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Posts Tagged ‘Kalamata olives’

Pilaf with Prawns & Feta

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Shellfish, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 1 December 2024| Leave a Comment »

Prawns actually pair very well with feta, which is always a bit suprising to us. It’s nice to have a lighter dish amongst all the winter soups and stews.

Wine Suggestion: we think this suits a white grown somehwere around the Mediterranean, like tonight’s choice of the Hatzidakis Santorini Cuvée 15, a wonderfully fresh and complex Assyrtiko with honeysuckle and herbs on the nose followed by a textured, almost salty palate.

Prawn & feta pilaf – serves 4

  • 225g basmati rice
  • 15g unsalted butter
  • 2 tbsp olive oil, plus a bit extra to
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed
  • 275g tomatoes, deseeded and roughly chopped
  • a big bunch of dill, chopped
  • a big bunch of flat leaf parsley, leaves chopped
  • a handful of mint leaves, chopped
  • 400ml fish stock or light chicken stock
  • 350g raw prawns, shelled and deveined
  • juice of ½ lemon, plus lemon wedges to serve
  • 55g black kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped
  • 75g feta cheese, crumbled

Rince the rice in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear. Leave to soak for an hour if you have the time, then rinse again.

Heat the butter and 2 tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan and cook the onion until it starts to soften. Add the garlic and tomatoes and continue to cook, stirring now and then, until the onion is cooked and the tomatoes have softened. Stir in the rice and half the herbs, season well, then pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Boil hard until the rice starts to look pitted, with little holes in the service and it seems like the liquid has disapeared.

Wrap a clean tea towel around the lid of the pan and cover the pan. Reduce the heat to low and leave to cook for 20 minutes.

When the rice is almost ready, dry the prawns on kitchen paper and quickly sauté in a little olive oil over a high heat. Squeeze over the lemon juice and season with black pepper and salt.

When the rice is cooked, fork through the olives, remaining herbs and lemon juice with a good glug of your best extra virgin olive oil. Transfer to a serving platter, then scatter over the feta and mound the prawns on top. Drizzle again with olive oil and serve with lemon wedges.

(Original recipe from Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons by Diana Henry, Aster*, 2024.)

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Prawn and Tomato Stew with Coriander Pesto

Posted in Fish, Food, Gluten-free, Prawns, Shellfish, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 5 August 2023| Leave a Comment »

A dish from Falastin, it’s packed with flavour and we recommend adding the optional black olives and feta cheese. A green salad and some crusty bread is also a good choice. The tomato sauce and coriander sauce can both be made in advance, just char your cherry tomatoes and fry the prawns at the end.

Wine Suggestion: Despite this being a seafood dish we think a Southern French red is the way to go with this. Tonight something quite special: Roc des Anges Unic which is a super expressive Grenache with a thrilling tension and energy.

Prawn and tomato stew with coriander pesto – serves 4

  • 250g cherry tomatoes
  • 60ml olive oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 2cm piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated
  • 1 green chilli, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed in a pestle and mortar
  • 1½ cumin seeds, lightly crushed in a pestle and mortar
  • 8 cardamom pods, lightly bashed in a pestle and mortar
  • 20g dill, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp tomato purée
  • 6 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 600g peeled raw king prawns
  • a handful of black kalamata olives (optional)
  • 100g feta cheese, crumbled into chunky pieces (optional)

FOR THE CORIANDER PESTO:

  • 30g coriander, roughly chopped
  • 1 green chilli, finely chopped
  • 50g pine nuts, lightly toasted
  • 1 lemon, finely grate the zest to get 1½ tsp, then cut into wedges to serve
  • 80ml olive oil

Toss the cherry tomatoes with 1 tsp of oil. Heat a large sauté pan over a high heat, then add the cherry tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until charred and blistered. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Wipe the pan out, then add 2 tbsp of olive oil and place over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until softened and lightly browned. Add the garlic, ginger, chilli, spices, dill and tomato purée, then cook for another 2 minutes until fragrant. Add the plum tomatoes and 300ml of water, 1½ tsp salt and plenty of black pepper. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes or until thickened and the tomatoes have broken down.

Meanwhile, make the coriander pesto. Put the coriander, pine nuts and chilli into a food processor and pulse a few times, just until the pine nuts are roughly crumbled. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the olive oil, lemon zest, ¼ tsp of salt and some black pepper. Stir to combine and set aside.

Dry the prawns well then mix in bowl with ¼ tsp of salt, 1 tbsp of oil and plenty of black pepper.

Put 2 tsp of oil into a large frying pan and place on a high heat. When the pan is hot, add the prawns in batches and fry for a minute on each side, until cooked and browned.

Stir the cooked prawns and the charred tomatoes into the tomato sauce and cook over a medium heat for another 3 minutes, to heat through. Transfer the prawns and tomatoes to a serving dish, drizzle over some of the coriander pesto and sprinkle over the olives and crumbled feta.

(Original recipe from Falastin by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wrigley, Ebury Press, 2020.)

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Baked Feta and Tomato Salad

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 13 July 2023| Leave a Comment »

We love a tomato salad and reckon we’ll be making this one all summer. Great for a barbecue.

Baked feta and tomato salad – serves 4

  • 1 block of feta
  • 100ml olive oil, plus 1 tsp
  • a drizzle of runny honey
  • ½ tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed
  • 1 tsp fresh oregano leaves, or a good pinch of dried oregano
  • ½ tsp pul biber
  • 600g mixed tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp kalamata olives, pitted
  • 2 tsp red wine vinegar
  • a handful of basil

Heat the oven to 220C/200C/Gas 7.

Rub the feta with a tsp of olive oil. Place on a sheet of foil, then drizzle over the honey and sprinkle with the coriander seeds, oreganoa and pul biber. Wrap the foil around the feta to make a sealed parcel then bake for 10 minutes.

Unwrap the foil and roast for another 5-10 minutes or until caraemelised.

Meanwhile, slice the tomatoes and put them into a large bowl. Sprinkle over a good pinch of sea salt and lots of black pepper. Stir in the olives and red wine vinegar and set aside.

Spoon the tomatoes onto a serving platter and drizzle with olive oil (use a nice one). Sprinkle over the basil leaves and set the baked feta on top.

(Original recipe by Rosie Birkett in Olive Magazine, June 2023).

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