From pineapple chicken to cheese logs and fondue fantasies, the 1970s didn’t leave us with a good aftertaste. But if cooked well, food from the 1970s can still rock the table.

Pork chow mein

You need
500gr pork fillet
1tsp Chinese five-spice powder
½tsp sea salt
Black pepper
200gr egg noodles
4tbsp sunflower oil
2tbsp light brown sugar
2tsp cornflour
4tbsp dark soy sauce
2tbsp dry sherry
1 red pepper, sliced
1 carrot, julienned
2 spring onions, chopped
25gr fresh root ginger, sliced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
50gr peas
225gr water chestnuts, halved
Fried noodles to serve

Method

Trim the pork and cut into thin slices. Put in a bowl and toss with the five-spice powder, salt and pepper.

Fill a medium pan with water, bring to the boil and add the egg noodles. Drain and toss with one tablespoon of sunflower oil.

Mix the sugar and cornflour together and stir in the soy sauce, sherry and 100ml water.

Heat one tablespoon of oil in a large pan and stir fry the pork over a high heat until nicely browned. Remove from the pan. Then fry the pepper and carrot for a few minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, peas, spring onions and water chestnuts and stir-fry for a few minutes. Remove from the pan. Add the noodles and stir-fry for two minutes.

Return the meat and vegetables to the pan and toss together. Stir in the soy mixture, toss and serve.

Profiteroles

You need
50gr butter, cut into cubes
2tbsp caster sugar
75gr flour, sifted with a pinch of salt
2 eggs, beaten
300ml double cream
Vanilla extract

For the sauce
50gr cocoa powder
175gr caster sugar

Method

Heat the oven to 220°C. To make the profiteroles, put the butter and two tablespoons of the caster sugar in a saucepan with 150ml water. Place over a low heat until the butter and sugar have melted. Then bring to the boil and take off the heat. Add the flour and beat until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan. Leave to cool for five minutes and beat in the eggs until you have a glossy mixture.

Spoon blobs of the mixture on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cut a small slit in the base of each profiterole. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

Whip the cream and sweeten with the remaining sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract. Cut the profiteroles in half, fill with the cream and pile on a plate.

To make the sauce, sift the cocoa powder. Put the sugar in a pan with 100ml water and warm until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and pour over the cocoa powder. Stir well until the mixture is smooth. Return the sauce to the pan and cook for one minute. Leave to cool and then drizzle over the profiteroles.

Apricot, bacon and sausage skewers

You need
8-10 rashers streaky bacon, halved
1tbsp English mustard
20 party sausages
20 apricots, soaked in port
20 fresh bay leaves

Method

Stretch the bacon rashers with the flat of a knife. Spread with mustard and cut in half. Use the rashers to wrap one sausage and one apricot together, then spear onto skewers with bay leaves. Repeat with the rest of the rashers. Roast the skewers for 30 minutes until golden.

Devilled chicken skewers

You need
3tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1tbsp tomato paste
¼tsp Tabasco sauce
¼tsp mustard
4 chicken breasts
1 onion, sliced
300gr cherry tomatoes
1 can pineapple rings, quartered
1 green pepper, cut into strips
Salt and pepper

Method

Mix the chutney, tomato paste, Tabasco sauce, mustard and seasonings together. Cut the chicken breasts into long, thin strips and marinate in the chutney mix. Heat the grill to 200°C. Thread the chicken onto skewers, alternating the chicken pieces with the tomato, pepper and pineapple pieces. Grill until the chicken is tender.

Eggs Mornay

You need
4 hardboiled eggs, shelled
250ml cheese sauce
30gr butter
30gr flour
250ml milk
1tsp mustard
110gr grated cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Method

Slice the eggs in half and place in a buttered dish.

To make the sauce, melt the butter, add the flour and cook for a minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the milk gradually. Return to the heat and bring to the boil, constantly stirring. Remove from the heat, add the seasoning and grated cheese, and stir until the cheese has melted. Coat the eggs with the sauce and brown under a hot grill. Serve with toast.

Chicken cordon bleu

You need
4 chicken breasts
60gr Emmental cheese
4 slices smoked ham
8tsp cranberry sauce
25gr plain flour
2 eggs
200gr breadcrumbs
5tbsp sunflower oil
Sea salt and pepper

Method

Remove the mini fillet from the breasts. Then cut horizontally through each breast and open flat. Cut the cheese into four rectangles.

Take one breast and its mini fillet and place between two sheets of cling film. Flatten until it’s around five millimetres in thickness. Remove the top layer of cling film and place one slice of ham and a chunk of Emmental cheese on the breast. Top with cranberry sauce. Cover the filling with the mini fillet and carefully roll the chicken breast to create a parcel. Repeat this with the other chicken breasts.

Sprinkle the flour on a large plate and season with salt and pepper. Whisk the eggs together and scatter the breadcrumbs on a plate.

Dust the chicken breasts with the flour then roll it in the egg. Turn the breasts in the breadcrumbs, dip in the egg, then coat in the breadcrumbs again. Shake to remove any excess.

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Fry the chicken breasts over a high heat for two minutes until golden brown. Transfer to the oven and cook for 25 minutes.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.