Prawns/ Shrimps In Coconut Milk

You know how you find this truly amazing recipe, which gives you great results every time, wows the people you serve it to n' all that. That was what was happening with my tried n' tested Prawns Ularthiyathu recipe passed on from my mom. Every time we buy prawns, Rj wants me to make that. In March, when my father in law had come to stay with us, I had made it for him n' he loved it. He told everyone possible how good it was. I think, I will never be able to make that dish without fondly remembering how much he appreciated my efforts.


But I thought to myself, its high time I found another awesome recipe. I came across this continental recipe for Shrimps in Coconut Milk n' made a note that I should try it soon. Haven't had shrimps/prawns since more than 2months n' I was looking forward to this recipe. Meanwhile, I happened to come across Satrupa's Blog- Food For Thought....(yeah even I couldn't believe I'm seeing her blog only now...:( ). If you haven't visited her blog, please do so now!! Check out one of her recent post here. After taking a look at that, there was no way I could think of doing the continental less spicy version of Shrimps in Coconut Milk. ;) Here is a good link to read about the simple differences between Prawns n' Shrimps.


Another thing that attracted me to this recipe was how the measurements mentioned were perfect for two. This way, I didn't have to ransack my brain n' convert the measurements to suit us. Initially, I'd decided to stick to her recipe without changing a thing, but as I started cooking, I had to tweak it a little bit. I'm always surprised how 2 people following a recipe could come up with different tastes n' even look sometimes. I'm talking about dishes like that perfect chicken curry or biryani my mom makes, which just doesn't taste as good as her's does, when me n' my sister tries the same recipe...lol. Like I mentioned earlier, I have a lot of older posts to do, but this curry turned out to be a winner n' so did the snaps. So I just couldn't resist doing this post today. So here you go....


Ingredients:

1. Shrimps/ Prawns - 12nos (medium size)
2. Onion - 1/2 (medium size)
3. Garlic Cloves - 4nos
4. Ginger - 1/2 inch
5. Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch piece
6. Cumin - 1/2 tsp
7. Coriander Powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Chili Powder: 1/2 tsp
9. Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
10. Tomato puree - 1-2 tsp (depending on how sour you like it)
11. Mustard Seeds
12. Fresh Green Chilies: 2-3 (per taste)*
13. Curry Leaves - few
14. Coconut Milk - 1 cup
15. Kodampuli/ Cambodge: 1-2 (soaked in water)
16. Salt per taste
17. Oil

Method:

Step 1: Grind Onion, Ginger,Garlic,Cumin seeds,Coriander powder,Chili powder, Turmeric powder, Green chilies and Cinnamon to make a smooth paste. (add a little water or oil to help grind it well)

Step 2: Marinate the Shrimps/ Prawns with little turmeric and salt and keep aside for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Avoid this step if you are using store bought tomato puree. I didn't have any with me, so I chopped half a medium sized tomato n' boiled it with a little water. Once that is done, mash the same to form a thick paste/puree.

Step 4: Heat oil in a wok and fry the Shrimps/ Prawns just for few minutes so that they turn opaque. Taking care not to over fry them or they would turn rubbery.

Step 5: In the same wok, add more oil if required. Allow it to heat and hot temper it with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Step 6: Add the ground masala and salt and fry till the masala is cooked well and there is no raw smell. Add tomato paste/ puree into the above.

Step 7: Add the coconut milk and allow it to simmer. Add the kodumpuli with water into this.

Step 8: Add some water if needed to adjust the consistency. Add the fried shrimps/prawns and simmer for 2 minutes before turning off the heat.



Serve it with some hot rice and it tastes divine. The reason why I changed Satrupa's recipe a little was coz I just wasn't able to get the color right. I think it could be coz of the good quality tomato paste available there or something. But anyways the taste was spot on. :) Happy Cooking!!!

Bread Pakodas/ Bread Pakoras and my first Skirt...;)

Thank you so much for leaving me condolence messages on my previous post. I'm back in Bangalore now and decided to do a blog post today.

Having had loads of free time on my hands....I have been thinking a lot....what constitutes a good food blog? new recipes? a lot of recipes? good photographs? a lot of followers? giveaways? loads of comments on the blog posts? what does? My blog doesn't feature a lot of what I have mentioned above....but then I realised it doesn't matter.....as long as we find absolute pleasure in doing a blog post, we should keep doing it. At the end of the day blogging needn't be something to prove your worth, you should have something nice to say, definitely, but its so important to enjoy the experience. Armed with such great words of wisdom, I'm gonna start doing my blog posts again. :)



I'm not a big fan of bread in general. But come rain n' I can never refuse some good hot bread pakodas. The best part about them though, is the fact that they are so easy to make and most people are guaranteed to enjoy them. It so happened, a cousin of mine dropped in with her family one evening n' I, as always, had nothing to serve them n' these pakodas came to my rescue. So here you go...enjoy this simple snack...:)



Ingredients:

1. Brown Bread: 3 slices (cut them into whatever shape you like)
2. Eggs: 2-3nos
3. Salt: as per taste
4. Chili Flakes: as per taste
5. Cheese: grate it as required (I have used Britannia's Sour Cream n' Onion Cheese cubes)
6. Vegetable Oil: as required (I do shallow fry so use very little oil for this)

Method:

Step 1: Slice/cut the bread pieces into the shape that you want.

Step 2: Whisk the eggs and add salt to it.

Step 3: Heat the oil in a pan n' dip the bread pieces in the whisked eggs n' fry them.

Step 4: Once fried, serve them on a plate n' sprinkle it with some chili flakes n' grate some cheese on top n' its ready.



Being away from my laptop n' camera, I have been able to do a lot of things I had kept for later, like learning to stitch. My mom n' chechi stitch really well but I never sorta had an itch for stitching. But this time when amma came n' stayed with me, she bought me a sewing machine n' so I better start putting it to good use. I stitched 3dresses for my 2 n half yr old niece as she is starting play school soon. I don't have pics of those with me, chechi said she will send them to me soon, but attached is a pic of a skirt I stitched while in Bhopal. For a first time effort, I'm really proud of it. :)



I also found time to scout for some good recipes. I have been meaning to explore more, but haven't been able to manage the time to. Rj having been on his own for a while now, has been eating out every day, he can't cook a thing to survive. So all that 'healthy home made food is better' mantra, I kept telling him is down the drain. Now I really have to impress him with some healthy home cooking which tastes great. lol...Actually, I have a lot of posts to do of the dishes I had made before I went off, so I will quickly post those first.

Chettinad Chicken

I'm a big fan of chettinad cuisine, just the thought of the Beef Chettinad that I had in Goa, during our vacation in Decemeber, still makes my mouth water. But I haven't tried a lot of chettinad cuisine at home, other than this Egg Chettinad I had made long back. Rj had to go out of station on a family emergency n wanted to make something nice for him for dinner the day before he left.




In a situation like this, I find it easy to rely on cooking expert Sanjeev Kapoor's recipes. I have complete faith in his recipes, like I always say they will never let you down, even if you are trying it for the first time! That's how I decided on  Sanjeev Kapoor's Chicken Chettinad recipe. I have followed his instructions to the last dot n' it was amazing. I have always favoured my Darbar Ki Karahi and Murgh Makhani recipe for chicken if I want to make chicken it for a special occasion, but I have to say, this recipe is gonna be a stiff competition to all my previous chicken recipes. So here you go...




Ingredients:

1. Chicken : 500gms/ half a kilo
2. Dry Red Chilies: 5 whole pods
3. Coconut: 1/2 (scraped)
4. Poppy seeds (khuskhus): 1 tsp
5. Coriander seeds: 1/2 tsp
6. Cumin seeds: 1/4 tsp
7. Green cardamom: 1no
8. Clove: 1no
9. Cinnamon: 1/2 an inch piece
10. Star anise: 1/2
11. Fennel seeds (saunf): 1/2 tsp
12. Ginger: 1 inch piece  (roughly chopped)
13. Garlic: 5-6cloves
14. Oil: 1/4 cup (the original recipe used olive oil, but I used regular sunflower oil)
15. Onion : 1no (medium) chopped
16. Curry leaves: 10-12
17. Tomato: 2 small or 1 large (chopped)
18. Red chili powder: 1/2 tsp
19. Turmeric powder: 1/4 tsp
20. Lemon juice: as per taste
21. Coriander leaves: 1tsp (chopped)
22. Salt: as per taste

Method:

Step 1: Roast dry red chillies, coconut, poppy seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, star anise, fennel seeds in 1 tbsp of oil

Step 2: Grind the above into a paste along with ginger and garlic. (my mallu instinct worked overtime n' i tried using my new stone pestle n' mortar unsuccessfully to do this, so I had to do a little twist later, which I will mention)

Step 3: Heat the remaining oil in a kadai/wok and fry onion till golden. Add curry leaves and the ground paste and sauté for some time.

Step 4: Add tomatoes, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to taste. (at this stage I could see that my paste needs to be a little more ground n ground the same in a mixer grinder to a fine paste. That is the reason why you can't see any tomato pieces or curry leaves in my pictures) Once I ground the same into a thick paste, I sauteed them for a min more in the same kadai without adding more oil.

Step 5: Add chicken and mix. Cook for five minutes and then add two cups of water, lemon juice, cover and cook till the chicken is done.

Step 6: Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves.




It is best served with hot rice or chapathi or even paratha. But I served it with puttu, coz after taking time out to decide on what to make n' the whole process above I had time only for something simple like puttu. :) Happy Cooking!!!

Chicken Sammies

I'm feeling all down just coz my bestie, Nidz is unwell n' is not on FB today...:(....I would love to type more here just to keep myself occupied but don't want to bore you :)....So coming to this post, I love having sandwiches for breakfast especially on weekends, they are simple, easy n' you can add just about anything you fancy as an ingredient and it never fails...My amma specialises in sandwiches n soups I think (she makes them in a jiffy). She insisted I keep a few pieces of the chicken aside last week before making a curry and guess what? I was able to use that for these sammies. ;)I love referring to sandwiches as 'Sammies'. I made just enough for 3ppl, so please increase the quantity as per your requirement. Here you go...



Ingredients:

1. Bread: 10slices
2. Chicken: 4-5 boneless pieces (medium sized- make them smaller to cook faster)
3. Onion: 1no (medium) finely chopped
4. Green Chili: 1 no (finely chopped)
5. Ginger: a really small piece (chopped or coarsely crushed)
7. Carrot: 1no (grated)
8. Coriander/ Cilantro Leaves: 1tsp (chopped)
9. Salt
10. Pepper
11. Oil
12. Butter: for spreading
13. Egg: 1no
14. Cheese: (optional)

Method:

Step 1: Cook the boneless chicken (small) pieces with a little salt n very little water. Keep checking to see if the water has evaporated. (Add little more water if n when you see that the water has evaporated before the chicken pieces are cooked through). Once done, keep it aside to cool.

Step 2: In a pan heat oil, add the chopped onion, green chili n' ginger and allow it to cook well.

Step 3: Add the grated carrots to the above n' keep it covered and cook it for 3-4mins.

Step 4: Scramble the egg in a separate pan and add the scrambled eggs to the above.

Step 5: Shred the chicken pieces and add it to the above along with chopped cilantro.

Step 6: Keep it covered n' cook for another 2mins, stir well n' adjust the salt. Add freshly ground pepper according to your preference of spice. (you can add a little garam masala instead of pepper at this point if you want, though I didn't do so)

Step 7: Spread some butter on one slice of the bread, add the filling, top it with some shredded cheese (if you are using any) cover it with another slice n' grill it in a sandwich maker.




I think this filling tastes better with grilled than plain bread. I know the snaps aren't looking as 'bite into me' as I wanted them to, but trust me it tastes great. I'm sending this also to the event Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays hosted by Deb from Kahakai Kitchen. Happy Cooking!

Mutton Masala- n' my Relocation Challenges

Ok, this post has been living in my draft long enough i guess....i made this a while ago but i was lazy to type the recipe from the book n' it's just been lying there...so i decided to take control of the situation n' type out the whole thing late last evening.

There are just way too many changes happening in my life right now...we are relocating back to india (from bahrain) n' we are slowly selling of things we don't (or rather can't) take back home n' will have to start sending off things home that we want to take back with us....so with all that happening...i'm gonna be fridge-less, oven-less, gasburner-less n' most likely pots n' pans less for a month or a little while longer....imagine that???....i'm dreading the thought...but at the same time it feels like it's gonna be a challenge to win over....lol...so if you guyz don't find me here for a while, or if you find my serving dish n' cooking dish is the same you will know why.....i'll be back with a lot of energy n'zing in sometime....but for the time being i'm thinking what will our meals be like this coming month....so please do wish us well...:)...again this recipe is from my Nita's Mehta's cookbook...so here you go...

Ingredients:

1. Mutton: 500gms (preferably use pieces with bones)
2. Onions: 4 medium (chopped)
3. Ghee or Oil: 5-6tbsp (used only 3tbsp)
4. Bay Leaf: 1no
5. Garlic: 8-10 flakes (crushed to paste)
6. Ginger: 1" piece (crushed to paste)
7. Salt: 3/4tsp or as per taste
8. Red Chili Powder: 3/4 tsp
9. Garam Masala: 3/4tsp
10.Turmeric Powder: 1/2tsp
11.Coriander Powder: 1tsp
12.Cumin Seeds: 3/4tsp (crushed)
13.Tomatoes: 4 large (pureed)
14.Green Chili: 1 (chopped) (the original recipe didn't ask for this)
15. Water: 1cup

Method:

Step 1: In a pressure cooker heat oil or ghee. Add the bay leaf and chopped onions. Stir fry for 4-5mins on medium flame till onions turn light brown.

Step 2: Add ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute

Step 3: Add the mutton pieces and cook for 15minutes on medium heat stirring every few minutes.

Step 4: Add the tomato puree to the above and mix well. Stir for 10-12 minutes on high flame.

Step 5: Add salt, red chili powder, garam masala, turmeric powder, coriander powder and crushed cumin seeds to the above. Mix well and cook for 3-4minutes.

Step 6: Add 1 cup water, mix well and close the cooker. Allow it to cook till 2 whistles. Keep on low heat or another 15mins. Remove from fire. Let the pressure drop by itself.

It's ready, transfer it to a serving dish, garnish and serve it hot with chapathis. Honestly, i was more in love with the picture than the dish itself, but i know a lot of mutton lovers in my family n' would love to make this for them again. The only change i'm gonna make is add some more spice to this. It wasn't spicy enough for RJ. ;)

Murgh Makhani urf Butter Chicken

Butter chicken or Murgh Makhani is an Indian dish from Punjab, they say this dish is among the best known Indian foods all over the world. The origins of butter chicken can be traced back to Delhi, during the period of Mughal Empire. While the dish's general recipe is well known, the actual flavor can vary from restaurant to restaurant even within India. Its gravy can be made as hot or mild as you like so it suits most palates. Butter chicken is usually served with naan, roti, parathas or steamed rice.

The recipe i have used here is again from Camellia Panjabi's 50 Great Curries of India. This dish is really creamy and so tasty. What really surprised me was how rich this curry is, i have loved having Butter Chicken in restaurants but only when i got down to preparing it did i realise how rich it is...hence i'm against the idea of making this an every week chicken dish at home....So i'm bookmarking this recipe for guests.;)

Ingredients:

1. Chicken : 900g (use small pieces on the bone or boneless pieces)
2. Oil: 4-5 tbsp

For the marinade:

1. Yoghurt: 2 cups (full-fat or a carton of plain yoghurt)
2. Garlic Cloves: 6nos
3. Fresh Ginger: ½” piece
4. Red Chili Powder/ Paprika: 3/4 tsp
5. Coriander Powder: ¼ tsp
6. Cumin Powder: ½ tsp
7. Garam Masala Powder:
8. Salt: ½ tsp
9. Lime Juice:

For the makhani sauce:

1. Tomatoes: 700g
2. Kasuri Methi (dried fenugreek leaves): ½ tsp
3. Chilled Butter: 75g
4. Paprika: ½ tsp
5. Vinegar: few drops
6. Garam Masala Powder: ¼ tsp
7. Salt
8. Single Cream: 40g

Method:

First prepare the marinade

Step 1: Place the yoghurt in a piece of muslin and leave to hang to allow the whey to drip away ( I have read this is how you make “hung curd” but I didn’t do this as I thought the yogurt I’m using is thick enough).

Step 2: Purée the garlic and ginger in a blender (I just crushed them into a coarse paste using a good mortar and pestle) Add this and the marinade spices, salt and lime juice to the yoghurt and mix well.

Step 3: Make gashes in the chicken if using pieces on the bone. Marinate the chicken in the yoghurt mixture for at least 1 hour, preferably 2; for best results leave overnight.

Once this is done and you are ready to cook

Step 1: Heat the oil in a large, thick-bottomed skillet and put in the chicken with the marinade. Cover and cook over a low heat until done. Turn the chicken over during cooking.

Step 2: While the above is going on scald the tomatoes for the makhani sauce and peel off the skin. Reduce to a semi-pulp with a fork or potato masher.

Step 3: Put the tomato pulp into a frying pan and cook for 5 minutes or so until the liquid has evaporated slightly.

Step 4: Add the chilled butter and paprika; after the butter has melted, let it cook for just 1 minute. Taste… if it has no sourness; add a few drops of vinegar.

Step 5: Add the kasuri methi and garam masala powder and salt to taste.

Step 6: After 30 seconds, add the cream and stir. The sauce is now ready. Add in the chicken pieces and mix well. Serve immediately.

p.s. my snap for this dish has also gotten accepted on foodgawker....yeah yeah yippee yippee....;)

Mushroom Ragout On Garlic Toast

Pronounced mushroom ragooo, is really an easy dish, and it is so tasty. We love our mushrooms in any form. This was one of the things i made for our valentine's day dinner this year and had forgotten to update it here. When i was going through my food snaps folder i came across this snap and scolded myself for not posting this sooner. So here you go...

Ingredients:

1. Mushrooms- 2 pounds ( I used the regular button mushrooms)
2. Butter- 2tbsp
3. Salt and Pepper- ½ tsp each
4. Sherry Wine- 1/3rd of a cup
5. Chicken Stock- ½ a cup
6. Garlic (Chopped)- 2 cloves
7. Thyme- 1tbsp
8. Heavy Cream- 1/2cup

Method:

Step 1: Melt butter in pan, when it starts to froth, add the sliced mushrooms to the pan along with salt and pepper. (this will make the water come out, put it on high flame for the water to cook up completely)

Step 2: Add the chopped garlic.

Step 3: Once the garlic is cooked, add the wine and the chicken stock, stir for a while.

Step 4: Add half the thyme to this and stir for a minute and add the cream. Stir for another minute or so and it’s ready.

I deviated from the original recipe a little, I didn’t have sherry wine with me and added a little caramelized sugar (2tsp)instead. But it was really good. Serve it with garlic toast n’ you would just love it.

From the snap here, you can make out that my garlic toast is really an improvised version of an actual garlic toast...but chef John from whom i got the recipe for Mushroom Ragout said that the easiest n' freshest garlic toast at home is to make some toast, spread a little soft butter on it n' rub some fresh crushed garlic on it...n' voilà your garlic toast is ready. ;)

Rogan Josh

I have never cooked mutton in my kitchen before n’ in all honesty can’t even say I have eaten mutton. RJ eats it, but very rarely. We had been to a barbecue last weekend, our first time by the beach n’ RJ n’ Jeff did some novice fishing too, RJ caught his first fish (one of the smallest I have seen getting caught fishing) but we thoroughly enjoyed the night. In retrospect I’m thinking I should’ve taken more snaps of the food served that day, but I haven’t taken many snaps. We barbecued prawns, tofu (for me, didn’t get paneer), mutton n’ chicken n’ for the sides had a sour cream potato salad, couscous salad and some bread. It was a feast considering we were by the beach. Thankfully it was not windy or hot, the temperature was just right.

As usual I’m digressing, what I wanted to say was RJ just loved the mutton chops that were barbecued that night n’ this weekend when we were doing our shopping, I told him maybe one of these days I should try making something with mutton too. He enthusiastically told me to buy some mutton n’ try something the same day, I was thrilled to the say the least. So I got a packet (this was the least complicated I thought, as I know next to nothing about how to buy mutton) of fresh Pakistani Mutton Chops (I had to remove the fat before cooking).

You know what I found most surprising when I was cooking the meat? The distinct aroma, for some reason I have always associated a raw n’ strong smell to mutton, but that wasn’t the case at all, I actually enjoyed the smell n’ RJ finishing off four pieces in one go....that made me feel great. :) That is also one reason why the snap looks the way it does, I forgot to take snaps once I finished cooking, it was already so late. :( I literally had to make RJ wait before his second helping to get this shot. Another recipe I followed from Nita Mehta’s book…so here you go…

Ingredients:

1. Mutton: 500 gms (you needn’t use chops)
2. Ghee/ Oil: 7 tbsp (this is what the recipe calls for but I used only half of this)
3. Cloves: 3nos
4. Cinnamon Stick: 1 inch piece
5. Black Cardamom: 2nos
6. Bay Leaf: 2nos
7. Asafoetida (hing): ½ tsp (dissolved in 1tsp water)
8. Fennel Seeds: 1 ½ tsp (powdered)
9. Dry ginger powder: ½ tsp (I didn’t have any so didn’t use this)
10. Ginger Paste: 1tsp
11. Onions: 4nos (ground to paste)- I never grind onion in a mixer, I never like the taste when I do this. So instead I finely chop the onions and fry them well.
12. Red Chili Powder: 1 ¾ tsp ( I used Kashmiri Chili powder considering the dish is a Kashmiri specialty)
13. Salt: as per taste or 1 ½ tsp
14. Black Pepper Powder: ½ tsp
15. Green Cardamom: 7nos (powdered)
16. Yogurt: ¾ cup (the recipe says ‘optional’, but I did use it) beat well till smooth.
17. Water: as required
18. Saffron: dissolved in water (I didn’t use this)

Method:

Step 1: Heat ghee/oil in a cooker. Add cloves, cinnamon, black cardamom and bay leaf. Fry for 1-2 minutes.

Step 2: Add the mutton pieces and hing water. Fry for 15-20mins till well fried. The mutton should become brownish in colour.

Step 3: Heat a little oil in another kadai and add the chopped onions and fry till lightly brown and add fennel powder, dry ginger powder, ginger paste, red chili powder, salt and pepper and sauté for a minute more. Allow the masala to cook.

Step 4: Add the above to the mutton in the cooker. Stir for a minute or 2 and reduce heat and add powdered cardamom and curd. Keep stirring till it boils.

Step 5: Add ½ cup water. (the book calls for only half a cup of water but if you want the dish to have more gravy, I think you should add at least 1cup) Close the cooker and allow it to give 2 whistles. By now the mutton should have become tender.

Step 6: Open the cooker once the pressure drops. Keep on low heat for another 10minutes (especially if you think there is more gravy than you need). Add saffron and simmer for another 2-3minutes and serve hot.

Chicken Bharta

Honestly, I wasn't sure about the snap i'm putting up. But the recipe is good and turns out really well. So i couldn't resist putting it up. I was so late for work, there was just no time for my average effort at creativity. Maybe the next time i make this dish, i'll have some more time for a better snap...:)

So coming back to the recipe, i feel like i'm rediscovering 'Nita Mehta' all over again, i mean i have had her cook book with me for over 5yrs n' have taken it out rarely. So anyways, thats my mistake, now that i have taken it out, i'm finding such really nice recipes in there. I had separated the boneless pieces when i was making my Chicken Karahi and used those pieces to make this dish. So here you go...

Ingredients:

1. Chicken (boneless): 500gms (cubed)
2. Onions: 3 nos (chopped)
3. Saboot Dhania (coriander seeds): 1 ½ tbsp
4. Dry Red Chili: 2nos
5. Ginger: 1 ½ inch piece (chopped)
6. Garlic: 10 flakes (chopped)
7. Tomatoes: 3nos (chopped)
8. Tomato: 1no (puree in a mixer)
9. Garam Masala: 1tsp
10. Coriander Powder: 1tsp
11. Amchoor: ½ tsp
12. Green Chilies: 2nos (whole)
13. Coriander: 2tbsp (chopped)
14. Kasthuri Methi: 2tbsp
15. Oil: 5tbsp
16. Salt: to taste

Method:

Step 1: Put coriander seeds and red chilies on a tawa. Keep on fire and roast lightly till it just starts to change color. Do not make it too brown.

Step2: Crush the coriander seeds to split the seeds. Break the red chilies with hands into small bits. Keep aside.

Step3: Heat oil in a wok and add chopped onions, cook it till golden brown.

Step 4: Add crushed coriander seeds, ginger and garlic. Stir for a minute or so.

Step 5: Add chicken and stir fry for 4-5minutes on medium heat.

Step 6: Add chopped, pureed tomatoes and red chilies to the above and cook for another 4-5mins.

Step 7: Add salt, garam masala, dhania powder and amchoor. Mix well. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8minutes.

Step 8: Lower the heat, stir, add whole green chilies, coriander leaves and kasthuri methi leaves. Cook for another 4-5minutes or till done and serve hot.

Darbar Ki Karahi

Ok...i know i had declared my previous chicken curry recipe to be the easiest ever. But trust me this is equally easy...and what i loved the most about this recipe is that (apart from the fancy Indian name that is) the texture of the gravy...it looks like it's straight from an authentic Indian restaurant. Karahi Chicken is simply put chicken cooked with tomatoes and cilantro. Honestly, one of the best chicken recipes i have ever tried, my sister has already made it thrice...well the recipe sounds so simple you have to try it...:)..so here you go....


Ingredients:

1. Chicken: 500gms
2. Tomato: 500gms
3. Onion: 1no (sliced)
4. Kasturi Methi Leaves: 1 tbsp
5. Ginger Garlic Paste: 1tbsp (preferably fresh)
6. Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
7. Chili Powder: 2tsp (i used kashmiri chili powder)
8. Salt: as per taste or 1tsp
9. Green Chilies: 5nos (3 whole and 2 slipt in the middle)
10.Coriander Leaves/Cilantro: 1bunch
11.All spice Powder: 1/2 tsp (i used garam masala)
12.Lemon: as per taste
13.Oil: 1/2 cup
14. Water: 1/2 cup (use more according to how much gravy you want)
14.Ginger: cut into thin strips for garnishing (optional)

Method:

Step 1: Deep fry chicken until it cooks a little. Roughly 10-12mins.

Step2: Fry onions till brown, add methi leaves (on law flame) add turmeric powder, chili powder, salt, ginger garlic paste. Allow the masala to cook well.

Step 3: Add the chopped tomatoes (add just a little water if required)

Step 4: Add the chicken pieces to the above. Add water and cook for 15 minutes covered.

Step 5: By now you should get a nice rich gravy.Add the green chilies, coriander leaves & all spice powder/garam masala. Stir well, leave it on the flame for another minute or 2 and its ready.

Squeeze the lemon juice over the curry just before serving otherwise it will spoil the taste. :) Best served with Ghee Rice, Pilaf or any Roti or Chapathi...

Chicken Masala

This chicken curry is something I can make in my sleep…i have made it so often…i don’t even know how I started making it in the first place….its a combination of a recipe from my mom n’ some other recipe I saw somewhere…either ways…its on my quick fix list…if I ‘m feeling really lazy or I’m short of time…but I want to make an impression….then I make peas pilaf and this curry n’ my husband is a happy man….he really likes it…so here you go

Ingredients:

1. Chicken- 900gms (medium to small pieces)
2. Onion- 2nos (medium- chopped)
3. Ginger Garlic Paste- 1tsp (preferably fresh)
4. Tomato- 1no (chopped)
5. Green Chili- 1no- Slit into 2 (optional)
6. Chili Powder- 1tsp (use kashmiri chili powder if u don’t like spicy food)
7. Turmeric Powder- ½ tsp
8. Coriander Powder- 1 tsp
9. Garam Masala- ½ tsp
10. Cumin Powder- ½ tsp
11. Bay leaf- a small piece
12. Cinnamon- a small piece
13. Jeera- ½ tsp
14. Cardamom- 4nos
15. Cloves- 2-3nos
16. Black Pepper- 1tsp (coarsely crushed)- less if you don’t want it to be spicy
17. Salt- 1tsp or as required
18. Oil- 4tbsp (I use only 2 most of the time)

Method:

Step 1: Pressure cook the chicken pieces adding salt and crushed black pepper. No need to add any water. One whistle is enough.

Step 2: In a wok, heat the oil n’ add Bay leaf, Cinnamon, Cardamon, Jeera and Cloves.

Step 3: Add chopped onion and fresh ginger garlic paste to this. Sauté it until the onion turn golden brown.

Step 4: Add chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, garam masala, Cumin Powder to this. Add a little water if the mixture seems too dry. Allow the masala to cook well and oil to separate.

Step 5: Add chopped tomatoes to this. Allow it to cook for a 4-5mins n’ then mash it with a potato masher (if u don’t have this, as round bottom spoon should do). You can add ready tomato puree (½ cup) instead. Allow it to cook well and oil to separate from the gravy.
Step 6: The chicken will have a small amount of liquid/stock inside the pressure cooker. Add this to the above gravy and mix well. Add the slit green chilies if you are using them at this stage.

Step 7: Add the chicken piece to this gravy n’ cover it n’ cook it for another 5-10 mins. You can add coriander leaves for garnishing before serving.

I think its best served with any rice dishs or chapathis (might be a little too dry for chapathi). When I’m serving this with chapathi I will try n’ increase the level of water slightly in step 4.

Prawns Chili Fry or Prawns Ullarthiyathu

This has to be one of the simplest, easiest n’ tastiest way of eating prawns. But it still doesn’t compare to the best dish of prawns we have ever had. I still remember clearly how we had some prawns chili fry from a shack in the Goan beach during our honey moon….i had never before or since have eaten prawns that tasty…..n’ my mom’s lobster fry, hands down, is the best I have ever had in my life…my father used to buy it just for me (even though it was expensive)….coz I loved it so much….n’ amma used to make it so spicy that I could feel like I’m breathing out n’ taking in fire….:) after eating it…Even my cousins who doesn’t eat as spicy food as us…could never resist my mom’s lobster dish…I don’t know if I will ever be able to make them that well…but for the time being I satisfy myself with this simple prawns preparation. My personal favourite way of eating dish is with some nice hot Sambar n’ white rice. :D

Ingredients:
1. Prawns: 300gms
2. Small Onion (aka Sambar onions): 10-12nos (Sliced)
3. Ginger: ½ tsp (chopped)
4. Garlic: ½ tsp (chopped)
5. Chili Powder: 1tsp (reduce if you don’t want it to be spicy)
6. Turmeric Powder: ½ tsp
7. Coconut : 2tsp (Sliced)
8. Kodam Pulli (Gambogea ): 1-2 pods (soaked in water)
9. Salt: as per taste
10. Oil- 2tbsp (add 3tbsp if you like)
11. Mustard Seeds: 1tsp
12. Curry Leaves: 10-12nos

Method:
Step 1: Wash, clean n’ devein the prawns.

Step 2: Mix the sliced small onions, ginger, garlic, Kodam Pulli along with the water, chili powder, turmeric powder, coconut slices n’ salt with the prawns. Cook this without adding any additional water to this. Prawns cooks really fast, so you can actually make this on high flame, the liquid which oozes out of the prawns will evaporate quickly. (I use a mud vessel that’s commonly used for making fish in Kerala for this. But it’s up to you what dish/pan you want to use to cook these prawns.)

Step 3: To fry the prawns, heat oil, add mustard seeds (wait for it to splutter) n’ add curry leaves n’ once it changes color add the cooked prawns with the thick gravy into this n’ fry it well. Again don’t overcook otherwise the prawns the softer they are the juicier they are. :) Add a pinch or 2 of crushed black pepper before taking it off the fire n’ mix it…adds a wild zing…:D

Pasta with No Sauce

Trust me i could not come up with a better name. I have been having a really busy week and plus i'm on some diet plan i'm not following.

I swear the more i think about being on a diet, the more i want to eat. I'm constantly thinking about food...it's driving me nuts. Plus i can never sit through a movie without eating something...Robin hates it....he on the other hand doesn't eat or drink anything while watching a movie or TV....how boring is that?

Anyway, before going home for lunch, i was already hungry like crazy. We had Cheru Payarthoran (Moong Dal) at home. I personally love having it with pickle n' Kanji. But my man isn't too keen on this...n' he likes eating it with Chapatti. I also like it now, considering it has less fat packed in this option.

I wasn't sure what i wanted to eat, but i was in no mood for what was ready at home. I have never used tomato sauce in my pasta n' have always made white sauce at home. But truth be told it doesn't come out the way i dream my pasta to be. The exotic sauces n' cheese that all the recipes online require wasn't there with me either. I quickly stopped at a shop on the way n' got an Italian Tomato Sauce meant for Pasta....which i didn't add! ;) I wasn't even sure of what i'm making till i finished making it...;)...anyways here we go...
Ingredients

Pasta: 250gms
Butter: 2tbsp ;)
Onion: Chopped into small pieces
Garlic: 3-4nos (crushed)
Mushroom: 200gms (sliced)
Maggi Chicken Stock cube- 1
Hot water: 1/2 ltr
Corn flour: 1-2 tsp (diluted)
Eggs- 2 nos (scrambled)
Oregano: a pinch for garnishing
Chili Flakes: for garnishing
Fresh Peppercorn crushed- a pinch or 2
Salt - to taste ( i used salted butter n' the chicken stock already had some)

Method

Step 1: Cook pasta in hot water till tender and set it aside. (i add salt n' oil in this stage, i have read this is not the authentic way to do it...but this works for me)

Step 2: In a hot pan add butter, crushed garlic and onion. Once the onion has softened add sliced mushrooms and cook till lightly tender.

Step 3: Add the chicken stock cube to the boiled water to make the stock.

Step 4: Add the chicken stock and corn flour to the mushrooms. (if you find the level of gravy to be more than decent it's ok. Once it thickens slightly, add oregano and pepper powder.

Step 5: Add the cooked pasta to this. The extra gravy will be required as we are not using any other paste. Add some more salt if required.

This is ready to serve, sprinkle some chili powder and grated cheese before serving. I used scrambled eggs instead of cheese (hehe) for lunch. The left over for dinner i served it with some cherry tomatoes and fried Beef Salami. This dish came out so much better than i expected. I guess it just goes on to prove pasta is something you can do anything with...;)

Appam and Chicken Stew

Anyone born and brought up in Kerala knows how important an appam n' stew meal is. For some reason appam and stew was always made at home when we have an occasion or when we have some special guests for breakfast. Truth be told the most awesome appam i had wasn't made at home.

We have a family near our place who are famous in Kottayam for their appams. There used to be a long line of cars on the roads waiting to pick up their order from this small house, esp during Easter, Christmas and New Year. This family of 5 doles out the sweetest appam i have ever had, with edges around it looking like white lace made of frosty snow! Whenever we order appam from there, i used to get sent to pick it up and as usual Papachan (the man there) would give me one to eat while i wait. Eat it without any curry and it would still taste divine! Anyway the point is, somehow all this gave me the impression that appam and stew is an extremely difficult dish to prepare and thats the reason why its gets prepared so rarely at home.

So when we invited some friends over for Easter i decided to make it. My mom was against the idea of making something the first time when we are having guests over. I can understand what she means but, i just had to make it this time. It came out so well.....i decided to serve it while making them...hot from the pan...and 4guyz ate 33appams, i'm not exaggerating! I was exhausted by the end of it. After that i haven't made appams yet. Its kinda difficult. But the chicken stew is a great dish that's so easy to make and can be served with Bread too.

APPAM

Ingredients
Fine rice powder (Iddiappa podi)- 2cups
Cooked Rice- 3/4th cup
Coconut (Ground)- 3/4th cup
Sugar- 2tbsp
Yeast- 1/2 tsp
Salt- to taste
Water

Method
Step 1: Grind coconut well in a mixer grinder with just a little water.

Step 2: Add cooked rice to the above and grind well.

Step 3: Add rice powder (with a little water to soak), yeast, salt and sugar to the above and grind the entire mixture until smooth.

* The time required for the mixture to rise is 2hrs- after which the mixture is ready to make appam. (Keep it somewhere or on something hot)
** If to be made later the mixture needs to be stored in the fridge after the above procedure.

Step 4: Use an appam wok to make the ones with the lace or use a normal flat wok for flat round ones like a thick pancake.

CHICKEN STEW

Ingredients
Chicken *- ½ kg (medium pieces)
Small Onion- 10nos (crushed or julienned)
Big Onion- 2 big or 3 medium (cubes)
Ginger- 1 inch piece (sliced)
Green Chili- 4-5nos
Potato- 1 (cubes)
Vinegar- ½ tsp
Coconut Milk- 1cup
Milk- 1 cup
Maida- 1 tbsp
Cloves- 2-3 nos
Peppercorns- 5-6 nos (crushed)
Salt- to taste
Mustard Seeds
Curry Leaves
(Vegs like carrot, green peas etc are optional)

Method
Step 1: Cook the chicken pieces, small onions, big onions, ginger, green chili, potato, salt and vinegar in a pressure cooker till one whistle.

Step 2: Mix milk & coconut milk in a separate bowl. Add maida to this and mix well. Add cloves and peppercorns into the milk mixture.

Step 3: Prepare a tadka (oil, mustard seeds & curry leaves)

Step 4: Open the pressure cooker lid (once its safe) n’ light the burner again. Add this milk mixture to the cooker n’ cook on really low fire. Stir well. Once the curry thickens to your preference, add the tadka and the stew is ready.

* you can follow the instructions above to make fish or mutton stew too. For fish, i guess one should avoid using the pressure cooker mentioned in step 1.

Beef Chili Dry- (Beef Olarthiyathu)

I grew up eating this for every other meal….really I could combine this with anything. This also happens to be the only non veg I really like. I don’t like chicken, pork, fish or mutton. So it was very important I quickly learn how to make a decent dry chili beef. Let me specify that this will be the Kerala style with coconut pieces (which my husband picks out from his share n’ dutifully gives it to me). He doesn’t like coconut in his food n’ I love it… my dishes normally tend to be a little spicy. So you can adjust the level of spice according to your taste.

Ingredients:

Beef- 1/2 kg (cut into small pieces)
Chili Powder- 1 tbsp
Coriander Powder- 1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder- 1/2 tsp
Ginger- 1 inch piece (crushed)
Garlic- 6-7nos (crushed)
Small Onion- 10nos (crushed) - (Sambar Onions or Kerala Onions)
Coconut Pieces- as per taste (optional)
Cinnamon- Small piece
Cloves- 2-3nos
Peppercorns- 5-6nos
Oil- 1-2 tbsp
Onion- 1/2 (finely sliced) - (big normal indian red onion)
Green Chili- 1-2 (finely sliced) - (can be avoided if you don't like spicy food)
Curry Leaves
Salt to taste

Method:

Step 1: Sauté the cinnamon, cloves and crushed peppercorns, add crushed onion, ginger n’ garlic pieces; Add all the powder, salt & coconut pieces once the onion is fried. Stir till the powder looses its raw taste.

Step 2: Add the above to the beef pieces and marinate for 10mins.

Step 3: Cook the beef in a pressure cooker on low fire for 10 more mins after the 1st whistle. No need to add water the marinated meat will have enough water content. (this can be stored for later as it is n’ the tadka can be done just before a meal)

Step 4: Do a tadka (little oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, onion and green chili) in a wok/deep pan and add the cooked beef, cook it for 5-10mins n’ its ready.