Donal Skehan: Home Cook Episode 2 Recipes

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken  

Serves 4-6 

Prep time: 20 minutes, plus marinating 

Cook time: 61⁄2 hours 

Tip: 

If you don’t have a slow cooker you can make this in 

a lidded casserole and cook in an oven preheated to 

150°C/130°C fan/300°F/Gas 2 for 2–3 hours, or until the 

chicken is tender and cooked all the way through. 

Ingredients: 

8 free-range chicken thighs (bone 

in), skin removed 

120ml (1⁄2 cup) double (heavy) cream 

Steamed rice, to serve 

Naan Bread 

Handful of fresh coriander (cilantro), 

to serve 

For the marinade 

400g (14oz) full-fat natural yoghurt 

Juice and zest of 1⁄2 lemon  

1 tsp ground coriander 

1 tsp paprika 

Salt & pepper  

For the curry sauce 

40g (11⁄2oz) butter 

1 tbsp vegetable oil 

1 large onion, finely chopped 

2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped 

3cm (11⁄4in) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated  

1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped  

1 tsp cardamom pods, cracked  

1 tbsp garam masala 

1 tsp fenugreek seeds 

1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder 

3 tbsp tomato purée (paste) 

100ml (scant 1⁄2 cup) chicken stock 

Sea salt and freshly ground 

black pepper 

Method:  

1. Put the chicken in a dish with all the marinade ingredients and leave to marinade for at least an hour or overnight. 

2. Heat the oil in a frying pan (skillet), or with the sauté setting on your slow cooker. Gently fry the onion, garlic, ginger and chilli for 5–10 minutes until very soft. Add butter and the spices and cook for a minute until melted and fragrant.  

3. Tip into a slow cooker (if using a frying pan) and add the chicken thighs in their marinade, tomato purée and stock. Season well and cook on low for 6 hours.  

4. Carefully remove the chicken to a warmed dish (it will be very tender and falling apart). The sauce will look a little split at this stage but don’t worry, it will come back together.   

5. Either with the sauté function of your slow cooker or in a pan over a medium heat, reduce the sauce for 5–6 minutes until thickened nicely, then stir through the double cream. Bubble for a few more minutes until you have a rich creamy sauce. Return the chicken to the sauce and serve with rice and lots of fresh coriander scattered over the top. 

6. Toast your store-bought naan bread over a flame for extra flavour and serve with coriander. 

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Pork Shoulder with Parmesan Roasties  

Serves 6-8  

Prep time: 30 minutes 

Cook time: 51⁄2 hours plus overnight chilling 

Tip: 

If you have a Stanley knife it will make it easier to get nice scoring on the pork skin. You want the blade to go all the way through the skin into the fat underneath. If your crackling isn’t as crisp as you would like it after half an hour, it’s best to remove it along with any fat and pop it back in with the potatoes rather than continuing to cook it on top of the pork as you don’t want the meat to dry out. 

Ingredients: 

2kg (4lb 8oz) piece boneless pork 

shoulder, skin on 

1 tbsp sea salt 

1 tbsp fennel seeds 

Pinch of chilli flakes (optional) 

2 tbsp honey 

1 tbsp sweet apple cider vinegar 

For the Parmesan roasties 

1.2kg (2lb 10oz) potatoes, peeled 

and cut into small chunks 

5 tbsp olive oil 

40g (11⁄2oz) Parmesan cheese, grated 

For the garlicky greens 

1 head savoy cabbage, leaves 

separated 

Knob of butter 

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 

Sea salt and freshly ground 

black pepper 

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/130°C fan/300°F/Gas 2. With a very sharp knife, score the skin of the pork so that it will crackle and crisp. 

2. Crush fennel seeds and salt together in a pestle and mortar and rub the mixture all over the pork. Put in a roasting tin, pour 300ml (11⁄4 cups) of boiling water around it and cover with foil. Put in the oven and roast for 51⁄2 hours.   

3. At this point, remove the pork from the tin and pour the juices into a jug. Allow the pork to cool and then wrap in foil, leaving the skin exposed, and chill overnight in the fridge.  

4. The next day, remove the pork from the fridge an hour before you want to finish cooking it.   

5. Put the spuds into a large saucepan of salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain and return to the pan over a low heat to dry and fluff up the edges.  

6. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/425°F/Gas 7. Heat the olive oil for the roasties in a tin for a few minutes then add the potatoes and toss well. 

7. Put the potatoes in the bottom of the oven and return the pork to the top to crisp the crackling (see Tip). Cook both for 30 minutes, then remove the pork and set aside covered in foil. Turn the spuds and cook for a further 15 minutes, then generously sprinkle with the Parmesan and cook for 10 minutes more until the cheese is golden.  

8. Meanwhile, discard any fat from the juices in your jug and pour into a saucepan with the honey and vinegar and bubble together.  

9. Put the whole leaves of cabbage in a pan, add a splash of water, cover and steam for 2–3 minutes then uncover and add the butter and garlic and cook for a minute more. Season to taste.   

10. Slice the pork and crackling and serve with the sauce, golden crispy Parmesan potatoes and garlicky cabbage. 

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Meringue Swish 

Serves 10 V GF 

Prep time: 30 minutes, plus cooling 

Cook time: 2–21⁄2 hours 

Tip: 

You can make the meringues up to 2 days in advance and store in an airtight container until you are ready 

Ingredients: 

For the meringue 

6 large free-range egg whites 

325g (11oz) caster (superfine) 

sugar 

1 tsp white wine vinegar 

For the chocolate sauce 

100g (31⁄2oz) good-quality dark 

chocolate 

30g (1oz) salted butter 

50g (2oz) icing (confectioners’) 

sugar, sifted 

75ml (1⁄3 cup) double 

(heavy) cream 

To serve 

300ml (11⁄4 cups) double 

(heavy) cream 

1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 

500g (1lb 2oz) tub vanilla 

ice cream 

50g (2oz) hazelnuts, chopped 

and toasted 

Edible gold glitter to decorate (optional) 

Method:  

1. Preheat the oven to 130°C/110°C fan/260°F/Gas 1⁄2. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment. 

2. In a stand mixer or using a large bowl with a hand-held electric whisk, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Gradually whisk in the sugar, a little at a time. Once it is all incorporated, whisk in the vinegar and then continue to whisk on high for 4–5 minutes until you have a smooth, thick, glossy meringue. 

3. Dollop large spoonfuls of the mixture all over the baking sheets in sort of giant quenelles (don’t worry about being too neat), then bake for 2–21⁄2 hours until you can easily lift a meringue off the paper and they have a very pale shell. Turn off the oven and leave to cool completely inside the oven with the door ajar. 

4. When you are ready to serve, make the chocolate sauce. Put the chocolate and butter into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of just simmering water. When melted, remove from the heat and whisk in the icing sugar and cream. Keep warm.  

5. Whip the cream and vanilla until it is just holding its shape. Take the vanilla ice cream out of the freezer.  

6. Take a large serving platter and dollop a bit of cream on to the bottom and place a meringue on top. Using the cream as glue, pile up the meringues to form a tower. Scoop the ice cream into balls and tuck them into the spaces in the meringue tower.   

7. Drizzle the whole thing in chocolate sauce – at the table for extra drama – scatter with nuts and decorate with edible glitter (if using). Serve immediately. 

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