Super Secret Online Cooking Society !

- about 6 large dried Ancho chiles
- 1 cup cooking liquid (reserved see instructions)
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (can be left out)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (more according to taste)
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 package sieved tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (can be left out)

(1) Place the dried chiles in a medium-sized sauce pot and add enough water to cover them.

(2) Bring the water to a boil and then cover the pot and remove it from the heat. Let the chiles hydrate in the hot water for about 20 minutes.

(3) Remove 1 cup of the water from the pot and pour it a blender.

(4) Then remove the chiles from the pot. Use your hands or a paring knife to gently remove the stems and seeds. Then add the chiles to blender.

(5) Add the stock, garlic, spices, sugar, salt and pepper.

(6) Purée until the sauce is completely smooth.

(7) Stir in sieved tomatoes and olive oil (if using)

(The sauce should keep for at least 3 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator.)

- 500 g mixed cherry tomatoes, halved
- 150 g black olives, sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp balsamico vinegar
- fresh basil
- fresh thyme
- 10 tbsp olive oil (a bit of chilli oil is nice)
- 400g spaghetti
- salt and pepper
- freshly grated parmesan

(1) In a large bowl, scrunch the tomatoes with your hands to slightly mush them. Mix in the olives, garlic and vinegar. Tear in the basil and thyme leaves and pour in the olive oil. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.

(2) Cook your pasta in salted boiling water according to the packet instructions until al dente. Drain and quickly toss in with the tomatoes.

(3) Taste the juice at the bottom of the bowl and adjust the seasoning if you feel it needs it. Serve right away with freshly grated parmesan.

200 gr Rama
4 Eier
165gr Zucker
1 Päckchen Vanillezucker
2 EL Rum oder ein Fläschchen Rumaroma
350g Mehl
1/2 Päckchen Backpulver
1 Tasse Wasser

(1) Rama cremig schlagen
(2) Eier, Zucker und Vanillezucker, Rum(aroma) dazu mixen
(3) Mehl, Backpulver, Wasser (nach Bedarf mehr) dazu geben, verrühren

- 1 bunch of basil
- 2kg very ripe tomatoes
- 500 ml vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp (or more) black pepper corns
- 2 star anise
- 1 clove
- salt
- sugar
- white pepper
- 4 slices of ciabatta or baguette
- 80g butter
- 100g (or more) parmesan cheese

(1) The day before serving: Roughly dice tomatoes, shred basil (leaving a few leaves) and puree together with stock, spices, salt and sugar. Put into a colander lined with cheesecloth, let sit over night, collecting the essence of tomato in a pot (do not squeeze tomatoes).
(2) Next day: preheat oven to 220 degrees C. Heat essence of tomato in a pot, season with salt, pepper, sugar.
(3) Roast slices of bread in butter in a pan until golden. Salt bread and put in soup dishes.
(4) Grate parmesan cheese on slices on bread and let melt in oven (also works in the microwave - even though not as nicely).
(5) Pour in very hot essence of tomato and sprinkle with basil.

- 4 small / medium eggplants
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 2 medium red onions, chopped
- 7 garlic cloves, minced
- a handful of chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
- 1 green + 1 red bell pepper (both small), seeded and chopped
- 6 tomatoes, chopped
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin (or more)
- 4 tablespoon tomato paste
- fine grain salt
- ground black pepper

(1) Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) and place a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment and brush with olive oil.
(2) Using a vegetable peeler, remove wide strips of the eggplants' skin and cut the eggplants open lengthwise, but don't slice completely through them. Sprinkle a big pinch of salt inside each eggplant, then set them all in a colander and let rest for about 30 minutes.
(3) Place on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until the outer skin begins to shrivel, then remove from the oven and set aside.
(4) In the meantime, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes, then add the bell pepper and garlic. Continue to cook until the vegetables are tender and have collapsed, about 10 minutes.
(5) Season with salt and pepper, then stir in the chopped tomato, sugar, cumin, tomato paste and parsley. Cook for further 5 minutes, until fragrant. Set aside.
(6) Reduce oven temperature 350°F (180°C). Arrange the eggplants in the baking dish so that each one is butterflied open. Season with salt and fill with the onion and tomato mixture. Drizzle with remaining olive oil, add two tablespoons of water to the baking dish and bake for about 40 to 45 minutes.
By the end of cooking the eggplants should be practically flat and the liquid in the pan slightly caramelized. Serve warm or at room temperature, with a spoonful of the pan juices drizzled over the eggplant.

1 piece of tofu (or 250g shrimp)
1 red pepper
250g green beans
1 onion
small can of bamboo shoots
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic clove
2 tablespoons panang curry paste (or more)
5 tablespoons unsweetened coconut milk (or water)
2 fresh lime leaves (torn into strips)
2 tablespoons fish sauce
fresh thai basil (can also use conserved)
1 teaspoon sugar (or a bit less)

1) Cut tofu into bite size cubes.
2) Cut pepper into 1 inch squares. Trim ends of beans and chop into 1 inch pieces. Reserve peppers and beans together.
3) Cut onion into large pieces
4) Heat oil in a wok on heat heat until just about to smoke. Add garlic & curry paste and stir fry about 45 secs. Immediately add coconut milk and lime leaves. Stir-cook about 1/2 minutes (or a bit longer) until bubbly and thick.
5) Add onion and tofu or shrimp and fry for 1 - 2 minutes.
6) Add bamboo shoots, pepper and long beans all at once. Stir fry 1 minute making sure everything fries in the oil as you're stirring. Add fish sauce and sugar and stir fry 2-3 more minutes until peppers and beans have softened. Add basil leaves and stir fry from 1 more minute.
7) Cook until veggies are ready, adding small amounts of broth or water if it gets too dry.

- 300 g white fish, skinned, boned and chopped very finely
- 1 tsp fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve
- 1 tbsp Thai red curry paste
- 1 spring onion, finely sliced
- 1 tsp sweet chilli sauce, plus extra to serve
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 75g dried breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil

1) Place the fish into a bowl and add lime juice, curry paste, spring onion and chilli sauce and stir together well
2) Take a generous tbsp of the mixture and roll into a ball. If the fish is quite wet, give the ball a good squeeze as you form them, to remove any excess water. Flatten the ball and place onto a plate. Repeat. You'll get around 6 fish cakes.
3) Cover plate with cling film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
4) After the fishcakes have been chilled, remove from fridge. Sprinkle flour on one plate, put beaten egg into a shallow bowl and spread bread crumbs on another plate. Coat fishcakes first in flour, than egg and then breadcrumbs, in that order.
5) In a large frying pan, warm oil over medium heat.
6) Cook fishcakes until they are golden, which takes about 4 - 5 min on each side.
7) Serve immediately, with a lime wedge and some chilli sauce.

Note: I also put some fish sauce into step 1)

- 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1 large red chilli, trimmed and finely chopped
- salt
- 25 g (1 oz) sugar
- 100 ml (3.5 fl oz) malt vinegar
- 250 ml (9 fl oz) light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil

Mash the garlic and chilli together with a little salt (in a mortar) to form a paste. Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a small pan over low heat. Combine everything and store in a sealed container.

Will keep in the fridge for several weeks.

- 1 package of Udon Noodles
- 300g prawns
- 2 eggs
- soy sauce

for the marinade:
- 300g prawns
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar or sherry
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 3 tbsp corn flour

- 6-7 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 4 tbsp ginger, finely chopped
- 2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
- 5 spring onions, chopped
- 200 - 300 ml broth

- 300g shitake mushrooms
- on pack of mixed wok veggies (or peppers, cabbage, bean sprouts or any other veggies

- vegetable oil

- mix all the ingredients of the marinade together and marinate the prawns

- mix the eggs with some soy sauce and make an omelette, cut into little pieces

- cook Udon noodles according to directions (about 5 minutes)

- in a wok heat oil and fry half of the garlic, ginger, spring onions, chillies for about 1 min
- add prawn and marinade and cook for two minutes
- remove prawns from wok, keep warm
- add broth and reduce on high heat for about 5 minutes
- put prawns back into wok and cook another 2 - 3 minutes

- in another pan heat oil and fry remaining garlic, ginger and chili
- add shitake and other veggies (according to cooking time) and cook for a few minutes
- add omelette pieces and season with soy sauce and sesame oil

- put udon noodles onto plates
- add veggies on top of noodles and prawns on top of veggies
- sprinkle some spring onions on top

- serve with gyoza sauce according to taste

- 6 dried guajillo chillies
- 6 dried arbol chillies
- 2 dried ancho chillies
- 1/3 cup Sriracha
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 (28 oz) can tomato purree
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 large red onion, sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 lb tail-on-shrimp, peeled and deveined
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- steamed white rice, to serve
- chopped fresh parsley, to garnish

1) In a medium pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Set a skillet over medium heat. Toast all chillies in the dry skillet for 3 min on each side. Once the chillies are toasted, drop them in the boiling water, cover, turn off heat. Let steep for 20 min.
2) Drain the water, reserving about 1/4 cup. Discards chilli stems and seeds. In a blender or food processor, combine chillies, reserved cooking liquid, Sriracha, 2 tbsp oil and puree until smooth. Pass mixture through a medium mesh strainer into large saucepan. Add tomato puree and place over high heat. Bring to a gentle boil, lower heat to medium and simmer until sauce reduces and thickens slightly, 12 - 15 min.
3) In a separate pan or skillet, heat butter and 1 tbsp oil over medium high heat. Add onion and cook until it starts to soften, 6 - 7 min. Add garlic and shrimp and cook for an additional minute.
4) Pour in the tomato / chilli sauce, stirring to combine, and cook it all together until the shrimp are cooked through, 3 - 4 min. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5) Serve over steamed white rice, generously spooning any additional sauce onto the shrimp and rice. Garnish with chopped parsley.

- 600 ml vegetable oil
- 4 bream fillets, each cut into 5 - 6 pieces across
the fillet
- handful of plain flour
- 300g straight-to-wok or precooked rice noodles
- 4 medium tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges
- 4 spring onions, thinly sliced on an angle
- 1/2 medium cucumber, halve lengthways,
deseeded and thinly sliced
- 1 banana shallot, thinly sliced into rings
- 2 little gem lettuces, cut into 8 wedges
- 3 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh coriander
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped basil
- 10 mint leaves, roughly chopped

Dressing:
- 1/2 lemongrass stalk, very thinly sliced into
rings
- 10g (or more) fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 - 2 red bird's eye chillies, roughly chopped,
seeds and all
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
- juice of 2 limes
- 1 tablespoon caster sugar

1) Firstly, make the dressing. Grind and pound lemongrass, ginger, garlic and chillies in a pestle and mortar until they form a coarse paste. Add fish sauce, lime juice, sugar and stir well. Have a taste and redress if you feel the need.

2) Heat oil in pan until it's about 175 degrees C. Toss pieces of fish in flour and shake of excess. Lower fish into pan using slotted spoon, allow to cook for 3 - 4 minutes until it's a little crusty and pale golden on outside. Lay on kitchen paper.

3) Mix hot fish with remaining ingredients and serve as quickly as possible: place noodles in large serving bowl. Add tomatoes, spring onion, cucumber, shallot, lettuce, coriander, basil and mint. Place fish on top. Pour half the dressing and very gently turn everything over to mix. Do not break up fish !

4) Serve in bowls with remaining dressing for people to add as they wish.