Food and Cooking Thread

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Clarkman
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PostFood and Cooking Thread
by Clarkman » Mon Dec 12, 2011 11:59 pm



GRCADE RECOMMENDS

LONDON

Clarkman wrote:Hare & Tortoise, Brunswick Centre

Very affordable Chinese food with extremely quick service and huge portions. Excellent, central location. Very clean.

Manze’s Pie and Mash, Chapel Market

Good proper British grub in an authentic pie house setting and a price that won’t be beaten. Exactly what you should be eating in London. It’s a two-item menu: Small Pie or Large Pie. The liquor is perfect. They also serve Jellied Eels for the adventurous.

Brass Rail Salt Beef Bar, Selfridges

Again, very British food. The Brass Rail is a marvel and an icon. You’ll be amazed by how fast the service is. Be warned though: this is a very expensive sandwich.

Chilango

Mexican fast food restaurant that’s been voted best in London multiple times. Extremely quick, Subway style service and excellent quality ingredients.[/b]


karl_fletcher wrote:Tayyabs

Pakistani restaurant a few minutes walk from Whitechapel tube station. Curries are good, breads are great, but the real draw are the grilled meats. Marinated lamb chops, chicken and kofta are served on a sizzling skillet and taste strawberry floating amazing. It's also very cheap and is BYOB with no charge. It's a huge space over three floors, but you'll still have to queue on a Friday and Saturday night.

Meat Liquor/Meat Market/Dirty Burger

All hipster as strawberry float, but the burgers at all three are perfect. Meat Liquor is just off of Oxford Street (round the back of Debenhams) and gets very busy in the evenings, so is best visited for lunch and serves delicious battered peppers. Meat Market is from the same people and is above Jubilee Market in Covent Garden piazza. It's smaller and less busy and they do great hotdogs as well as the same burgers as Meat Liquor, but they don't do the peppers. Dirty Burger in Kentish Town is the newest of the three and does equally good burgers, better fries and fantastic onion rings. All three are cheap and quick, alcohol is typical London prices. Meat Liquor and Dirty Burger both do good local beers whilst Meat Market only sells 330ml cans of Czech lager and has the nerve to charge £4.50 each for them. Unlimited refills on soft drinks are the way to go.

Bocca Di Lupo

Italian in Soho. Serves delicious regional dishes in different sized portions. The menu lists the region each dish comes from (or "BDL" for their own creations) and it is best dining as a group so you can share multiple things. Directly opposite is their gelateria, Gelupo, which does interesting flavours like chocolate with amaretti biscuits and blood orange granita.

The Harwood Arms

A pub in Fulham serving phenomenal food. The owner hunts all the deer (the restaurant's speciality) himself, prices are very reasonable considering the quality of the food and, being a pub, there is a great selection of spirits, ales and wines. They also do the best scotch egg ever (soft boiled egg, venison meat). Lovely decor, great service and situated on a stereotypical leafy west London street. I love it so much that I had my wedding reception there this July.

Hawksmoor

Steakhouse originally in Spitalfields, now also with branches in Covent Garden and the City. Perfectly cooked steaks, amazing sides including triple cooked chips and bone marrow and some of the best cocktails in London. A breakfast/brunch menu has a breakfast for two that comes with a thick bacon chop on the bone which is one of the best things I've ever eaten. The bar menu has tasty hotdogs and lobster rolls.


MANCHESTER

Clarkman wrote:Dough

Creative pizza restaurant just inside the northern quarter. Check out their crazy menu. Jerk Chicken Pizzas! Crispy Duck pizzas! All restaurant quality and an extremely comfortable setting.


BRISTOL

BraithGwirod wrote:Piccolinos

Piccolinos in Cabot Circus does the most incredible food; but has a quite loud and busy atmosphere. That would normally put me off, but dat pannacotta :datass:

Filini (part of the Radisson Blu hotel, Bristol city centre)

My god, I love this place. Maybe because of what it means to me, but also strawberry float me their food is good. Wonderful atmosphere, the staff are excellent, they have a great bar, but above all they just do amazing meals. Had fillet steak here once and I wasn't capable of speaking for a while after. Bloody marvellous.

The Crown, St Nicholas Market, Bristol

Big portions of home cooked food, and at an astonishing price. I just love this pub in general though. It's one of only two 'alternative' pubs in town, they do a good range of beers including guest ales at bargain prices and it's just gorgeous.

Lordleaze Hotel, Chard

I doubt any of you will ever think to go to Chard (and who the strawberry float would blame you), but I would highly recommend going just to lock yourself in your room and eat their food. All their produce is locally sourced (meat comes from a farm about 2 miles away) and cooked to perfection. The lamb shank is to die for.


ABROAD

karl_fletcher wrote: Thalassino Ageri in Hania, Crete

Hania is a gorgeous small city in the western side of Crete and this restaurant is about a fifteen minute drive from the centre. It's in a quiet spot on the seafront with the tables outdoors facing the water. The small boats tied to the dock give you a clue that the seafood is going to be fresh, but when it is served, strawberry floating hell, it's indescribably good. Tender octopus, sea bass that falls off the bone, Greek salad with huge anchovies and whole fried squid in a light garlicky butter that has completely ruined all squid that I've had since. Probably the best meal I've ever had. If anyone goes to Crete, GO TO THIS RESTAURANT.

Last edited by Clarkman on Sun Jan 25, 2015 2:59 pm, edited 30 times in total.
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Oh Teh Noes
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Oh Teh Noes » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:02 am

We never have anything different to the norm with our roasts, so I'll leave that one, but the best frozen pizza brand is Dr Oetker's Ristorante pizzas :wub: Goregous things they are, and they've got really nice toppings on. Nice and thin and crispy.

Best way to use a pepper is to cut the top off, scoop out the inside, fill it with stuff and then roast it in the oven. Voila stuffed peppers. :)

EDIT: Mashed swede! Does everyone else have that?

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Knoyleo
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Knoyleo » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:04 am

I was thinking of how much this places needs a proper food and drink thread just earlier today. Fells uncanny, man.

Clarkman wrote:1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner

2. Best frozen Pizza brand

3. Best way to use the Green Pepper you get in multi-packs

1. Home grown leeks. Patriotic, and delicious.

2. N/A Either make your own, or pay through the nose for a take away like you deserve. Don't try and cut corners by getting it on the cheap without having to put the effort in.

3. Eat it, raw or cooked, it's just as good as the other colours.

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Oh Teh Noes
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Oh Teh Noes » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:07 am

Knoyleo wrote:Either make your own, or pay through the nose for a take away like you deserve. Don't try and cut corners by getting it on the cheap without having to put the effort in.

lol describe well !

Dr Cottle wrote:My favourite flavour of popsicle is DICK.
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by bear » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:10 am

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/programmes/b0188621

I made the Chicken and Leek pie from this programme over the weekend. It was my first time making anything that had a roux in it and frankly I thought I had cocked it up royally at first but stirring it with a whisk for 5 minutes saw it right. Turned out damn nice.

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Clarkman » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:11 am

I starting helping to cook the Christmas feast for the first time last year. One little innovation I came up with that went down well was to make some Ratatouille for the Boxing Day buffet. [It's our tradition to have cold Turkey/Ham with hot veg the next day] It went down really well. I made it a week in advance, so it had lots of flavour. Good strong garlic, chilli. I used quality Olive Oil to help it keep.

As for the Green Pepper, I like to rip it up and throw it in with Instant Noodles. Makes them feel less awful. Another good tip is to save the Instant Noodle water and boil veg in it. Broccoli works really well at absorbing the rich, salty flavours.

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Dr. ogue Tomato
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Dr. ogue Tomato » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:15 am

Put the pepper in a curry or chilli or something like that, don't really see how it's different to the other colours to be honest.

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Abs
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Abs » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:20 am

I used to hate green peppers, then one day i realised i was being stupid, if you think they're too savoury then sprinkle some sugar on them while in the frying pan.

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smurphy
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by smurphy » Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:08 am

I need a decent Thai/Asian curry recipe. Google brings me rubbish. Preferably not green, but it'll do in a pinch. Involving any meat but seafood, as my dad hates it. Coconutty, as well!

Anyone got any suggestions!?

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kiera229
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by kiera229 » Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:17 am

Clarkman wrote:1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner

Christmas for us always means a big dinner at my maternal grandparents' place, and they're Estonian, so we have a bunch of Estonian dishes. Rosolje was always my favourite "unusual" Christmas food.

smyrrhphy wrote:I need a decent Thai/Asian curry recipe. Google brings me rubbish. Preferably not green, but it'll do in a pinch. Involving any meat but seafood, as my dad hates it. Coconutty, as well!

Anyone got any suggestions!?

Have you tried Googling for "satay" instead of "curry"? There should be plenty of good coconutty south-east Asian satay recipes out there.

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Oh Teh Noes
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Oh Teh Noes » Tue Dec 13, 2011 8:31 am

Ayden wrote:I’m sure I can make do with just a sniff and a wistful glance at what others are eating. Can’t I? Can’t you?

No.

Dr Cottle wrote:My favourite flavour of popsicle is DICK.
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Moggy » Tue Dec 13, 2011 8:59 am

Our Christmas dinner is pretty standard (turkey, roast potatoes, pigs in blankets, veg, gravy. I love a Christmas dinner but think my favourite is cold turkey and chips on Boxing Day. :wub: And then a few days of turkey sandwiches before I am sick to death of turkey for another year. :lol:

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Fatal Exception » Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:06 am

Clarkman wrote:Despite being a common talking point, there's no dedicated thread for Food or Cooking in Off Topic, which is surprising to me.

At this time of year, food seems to be forever on our minds. I find myself Googling reviews of ready meals quite often, but never really find much of value. Jim has set the forum standard with the success of Chocolate Mission, and I hope he will contribute here.

So, this thread is for your recipes, culinary tales, restaurant and supermarket picks and more.


Three questions to start the thread going:

1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner

[We're not talking Roast Potato, Parsnips, Sprouts, Stuffing, etc. I want to know the stuff you have that other people might not]

2. Best frozen Pizza brand

3. Best way to use the Green Pepper you get in multi-packs



1. We always have Yorkshire Puddings as an additional starter, served with real gravy rather than with the meal. Also our gravy will be real, I know lots of families don't bother but it's really worth the effort. I don't think we really have anything other than all the traditional trimmings, perhaps roast sweet potato along with the roasts.

2. Goodfellas Takeaway. It's seriously good, but really, really bad for you. My home made pizza is better though.

3. Chopped up in a stir fry or chilli.

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karl_fletcher
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by karl_fletcher » Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:27 am

The best ready-made pizzas are Waitrose:

http://www.waitrose.com/shop/ProductVie ... bria+pizza

OK they're not frozen, but you can freeze them if you so wish.

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Dual
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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Dual » Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:29 am

I still make Knoyleos pesto and cream pasta from the last time we did this thread. I use Quorn instead of chicken now though ^__^

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Beans » Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:34 am

1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner
BBQ sauce and lots of it. I have it on everything though

2. Best frozen Pizza brand
Frozen pizza is never as good as making it yourself, so no.
3. Best way to use the Green Pepper you get in multi-packs
Same way you use the red pepper. :?

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Poser » Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:13 am

Clarkman wrote:1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner

2. Best frozen Pizza brand

3. Best way to use the Green Pepper you get in multi-packs


Good thread - I nearly started one similar the other week as I love a good chat about food.

1. I don't do anything out of the ordinary, however this year I'm doing dinner for nine people and don't have room for a whole turkey. I'm therefore doing individually-stuffed turkey breast steaks. Also doing the pigs in blankets roasted in honey, bit of mustard powder and sesame seeds, just to make them nice and sticky.

2. Dr Oetker, the chicken and spinach one. Quite often on offer for a quid a pizza. Can't go wrong.

3. Green pepper is fine. I use it in loads of stuff. The Mrs doesn't eat much meat so I'm eating less - a nice, slow-cooked veggie chilli is ideal.

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by abcd » Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:17 am

1. I tend to make a lovely chicken and asparagus terrine to compliment the stuffing.

2. No idea

3. You can char grill the green pepper (or put it over a gas hob). This will burn the sugar and make the pepper a bit more sweeter. But the green pepper is still a bitter mess.

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by Poser » Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:21 am

Hidden orange Christmas pudding wrote:1. I tend to make a lovely chicken and asparagus terrine to compliment the stuffing.



Seems a bit extreme. If the stuffing is good enough, surely the guests will compliment it?

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PostRe: Food and Cooking Thread
by bear » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:43 pm

Beans wrote:1. Your special trimmings for Christmas Dinner
BBQ sauce and lots of it. I have it on everything though




BBQ sauce on Christmas dinner is just wrong.


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