Dinner Time
by Zena Kamgaing
Extract taken from Dinner Time by Zena Kamgaing
(Bloomsbury Publishing, Hardback, £22).
Photography © Yuki Sugiura.
Three Delicious Dinners You Need to Make
Big, bold and vibrant, no-one does global flavours quite like Zena Kamgaiing, and her new recipe book is packed with deeply delicious and easy meals
Here we share three of her favourites.
Harissa Butter Steak Flatbreads
These flatbreads are proof that big-flavour cooking doesn’t have to mean long cooking times. Thin-cut steaks cook in seconds, and the harissa butter they’re basted in does all the heavy lifting in the flavour department. Nestled on top of warm flatbreads with garlicky yoghurt and a bright tomato and onion salad, they make for a truly delicious and comforting meal.
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 150g Greek yoghurt
- 2 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 lemon, juice
- 4 vine tomatoes (about 300g), cut into wedges
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 minute or thin-cut steaks
- Vegetable oil (or any neutral oil)
- 1 heaped tbsp butter
- 1/2 tbsp harissa paste
- 4 small flatbreads
- 1 small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves and tender stems chopped
Method
In a small bowl, mix the Greek yoghurt with the garlic and a pinch of salt. Set aside. In another bowl, scrunch the red onion with the lemon juice and a good pinch of salt until softened, then add the tomatoes and olive oil, toss to combine, and set aside.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Pat the steaks dry with kitchen paper, then lightly oil them and season them with salt and pepper. Cook for one minute in total, flipping halfway through.
Lower the heat to medium and add the butter and harissa. Tilt the pan and spoon the melted harissa butter over the steaks, basting for 30 seconds, then transfer them to a plate to rest for five minutes. Meanwhile, warm the flatbreads according to the package instructions. Slice the rested steaks.
Spread the garlicky yoghurt over the warm flatbreads, then layer on the steak slices and spoon over the buttery harissa drippings from the pan. Scatter over some of the tomato and onion salad, serving the rest on the side, and finish with a sprinkle of parsley.
Crispy Za’atar Sea Bass With Jewelled Giant Couscous
This is my favourite way to cook sea bass fillets – seared in a hot pan until the skin is perfectly crisp. The seasoning is simple: just za’atar, and salt and pepper, which bring warmth, savouriness and a little complexity without overpowering the fish. You could serve the fish with almost anything, but here I’ve paired it with a vibrant giant couscous salad, packed with fresh vegetables and tossed in a lemony harissa dressing.
Serves
4
Ingredients
- For the giant couscous
- 200g giant couscous
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp harissa paste
- 1 tsp runny honey
- 1/2 lemon, juice
- 1 garlic clove, finely grated or minced
- 1/2 red sweet-pointed pepper (or regular red pepper), deseeded and finely diced
- 100g baby cucumber, finely diced
- 100g pomegranate seeds
- 1 small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves and tender stems finely chopped
- For the sea bass
- 4 skin-on sea bass fillets
- 1 tbsp za’atar
- Vegetable oil (or any neutral oil), for frying
Method
Boil the giant couscous in generously salted water according to the package instructions, until tender. Drain, rinse under cold water, then drain again.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, harissa paste, honey, lemon juice and garlic. Add the red pepper, cucumber, pomegranate seeds and parsley, then season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Tip in the drained couscous, toss everything together again and season with more salt and pepper, to taste, if needed. Set aside.
Pat the sea bass fillets dry with kitchen paper. Season the flesh side with the za’atar, plus a little salt and pepper. Flip and pat the skin dry again, then season lightly with salt.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium–high heat and add a thin layer of vegetable oil. Once hot, place the fillets skin-side down. Press down gently with a spatula for the first 15 seconds to stop the skin curling. Cook the fish for two to three minutes, or until the skin is golden and crispy, then flip and cook for one minute, until cooked through.
To serve, divide the giant couscous salad between four serving plates or shallow bowls. Top each with a portion of the crispy sea bass, skin-side up, and serve immediately.
Caramel Pineapple Ice Cream Sundaes
This dessert is all about contrast – hot-cold, soft-crunchy, sweet-salty. You start by searing the pineapple until deeply golden and charred in places, then poach it in a cinnamon-spiced brown sugar syrup until beautifully tender. The sauce is finished with butter, whisked in to create a glossy, pineapple-infused salted caramel of sorts, ready to spoon over just before serving. Warm fruit, cold ice cream and a scattering of toasted coconut flakes – it’s a big-flavour dessert that requires relatively little effort.
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 65g unsalted butter
- 1 small ripe pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into 8 wedges
- 100g dark brown soft sugar
- 2 × 7cm cinnamon sticks
- 4 big scoops good-quality vanilla ice cream
- 1 handful of toasted coconut flakes
Method
Set aside 25g of the butter, then cut the rest into one centimetre-thick slices and refrigerate.
Melt the reserved 25g of butter in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Arrange the pineapple wedges in a snug single layer over the butter and cook undisturbed for five to six minutes, or until browned and charred in places. Flip and cook for another three to five minutes, or until browned.
Turn the heat down to medium, then add the sugar, cinnamon sticks, a pinch of salt and four tablespoons of water and give the pan a good shake. Cover the pan with a lid and cook the pineapple, flipping halfway through, for eight to 10 minutes, or until tender (a skewer should slide through with little resistance).
Take the pan off the heat and transfer the wedges to bowls – you want two wedges per portion. Discard the cinnamon sticks.
Whisk the chilled butter into the sauce left in the pan until melted and emulsified. If the sauce feels too thin, return the pan to the heat and simmer for a couple of minutes until it has thickened slightly. Transfer to a bowl and leave it to cool a little.
To serve, add a big scoop of vanilla ice cream to each serving bowl, top with lots of the sauce and finish with a sprinkle of toasted coconut flakes.
