The Ducks Guts' Reviews
154 recipes reviewed. Showing 1 to 50Sort by: Book Title | Date | Rating | Recipe Title 
The Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accessories
By David Lebovitz
Ten Speed Press,U.S. - 2007
A great hit with the only person who took milk in her coffee. Fun to make.
useful (1)
Madhur Jaffrey Cookbook
By Madhur Jaffrey
Tiger Book - 1992
Disappointing. Possibly if I hadn't read the paragraph at the start of the recipe, I wouldn't have expected so much, but I certainly wouldn't sneak out of the house for this. I used tinned chickpeas, and had to double the cooking time to get them close to the mushy stage that I prefer, but that is the cook, not the recipe.
I might try the recipe again, but will be prepared to tweak it substantially. Also, 5 tablespoons of oil is way too much for frying the onions. Possibly the recipe is just showing its age / era.
useful (0)
Vefa's Kitchen
By Vefa Alexiadou
Phaidon Press Inc. - 2009
Good, despite having a 1/3 teaspoon of smoked paprika added in by mistake, as well as the allspice (bottles look identical to each other). Took 3 hours at 80 C (trying out the low temperature cooking method). Quinces are scary to core, so cooked them in the microwave first for a couple of minutes so that the knife wouldn't slip on the hard flesh.
Forgot to say that I also added in the quinces as the same time as the meat. From past experience, quinces can take longer then you expect. I also used ghee instead of butter - butter tends to burn when browning meat, I find, but that is probably the cook.
useful (1)
Recipes From World Vision
By World Vision of Australia - Shepparton Branch
World Vision of Australia - Shepparton Branch - 1981
Listed as "Australasian", but it can't be really. This recipe must have kept students and first-time-away-from-home alive for years all over the planet. A can of tuna, a can of sweet corn etc etc served with rice - better then instant noodles (probably more expensive tho).
useful (0)
The Cook's Companion
By Stephanie Alexander
Viking Australia - 1998
Good instructions, easy to follow for cooking your first tongue. Works well with just water (no stock). She doesn't use a tongue press, so it isn't neccessary to have one. No idea why, but ox tongue tastes exactly like very soft roast lamb.
useful (0)
Chinese Vegetable and Vegetarian Cooking
By Kenneth Lo
Faber & Faber - 1995
Works well with a strong chicken stock. Small cubes of Spiced Tofu (bought) add body.
useful (0)
Indian Vegetarian Cookery
By Jack Santa Maria
Red Wheel Weiser - 1977
If you cut the amount of water to 3 cups and use stock instead, this makes a very good soup, warming in cold weather. Quick and easy to make.
useful (1)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
A little dry. They needed a dipping sauce.
useful (0)
Canapes
By Eric Treuille, Victoria Blashford-Snell
Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd - 1999
Lovely looking appetiser and is good to eat as well. Can be pretty much made in advance except for the final assembling in the last hour or so.
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Excellent little savoury shortbreads that you can make weeks in advance for a party. Recipe says it makes 40, but I find it only makes half that, so you may want to double the mixture.
useful (1)
Taste of the Middle East (Creative Cooking Library)
By Soheila Kimberley
Lorenz Books - 2000
This was good, and reasonably simple to make. In the first half of the cooking (which I did in the pressure cooker) I was concerned about the strong cinnamon scent, but once the lemon juice and parsley was added, it settled down and blended in. Tired from Christmas shopping, I added in frozen peas in the last 5 minutes to make it a one-pot meal (2, if you include the rice-cooker for the rice).
useful (1)
Italian Family Cooking: Like Mamma Used to Make
By Anne Casale
Ballantine Books - 1984
This is the recipe that I always use for pesto. Wonderful and freezes well. Be very careful browning the pine nuts as they burn if you walk away from the stove, even if just for a minute.
useful (0)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
We didn't like it, but I think this is personal taste, not the recipe.
useful (0)
Authentic Recipes from Thailand (Authentic Recipes Series)
By Sven Krauss, Laurent Ganguillet, Luca Invernizzi Tettoni, Vira Sanguanwong
Periplus Editions - 2004
Very good,usable sauce. We had it on baked snapper one night, and the leftovers with a (bought) charcoal chicken the next. Certainly jazzed up two plain dishes, rice and salad.
It was made in a about 10 minutes, and I quadrupled it, for four people. However, I didn't add as much sugar as recipe, cutting it down by about a third.
useful (1)
Canapes
By Eric Treuille, Victoria Blashford-Snell
Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd - 1999
Very good dip. I use 16 tomato halves and halve the amount of vinegar.
useful (0)
Chinese Cooking: Cantonese (International Gourment)
By Margaret Leeming
Ward Lock Ltd - 1993
A good version of this well-known dish.
useful (0)
Coffee Cakes: Simple, Sweet, and Savory
By Lou Seibert Pappas, Maren Caruso
Chronicle Books - 2006
Good cake. A bit of a disaster initially, as I had substituted frozen blueberries for the strawberries which made for a much longer cooking time. Pulled it out at 40 minutes and most of the cake was still raw. However another 40 minutes at 160 C and it was fine. Definately the cook's fault.
The book ONLY uses American measurements, so a bit of time was spent Googling the conversions. There is a Table Of Equivelents in the back of the book, but it doesn't have the dreaded stick of butter which is so hard to remember if you don't bake often.
useful (0)
Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking
By Fuchsia Dunlop
W.W. Norton & Co. - 2003
I am not sure about this one. It took at least 8 minuets of vigorous stir-frying to get the potato's cooked to what I would consider edible, and even then, they certainly didn't look enticing. The recipe calls for them to be al dente, but we all agreed that potatoes were one vegetable that needs to be cooked " to mush". At the very least, a garnish of spring onion or coriander is neded against the mass of white slivers. Also, the Chinese may consider potatoes as a rice accompaniment, but I felt like I was serving carbs with carbs.
However, we did like the flavor of the sichuan peppers and chillies with the potatoes, and maybe I would consider this dish in another way, such as frying up the pepper mix to sprinkle over bought Fish and Chip shop chips, which are the golden, crunchy chips we prefer.
useful (0)
Ken Hom's Chinese Kitchen: With a Consumer's Guide to Essential Ingredients
By Ken Hom
Anova Books - 1996
OK, but not brilliant.
useful (0)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
I halve the sugar as otherwise it is very sweet. Also, half the recipe makes enough for 3 servings.
useful (0)
Madhur Jaffrey Cookbook
By Madhur Jaffrey
Tiger Book - 1992
OK, but nothing to rave over, even substituting chicken stock for the vegetable stock.
useful (0)
Ken Hom's Chinese Kitchen: With a Consumer's Guide to Essential Ingredients
By Ken Hom
Anova Books - 1996
Fabulous way of cooking chicken in hot weather. Easy and the chicken is always moist and tender. Cook it in the cooler part of the day and leave in the fridge for a meal that night when it is too hot to cook and you don't want to heat the house up any further.
The Cantonese-Style Dipping Sauce on page 131 is the favorite to go with it, but I usually do a couple of others as well, Thai or European. I have served it with home-made mayonnaise, but that was a little bland.
This recipe (or method, really, I suppose) is sometimes known as Velvet Chicken.
useful (0)
Chinese Vegetable and Vegetarian Cooking
By Kenneth Lo
Faber & Faber - 1995
Makes a very large quantity. Stir-frying the broccoli first fixes its green colour better. A tablespoon of Szchewan pickle works well as a substitute for the pickled amaranth.
useful (0)
Vegetables (The Good Cook Techniques & Recipes Series)
By Time-Life Books
Time-Life Books - 1979
Lovely light soup. The lemon juice is essential and the chicken stock must be real - no stock cubes. Use a gentle heat or the microwave to re-heat.
useful (1)
Italian Family Cooking: Like Mamma Used to Make
By Anne Casale
Ballantine Books - 1984
If you make your own pasta, this is an excellent means of getting the family to eat leafy greens without complaining. The spinach colours the pasta, but doesn't flavour it greatly.
useful (0)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
Good.
useful (0)
Savour the Pacific: A Discovery of Taste
By Annabel Langbein, Kieran Scott
Graphic Arts Center Publishing Company - 2002
A welcome change from the usual pumpkin soup recipe. Half a 200g block of creamed coconut worked fine instead of the tin of cocount milk.
useful (0)
Canapes
By Eric Treuille, Victoria Blashford-Snell
Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd - 1999
Horrible. Perhaps peanut butter just doesn't work as a dip.
useful (0)
Small Food: Snack-sized Bites to Share with Friends (Cookery)
By *
Murdoch Books - 2002
Really quite nasty and wouldn't crisp up, no matter how long they were left in the oven.
useful (0)
The Fine Art of Italian Cooking: The Classic Cookbook, Updated & Expanded
By Giuliano Bugialli
Gramercy - 2005
Looked and smelt wonderful whilst cooking, but the end result was very bland. 3 basil leaves does not flavour a stew serving 4. It needed more aromatics - one of the guests suggested lemon zest and more black pepper. It was edible but next time I will try another recipe.
useful (0)
The Top One Hundred Pasta Sauces
By Diane Seed, Robert Budwig
Ten Speed Press - 2004
Delicious, easy and quick to make. I make this recipe as it is, no substitutions or change in the method - it really is a good recipe.
useful (1)
Yes, a very good pantry recipe. We leave out the parsley (not being parsley eaters). The variation with the anchovy and chilli works well. I do find 'tho, that the sauce really only makes enough for 2 or 3 servings, but that could be just greed.
useful (1)
Ken Hom's Chinese Kitchen: With a Consumer's Guide to Essential Ingredients
By Ken Hom
Anova Books - 1996
Good, but I think the recipe from Wei-Chuan's "Chinese Cuisine" is better. Even that one, I have modified using a packet of "Soy Chicken Mix" from the Chinese shop and weighing the various spices / herbs in it. Some of them were a bit tricky to identify.
However, this is a good recipe and easy to make.
useful (0)
The French Kitchen
By Diane Hokuigue
Methuen (Australia) - 1983
Very good soup. Its the pesto that makes it.
useful (0)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
Delicious, although I must confess to adding a dash of oyster sauce. Don't leave the noodles draining in the colander for too long - they solidify into a solid lump, impossible to stir fry.
useful (0)
The Cook's Companion
By Stephanie Alexander
Viking Australia - 1998
Great recipe, very quick and easy to make and always popular with guests. The reason I have only given it 4 stars is becuase I have never made it with the rump steak & bok choy. I always make it with chicken ribs and it's cooked on the BBQ.
useful (1)
Thai Food
By David Thompson, Earl Carter
Pavilion Books - 2002
The best description of this sauce is "woofy", so you may not want to give it to guests, although I did have one guest thoroughly enjoying it, mixed equal amounts with another sauce,
useful (0)
Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go
By Naomi Kijima, Laura Driussi
Japan Publications Trading - 2001
Too salty, but that could be the brand of soy sauce I used.
useful (0)
Canapes
By Eric Treuille, Victoria Blashford-Snell
Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd - 1999
Nice rich little biscuits (savoury cookies for Americans, I think). VERY easy to burn so keep an eye on them in the oven.
useful (0)
Chinese Family Feast Dishes
By Zhang Lianming, Li Xiusong, Zhang Youmin
Shandong Science & Technology Press,China - 1993
A good family dish, even when made with tinned bamboo shoots. I leave out the MSG and fry it in oil, not "cooked lard", delicious tho' it sounds.
useful (0)
The Red Cross Recipe Book, 9th Edition
By The Longreach Branch, Queensland Division
As above - 1993
Only fair, but I think that it is the cook more than the recipe. The biscuits needed to be rolled thinner than I managed, and I forgot the salt. Also, I used liberal amounts of flour to stop them sticking, which resulted in a floury after-taste when cooked. Next time I will try the log chilling method, slicing the raw dough into thin discs when it is cold. Worth a try.
useful (1)
Tacos
By Mark Miller
Ten Speed Press - 2009
Very good. I substituted spring onions for the red onion and it worked.
useful (0)
Thai Food
By David Thompson, Earl Carter
Pavilion Books - 2002
Doesn't make a very large salad, but it is good.
useful (0)
South East Asian Food (Penguin handbook)
By Rosemary Brissenden
Penguin Books Ltd - 1970
A nice mild soup. Added noodles to make it a light dinner and used a lot more chicken stock then the amount listed, about 2 litres.
useful (1)
The Middle Eastern Kitchen: A Book of Essential Ingredients with Over 150 Authentic Recipes
By Ghillie Basan
Kyle Cathie - 2001
OK, but didn't get rave reviews. Next time I would try sauteing the spinach first in oil or butter to try and keep the spinach a brighter green. and use fresher prunes. Despite soaking, the ones I used were still bit old and dry.
useful (0)
Iris Country Fare
By Lyndall Muellar and Robyn Boyce
Winifred West Schools - 2002
Contributor: Geoff Janz. Very good family recipe. I don't like drumsticks, so a couple of breasts get thrown in as well. Reheats well.
useful (0)
Small Food: Snack-sized Bites to Share with Friends (Cookery)
By *
Murdoch Books - 2002
Horrible. Too bland to be edible, just a vegetable mush.
useful (0)
The Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accessories
By David Lebovitz
Ten Speed Press,U.S. - 2007
Good, but not as good as I expected. The recipe doesn't specify what type of banana (probably a good thing as I only know two) but perhaps he was using a better cooking banana then I was.
Still, a delicious icecream.
useful (1)
Canapes
By Eric Treuille, Victoria Blashford-Snell
Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd - 1999
Very good dip. I halve the amount of fegta and cream cheese, and put only 2 tablespoons of mint in.
Excellant on toast the morning after the dinner party, if you didn't put all of it out for the guests.
useful (0)
One Hundred Famous Chinese Foods (Eng-Chin Ed.)
By
Chongqing Publishing House,China - 1999
Not really very nice. Just OK.
useful (0)