Ready to get back in the kitchen? The Guide is relaunching its Home Cook Liverpool series for 2021.

This time, we’ll be focusing on a different chef each week and asking for their favourite dish which you can try at home, along with their top culinary tips.

You can check out our previous Home Cook Liverpool recipes with over 55 of them included here.

Starting us off this time is Felicia Zenko… 

Felicia Zenko has been a chef for more than 15 years, working in and around Liverpool city centre.

“I’ve worked in many places in Liverpool, most recently in Ma Boyles – before I headed off to Gran Canaria for a year, where I worked in a Norwegian restaurant – and from last year, Inside No 4 in Crosby,” says Felicia.

Lockdown and restrictions have meant there were times the restaurants she was working in were forced to close but, ever creative, Felicia decided to cook up a new business of her own!

With ‘The Scouse Chef’, (@the_scouse_chef_) Felicia, 32, who’s based in Bootle, has been busy creating a wide range of meals from Sunday roasts to curries, stunning seafood dishes, brill breakfasts and buffets, for delivery or collection.

“I cook all different types of food, mostly Jamaican and Nigerian,” she adds. “My favourite dish to cook is Jerk Chicken, with a marinated jerk rub, sweet potato or coconut rice and vegetables.

“And it’s a good one for anyone to try at home too.

“I see cooking as an escape, especially in the hard times we have been through, and people can start with easy recipes then work their way to more difficult ones.  I find that the more you cook, the more you enjoy it.”

Felicia has shared her favourite Jerk Chicken recipe along with an easy-to-make but tasty dressing.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Ingredients:

Jerk chicken seasoning

1 tsp all-purpose seasoning

1 tsp ground all spice

1 tsp mixed herbs

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

6 chicken drumsticks

Method:

Mix together the seasoning spices and herbs, then rub the six chicken drum sticks with seasoning.

Leave to marinate over night and dry bake (no oil) uncovered in the oven (180 degrees for 25 minutes) or on a BBQ until cooked thoroughly through.

Serve with rice and vegetables.

Baconnaise 

“This is a simple, but so tasty, dressing that can be used on meat and chicken – but goes great on burgers.”

Ingredients:

900g mayonnaise

100g bbq sauce

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp white pepper

6 rashers of smoked back bacon

Method:

Grill the bacon until it’s crispy, then leave it to cool.

Add all the ingredients to a food blender and whizz until it’s a smooth sauce.

Felicia’s top tips:

* With the Jerk Chicken ‘wash’ the chicken (or meat if you used meat) in lime juice. This tenderises the poultry and meat while killing any bacteria which may be on it.

* Also with the Jerk Chicken, you can put 2 tablespoons of double cream into the jerk sauce. This increases the thickness and flavour of the sauce, while also lowering the level of spiciness (for anyone who does not like food too Spicy).

* Always try and use fresh produce for a better taste.

* Never rush. Always take your time while cooking – and this also applies with chopping, let your knife do the work.

* If you’re cooking a sauce or gravy, use the water from your veg as a stock for extra flavour.

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