hmm, anyone got a good jerk chicken recipe (please children PLEASE contain yourselves)
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I've got a recipe for that around somewhere in my head, give me some time to remember it. I'll get back to you!

I know loads but yep, you guessed it...I cant be arsed.

Right, Jerked chicken - once again I'm going to sound like a purist and say the only proper way to make jerk chicken is on a grill. Yes, I know it's October; wrap up and fire it anyway. The smoky flavour you get from cooking on a grill is the main essence of this chicken. You could make this under the broiler, but I don't! I couldn't find my recipe, but this one was from the net and sounds about right - if you're pinched for spices, garam masala I find works almost as well as the below combination; just add some peppers, fresh herbs, and your sugar and cloves and you'll be near-as-demmit.

Take about four to six chicken breasts, trim and bone them - you can do this with pork as well if you like, but most people prefer chicken. Seed and very finely chop a scotch bonnet pepper (yes this is gonna be HOT - use half a scotch bonnet or merely a jalapeno if heat isn't your thing, be CAREFUL and remember to not touch your face - wash hands thoroughly afterwards). In a bowl, put a tablespoon of allspice, 2 Tablespoons fresh time (if you must use dried, half that), 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper, 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper, 2 Teaspoons fresh sage finely chopped, 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, two fresh cloves, crushed, and one tablespoon brown sugar. Whisk in about 1/4 cup olive oil, juice of one lime, about two teaspoons rum and the zest and juice of one orange. Make sure this is as smooth as you can get it without lumps.

The chicken has to be "jerked" in order to get all the flavour to seep in - but what you can do is prick the chicken breasts all over with a fork to allow the juices to seep in - you don't have to skewer them, just score them lightly. Add your chicken breasts to the bowl and if you can let it marinate overnight, brilliant, otherwise let it sit in the fridge for about three hours.

Soak some hickory woodchips in water for about an hour(or apple, or whatever you like, I used to get mesquite in the states but no longer). Fire up your outdoor grille (and get a coat and an umbrella as well, more than likely, we live in England). Sprinkle on a few woodchips on your coals and then remove your chicken from the marinate, placing on the grille - yes there is going to be a lot of smoke. Grill, covered, for about six minutes on the one side, turn over, baste with the marinade, then grill for about another six minutes. Discard unused marinade, WASH YOUR HANDS AGAIN (Keep that e-coli at bay yeah?), and serve your very spicy, delicious chicken with some ale, a crisp fresh salad and finish off with some sliced mango and coconut. Hope that works for you.

*Note - some people find jerk chicken too hot and spicy, and then try to drink water to cut the heat, which makes things worse. Hot pepper sauce is an oil, and you need to break it down with something that cuts through oil. If someone is in agony after eating your food - once you're done laughing, offer them a slice of bread. It will cut through the oils in their mouth and soothe the burn. I apparently found this out the hard way when I was three and sampled some of my uncles insanely hot cherry peppers - as I thought they were berries; the memory of the pain is thankfully blotted entirely from my memory but after about an hour of trying to get me to drink various things, my Carribean uncle was called and he said bread was the only way to cut the burn.

if i'm trying something new.. i have to smell it first. if i don't like the smell i won't eat it lol. don't know why.

When you smell something it triggers your tastebuds as well - the sinus is basically hooked up to all that sort of thing - biology classes were a long time ago for me but I do at least remember that much.

The problem with "If it smells weird I won't eat it" is it's also misleading. Just because a dish smells strong is no indication of its taste. My ex was terrible about this. So, try something which sounds a bit weird; go and smell a rose or your morning coffee or your tea. Seriously, just try it. Now...open your mouth and smell it again, breathing in through your nose and in through your mouth. Notice the difference? That's your tastebuds getting into the action as well, thus telling you not only what something smells like but what it tastes like too! People do the same thing when tasting wine - taking the first sip, then breathing in rather noisily through the mouth - gives you a huge burst of flavour so you can taste all the nuances of the wine.

...and here I am sounding as if I actually know what I'm talking about *snort* Anyway, next time something's smell puts you off, try the above and see if it doesn't make a difference for you.

WOO That sounds great Oya, thanks a ton.

And about the cooling the burn from hot food thing, milk is also an effective remedy as it is alkaline and the chili is acid, so they kinda neutralise each other.
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I can't get goat nowhere!!

You could get goat at a halal butcher; Muslim butchers often sell it. It's all right, try for mutton, or lamb if you must. Give it a try.

I might share my gumbo recipe...possibly. If I can be convinced.

EDIT - by the way, I tried the carribean curry recipe again, and found I got some brilliant results with a half curry/half garam masala mixture of spices, though I doubled from two to four tablespoons. It sounds like a lot, as the spices make a very thick gravy as an end result, it's worth adding more than worrying about there being too little and the whole thing being soupy.

I've got a bag of Red Split Lentils, any recipes for nice filling meals I can cook with them involving meat, please. ?

Also couscous..what do I do with that ??