It is the month of love and we go out of our way to show our significant baes that we care but why not have fun with it in the kitchen and make date night at home one to remember!

Smoked beef with rice

Ingredients:

• Beef
• Onions
• Garlic
• Tomatoes
• Curry
• Carrots
• Rice
• Salt
• Chili
• Green pepper
• Eggplants

The beef:

• Smoke the beef over charcoal(don’t let the beef burn, it will change color and look ready on the outside but we’ll let it cook all the way through in the stew)
• Brown onions and garlic, add the beef
• Add tomatoes(or tomato paste), spices, carrots, green pepper and bring to boil over a medium flame.
• If desired, add a lightly smoked young banana leaf over the stew. This will give it a hint of the luwombo flavor.

The Rice:

• Boil rice with onions, salt and a bit of oil
• For the proportions of rice to water and great tips on cooking it V-C-R in 2017 has you covered.

Chicken and Pasta

Ingredients:

• Chicken breast
• olive oil
• salt
• paprika
• cumin
• cayenne pepper

The Chicken:

• Marinade the chicken breasts in salt, pepper, paprika, cumin and olive oil in an air tight dish or Ziploc bag for about 30 minutes.
• Pour enough olive oil into the frying pan to coat the bottom and over medium heat let it shimmer.
• Carefully place the chicken breasts in the pan starting with one end closest to you to.
• After about six to seven minutes, flip the chicken using tongs. (If the chicken sticks to the pan, wait about one more minute and then it should release, don’t force it.) Cook the second side for about six to seven minutes.
• If the juices coming out of the chicken breast are clear when it’s poked, it’s ready.
• Once you remove the chicken, let it rest before serving in tin foil.

The pasta:

For a delicious pasta A bowl to share has an easy step by step recipe.

Photos by Nze Eve