Chinese Shredded Pickled Carrots

Delicious with Crispy Duck Pancakes, and as a side to many other Asian dishes!

Ever wondered how those delicious, piquant shredded carrots are made that you get with Chinese crispy duck and pancakes, alongside the cucumber, spring onion, and hoisin sauce?

Well, the good news is that they're really simple to make, and after a quick mix, only need about thirty minutes before they're ready to eat (or longer if you want to make in advance!)... and if you've never had them with crispy duck pancakes as part of the filling, then I highly recommend you give them a go, they take your pancakes to a new level of deliciousness!

Strawberry, Blueberry and Vanilla Jam or Compote in the Magimix Cook Expert

If you have a glut of strawberries, or just a punnet in the fridge that needs using, then this is a delicious way to use them and preserve them.

I had a huge box of Driscoll's in the fridge and it would have been a crime for any to go to waste, so I decided to preserve some with a punnet of blueberries that I had in this delicious jam. You could just make with strawberries if you preferred, but just be aware that the setting times might vary very slightly.

Huge thumbs up from the jam-loving famalam, for what they pronounced to be the tastiest strawberry jam they'd ever had - I have to say, jam isn't something normally made in this house as it's such a luxurious treat, but it's amazing to taste the depth of flavour from the fruit when you make it yourself!

Makes approximately three 340g jam jars.

Piccalilli with Pears and a Hint of Red Chilli (includes Thermomix method)

The perennial English mustard pickle favourite - punchy, crunchy piccalilli is perfect with pork pie, cheeses and cold meats all year around.

Having a kitchen helper or two will shave lots of preparation time from the recipe (whether they're smaller versions of yourself, or a clever appliance you can plug into the wall!), however it's all worth it for the amount of jars you'll end up with, which you can share around the family and friends (or hoard all for yourself if you're a complete piccalilli fiend!).

You'll end up with around three metric tonnes of piccalilli... no, just kidding, but you will need a pretty mahoosive pot to mix it all together with at the end: e.g. a 5 litre stock pot will do it - or use two large pans - or alternatively you can easily halve the quantities in this recipe. The whole recipe will make 4,800 to 4,900g piccalilli, so have plenty of jars ready to go - and it will easily last a year or more in sterilised jars.

How much it makes - smallest jars 326g

It's your choice whether to make this a chunky piccalilli to have as a side to cheddar, pork pie, ploughman's salad etc., or whether to cut it more finely, so you can have it as a sandwich pickle. I tend to cut mine on the finer side, so that it can be enjoyed as a side, and in lovely doorstep sandwiches. Makes a fabulous gift, and has a much more tasty and refined flavour than the bought jars of piccalilli which can be rather astringent from the vinegars used in them, or packed full of sugar.

Cranberry Sauce with Port and Orange (includes Thermomix instructions)

Delicious served as a condiment with a roast turkey dinner, on the side of cold meats, or in a baguette with soft brie, and maybe even a little bacon, or with turkey, ham and stuffing!

Cranberry sauce isn't just for Christmas, so why not make more of this deliciously tart and tangy sauce! This luxury version is enhanced by the flavours of port, orange and a hint of star anise, and as well as the traditional foil for a rich turkey dinner, it is the perfect partner to rich and creamy French cheeses and cold meats.

This yields about 1.1 to 1.2 litres of sauce, and it will keep unopened in the fridge for many months (mine usually happily lasts up to a year, or more!) if sealed in sterilised jars, as well as keeping a good few weeks after being opened. Makes a lovely gift, too. Around 50 calories per tablespoon.

Bejewelled Festive Fruity Mincemeat (includes Thermomix method)

A rich mix of colourful dried fruits, festive spices and slivered almonds, fragrant with orange and spiked with brandy

For the uninitiated who may be daunted by the idea of eating sweet meat pies, worry not - mincemeat generally stopped containing actual meat about halfway through the last century, although from the 15th century onwards, it was exactly what it said on the tin! Now it's usually a heady mix of dried fruit, spices, distilled spirit, and frequently suet (which is often vegetarian now too), and sometimes mixed peel and nuts.

The great thing about mincemeat, is that it keeps really well, frequently for a year, and sometimes another year after that (some people revive it with another glug of brandy stirred in, or whatever spirit is to hand). It's most commonly used to make 'mince pies', and can also be used inside festive 'strudel' type pastries. My preference is to make it into mincemeat stars (inspired by the Finnish festive star-shaped pastries, Joulutorttu, which are filled with plum or apricot jam and look so pretty) which I started making many years ago and have now become something of a family tradition. If you can make this a couple of weeks ahead of using it, the flavours will develop really nicely, but if (like me) you frequently end up fire-fighting everything you need to do in the week (or couple of days!) before Christmas, then don't worry - I've made it and used it on the same day, and it still tastes fantastic! This quantity will fill two large 800g jars (or an equivalent volume of smaller jars) with a tbsp or two left over.

Cucumber and Radish Pickles (Japanese style)

Very simple and quick, and a refreshing accompaniment to Japanese food

These are great served on the side of Teriyaki dishes (which is what we had them with last night), with my Miso-Sesame Grilled Aubergines or Japanese barbecued skewers such as Yakitori chicken or my Kushiyaki beef.

They don't need long for salting either, you can do that while you prepare the other ingredients and there's no cooking involved either, so why not give them a try!

This quantity serves two as a small side, and is easily doubled. 14 calories per serving.

Fresh Mexican Salsa (Salsa Mexicana Cruda)

Tasty, versatile and can be prepared in a matter of minutes.

Great with all kinds of Mexican food, especially as a topping for Mexican style beans with some sour cream, in wraps, or as a side dish for spicy meat and fish dishes, like my Yucatecan-Spiced Chicken Skewers.

I prefer to chop my tomatoes by hand, but like to throw all of the other ingredients into the food processor for a quick blitz to save on time, then just stir everything together and garnish with a few extra coriander leaves.

Serves four, 17 calories per serving.

Yucatecan Pickled Onions

No cooking, just mix the ingredients together the day before - great with all kinds of Mexican food as a condiment.

Common in Yucatecan kitchens these will keep a good while in the fridge, and are great as a garnish to pep up Mexican food, particularly added to Escabeche, or with a splash of sour cream in a wrap, or on top of beans, or with a salad.

Make them a few hours ahead - preferably the day before, to allow the flavours to infuse into the onions.

Approximately 15 calories for a heaped forkful (around 1 tbsp, drained).

Chayote and Lime Salsa or Slaw

A quick and easy recipe for a salsa or a slaw, depending on how you cut the ingredients!

Great with fish or chicken - especially if it's spicy, or in Mexican style wraps or tacos.

And a great way to have a go at using a new ingredient you might not have tried before - more about the chayote/mirliton/choko/christophene here!

Serves four in wraps as a topping (e.g. 8 regular-sized tortillas) for 18 calories per serving; or two as a side for 36 calories per serving.

Roasted Tomato Salsa with Chipotle and Jalapeño Chillies

Don't be afraid of the chipotle or jalapeño chillies - there are easily sourced ingredients or substitutes, and it's not too hot a salsa, honest!

This is a healthy salsa I put together to go with some fish tacos - it would also be great with either fish (such as sea bass, cod or tuna) or grilled chicken, in a wrap, as a dip, or even in a sandwich with some cream cheese!

Serves four to eight, 24 to 49 calories per portion (depending on whether between four or eight). We made it for four people (to go inside eight tacos) and had half leftover when we'd finished.

Aromatic Spiced Mango and Apple Chutney

Well, if you're going to the trouble of making yourself a good curry...

...you should certainly have a go at making this delicious mango chutney to eat before (with poppadoms etc.) or with your dinner (especially if it's a curry!).

If you're counting, it's approximately 17 calories per level tablespoon - great with curries and poppadoms etc., and also left-over roasts such as turkey, pork, chicken and ham, and strong cheeses! Also great to give away as a Christmas gift!

Salted Chillies

This has to be one of the simplest preserves imaginable.
Just two ingredients - salt and chopped up chillies. Mix them together and sprinkle a little more salt on top, that's IT!

They need to sit in a cool place for a couple of weeks, and then they're ready. Just keep them in the fridge once you've opened them and they'll last for months. They're incredibly versatile, and traditional in (Hunanese) Chinese cooking (so there will be some recipes here which call for them). You can use them as a seasoning, to just stir into something when you fancy a kick, or if you're cooking something which calls for fresh red chillies and you haven't got any in, they're a great standby. They're also a traditional condiment for certain oriental dishes. So, what are you waiting for?