My apologies if this blog is turning more into a cooking blog than as baking one [as the name leads you to believe]. While it’s true that I dnt bake every single day, my excuse is that I also feel like sharing these everyday dishes with you.

It’s just as important to know how to put a simple meal together as to whip up a fancy dessert. Bouillon is one of my fave things to make if I need to get lunch/dinner ready within 1/2 hour.  Something I call a genuine comfort food, bouillon can be as versatile as you care to make it.

Throw in carrots, mushrooms and bits of shredded chicken to make a wholesome meal. Or combine your fave mine apollo with bouillon cresson.  Whatever you chose to do, bouillon remains a light healthy and flavourful dish that I bet you’ll make over and over again.

BOUILLON CRESSON – WATERCRESS BROTH

Ingredients:

2 bunches watercress/ brède cresson

2 cups rice water

2 cups water

1 tsp salt

1 small red onion, sliced

1 medium tomato, sliced

1 tbs vegetable oil

Method:

  • Clean watercress to remove grubs and dirt. Shred into 2 inch pieces.
  • Wash several times in a colander to remove impurities. Drain.
  • Cnt find brède cresson? Substitute with any available brède.
  • Heat oil in a large pan and sauté onion and tomato over medium heat until onions become transluscent for about a minute.

  • Pour rice water slowly into pan and dilute with an equal amount of plain water. To collect rice water, you should obviously cook rice and drain before you start with your bouillon.
  • If you dnt have rice water, dnt fret. Simply use plain water or substitute with water + 1tbs thickening agent like cornflour.
  • Season with salt and bring to a boil. Do not cover pan.

  • Dump watercress in bouillon and cook for another 10 minutes.
  • Serve hot in small soup bowls as entrée or part of a main dish.

I recommend bouillon with along with boiled rice, rougaille poisson salé [salted fish rougaille] and satini pistas

. This is often featured as part of the menu in restaurants boasting of a cuisine creole but you can very well customise it according to taste and budget.

Health Considerations: The rice water content of bouillion makes it a choice source of nutrients and fluids especially for children. 

 SATINI PISTAS – PEANUT CHUTNEY

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted peanuts, shelled

3 garlic cloves

2 dried red chillies

3 tsp fresh mint leaves

1 tsp tamarind paste

1/2 tsp salt

1 -2 tbs water

Method:

  • Place garlic, chillies, mint leaves and tamarind paste in the bowl of mixer/grinder. Add 1/2 tbs water and grind to a paste.

  • Add peanuts and another 1/2 tbs water. Grind coarsely for a minute or two if you like bits of peanuts in your satini.

  • If not, continue grinding until you have a smooth paste. You may need to add a lil more water for this.
  • Dnt forget to stir in salt before you serve.
  • Can be stored in fridge for a few days.

Sorry for the poor quality of pics in this post. It was a bad ‘camera’ day 😦