This is where a beef jerky cooker comes into its own. A simple device that dries and produces outstandingly tasty beef jerky better (in our opinion!) than what you can buy from the supermarket shelves. Not only better tasting but you also know exactly whats inside and how it is produced.

You may think that creating your very own beef jerly yourself takes time and experience but it really doesn’t. A good quality beef jerky cooker coupled with a tasty beef jerky oven recipe is all that is needed to produce delicious results time and time again.

Our favorite beef jerky cookers are ones that provide consistent results in the least amount of time without a massive learning curve to use them. You also want one with a decent timer that you can simply set up and it will alert you when ready.

Our favorite is the Nesco Snackmaster Dehydrator and beef Jerky Maker – it creates brilliant results each and every time and is one of the highest (no surprise!) rating beef jerky cookers around!

London is also a very big city, with a number of boroughs breaking down the most central locations and residential areas. Each borough has its own charm, and a vibe running through it influencing the tastes of the people and what sort of food is served in the area. Let’s take a look at four of the best London boroughs for food, and what you’ll find in each of them:

Westminster

Westminster is one of the biggest and most central boroughs, with many landmarks that signal what London is all about to tourists. The heart of the west end is located in Westminster where you’ll find fantastic shopping and a bright cosmopolitan environment day and night! Areas in Westminster such as Soho are alive with trendy eateries and restaurants on every street. Some of these places are elusive and popular, with young pretty things queuing the length of streets for the unreserved tables inside. The price bracket is 7 or 8 out of 10, so you’ll need to pay a good price for your meal, but it will be worth it.

Hackney

Hackney isn’t far from Camden, but it’s very much ‘the people’s borough’ with a large amount of residential living. The area is also near where the 2012 London Olympics will be held, raising the profile somewhat of the area. Hackney is great for low priced meals, and there are a number of takeaways and food deliveries around this part of London offering Chinese and Indian food as well as pizza. Food delivery London is extremely popular and has really helped put areas such as Hackney on the map.

Camden

Camden has a unique feel, and diverse inhabitancy, with an eccentric mix of locals. This has influenced the restaurants and takeaways in the area making it one of the best places in London to travel for food. Camden is known for the markets and lock around the canal, and around here there are a number of small markets serving some of the best street food around. The Camden Lock has anything from Brazilian to Mexican to Japanese, and if you venture into the Stables Market then Chinese and Asian food is rife, with a large number of stalls bartering for your trade and enticing you with free samples of their produce. Expect cheap meals galore.

Kensington & Chelsea

London has a number of affluent areas too, such as Kensington & Chelsea, arguably the nicest part of London to live and get food. There are restaurants all over this borough that reflect the type of people who love locally. A large number of Michelin starred establishments lurk on the streets, as well as some of the more popular high street chains. Getting food around here is an expensive affair, but worth it for a special treat or if you are lucky enough to be able to afford living in this area. Expect to pay top dollar for a 3 (or more!) course meal here, but hey, treat yourself!

Steve lives in London, and loves ordering from urbanbite.com.

Check for meal deals

A lot of menus will have the main items listed, but also include a range of set meals that include popular options for sharing and ease. There are a number of benefits to this method of ordering. Firstly it is a lot easier as you do not have to search through the whole menu to find exactly what you want. You can also save a lot of money because these deals are put together to offer a discount. The last big advantage of order set meals is that you get to try new dishes. They offer variety and some of the dishes you might not traditionally order, but when they come to you for tasting you can be blown away.

Check delivery prices

A lot of takeaway restaurants will deliver food for free, but do not take this for granted. Make sure you check the whole menu to see if they have a delivery charge, or if you have to spend a minimum amount to qualify for the free delivery. You often have to spend at least £10 to get free delivery or a small charge might be incurred meaning a more expensive meal than you might have thought.

Look out for freebies

A lot of take always will offer free items if you spend a certain amount of money, and the treats can be extremely tasty! For example a Chinese takeaway might offer you a free portion of crispy duck if you spend a certain amount. If your total spend for the order is near this threshold, it is often worth spending the little bit extra to get the freebies. This is all about maximising value, and if you have any leftover food then you can eat it the next day!

Avoid the premium items

Some takeaway menus have a lot of expensive options that are high profit margin for the takeaway. These are often popular dishes that people order and they know they can charge a lot of money for them. A classic example of this is chicken satay skewers. They often cost a lot for just a few sticks and this does not represent good value, but as they are very tasty people still order them. Avoid the expensive options on the menu for the best value.

This guest post has been written by Steve, who eats a lot of Brighton takeaway as a cooking expert he is not!

It was not long ago when you had to visit a takeaway in order to get a menu, and then you have to call them to place the order. This was a lot of hassle, and you never really got any proper choice in different places to eat. The routine became monotonous as it can be hard to find the new restaurant or takeaway you want to sample. You can now order online on websites like Just-Eat when you really crave that takeaway Dublin has to offer.

Here are some of the top dishes that you simply have to try on your next takeaway if you want the authentic experience in the comfort of your own home.

Chicken Tikka Masala – This aromatic and creamy dish is the top ordered Indian takeaway dish in the UK and Ireland. It is made from blending spices with cream and almonds. The sauce is slow cooked and then the meat is added. The taste is sweet and savoury at the same time and the sauce covers rice and nan perfectly. The heat level is mild making it extremely pleasant on any palette and this is why it is such a hit.

Lamb Bhuna – If you prefer something a little spicier and rich then a lamb bhuna is for you. The sauce is tomato and onion based, like many traditional Indian dishes and the heat level is medium. This can be changed to your taste though, as madras hot is popular option for really curry enthusiasts. The lamb meat works perfectly too as the meat absorbs the flavour really well.

Sag Aloo – This is the perfect vegetarian dish as is made from a mix of potato and spinach. This is a tried and tested combination and works extremely well with the spices, nutmeg and garlic that are added into the dish. The dish is not very spicy and is perfectly suitable for a side to all the meat. You can have it as a main course though if you wish.

I recommend ordering these three dishes for takeaway if you want to get some spice into your life and sample the best dishes that the country has to offer. They will be delivered to your door ready to eat with no hassle in terms of preparation or cooking. Enjoy!

In many families in Italy, the base sauce for any meat dish such as meatballs and spaghetti is a closely guarded secret which is handed down through the generations. For good reason, the perfect tomato base sauce is something which is integral to finding that ideal Italian flavour. Thankfully however, you do not need to wait for the best recipe for meatballs because I am happy to provide it to you below.

As with many forms of cooking, this recipe is actually very easy and as a result provides natural and fresh flavours to your meatballs and spagetti. The sauce can be made in advance (recommended) and left to marinate it its flavours. Simply make up a batch, and leave in the fridge for up to 3 days. Meat it through well before serving. This meatballs recipe will become a firm family favourite not just for the family but also for mom and dad given it really is simple but amazingly tasty!

The Meat Cooking Expert Recipe for Meatballs

This recipe for meatballs serves 4 people.

Making the Italian meatballs

1. Finely chop a medium to large sized onion and one clove of garlic (crushed or finely chopped). Heat a frying pan with a tablespoon or two of olive oil and gently fry the onion and garlic over a low heat until the onion is soft and translucent. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

2. Once the onions are cool, mix the cooked onions with 500g of ground beef. Generously season with sea salt and pepper. Take small handfuls of the ground beef mixture and make into small balls about the size of a ping pong ball (wet your hands to make it easier). Once you have formed the meatballs place them into the fridge to firm up.

Before we cook them, lets;

Make the recipe for meatballs sauce (can be done in advance)

1. Finely chop a medium to large sized onion and 2 finely chopped (or crushed) garlic cloves.

2. Fry the onion/garlic over a medium heat with a splash of olive oil for no more than 1-2 minutes.

3. Then add two 400g tins of good quality chopped tomatoes (don’t scrimp on this – the best tomatoes will make a big difference).

4. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper to taste and mix through.

5. Next, add a splash (2 x teaspoons) of good quality Balsamic vinegar and a tablespoon of tomato puree and mix well.

6. Finally chop finely some fresh basil or a teaspoon of dried and allow to simmer gently.

Now place a pan of slightly salted water on the stove and bring to the boil ready for our spaghetti.

Cook the Meatballs

Using a large heavy set frying pan (I use this large skillet which is excellent for this and many other jobs in the Kitchen) and gently fry the meatballs in a splash of olive oil for a good 10-15 minutes turning frequently.

Cook the Spaghetti

By now your water should be boiling (put a dash of olive oil in the water, this will stop the spaghetti from sticking and also help it to retain its structure) so place in enough spaghetti for everyone, turn down the heat to a simmer and place the lid on loosely.

Prepare your Meatball Sauce (optional)

Now that your sauce has been simmering nicely, I prefer to have a thick and smooth Italian meatball sauce but this is entirely optional. One of the most used implements in my kitchen is this Cuisinart hand blender, this makes for smoothing out base tomato sauce an absolute breeze. Simply give your meatball sauce a quick blast with the hand blender and your sauce will instantly be smooth and silky.

Now the best bit!

Simply drain your now cooked spaghetti, place in a nice pasta bowl and place several meatballs and finish will lashings of authentic italian meatball sauce. Grate a little parmesan cheese over the top and serve!

This really is a truly amazing recipe for meatballs and one which you will return to again and again – enjoy!

The results after using meal planners has been nothing short of astounding both in terms of our weekly shopping spend but also some additional hidden benefits we simply did not think about. One such hidden benefit of making use of meal planners is that it actually saves you alot of time. It is not until you have your meals all laid out for the month that you realise just how much time you spend debating what to have for dinner tonight! do this each day and you will be surprised how much time you spend deliberating upon what to eat.

It is also much quicker and easier to decide what to eat in one session. We sit down for around 15 minutes as a family and decide what we would like to eat each night for the forthcoming month. During this session we can also factor in such obstacles such as kids clubs and other distractions which oftentimes conflict with eaating patterns.

Once you begin to use the meal planner the job of choosing also becomes much easier as you will save copies of previous months to give you a starting point for the following month’s eating plan.

How to use the Meal Planning Meal Planner

Bring to the table a copy of your meal planner and a shopping list. Simply sit down and decide what meals you would like and list down on your shopping list the ingridients required for each meal. You can factor in leftovers for times when you have lets say, a roast chicken therefore the day after could be a chicken salad with jacket potatoes etc.

Once you have your months meals planned (not forgeting your social engagements and the kids plans) you will have a nice defined shopping list and your eating plan pre planned for a whole month. This will save you considerable amounts on shopping – we are saving around 30% on our monthly shopping bill, the savings are quite staggering when you take the time to plan ahead.

So what are you waiting for – download your free Meal Planner below, print out a few copies and begin saving time and money!

Once you have mastered how to cook rice it will be the last time you buy boil in the bag!

Home cooked boiled rice is such a simple thing to do and one small bag of basmati rice (my personal favorite) will serve many portions thereby saving you considerable amounts over the costly pre prepared rice dishes.

So, without any further ado, lets understand how to cook rice, it really is simple;

How to Cook Rice Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1/2 pint of Basmati rice (measure it in a measuring jug)
• 1 pint of boiling water slightly salted (add a pinch)
• 2 tablespoons of groundnut oil (or any oil is fine groundnut is best)

You will need some form of saucepan or cooking pot which is able to be placed on the stove top. It needs to have a tight fitting lid. I use a large frying pan sized pan which has a nice snug fitting lid.

Method

• Place the pan on the stove and add the oil and bring up to a high heat.
• Coat the pan with the oil by tilting gently and then add the Basmati rice.
• Stir the rice so that ALL of the rice is coated in the hot oil.
• The pan will be very hot now so carefully pour in the boiling water (it will sizzle so be careful)
• Give the rice/water mixture ONE stir ensuring that all the rice is submerged.
• Fit on the lid and turn the heat down to its lowest setting (simmer)
• Set your timer for 15 minutes.

Once the 15 minutes is elapsed remove from the heat, lift the lid and stir. You rice should be moist with just a little juice left at the bottom.

Top Tip – get a clean tea towel and place across the top of the pan tightly (so that it does not touch the rice) and replace the lid over the top of the towel leaving for 5 Min’s. This will help absorb some of the steam and will make your rice really fluffy and light.

And there you have it – light, soft and delicious rice! Now, I told you that learning how to cook rice was simple didn’t I!

How to cook Chicken Tinola the panlasangpinoy way www.panlasangpinoy.com

Goan Pork Kebabs with Beetroot Salsa Vindaloo is indigenous to Goa and these fiery pork kebabs, combined with sweet pineapple, make a perfect summer sizzler served with a cooling Beetroot Salsa Serves 2, Preparation Time 20 mins, Cooking Time 25 mins

The Perfect Chicken Jalfrezi Curry from the Executive Chef at the Rajput Restaurant, Harrogate. I’ve been cooking for over 14 years and finally decided to share a few secrets. www.rajput.co.uk info@rajput.co.uk