redjanet's Reviews
21 recipe(s) reviewed. Showing 1 to 21Sort by: Title | Date 
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Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast
By Nigella Lawson
Hyperion - 2007
New Orleans Coleslaw : page 277
I've never made my own coleslaw before and I made this today to take for a picnic and it's very good! Nice, fresh flavours with a hint of sweetness from the maple syrup. I've never had nuts in coleslaw before either and it adds a nice extra texture. The measurements given make plenty.
useful (2)
Macaroni cheese : page 179
This was a quick, shortcut way of making macaroni and cheese. The cheese sauce was made with Red Leicester (which I tried for the first time and quite liked), eggs, evaporated milk and grated nutmeg and then poured over cooked macaroni to bake off in a hot oven. The results weren't as bubbly and drippingly cheesy as I hoped it would be, but more set into the pan and a bit coagulated. It did taste nice, but was quite rich. I'm not sure if I'd make this again.
useful (1)
Chickpeas with rocket and sherry : page 155
Very quick and easy to make. Just a matter of frying up some cumin seeds and warming through some chickpeas and rocket with sherry. The sherry flavour was a bit too strong for my tastes, but it served decently as a side dish to the chorizo and scallops dish on the preceding pages.
useful (0)
Scallops and chorizo : page 153
Ridiculously simple to make, and needs a decent side to go with it to make a complete meal, but the combination of the chorizo and scallop flavours with a bit of lemon was really good and very fast to throw together. I made the chickpea and rocket salad to go with it, as suggested, but I'd be open to suggestion for different ideas of accompaniment.
useful (1)
Red Prawn and Mango Curry : page 15
I really liked this. The sweet potato took a little longer than the 15 minutes suggested, which made the butternut squash go a bit mushy, but despite that the flavour of everything combined was really good. I wasn't sure how well the mango would go, but the sweetness added a nice contrast. I used pre-cooked prawns, which worked fine and served the whole thing with basmati rice. I wish now I had taken a photo as the whole dish was very pink and pale orange!
useful (2)
Quick Chilli : page 236
I thought this was surprisingly really good and much better than it had a right to be considering how much of a cheat's recipe it is. Instead of stewing for an hour or more, this chilli can be cooked for less than half an hour due to the flavour added to it from chorizo, sweet chili sauce and a blend of spices as well as jarred pasta sauce. I didn't add extra chilli flakes as recommended as I'm a bit of a wuss when it comes to spices and I found the mild kick of the sweet chilli sauce to be enough for me. I'll definitely be making this one again when I fancy a hearty midweek meal, especially in winter.
useful (3)
High-speed hamburger : page 145
edited on 27/08/12: I'm upgrading this to three stars as I decided to give this recipe another go in desperation for a quick, easy burger recipe that seemed relatively low in fat. This time I put the burgers in the fridge to firm up for about a half an hour before grilling them on my griddle pan. They still came out a bit soft for my liking, but the flavour was really good and my husband said he liked them and wouldn't mind having them again. So, for a quick burger recipe, it's not too bad. I served these on wholemeal rolls with cheese slices.
I was happy to see a burger recipe in a Nigella book as I normally don't have very good results when trying to make my own. Unfortunately, this recipe didn't really help me as, as usual for me, they came out a bit mushier than I was hoping for and the mixture was a bit too wet for my tastes. I didn't use a burger press as per Nigella's suggestion (I don't have one!), so maybe that's part of the problem.
useful (1)
Spaghettini with prawns and chilli : page 293
A quick and easy midweek pasta dish. I didn't have spaghettini but used normal old spaghetti which was fine. The sunblush tomatoes, rocket and prawns made for a very colourful, pretty dish and the chilli flakes added a nice kick. I think if i made this again, though, I wouldn't use all of the oil of the sunblush tomatoes as instructed as it made the dish a bit *too* oily for my tastes, especially towards the end, but overall this was nice.
useful (2)
Pollo alla cacciatora : page 296
A quick way of making hunter's chicken as a mid-week meal. This is hearty, comfort food that goes down well in the winter. Although the recipe uses cannellini beans as an option, after the first attempt I took Nigella's advice and served it with rice instead as a personal preference, which absorbed the sauce well and proved to be comforting and satisfying.
useful (1)
Buttermilk Roast Chicken : page 274
I really liked these. The ingredients gave the chicken a nice, gentle flavour. These can be eaten hot or cold and I can imagine them being a good thing to take to a picnic, as Nigella did in the episode of the show in which she made them. In fact, that's probably what they're perfect for.
useful (0)
Rocky road crunch bars : page 258
This is a fun dessert to make and bring to parties. It is rich and very filling and it's really delicious. I didn't bother adding the icing sugar to the top as I think the bars are sugary enough without them. These are very satisfying and I would only recommend if you have plenty of room in your tummy for them.
useful (0)
Rib-sticking stiry-fry : page 171
This is a different twist on the traditional stir-fry, using cannellini beans as the starch base rather than rice or noodles. It is easy to make and very filling, but unfortunately I found it to be a bit bland.
useful (1)
Mirin-glazed salmon : page 149
I really wanted to like this as salmon is one of my favourite foods and the idea of a sticky glaze with it sounded great. Unfortunately I actually found the mirin glaze a bit too sickly sweet and was disappointed both times I attempted this recipe.
useful (0)
Gammon steaks with parsley : page 146
This is a very quick way to make a tasty midweek meal. Gammon has a lot of flavour on its own but Nigella adds even more with garlic oil white wine vinegar, pepper, honey and parsley. This is ridiculously easy and goes well with potato and vegetable sides of your choice.
useful (0)
Chicken schnitzel with bacon and white wine : page 143
This is a quick and flavourful way to prepare chicken in the middle of the week. This recipe requires chicken escalopes, streaky bacon, garlic oil and white wine and goes very well with a green salad.
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Flash-fried steak with white bean mash : page 140
This recipe is exactly as described and is very easy. It is simply a combination of quickly-fried minute steaks with an accompanying mashed bean side. My OH and I weren't so keen on the mashed beans as we found them a bit bland and oily in texture.
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No churn pomegranate ice cream : page 132
Not having an ice-cream maker, I was excited to try this way of making one of my favourite dessers, using only pomegranates, lime juice, icing sugar and double cream. This makes a very creamy ice-cream, which is simply mixed together and stored in the freezer in an air-tight container. I think the fruit flavourings could be a bit stronger here as I still tasted mostly cream, but if like me, you don't have and don't really want an ice-cream maker, it's an easy alternative.
useful (0)
Coq au Riesling : page 119
This is Nigella's different take on the classic coq au vin, using a whole bottle of Riesling wine instead. This came out well but I have to admit it was a bit bland for my tastebuds.
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Breakfast Bars : page 94
These are easy to make and come out chewy and delicious. The last time I made them I stored them in the "throwaway" foil tin I baked them in, a la Nigella, but as I was the only one in the house eating them they turned a bit hard and crumbly rather quickly. The next time I make them I'll store them in a more airtight container and see if they last any longer, as they're really worth making for a get up and go portable breakfast.
useful (1)
Roast poussin and sweet potatoes : page 20
The preparation for this dish couldn't be simpler and the results are really delicious. Unlike in the photo in the book, I roasted the sweet potatoes and the poussins in separate trays in the oven (which is how Nigella instructs in the actual recipe). Although I find poussin a bit fiddly to eat, this was very juicy. I absolutely love the flavour of the sweet potatoes which is roasted in garlic oil and cumin (my favourite spice). This has become a regular way of preparing sweet potatoes even with other dishes.
useful (0)
Mustard pork chops : page 11
This was the first recipe I ever made from this book and it was a great introduction. It is very easy, especially with the gnocchi as a side dish. The uses of cider and mustard, along with the cream gives this a rich, creamy flavour.
useful (2)