Recipes

Taste of Portugal Olive Oil Dip

5 min

Looking for a quick appetizer or light snack? There isn't anything easier than a two-ingredient dip using A Taste of Portugal and good olive oil. This dip has everything you want in a dip—layers of smoky, fruity, tangy, herbal, and salty flavors will have you eagerly going back for more. The tang from the red wine vinegar powder in this blend balances out the luscious olive oil, so it doesn't feel too heavy, and the dip makes a great base for garnishes, such as grape tomatoes, Marcona almonds, and an assortment of olives. Any left over mixture can be used to toss with pasta or for marinating chicken.

Chicken Nigella Caesar Pasta Salad

Our Nigella Caesar makes chicken breast juicy and brown nicely. It's also a delicious sprinkle and makes such an easy homemade dressing, only needing water and oil. This dressing is awesome to have on hand, not just for a twist on a traditional Caesar salad, but also as a marinade and sauce. In this recipe, it gets used both ways — to marinate our chicken and to coat the pasta salad. We used some summer staples like fresh tomatoes, cucumber and arugula to bring it all together. We also dabbled with some lentil gluten-free pasta for some extra protein, but feel free to use your own favorite pasta. Enjoy this salad warm or as cold leftovers, if you have any!

Tostada Salads with Limón-Chile

Here's a great way to eat healthy and enjoy every bite, colorful tostada salad toppers turbocharged with Limón-Chile! Tostadas are a fried corn tortilla kept flat for easy loading of ingredients and we made two different salads to top this crunchy treat. Our first one was a shrimp salad, tossed in a creamy avocado and tomatillo dressing. To make the flavors sing, we garnished generously with Limón-Chile seasoning to add warm heat and tart 'pops' of flavor. For the second tostada, we kept it vegan with roasted Delicata squash. The cooked squash adds sweetness that contrasts with all of the textures in the raw vegetable medley. We lightly tossed the salad in olive oil and added our Limón-Chile, giving it a nice tang from the lime salt and sunny Marash chiles.Create your own tostada bar at your next neighborhood cookout! The sky's the limit with these crunchy canvases.

Oxymels: Tart and Sweet Elixirs

Many people are curious about the health benefits of spices. As a culinary store, we tend to focus more on the abundance of flavors that our spices impart than on their medicinal benefits, but with oxymels these two worlds beautifully blend. Oxymel is the Latin word for acid and honey, and these tart and sweet concoctions have been used for food and medicine for centuries. Here we made two different batches using raw apple cider vinegar and unrefined honey. One batch is more savory and features Aji Mirasol, a mild South American chili that's fruity with hints of apricot. To compliment, we added sliced elephant garlic and oranges. For our second batch we made a sweeter version infused with our chamomile based Floral Sonnets tea, fresh ginger, and Cassia Stick Cinnamon. Oxymels can be used in all kinds of ways. Enjoy them by the spoonful as a digestive aid, incorporated into glazes, vinaigrettes, and marinades; or sipped as a refreshing warm weather beverage with a splash of bubbly water.

Nigella Caesar Dressing

This genius twist on Caesar dressing is a snap to make and boasts all the flavors in a classic Caesar. The twist? We've managed to make it vegan and low cholesterol with a little spice magic. Worcestershire powder is the umami bomb instead of the traditional anchovy, and black salt with its slightly sulfurous taste opts in for the egg. This recipe makes about a half quart. It keeps well in the refrigerator and can be used for Caesar salad or a flavorful marinade for chicken or fish. Of course it wouldn't be a Caesar without the croutons so we've included a suggestion for those too. Happy Salad Season! This recipe was so delicious we added it to our permanent inventory. Now you can buy Nigella Caesar premixed on our website! Just substitute 1/4 cup in place of the spices in the dressing recipe above.

Tandoori Roasted Chicken

It may not be grilled over an open flame or cooked in a traditional clay oven, but this Tandoori Roasted Chicken is guaranteed to brighten your January. We've brought sunshine into the kitchen in the depth of winter with bright colors and flavors on the table. Our Tandoori chicken is bright in color and in spice. We skipped the red food coloring and went straight for the Beet Powder, combined with Tandoori Curry that contains turmeric, to give this dish a stunning presentation. Once cooked the beet powder mellows and adds crispiness to the chicken skin.

Achiote Paste

Fun alert! Spices offer so many ways to play with flavor and texture, and making achiote paste is a great one. Made with a combination of annatto seeds, spices and a little bit of liquid to bind it together, the paste can be used in a variety of rubs, marinades and sauces. Annatto seeds are the star and they provide an earthy flavor and deep red color to your food. The seeds are very hard and most easily ground in a high speed blender or electric spice grinder. Alternatively, you can put some elbow grease behind your mortar & pestle or molcajete to get the job done. Use the paste made fresh, keep it in the fridge or freeze in ice cube shapes so you'll always have some of this fantastic flavor on hand. The paste is traditionally formed into a brick for easy use.

El Greco Citronette

A quick and easy dressing or marinade, this El Greco Citronette is bursting with flavors that enhance any Mediterranean dish. It brightens the flavors without overpowering, and can be used as a sauce, dressing or marinade. Next time you grill shrimp or fish, bathe it in this citronette and you won't be disappointed!

Asian Tea Glazed Duck Breast

This Asian Tea Glazed Duck Breast is the perfect dish to celebrate the Lunar New Year. The glaze is seasoned with our Asian Tea Rub, combining bold, pine-smoked Lapsang Souchong tea with hints of cinnamon, pepper, ginger, orange and brown sugar. The glaze is easy to put together and the sweet and smoky flavors are balanced with a bit of sour from tamarind paste. We served the duck on a bed of leek and celery root puree alongside crunchy fennel slaw. We were lucky enough to have a duck cooking coach on hand, thanks Scott! The result was a perfectly cooked breast with a thin and even layer of crispy fat on the outside. Follow the cooking instructions closely and you will enjoy the results. This meal will set the tone for a spectacular 2020. Happy New Year!