Food, Music, Food, Music, Food, Music, Food, Music, Ad Infinitum...

I admit that when I first cooked this dish I realised too late that I was missing two valuable ingredients: spring onions and shell-on raw prawns. I did have peeled prawns, though, but it was not the same. Since then I have made amends and now I can vouch for this recipe's delicious taste. And my favourite bit, besides eating it, of course? The aroma whilst it's cooking. It's just superb. And yes, it's yet another Nigel Slater's recipe. This blog, and this section in particular, is a fervent follower of Nigel Slater. The full description below has been copied and pasted from his regular column in The Observer newspaper, a publication for which he has written for sixteen years.

Prawns with Sichuan peppercorns and spring onions

2 fresh hot red chillies
a tsp Sichuan peppercorns
a large pinch of sugar
2 tsp of finely minced (or very finely chopped) ginger
4 cloves of garlic
6 spring onions
6 tbsp groundnut oil
400g large, shell-on raw prawns

Halve the chillies, scrape out the seeds, chop the flesh finely, and put into a small bowl. Put the peppercorns into a non-stick frying pan and toast for a minute or two until fragrant. Tip them out and grind to a fine powder using a spice mill or a pestle and mortar. Add to the chillies with the sugar, minced ginger and a teaspoon of sea salt.

Peel and finely chop the garlic. Trim the spring onions and chop them into fine pieces then add, with the garlic, to the chillies.

Pour the oil into a wok and get it smoking hot. Lower in the prawns and let them cook for a minute, then lift them out with a draining spoon. Add the chilli mixture to the wok and stir it round for a minute or less as it sizzles, so it does not burn.

Return the prawns to the pan, continue cooking for a couple of minutes, then serve immediately and eat while hot and peppery.

The music I selected to go with this dish is also full of aromas. Give me Azam Ali's voice any time. It brings much solace and warmth to my soul, just like this dish.

Cassandra Wilson's take on this Bob Marley's classic is, in my humble opinion, a classic itself.

Frank Black, who is one of the few performers I have heard doing an excellent version of 'Dirty Old Town', regales us a tune that burns your insides in the same way those chillies and ginger seethe on the pan.

And last but not least, a good old tango, because whenever I'm cooking a simple dish as the one above I have simple but deep music on in the background. And Astor Piazzolla is one of those artists who is capable of bringing the full flavour of music to any song he performs, just like spring onions and garlic. Enjoy.

Next post: 'Song for a Summer Sunday Morning' to be published on Sunday 14th June at 10am (GMT)

Road Songs (Vivace)

Women and cars. Cars and women. So much to say, so much to write about. Hey, hey, hey, what's that sound I hear of hurried feet dashing off towards the exit door in uncalculated haste? Don't leave, please, carry on reading. This is not a post to bash women who drive. Au contraire. This week 'Road Songs' wants to celebrate those femmes who get behind the steering wheel and drive cars, lorries, motorcycles and whatever 'cacharro' (junk) they come across. Yes, it can be daunting sometimes for female drivers to take to the road with so many misogynists bent on demonstrating how the supposed 'weaker sex' is not very adept at reading maps and managing complicated and unexpected manoeuvres. However, having been married to an exceptionally good driver for almost eleven years now, I can attest to the futility and nonsense of that argument. Women can drive and my boy, do they drive well!


In music there's a similar situation. In the world of pop, rock, R'n'B and hip hop, what's a woman for, other than showing a bit of leg, baring her midriff and displaying her sexiness and sultriness? How about her voice, I hear you saying? Well, yes, dear, you're right, her voice counts, but first, she'll have to make it to the front cover of Maxim or Loaded clad in a skimpy bikini so that preying male eyes can assess (judging mainly by her physical attributes) whether she's capable of carrying a tune or not.

Below you will find examples of female singers who have risen to the challenge presented by the, chiefly male-dominated, music industry and produced some of the most enduring melodies in the history of this art form.

By the way, this is the first installment in a three-part series focusing on female drivers and musicians. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Lila Downs was born in Mexico and grew up there and in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She began singing "ranchera" music at an early age, and later sang at the "fiestas" of the towns in her region, la Mixteca. She sang with the band "Los Cadetes de Yodoyuxi" and later with "La Trova Serrana", a group of folk musicians from the Zapotec town of Guelatao, Oaxaca. At that time she met her musical collaborator Paul Cohen and began to create her own musical compositions. Outstanding.



Susheela Raman was born in London, later emigrating to Australia with her family. In Australia she studied classical South Indian song and began giving performances. She then began working with Western forms including rock and soul, while continuing to study classical Indian music with Shruti Sadolikar. Amazing.



Azam Ali was born in Iran but spent most of her early years in India before moving to the US in the mid eighties. She is a vocalist of astonishing diversity with a range covering music from the medieval European to the classical Eastern - Persian, Lebanese and Indian. Grand.



Copyright 2008