Chimichurri: My Go-To Green Magic

The first time I made chimichurri, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I’d read about it in the context of an Argentine barbecue and thought, sure, a herby sauce sounds nice. I chopped some parsley, garlic, and chili, splashed in olive oil and vinegar, and gave it a stir. Then I dipped in a piece of bread for a taste—and instantly wondered why no one had introduced me to this sooner.

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/09/23/chimichurri-my-go-to-green-magic/

Braised Lamb Shanks

Lets face it, while we all like a good steak cooked to perfection in only a few minutes and using our incisors, canines and molars to give the meat a good workout while we taste, before the eventual digestion process begins, but it's also pretty hard to go past something that has been slow-cooked or braised over a lengthy period that falls apart in the mouth, oozing with flavor (well I'm pretty sure I just lost the vegetarians).

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/09/08/braised-lamb-shanks/

Basque Cheesecake

I borrowed this Basque Cheesecake recipe from my old mate "The Cheese", which is an apt name for somebody who makes cheesecakes. I believe that she borrowed it from some guy called Nigel, who probably borrowed it from somebody else and so on and so on, until (according to some online encyclopedia thing) you get to a dude called Santiago Rivera who invented it in the Basque Country (I'm not sure if I'm supposed to say that the Basque Country is in…

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/07/28/basque-cheesecake/

Farce & Furious XI! The NYC Fast Food GF Test.

We went here because...The US is the home of fast food, in fact my analyst (an unnamed search engine) gave me estimates of 213,155 and 216,110 fast food restaurants in 2024, one thing that both results agreed on; the number is increasing. So surely New York is the place to put it to the test, This is one man's journey to hunt down the best gluten free fast food that New York has to offer - Farce & Furious XI!

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/07/02/farce-furious-xi-the-nyc-fast-food-gf-test/

Chicken Karaage Bowl

Our friends Neil and Sharon were coming around for dinner, they are regulars and we had tried many different incarnations of big meat, or bbq extravaganzas so we wanted to give them something a bit different, I thought why not go for my take on a Japanese Chicken Karaage Bowl. Chicken Karaage Bowl is a dish that gives so much, sure it consists of 22 ingredients so it may seem daunting, but it is a crowd pleaser.

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/06/07/chicken-karaage-bowl/

Pickled Chillies

If you grow chillies, you will know that the end of the season is a bonanza of fruit (yes believe it or not they are fruit, but don't put them in your fruit salad). Chillies can deliver a plethora of poblanos, an abundance of anchos, a glut of ghost peppers, a heap of Jalapeños, an overabundance of ... anyway I'm pretty sure you get the idea.

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/05/27/pickled-chillies/

Thai Villa – New York

Thai Villa - 5 E 19th St, New York, NY 10003, United States of America We went here because...Thai Villa - New York was on a list of highly recommended restaurants that were friendly to the GF's of the population and once again we chanced our arm and just turned up and said "Hi, we're from New Zealand, can we please have a table?" (I think the saying is "ignorance is bliss").

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/05/15/thai-villa-new-york/

Chicken Madras

Ever since I have been cooking, I have been fascinated with Indian flavours. It started with me experimenting by adding curry powder to anything that would take it (much to the horror of those around me at the time), it then progressed to shop-bought pastes and finally to toasting and grinding my own spices, making my own pastes and using those pastes to create many different concoctions, including Chicken Madras.

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/05/08/chicken-madras/

Friedman’s Herald Square – New York

Friedman's Herald Square - 138 W 31st St, New York, NY 10001, United States of America We went here because...Friedman's is a family business with seven locations around New York, it famously has a menu that states "99% of our menu happens to be gluten-free or can be prepared gluten-free" and the menu contains some of the great meals that us GFer's often cannot partake in.

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/05/02/friedmans-herald-square-new-york/

Gramercy Tavern – New York

Gramercy Tavern - 42 E 20th St, New York, NY 10003, United States of America We went here because...We had received a number of restaurant recommendations for New York and the Gramercy Tavern - New York is one that really piqued our interest. Then one day we found ourselves in the Flat Iron District at lunch time, starving after having no breakfast and some mentally exhausting sightseeing under our belt (queuing, walking slowly around a…

https://raumatikitchen.com/2025/04/29/gramercy-tavern-new-york/