Ingredients:

(serves 4-6)

1.5 kg pork loin roast or rib roast

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon dried mustard

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 (454g) can whole berry cranberry sauce

or: 1 cup fresh cranberries, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup brown (I did add 1/4 cup brown sugar half-way through cooking after tasting the sauce, but 1/2 cup would be better. I learned from making my own cranberry sauce that you really do need a lot of sugar to balance out the cranberries.

⅓ cup golden raisins

1 clove garlic, chopped

⅓ cup cranberry juice

½ small lemon, thinly sliced

Method:

Use a 4 quart crockpot. In a plastic zipper bag, put dry spices and cornstarch and add meat. Shake to coat. Put contents into your slow cooker. Add cranberry sauce, or your fresh cranberries and sugar. Put in raisins and garlic. Pour in cranberry juice, and top with lemon slices. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for about 4. The longer you cook the meat, the more tender it will be.

Ingredients:

1 Kg Pork non-fat meat

2 Big Onions

Salt as per taste

3 peppercorns

3 cm piece of Cinnamon

few cloves

Vindaloo masala:

1 red Chillie, deseeded and chopped (or 1/2 tsp chilli powder)

1 tsp sweet red paprika

4 Garlic cloves crushed,

1 tbs grated ginger

2 tsp cumin powder,

1 tsp coriander powder,

2 tbs Vinegar

Method:

Wash the Pork pieces well, and then chop them up into 3 cm cubes. Dry well. Add salt and set aside.

Get the masala ready, grind the chillies into a powder, then add vinegar and all the ingredients of the vindaloo masala (spices), then grind all of it in the blender.

Add masala to the pork pieces and mix it up well. Make sure all the pieces of meat are evenly mixed with the masala. Store it overnight in the fridge.

Just before cooking, chop and blend onions, then add them to meat.

Heat the pan with some oil and fry meat on medium heat for 5 mins. Add a few peppercorns, a cinnamon and a cloves to the dish.

After a little while of frying add some water and simmer on a low heat as the meat soaks in the masala and gets cooked (1-2hrs).

The Vindaloo is ready when it turns the fiery red colour.

Note: The Vindaloo always tastes better the next day as the meat gets properly marinated, its not really a very spicy dish but on the tangy side. The longer you store it the better it tastes, just like a pickle!

Ingredients:

1 kg chicken, cut into pieces

1 teaspoon salt

1 lemon, juiced

1 1/4 cups plain yogurt

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root

2 teaspoons garam masala

1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon red sweet paprika

2 teaspoons finely chopped cilantro

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Method:

Remove skin from chicken pieces, and cut slits into them lengthwise. Place in a shallow dish. sprinkle both sides of chicken with salt and lemon juice. Set aside 20 minutes.

In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, onion, garlic, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, paprika and chili powder. Mix until smooth. Spread yogurt mixture over chicken. Cover, and refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours (the longer the better).

Preheat an outdoor grill for medium high heat, and lightly oil grate.

Cook chicken on grill until no longer pink and juices run clear. Garnish with cilantro and lemon wedges.

Notes: This dish can also be baked in a hot oven (230 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes (or until done).

This is an authentic recipe for Tandoori chicken. Serve with long grain Basmati rice, cucumber salad, grilled veggies, roasted corn on the cob and finish off the meal with some sweet dessert.

(Photograph: Linda Nylind)

Ingredients:

(Serves two)

2 partridges, cleaned and gutted

Few sprigs of thyme

2 cloves garlic, unpeeled

Splash of olive oil

120g polenta

Small bunch of sage, half roughly chopped and half whole leaf

60g butter, plus a couple of knobs for inside the birds

1 cup milk

Punnet of good blackberries

Tumbler of red wine

1½ tbsp redcurrant jelly

Splash of sherry vinegar

Salt and pepper

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 220C/430F.

Choose a smallish thick-bottomed pan to make the polenta in. If it’s slow-cooking then you need to get it on first. Melt half the butter until just fizzling, then gently fry the chopped sage in it for a minute or two. There will be instructions for the amount of liquid you need to use, so just scale down for the quantity of polenta in this recipe, and where they generally advise water, we will be using half milk and half water.

Once the sage has released its aroma, pour in the milk and water. When steaming, but not boiling, slowly pour in the polenta while whisking it. Turn the heat right down and let the grains cook in the liquid, stirring regularly, which could take anything from 12-30 minutes, depending on the kind of polenta used.

If it starts to go cementy, a hefty splash of milk followed by vigorous whisking will restore the creaminess. Season with salt and pepper. When your polenta is 20 minutes away from being ready, stuff the thyme, garlic and a knob of butter inside each bird, and season inside and out with salt and pepper. Put an oven-proof frying pan on a high heat and melt the rest of the butter with a splash of plain olive oil.

Once hot, put the birds in the pan, breast side down. Brown them well on both breasts, then turn them over and pop them in the oven. After 15 minutes take the pan out, put it over a medium heat on the hob, and remove the birds, resting them breast side down covered with foil on a plate for the five minutes it takes to finish the sauce.

Fry the whole sage leaves in the pan for just a minute, then take them out and put next to the birds. Pour in the wine and a splash of sherry vinegar followed by the blackberries.

Give the berries a good roll around as the wine reduces to a saucy consistency, then stir in the redcurrant jelly until it melts.

Turn the heat off, season the sauce, give your polenta one last taste and consistency check, restoring it to full creamy potential with a splash of milk if necessary and serve on big, warmed plates: first the beautiful soft polenta, bird on top, sauce and berries all around and the sage leaves to finish.

(recipe by Allegra McEvedy is co-founder of the fast-food chain, Leon)

Photo copyright © Michael Jensen

Ingredients:

(Makes 8 servings)

1 pork loin center rib roast (2 kg), backbone loosened

1⁄8 teaspoon each salt and black pepper

For the stuffing:

1 cup pitted prunes

2⁄3 cup water

3 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1⁄4 teaspoon ground cardamom

6 cups dried bread cubes

1 large tart apple, chopped

1⁄2 cup apple juice

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the roast rib side down. Cut pockets in the roast, cutting from the meaty side (tip, opposite). Sprinkle the roast with the salt and pepper.

2. To prepare the stuffing, in a small saucepan, combine the prunes and the water. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or until prunes are tender. Drain. Coarsely chop prunes; set aside.

3. In the same saucepan, melt the butter over moderate heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat. Stir in the brown sugar, lemon rind, cinnamon, and cardamom.

4. Place the bread cubes in a large bowl. Stir in the onion mixture, prunes, and apple. Drizzle with the apple juice, tossing lightly until moistened. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the stuffing into each pocket of roast (tip, below). Spoon the remaining stuffing into a 11⁄2-quart casserole; cover and refrigerate.

* Stuffing a Roast:

I. Using a sharp knife, cut deep slits between the rib bones of the roast. Cut through the thickest portion of the meat about halfway to the backbone and within 1⁄2 inch of the edges to make each pocket.

II. Holding a pocket open with one hand, use a small spoon to place stuffing in the slit. Lightly pack the stuffing down and keep adding stuffing until you’ve used about 3 tablespoons.

5. Place the roast, rib side down, in a roasting pan. Roast for 13⁄4 to 21⁄4 hours or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of roast (not stuffing) registers 70°c. (Cover the roast loosely with foil after 1 hour so the stuffing doesn’t overbrown.) Bake the covered casserole of stuffing alongside the roast during the last 30 to 40 minutes of roasting.

6. Let the roast stand for 15 minutes before carving. Serve the stuffing in the casserole with the roast.

Note: This apple-and-prune-stuffed roast is traditionally served at Christmas in Danish-American families. However, it makes a wonderful company dish any time of year.