Love British Food

You don’t have to be a professional cook to prepare delicious tapas at home. I very often share a “nibble” at home with friends and family. My mum has a couple of recipes to share with you this month which are easy to make and a delight to serve.

Chicken Madrileno

These chicken wings are exceptional, my dad loved them! Very crunchy on the outside yet juicy and tender, adults and children alike will devour them in minutes. This makes this dish great for family parties.

16 chicken wings

1 sprig of rosemary

salt

3 garlic cloves crushed

1 teaspoon paprika

275g (10 oz) dried breadcrumbs

1 lemon

bunch of flat leaf parsley finely chopped

½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce

100ml (4floz) dry sherry (Spanish is the best)

8 tablespoons Olive oil

3 eggs beaten

Method

Trim the chicken wings.

finely chop the tips of the rosemary and mix with the crushed garlic, paprika, Tabasco, sherry and 2 tablespoons of the oil.

Place the chicken wings in a large bowl and massage in the marinade, cover and leave for at least 1 hour.

Heat the remaining oil in a heavy based pan.

Lift the chicken out of the marinade, roll in breadcrumbs then in the beaten egg and again into breadcrumbs.

Fry the chicken in batches until crispy on both sides keep warm in a low oven.

To serve garnish with lemon wedges and parsley and a dish of garlic mayonnaise to dip in!

Pickled Quails Eggs

Faced with a glut of eggs from a flock of adopted quails my dad had brought home! Mum made jars of these and gave them as gifts for Christmas, they really are quite special not at all like the giant jars of pickled eggs you see on counters down your local chippie!

My friend Stuart adores them! Try serving on cocktail sticks with slithers of smoked salmon or anchovies or just do as Stu does and pop them in whole.

Pickling ingredients

25 boiled quails eggs

1 cup water

1 ½ cup vinegar

¾ teaspoon dill seed

¼ teaspoon white pepper

3 teaspoon salt

¼ tsp mustard seed

½ teaspoon onion juice

½ tsp crushed garlic

Soak the eggs in warm water for a few minutes and wipe clean.

Put into a pan, cover with cold water

Bring to a rolling boil then remove from the heat

Stand in the pan for 10 minutes

Gently stir to prevent the yolks from setting to one side

Drain the water and cover the eggs with white wine vinegar

Stir every few hours

After 12 hours the shells should of dissolved in the vinegar leaving the membrane

Rinse the eggs thoroughly and peel

Rinse again and place into a glass jar

Place the pickling ingredients in a pan and simmer for 15 mins

Pour the liquid over the eggs so they are covered

Allow to cool then cover and refridgerate

NB If you cannot find dill seed at your local supermarket try www.greencusine.co.uk