Sunday Cooking, More Dumplings

I've made chicken curry and veal goulash for the week ahead. Neither is especially authentic, but they are quite simple. This is good because I am bloody sodding well sick again. I can't believe it, but this jebus-, FSM- & IPU-damned motherfscking cough certainly seems to believe in me. Insert more expletives. And a few more. $%^&#@. Paging George Carlin.

The chicken curry uses more of the vindaloo sauce from my little accident with the spice premix last week. I've tossed in a tin of chickpeas and a large cubed potato. I got some cubed chicken breast on special, so that goes in to simmer for 10 minutes when the spud is done - you don't want it to cook too long, or it dries out badly. The simmer and the brief reheat should be OK. The spice mix turned out not to be as hot as I expected, and reasonably tasty. It's Mangal vindaloo masala, which at least is an Indian company. I'll serve that tomorrow with basmati rice, some mint yoghurt, pappadams and mango chutney.

I'm planning dumplings for the goulash, unless I become further paralysed by the cough. (As you see from the pic, I made it.) The goulash is also a throw-together that no self-respecting Hungarian would recognise. It's a simple stew of veal, mushrooms and tomatoes, flavoured with a lot of paprika, some garlic, and a little marjoram. I've used my own roast tomatoes, as well as a tin. We'll have it with the dumplings, and a green salad, and some broccoli.

Recipe: Simple Dumplings
1 cup self-raising flour
1/3 cup milk
1 egg
pinch salt
2 teaspoons butter

Beat egg, mix in milk and salt. Melt butter (microwave is good); add it to the milk. Now add this mixture slowly to the self-raising flour, stirring well, until you get a smooth firmish dough. Divide into 8 lumps. Toss these on top of a simmering stew in a wide pan; cover and leave for 15 minutes. Eat.

Notes: I usually use non-fat milk. If you use full cream, maybe try a bit less butter? Add any herbs, spices, cheese, whatever you fancy. I put some caraway seeds in these ones. Or add a bit of sugar and spice, and poach in golden syrup & water for an old fashioned dessert.