Brad McDonald’s dirty rice
Serves 4
good quality long grain rice 200g
butter a knob (no more than 20g)
lard a little (no more than 20g)
chicken hearts 100g, minced
chicken livers 100g, minced
garlic 1 clove, smashed
smoked andouille or hot smoked Polish sausage 75g, small diced
spring onions 50g, minced, plus green tops of 2-3, chopped, to sprinkle
hot vinegar (or tabasco) to taste
salt to taste
For the pork chops
neutral cooking oil 2 tbsp
pork loin chops 4, centre cut, bone in
butter 50-75g
chicken or pork stock 240ml
lemon juice to taste
Boil the rice in 4½ litres of seasoned water for 10 minutes. Strain and rinse under cool water. Add a knob of butter to the rice while still slightly warm and allow to cool on a tray.
In a sauté pan, heat lard until lightly smokey. Add the hearts, livers, and garlic. Season with salt and cook until browned but still medium, 2-3 minutes. Add the rice and Andouille and remove from heat. Adjust seasoning with the hot vinegar/tabasco and salt to taste. Fold through the spring onion greens.
Heat a cast iron skillet with the oil until almost smoking.
Pat the pork chops dry and season well with salt. Cook the chops for 3-4 minutes on each side, turning the heat down to medium so they don’t scorch ‒ you want a deep brown crust and a roast brown colour, not bitter. Cook them in two batches if necessary. In the last couple of minutes add half the butter to the pan and baste the chops. Once cooked through, remove the chops to a warm plate to rest. Drain the excess fat from the pan, but don’t wipe it. You want all those brown sticky cooking bits left over. Place the pan back on the heat and once sizzling add the stock and immediately scrape around the pan with a wooden spoon.
Continue cooking until thickened slightly. Add the remaining butter and whisk for a glossy finish. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Place the warm rested chops on your serving plate. Pour any resting juices that have accumulated into the gravy and whisk in, then serve spooned over the chops and the dirty rice.
Brad McDonald is head chef at The Lockhart
Diana Kennedy’s arroz verde (green rice)
Serves 6
long-grain unconverted white rice 375ml
vegetable oil 85ml
cold water 125ml – more if necessary
flat-leaf parsley 1 small bunch
coriander 3 sprigs
romaine lettuce 3 large leaves
poblano chillies 2, seeds and veins removed, roughly chopped (not charred)
white onion 2 tbsp, roughly chopped
garlic clove 1, roughly chopped
light chicken broth 625-750ml
Cover the rice with hot water and let soak for about 5 minutes. Drain in a strainer, then rinse well in cold water and leave to drain for a few minutes.
Heat the oil in a deep, heavy-bottomed pan. Give a final shake to the rice in the strainer and stir it into the oil. Fry over a very high heat, turning the rice thoroughly from time to time, until it is a pale golden colour. Tip the pan to one side, holding back the rice with a wide metal spatula, and drain off about 3 tbsp of the oil.
Pour the 125ml of water into a blender jar. Add the greens, chillies, onion, and garlic and blend until smooth, adding more water only if absolutely necessary to release the blades of the blender. Add the blended ingredients to the rice and fry over high heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the pan, until the rice is almost dry. Add the broth and salt to taste and cook over medium heat until all the liquid has been absorbed and small air holes appear in the surface of the rice ‒ about 15 minutes.
Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Cover the rice with a piece of terry cloth and set aside to continue cooking on its own steam for 20 or 30 minutes.
From The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy (Random House USA, £17.99). Click here to order a copy from Guardian Bookshop for £14.39
Chutney Mary’s lamb or kid gosht biryani recipe by Namita Panjabi
Serves 4-5
For the rice and layering
basmati rice 600g
salt 1½ tsp
cinnamon 5cm stick
cardamom 4
mace 2 blades
saffron 1 large pinch infused in 3 tbsp milk
oil 2 tbsp
fresh coriander 25g, chopped
fresh mint 2 tbsp, chopped
ginger a large piece, cut into 20-25 juliennes
lemon juice 1 tbsp
For the marinade
yoghurt 150g
ginger 1 tbsp, chopped
garlic 2 tbsp, chopped
green chilli 4
coriander powder 1½ tbsp
red chilli powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1 tsp
salt 1½ tsp
For the masala
kid goat or lamb leg 1kg, boneless
oil 130g
cinnamon 5 cm stick
cloves 4
green cardamom 5
black cardamom 2 pods
onion 300g, finely chopped
plum tomatoes 2, chopped
Soak the rice in enough water to cover for 30 minutes. Add the lamb or kid goat and marinade ingredients to a large bowl, mix together well and leave for 45 minutes.
Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan and fry the cinnamon, cloves, green and black cardamom for a minute on medium heat. Add the onions and sauté till golden brown and then add the tomatoes and stir frequently for about 5 minutes till the two integrate. Next add the marinated lamb, turn up the heat and cook until the moisture evaporates. Reduce the heat and continue cooking for another few minutes till the lamb is seared. Add around 480ml water then put the lid on the pan and cook till the lamb is nearly done, 20-25 minutes. Take the lid off and keep cooking for a further few minutes until the masala thickens. Keep warm.
Add about 1½ litres of water to a pot, bring to the boil then add the salt and whole spices. Boil for 3 minutes then add the soaked and drained rice. Bring to a boil again and cook for about 7 minutes. The rice should be almost done at this point. Drain , reserving a quarter of a cup of the rice cooking water.
Brush the bottom and sides of a large casserole dish (for which you have a lid) with oil. Spread a quarter of the rice across the bottom then top evenly with all the lamb and masala. Sprinkle over half the chopped herbs, ginger and lemon juice. Top with the remaining rice and sprinkle the saffron infused milk and the remaining herbs, ginger and lemon juice on top. Pour the reserved rice water down the sides of the pan and cover.
Preheat oven to 160C/gas mark 2½. Place the casserole on a moderate heat for 3 minutes or till the contents are hot. Place a wet muslin cloth over the pot, then shut the lid and cook in the oven for 15 minutes. Remve and leave to sit for another 15 minutes. Open the lid carefully to allow the steam to escape and mix just a bit to fluff up the contents.
Chutney Mary, 73 St. James’s St London SW1; chutneymary.com
Skye Gyngell’s chicken with rice and basil
Serves 6
organic free-range chicken 1, about 1.6kg, jointed into 6 pieces
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil 2 tbsp
red onion 1, peeled and finely sliced
garlic cloves 2, peeled and crushed
dried red chilli 1
risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli) 100g
dry white wine 750ml
basil a large bunch
extra virgin olive oil to drizzle
Season the chicken joints well with salt and pepper.
Place a large flameproof casserole over a medium heat and add the olive oil. Once the oil is sizzling, brown the chicken pieces in batches, skin side down, without turning, until they are golden brown; this will take about 5 minutes. Set aside on a plate.
Pour off any excess fat, leaving a little in the casserole. Lower the heat, add the onion and sweat gently for about 10 minutes until soft and translucent. Now add the garlic and crumble in the dried chilli. Stir once or twice, then tip in the rice and toss it through.
Now increase the heat slightly, pour in the wine and return the chicken to the pot. Put the lid on, turn the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes. By this time the chicken should be cooked through and the rice will have a gentle bite.
Tear the basil with your fingers and scatter over the chicken. Stir through, then taste and adjust the seasoning; it will almost certainly need more salt.
Serve in warm soup plates, drizzled with a little extra virgin olive oil.
From How I Cook by Skye Gyngell (Quadrille, £25). Click here to order a copy from Guardian Bookshop for £20
Stephanie Alexander’s beef donburi
Serves 1
short-grained rice 80g
chicken stock 80ml
dark soy sauce 1 tbsp
mirin 1 tbsp
vegetable oil 2 tsp
spring onion 1, cut into 2 cm pieces
fillet steak 80g, sliced paper-thin
ginger 2 tsp, freshly grated
Cook rice until tender, then drain and keep hot. Combine stock, soy sauce and mirin in a small bowl. Heat oil in a wok or a non-stick frying pan and stir-fry spring onions for less than a minute. Add beef slices and turn immediately they change colour - a matter of seconds. Add stock mixture and allow to bubble. Quickly add ginger, then remove pan from heat. Pile rice into a heated bowl (preferably one with a lid), then add contents of pan. Cover for a moment before eating.
From The Cook’s Companion by Stephanie Alexander (Viking, £85). Click here to order a copy from Guardian Bookshop for £68
