#HungryHighlander #Coconut #Caribbean #Beef #Stew Caribbean Coconut Stewed Beef

#HungryHighlander #Coconut #Caribbean #Beef #Stew This is my take on a recipe by Chris Le La Rosa of The Caribbean Pot. I love Caribbean Food and have tried to lower the carb count and make it Lower GI.

Level of difficulty – Not too tricky

Ingredients:

2 kg lean beef cut into 1 inch (2.5 cm) cubes

1 heaped tbsp Caribbean Green Seasoning
1 thumb sized piece of ginger grated

1 beef stock cube/stock pot

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ Habanero or Scotch Bonnet pepper (or any other spicy pepper of your choice)
2 400g tins of lite coconut milk

350 ml (1.5 cups) water
2 spring onions (scallions) (chopped)
4-6 sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon tomato puree
1 medium onion (finely chopped)
1 tablespoon Rapeseed Oil (or olive oil)

1 tablespoon brown sugar (golden)

Pinch of salt

Method

Season your washed/cubed pieces of beef with a pinch of the salt, habanero or Scotch Bonnet pepper, tomato puree, onion, Caribbean Green Seasoning, Worcestershire Sauce and grated ginger. Mix well and allow to marinate for a couple hours. Don’t use any of the seeds of the habanero pepper if you’re concerned about the raw heat and remember to wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.

Heat the rapeseed (or olive) oil on a high heat in a heavy pot (one with a lid). Then add the brown sugar and stir. The sugar will melt, go frothy, then amber in colour. Do NOT proceed if it goes darker or the finished dish will have a terrible burnt taste. This step is what we know as ‘stewing’ in the Caribbean. As it goes amber in colour, start adding the seasoned beef to the pot and stir well to coat.

As it comes up to the boil, reduce the heat to med/low, cover the pot and let it go for about 10 minutes. After which it’s time to burn off all the natural liquid which will have been created. Remove the lid and crank up the heat. This will give us that rich colour and flavour we’re looking for.

The goal is to make sure there’s no more liquid at the bottom of the pot (you should see the oil you started off with). Stir in the spring onions and thyme and give it a good stir. Now add the water (swish the water in the same bowl you marinated the beef in to pick up any remaining marinade), then add the coconut milk.

In my case it took about 1 hr and 30 mins for the pieces of beef to be tender and the gravy to reach the right consistency. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Garnish with chopped spring onions to brighten it up a bit. Delicious with Rice and Beans! Enjoy!

Preparation Time – 25 minutes

Cooking Time – Approx. 2 hours

Total Time – 4 hours 25 minutes (including 2 hours marinating time)

#SriLanka #Beef #Curry Harak Mas Sri Lanka Beef Curry

#SriLanka #Beef #Curry This is my version of a delicious recipe by Charmaine Solomon from the Complete Asian Cook Book fabulous dinner served with Sri Lanka Yellow Rice (recipe to follow) and Sri Lankan Coconut Dhal (recipe to follow).

Level of difficulty – Not too tricky

Ingredients:

1.5kg stewing steak

1 tbsp coconut oil

2 large onions, finely chopped

1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped

3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

4 tbsp Ceylon curry powder

1 tsp ground turmeric

2 tsp black mustard seeds

1 low salt beef stock cube

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

2 fresh red chillies, seeded and chopped

3 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped 1 400g tin of tomatoes and chillies

Method

Cut the steak into 5 cm cubes.

Heat the coconut oil in a saucepan over low heat. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook until just starting to turn golden. Add the curry powder, turmeric and mustard seeds and cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the vinegar and beef and stir well to coat. Add the chilli and tomato, cover, and simmer for about 2 hours, or until the sauce has thickened. Add the tinned tomatoes with chilli and the beef stock cube and simmer for a short period of time to let the flavours meld together. Serve with yellow rice, coconut dhal and other accompaniments. If the sauce is too thin when the meat is tender, cook over high heat, stirring frequently, until reduced.

Preparation Time – 20 minutes

Cooking Time – Approx. 2 hours and 15 minutes

Total Time – 2 hours and 35 minutes

#GreenLentil #Pasta #Puttanesca #Beef Green Lentil Pasta Puttanesca with Beef

#Pasta #Puttanesca #Beef #GreenLentil This is my take on an Eating Well recipe which is Low Gi and diabetic friendly.

Level of difficulty – Easy

Ingredients:

500g (1 pound) 5% or lower fat lean minced beef (could use turkey mince)

1 onion chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 400g tins of chopped tomatoes with chilli (We used Lidl’s own brand)

1 tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp crushed red pepper

250g Organic Green Lentil Penne Pasta (we used Explore Cuisine Organic Green Lentil Pasta from Asda)

A good handful of Kalamata olives, chopped

A good handful of snipped fresh flatleaf parsley with some for garnish

170g (about 2 to 3 tbsp) no-salt-added tomato puree

3 anchovy fillets, chopped

1 Low Salt Beef Stock Cube

Method

Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a large non-stick pan fry the onions over medium heat for a few minutes until they begin to soften, add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds (do not allow the garlic to burn) add the minced beef and continue frying until meat browns. Drain off any fat and discard.

Make a well in the meat mixture and add the tomato puree, cook for a few moments and mix well into the beef, add tinned tomatoes with chillies, anchovies, oregano, crushed red pepper and Low Salt Beef Stock Cube. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for one hour to 1 ½ hours. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

Before serving, stir olives and ¼ cup parsley into the pan and add the pasta to the pan and garnish with the extra parsley. Sprinkle with low-fat Parmesan Cheese (optional) and serve with Low GI Garlic Bread.