Pescatarian – The Food Wife

Asian-inspired Noodle Salad with Prawns

6th September 20256th September 2025
by thefoodwife

Serves 2

I absolutely love a noodle salad, they are wonderfully versatile and you can use up whatever salad or veg you have. This is more of a guide than a recipe per se but I will include the dressing which was so delicious. If you like it sweeter then add a little sugar too but I found the Thai sweet chilli sauce was sweet enough.

Ingredients:

Loads of raw veg sliced up (I used iceberg lettuce, carrot, yellow pepper, red cabbage and tomatoes)

100g (when dry) cooked and cooled vermicelli noodles

For the dressing:

2 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp Thai sweet chilli sauce

1 tbsp lemon/lime juice

1 tbsp tamarind (or an other tbsp of lemon/lime juice)

12 king prawns, cooked

Step 1: Mix the dressing ingredients together in a large bowl.

Step 2: Add the vegetables and cooled noodles and toss thoroughly.

Step 3: Add the cooked prawns and serve immediately.

Smoked Salmon Pasta Salad with a Lemon & Dijon…

18th June 202518th June 2025
by thefoodwife

Serves 2 for lunch or 1 hungry person

Here is a summery idea for what to do with a packet of smoked salmon trimmings. Arrange the bare salad leaves on the serving dish and then add the dressed pasta salad on top. Itâ€™ll stop the leaves becoming soggy with dressing but theyâ€™ll get a light coating from the pasta on top.

I enjoyed this in the sunshine. Highly recommend.

Ingredients:

100g pasta shells cooked, according to the packet instructions and then drained and immediately cooled by running cold water through the pasta

100g smoked salmon trimmings

4 small tomatoes, cut into chunks

1/2 red pepper, diced

1 spring onion, sliced

2 handfuls of mixed salad leaves

10 basil leaves, torn

For the dressing:

2 tbsp olive oil (ideally half being a lemon infused oil)

1 tbsp cider/white wine vinegar

1/2 lemon, juice only (if not using lemon infused oil also use the zest)

1 tsp Dijon mustard

Black pepper to taste

Step 1: Place the dressing ingredients in a lidded jar and shake until combined (alternatively whisk in a bowl until emulsified).

Step 2: Combine the pasta, tomatoes, red pepper, spring onion, basil and salmon in a bowl. Drizzle over the dressing and toss together.

Step 2: Spread the salad leaves on the serving plate and then add the pasta salad on top. Serve immediately.

Harissa Salmon with Giant Couscous and Watercress

31st May 2025
by thefoodwife

Serves 1

One pan and your dinner is ready in 20 minutes, yes please! This recipe is for one person but easily scales up. You will want to use a deep baking dish (ideally metal otherwise the timings might not work) and a suitable size for the portion.

Ingredients:

100g giant couscous

200ml hot vegetable stock

1 salmon fillet

1 tsp rose harissa paste

1 lemon (juice)

2 handfuls of watercress, roughly chopped

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 180c fan.

Step 2: Put the giant couscous in an even layer in the baking dish. Carefully lay the salmon skin side down on top of the couscous and spread the harissa paste on the top. Next, gently pour the hot stock around the salmon to cover the couscous but not over the salmon.

Step 3: Tightly cover the dish with foil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Step 4: Remove from the oven, carefully take the salmon out of the dish and then stir the lemon juice and watercress through the hot couscous. Spoon onto your plate and top with the salmon. Serve immediately.

Spicy Salmon Noodles

28th April 2025
by thefoodwife

Serves 1

Fast food eat your heart out! This is ready in 10 minutes and hits the spot if youâ€™re after spicy slippery noodles! Who isnâ€™t?!

Ingredients:

1 dsp Thai red curry paste

1 dsp smooth peanut butter

1 tsp soy sauce

A drop of sesame oil

1 scant tsp sugar

Lime

2 spring onions, sliced

1 salmon fillet, skinned and cut into chunks

150g pre-cooked udon noodles

Step 1: Combine the curry paste, peanut butter, soy sauce, sesame oil and sugar in a bowl. Add a little hot water to help loosen it all. Set to one side.

Step 2: Set a pan of boiling water on the hob, ready to blanche your udon noodles once the salmon is cooking.

Step 3: Cook the salmon chunks in a hot pan with a little oil to stop it from sticking. Add the udon noddles to the pan of boiling water and cook for one minute. Drain and set to one side. Once the salmon is cooked through add it to the bowl of sauce.

Step 4: Add the drained udon noodles and the sliced spring onions and stir thoroughly. Squeeze over some lime juice and serve immediately!

Feed Your Family for a Fiver

7th May 20248th May 2024
by thefoodwife

I promised Lisa at West Wilts Magazine that I would do a few recipes where you could feed a family of four for a fiver. Iâ€™ve gone with three meals with a Â£15 spend (priced using one of the big supermarkets beginning with T).

Where Iâ€™m using basic store cupboard ingredients I have assumed you already have these at home; salt, pepper, dried herbs and spices, oil and vinegar.

You wonâ€™t be using all the pasta, honey, mayo, salad cream, garlic, cabbage and carrots so although this was 51p over my Â£15 spend youâ€™ll have some ingredients left for another dayâ€¦

Shopping list:

500g Spaghetti Â£0.75

2x tins of Tuna Â£1.70

2 onions Â£0.28

Garlic Â£0.55

2x 500g Passata Â£1.10

12 Sausages Â£2.85

1kg Small Potatoes Â£0.99

Honey Â£1.20

1-1.2kg chicken wings Â£2.09

4 Baking potatoes Â£0.75

Cabbage Â£0.80

1kg Carrots Â£0.68

Mayonnaise Â£0.86

Salad cream Â£0.91

Â£15.51

Tuna Spaghetti

Serves 4

Iâ€™ve been making a version of this for the last 25 years. So simple to make and itâ€™s delicious – a crowd pleaser! Add chilli flakes if you like a little kickâ€¦

Ingredients:

1 tbsp (Olive) Oil

300-400g of spaghetti depending on appetites (gluten-free if required)

2 tins of tuna in Springwater, drained

1 red onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic sliced or crushed

1 tsp Herbes de Province/mixed herbs

1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

2Ã—500g passata or 1x passata 1x tin of chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar

Chopped Parsley to serve (optional)

Step 1: Add 1 tablespoon of oil into a heavy-based saucepan or frying pan, over a medium heat. Next add the garlic and onion and cook until softened.

Step 2: Add the dried herbs, chilli flakes (if using) and cook for 30 seconds. Add the passata (and chopped tomatoes if using) along with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Cook down for five minutes. During this time, get on with cooking the spaghetti according to the packet instructions.

Step 3: Add the tuna to the tomato sauce and stir through, cooking for a further five minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Step 4: Drain the cooked pasta, reserving a little of the cooking water, add the pasta to the sauce adding a little of the reserved pasta water to loosen. Stir until everything is combined and then serve with a garnish of freshly chopped parsley, if desired.

Balsamic Glazed Sausage Tray Bake

Serves 4

I do love a â€˜shove it in the oven and then itâ€™s ready and deliciousâ€™ meal. Especially on a weeknight. Yes you do have to visit the oven a couple of times to add things but this only takes a minute.

You can serve this as it is, or add some extra veg if you like. We had it with a cauliflower cheese dish Iâ€™d picked up reduced to 29pâ€¦ bargain!

Ingredients:

10-12 sausages

800g small potatoes, quartered or large votaries cut into small chunks

4 carrots, cut into 1cm thick slices

1 tbsp oil

Salt & Pepper

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 190c fan and get a high-edged baking dish ready.

Step 2: Spread the potatoes and carrots in a baking dish. Drizzle with the oil, salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes.

Step 3: give everything a shake or mix with a spoon, spread back out and then add the sausages. Bake for a further 20 minutes.

Step 4: Mix the honey and balsamic vinegar together and then drizzle over everything and bake for a further 10 minutes.

Wings, Wedges and Slaw

Serves 4

We often have this winning combination, it such a crowd pleaser! The cat always has to be shut out of the room as he cannot resist trying to be a participant in the meal!

The great thing about this is that the wedges and the wings cook simultaneously while you make the slaw. You can just season the wings and wedges with salt and pepper but the world is your oyster for flavour if you desire. Add some dried herbs or spicy Cajun seasoning. I decided to use Cajun spices in both the chicken and the potatoes but added a big splodge of bbq sauce to the wings too.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1kg chicken wings

1/4 white/red cabbage

2 carrots

1 small red onion

2 heaped tbsp mayonnaise

1 heaped tbsp salad cream

4 baking potatoes, cut into wedges

Salt and Pepper

Vegetable oil

Step 1: Prepare two oven trays and preheat the oven to 200c (fan).

Step 2: Season the wings and wedges separately. Drizzle the wedges with 1tbsp of oil and use your hands to ensure theyâ€™re coated. Spread the wings and wedges on a tray each. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

Step 3: Meanwhile make the slaw. Finely slice the cabbage, carrots and onions. In a bowl combine the mayonnaise and salad cream. Stir through the chopped vegetables, until coated.

Serve everything at the table and dig in!