Daube of Mutton

The thing about the taste of mutton, it can be very tricky to get the right blend of seasoning to bring out its most attractive flavors and decrease the undesirable ones. Although many cultures has found their own unqiue ways to do that, I would like to share just one of the many delightful ways to prepare mutton and enjoy its wonder aroma and taste :D

500g of cubed lean mutton
60g of cornstarch
60ml of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 or 2 Large Onion chopped
1 or 2 cloves of fresh garlic chopped
500ml of broth ( I used Brovil instant broth )
200ml of Red Wine
5g of Dried Mixed Spices ( you can get a bottle of these from ColdStorage Supermarket)
Adequate black pepper
Some rings of orange skin ( optional )
2 whole zucchini either chopped large chunks or you can slice it thin
300g of Sweet Potato ( I used the yellow kind )

First trim off any visible fat you find on the mutton, as to prevent when you bake it the fat would melt and increase a layer of unsightly oil over it. Next use a large frying pan with enough Olive oil and fry the mutton cubes until brown or for no more then 4 minutes per batch. Remove the mutton from the pan but keep the oil.

Next add the remaining oil in and heat it up. Now throw in the garlic and onions and stir fry it till nice light golden brown. Now add in all the vegetables to stir fry for about a minute or 2. Now add in the wine , broth, herbs and black pepper to taste to the mixture and keep stirring till it starts to boil again. Now add the mixture together with the Mutton into a large 3 inch deep baking pan or large cassrole bowl. Now Preheat the oven first to 410 F or 210 C degrees and place the whole thing in to be baked for 1hour to 2 hours max. This is also be shortened if the mutton is tender and ready.

Finally add in the sweet potatos and the Zucchinis and bake no more then another 30 mins.

Serve this great dish with either bread or white rice cooked in a little bit of white vinegar and dill spices.

Enjoy !!!

Pasta Squared in Olive oil, herbs and Chili Flakes Dressing & Zucchini

This is my favourite pasta, I did some modifications to it and added some spicy red Chili Flakes to it :P, that way some of my friends would feel more at home with this dish as its has a unique flavour that is very fresh and clean tastes.

Ingredients :

200 grams of Fresh Zucchinis

400 grams of any type of Pasta

1 table spoon of Red Chili Flakes

2 table spoon of finely chopped garlic

2 table spoon of coarsely chopped Fresh Basil Leaves

1 tea spoon of table salt

1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 table spoon of black pepper

1 teaspoon of Dill finely chopped

1 teaspoon of thymes finely chopped

1 teaspoon of parsley finely chopped

If anyone is asking where I got my fresh herbs and spices, you can find all of them at COLD STORAGE supermarket at IKANO the CURVE.

First clean the Zucchinis with running water. I bought the combo set which has both the Yellow and the Green Zucchinis. Next chop off both ends. Next slice along the whole Zucchini so that the thickness of each strips of skin is deep enough to have some of the crunchy parts with as much skin as possible. Try to cut as long as fine strips as you can manage but not cutting too deep till you see the seeds. This is to ensure that some times the seeds makes a bitter after taste to the strips. If you done it right, you should be left with just the body of the Zucchini with almost all the seed packed center parts to dispose off.

Now season the strips of Zucchini with salt and pepper and steam all the strips for 2 mins or so. This is just to make them crunchy.

Bring a deep bowl of water to a boil with a bit of table salt and olive oil. Once the water is boiling just add all the pasta in. Cook for 10 mins and rinse in cold water and drain. Next store it aside.

Now pour all the olive oil into a deep sauce pan, next bring it to a simmer and add in the garlics. Turn down the heat to medium low and bring the garlics to a golden brown. Once that is done, add in the chili flakes and the finely chopped herbs first. Immediately turn off the heat and add in the Basil Leaves and all the Zucchinis and the Pastas.

Toss the whole mixture of Zucchinis , Pastas , herbs and spices nicely, while the sauce pan and the oil is still warm. Then add salt , pepper and more Chili Flakes to taste of your choice.

Serve them up warm ! Enjoy it hehehe its lovely and easy to cook !