Family Mess Hall - whole food meals dinners recipes

Yellow chicken curry - Malaysian style This most basic yellow chicken curry is mildly spiced but packed with flavour. Any yellow curry blend can be used but I love this combination of turmeric, fenugreek, coriander, chilli celery and black pepper. It's a quick and easy one-pot curry that's great for weeknight dinners and includes a good serve of low cost vegetables.  Ingredients: 1 tbsp vegetable oil 2 medium onions ((roughly chopped)) 2 tsp garlic ((minced)) 2 tsp fresh ginger ((minced)) 1/4 tsp belanchan ((optional)) 2 kg bone-in thighs or drumsticks 2 tbsp Keen's curry powder ((or your own favourite yellow curry blend)) 3 medium carrots ((sliced 0.5cm thick, skin on)) 5 medium potatoes ((4cm / 1 1/2 inch dice, skin on)) 2 stalks lemon grass ((left whole)) 1 cinnamon stick 1 cup reduced fat coconut milk 2 tbsp tamarind paste ((optional)) 1 cup stock 1 tsp salt 1 tsp sugar 1/2 cup roasted peanuts ((optional garnish)) 1 cup fresh coriander leaves ((optional ...

As a family of four we rarely finish a whole chicken in one sitting.  It's good to know then, that there are so many ways to re-purpose leftover chicken.  This easy chicken pot pie recipe creates a delicious meal with leftover roast chicken. Chicken pot pie with cheese scone crust Cheese scone crust 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour 3/4 cup grated cheese ((plus extra for the top if you desire)) 3 tsp baking powder 1 egg 3/4 cup milk 1 tsp thyme 1/2 tsp ground black pepper Pot pie filling 1 1/2 cup potatoes ((1.5cm (1/2 inch) dice)) 1 1/2 cup large sweet potato ((1.5cm (1/2 inch) dice)) 1 1/2 cup carrots ((1.5cm (1/2 inch) dice)) 1 cup peas 1 tbsp butter 2 tbsp all purpose flour 1 cup milk 1/2 cup cream 1/2 whole cooked chicken (rotisserie, roast or bbq) ((shred skin and meat)) 1 onion ((chopped)) 1 tbsp dijon mustard 1 tsp thyme 1 chicken stock cube salt and pepper to taste Make the cheese scone topping In a bowl, mix together the wet ingredients, thyme and grated cheese.  Si...

Cauliflower, bean and carrot bechamel bake Here is a lusciously creamy cauliflower, bean and carrot side dish to roast or bbq meats. It's more delicate in flavour and lighter in calories than classic cauliflower cheese due to the complete omission of cheese. The result is a gently sweet and creamy steamed vegetable bake that sits perfectly beside heavily spiced, salted (eg corned beef) or marinated meats. Ingredients: 2 carrots (sliced) 1/2 large head of cauliflower (cut into florets) 200 grams green beans (topped and tailed then halved) 500 mL whole milk 50 grams butter 50 grams all purpose flour ((2 tbsp and a bit)) 1/2 tsp nutmeg or mustard powder Method: 1. Preheat oven to 180C / 350F. Make the bechamel (white) sauce Melt the butter in a saucepan and then whisk in flour to make a roux (thickening paste).  Continue to whisk and cook for a minute. At a medium high heat, add the milk to the roux and whisk until the sauce has thickened. This may take ten minutes o...

Korean bibimbap - vegetarian rice bowl Ingredients: steamed rice for four people 1 cup zucchini (julienned) 1 cup red capsicum (julienned) 1 cup butternut pumpkin (julienned) 2 cups shredded silverbeet or spinach 5 dried shiitake mushrooms 4 eggs Korean bibimbap sauce ((store bought ok)) sesame oil salt 1-2 tbsp kimchi per person (optional) Homemade bibimbap sauce (less spicy to be child friendly) 1 tbsp gochujang ((add up to three tablespoons as you prefer)) 1/2 tbsp sesame oil 1 tsp sugar 2 tbsp hot water 1 tsp minced garlic 1 tsp rice or apple cider vinegar 1 tsp sesame seeds Method: Prepare steamed rice as per packet instructions. In a fry pan, separately stir fry batches of vegetables in a tsp of sesame oil until fragrant and wilted.  Season each batch with a little salt to taste. Serve rice in large bowls.  Place cooked vegetables in little piles on top of the rice keeping each vegetable separate from the other. Fry eggs in oil keeping yolks running. Top rice and vegetab...