Friends coming round for dinner - any ideas?

[SagMan]

Sick of been miserable indoors thus week, weather is cr*p.

Organised some fun with friends tonight, they said just get a takeaway but I feel something quick and easy home prepared would be more appropriate and their worth it.
Any ideas would be appreciated, I've got about 40min available later to get to Sainsbury and thinking about 30-60min cooking time max. There will be six of us plus my labrador for anything left over.

[ssray]

chicken kebabs with rice

[SagMan]

Thanks ssray. Not a bad call. Just need to spruce up the rice, get a chiili kick in the kebab and have a side of sour cream to cool it down as required.

[escargot]

Tiger prawns, shell on. Marinade in lemon juice, olive oil & some salt + pepper. Bang on the griddle (or you could just fry them), serve with a good salad & a crisp dry white.

Can either be done as a starter or a main. Piece of piss, looks good, tastes good & people love getting messy taking the shells off.

[ssray]

Update please?

[Nefarious]

ssray said:

chicken kebabs with rice

Chicken Kebabs with Rice & Peas
Kebabs
1 lb Chicken breast
1 large onion
2 tbsp Jerk seasoning
1 small tin pineapple, cut into chunks
2 cherry tomatoes per kebab

1) Sweat off the onions in a frying pan, with 3 tbsp of groundnut oil, until translucent then remove from the heat. Chop up the chicken and place in a bowl. Add the jerk seasoning, and a little chilli sauce if you want spice things up a bit, as well as salt and pepper. Add the cooled onions, and mix thoroughly. Cover and allow to marinade for at least an hour
2) Thread the meat onto kebabs with the onion, pineapple and cherry tomatoes. I put a cherry tomato at the end, and thread onion-chicken-onion-pineapple. You can add peppers and mushrooms as well if that floats your boat.
3) Grill for about 15 minutes, turning occasionally, until the chicken has browned

Rice & peas
14 oz gungo peas (or one tin)
1 small onion, very finely chopped
5-6 tbsp groundnut oil
1 red chilli, finely chopped
400g long grain rice
1 tin coconut milk
1½ pints vegetable stock
1 sprig thyme

1) If you’re using dried gungo peas, then you’ll need to soak them overnight in cold water first. If you’re using a tin, then simply drain and you’re ready to go.
2) In a large pot, fry off the onions and chilli. Add 5-6 tbsp of groundnut oil and the rice. Stir until all the oil is absorbed, and cook for 1-2 mins
3) Add the gungo peas, stock and coconut milk. Cover and cook on a medium heat for 15 mins, until the rice is soft and fluffy. You’ll need to stir it periodically, to stop the rice sticking and burning.

Serve everything to plate, and serve with a little chilli sauce. Jamaican beer (e.g. Dragon Stout) is a nice touch too.