spork me

Every now and then I see an idea and think, “why didn’t I think of that?”. Such is the case with Sydney start-up Hungry Mondays, who slow-cooks food all weekend for Monday delivery, in vacuum sealed bags that stay fresh for 10 days. Now, while I think my barbeque pulled pork is better as I prefer a different style of barbeque (I am not-so-subtly petitioning to guest chef), I had some leftovers from the massive portion I attempted to eat for a late night snack the night before that I used to make breakfast the next morning. Chop some herbs and scramble the eggs, and you can use my standard arepa recipe to fill with leftover pork and the eggs. This one’s a hangover cure.

Arepas with Black Beans, Haloumi and Avocado

My trusty arepa recipe was amazing with grilled haloumi, black beans seasoned with a touch of cumin, and a few slices of avocado for breakfast. Goodbye, hangover.

Saffron, Garlic and Chili Scrambled Egg Arepas

Really interesting way to spice up scrambled eggs, plus the color is insane. If I had had any veggies in the house I may have made a tomato salsa for this; makes 4 pretty big arepa’s, serves two really hungry people or four normal people (especially if you add some tomato or sauteed/roasted red peppers).

Ingredients:

4 eggs
3 garlic cloves
1 chili
1 tsp saffron powder (or some real saffron threads)
1 cup Harina P.A.N.
1 3/4 cups warm milk
1/2 cup grated cheese
4 tbsp butter
Salt and olive oil

Mix Harina P.A.N., 1 1/4 cups milk, and cheese. Season with salt and let sit while you get a pan hot. Melt butter in the pan, and form 1/2 inch thick, 3 inch wide rounds of the dough. Fry for about 5 minutes on each side until golden, and then move to a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes at 200C / 375F. Set aside for at least 10 minutes before slicing into it to make a pita.

In the meantime, mash the chili and garlic with some salt in a mortar and pestle until you have a paste. Mix in the saffron, and then add to the eggs and remaining half cup of milk and whisk. Get a pan warm with some olive oil, add the eggs and keep mixing until it starts to stick to the pan. With a spatula, continue scraping the bottom of the pan, creating folds in the eggs, until you have semi-solid pieces. Let cook for 1-2 minutes, flip, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Fill the arepa’s with the eggs and serve.

Shredded Beef Arepas with Black Beans and Cilantro Sauce

This doesn’t look good, but I can promise you it’s one of the best things I’ve made. Takes about an hour and a half all-up, if you soak the beans overnight they don’t take long to cook (or just replace with a can of beans), and the beef is dead simple.

You’ll need this recipe for black beans, as well as a half dozen arepas. Serves 4.

Ingredients (beef):

1lb flank steak, or some other fatty cut, sliced in 1 inch strips
1 orange, quartered
1 small onion, diced finely
3 cloves of garlic
1-2 chilis
1 tsp cinnamon
500ml beef stock
Olive oil and salt

Sear the steak in an oven proof dish with a bit of olive oil. Mash the chili and garlic with a healthy amount of salt in a mortar and pestle. Once the steak is brown and caramelized, add the onion, cinnamon, orange, and garlic/chili combo. Cook, stirring up any brown bits stuck to the pan, for 5 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a simmer before covering tightly and baking at 225C / 400F for an hour.

Remove lid, shred beef with a fork, sprinkle with salt, and bake for 10 more minutes to get some crispy bits.

Ingredients (cilantro sauce):

1/2 bunch of cilantro (coriander)
1 small clove of garlic
1 chili
Juice of 1 lime
1/8 cup of mayo

Purée and serve on top with fresh tomato and feta cheese.

Arepa topped with Mango Salsa, Avocado, and Seared Scallops

I promise, no more arepa posts for a little while! I actually was trying to make tortillas and couldn’t quite work it out, so I flattened the arepa (I think that makes it Columbian?) and topped it with a fresh salsa, avocado and seared scallops. The scallops I seasoned with salt and pepper and then pan seared in a bit of olive oil for about 3 minutes on each side.

Ingredients (mango salsa):

1 mango, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
2 green onions, diced
1 chili, some of all of seeds removed, and finely diced
Juice of 1 lime
3/4 cup chopped coriander
Salt to taste

Combine and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Serve without juices on the arepa so it doesn’t get too soggy.

Arepas with Poached Eggs, Smoked Salmon and Tomato

I’ve been making a lot of arepas this week and trying out a few different ways to make them, but none have been better than that first batch. I’m pretty much sold that’s the best way to do it. This time I tried pressing a sage leaf into the top, which was a nice flavor, and filled it with some sliced tomato, smoked salmon and a poached egg… but I burnt the butter, and used water instead of milk, and it wasn’t quite the same.

Slow Cooked Mole Chicken, Black Bean and Feta Arepas

I’m going to be making a lot of arepas. The recipe I used before was great, but this time I did a “dinner” version of the filling, which lasted for days and days. Also, I found out why you don’t slow roast a whole chicken. Bones. Everywhere.

Ingredients (black beans):

500g dried black beans
2 chorizo sausages
1 onion, diced
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, diced
Water
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil. Add beans, chorizo, and vinegar. Fill the pot to cover it with water. Simmer for 2 hours, covered, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper at the very end.

Ingredients (chicken)

1 kg chicken thighs, boneless
1/4 cup flour
3 tomatoes, diced
2 onions, diced
1/4 cup almonds
1 tbsp chili powder
1 large chili (not a really hot one, whatever’s available locally)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup chopped oregano
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup cocoa powder
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Dredge chicken in flour and brown in a bit of oil before adding to crock pot. Saute onions in another pot, add the rest of the ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes and then using a food processor or one of those handheld ones, puree. Cook for another 5 minutes and then add to the chicken. Cook for 8 hours, and use a fork to pull the chicken apart and mix into the sauce. Serve in arepas with feta and black beans. Garnish with lime and cilantro.

Black Bean and Chili Scrambled Egg Arepas

I’ve been looking for Harina P.A.N. for quite some time now, and finally found one place to get it in Sydney; the Essential Ingredient in Rozelle. It was worth the drive! This was a great breakfast and pretty simple to make. Note: let the arepa’s cool off before you cut them, or it’ll fall apart a bit.

I should mention, if you haven’t heard of them, that arepa’s are a Venezuelan corn cake… think of it like a taco shell, but like, tastier.

Ingredients:

1 can of black beans, cooked on medium for 15 minutes
2 eggs
1 tsp chili powder
1 cup Harina P.A.N.
1 1/2 cups warm milk
1/2 cup grated cheese
4 tbsp butter
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Mix Harina P.A.N., 1 1/4 cups milk, and cheese. Season with salt and let sit while you get a pan hot. Melt butter in the pan, and form 1/2 inch thick, 3 inch wide rounds of the dough. Fry for about 5 minutes on each side until golden, and then move to a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes at 200C / 375F. Set aside for at least 10 minutes before slicing into it to make a pita.

In the meantime, get your beans ready and mix up the eggs, chili, and remaining milk. Season and scramble in a medium heat pan. Serve together in the arepas.