Greek Feta and Zuchini balls (Kolokithokeftedes)

This is a tasty dish to make in the summer months when there is always a plentiful supply of Zucchini. On our little Island, it is not unusual to have these left on your doorstep on account of everyone being sick of them. I love them fried, grilled and grated into all sorts of breads and muffins. This is my favorite.

Seed the Zuchini (Courgette)using a teaspoon as a scoop then grate the flesh into a bowl. Salt the flesh for about 30 mnts to draw out the liquid and then press in a colander using the bottom of a bowl.

Add crumbled Feta, Chopped Mint and Oregano and season with Black Pepper.  Add some Paprika or Cayenne if you want these to be a bit spicy.

Add sufficient plain flour (abt Tbsp) to the bowl and mix until you can make a ball with the mixture and it stays in shape.

Heat Vegetable oil in a pan, deep enough to coat the balls in hot oil (360F,180C). Fry in small batches so the oil doesn't cool too much.  No one likes soggy balls (ooh er!!), least of all me, so dusting them in cornflour before frying helps them get lovely and crispy.

Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a baking tray on a paper towel.

They can be kept in the oven on a warm/low heat while the next batch is made.

Serve with a Yoghurt and Mint sauce or Tzatziki if you prefer, finish with a squeeze of lemon.

Vietnamese Pork and Crab Spring Roll - Cha Gio

 

After a small Hiatus, I am back to my normal happy and cheery self, a wee bit older, but still in one piece (mostly). Retirement brings many joys, not the least a lot of time to do things that I want to do -AND that would be messing around in a Kitchen.

When living in Les Orres, France, I met and became friends with the local Doctor, Claude. He was 1/2 French and 1/2 Vietnamese. This made for a lot of interesting and delicious food which he was happy to share with me. One such dish was a Rice Paper Spring Roll (Cha Gio) which was deep fried with a crispy exterior and a many flavored juicy interior. I watched him assemble this amazing dish. It took a few tries to get it right, but once learned, never forgotten.

Mix  Ground Pork, Fresh Crab, Shiitake or Maritake mushrooms, Glass Noodles and a dash of the dipping sauce, Salt and White Pepper.

Set to one side to prepare Rice Paper for rolling.

Use a large bowl with hand hot water in it, large enough to add the rice paper briefly, then lift it out and place on the work surface. Repeat with a second rice paper and once you put that on the work surface, the first one will be ready to fill and roll. 

Tuck in the ends and continue to roll until the filling is all enclosed. Try not to let air bubbles form.

Repeat until all the filling is used up.

Place the filled rolls on wax paper making sure they do not touch, as they will not separate, and put in the fridge until the oil is hot enough for frying (330F /170C)

Fry them in small batches to keep them separate, until golden brown (about5 to 6 minutes)

Remove them with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Refry them to get them crispy, just before service.

Dipping Sauce - Nuoc Mam

Add the Juice of 1 large Lime and the same quantity of Fish Sauce to a small bowl with diced shallot and Red Chilies. I added a dash of Soy Sauce and a few shavings of Jagery (candied sugar cane juice) to complement the acidic Lime juice.

The plate was garnished with some shredded Scallion.

My son ate 5 of them before I could save any for later,