3 Recipes You Can Make With Ingredients You’ll Find Almost Anywhere In The World

Posted by Greg Hollings

March 7, 2008

Eating my favourite meal wraps me up in a warm blanket of emotional comfort, especially during the cold European winters.

As Claudia and I have just arrived in the Swiss Alps with plans to go to Brazil in October, I’ve been thinking of my favourite recipes to take with us and wonder whether they’d taste quite the same in different parts of the world.

When you make new friends on your travels and are invited for dinner or to a party a friendly gesture, which is always appreciated, is to bring a dish of some kind. I find it helps to break the ice.

Here are three recipes which, unless you’re headed to the Sahara or deepest Siberia, you can find ingredients for almost anywhere in the world…

1. Quick Beef Stroganoff served with Rice

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, sliced
500g/1lb 2oz rump steak (you can use most types of cuts)
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp paprika, plus extra for sprinkling
200ml/7fl oz beef stock
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
284ml/10fl oz carton soured cream

Instructions:

1. Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan.

2. Cook the sliced onion for 5 minutes until softened. Meanwhile cut the beef into thin strips. Season the flour with salt, pepper and paprika, then toss in the beef to coat lightly, shaking off any excess.

3. Add the beef to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes until starting to brown.

4. Pour in the stock and vinegar, bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

5. Stir the soured cream into the pan and cook gently for 1 minute, without boiling (if the mixture boils it will curdle), then season to taste. Spoon the stroganoff on to a bed of rice or noodles and sprinkle with a little extra paprika.

2. Pot Roast Chicken

Ingredients (serves 4)

2 tbsp olive oil
4 chicken breasts, skin on
115g/4 oz smoked streaky bacon, chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, cut into 1 inch chunks
2 carrots, cut into 1 inch chunks
12 new potatoes, washed
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 bay leaves
400g/14oz can chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (can use dark soy sauce as an alternative)
900ml/1 pint 12fl oz chicken or vegetable stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5.

2. Place a large casserole dish over a high heat on the hob, add the olive oil and when hot, add the chicken to the dish. Cook, turning occasionally, until brown all over. Remove from the dish and set aside.

3. Add the bacon to the casserole dish and fry for a 2-3 minutes, until golden.

4. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrots, potatoes, thyme and bay leaves.

5. Pour in the chopped tomatoes, add the Worcestershire sauce and stir.
6. Add the chicken stock and return the chicken to the casserole dish. Bring to the boil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then put the lid on the casserole. Transfer to the oven to cook for one hour, or until the chicken is tender and completely cooked through.

7. To serve, remove and carve the chicken breasts on the diagonal. Spoon the vegetables and broth into bowls and top with the sliced chicken.

3. Apple Pie

Ingredients

For the pastry:
255g/9oz plain flour
pinch of salt
140g/5oz hard margarine or butter
6 tsp cold water

For the filling:
3 large Bramley cooking apples, chopped, stewed and cooled
sugar, to taste
caster sugar, to serve

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.

2. Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl.

3. Rub in the margarine or butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

4. Add the cold water to the flour mixture. Using a knife, mix the water into the flour, using your hand to firm up the mixture. The pastry should be of an even colour and suitable consistency for rolling. (Or skip step 3 and just buy ready made pastry!)

5. Divide the pastry into two halves. Take one half and roll it out so that it is big enough to cover an 20cm/8in enamel or aluminium plate. Trim the edges with a knife using the edge of the plate as your guide.

6. Cover the pastry with the stewed apples and sprinkle with sugar to taste.

7. Roll out the other half of the pastry. Moisten the edge of the bottom layer of pastry and place the second piece on top.

8. Press down on the pastry edges, making sure that they are properly sealed. Trim off any excess pastry with a knife in a downward motion, again using the plate as your guide.

9. Flute the edges with a pinching action using your fingers and thumb.

10. Prick the surface of the pastry lightly before placing the pie in the oven. Cook for 20-30 minutes.

11. When the pie is cooked it should move slightly on the plate when gently shaken.

12. Slide on to a serving plate, dust with caster sugar and serve.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or double cream.

Sometimes it can be a little disquieting when you first arrive in a foreign land. You can become quickly engulfed in the hustle and bustle of the local community and, for the first few days at least, you might want to enjoy some familiar food to help you settle in comfortably and keep your bowels happy!

If you’re about to head on the road as a LIP, or are currently on the road, which of your favourite dishes will you miss and perhaps try to make in your new location?

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