Siba cooks with Vanessa Marawa
Starter – Calamari Salad
Vanessa has avoided seafood since her Survivor experience, but is ready to give it another go. Siba’s twist “Vanessa loves calamari and because she enjoys fruits and greens, I made a calamari salad with a squeeze of orange instead of lemon, for something different.”
Preparation time: 10 min
Soaking time: 15 min
Cooking time: 10 min
Serves 4-6
You will need
Calamari
4 calamari steaks
250 ml (1 cup) milk
60 ml (¼ cup) cake flour, seasoned with salt and pepper or fish spice and pepper
2 eggs, beaten
250 ml (1 cup) dried breadcrumbs
60 ml (¼ cup) canola oil
Salad
125 ml (¼ cup) spring onions, finely chopped
80 ml (⅓ cup) salad onions, sliced in length
2 oranges, cut into segments
Juice of 1 orange
Salt and pepper to taste
Watercress or any salad greens you desire
Method
1. Calamari: Score (make light cuts with a knife) across the calamari steaks to prevent them from tightly curling when cooked. Some are bought with these already made.
2. Soak the calamari steaks in milk for 15 minutes to soften. Remove and drain on paper towel or clean kitchen cloth. Cut into strips. Coat the calamari strips with flour, then dip into egg and dust with breadcrumbs.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the calamari in batches until golden brown for about 4 minutes for each batch. Drain excess oil.
4. Salad: Combine the salad ingredients with the calamari strips and drizzle with orange juice. Season to taste and serve with watercress or favourite salad greens. Enjoy!
Main course – Seafood Paella
Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: about 45 min – 1 hour
Serves 6 or more
You will need
30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil
4 chicken breasts cut into cubes
Salt and pepper
1-2 chorizo sausages, sliced
125 g (½ packet) bacon, chopped
2 onions, finely chopped
15 ml (1 tbsp) garlic, crushed
30 ml (2 tbsp) smoked paprika
1 L (4 cups) chicken stock
250 ml (1 cup) long-grain rice
80 g mussels
80 g shrimps
3 haddock fillets cut into chunks
125 ml (½ cup) frozen peas
30 ml (2 tbsp) parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Lemon wedges to serve with
Method
1. Heat the oil and fry chicken cubes seasoned with salt and pepper until golden. Add the sliced chorizo and bacon and fry for 5 minutes until crispy. Add the onions and garlic and sauté until translucent. Add the smoked paprika and stir.
2. Stir the rice into the mixture and add stock. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes while stirring frequently. Add the mussels, shrimp and haddock and simmer for another 10 minutes until cooked.
3. Lastly add the peas and sprinkle with parsley. Lightly season to taste. Serve with lemon wedges.
Desert – Lemon and Coconut Squares
Preparation time: 10 min
Baking time: about 45 min – 1 hour
Makes about 30 squares
You will need
DOUGH
500 ml (2 cups) cake flour
5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder
5 ml (1 tsp) ground cinnamon
10 ml (2 tsp) finely grated lemon zest
30 ml (2 tbsp) desiccated coconut
30 ml (2 tbsp) castor sugar
150 g butter
60 ml (¼ cup) golden syrup
30 ml (2 tbsp) lemon juice
FILLING
180 ml (¾ cup) desiccated coconut
125 g butter, softened
1 can (397 g) condensed milk
125 ml (½ cup) lemon juice
Method
1. Dough: Preheat oven to 180 ˚C and lightly grease an 18 x 28 cm baking sheet with butter or non-cook spray. Sift the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl and stir in the zest, coconut and sugar. Set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat the butter, golden syrup and lemon juice together until melted. Leave to cool slightly. Mix the butter mixture with the dry ingredients to form a dough.
3. Cut off a third of the dough, wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate. Press the remaining dough onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Leave to cool.
4. Filling: Mix all the filling ingredients together and let stand for 2 minutes. Spread the filling evenly over the cookie layer in the baking sheet. Grate the remaining chilled dough over the filling and bake for 25 minutes until light brown. Cut into squares while lukewarm and leave to cool in the tray. Enjoy!
