Caribbean beef stir-fry

Slice dice red pepper, deseed then slice red chilli pepper, slice dices leaves of cabbage, slice spring onions, slice garlic clove, put to one side.

Simmer for 20 minutes or less basmati rice in pot of boiling water.

Medium heat, large frying pan, splosh of oil, strips of beef until brown.

Remove beef from pan.

Splosh more oil, add red pepper.

Add spring onions, cabbage, garlic, Caribbean spice pot.

Add coconut cream, beef.

Add coriander.

Serve with rice, sprinkle toasted coconut chips.

Tasty but bears no resemblance to a Caribbean dish. stir-fry with addition of Caribbean spices.

Baffled why would wipe pan after removing beef, as would wish to fry the pepper in the juices and fat.

• PHOTOS Caribbean beef stir-fry
  
  
  
  

Planting out

Yesterday a hole dug a spade deep for a courgette plant, backfilled with compost and soil. Last week or so, compost spread on bed for runner beans.

Today, time to start planting out.

Two more holes dug for courgette plants. A spade deep, hit stony layer. Do courgettes self pollinate or do need two or more plants? Each plant has make and female flowers.

Tomato plants Alissa Craig.

Runner beans var Scarlet Emperor.

Watered in later. Water around the plants to encourage the roots into surrounding soil.

• PHOTOS Planting out

Espresso tonic

A refreshing summer drink?

Fairly easy, at least should be, if have all the required gear.

First find a cut crystal glass of 350ml. I could not find, settled for crystal glass of 310ml.

No tray for making ice cubes. Improvise with plastic tray from ready meals, fill with 120g of water.

Reset Opal One to factory setting, which gives me 25g, 40g, then reset temperate to highest temperature setting.

Recipe simple:

• 120g of ice
• 120g of tonic water
• 50gof espresso

Tonic used Fevertree Indian tonic. Strange shards of ice due to method of making ice. 40g not 50g of Kenyan espresso, default setting on Opal One.

I have to admit, looking forward to a refreshing drink, I found to be a disappoint,  watery. Maybe I should have tried in the afternoon when hot, not waited to evening when cooling down.

• PHOTOS Espresso tonic

I then tried the Kenyan from April as 25g shot. It was excellent.

Last words to European Coffee Trip.

Mushroom stroganoff

In essence beef stroganoff where mushrooms replace the beef.

Simmer basmati rice in boiling water, 20 minutes, maybe less.

Slice dice an onion, stir fry for around 10 minutes.

Slice different varieties of mushroom. I used chestnut mushrooms and Portobello mushrooms 200g of each. When added to pan looks too much, but shrinks down.

Add one clove of garlic, peeled a d sliced.

Add paprika, add smoked paprika, add mustard.

Add slosh of white wine.

Recipe used fake cream, sod that. Why ruin a good dish to be able to call it vegan? Add creme fraiche. This give gives the creamy taste.

Drain rice, onto plates, add the mushrooms. A little watercress for decoration and garnish.

Very tasty though I prefer beef stroganoff, better still if made with sirloin steak.

I cooked the rice a little too long.

• PHOTOS Mushroom stroganoff

Last words to Jame Oliver

Mowing the lawns and preparing for planting out

I thought it was eight times mowing the lawns, though looking back I said that last week eight, maybe it is now nine times, maybe I should have looked back each time. But who cares, who is counting?

I probably should have mowed the lawns a few days ago.

Was it wise, mowing the lawns, a hot day, crystal blue sky, midday?

Runner beans are getting too tall, need planting out. Oh where is the gardener. We need poles in the ground. Maybe I will do tomorrow.

Hole dug, a spade deep, for courgette plant, half fill with compost, alternate with soil. Courgettes need a lot of water. The compost will provide nutrients and water retention. A little too small to plant out. I do not wish to risk being eaten.

Tomato plants more or less ready to go out.

Late spring early summer flowers.

• PHOTOS Mowing the lawns and preparing for planting out

Lincoln coronavirus lockdown day one hundred and thirty-three

The first warm day in I don’t know how many weeks. The day started off dull, mid-afternoon the sun came out. And it was dry and did not rain.

The bus into Lincoln too many passengers, and no windows open.

Moron in a white van, drove through Sincil Street, a pedestrianised street full of people, turned around, stopped outside a fish n chip shop, went in, came back out with fish n chips, drove off with on his lap, one hand on steering wheel, the other eating his fish n chips.

From Lincoln Central Market I found all that I needed for Risotto Primavera. Well almost I did not get white wine or cheese.

Fish n chips from Elite on the Bail a grave disappointment. It was not good, chips were old, not fresh. Empty. If serve food like today, they will remain empty.

Passing by a whisky shop in Bailgate, a cut glass tumbler in the window. Just what I am looking for. But not 350ml, at a guess 200 ml. pop in. Never seen such a large slection of whisky, not even in Granton-on-Spey. No, did not have.

Suggested a few shops in Bailgate to try. No luck. It was suggested House of Fraser, which I had alraedy intended to visit.

I did though buy a bottle of Fevertree Indian tonic water.

Half way down Steep Hill, almost opposite Imperial Teas a wine shop. Large selection of wine. No luck either. I was tempted to buy a bottle of white wine. Thought through may get better deal in M%S.

Ha, ha, writing on the door of Imperial Teas has changed. No longer making customers unwelcome. But, the door still not open. Coronavirus death trap.

Excellent espresso sat outside Madame Waffle.

Look in House of Fraser. What a dump. No surprise went bankrupt a couple of years ago. Was the liquidators now running. No, it had been bought within minutes of going bankrupt, thus at a strike shedding all the debt.

On the second floor a range of cut glass, and 20% off. Did not have what I was looking for, Settled for crystal glass.

I was thinking of popping back and getting cut glass, but I d not think offer will be on.

In M&S same price, a tenner for a bottle of same grape variety. The trick in M&S, or any supermarket, never buy the cheapest wines and always look for a special deal. So far the red whine has always been excellent.

I miss the bus.

Reteace my steps and sit Cornhill. Very pleasant in the evening, quiet, few people about.

Catch the klst bus.

• PHOTOS Lincoln coronavirus lockdown day one hundred and thirty-three

Real Coffee

Really, or just another example of real life bullshit?

This is unfortunately typical of the garbage I receive every day.

Exclusive new aluminium capsules

It’s your lucky day. You’ve just stumbled across the only recyclable, Fairtrade and organic coffee capsule in the UK!

WTF is real coffee? Or do we now have fake coffee like we have fake meat?

We have bad coffee, which this probably is, typical of what we find in the corporate coffee chains, for example tax-dodging Starbucks et al and the vile undrinkable coffee peddled as luxury by Nespresso.

Then we have independent specialty coffee shops serving excellent coffee.

There is nothing exclusive about the offer.

No, it was not my lucky day, and no I did not stumble across. It was an unwanted intrusion into my personal timeline.

Do not diss compostable.

I assume they mean the contents of their aluminium capsules are organic, not the aluminium which is what they misleadingly state.

It is only possible to recycle aluminium capsules, if obtain a tool (not mentioned) to first extract the spent coffee grounds.

FairTrade scam pays tiny premium above commodity price, maintains growers in poverty as no incentive to improve quality.

Facebook directs to a website, no information, other than told the world’s best coffee, another false claim. Nothing on origin, variety or Q grade.

There is quality coffee in Nespresso compatible capsules, but not from Nespresso:

• Kiss the Hippo — compostable
• Colonna — aluminium and compostable
• April — compostable

Note: The video that appeared on my timeline does not appear to exist and yet it does exist. Very odd. I have posted a different video (but it too does not exist).

Note: The video that appeared on my timeline does not appear to exist and yet it does exist. Very odd. I have posted a different video (but it too does not exist). I have therefore posted the links (may need to be signed into facebook to view)

http://www.facebook.com/realcoffeeUK/videos/480234379723628

http://www.facebook.com/717503798352990/videos/961238294281270

Thai pork green curry

Strip spring greens off stalks, roll, then slice. Press garlic, remove skin, chop. Red chilli pepper, deseed and chop.

In a saucepan of boiling water brown basmati rice, cook for 20 minutes.

Mince pork, splosh of extra virgin cold pressed rapeseed oil in a large frying pan, add minced pork, turn and stir to brown the mince.

Add Thai green curry paste.

Add, coconut cream, ground ginger, tamari, bay leaf and  red chilli pepper.

Add water, simmer.

Add handful of peanuts.

Add spring greens and chopped coriander.

Stir. When greens are wilted, ready to serve.

I was not impressed by this dish. Tasty yes, but too hot. And the hotness distracts from the dish. What to omit or reduce to improve the dish?

I made a mistake of first trying to toast the peanuts in the pan. Pointless, Delayed adding the minced pork, which in turn, rice was cooked a little too long.

• PHOTOS Thai pork green curry

Mowing the lawns and spreading compost

I have lost count, maybe eight times mowing of the lawns. Heavy rain every day, even though cool, grass is growing fast, could have been cut a few days ago.

Digging out the old compost heap, evening yesterday spread on the bed for runner beans, more spread today.

A little weeding.

The plants I picked up a few days ago, runner beans, courgettes, tomatoes, were looking very sad and dejected when arrived home, but a little water, and they are now looking fine.

These to be planted out soon, when grown a little more and temperature not so cold. The courgettes require a hole dug, a mix of compost and soil in the hole. Helps to keep the roots moist, they need a lot of water.

• PHOTOS Mowing the lawns and spreading compost

Lincoln coronavirus lockdown day one hundred and twenty-eight

First weekend pubs fully open. Far worse than I expected, city centre, gangs of marauding drunken scum.

Hopped on Walk and Ride, hopped off at Lincoln Cathedral.

Whilst waiting for Walk and Ride running late, moron pulls up and parks on pavement, hazard lights flashing, whilst passenger jumps out to visit a shop.

As hopped off bus, lucky not to be run down by moron who drives wrong side of bus, wrong way down a one way street.

Look in the charity shop in Bailgate. Until a couple of weeks ago when they stuck a sign in the street, no one knew it was a charity shop. Only works part-time, a very pleasant young woman.

Late lunch at Elite on the Bail, worse from their viewpoint than Tuesday, first day they were open. I am their only customer. Unlike Tuesday, fewer staff. Only one waiter, a guy I had never seen before.

Look in Bailgate Deli, yes, two pieces of cheesecake left.  I am surprised bought in, I assumed they had made. I comment on falafel and salad last week, leave out the strips of bread, serve olives in a dish. I also recommend, ditch the disgusting coffee from Lincoln Tea and Coffee  and source instead from Seven Districts.

Walk back down Steep Hill.

I try an espresso at Madame Waffle, now roasting their own coffee. It is excellent, cannot believe how good.

Cappuccino from Coffee Aroma before they close.

On my way in, after hopping off the bus, I look in Lakeland. I decide to buy gadget that extracts spent coffee from aluminium coffee capsules.

I now have three. The one I bought a couple of days ago from Hotel Chocolat does not work. They say bring it back. I will also drop off the coffee capsule. I actually prefer it to the one from Lakeland, maybe give it another try.

A very cold and damp day. Last week of May and it is like winter.

• PHOTOS Lincoln coronavirus lockdown day one hundred and twenty-eight