Jerk Pork from Jamaica

Jerk Pork is quite spicy and they say that slaves used to marinate their meat in this spicy mixture because they didn't have fridges and the marinade would disguise the flavour of meat that was starting to go off.  However, Ghanaians make something similar so maybe this recipe evolved from something that was brought across from West Africa.  Whatever the exact origin, this spicy dish is a Jamaican favourite.

1 kg pork tenderloin cut into thick steaks
3 large red chilies seeded and chopped
2 onions roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rum
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Put all the ingredients except the pork steaks into a food processor.  Give it quite a few pulses until you have a thick sauce.  This will be your marinade.  In a large bowl, pour the sauce from the food processor over the pork steaks, making sure that the steaks are liberally covered in the marinade.  Put it aside for 2-3 hours.  Overnight is even better.  Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius while you get the steaks ready in a grill pan.  When the oven is hot, cook the steaks for 8 minutes, turn them over and cook the other side for 8 minutes.  Serve with either rice, sweet potatoes or a salad.  Instead of cooking in the oven, this can also be cooked in a BBQ over hot coals.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com

Suon Ram Man from Vietnam

Suon Ram Man are caramelised pork ribs.  Vietnamese food is a favourite of mine.  The flavour combinations go so well together.  Our holiday in Vietnam was spent on trying to decide what delicious traditional meal to try next.  It was always hard to choose but I do remember the sticky caramelised pork ribs as being a winner.  The Vietnamese sometimes use coconut water instead of normal water.  Just a warning, the caramelised sugar gets seriously hot so make sure you don't get any on your skin as you can burn yourself pretty badly.

1kg pork ribs cut into pieces
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup white sugar
1 onion finely chopped
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
1/2 capsicum finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 spring onion finely chopped for garnishing
Put the water and rib pieces into a pot and bring to the boil.  Let it boil for about 5 minutes.  In a hot wok, put in the cooking oil and sugar.  Allow the sugar to caramelise stirring all the time so that it doesn't catch on the bottom of the pot and start to burn.  Burnt sugar tastes bitter so you really want to avoid that.  When the sugar has completely melted and is a light-brown colour, add in the pork rib pieces, onion, garlic, capsicum, salt, pepper, ginger, chili powder and soy sauce.  Mix everything together so that the pork ribs are completely coated in the caramelised sugar.  Let the pork ribs brown slightly.  Add in the water the pork ribs were boiled in.  Reduce the heat and allow the rib pieces to simmer in the liquid for 30 minutes.  Drizzle the sesame oil over the ribs and increase the heat slightly, cooking the ribs for a further 5 minutes.  Serve with rice.  Garnish with the finely chopped spring onion.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com

Veal Piccata from Italy

Although even the most isolated and undeveloped countries seem to have an Italian restaurant, not all of them make a Veal Piccata,  If you choose to live in the back of beyond and want more than pizza and pasta you have to make it yourself.  Wherever you can buy beef you'll be able to get veal.  This recipe is ideal if you need to put together something tasty in a hurry.

1 veal fillet cut into medallions
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon Italian herbs
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup vermouth or dry white wine
1 handful fresh parsley finely chopped
Mix the flour, herbs, salt and pepper together in a bowl.  Drop the veal medallions into the flour mixture and make sure they are well covered.  Put the olive oil into a frying pan and get it nice and hot.  Shake the excess flour off the veal medallions and fry them in the hot pan for about 2 minutes a side until golden brown.  Sprinkle lemon juice on each side.  Remove the medallions from the pan and put aside.  Put one tablespoon of the butter into the pan and lightly saute the garlic.  Add the dry white wine.  If you use vermouth your sauce will be sweeter.  Put in the rest of the butter and half of the parsley and whisk so that the sauce thickens.  Let it simmer for about 5 minutes so that some of the alcohol cooks away.  Add in the cooked veal medallions and let them simmer in the sauce for another 2-3 minutes.  Serve with a pasta of your choice or boiled potatoes and steamed vegetables.  Use the rest of the chopped parsley as a garnish.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com

Potato Pancakes from Eastern Europe

Potato pancakes can be found in similar forms all over Eastern Europe.  They might be called different things but they are essentially the same.  They make a great starter or a snack.  They can be served as a savoury with sour cream or as a sweet with jam.  This recipe is for a savoury option.  I would probably leave out the paprika and capsicum if I was going to eat it with jam.  As potatoes were always available in Eastern Europe during times of poverty, potato pancakes were a cheap meal option.  And nothing has changed.  They are still cheap and easy to make.  You can add in extra vegetables like I did with the zucchini and capsicum, or you can stick to just potato.  It doesn't matter as long as you make the main ingredient potato.

4 potatoes peeled and cubed
1 onion finely chopped
1 large zucchini thinly sliced
1/2 red capsicum finely chopped
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
oil for frying
Prepare the vegetables.  Instead of grating the potatoes  and zucchini, put them in a food processor and give it a few pulses until they are reduced to shreds.  Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  Put some cooking oil in a pan and put it on a high heat.  When the oil is hot reduce the heat to medium, drop tablespoons full of the potato batter into it.  Press down to flatten slightly.  When the bottom is golden brown flip them over to cook the other side.  It will take 2-3 minutes per side.  Drain them on kitchen towel.  Serve warm with sour cream, smoked salmon or apple sauce.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com

Okonomiyaki from Japan

When I worked in a Language School we used to have quite a lot of Japanese students.  Once a month on a Friday I would have a cooking conversation class.  Students had to show the class how to make a traditional dish from their home country, talking us all through the steps.  A great way to practice speaking in English, and an even better way to feed us on Food Friday!  Without fail one of the Japanese students would make Okonomiyaki and it became a class favourite.  Basically Okonomiyaki is a kind of thick pancake, sometimes even called a japanese pizza.  There are different ways of making Okonomiyaki, depending on which part of Japan you are in.  In fact Okonomiyaki is Japanese for 'grilled as you like it' so whatever you include in it is really up to you.  You can make it seafood, vegetarian or full of meat.  I chose to make one with cooked beef mince,

Mince Filling:
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup beef mince (you can use chicken or pork)
1 chili finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Pancake:
2 cups shredded cabbage
1 onion finely chopped
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger finely chopped
1 teaspoon chopped coriander
1 cup flour
2 eggs
mayonnaise and BBQ sauce for garnishing
Cook the mince and set aside to cool.  In a large bowl combine the cabbage, onion, garlic, ginger, coriander and flour.  Use your fingers to toss it all together so that everything is covered by the flour.  Add the eggs and whisk together until you have a thick batter.  Fold in the cooked mince and any other fillings you are choosing to use.  Use the mince filling saucepan to cook the pancake.  Heat the saucepan and empty out the cabbage pancake mixture into the pan.  Use a spatula to flatten down the top, pressing down quite hard.  Then push the edges back a little towards the centre so that you make a round thick pancake.  Cover with a lid and cook on medium heat for 5-7 minutes until the bottom is brown.  Turn over the Okonomiyaki and press it down firmly with the spatula.  Let it cook for 5-7 minutes until brown.  Remember to cover the pan with a lid.  If you struggle to flip it over with the spatuala, what I do is slide it off the pan onto a plate.  Put another plate on top, turn it over and slide it back into the pan.  When it is cooked, slide it onto a plate.  Liberally drizzle BBQ sauce and mayonnaise on the top.  For an added garnish crumble some dried seaweed (nori) on the top.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com

Cape Brandy Pudding from South Africa

Cape Brandy Pudding is another South African classic and will be found on the menu in many fine dining restaurants in South Africa.  It is also called Tipsy Tart for obvious reasons.  Although you would think something this delicious must be difficult to make, it's surprisingly  easy to make and is always a winner when served to guests.  You can add in a cup of chopped walnuts or pecan nuts to the batter.  However as I am not a nut person (my Granny said if you swallowed a pip you get a tree growing inside you) I tend to leave them out.

10 dates pitted and roughly chopped
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
120g butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1  cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
zest of 1 orange

Syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup brandy
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Put the dates in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them.  Add in the bicarb and set aside and allow to cool.  Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.  In another bowl cream the butter and sugar.  Add in the egg and mix well to make a smooth mixture.  Fold in the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and ginger.  Add in the chopped dates and orange zest.  Grease a pie dish and pour in the batter.  Bake for 30 minutes until the pudding is firm to the touch.  While the pudding is cooking, prepare the syrup.  Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the sugar and water.  Stir until the sugar dissolves.  Add in the cinnamon and boil for a minute and then take off the heat.  Pour in the brandy and vanilla essence and allow to infuse while the pudding finishes baking.  For a darker colour use brown sugar throughout the recipe instead of white sugar.  As soon as the pudding comes out of the oven pour the syrup over it.  Serve hot or cold with custard, cream or ice-cream.
Cindy Vine is a South African currently living and working in Kyiv in Ukraine. She is the author of Hush Baby, Defective, C U@ 8, Not Telling and The Case of Billy B. All her books are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle format. http://cindyvine.com