"This is the kind of pie that says, "I love you!"
Nadiya Hussain’s latest BBC 2 cooking series, Nadiya’s Family Favourites, see her indulge in some comforting and delectable recipes adored by her family.
The 8-part series serves as a follow-up of the former Great British Bake Off champion’s latest cookery book of the same name which was published in June 2018.
The talented chef demonstrates how to prepare some of her favourite family-inspired recipes for viewers. Also featured on the show are her wonderfully photogenic family.
They include the doting husband, Abdal and their three children who sit in great anticipation around the dining table ready to try some of Nadiya’s finest food creations.
The British-Bangladeshi, who is well known for her fusion cooking, takes on Desi favourites as well as traditional British dishes, to create dishes that celebrate both cultures. From chai-spiced vermicelli to samosa pie!
In the first episode, ‘Family Days Out’, Nadiya shows off her cooking talents by demonstrating recipes that are ideal for a family day out.
These mouth-watering creations designed by Nadiya herself, and she says:
“Whenever we have a family day out, I always make a picnic and I’ve got some great ideas that will make the food just as memorable as the occasion.”
A Hearty Chai Spiced Vermicelli
To get started, Nadiya makes, what she calls the Bangladeshi equivalent to porridge, a simple, chai spiced vermicelli.
She begins by breaking the vermicelli noodles and toasts them in a pan on a high heat until the noodles turn brown.
The heat is then turned down and a bay leaf, cardamom pod and cinnamon stick are added to give it the chai flavour.
Then goes in some coconut butter which is melted before adding a couple of tablespoons of caster sugar.
She next pours a can coconut cream into the pan and elaborates, the dish is very coconut-heavy as opposed to normal butter and whole milk which is a lighter option.
Cook the vermicelli to your preference of texture. You can also cook longer for thickness or add more coconut cream for thinness.
In a separate pan, she also toasts some coconut flakes until it has lightly brown sprinkles on top.
Samosa… Pie?
Prior to this episode, samosa pie is something we have never heard of but are dying to try. This is one of Nadiya’s many culture fusion foods she likes to take with her on a picnic.
With lamb mince, potatoes, vegetable fat, and turmeric, what’s not to like?
The Filling:
She begins by dicing and frying onions and chops potatoes. Then a teaspoon of garlic granules, ground ginger, cumin seeds and chilli flakes onto the fried onions.
In goes the lamb mince which is cooked until the meat is brown, followed by the potatoes. She then adds frozen peas. The filling of the pie needs to be a little dry so there should not be moisture as this stops the pie from leaking.
To combat this, Nadiya mixes 2 tablespoons of cornflour and a splash of water and pours this into the filling to absorb the moisture.
The Pastry:
Melt the vegetable fat in a pan with hot water. Mix bread flour and plain flour in a bowl with salt and turmeric. Then mix the melted fat with the dry ingredients.
Stir the ingredients into a yellow dough. Work with the dough whilst warm to avoid it turning brittle. Split the dough about 2/3. The bigger dough will be used to make the base whilst the smaller dough will be the lid.
On plain flour, roll the bigger dough and line the loose-bottom baking tin. Fill the base with the mince filling and using a knife, cut around the edges of the base to neaten the edges which will allow the pie lid to sit better.
Make a slit in the middle of the lid and brush with a beaten egg. Bake the pie for an hour at 200 degrees, until the pastry is golden brown.
Pleased with her pie, Nadiya exclaims:
“This is the kind of pie that says, ‘I love you!'”
Savoury Cheese Biscuits with Tomato Jam
The Biscuit:
Nadiya begins with rubbing plain flour and butter in a bowl until a chunky breadcrumb-like texture is created. She then adds smoked cheese, mustard powder, onion salt and garlic granules.
Mix all of these ingredients together to make a dough, no liquids required.
Nadiya describes her ideal cheese biscuit:
“When I eat a cheese biscuit, I want it to be rich and short and crumbly and full of flavour in a tiny little bite.”
She wraps the dough in cling film and places in the fridge to chill.
Once chilled, roll out the dough and using a biscuit cutter, cut out shapes and place them on a baking tray. Using a fork, poke some holes into each shape. Place in the oven for about 12 to 15 minutes.
The Tomato Jam:
In a pan, pour in some oil, star anise, chopped onions and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Fry until the onions turn brown. Stir in a tablespoon of tomato pureé, some chopped tomatoes and one tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Cook until all the ingredients merge and form a sauce.
A Golden Prawn Saffron Biryani
For the main event, Nadiya cooks up a Desi favourite. A beautiful prawn saffron biryani. It looks absolutely delicious and light:
“The secret to my biryani is to use a lot less fat and oil than a traditional recipe, to keep it fresh and light.”
She teaches the correct method for rice-making and how to infuse cinnamon and saffron to create a dish full of delicate aroma.
As this dish takes a little longer to cook and prepare, we’ll let you see what how she does it in the episode.
In addition to showcasing some of her family favourite recipes, Nadiya also travels the UK to meet some of the best home cooks to learn more about ingredients and British dishes.
Heading off t0 Cornwall to see how the best Cornish Pasties in the world are made, she meets Jill Francis, The Cornish Pastie Amateur World Champion. Jill shares her tips and knowledge of the popular baked pastry.
Nadiya narrates:
“The secret to award-winning pasty is good quality ingredients, cut small enough and layered so you get a taste of everything in each mouthful.”
“Get this element right, and your pasty is elevated to champion status.”
With a filling of beef, potatoes and onions, Nadiya attempts this mouthwatering British favourite to add to her repertoire. Though she does struggle with the folding at first, she says:
“In theory, this should be easy for a girl who’s made about 6 million samosas, but this is very different.”
After a quick egg wash, Nadiya and Jill pop their pasties in the oven until the pastry is crispy and gold. They look gorgeous!
Nadiya’s exploration of British foods also takes her to meet cooking oil experts. They show her the differences between rapeseed oil, extra virgin olive oil and sunflower oil through taste tests.
Take notes for the next time you make some homemade roast potatoes!
Overall, the episode has been dubbed a huge success with both critics and fans loving the show.
The Daily Mail’s Christopher Stevens said: “At last, the BBC gets the right recipe for Bake Off star Nadiya.”
The Times’ Carol Midgley added:
“In a quiet, unpretentious way she [Nadiya] makes it look easy. I wonder if it makes those professional, super-rich celebrity chefs sweat, just a little?”
The samosa pie was quite obviously a fan favourite. And it is not just the UK who loves Nadiya and her cooking!
Twitter user @LisaGrant21 was loving the idea of the samosa pie! She tweeted:
“Finally catching up on Nadiya’s Family Favourites. I’m going to have to have a go at that Samosa Pie @BegumNadiya it looks AMAZING”
Finally catching up on Nadiya's Family Favourites.
I'm going to have to have a go at that Samosa Pie @BegumNadiya
It looks AMAZING ???— Lisa Grant (@Bookb_tch) July 22, 2018
@kjkanji attempted the samosa pie. Check his photos below. He captioned:
“OMG @BegumNadiya I tried your Samosa Pie recipe today. It was amaaaaaaazing, thank you.”
OMG @BegumNadiya I tried your Samosa Pie recipe today. It was amaaaaaaazing, thank you. pic.twitter.com/crmjUXkt5B
— Kev (@kjkanji) July 21, 2018
@jhughes72 also tried the dish too. He posted an image of his attempt and wrote:
“@BegumNadiya I made your Samosa Pie; it’s coming on a picnic to Mt Charleston, Nevada tomorrow. I tried a sliver, thought it was pretty good, then ate huge slice to double-check.”
https://twitter.com/jhughes72/status/1019797526881292288
The samosa pie is simply a phenomenon. A must-try for all!
Since winning the Great British Bake Off 2015, Nadiya Hussain has achieved an enormous amount of success and her career is soaring higher and higher by the day.
She has had other great cooking shows including the National Television Award-nominated show Chronicles of Nadiya where she visits her motherland, Bangladesh, to explore her family and culinary ro0ts.
A previous cookbook tie-in series was Nadiya’s British Food Adventure, where she explored the UK and its cuisine and recreated them in her kitchen.
She has featured as a guest panellist many times on ITV’s Loose Women as well as sharing a sofa with the late Carrie Fisher on The Graham Norton Show and told a funny story about her cake for the Queen.
To see Nadiya Hussain demonstrate her most loved family dishes, watch Nadiya’s Family Favourites on BBC 2 on Mondays at 8 pm or on demand on BBC iPlayer.
Also, to see the recipes in full, her cookbook of the same name is available to order on Amazon.
Bon appetite!
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