The tale of two curry houses...

There are many things that I wanted to write about in the post exam period, a.k.a 'Christmas time!'. Alas, they can wait. I always try to give constructive criticism about restaurants and food experiences, but sometimes standards are so poor that I cannot help but warn you so that you do not waste your time, money or positive energy on certain products or establishments.

This weekend I had two restaurant based disappointments. Firstly, Sultan's Palace in Liverpool City Centre let me and a lovely group of healthcare professionals down. Dirty floors. Dirty glasses. Bubbling lassi (classic sweet/spiced Indian yoghurt based drink).Waiting almost 4 hours for a 2 course meal. Waiting staff stretching their whole bodies across the table to ensure we got the right curries. Such movements should be saved for Pilates and Yoga. There were few smiles and minimal concern about our dining experience. Plus, to top it off, the food in my opinion was rather mediocre. 5/10.

The second disappointment of the weekend was Cafe Sekander on Allerton Road, South Liverpool. In this establishment I saw something I had never seen before in a restaurant. A chef staggered down the stairs in flip flops into the kitchen(which didn't look ready for service whatsoever).He was followed by another member of staff who had a toothbrush topped with toothpaste behind his back on his way to the kitchen. THIS WAS NOT A GOOD LOOK. The expression on my Dad's face was absolutely priceless. Needless to say we did not partake in the devouring of curry there this weekend.

I don't like to sound too brutal, but I have been to both these restaurants before and had totally different experiences and tasty food in clean and cheery atmospheres. I have worked in an award winning curry house before and I can relate to some of the challenges that serving staff and chefs may face, but the service I experienced this weekend was inexcusable. First things first, brush your teeth at home!

If you fancy a curry in Liverpool this week, give these two places a miss. You could cook up a lovely one for family and friends for a fraction of the price.Plus I'm sure you would smile heartily at whoever eats you curried goodness and not stretch all over them without their consent. Failing that, you could place an order at Kebabish Original on Lodge Lane... I have a lot more to say about them. They won't be letting you down anytime soon. 

Bargain busters!

It's revision week for me and many other students across Scotland. What can boost our morale, nutritional intake and brain function...food!

I just did my last food shop of the semester with Tori... we got so many bargains! The majority of our food items cost between 9p and 22p. This included all butter croissants, apple pie, seeded bread, fresh watercress and rocket, butternut squash mix, free range eggs and more...

How do we do it?

Shop late and shop savvy. Use your imagination. Use your freezer. Don't be a slave to sell by dates.

Follow this and you can get healthy, tasty, bargains. Yellow stickers are your friend. There's absolutely no point being a food snob... sometimes it's just more fun being an 'el cheapo'!

The hens are happy, we're happy...

Just some of tonight's bargain shop

Save your money for the children...for breakfast?

When I started college at 16, I stopped eating breakfast regularly. It wasn't my parents fault. Many a time, my Mum had a toasted bagel with some sort of  jam or peanut butter on it to give me as I dashed through the door for my daily 'power walk' to catch my train.  I claimed  that 'I didn't have time'. My brother, however, is the biggest breakfast champion out there. He would NEVER start the working day without some sort of breakfast. On countless occasions, Sam has uttered those sensible words,"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." He's right. You'll be pleased to know I'm now a believer in breakfast and I even bake tea bread to share with my flatmates.

(59p bag of bread mix, free raisins, a dash of mixed spice, a cup of strong tea = enough  freshly baked tea bread for 6 and one happy Ana)

As a young child you are not responsible for making your own food choices. In my opinion, as a child you shouldn't be. Parents and guardians should be responsible for what they feed their growing children.  Recently, I was horrified to find out that in Great Britain 1 million children go to school without breakfast everyday. This angered me to know that in one of the most resourceful states in the world, children are not being fed adequately by their own families, let alone the longer term secondary impacts on a child's education.

In my mind, there is no excuse for hungry children in class at the very start of the school day. Only this week, I saw multiple loaves of bread for £0.05 this week. Even if you are on the tightest budget out there, 5p towards a child's breakfast is not much to ask. There is increasing support out there for families on tight budgets in the UK. In many parts of our world, the same options may seem like a pipe dream to some struggling parents.What it all comes down to is PRIORITIES. Do you feed your children or get a fix for your addiction? Do you feed your children or pay essential bills or fix much needed appliances in the home? I hope I never find myself in this position. There are genuine people working hard to make ends meet, but unfortunately, some children are suffering from straightforward neglect and parental laziness.

The question I ask you is, is it society's responsibility, the government's responsibility or just a families' responsibility to make sure children are fed properly. I would really appreciate more comments on this.

Thank you Trevor, Lynda et al who have already shared theirs with me.

Back with a bang

It seems like forever since The Rice Cooker got some much needed love and attention.
Alas, no more! I promise.

Just a little note, for those of us who sometimes almost let our pans go 'bang' on a semi-regular basis, here's a reminder to keep our 'bangs' limited to non-violent smoke free punchy flavours.

 

This sign may save lives

Levi Roots; cassava, shame and smiles

In my last post, I mentioned my excitement at almost seeing Levi Roots, the founder of  beloved Reggae Reggae sauce and  other products such as Reggae Reggae peanuts, pasties. On Saturday, I met him in the most awkward of circumstances.

Levi Roots was scheduled to do his cooking demonstration at the Liverpool Food and Drink Food Festival this Saturday, which he did. He started off with his signature song, which I essentially know by rote..." put some music in your food today, gimme some Reggae Reggae sauce...". Seeing Levi sing this live, was more than enough for me. He started cooking, with haddock, tomatoes, a mixes of Caribbean spices, avocado and obviously, sassily poured Reggae Reggae Sauce. During the demonstration, he was being interviewed, sharing his life experiences with us and his journey from his normal life from his flat in Brixton to running the most prominent Carribean food brand in the UK within 6 years.

The demo carried on. All nice, all good. I was bursting with excitement, although I must admit we had a quick food break as we were not going to let hypoglycemia blur such a positive experience. On our return, Levi started a competition of  'Guess what this food is and you can win a prize!' WOW. In his hand, on a snazzy stage, in front of at least two hundred people he held an object ; a cassava.  It's also commonly known as yuca and manioc. In my heart I knew the answer. I shouted out. My friend Carrie said I could be a bit louder, so naturally I raised my voice. He looked at me. I thought I had won! Joy of joys! I walked down from the back, to the stage to collect my hard won cassava.

The awkwardness started after taking the cassava, people started laughing and clapping. How nice! As I made my way back to my space, I realised, the prize was not the cassava, but a sachet of Reggae Reggae sauce or Reggae Reggae peanuts that Levi already had given to another member of the audience. I was mortified. With Carrie by my side, we went around the side of the tent to give the cassava back. Minimal fuss was intended. I put in on the stage, apologised to the presenter and intended to leave. At that moment, Levi saw my shame, told me it was okay, kissed the cassava and gave it back to me. Relieved and honoured, we left quickly, to the sound of more clapping and laughter. Carrie kindly hid the cassava in her bag, whilst I cried with laughter and a hint of embarrassment.

 Returning the cassava

 Levi Roots giving me the cassava 

Leaving the tent with my famous cassava

 Carrie having a shot with the cassava safe at home

Basking in light with the best prize ever

This all true. There are witnesses. Ask Carrie. Ask Ursula or about two hundred

 others.

Here ends the tale of Levi Roots; cassava, shame and smiles.

Vegan cake and whistles

I used to be very skeptical of vegan cookery. Honestly, I was. Until about 3 years ago. I'm definitely not vegan. As my friends will tell you I ate fistfuls of  Filipino and Portuguese grilled chicken on bank holiday weekend. However, I have great respect for those who regularly cook delightful meat free, tasty vegan food, whether it be thali from Juicy Jones in Barcelona or chocolatety mud pie cakes.

Whilst staying in Hackney, London for a long weekend, I visited Stoke Newington Farmers' Market, where I sampled a range of organic raw milk products, met Hackney Growing Communities and came across Yam the Cassava's, Global Fusion Vegan Creole Bakery. We enjoyed many samples at Global Fusion's stall; coconut soda bread, banana bread and mango and linseed soda bread. After much deliberation (because they tasted so good), I bought a mango and linseed cake. Before leaving their stall and asking a fair few questions, we had to do one last thing; eat the remains from the sold out chocolate mud pie.

Self explanatory 

We did this 

Mango and Linseed vegan organic goodness

Outside the stall with legendary fritters and cake

On Sunday afternoon, we headed to Nottinghill Carnival for children's day. Apart from inventing back pack dancing and sharing it with the general public, whilst blowing my whistle with great enthusiasm, we also had some hearty food such as curry goat and rice from Kensington Temple and barbecued chicken with sweet chili sauce from the Filipino church group near St Johns Gardens. However, the thing that excited me the most that day, even more than thinking I'd spotted Levi Roots, was getting an actual slice of mud pie at Global Fusion's stall near Portabello Market. I got to meet the magnificent Colga Parker, Global Fusion's founder and learn more about her motivation behind her mainly organic, vegetarian and vegan repertoire. It may sound corny, but you can taste that a lot of time and dedication in her food.

Sadly, Colga is hoping to retire within the next couple of years, so if you want a slice, or an entire cake of her fabulous products, you have to do it soon. Keep your eyes peeled, you can find Global Fusion anywhere from Glastonbury festival to local farmers' markets across London.

On Sunday we got our hands on this..oh yes...

PPDM

Inspiration for this blog comes from all kinds of places. Today, approximately 45 minutes ago inspiration came from one of my Mum's kitchen cupboards. It didn't leap out at me, but it came. I found a pack of uncooked poppadom discs,whilst having a look for tasty dairy free crisp like snacks. Even though this pack of poppadoms were 'best before' 2009, they still tasted as crunchy as ever and even fresher than some that I've tasted from any South Asian restaurant.

What has flash frying poppadoms discs for 3-4 seconds either side taught me this evening? My poppadom vs crisps list will show you.

1. Poppadoms are very cheap. A medium sized pack of poppadoms only cost us 45p. In many parts of the UK, 45p cannot even get you one packet of crisps!
2. After a while, crisps can become flat and flaccid. Poppadoms are almost eternal. Just like rice, beans, flour etc. I don't really believe in best 'before dates'. Just use your own judgement.  
3. Poppadoms are quick to make. After your oil is heated, you only need 8 seconds to rock your own world.
4. Poppadoms can be spelt in various ways. Pappadom. Papadum. Popadum. Crisps aren't as lexically flexible.
5. Poppadoms are great for those with food allergies. There are no secretly added cream powders, acidity regulators or dubious e-numbers. The pack I used only had 5 ingredients, urid flour (black gram flour), rice flour, salt, calcium carbonate and vegetable oil. Simples.
6. Poppadoms are amazing with a variety of dips. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for all crisps.

So, if you're looking for something crunchy, with simple ingredients, that's ready in seconds, poppadoms are for you. If you buy pre-fried supermarket bought stuff, prepare to be disappointed.

I will certainly be buying some poppadom discs to fry up for my new flat mates.