For Marion Grasby, food entrepreneur and media publisher, the point is not just what ends up on your plate. When she wrote her first book, Always Delicious, she wanted to capture what you love most about her food and lifestyle channels: the tips, techniques and, most importantly, recipes that work.
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In her new one, Just as Delicious, Grasby, who was one of our favourite MasterChef contestants back in 2010, has included more recipes that make use of essential (life) skills, like making the juiciest roast chicken or the ultimate gyoza. You'll find the core techniques she comes back to time and again, from searing and poaching, to making the ultimate stir-fries.
Join her community at marionskitchen.com
- Just as Delicious: more tips, techniques and recipes that work, by Marion Grasby. Sold exclusively on marionskitchen.com. $60.
Vietnamese-style roast chicken
Roasting a chicken ... the most fundamental of kitchen (and life) skills. My technique here makes roasting a bird quicker, juicier and less messy (win!).
Ingredients
1 x 1.2kg whole chicken
vegetable oil, for brushing
cucumber, cut into chunks, to serve
steamed rice, to serve
Marinade:
1 lemongrass stalk, bruised and pale part finely sliced
2 coriander roots
4 garlic cloves
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp sweet dark soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
Nuoc cham:
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp white vinegar
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp lime juice
1 long red chilli, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Method
1. To prepare the chicken, place it breast-side down on a chopping board. Use scissors to cut down either side of the backbone and remove it. Flip the chicken over and press down on the breastplate so that the breastbone cracks and the chicken sits quite flat.
2. For the marinade, use a mortar and pestle (or a food processor) to pound the lemongrass, coriander roots and garlic to a fine paste. Stir through the soy sauce, fish sauce, sweet dark soy sauce and brown sugar.
3. In a large bowl, combine the chicken with the marinade. Allow to marinate for 10 minutes (or up to an hour).
4. Preheat the oven to 200C. Meanwhile, for the nuoc cham, whisk together the ingredients. Set aside.
5. Prepare a baking tray by lining it with foil and placing a baking rack on top. Place the chicken on the rack, breastside up. Pour over the marinade. Add two cups of water into the base of the baking tray, making sure the water doesn't touch the chicken.
6. Roast for 40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through (you can test by slicing into the leg joint and if the juices run clear, the chicken is cooked). I like to baste my chicken with a little oil to keep the skin from drying out too much as it cooks. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
7. Cut the chicken into pieces and serve with cucumber, nuoc cham and steamed rice.
Serves 4.
Mongolian beef
My version of Mongolian beef celebrates gloriously tender strips of steak in a glossy, umami-packed sauce. I've recommended flank steak because I wanted to show you can use a budget-friendly cut of beef but make it feel like a fillet mignon (that's the baking soda and cornflour combo at work). But you could use pretty much any cut, or even pork or chicken.
Ingredients
400g flank steak
2 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra
1 red onion, cut into wedges
4cm piece ginger, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
3 dried red chillies, roughly chopped
1 tbsp cornflour, mixed with 1 tbsp water
4 spring onions, cut into batons
steamed rice, to serve
Marinade:
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing wine
1/2 tsp bicarb soda
3 tsp cornflour
Stir-fry sauce:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup chicken stock
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing wine
Method
1. Slice steak across the grain on the diagonal to form strips no more than half a centimetre thick.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the marinade. Add the steak and mix until well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the ingredients for the stir-fry sauce.
4. Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Add the beef and spread it out in the pan so there's maximum surface area coming into contact with the hot pan. Allow to sear for one minute, then toss and stir-fry. Repeat the spreading, searing and tossing business for one to two minutes or until the beef is starting to crisp and brown on the edges. Transfer to a large tray or plate.
5. Return the same pan to the heat (no need to clean it). Add in the onion (add a little more oil if there isn't any left in the pan), ginger, garlic and chillies. Stir-fry for about a minute, then add the stir-fry sauce. Allow to simmer for half a minute. Next, add the cornflour mixture and simmer until thickened. Add the beef back into the sauce along with the spring onion and toss until well combined. Serve warm with steamed rice.
Serves 4.
Thai spicy pork and eggs breakfast
When it comes to breakfast food, cereal or toast ain't got nothin' on this: hot and spicy pork with golden eggs and handfuls of fresh herbs. This is the type of breakfast I would eat on a typical morning in Bangkok on my way to work but understandably it's not everyone's cup of tea. In which case, it's equally good for lunch or dinner! You can serve it as is, with toast on the side or with steamed rice.
Ingredients
4 garlic cloves
2-3 birdseye chillies
2 long red chillies
2 tbsp vegetable oil
200g thinly sliced pork or chicken
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 cup Thai basil leaves (regular Italian basil is fine too), plus extra to serve
2 eggs
toast or steamed rice, to serve
Method
1. Use a mortar and pestle to pound the garlic and chillies to a very rough paste. Remove and discard any large garlic skins and chilli stems.
2. Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a wok or frying pan over high heat. Add the garlic chilli paste and stir-fry for half a minute. Then add the pork and stir-fry for a minute. Add in the oyster sauce and fish sauce and stir-fry until the pork is cooked. Toss through the basil leaves, then remove from heat and set aside for later.
3. Heat the remaining one tablespoon of oil in a small frying pan over high heat. Crack the eggs in and cook for two to three minutes or until the edges are crispy and the yolk is cooked to your liking. Remove the pan from the heat then spoon the spicy pork mixture over the eggs and scatter over extra basil leaves. Serve in the pan, with toast or steamed rice on the side.
Serves 1.
Hot and numbing fudge brownies
The thing I loved about popping candy as a child was the element of surprising joy with every little snap and crackle. You get the same unexpected "ooh!" moment each time a Sichuan peppercorn "pops" or a slice of chilli tingles as you devour this brownie.
Ingredients
1 1/2 tbsp green Sichuan peppercorns (you could also use red ones)
145g salted butter
250g white sugar
200g 70% dark chocolate, cut into large chunks
2 tsp vanilla extract or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp chilli powder
2-3 small birdseye chillies, finely chopped (or to taste)
1 tsp sea salt
3 eggs
250g plain flour
Spicy, salty sprinkle:
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp sea salt
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 160C. Position an oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Line a 20cm square baking pan with baking paper, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides (this helps when removing the baked brownies from the pan, once cooled).
2. To prepare the peppercorns, toast them in a dry frying pan over medium heat until fragrant. (I find that green Sichuan peppercorns tend to have a stronger citrussy aroma that works well with the chocolate in this recipe, but you could also use the red variety, which tends to be more commonly available.) Use a mortar and pestle to roughly grind them (you don't want too fine a powder). Take a teaspoon of the ground peppercorns and mix with the remaining spicy, salty sprinkle ingredients. Reserve the remaining peppercorns.
3. To make the brownie, place the butter, sugar, chocolate, vanilla, chilli powder, chillies, reserved peppercorns and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir the mixture occasionally until the butter and chocolate has melted.
4. Transfer the chocolate mixture to a large bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking vigorously after each one.
5. When the batter looks thick, shiny and well blended, add the flour and stir until fully incorporated. Use a spatula to continue vigorously mixing until you see the brownie batter pulling away from the sides of the bowl.
6. Pour the mixture into the lined baking tin, making sure it is evenly distributed. Sprinkle the top with the spicy, salty sprinkle. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until just set in the centre. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before slicing into 16 pieces. Serve.
Makes 16 small brownies.