Korma

Biryanina Twine

Australian Survivor, Australian Survivor: Heroes V Villains, Main, Poultry, TV, TV Recap

Previously on Australian Survivor Gerry was feeling betrayed after landing in isolation after George and Liz switched their votes from Simon, leaving him plenty of time to swap stories with Nina about their relevant final three deals with George. At the immunity challenge for four, Matt just snatched victory ahead of sweet Simon, who felt like his time would surely now be up. Back at camp George was ready to repeat the previous tribal and split the vote between Simon and Nina. Nina meanwhile was not interested in going down without a fight, trying to woo Matt and Gerry to her side to take out the king with Simon. Sadly though it was clear it didn’t work at tribal council as Gerry spoke George had been mentoring him before it finished on a tie between Nina and Simon, with our sweet, iconic bottom finally exiting the game.

The next day the final five were delighted to find a little breakfast treat with the warning that they will need all the energy they can to make it to the end of the game. While everyone smashed muffins and coffee, George appeared to be most excited by the bag of sugar. Matt meanwhile was all jacked up on caffeine and sugar, buzzing and feeling like he can finally think again. And by think, run around the camp screaming and belly flopping into the ocean. The fivesome then had a lovely moment together, bonding in the shallows and celebrating how far they have come. George and Gerry caught up privately, locking in going to the final three with Matt, while George spoke about being grateful to have found a lifelong friend in Gerry. But then ominously pointed out he would be happy to finish in fourth. Or third, or second. Meaning it is pretty clear Nina is next, right?

That afternoon the boys caught up to lock in their vote against Nina, as she hung in the hammock while Liz wandered around camp. She had finally realised that George’s relationship with the boys was becoming a massive threat to her game after the last tribal council, identifying Matt as her biggest physical threat and George as the most likely to win. Which again came infuriatingly too late. Trying to restore the jacuzzi alliance, Liz instead caught up with Nina by the shore and locked in the plan to vote out Matt should he not win immunity. Knowing that if she appeared positive it could prove a spoiler, Nina pretended to be disappointed as she caught up with her fellow former Heroes, leaving Liz to catch up with George and lock in the vote against Matt. You know, if he doesn’t win immunity.

Meaning it is very, very obvious that Matt is winning immunity.

The tribe met Jonathan by the beach for the final five immunity challenge where they would have to race to drop a ball in a shoot, race to collect it at the other end of a disc before walking over obstacles and collecting two more. Before then navigating them up an upright maze and into a hole, with the first to land them all taking out immunity. Nina and Liz took an early lead, with Liz powering ahead as Matt overtook Nina and worked to close the gap. While George and Gerry were stuck collecting their balls, with the former cursing it as a stupid challenge. Liz had a massive head start as she got to work on the maze before dropping, leaving enough time for Matt to join her. He too struggled, allowing Nina to join them followed by George as Gerry was still stuck on the first obstacle. Eventually Liz landed her first ball, followed closely by Nina. As George tried some wild tricks, Liz landed her second ball, making me realise how very wrong I was about Matt. As George magician-ed the ball to the top, Gerry joined the fray before Nina dropped her second ball as Liz powered through, landed her third and jagged herself immunity. Like a damn queen.

Back at camp the tribe quickly congratulated Liz on her victory before everyone scattered to work through plans for the upcoming tribal council. She sat by herself in the hammock, talking through all the scenarios by herself, knowing that trusting in Liz is kinda her last option and as such, she needs to be solid. Matt meanwhile checked in with George to see if he wanted to talk, with George assuring him that the only option is Nina tonight and as such, they need to load their votes on her and not worry. While Matt worried about Liz turning on them, George assured her she had no other options. Just as she and Nina caught up by the well to lock in their votes against Matt, while she worried about George’s growing closeness with Gerry. Liz caught up with George to tell him that voting out Matt is literally the only correct option moving forward, as George panicked about upsetting Gerry. Leading to Liz telling him to stop being soft and letting Gerry play into his emotions, and instead get cutthroat and play to win.

Which is energy I would have loved at any of the last four tribal councils.

Sadly for Liz, her pep talk actually triggered George, reminding him that he voted out his closest ally in fourth in his first season and that being cutthroat is what led to his loss. Which I would argue wasn’t the case, but it definitely didn’t help. Though he knew that by going to the final three with Matt and Gerry, he was essentially handing himself third. As such, he approached Nina to affirm that he would reignite the jacuzzi alliance. Matt then dropped by Nina, asking how she was feeling as Nina outlined that she, Liz and George were targeting Matt and while he knew she was trying anything to survive, he was very nervous. He then approached George and Liz to tell them what Nina said, leading to them vehemently denying it and ugh, I feel like it may be the thing that causes them to just vote her out.

Matt then approached Gerry to loop him in, with Gerry calmly telling him George knows he is playing for third with them, though he was happy to finish there. As Liz and George continued to bicker in the shelter, Liz pointed out he needs to stop being emotional and to just get rid of Matt. George then caught up with Nina, with her expertly telling him that she is voting Matt because that is the only plan anyone has given her and if he has a different one, she is willing to hear it. Sadly for her, as they spoke it became more and more clear that George will continue to be a swing vote until the very last moment.

At tribal council Nina spoke about how there is a high likelihood that she will be going home given she is literally the only person left from outside of the major alliance. While she has appealed to people to make a move, she feels like everyone is just holding on to their ticket to the finale and not letting go. Liz praised her for never giving up and always trying to find a way to survive, before talk turned to Matt’s challenge prowess, with George admitting it is a concern given he only makes it to the end if someone takes him. Liz praised him as her biggest challenge competitor, leading to Matt pointing out that Liz is also a huge physical threat, seemingly not realising she is immune so it literally doesn’t matter at this point.

George spoke to the fact he lost Brains Vs Brawn due to only focusing on strategy and not listening to his heart, though he intended to be guided by it this time to make it to the end. He then laid all ownership for building the minority alliance as Shonee looked on, enraged. Gerry tried to pretend their alliance had not had a leader with Jonathan hilariously pointing out that it completely contradicts what George just said. Gerry tried to double down, talking about everyone having a different moment to make the decisions, leading to an epic eye roll from Nina. She then spoke about how her perception is completely different and that is what matters when the power switches to the jury, as to her, Gerry has done nothing but do what he was told and tend to the fire. Essentially.

With that the tribe voted and two votes piled up on Matt and Nina before George proved to listen to his heart as Nina was tragically eliminated from the game. Meaning voting out a close ally cost him a win, as will likely keeping one. As Nina urged Liz to just not let George make it to the final tribal council.

As Nina arrived at the Jury Villa I congratulated her on becoming the first ever Twine to serve on a jury, which is literally all we’ve ever wanted from Sandra given she would give us the most iconic, sassy questions known to man. But that is all I said about her mama, as I pulled her in for a hug and praised her for playing such a strong game. While she and the Heroes may have botched it against Shonee and George – note who was put up front, for a reason – the fact that she managed to be the last one standing proves her impeccable skill at winning people over, gathering the right intel and making sure there was always someone that was a more pressing boot. So while I’m heartbroken we didn’t get the Twine Heroes Vs. Villains bookend we wanted, I am glad I could cheer her up with a Biryanina Twine.

This Indian classic – biryani – is one of those great dishes that are just as tasty as they are simple to make, meaning it quickly finds a permanent place in your rotation. Spicy and soothing, it is the perfect way to wash away the stress of the day. Or celebrate a win (or fifth place, in this case).

Enjoy!

Biryanina Twine
Serves: 4-6.

Ingredients
1 cup Greek yoghurt
¼ cup korma curry paste
600g chicken breasts, diced
2 tsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 tbsp minced ginger
5 garlic cloves, minced
800g tin diced tomatoes
1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
1 ½ cups basmati rice
1 ½ cups chicken stock
a handful of coriander leaves, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve

Method
Combine the yoghurt and korma paste in a bowl and stir through the chicken to coat. Cover with cling and pop in the fridge to marinate for a couple of hours.

Once the chicken is well and truly marinated, heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion for 5 minutes or until soft and golden. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook stirring for a couple of minutes before stirring in the tomatoes, cinnamon and bay, cooking for a few minutes.

Stir in the chicken and rice, followed by the stock. Bring to a boil before reducing heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or so, or until the liquid is absorbed and rice, soft and tender. Stir through the coriander and remove from the heat. Before serving, with an extra sprinkle of coriander or a dollop of yoghurt and devouring. Greedily.


As you can probably tell, we are very social but the fun isn’t only limited to celebrities! You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Chickpea & Tophie Clarry

Main, Survivor, Survivor: Winners at War, TV, TV Recap, Vegetarian

Previously on Survivor Jeff decided to thank his collection of winners by rewarding them all with a full family visit each, without even needing to compete. Both in the game and on the Edge. And ugh, it was honestly so sweet and beautiful. Sadly, the lovefest couldn’t last forever and after Tony took out immunity, things returned to chaos. Sophie and Sarah were deemed too close, Kim was too much of a threat and, Sarah and Tony didn’t like that Jeremy targeted her, so wanted him dealt with ASAP. Sadly for them, he used his Safety without Power advantage to leave the tribal council thwarting their plans. Sarah in turn stole Denise’s vote, Kim played her idol for Denise and it was all for nought, as Tyson was booted from the game once again.

Koru returned to camp where Jeremy was patiently waiting to find out who had been voted at the tribal council he bailed on, disappointed to discover that his ally Tyson had, once again, been voted out. Tony and Ben put pressure on Jeremy, questioning why he up and left despite openly wanting to take him out at the tribal council. Ben told us that he was happy to ride to the end with the five he voted with, while bickering with Jeremy in the present at camp. Meanwhile Michele and Kim were catching up, unsure what and who to believe any more. Michele rightly deduced that they are on the bottom and that they need to figure out how to get out of the mess, if they want any chance at winning. And given she has been playing from the bottom this entire game, I think we can all put to bed the fact that she didn’t deserve her first win. Winchele has game and honestly, is a modern icon.

While everyone proceeded to sleep, Tony was sitting up and decided that now was the right time to bring out a little of his Cagayan self again. He had successfully played a quiet pre-merge and managed to be the last remaining threat in the game, and now he could actually start to strike. Obviously that started with idol hunting under the cover of darkness, however sadly, he didn’t find anything before dawn when Nick joined him. Tony smartly sent him to search an area he had already checked, pretending to work together, which thankfully allowed him enough time to find his first idol of the season. Much to his boyish bloody delight. And again, I love him too.

As sun rose over Koru, Sarah was trying to find her new passion now that she has been a cop and a criminal, ultimately settling on fashion designer. And oh my God, is she actually funny and super charming. I mean, is this season just further proving why each person won their respective seasons. She had the tribe in stitches as the fellow girls modelled her stitches and craft. Well, everyone except for Tony, who felt it was a bit lame. As such, he decided to play the other side and bonded with Jeremy, Michele, Denise and Kim to figure out what they were planning by lulling them into a false sense of security. His play appeared to be working on Jeremy, however Michele appeared to be warily optimistic and Kim – classic Kim – saw right through him. She shared her fears with Denise, who strongly agreed. And as such, they both decided that getting rid of Tony should be their priority.

Over at the Edge of Extinction Tyson was talking to everyone, wondering if they were strong enough to handle losing the game. Given he has lost three – or four – times now, he was confident he would be ok, but worried about the newbies. Speaking of newbies, Natalie was bonding with Parvati on a walk before they stumbled upon a message in a bottle. The icons vowed to keep it secret and got to work searching the island before they realised the latest advantage would be hidden under the bed. Where the rest of their friends were hanging. At sunset, Parvati charmed everyone to go watch it with her on the other side of the island leaving Natalie to snatch the advantage. Giddy, the girls caught up away from everyone and discovered that they had found an Extortion Advantage, which gave them the chance to demand as many Fire Tokens as they want from someone in the game and if they failed to pay up, they’d be blocked from playing in the immunity challenge AND voting at the next tribal council.

They weighed up the options of whether they genuinely wanted Fire Tokens or simply to screw up somebody’s game, though Parvati suggested that they need to target someone totally chaotic who would refuse to back down. Obviously we then cut straight back to Tony, where we learnt that the icons – I wish they aligned – had charged him six tokens to retain his options. Oh and Nick spoke about the internet calling him a vampire and while it is not important to the plot, I feel it needs to be documented. At first Tony was thrilled about his advantage, until he realised that the extortion was against him and he had to pony up six tokens before the next immunity challenge.

Right on cue Denise appeared with treemail advising them of the upcoming immunity challenge, leading to Tony approaching his fake allies and asking for their tokens so that he can help them take power. He first approached Michele who expertly lied about spending all her money on an advantage in the return challenge on the Edge of Extinction, to avoid him knowing the truth. Tony obviously bought this hook, line and sinker and offered to go talk to Jeremy on his behalf. Jeremy freely offered up one of his tokens, meaning Tony had 4 in his possession. He then approached Nick, who offered one up with barely a thought. As did Ben, getting Tony out of the mess and proving why he is a bloody legend of the game. 

At the immunity challenge the tribe would balance on a narrow beam and try to hold a statue on the end of a long pole. Tragically Kim was the first to drop her statue, while everyone else survived until the final section of the beam. Which took Denise, Michele and Sarah out in the quickest of succession. Tony started to struggle, however it was Nick and Sophie who were the next to drop, leaving Tony, Ben and Jeremy to battle it out. Well, until Ben and Jeremy dropped out of nowhere, handing Tony his second individual immunity ever.

Back at camp Kim wasn’t thrilled that Tony had won immunity, though was glad that he had painted a larger target on his back until she could find numbers to get rid of him. As such, she approached Sarah, Sophie, Nick and Ben – none of whom she trusted – to formulate a plan to split the vote between Jeremy and Michele at the next tribal council. With that intel, Kim and Denise approached Jeremy to see what he was planning to do and the three suggested voting out Ben instead. When in actuality, Denise and Kim were planning to blindside Jeremy. Speaking of Jeremy, he was hating on Ben, annoyed by literally everything he does, so approached Michele to lock in the vote.

With everyone calm and locked in, Tony decided that now would be the time to cause chaos and make a move, still wanting to target Sophie and free up Sarah, so that he is the only one she is loyal to. He lay in wait until just before tribal council before pulling Nick aside to see if he would join him in blindsiding Sophie, with Jeremy and Michele. While Nick was keen on the plan, Jeremy felt like Tony was lying and wasn’t open to the idea, given he was more interested in getting rid of Ben. Unaware that Tony truly was trying to save him.

At tribal council Sophie spoke about the distrust caused by everyone playing their advantages and idol last tribal council, given nobody had shared the information with everyone. Ben agreed that it put everyone on edge, with Jeremy succinctly selling it as everyone telling half truths. Sarah said now was the time to start building resumes, while Nick countered it is the hardest thing to balance; making a move to build your resume without becoming a target. Sophie spoke about the importance of building a strong resume without it looking like padding. Jeremy said that they need to remember that getting to the end is something else they need to focus on, because a resume is nothing if you are fourth. Jeremy, Ben and Sophie all spoke about how quiet it was back at camp, while Michele was just happy to lock in a plan quickly while Tony tried to turn it around and say that everyone was just exhausted from the previous scramble. Before Sarah spoke about the majesty of a blindside and pulling it off against such strong competition.

That obviously led to everyone voting and oh fuck, I am sad. Poor Sarah realised that she wasn’t the best, as Tony blindsided her and Sophie, sending the latter from the game with an idol in her pocket and leaving Sarah as an irate island. While Sophie took her exit in her stride, she admitted to me she was rather shocked and pissed as I pulled her in for a hug outside. I let her in on the fact that this season has kind of proved why everyone won their first season, and even when blindsided, they have cemented their legacies. And I would say none more so than Sophie (and Winchele, but that is an aside) – she dominated the pre-merge, was smart and flexible and damn I hope the Chickpea & Tophie Clarry gives her the energy to win the return challenge and take out the game.

I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times – there is nothing better than a curry. And given this one is vegetarian, it also gives you that smug feeling that it is healthier than usual. Though, when it tastes this yummy, that probably wouldn’t even cross your mind.

Enjoy!

Chickpea & Tophie Clarry
Serves: 4.

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
400g firm tofu, cut into a 3cm dice
1 onion, diced
400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
½ cup korma paste
400ml coconut milk
½ cup vegetable stock
1 ½ cups frozen peas

Method
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over high heat, and stir-fry the tofu for a few minutes or until golden and crisp. Transfer to a plate.

Pop the remaining oil in the skillet and release to a medium heat and cook the onion, stirring semi-frequently, for five minutes or until soft and sweet. Add the chickpeas and brown for a couple of minutes before adding the curry paste and cooking out the flavours before finally stirring in the coconut milk and stock. Stir to combine, bring to the boil, add the peas and simmer for 15 minutes, or until gloriously reduced.

Once the sauce has come together, add in the tofu and cook for a further minute or two before serving one a bed of rice and devouring.


As you can probably tell, we are very social but the fun isn’t only limited to celebrities! You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Tumblr.