Recipes from Elsewhere
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Culinary ideas picked up from various places around the world, most very easily made with readily available ingredients and a bit of effort -- which will be rewarded when you sit and enjoy your labours.
Try these, and send in your recipes (and the story behind them). You'll get full credit. Let's share the chow-down Elsewhere experiences.
Ben Batterbury's Venison Tartare With Blackcurrants, Gin And Chocolate
In May 2011, 32-year old Bristol-born Ben Batterbury, the head chef at Queenstown's prestigious hotel The Rees, presented a menu of New Zealand flavours at the famous Beard House in New York, the home for food writers and chefs in America. His dishes were much acclaimed and the whole event received great press (see here for an example), yet Batterbury -- when I met him at The Rees in the... more >>
Added: 3 Jul 2011
Moroccan Roast Beef inna barbecue style
If you don't have a barbecue with a lid you might want to do this one in the oven, but there is nothing quite like the steamy aroma of the Moroccan flavours when you open the lid to check on this one. That'll have guests working up an appetite. This is a somewhat cobbled together recipe from a number of sources, but it works and should serve four to six, especially if you have a side... more >>
Added: 24 Jan 2011
Wicked Chicken: soul funk for the barbecue
Many years ago Rhino Records -- a reissue label out of LA -- put out a booklet-cum-CD package of old soul and funk with an eating theme, specifically food for barbecues. Tracks on the CDs included Hot Barbecue by Brother Jack McDuff, Grits (James Brown), Chicken Strut (the Meters), Jambalaya on the Bayou (Fats Domino) and so on. You get the picture: tasty music and, in the recipes supplied... more >>
Added: 17 Jan 2011
Elsewhere's Wish You Were Here cocktail for summer
There are few things more pleasant than gently frying your brain in the summer sun (with Factor 5 and a hat of course), so in the interests of public health Elsewhere offers this recipe for a snappy cocktail which might have you talkin' trash, but no matter. No one will remember anyway. This we like because it is simple. You will need some good quality tequila, limes and Kahlua. And good... more >>
Added: 16 Jan 2011
Elvis' Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwiches
Nobody in their right mind would want to follow Elvis' eating regime, but every once in a while maybe you should live like a King. This was one of his favourite recipes and I got it off an oven mitt I bought at Graceland. Sharing the secret! INGREDIENTS Two large bananas Six slices of white bread Half a cup of butter A cup of peanut butter METHOD Peel and mash the... more >>
Added: 11 Oct 2010 
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James' authentically Thai chicken
James Lantana -- more correctly Somsak Lantana -- is my Thai neighbour who was a chef back home, came to New Zealand about 12 years ago, worked in kitchens all around Auckland. It is one of the great delights of my life to invite James and his Japanese wife Nana over for dinner -- because James always insists on not only cooking, but also bringing all the ingredients. He has generously... more >>
Added: 1 Oct 2010
Barbecued Duck Breasts
These days I, like most people, can toss together a very serviceable and reasonably impressive red curry with duck in just a matter of minutes. It helps when you have a shop selling cooked duck within a few minutes walk. But this recipe is something rather more challenging and I have to admit I stole it from a calendar that we were sent about two years ago. Goes great with raman noodles... more >>
Added: 27 Sep 2010
Prawns in Red Curry Sauce
Cannot tell a lie, I borrowed this one from a CD-cum-recipe set in the generic series called The Ideal . . . Dinner Party, and you fill in the gap there with Thai, Chinese, Indian, Italian, Mexican or French. The accompanying CD is gentle dinner party ambient music which refers too those regions. The chef whose name is attached to the series is Bettina Samain and with the Thai one she... more >>
Added: 13 Sep 2010
Llew's pork & prune medley, from the Republic of SunnyO
Andrew Llewellyn who contributes this makes an excellent point when he says, "is there any meal that cannot be vastly improved by the addition of bacon?" Read on and you will see that Andrew is a pig man, but believe me this is elegantly simple and absolutely delicious. You can also do it slowly on a barbeque. INGREDIENTS Pork fillets sausage meat a cup or so of... more >>
Added: 5 Jul 2010
Pollo Adobo (chicken, Filipino style)
Alan offers this alarmingly simple recipe for a chicken dish from the Philippines. Couldn't be easier -- or more tasty. INGREDIENTS 4 skinned chicken breasts 1 cup water 1 cup white vinegar 3 tbsp light soy sauce 3 bay leaves 4 cloves garlic, chopped 1 tbsp ground black pepper 1 tbsp oil Rice enough for four people. METHOD Cut chicken into serving size... more >>
Added: 28 Jun 2010
Hot Smoked Salmon Pasta
Cannot tell a lie, this one is lifted directly from the Salmonman flier that we picked up somewhere. Salmonman sells all kinds of salmon -- from smoked fillets to steaks and marinated kebabs -- as well as prawns and shrimps. And delivers to your door in New Zealand. Check out the website here. This one was dead easy, as you may see. It is rich, but delicious. INGREDIENTS... more >>
Added: 21 Jun 2010
Chilli lime Thai fish with coriander, by James
James is my Thai friend and a wonderful chef (see his Authetically Thai Chicken recipe), and this is a rare treat. It helps in the presentation to have one of those fish-shaped trays with candles underneath to keep the dish warm on the table, and should definitely be served with sticky rice because the sauce is sublime. There are also ingredients here which might mean you have to make a... more >>
Added: 14 Jun 2010 1 Comment
Scotty's salmon'n'scallop filo gateau with a capsicum dill buerre blanc
This superb and astonishingly easy recipe comes courtesy of Scotty Newcombe, chef at Lake Brunner Lodge in the South Island of New Zealand. Lake Brunner Lodge is one of those ideal retreats where you have nature on your doorstep and you can fish for brown trout or salmon, wander through the bush or along the shores of photogenic Lake Brunner, or just indulge in the peaceful ambience of the... more >>
Added: 9 Jun 2010
Crispy'n'chilli squid
Cannot tell a lie, this is a variation on something from Nigella Bites -- but with a twist. Real tasty starter, but it does involve gettin' squishy with it because you really do need fresh squid which you have to clean and take out all the yucky and hard bits -- like excrement and eyes. But really, it's worth it in the end. INGREDIENTS Three medium-sized whole squid (ie. tubes about... more >>
Added: 8 Jun 2010
Greg's wife's Kotosoupa Avgolemono (chicken soup with egg and lemon sauce)
Given the climate in New Zealand right now this is the recipe we have been awaiting for. This is courtesy of Greg's Greek/Cypriot wife and we are assured is renown as a cure for colds. Even if it isn't, it is a winner. INGREDIENTS 1 chicken weighing around 1 kilo. Oven ready. 1 onion peeled and halved 1 carrot peeled and halved 1... more >>
Added: 9 May 2010
Seafood gumbo, Cajun-style
Anyone who has had the good fortune to be in Cajun country in Louisiana knows that the food is often spectacularly good. I've only spent too short a time there -- I have a chapter in Postcards From Elsewhere about the small town of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana -- but I did ask around for recipes. On a napkin I had scribbled notes for a gumbo which, over time and experimentation, turned into... more >>
Added: 19 Apr 2010
Louisiana Shrimp Etoufee
In my travel book Postcards from Elsewhere I write about being in cajun country in Louisiana where the bayou seems mysterious and the food is exceptional. That chapter about Breaux Bridge and the people we met is reproduced here for your amusement. As I say, one of the great things about that part of the world is the food, so here is a recipe which is alarmingly simple and utterly... more >>
Added: 9 Feb 2010
James' "no worries" Curried Alaskan King Crab
My friend James has appeared at Recipes from Elsewhere with two excellent dishes, his authentically Thai chicken and his chilli lime Thai fish with coriander. But this one is especially special. First be warned, unless you live in the US -- or specifically Alaska - this could be pricey (in NZ the 1.5kg of Alaskan King Crab clocked in at about $90) but believe me it is worth it as a special... more >>
Added: 21 Dec 2009
Jan and Mark's easy-as noodles
The simple recipes are the best and they don't come much more easy than this, but also satisfying. INGREDIENTS Thin yellow oil noodles (in the fridge and precooked from the Tofu shop) cucumber carrot red onions garlic(very finely sliced) fresh coriander hot chillies (fresh is best but favourite sauce ok) METHOD Finely slice the cucumber, carrots, red... more >>
Added: 18 Jul 2009
David's Spanish lamb and red pepper stew
David says this is a deliciously simple recipe that can withstand a few variances in the amount of ingredients used, the only caution being that you use very good quality paprika. The Spanish brand La Chinata seems to be readily available in New Zealand, and the bittersweet smoked version suits the dish best. This will serve four. INGREDIENTS I kg, or a little more, of lean lamb.... more >>
Added: 1 Jul 2009
