Changing Food… One Meal At A Time!
Jan Fullwood Food Consultant
(aka JamJarJan)
NOTES FROM A CHAOTIC KITCHEN
Welcome to daily life in a chaotic, well-used kitchen…..
A constantly busy, always evolving space: full of cooking, eating and creating (dinner, treats, mess), for work and for play, for family and friends.
Let me introduce myself and my family:
- A Food and Recipe Consultant who is ‘never knowingly under-catered’, I’ll whip up a five-minute muffin mix at a moment’s notice. I’m constantly creating, evaluating and tasting, always cooking, eating and learning something new
- Long-suffering Hub, who just wants a clutter-free kitchen and peace and quiet. Happiest in the garden. He grows, I cook and preserve
- Eldest Cheffy Son and his Pastry-chef girlfriend, who cook catering quantities of restaurant quality food at every opportunity
- Protein & carb-obsessed younger Student Son, currently at uni. Loves food, but cooking not his forte - student survival skills ongoing
We all eat to live. Let me help you live to eat.
Share my learning and experiences to make the most of your meals too.
What's in Jan's Pan?
FEBRUARY 2026
Gosh, how can the shortest month have been quite so jam-packed and eventful. It's been quite the rollercoaster, with highs and lows we really hadn't bargained for.
It started well, with birthday celebrations, theatre and dinner treats, plus the annual Great Taste workshop (hello Crunchy crickets) and Chai & infusions tasting (pass me the magic mushroom broth), all crammed in to the first week or two. We sent Student Son off on his travels to the other side of the world, as he began his big adventure to study in New Zealand, complete with a journey to the airport that was the stuff of nightmares (he made his flight, but no thanks to the rain, rush hour traffic and Sussex potholes).
We enjoyed the heavenly combination of pancake day and Chinese new year as they fell together on the same day. We indulged in both sweet and savoury pancakes (rude not to - see March 2025 archive for my sweet pancake recipes). Not one to miss out, Student Son introduced his new American and New Zealand flatmates to the concept of pancakes for Shrove Tuesday within a week of arriving. And the lunar new year was a good excuse for a spread of crispy duck and appetisers to celebrate the Chinese year of the fire horse with its promise of progress and fast paced change for all.
Then of course there was Valentine’s day to squeeze in, so we shared the love at our local pub, the Millstream, for their special menu in their cosy garden cabins.
And then the month came to a close with a sad and unexpected farewell to our much-loved Dad - as he slipped away quietly just a week before his 93rd birthday on the 3rd March.
But as he would say 'nothing to see here, carry on as before', and so I must, and I am dedicating this month to the most wonderful, kindest, cleverest, most positive, supportive and generous father a girl could ever wish for - you're the best. Sleep tight, Dad, and give our love to Mum.
Guild of Fine Food
Great Taste Coordinators Workshop.
We always kick the month off with a Coordinator workshop in preparation for the Great Taste tastings from February through to June. This means a trip to Southwark Street on the outskirts of Borough Market. My first stop is usually at Maria's for a piping hot cappuccino to combat the cold of the outdoor seating in the middle of the market.
This year we had some fascinating speakers, AJ Sharp of Sharp Communications, and Eleanor Ford, author of four spice books including the 'Nutmeg Trail'. We are sometimes asked to taste and assess whole spices for the star awards and she shared her knowledge and expertise to help with descriptors when judging and recording comments. We were also blown away by her 'rice puddings of the world' map - who knew such a simple pudding varied from country to country with just subtle changes of spice, from a Jamaican version with allspice, rum and raisins to chocolate and dried salted fish in the Philippines!
AJ Sharp has a great overview of the business, and her presentation 'Opening minds, expanding palates', did exactly what it said on the tin. We talked about food trends and innovations and had the joy of tasting foods for the future: cheese tea or chocolate seaweed anyone? We sampled crunchy teriyaki crickets - reminiscent of prawns, and protein-rich, the teriyaki flavour made them no different from any other crunchy snack. Mushroom coffee is big everywhere too at the moment - reputed to help cognitive and immune functions as well as inflamation - a truly 'magic' ingredient. It certainly popped up again in various guises for the chai and infusions tasting I coordinated later in the month.
Part of the benefit of entering the Awards is to provide feedback to the suppliers to help them to develop their products and hopefully attain that revered set of 3 stars. This means that as Coordinators we need to write positive constructive comments and we're told that we should not write anything we wouldn't say to the producer's face, so Anna May, a seasoned judge and editor of the judges’ feedback, gave us an update on the best way to present the information. According to her, 58% of consumers recognise the Great Taste Logo and understand it represents trustworthy, quality products that deliver on flavour. Everywhere you look you can find the prestigious stars, and with the rigorous testing you can guarantee a quality product. There’s a phenomenal 14,500 products vying for stars this year so we’ve our work cut out. Bring on the tasting!
One of my birthday treats was to see Moulin Rouge the musical (for the third time - it's such a specatcular spectacular). We went to the Hwksmoor in Air Street for their good value set lunch, 2 courses for £23. Despite it's reputation as a steak restaurant (their bone marrow gravy is a must), they do offer a fish dish on the menu, of hake with vinegar pepperrs and charred sweet potato. It was so good that I replicated it at home using sea bass fillets for a very easy weekend dinner treat for hub and I.
Recipe to follow
This month's recipe for The Pantry was a lentil soup, designed to make the most of some of the common ingredients they have available, tomatoes, bread and peppers, and provide the most simple preparation for those who have limited cooking facilities. No special cooking skills are required for this, ensuring that anyone can have a quick healthy meal on the plate with minimum effort.
EASIEST EVER RED PEPPER & LENTIL SOUP
with leftover bread croutons
Serves 2-4
Makes approx 1 litre
Prep 10mins
Cook 10-20 mins
1 x 390g tin lentils in water
1 large or 2 small red peppers, halved, deseeded and chopped into bite-sized pieces
4 medium fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped
400ml water or vegetable stock
For the croutons
a drizzle of oil
any leftover bread, roughly torn into cubes
· Tip the contents of the tin, the lentils and their water, into a medium-sized pan
· Add the peppers and tomatoes to the pan
· Pour over the water or stock (fill the empty tin to the top to measure 400ml )
· Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the pepper has softened and the tomato breaks down
· Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add any other flavourings here if you have them (see tips below)
· Serve it chunky, or lightly mash everything together with a fork to thicken the soup. If you have a hand blender or processor you can blend it until it is smooth.
· To make the croutons heat the oil in a pan over a medium-high heat. Add the cubes of bread and fry until crisp and golden
· Serve with the hot soup straight away.
The soup will keep for a day in the fridge and can be reheated.
Recipe Tips
· If you don’t have any stock cubes a teaspoon of Marmite adds extra flavour
· Add a tablespoon of tomato puree or tomato ketchup for extra flavour if you have it
· Use a tin of chopped tomatoes instead of the fresh tomatoes if you prefer
· If you have dried red lentils use 150g and cook in 525ml liquid with the tomatoes and pepper for 15-20 minutes until cooked through
· Sprinkle over some herbs or sliced spring onions if you have them
· If you have a toaster or grill, use this to brown slices of bread then cut or tear into cubes
· Alternatively, cut a crusty baguette into cubes and drop straight into the soup
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