Week 5 Term 3 – 3 November 2025

Double Meal Prep

This class involves you preparing 2 meals to be finished on the oven or stovetop or reheated in the oven at home.  Please bring:

1. 1 x 1 l container (2 l container if making 4 serves/meal) for the rice
2. 1 x 1 l container (2 l container if making 4 serves/meal) for the potatoes
3. 1 x deep baking tray with lid for the massuman beef curry – small (1-2 litre capacity) if you are cooking 2 serves per meal, or medium (3 litre capacity) if you are cooking 4 serves per meal. 
4. 1 x deep baking tray with lid for the coq au vin – small (1-2 litre capacity) if you are cooking 2 serves per meal, or medium (3 litre capacity) if you are cooking 4 serves per meal.

Otherwise, you can buy ‘containers’ packs on our website for a couple of dollars each. 

Note this class is not suitable for anyone with a peanut allergy or sensitivity.

Massuman beef curry

Equipment

• Cooktop
• Large frypan
• Cutting board w paper towel
• Chef’s knife
• Bowl
• Blender
• Spatula

 Ingredients

Curry paste

• 2 tsp curry powder (Chef to provide, mixed in advance – to make at home, blitz to a powder in a blender or Thermomix: 2 tsp toasted coriander seeds, 2 tsp toasted cumin seeds, 1 tsp toasted cloves, 1/2 tsp white pepper, 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp green cardamom)
• ½ shallot
• ½ stalk lemongrass, white part only
• 1 x 1 cm slice galangal
• 1 x 1 cm slice ginger
• 1 red dried chilli, seeds removed
• 1 clove garlic
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp fermented shrimp paste (v – omit)
• Water to thin

Curry

• 300g chuck steak (v – 1 small cauliflower, ½ cup brown or red lentils)
• ½ stalk lemongrass, green part only
• 1 double makrut lime leaf
• 400ml coconut milk
• 1 tbsp neutral/vegetable oil (peanut oil is ideal)
• 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
• ½ shallot
• ½ tbsp tamarind puree
• ½ tbsp fish sauce (v – soy sauce)
• 1 heaped tbsp roasted unsalted peanuts
• 2 cardamom pods
• ½ stick cinnamon (about 3 cm)
• ½ tsp salt plus extra to adjust seasoning
• 2 cups cooked jasmine rice (chef to prepare)

Method

1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
2. Cut beef (v – cauliflower) into 2cm x 2 cm chunks. Add beef (v – cauliflower and lentils) to coconut milk, bring to the boil, season to taste, then simmer while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
3. Cut the lemongrass so you have one piece that is white and one piece that is green.
4. Prepare curry paste:
   a. Put the following into a hot frypan and char:
      i. ½ shallot
      ii. ½ stalk lemongrass, white part only
      iii. 1 x 1 cm slice galangal
      iv. 1 x 1 cm slice ginger
   
   b. Add dried chilli and char briefly.
   c. Put charred aromatics into blender. Add the following:
      i. 1 clove garlic
      ii. ½ tsp salt
      iii. ¼ tsp fermented shrimp paste
      iv. Water to thin
   
   d. Blend until very smooth, adding water as required. Check for smoothness and seasoning.
5. Fry curry paste:
   a. Heat oil in frypan.
   b. Saute the curry paste until it is fragrant and the oil comes to the surface.
6. Make curry base
   a. Add curry paste to the beef and coconut milk.
   b. Add makrut lime leaves and green part of lemongrass.
   c. Add potato and onions.
   d. Add
      i. Peanuts
      ii. Sugar
      iii. Tamarind
      iv. Fish sauce
      v. Cardamom pods
      vi. Cinnamon stick
      vii. Salt
7. Cook until potatoes begin to soften. Taste for seasoning and adjust. Pack into lidded container and cover with foil.
8. Pack rice into container.
9. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.
10. At home, put in a 150 degree oven for 2 hours, covered, until beef is tender and potatoes are cooked.

Coq au vin (v – sweet potato and mushroom)

Equipment 

• Cooktop
• Large frypan
• Spatula
• Cutting board with paper towel
• Chef’s knife
• Jug for wine base
• Foil

Ingredients

• 2 chicken marylands (v – 1 large sweet potato and 200g swiss brown or field mushrooms plus 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp EVOO)
• 3 golden shallots
• 6 baby chat potatoes
• 2 carrots
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 375ml dry red wine
• 200g button mushrooms
• 60g bacon (v – omit)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 4 tbsp plain flour
• 375ml beef stock
• 4 large slices crusty bread
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
2. Make wine base: Add wine, stock, bay leaf and thyme to large frypan and boil until reduced by half.  Set aside in a jug.
3. While wine base is reducing:
   a. Chop bacon into small dice.
   b. Peel carrots and cut in large chunks.
   c. Halve potatoes.
   d. Quarter shallots lengthways.
   e. Mince garlic.
   f. (v – peel sweet potato and cut sweet potato and field mushrooms into large chunks)
   g. Season chicken with salt and pepper.
4. Fry bacon in frypan until browned (v – omit).
5. Fry chicken skin side down (v – fry sweet potato with oil and butter) until browned all over. Drain all but 2 tbsp of the fat.
6. Cook mushroom and shallots until mushrooms are browned.
7. Add garlic and cook until fragrant – do not brown garlic.
8. Add flour and tomato paste and cook until browned.
9. Add wine base, carrots and potatoes.
10. Package stew to take home – label with cooking instructions.
11. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.
12. At home, cook at 150 degrees for 2 hours until potato and carrot is cooked.
13. Serve with crusty bread, or on its own. Sprinkle some chopped parsley over, if you have some.