why you got to be such a friggin spicebag.

Coupla recipes in progress, finally had a go at it, the curry sauce recipe is perfect but you got to buy McDonnell's to make it happen, which isn't ideal even though it's excellent. Anyway, this is Mark I. 

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irish spice bag.

INGREDIENTS
the spice mix
1 tbsp five spice seasoning
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp gochugaru flakes or other mild chile powder
1/2 tsp zwarte peper
1/2 tsp fine white sugar
1 tsp fine salt

the curry sauce
2 tbsp butter or vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely minced
1 cloves garlic, minced
2.5 tbsp mild curry powder
1/2 tsp chinese five-spice powder
2.5 tbsp all-purpose flour
400ml (approx. 1.7 cups) vegetable stock
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp fine white sugar

METHOD
Whisk all spice mix ingredients together in a small bowl until completely combined. 

Set a saucepan on medium heat and melt the butter over medium heat. Cook the minced onion for 3 minutes until soft but not browned, then add the garlic for 1 minute. 

Build the roux: stir in the curry powder, five-spice, and flour. Cook for 1-3 minutes while stirring constantly to toast the spices and cook out the raw flour taste.

Slowly whisk in the stock a little at a time to prevent lumps, this can take 5 minutes or so. Add the soy sauce and sugar. Bring the mixture to a very gentle boil, then turn the heat down a bit and simmer for 10–12 minutes until thick and glossy. Optionally blend with a hand blender if you prefer a completely smooth texture.

A 1-person spicebag should have about 2 tsp of spice mix added, assume that the fries and chicken are already salted. 

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to try II.

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five-spice tofu with snap peas and noodles in pepper-sesame sauce.

INGREDIENTS
300g tofu
300g ramen noodles
200g snow peas or sugar snaps

5-spice marinade
1 and ½ tbsp ketjap manis
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp (rice) vinegar
½ tsp five spice
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

paprika-sesame sauce
200g roasted bell peppers from the jar, patted dry
50g tahini
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 and ½ tbsp toban dan chili bean sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce (low salt)
1 tsp sesame oil

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 190°C. Open the tofu, save the liquid, Nguyen the tofu. Mix the ingredients for the 5-spice marinade with plenty of pepper in a second bowl and add the tofu. Knead the marinade firmly into the tofu until it is crumbled. Spread the tofu over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast in the oven for 18 to 20 minutes until dark brown (but not black). Turn over 2 to 3 times in between.

While the tofu is in the oven, blend the ingredients for the paprika-sesame sauce with 3 tablespoons of the reserved tofu liquid (top up with water if necessary) until smooth in a food processor or with an immersion blender.

Cook the snow peas in a large pan with boiling water for 3 minutes until tender. Remove the snow peas from the pan with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate. Cook the noodles in the same water according to the time indicated on the packaging. For a fancy garnish, cut some snow peas into strips.

Pour the paprika-sesame sauce into a pan and heat over low heat.

Stir in the ramen and divide among four deep plates. Spoon the tofu over, serve with the snow peas, and garnish with the snow pea strips if desired.

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to try I.

One of two untested recipes from a cookbook that I had zero faith in but the first (third?) recipe I cooked from it was really great. For this one I think I'd sub actual parmesan for the nutritional yeast. 

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rice cakes with white beans and gochujang. 

INGREDIENTS
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
125g carrots, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped

15g basil, leaves cut into strips and stems kept separately
3 tbsp olive oil
1 x 400g can peeled tomatoes

2 x 400g cans of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
10g gochujang
100g ricecake sticks

cheesy sesame topping
1 and ½ tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp gochugaru 
¼ tsp coarse sea salt

METHOD
Finely grind the garlic in a food processor. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and basil stems to the garlic and grind into small pieces.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped vegetables and ¼ teaspoon of salt and cook for 7 to 8 minutes until softened.

Meanwhile, blend the contents of the can of peeled tomatoes and a scoop of borlotti or cannellini beans in a blender until smooth.

Stir the gochujang into the vegetables and cook for 1 minute. Then add the tomato-bean mixture and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes until the liquid has largely reduced. Add 450ml water, the rice cake sticks, the remaining beans, and ¾ teaspoon of salt, and bring to a boil while stirring regularly.

Let simmer uncovered for 10 to 12 minutes until the rice cake sticks are cooked.

Mix the ingredients for the cheesy sesame topping: divide the rice cake sticks with beans among the bowls and garnish with basil leaves and the sesame topping.

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traybaked.

Improbable but delicious and refreshing. 

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sweet potato and chickpea traybake.

INGREDIENTS
1 large (400 g) and 1 small (200 g) can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 kg sweet potato, washed, patted dry, and sliced 2 cm thick

2 1/2 tbsp neutral vegetable oil
1 organic lime

⅓ tsp cardamom powder
200g yogurt

60g tamarind paste
1 tbsp sriracha sauce
1 tbsp agave syrup

1 can of corn (340 g), drained (285 g)
1 cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced ​​wafer-thin
1 shallot, cut into half rings

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 220 °C.

Pat the chickpeas dry and spread them with the sweet potato over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with ⅔ teaspoon salt. Mix, redistribute over the baking sheet, and roast in the oven for 20 minutes.

Mix the corn, cucumber, and shallot in a large bowl. Halve the lime and squeeze the juice over the bowl. Season to taste with ⅛ teaspoon pepper and ⅛ teaspoon salt.

Finely grate the zest of ½ lime and stir together with the cardamom powder and a pinch of salt into the yogurt.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Mix the tamarind paste, sriracha sauce, and the agave syrup, carob syrup, or honey, and stir through the sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Place back in the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes until the vegetables are golden brown and sticky.

Serve the traybake with the corn salad and cardamom yogurt.

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black beans, version xxx.

For a long time I thought I made really good black beans from scratch. I mean, I did (make really good black beans from scratch). But at a certain point I lost the plot via overtweaking and could somehow never really get back to a super-solid base recipe. 

UNTIL NOW. Welllllll, I just went back to the very beginning, the first recipe that ever told me how to make black beans, from Mark Miller's Coyote Cafe cookbook, the black bean soup recipe. And I combined the ingredients/ratios from that recipe with the zero-effort technical approach that Tortilla's perfect bean recipe uses. So, no rinsing, no soaking, no baking soda, no wrapping aromatics in a cheesecloth to perfume the beans, etc. Just herbal beany goodness +/- 3 hours from start to finish. 

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the coyote cafe black bean recipe. 

INGREDIENTS
500g dried black beans
3 liters boiling water

1 tsp cumin seed
1 tsp ground coriander seed
1 tsp dried oregano

1 medium onion, peeled and halved
4 large cloves garlic, lightly smashed
1 jalapeno chile, halved
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 and 1/2 tsp fine salt 

1 tbsp olive oil

METHOD
In a big bean pot toast the cumin seeds, coriander seed and oregano until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the 3 liters of boiling water, then add beans, onion, garlic, jalapeno, bay leaves, thyme, pepper and salt. Set heat to a simmer, cover the pot and cook for 3 hours, checking every 30 minutes to make sure nothing is sticking. When beans are tender, you can add the tbsp of olive oil and simmer with the lid off for 15-30 minutes to thicken the pot liquids. 

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crispy tofu.

Always looking for delicious protein sources, this is very easy and a total winner, from Ottolenghi, this is kind of a garnish for a sweet potato and tofu recipe (!). 

Also: if you don't Nguyen the tofu before you start, you get a very scrambled egg texture as a result instead of the super crispy version that's intended, could be useful for something. 

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american chinese restaurant crispy tofu. 

INGREDIENTS
400g firm tofu 
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp mild chili flakes (Urfa, Aleppo, gochugaru, etc) 
1/2 tsp fine salt

1 and 1/2 tbsp gluten-free soy sauce

METHOD
Nguyen your tofu: boil a liter of water and pour it over your tofu blocks, making sure they're submerged. Leave them for 15 minutes, then drain and pat dry. Use a box grater to grate the tofu into a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, cornstarch, chili flakes, and salt until well mixed. Spread out in one layer on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake at 200C with fan for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through. After +/- 30 minutes of baking, add the soy sauce then bake for 5 minutes more. 

pickled tomatoes.

This is a downscaling of Gabrielle Hamilton's recipe for pickled cherry tomatoes, also I removed the turmeric because it kept distracting me. 

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prune's pickled tomatoes.

INGREDIENTS
400-500g cherry tomatoes, halved
2 scallions, greens and whites, sliced diagonally
1 fresh jalapeno, sliced
½ cup white vinegar
2.5 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp flaky salt
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tbsp thinly sliced garlic
2 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp ground cumin
1 bay leaf
½ cup blended oil (50/50 canola/olive)

METHOD
In a pickling jar combine tomatoes, scallions, and chile. In stainless steel saucepan, bring vinegar to a boil, add brown sugar and salt and cook until dissolved, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. In a bowl next to stove combine garlic, ginger and spices. Heat oil in stainless steel saucepan until hot, add ginger/garlic/spices and cook, stirring constantly, for 4 minutes, until “aromas are released”. Remove from heat and carefully stir in vinegar mixture. Immediately pour over tomato mixture. Wait at least a day to eat, lasts 5-7. 

pandan macaroons.

There are not many recipes for the pandan version online, I guess I'm about to find out why (Editor's Note: I did not find out why, everything went fine). 

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pandan macaroons.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup raw sugar
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp fine salt
1/4 tsp pandan extract

METHOD
Set oven to 180C. Wet your hands. Use a tablespoon to put one rounded spoonful of the mixture into your hands. Roll mixture into the ball, then pinch the top. Place macaroon on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining coconut mixture. Bake macaroons until just golden on top, about 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

VARIATIONS
-add 1 packed tbsp minced lime or lemon zest

tandoori carrots.

I don't think this recipe can be improved really. 

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tandoori carrots. 

INGREDIENTS
2 tsp garam masala (or vadouvan)
1 tsp. fennel seeds, lightly crushed
1/2 tsp hindustani/Surinaamse masala
1/2 tsp fine salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup whole-milk Greek or goat yogurt
500g carrots, peeled and cut to human finger size, try to get all carrots the same size please
4 tbsp salted butter
1 small shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely grated

1/3 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup lightly packed fresh mint, chopped

METHOD
Heat the oven to 240°C with a rack in the middle position, lightly grease a sheet of baking paper on a baking sheet.

In a small bowl, mix together the garam masala, fennel seed, and ½ teaspoon each fine salt and cracked pepper. In a large bowl, mix the yogurt with 4 teaspoons of the spice mix. Add the carrots and toss to coat. Distribute the carrots in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet.

Roast until well charred and a skewer inserted into the carrots meets no resistance, 25 to 30 minutes; stir the carrots once about halfway through.

Meanwhile, in an 8-inch skillet over medium, melt the butter. Add the shallot and garlic, then cook, stirring, until beginning to brown and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the remaining spice mix and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds. Remove from the heat and set aside.

When the carrots are done, add the spiced shallot mixture, cilantro and mint directly to the baking sheet and toss with tongs. Taste and season with salt and pepper, then transfer immediately to a serving platter.

NOTE: Don’t let them stay on the baking sheet which will char the tender herbs and onions. Cover with foil if your other dishes are not ready.