Chicken Seekh Kabab

Seekh kababs are the most popular type of kababs (atleast to my knowledge). I have tasted mutton seekh kababs before in some Indian restaurants but where I live, we get minced chicken very easily and so I thought I will try making seekh kababs using minced chicken.

One can surely try making lamb/mutton seekh kabab but the cooking time may vary as mutton/lamb take long time to cook. The chicken kababs were very juicy and tender and we finished all of it in few minutes. Let me know if you like the taste of it!

Ingredients:

Minced Chkn - 1LB

Onion - 1/2, finely chopped and sauteed

Cilantro - handful, finely chopped

Green Chillies - 1 small, finey chopped

Dhania Powder - 2 1/2 tspn

Garam Masala - 2 tspn

Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn

Ginger - Garlic Paste - 1 tspn

Mint Leaves - 1 - 2 tspns, finely chopped

Bread Crumbs - 2 - 3 tbspns

Salt-  as per taste

Oil for frying (if not baking/broiling)

Procedure:

1.       Mix all ingredients given above, other than oil. Check to see if the mixture is thick enough and can hold up a sheek kabab shape (Cylindrical). If it doesn't, then add some more bread crumbs to it till it becomes easy to shape.

2.       Now make cylindrical shaped kababs by either rolling them around the skewers (make sure wooden skewers are soaked in water for atleast 30mins before using them) and bake/shallow fry in a pan for 10-12mins or until done (or broil for 5mins on each side).

3.       I did not use any skewers but just shaped them in cylindrical shape and shallow fried them in a pan with 1 tspn oil. I also BBQed these kababs and they turned out awesome!

4.       Serve/Eat this with mint chutney mixed in greek yogurt and some sliced onions with lemon squeezed on top. YUMMMM!!!!

Conclusion:

I made these for my hubby's Bday BBQ and I got rave reviews for them. It got over in no time!

Cajun Shrimp Quesadilla

These days I prefer to try some quick entrees as it will be useful for my blog readers to try them out and also for me when my baby is cranky and doesn't let me cook ;). Although he is a calm baby with very little sleep, he gets bored easily if there is no one to entertain him.
Shrimp quesadilla is one of the quick and easy entrees to try out. You can experiment a lot with the ingredients and try to make as per your palate.

Ingredients: 
Medium Soft Tacos - 4
Peeled and deveined Shrimp - 12-15 medium sized
Red/Yellow/Green Bell Pepper - 1
Onion -1 medium
Sour Cream - 2 tbspn
Store bought salsa - 3 tbspn
Mexican Blend Cheese - 1 pack
Cajun Spice - 2 tspn
Salt & Pepper as per taste
Oil

Procedure: 

1. Cut the shrimp into small pieces and marinate it with the cajun spice and some salt.
2. In the meantime, sautee the onions and bell peppers till they are soft and add salt and pepper as per taste.
3. Now sautee the shrimp till just cooked (make sure it's not chewy)
4. Mix sour cream and salsa and mix it well and keep aside
5. Heat a pan and put a soft taco on it and keep the heat to low. Now sprinkle some cheese on one half of the taco and add the sauteed onions, peppers, shrimp, sour cream and salsa mixture on the same half side of the taco. Now sprinkle some more cheese on top and cover the taco with the other half and heat the other side till cheese melts. 
6. Serve the hot and spicy quesadilla with homemade Guacamole. 

Variations:
You can add any other meat instead of the shrimp or go veggie by completely omitting the meat. I liked the veggie creation as well which I made for my mom.

Conclusion:
Happy tummies and in future baby will be happy too.

Lemon Mushroom Risotto with Scallops

It's been a record now! I have not contributed towards my blog for the past 4 months and I feel sorry about it. I do not have enough excuse for this blunder but yeah I was busy giving exams (Yes, I cleared my PMP certification - deserve a pat on the back), roaming with parents and in-laws and getting pampered :). But yes, how could I forget about my baby (my blog) just because I am going to have a baby!?! So here is my latest creation :)
My husband and I are fans of Hell's Kitchen and inspired by Gordon Ramsay's Risotto I wanted to make Risotto too. I had tried once before and loved it. I didn't blog about it then and so I thought why not try it once again so that I can give correct measurements.

Although I would like to warn you about couple of things before making risotto:
1. It takes a lot of time and patience to make Risotto. Even though many websites and cook books say 25-30 minutes as cooking time, it takes at least 45 minutes (stirring constantly)
2. It is fattening - so if you are a health freak like me, just workout 1-2 hours more in the week but please do not try to reduce the amount of butter from the recipe (as I have already done so. Any less than this wouldn't taste good - tried that too)

I found this recipe behind the rice packet that I bought and I added my own taste to it to make it lime n lemony.

Ingredients: 
Arborio rice - 1.5 cups
Vegetable/chicken broth - 6 cups
White wine - 1/4 cup (optional)
Mushrooms, sliced - 2 cups
Onions, chopped - 1 medium
Garlic, minced - 3 cloves
Parsley, chopped - 2 tspn
Parmesan Cheese - 3 tbspn
Butter - 4 tbspn
Lemon Juice - 3 tbspn


Procedure: 

1. Keep the broth on the stove on medium heat till it boils.
2. In the mean time, saute mushrooms in 1 tbspn till soft and keep it aside to cool. 
3. Now saute the onions and garlic in the rest of the butter till translucent. Then add the rice to the onion-garlic mixture. Mix it well for a minute or so.
4. On medium heat, add the white wine and stir it till the wine is absorbed by the rice. In similar fashion, start adding 1/2 cup broth at a time and cook till all the broth is absorbed by the rice, stirring occasionally so that the rice doesn't stick.to the bottom. 
5. Repeat the above step till the rice is cooked al dente. Personally, I like it cooked a little more than al dente.
6. Now, add the mushroom, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice and parsley, mix well and serve with scallops.

Variations: 
You can modify this recipe in many ways - get rid of lemon, add herbs etc.

Conclusion:
The Mushroom Lemon Risotto with Cajun scallops turned out really yummy. Even the baby was dancing with happiness :)

Butter Chicken/Murgh Makhani

I have been away from my blog for more than 3 months and here I am back to blogging again. I tried to find some time from the Diwali Celebrations, shopping for India, packing - unpacking from the visit to India and 3 not-so-long weeks in India and finally managed to write a post today!
So the visit to India was just 3 weeks long and I was going to my home country after 2 years. I really missed my family and friends in those 2 years and most of all, I missed my 2 year old nephew - Arnav! He is the cutest thing on earth and I had a grrrrreat time with him. I felt like I was back in my childhood where I played all day and there were no worries in life. Although Arnav has a big worry - his Dad's car. He loves cars and is very possessive about his Dad's car. His possession goes to the extent that he sleeps with the car keys in hand so that no one else can take it. I can go on and on about him. I love him and miss him a lot!

Anyways, I had butter chicken a couple of times in India and I desperately wanted to make it. I tried making butter chicken before but it never turned like the usual butter chicken because I didn't have fresh cream on hand or I had the cluster tomatoes which are a little sour in taste. This time I made sure I bought all the ingredients to make butter chicken and guess what, it was a success!!


Ingredients:
Chicken Breasts, cut into pieces - 3
Onions paste/finely chopped - 1 medium
Tomatoes, pureed - 4 medium
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
Fresh Cream/Whip cream - 1/2 cup
Ginger - Garlic Paste - 1+1/2 Tbspn
Cashew nut Paste/Powder - 2 tbspn
Butter - 1.5 Tbspn

Garam Masala:
Cloves - 3
Cardamom - 2-3
Cinnamon stick - 1/2 inch
Coriander Seeds - 1 Tbspn
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tspn
Methi Seeds - 1/4 tspn

Procedure:

1. Marinate chicken with 1/2 Tbspn ginger-garlic paste and keep aside.
2. Roast the items listed under garam masala and grind it and keep it aside.
3. Sautee onion paste and remaining ginger-garlic paste in the butter till the paste becomes golden. Add tomato puree to it and cook it till oil starts to separate and it turns a little darker and thicker. Now add the garam masala  (I made it fresh but you can use ready made), red chilli powder and cashew nut powder and cook for another 5 mins.
4. Now add the chicken and keep the gas on medium till the chicken is cooked. 
5. Once the chicken is cooked, add fresh cream to it and mix well. Serve with Naan or Jeera rice.

Variations: 
You can use half & half if you don't have fresh cream at home. Also, you can use yogurt to marinate the chicken and while cooking to make it tender.

Conclusion:
The third attempt at Butter Chicken turned really good. Fresh cream makes a difference for sure!

Sausage Stuffed Mushroom

I wanted to use the sausages I had at home and so I thought of making stuffed mushrooms as I was really bored of eating hot dogs Hollywood and Highland style. However stuffed you are, you cannot miss the hot dog stand at Hollywood and Highland. The lady sells them on the streets for $4 with some grilled onions and peppers. I am a big fan of that and so I tried replicating it at home, it was good but it was missing the "grease" :-)
So when it's my husband's turn to cook (which comes once in 2 months), he takes the easy route and makes the HH Hot Dog (or Pasta). He really puts loads of efforts in making it (even if he can cook in half the time and effort :-P). Coming back to the topic of stuffed mushrooms, I really wanted to try them as I had seen a very similar recipe on foodnetwork.com (by Rachael Ray). I had seen the ingredients in it but when I really wanted to make it, I never found the recipe :(. So I just winged it and it turned out really yummy.

Ingredients: 
Mushrooms (normal sized) - 1 pack
Herb Flavor Sausage - 1
Onions, finely chopped - 1 (medium)
Bell Peppers, finely chopped - 1/2
Garlic, minced - 2 pods
Cream Cheese - 3tbspn
Basil - 7-8 leaves
Cheese for Garnish - 2tbspn
Egg yolk - 1

Procedure: 

1. Wash and clean the mushrooms and remove the stem and chop them fine.
2. Sautee the mushrooms (not the stems) with their heads up so that the water is drained out. Switch off the heat and let them be in the pan for 3-6 mins so that all water from mushrooms is drained.
3. Now sautee the finely chopped onions, mushroom stems, garlic and bell peppers till they are cooked (8-10mins)
4. In the mean time, pre-heat the oven at 325 degrees. Remove the casing off the sausage and separate the meat. Cook this meat with the onions for another 3-4 mins.
5. Let this mixture cool.
6. Now mix egg yolk and cream cheese and then add the cooked mixture and mix well. 
7. Fill the mushrooms with the mixture and bake for 12-15mins on 325 degrees.

Variations: 
For vegetarians, it can be converted into a vegetarian dish by adding paneer/cottage cheese with some Parmesan cheese instead of the sausage.


Conclusion:

I served this with Alfred-Pesto Pasta. Every single bite of it was delicious. It is very heavy and filling so this recipe would hold 3-4 servings as a side dish. This is a very good appetizer for potlucks and game nights.

Cajun Style Grilled Salmon/Blackened Salmon with Seasoned Grilled Vegetables

I love it when the grocery store near my house has some discounts/sale going on on herbs and spices. On one of such occasions, I bought Cajun Spice to try out Cajun Shrimp.
Now a days Husband dearest has become 'Carb Conscious' and so wants to eat less of Carbs and more of the proteins. Salmon has zero carbs and higher levels of Omega-3 fats (considered as good fat). So we eat a lot of seafood or meat with less carbs and starch & nuts like walnut, almond, hazelnut etc.

Ingredients: 
Salmon - 4 fillets


For Marinade
Cajun Spice - 3Tbspn
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
Garlic, minced - 3 cloves
Olive Oil - 1 Tbspn
Water - 2Tbspn
Salt

Grilled Vegetable with Stir Fry Sauce
Broccoli florets - 2 cups
Bell Peppers, 1" cubes - 2 cups
Mushroom - 1cup
Garlic, minced - 1tspn
Ginger, finely chopped - 1tspn
Ketchup - 1Tbspn
Marsala Wine (Optional) - 2Tbspn
Soy - 1Tbspn
Red Chilli Flakes - 2Tbspn
Salt & Pepper

Procedure: 
Mix all the ingredients for marinade and coat the salmon fillet with it and keep aside. Now mix all the ingredients for Vegetable stir fry and put it on the grill. Once they are grilled, put the salmon fillets on the grill and grill for 8-10 mins on each side or till the salmon is cooked.
Serve the salmon with the grilled vegetables stir fry and / or rice.


Variations: 
This dish can be varied as per the taste else it is just too good! Try the Shrimp Jambalaya with it, if you think this is not enough!


Conclusion:
Low Carb diet was devoured in minutes.

Serves: 2 - 3
Total Time - 30 mins

Stuffed Chicken Marsala

I think of Olive Garden whenever I think of Chicken Marsala. I wanted to try making something new and different - I was bored with Indian cooking and eating- and Olive Garden is pretty far from my place. Guess what?!? I decided to make Chicken Marsala at home and got Marsala Wine and chicken breasts from Farmer's Market (which is my favorite place - If you have a Farmer's market nearby, I would recommend you to buy fresh produce from there to help the local farmers and to eat better quality food).
After I came home from Farmer's Market, I asked my husband, "What is the stuffing made up of in Stuffed Chicken Marsala at Olive Garden (because he orders that every time)?" He said, "Cheese, Breadcrumbs and some seasoning." I decided to make Stuffed Chicken Marsala instead of just Chicken Marsala! It takes a long time for the marsala wine to cook, but its worth all the effort at a very low cost and then writing (boasting) about it on your blog!! :D

Cooked Stuffed Chicken

Stuffed Chicken Marsala Ready to be Devoured

Ingredients: 
Stuffing - 
Parmesan Cheese - 1/2 cup
Shredded Pepper Jack - 1/2 cup
Any other Cheese (I used 4 cheese blend) - 1/3 cup
Bread crumbs - 1/2 cup
Sour Cream/Yogurt - 3 Tbspn
Cream Cheese - 2Tbspn
Sal - as per taste
Pepper - 1/2tspn
Garlic - 1Tbspn
Oregano/Italian Herb - 1/2 tspn
Cajun Seasoning (Optional) - 1tspn
Crushed Red Pepper - 1tspn


Chicken:
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast - 3 pieces, halved and pounded
All Purpose Flour - 1/2 cup
Sal & Pepper - to season the flour
Butter - 2tbspn

Sauce:
Marsala Wine - 2.5 cups
Heavy Cream - 1/2 pint or 8ounces
Mushrooms (I used  Portabella), sliced - 4cups
 Onion - 1/2 cup, finley chopped
Garlic - 1/2 tspn, finely chopped

Procedure: 

1. Mix all the ingredients for the stuffing and keep it aside.
2. Mix all purpose flour with salt and pepper and keep it aside.
3.  Take a heated pot and add some butter and onions and garlic to it.
4. After onions turn translucent, add sliced mushrooms to it. Now add the marsala wine and let it boil for 15-20mins on medium heat. 
5. In the meantime, take pounded chicken pieces and evenly distribute the stuffing on one piece and put another halved chicken piece on top of it.

Stuffed Raw Chicken

1. Put some butter on a heated pan and add some garlic to it.
2. Now coat the stuffed chicken pieces on both sides with the flour mixture and place it on the heated pan. Cook it on both sides till it turns light brown, adding butter whenever needed.
3. Now place the chicken pieces in a pre-heated oven for 10-15mins at 250degrees F.
4. By now the marsala wine must have been reduced to half of what it was. Now add the heavy cream and let it all boil on low heat till all the sauce is reduced to half/desired consistency.
5. When the desired consistency is achieved and chicken is done in the oven, pour the sauce and mushrooms over the chicken pieces and it serve it with some baguette and wine. You can also serve mashed potatoes with it.

Variations: 
If you want to use a non-alcoholic substitute for marsala, I would suggest using grape juice, although I am not too sure if it will taste the same. You can also substitute the heavy cream with half n half in case you don't have it handy.


Conclusion:
Happy tummy and happy wallet and not to mention happy husband :)

Thai Pineapple Shrimp Fried Rice

This was an accompaniment to the Spicy Chicken Satay I made last week. It is a very tropical fried rice with sweet n' sour taste. The taste of pineapple is the dominant of all.

Ingredients:
Cooked Rice - 2 cups
Pineapple, 1/2inch pieces - 1 cup
Fish sauce - 1Tbspn
Shrimp, healess & deveined - 12-15
Bell Peppers - 1/2 cup
Shrimp Paste - 1/2 tspn (Optional)
Garlic cloves, finely chopped - 3
Soy Sauce - 1 Tbspn
Chilli Sauce - 3tspn
Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
Green Chillies, slit - 2
Sugar - 1 tspn
Salt to taste
Oil

Procedure: 

1. Heat some oil in a pan and add chopped garlic, slit green chillies and sautee it for 1 min. Then add bell peppers, shrimp paste and pineapple and sautee for 2-3mins. (This stinks a lot)
2. Now add fish sauce, soy sauce, chilli sauce, chilli powder and rice to the pan and mix it well. After mixing it well, add the srimps and salt and cook for 3-5mins, or till the shrimps are cooked.
3. Garnish with some cilantro and serve when hot.

Variations: 
Do not use fish oil and shrimp paste if you cannot bear the smell of it. It really smells a lot but definitely enhances the taste of the fried rice.

Conclusion:
It was a spicy fried rice with some sweet pineapple taste. Something new for the taste buds.

Spicy Chicken Satay

LA has plenty of Asians and Asian restaurants. I love Thai food (who doesn't, duh!?) and I love cooking so I thought I will try making some Thai curry/Fried Rice/Chicken Satay. Yessss... Chicken Satay with Spicy Peanut Sauce and Thai Pineapple Shrimp Fried Rice, it is!

Ingredients: 
Chicken thigh pieces (Bonelesss) - 1.5LB
Yogurt - 1tspn
Ginger root - 1 inch
Turmeric - 1/2 tspn
Curry Powder - 1.5tspn
Coriander Powder - 1/2 tspn
Lemon Grass - 1 stalk
Fish Sauce - 1tspn
Garlic - 2 cloves
Chilli Pwder - 1 tspn
Soy Sauce - 1tspn
Salt to taste
Bamboo Skewers - 8-10


Procedure: 
Grind all the ingredients (other than chicken and bamboo skewers) together and marinate the chicken for atleast 2 hours. Now soak the skewers in water for 1 hour so that they don't burn.
Now thread the marinated chicken pieces on the skewers and grill it for 4-7 minutes each side. Use some oil to baste it.
Serve it with Spicy Peanut Sauce.


Variations: 
You can add coconut milk instead of the yogurt.


Conclusion:
Yummy chicken satay - just like the ones you get at Thai restaurants.

Indonesian Chicken Rendang Curry

So if you have read the My Birthday Celebration post, you will know what I am talking about in the next few lines.

I wanted to thank my hubby for making my birthday a fabulous one and so I thought of making an Indonesian style chicken curry and chicken satay with peanut sauce! Near our apartment complex, we have a mall named 'The Grove' and a Farmer's Market next to it. The Farmer's market has variety of food booths, right from Brazilian BBQ to Japanese Sushis and South-East Asian Curries. We are frequent visitors to the Farmer's Market for buying produce or poultry or the hand-made ice cream... yummm!

Few weeks ago, we visited the Banana Leaf booth for Malaysian/Indonesian/Indian cuisine. It smelled very good and tasted better. I took the chicken rendang curry and the taste of that curry still lingers in my mouth. It has a special taste and aroma of coconut and star anise. They are so dominant, that it won't taste the same without those ingredients. So I decided to try making it by looking up few recipes online for beef rendang. People in Indonesia usually eat this curry with beef but because I do not eat beef, I used chicken.

Ingredients: 
Chicken - 2LB
Desiccated coconut - 1 cup
Cloves - 3
Cardamom - 3
Cinnamon - 2 inch long
Star Anise - 3 flowers
Lemon Grass - 2, Pounded
Coconut Milk/Cream - 1.5 cups / 1cup
Tamarind Pulp - 2 tspn
Kaffir Lime Leaves - 6 (I used Lemon zest instead)
Sugar - 1tspn
Salt to taste

Paste:
Onion - 1, finely chopped
Ginger - 2 inch
Garlic - 6 cloves
Lemon Grass - 1 stalk
Frozen Coconut - 2 tbspn
Dry Red Chillies - 10-12

Procedure: 

1. Roast the desiccated coconut till it is brownish in color.
2. Now add some oil to another pan and add the cloves, star anise, and cinnamon and fry for 30-60 secs. Now add the paste and stir-fry for 4-5mins (till oil starts separating).
3. Add the chopped and pounded lemon grass and chicken and stir-fry till meat is rarely cooked.
4. Now add the coconut milk and sugar and let it cook for 10mins. Once the curry starts getting thicker, add 1/2 cup of water and kaffir lime leaves, desiccated coconut and tamarind juice. 
5. Now let the chicken cook in the curry for 1.5 hours and let the curry dry up/thicken so that you get the right consistency. 
6. Serve the curry with naan/roti kanai or steaming hot rice.

Variations: 
If you do not find star anise in the market, you can use fennel seeds although there would be a difference in taste.

Conclusion:
the chicken rendang curry was a big hit and we ate it for 2 days. It just got better with time.

Shrimp Stir Fry

Every time I make shrimp I remember 'Bubba' from Forrest Gump. His love towards shrimp and how he spoke about them all the time. I remember that Bubba suggests the shrimping business and Forrest pursues the idea after Bubba's death.
The Bubba Gump Shrimp Company started as an idea between Bubba and Forrest during their war duty in Vietnam. There Bubba proposes the idea of starting a shrimping business and Forrest agress and promises to be his partner after the service is over. But Bubba dies in the war and Forrest is left alone to go into that business. Forrest then goes to plays in the All America Ping Pong team and after his tour, he earns $25,000 enough to buy a boat. He buys a boat and names it 'Jenny'. This is how he starts the shrimping business and Lt. Dan Taylor joins him as his mate on the boat.
It is a pretty nice movie and Tom Hanks has acted really well and so has 'Bubba.' I think pretty soon, I will be called 'Bubba.'

Ingredients: 
Uncooked Shrimp, deveined - 1 LB
Soy Sauce - 2 tbspn
Tomato Ketchup - 4 tbspn
Water- 5tbspn
Red Chilli Flakes - 1 tspn
Ginger Paste - 1/2 tspn
Garlic, Minced - 2 + 4 cloves
Honey - 2 tspn
Cornstarch - 2 tspn
Green Onions - 1/4 + 1/4 cup
Bell Peppers - 1 cup
Brocolli - 1 cup
Mushroom - 1/4 cup
Oil

Procedure: 

1. Mix all the sauces, water, honey, red chilli flakes, 2 garlic cloves, cornstarch and ginger paste and keep it aside.
2. Now heat a skillet on med-high heat and put a tbspn oil on it. Then add garlic and all the vegetables and green onions to it and cook it for 2 mins. Then add the sauce to it and cook for 3-4 mins or till the sauce begins to boil.
3. Now add the shrimp and cook till the shrimp is cooked.

Variations: 
You can make it vegetarian by substituting shrimp with Tofu or Paneer/Cottage Cheese.

Conclusion:
The 'Always-Available-At-Home' ingredients makes it unbelievably awesome stir fry.

Herbed Chicken in Red Wine Sauce

Once my colleague got chicken in red color sauce which looked very tempting. I asked her what it is and she casually told me what all it had. Being an experimenter at eating and cooking, I had to give it a shot. So I got all the ingredients and decided to make it my way.
This has exciting ingredient like Wine. This type of chicken can be made in different ways as per the taste. I used veggies that I use for stir fry and made it as I make stir fry.

Ingredients:
Dry Red Wine - 3/4 bottle
Chicken - 2 LB
Corn Starch - 2 tspn
Garlic - 2 cloves
Bell Peppers, Sliced - 1
Onions, sliced - 1
Zucchini, sliced - 1 (Optional)
Carrots, sliced - 2 (Optional)
Crushed Red Chilli - 2
Ground Black Pepper
Rosemary herb - 1/2 tbspn
Italian Herb - 1/2 tbspn
Salt

Procedure: 

1. Heat some oil in a wok and sautee all the vegetables and garlic. Add the herbs and salt to it and keep it aside.
2. Now pour 3/4 bottle of wine (and drink the rest ;) ) in another wok and cook it.
3. Mix 2 tbspns of water and the corn starch together. Make sure there are no lumps.
4. When the wine starts boiling, add the corn starch mixture and mix well. The wine will form lumps of corn starch, make sure you mix it well.
5. Now add the chicken and the veggies and let it cook for 45-55 mins or till the sauce becomes thick.
6. Serve this with hot garlic rice.

Variations: 
I added Zucchini  and carrots to it. You can add as many vegetables as you like.
Also, this can be made in a similar way in white wine as well.


Conclusion:
The wine sauce doesn't give a buzz as the alcohol has vanished due to cooking. So relax and enjoy!!

Amma's Pomfret Fry/Fish Fry

When I was a vegetarian, I always thought there is only one type of edible fish i.e. Prawns (Which is not even a fish)! In India one has to go to a Fish Market to buy fish and it is not found in Supermarkets. So my ignorance was reasonable.
As I started eating seafood (after coming to US of A), I came to know a variety of fishes exist in the market. Also, I married a Konkani guy whose staple diet is 'Seafood' - especially Fish Curry and Fish Fry with Rice. So I decided to make fish fry and fish curry to impress my in-laws as I was new to Konkani community and it was a challenge to make what they eat on a daily basis. Fortunately, it is very simple to cook Konkani food.
The recipe belongs to my mother-in-law who is known for her Famous Fish Fry!


Ingredients: 
Pomfret (or any kind of fish available) - 2 (Cut into pieces) or 6-8 fillets
Red Chilli Powder - 2 tspn
Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tspn
Ginger Paste - 1tspn
Lime Juice - 1/2 tspn
Coriander/Dhaniya Powder - 1 tspn
Salt
Rawa/Suji - 2tbspn or as required
Oil - for shallow fry

Method of Preparation: 

1. Clean the pieces of Pomfret or fillets and add all the ingredients except Suji and Oil to it and keep it aside for an hour or two.
2. Now heat a pan and put a tbspn oil and spread it on the pan.
3. Now coat all sides of the fish pieces with rawa/suji and put it on the pan and shallow fry it on med-high heat adding little oil as required.
4. Make sure all the sides are well-cooked i.e. the fish flakes when a fork in inserted in it (5-7 minutes)
5. Serve the fish with Fish Curry and rice or Daal and rice. It is also served as an appetizer.

Variations: 
You can bake this fish (Healthier option) in oven on 350 F for 15-20mins.
This fish fry can be made with Green Masala as well. I will be posting it very soon.


Conclusion:
This has inspired me to try cooking more Konkani food and hence my in-laws are impressed. I must say 'The way to in-laws' heart is through your hubby's stomach!'

Lamb Chops

This is my first experiment with Lamb. My Mom's very good friend makes awesome food. I made my first biryani (Veg) under her supervision and using her recipe. Anything she cooks tastes yumm!
I had always heard that she makes awesome non-vegetarian food too. Back in those days, I never ate non-vegetarian food, so missed out on her yummy Lamb Chops! I got to make it using her recipe and so I asked her right from how to marinate to how many whistles to take in the cooker.

Ingredients:
Lamb Chops - 4 pieces
Yogurt - 1tbspn
Garam Masala:
   Cloves - 3
   Cardamom - 3
   Jeera/Shahjeera - 1 tspn
   Black Pepper Corns - 3
To Grind:
   Mint Leaves - 2 strands
   Shredded Coconut - 2 tbspn
   Green Chillies - 3
   Cashewnuts - 3-4
   Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
   Ginger Garlic Paste - 3/4 tbspn

Lemon Juice - 1 teaspn
Salt
Egg- 1
Oil

Procedure:

1. Clean the Lamb Chops and set aside
2. Heat a little oil in a small wok and fry the items under garam masala and set aside
3. Now make a paste of the all the ingredients under the 'To Grind' section including the garam masala
4. Add Lemon juice, yogurt and salt to the paste and marinate the lamb chops with the masala and keep for 3-4 hours (Overnight is preferred)
5. Now, put the lamb chops in the pressure cooker and take 2 whistles and then keep on low flame for 3minutes.
6. Take the lamb chops out of the cooker after the steam has gone (takes 10 minutes or so). Be careful when handling hot food items.
7. Now, beat one egg with a pinch of salt and dip the lamb chops in it and shallow fry till it becomes golden.
8. Now sit and relish the Chops with some Biryani and Boondi Raita!

Variation:
If you do not have yogurt at home, just increase the amount of shredded coconut or add some coconut milk.

Conclusion:
Successful first experiment with lamb chops. I am drooling as I am writing this :)



Taboo

Pomfret Chettinad (Baked)

I came to US of A and tried Shrimp for the first time in my life, rather that was the first seafood item I ever tried! I Loved It! That was when I converted to Seafood Lover (and non-vegetarian).

My husband being a Konkani loves seafood and he was super happy that I liked Shrimp. He still remembers that day when I hogged on the batter fried shrimp at the Pier at New Port Beach, CA. He still repents for that time as he has a competition in seafood eating. :)

Ingredients:
Whole Pomfret - 2
Coriander Powder - 1.5 tbspn
Cumin Powder - 1 tspn
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
Garam Masala - 1 tspn
Ajwain - 3/4 tspn
Green Chillies - 2
Shredded Coconut - 3 tbspn
cilantro - 3 strands
Ginger-Garlic Paste - 3/4 tbspn
Curry Leaves - 10-12 leaves
Salt

Method of Preparation:

1. Wash and clean the pomfrets
2. Make horizontal slits in the pomfret so that it holds the marinade inside it while baking
3. Place the pomfrets on two different aluminium foil sheets (big enough to wrap a pomfret)
4. Now grind all the ingredients other than the curry leaves and pomfret and make a paste
5. Now add the curry leaves to the paste and rub the paste on the Pomfrets on both sides making sure the paste is inside the slits
6. Wrap them in the foil and keep them aside for 2 hours or so
7. Pre-heat the oven on 350F for 10 minutes then place the Pomfrets inside
8. Let it bake for 40 minutes or till the fish flakes when a fork is inserted inside.
9. Now relish the beautiful looking Pomfret with Rice and Sol Kadhi

Variation:This can be broiled as well. Instead of placing it in oven, put the fish in the broiler but for lesser time i.e. 30 minutes or so. Make sure you turn it after 15minutes.

Conclusion:
The look and taste of the Pomfret Chettinadu was awesome! My Husband rated the fish 10/10.