I often get asked to list my top tips for stir-frying. Really, it’s about understanding heat or what we Cantonese like to call “wok hei” (woks’ air), and how to manoeuvre the heat around the wok in a certain way and at the right time.

If you can control your heat through flicking and tossing your wok or folding and turning your ingredients at the best time, you will soon be able to sear the outer edges of your food on an incredibly high heat, without burning it, and impart a slight smokiness into your stir-fries. Making a fried rice is the perfect example of this and I liken it to learning how to make an omelette as the first task you should learn in a classic French kitchen.

Ingredients
For the rice
2 free-range eggs, beaten
dash sesame oil
pinch salt
handful lettuce or cabbage, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
handful green beans, sugar-snap peas or mangetout, finely chopped
50g/1¾oz frozen petit pois, thawed
150g/5½oz cooked jasmine rice, cooled in the fridge, grains separated
2 spring onions, thinly sliced, plus extra to serve
2½ tbsp vegetable oil
1–2 tsp Chiu Chow chilli oil
For the sauce
1–2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
Recipe tips
Method
Combine the beaten eggs, sesame oil and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

To make the sauce, mix the light soy sauce and sesame oil in a small bowl and set aside.

Put the lettuce or cabbage in a bowl of ice cold water. This will help to crisp up the leaves and provide a crunch to the finished dish.

Make sure you have all your ingredients prepared and ready. You can set them all up clockwise on a large plate in this order – eggs, carrot, beans, petit pois, rice, sauce and spring onions. This makes it easy to remember what order to add things to the work. Heat 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a wok over a high heat. Once smoking hot, pour the eggs into the wok and allow them to bubble up. Turn the heat down to medium-high, then gradually fold the egg into the hot oil to form a ‘rippled omelette’.

Push the egg to one side of the wok. Add the remaining ½ tablespoon of vegetable oil and, once smoking hot, add the carrot, followed by the rest of the vegetables, stirring and leaving 30 seconds in between each addition. Add the rice, turn the heat back up to high and mix well, trying to separate the grains with a spatula or ladle to remove any large clumps. Add the sauce and stir-fry for a further 2–3 minutes until all the sauce has absorbed into the rice. Stir the egg through the rice and veg.

Pile the rice high in a bowl or keep warm in the wok, scattered with the remaining spring onion. Shake the excess water off the lettuce or cabbage, clump it in the palm of your hand and arrange it on the top of the rice. Drizzle over the Chiu Chow chilli oil and serve.

Source: BBC

A deliciously indulgent banana milkshake, topped with a swirl of vanilla-flavoured whipped cream and grated chocolate. For a healthier version, try using 3 frozen bananas and omit the ice cream when making the milkshake, and skip the topping.

For this recipe you will need a blender and, for the whipped cream topping, a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle.
Ingredients
For the milkshake
2 large ripe bananas
75g/2⅔oz vanilla ice cream
½ tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra to serve
300ml/10fl oz milk
For the topping
75ml/2½fl oz double cream
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tsp maple syrup
1 square dark chocolate, finely grated
Recipe tipsHow-to-videos
Method
Peel and slice the bananas, then place in a freezer box or bag and freeze for 1 hour until nearly frozen.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Whisk the cream together with the vanilla paste and maple syrup until it holds firm peaks. Scoop into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle and chill until ready to use.

To make the milkshake, tip the frozen banana slices into a blender, then add the ice cream, cinnamon and milk and blend on high speed until smooth. Alternatively, you can combine the ingredients using a hand-held stick blender in a bowl.

Divide the milkshake between two tall glasses and pipe a swirl of the whipped cream topping onto each one. Scatter with cinnamon and grated dark chocolate, if liked, and serve.

Source: BBC

This family lamb stew is full of flavour and perfect for feeding a crowd. If an extra person turns up unexpectedly, add another tin of drained beans to make it go further!

Ingredients
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1kg/2lb 4oz lamb neck fillet, diced
2 large onions, sliced
4 celery sticks, sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp medium curry powder
450ml/16fl oz lamb or beef stock
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp sun-dried tomato purée or paste
2 tbsp mango chutney
400g tin haricot beans, drained and rinsed
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 2cm/¾in cubes
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Recipe tips

Method
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a deep, ovenproof frying pan or flameproof casserole dish. Fry the lamb over a high heat until browned all over (you may need to do this in batches). Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate and set aside. Preheat the oven to 160C/140C Fan/Gas 3.

Add the remaining oil to the pan, then add the onions, celery and garlic and fry for a few minutes. Add the spices and fry for 30 seconds, stirring.

Stir in the stock, tomatoes, tomato purée and mango chutney and bring to the boil, stirring. Add the lamb, season with salt and pepper, stir for a few minutes, then cover and transfer to the oven for about 1 hour.

Add the beans and sweet potatoes, bring back to the boil, then cover and return to the oven for another 45 minutes, or until the lamb is tender and the potatoes are just cooked but still holding their shape.

Check the seasoning and serve piping hot.

Source: BBC