopped
¼ cup coriander leaves and chopped stalks
2 cups greens (baby spinach, mizuna, rocket)
1 small carrot, peeled into strips
Toasted sesame seeds and peanuts, to serve
Method
Whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl, whisking in 3 tablespoons water (more or less) to achieve a thin, creamy sauce.
Cook the soba noodles according to packet instructions, being careful not to overcook them. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and bring them down in temperature.
Toss the chicken, spring onions, coriander, greens and carrots into a bowl with the drained noodles and mix through the sauce.
Serve sprinkled with sesame seeds and chopped peanuts.
Rice, sausage and peas
Andy Mackintosh pre-prepares this in four-night batches, cooking four packets of microwave rice (he uses Tilda basmati), spreading on a baking tray to cool before transferring to containers in the fridge because, in Andy’s words, "wet rice has no place in fried rice". The sauce is kept in a squeezy bottle in the fridge along with the veg and sausage mix in vacuum-packed portions. This makes it easy for Andy and Anna to grab each of the components to cook a meal for two in minutes. Using Andy’s flavours, I have created my own version of quick fried rice that you can adapt to your liking. Any vegetables can be used — chopped into small dice for quick cooking. Lap cheong is a dried pork sausage with sweet and savoury notes that adds great flavour to the rice. It’s worth seeking out and keeping in the fridge or freezer to add a unique Cantonese flavour to all sorts of rice and vegetable dishes. You could use any sausage, bacon, ham or Spam, as they do in Hawaii, if that’s your thing!
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 Tbsp peanut or vegetable oil
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
½ red chilli, finely chopped (more to taste)
50g lap cheong (Chinese sausage) thinly sliced or chopped
¾ cup baby peas
2 eggs
2 cups cooked rice
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
1 spring onion, chopped
Method
Heat peanut oil in a wok or medium-sized frying pan. Fry shallot, garlic and chilli for 30 seconds then add sausage and peas and fry, stirring for 2 minutes until sausage starts to crisp.
Beat the eggs well, adding a little salt.
Move the sausage mix to the side of the pan and pour in the egg. (Add a little oil to the pan first if it is looking dry). Once the egg starts setting stir it around and into the vegetable mixture — breaking the egg into small pieces.
Add the rice and stir-fry, incorporating everything together, for 2 minutes.
Stir in the soy sauce, sesame oil and spring onion.
Mould into a bowl, placing a plate over top of the bowl and turning it out on to another plate for a mound of rice, or spoon into bowls to serve.
