A few weeks ago, Graham and I were sat in the garden enjoying some drinks with friends (as a fall-back from a stressful post-lockdown pub experience - but that's another story) and they suggested we try Gousto - a recipe subscription service that introduces you to new dishes you might not normally cook.
We were all over the idea. We both love our food, but we do tend to recycle the same recipes and wanted to try something different. So we decided to give it a go, and now we're about a month in. Every week, you choose the meals you want to cook from a list of about 50 (you can pick up to four - we tend to get three and have them on a Friday, Saturday and Sunday) and on your chosen delivery date, a big red box arrives with all your ingredients in. Another reason Graham and I wanted to give it a whirl is that we're not always great at portion control, but with Gousto you only get the amounts you need.
Anyway, I wanted to tell you about the meals we had last week, because they were bangin'. I must stress that Gousto aren't paying me to say any of this, I'm just spreading the food love.
This week's menu was:
Friday - Linguine with Smoked Mackerel, Lemon and Chives
Saturday - Sticky Chilli Chicken Breast with Salt and Pepper Chips
Sunday - Pulled Chicken and Mustard Mayo Burger
Friday: Linguine with Smoked Mackerel, Lemon and Chives
Pasta is one of my go-to comfort foods and I love smoked fish, so I was really excited about this one. I'm not always a huge fan of creamy sauces, but this was made from soft cheese and parmesan so I was all in, because cheese is life.
It's a good job I am such a cheese lover, because this turned out REALLY parmesan-y. Absolutely not a problem for me, but I imagine if you're not big on it, it might be a bit overpowering. The mackerel was deliciously salty and went really well with the linguine. Eating this, I could imagine myself sitting at an outdoor table somewhere sunny and Mediterranean, cold glass of white wine in hand, watching a sparkly blue sea making gentle waves against golden sand.
This pasta dish came with a side of rocket, which I always think is a wonderful idea until I remember that I don't like it! That said, the dressing was zesty and fresh and kind of masked the peppery rocket taste.
I should add, because he'll only kick off if I don't, that Graham made this one.
Recipe rating: 8/10
Saturday: Sticky Chilli Chicken with Salt and Pepper Chips
I don't want to be dramatic, but this is probably one of the best things I've ever made. I was well impressed with myself - I've never successfully made crispy chicken before! I tried to make crispy beef once, but I think I used too much cornflour and it just went a bit chewy. But the magic of Gousto is in the portions, so I had exactly right amount for the job.
The sauce was a dream as well. It included honey and chilli jam, which meant it immediately had me on side. Usually when I cook, I throw Cajun seasoning into everything, so it was refreshing to make something with a totally different flavour. The chicken was spicy, sticky and sweet, the perfect accompaniment to our Saturday night quiz show watching.
Visually, this looked great as well. Normally, anything I plate up looks like it's been accidentally dropped from a height, so I was chuffed with how appealing the dish was.
My only error was putting too much oil on the chips. I'm usually a Frylight gal, so I've no idea how much 'a generous drizzle of olive oil' actually is. But we live and learn.
Recipe rating: Solid 10/10, ignoring my olive oil faux pas.
Sunday: Pulled Chicken and Mustard Mayo Burger
Before I get into this one I will say - I didn't like the mustard mayo, so I didn't put any on. But this isn't Gousto's fault, it's more due to the fact that I don't like mustard, or mayo for that matter. So I used a little bit of Nando's medium sauce instead, little rebel that I am.
However, I am a BIG fan of brioche, which is a bloody good job since that was the type of bread that housed the pulled chicken. I did slightly deviate from the steps in this recipe and cooked the chicken in the oven rather than frying it, mainly because I thought it would just be easier. But it turned out great, and I am proud of the job I did of pulling the meat as that's usually a Graham task, so it was a new skill for me to practice.
The burger came with potatoes to make wedges, and I went back to my Frylight roots this time to avoid an oil overload. Don't shoot!
My only complaint with this meal (ignoring my pickiness over the sauce) was that there could have been more seasoning on the chicken. I rectified this by sprinkling on a bit of chicken seasoning we had in the kitchen and it did the trick. OH and there was rocket again (facepalm), but again the dressing was lovely so that kind of disguised the harshness.
Recipe rating: Despite my alterations to the cooking method, I'd give it a 9/10.
So there we go! This weekend we're on Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry, Chicken Musakhan With Cucumber and Parsley Salad and Lebanese-Spiced Rice and Crispy Fish. I'll report back next week!
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