Chilli Egg

Remember the ad which used to come on Doordarshan - Sunday ho ya Monday roz khao Ande. Also the hindi song 'Ande ka Funda' and Govinda dancing to the tunes, hilarious isn't it !!

This egg recipe is for one of those days when you want to wave a magic wand and get something nice to eat ...... meaning a lazy day :) Especially when you come home tired after a long day of work or even shopping !! I am still in my inertia of weekend .... trying to ignore all the extra chores around me. Well I have been in that mode for a while now .... and now I feel a little guilty for making J eat left overs and junk. To make that up I prepared Chilli Egg - super easy and fast !!

This recipe has been passed down to me from my mother who in spite of being a busy working mom never compromised on feeding us tasty and healthy food.

I hope you enjoy preparing and eating this as much as I did.

But can anyone answer the question - Which came first, the chicken or the egg ??

Preparation Time - 20 minutes

Serves - 3

Ingredients
Boiled Eggs - 4
Chopped Onion - 1 cup
Chopped Capsicum - 1 cup
Green Chilli - 2
Soy Sauce - 2 tsp
Tomato Ketchup - 2 tsp
Green Chili Sauce - 1 tsp
Vinegar - 2 tsp
Crushed Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Ajinimoto - 1 pinch
Salt per Taste
Oil for cooking
Method of Preparation
1 Boil eggs and cut them into four halves.
2 Pour some oil into a pan. When hot first add the slit green chilies and then the chopped onions. Sprinkle some salt and fry till translucent.
3 Now add the chopped Capsicum. Add some more salt. Also add Ajinomoto. Fry till Capsicum is semi cooked.
4 Add Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Tomato Ketchup and Green Chili Sauce. Stir fry the onion and capsicum till soft.
5 Now add the chopped eggs and give it a rough stir.
6 Sprinkle crushed pepper.
Serving Tips
Serve warm with Chinese Fried rice or noodles.
Notes
Cut the boiled eggs and put them in the fridge for sometime. It will prevent the yolk from coming off.
Variation
You may alter the amount of sauces used as per your palette.

Methi Chicken

Go Green seems to be the buzz these days. People have become conscious .... that's the good part. I myself have been carrying stuffs to the recycle centre. Well this reminds me of something ..... J and I went to a Thai restaurant in downtown, quite a decent one. The ambiance was good and the food was even better.

Being weekend, it was a bit over crowded. We waited for couple of minutes till the waiter led us to a nice window side table. Like always I ordered my all time favorite ' Pad Thai' even without looking at the menu. What Dosa is to South Indian restaurants, Pad Thai is to Thai Eateries. J browsed through the elaborate menu and ordered something ...... the names are too complicated to be spelled or even remembered. Who cares as long as it tastes good. Eat it and forget it !! But one thing that I am unable to forget till date about that place is the fresh white glossy sheets of paper they placed on the tables when guests arrived. There was a fresh sheet for every new person at the table. And there were pens to scribble on it. I noticed them change those sheets as guests left. I felt sorry and angry seeing the way paper was wasted .

I know some needy children in orphanages back in India where they long for a simple notebook and pen.And I am sure there are many needy children all over the world.I wished these people understand that small things make a big difference.

I believe that summits and conferences can't change anything. If we really want the world to change, we must change ourselves before changing others !!

So with the slogan 'Go Green' ....... I would like to share the recipe for Methi Chicken with you all.

Have a great Green weekend !!

Preparation Time - 60 minutes
Serves - 4
Ingredients
Boneless Chicken - 1 pound
Chopped Onions - 2 cups
Fresh Chopped Methi Leaves - 2 cups
Chopped Tomatoes - 1.5 cups
Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Chicken Masala - 2 tsp
Green Chili - 2
Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Kasuri Methi - 1/2 tsp
Curd - 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking
Method of Preparation
1 Wash and clean chicken and cut into small pieces. Keep aside.
2 Wash and clean the methi leaves. Chop methi leaves roughly. Finely chop onions,ginger, garlic, tomato and chilies.
3 Heat oil in a open pan (approx 1.5 tbsp). Add the finely chopped ginger,onion and chilies. Add salt. Fry till translucent and soft. Add the garlic now. Garlic is added later to prevent burning it.Fry for some more time till golden brown.
4 Add red chili powder and turmeric. Mix well. Add the finely chopped tomatoes (I used store bought tomato puree - 2 tsp). Fry till all the ingredients combine well.
5 Now add the chicken pieces and mix well with the masala. Add chicken masala (Any store bought one, I use MDH) and the cumin powder. Mix well. Keep stirring. Do not add any water now. Simply frying the chicken pieces gives it a nice texture.
6 Once the chicken pieces change color and look opaque (whitish), add about 1/3 cup water. Mix in the 2 tsp of curd. Cover the chicken and cook on medium heat. Do stir the chicken intermittently.Add Kasuri Methi.
7 Once the chicken is cooked. Add the chopped methi leaves. Cook for a minute or two. The leaves get cooked in no time.
Serving Tips
Serve hot as a side dish. Goes well with any Indian Flatbread (Roti/Phulka/Naan).
Notes
It is important that you stir the masala frequently.
Variation
I used boneless meat but you may use with bones also.
Use store bought Tomato Puree instead of fresh tomatoes.
You may add little water if you prefer having a gravy.
Other Names

Methi Chicken - Fenugreek Chicken, Methi - Fenugreek, Cumin - Jeera, Kasuri Methi - Dry fenugreek leaves,

Fish Croquettes

How was your weekend ? We (myself n J) went to the beach, made sand castles, collected conches and pebbles, played frisbe ,read a book,listened to our favorite music ......... overall our weekend was great !!

It was wonderful taking a break from the routine life. These sweet nothings of life bring us so much joy.And celebrations are incomplete without great food and drinks. I prepared fish croquettes and it was a terrific combination with some great wine. Now I am fully rechared ready to begin another week.
Preparation Time - 60 minutes
Serves - 4
Ingredients
Fish Fillets - 2 Medium size
Potato - 1 Big
Semolina - 1 tsp
Corn Flour - 1 tsp
Green Chillies - 3
Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp
Finely Chopped Onion - 1/2 cup
Egg white of 1 egg
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
Salt per taste
Oil for frying
Method of Preparation
1 Wash the fish fillets and wipe dry (I used Tilapia). In a non stick pan fry the fish for 2 minutes for each side (Till the meat looks opaque and white). Keep aside and let it cool. Crumble the fish using a fork.
2 Boil and mash the potato.Finely chop the green chillies.
3 In a mixing bowl combine all the ingredients (fish+potato+salt+egg white+chopped onions+ginger garlic paste+garam masala + green chillies+semolina+corn flour) to form a dough like thing.
4 Pinch out small portions and give it a desired shape.
5 Take some semolina and spread it on a dry plate. Roll the pinched out portions on the semolina.
6 Heat oil in a kadhai or deep bottom pan. When hot, deep fry the croquettes.
7 When uniformly brown, remove and place on paper towel to soak excess oil.
Serving Tips
Serve Hot with Ketchup or your favorite sauce.
Notes
Make sure that the oil is properly hot, else the croquette may break in the oil.
Variation
Instead of frying the fish fillet, microwave them for 3 -4 minutes (depending on the power of the microwave).

Use any fish fillet of your choice.

You may also add little lime juice to the fish croquette mixture.
In case you want it spicier, add more green chillies or red paprika powder.
Other Names
Fish Croquettes - Fish Cutlets, Fish Chop, Macha Chop, Macher Chop.

Chingudi Jhol

I used to wait for Sunday for reasons more than one ...... certainly not because it was a school holiday but because it was a day free from Corn Flakes and Chattua (made from different pulses and wheat ground together and mixed with milk), also no fights with my sister for the bathroom. It was holiday for mom too ....... so a day for good food and dining !! Like every Sunday, dad left for the fish market early morning, even before I was out of bed . He had to fulfill his duty of getting the fresh catch for his family. That was one of his daily chores apart from the many others that he did to help his loving wife and kids of coarse.

I woke up with the aroma of egg roll ... It amalgamated with the agarbatti smell that mom had lit after the morning Puja. But I was only bothered about the hot egg roll !! So without making a noise I brushed my teeth and ran to the kitchen. I got my serving of egg roll and sat before the television watching my favorite program 'The Jungle Book', popularly known as Mogli and snacked away on the egg roll.

Once dad was back I ran like a little kitten to open the door and inspect the nylon bag in which he usually bought fish. (We have cared for the environment since those days ..... no plastic bags). 'Chingudi' (Prawns) I screamed in delight .... nothing could have made my day better than my favorite egg roll in the morning and then Chingudi Jhol for lunch. Dad and mom discussed about the pricey Chingudi that we were going to have for lunch as my mother carefully cleaned them and smeared them with some turmeric and salt.

Chaarrrr Chaarrrr ...... I heard the Chingudi fly into the hot oil ..... and then the divine smell of the prawn was in every nook and corner of our house. I hurried to the kitchen, my eyes lit up seeing the red-orange fried ones !! I reached out for one ..... and then one more. My mother warned me that if I had my share I would not get any extra for lunch.

I could not wait for lunch to be served. Nothing tastes good than having your favorite dishes cooked by your mother and then eating it with your entire family. Truely satisfying !!

Ingredients

Shrimps - 20 in number

Onion - 1 medium size

Ginger - 1 inch

Garlic - 4 cloves (big ones)

Tomato - 1

Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch

Whole Corriander seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1tsp

Garam Masala Powder - 1/2 tsp

Turmeric - 1 tsp

Chillie Powder - 1 tsp

Salt per taste

Oil for cooking

Method of Preparation

1 Clean and devein the shrimps/ prawns. Smear them with some turmeric powder and salt.

2 Grind Onion, Ginger, Garlic, Cumin seeds, Corriander seeds and Cinnamon stick in a mixie to a fine paste. Puree the tomato and keep aside.

3 Heat oil in a pan and fry the shrimps/ prawns. Keep aside.

4 Pour some more oil in a kadhai. When hot put the ground masala, turmeric, red chillie powder and fry till it leaves oil and is cooked. Add the tomato puree and cook throughly. Once cooked add some water and let the gravy simmer.

5 Add the fried shrimps/ prawns to the gravy. Sprinkle the garam masala and simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Serving Tips

Serve hot with rice. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Notes

Do not over fry the shrimps, else they turn rubbery.

Variation

Fry some potatoes and add to the gravy. Use ready to use tomato puree instead of fresh tomatoes.

Other Names

Chingudi Jhol - Prawn/Shrimp Gravy,Prawn /Shrimp curry

Prawn Cabbage Curry

This cabbage curry is one of my favourites and a no fuss easy one. If you are familiar with Indian cooking, you can master this curry in no time.Traditionally it is prepared with small prawns found locally or with fish.

Cabbage Shrimp Curry is a steal from my mother's kitchen. Hope you will enjoy cooking and eating this curry as much as I do.
Preparation Time - 60 minutes
Serves - 4
Ingredients
Shredded Green Cabbage - 3 cups
Shrimps - 10 in number
Onion - 1 Medium size

Tomato - 1
Garlic - 4 Cloves
Ginger - 1 inch
Cinnamon - 1 inch
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking
Method of Preparation
1 Shred Cabbage,wash and keep aside. Blend Onion,ginger,garlic and the cinammon in a mixer . Chop Tomatoes. Devein and clean Shrimps/Prawns, cut into smaller pieces.
2 Marinate Shrimp with half a spoon of turmeric and some salt. Fry till cooked. Keep aside.
3 Heat about 2 tbsp of cooking oil in a wide mouthed vessel. Add about 2 tbsp of the blended Onion Ginger Garlic Masala. Add salt turmeric and red chilli powder and cook till the oil starts separating from the masala. Combine the tomatoes to make a nice masala. Keep stirring, else the masala may stick to the bottom of the vessel.
4 Add the shredded cabbage to this cooked masala and blend well. Sprinkle some water if required.
5 Sprinkle the cumin powder and mix.
6 Cover and cook on medium heat till the cabbage is soft and throghly cooked.
7 Finish the curry by adding the fried shrimps and the garam masala.
Serving Tips
Serve hot with Rice or any bread ( Roti/Phulka/Paratha)
Notes
Make sure you stir the cabbage in regular intervals to prevent it from burning. Cook the masala well till the oil separates to prevent the raw masala smell.
Variation
Instead of Prawns/Shrimp, you may also fry fish,shred it and add to the curry. Add peas to the curry if you wish.

Chicken 65

Spice Up your Friday .............

If you are the person who likes spicy food, I am sure you will relish this dish. I had this impression that people from the South of India are masters in Dosa and Idli until I tasted this chicken recipe. I have to say that this deep fried chicken recipe will change the entire idea about recipes from the south.
I hope you will prepare this dish and spice up your Friday Eve !!
Preparation Time - 40 minutes
Serves - 4
Ingredients
Chicken - 1 pound
Egg - 1
Green Chilli - 2
Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1tsp
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tsp
Garlic Chopped - 1 tbsp
Ginger Chopped - 2 tsp
Chilli Garlic Sauce - 2 tsp
Crushed Black Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Curry Leaves - few
Lemon - 1 tsp
Corn Flour - tsp
Ajinomoto - Optional
Red Color - Optional
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking
Method of Preparation
1. Cut chicken into small bite size pieces. Clean and place on a paper towel to remove moisture from it. Finely chop ginger and garlic.
2 Marinate chicken with salt, a pinch of ajinomoto, 1 tsp pepper powder and corn flour.Combine all these ingredients real well. Then add the egg to it such that the egg forms a nice coating on this chicken.
3 Heat oil in a deep pan and fry these chicken pieces well.Make sure you fry the chicken in batches. Remove and keep aside.
4 In a wide mouthed pan, pour some oil. When the oil is warm add chopped ginger and garlic and fry. Make sure you reduce the heat else you may end up burning the garlic. Add the curry leaves. Now add Cumin Powder, Red Chilli Powder and to it. Pour 2 tsp of chilli garlic sauce to it. Add few drops of water before you toss the chicken into it. (If you wish add the food color to this water)
5 Mix well with all the spices.
6 Sprinkle few drops of lemon before serving.
Serving Tips
You can enjoy this dish as an entree/starter or even as a main coarse.
Notes
Make sure you cook the spices on medium heat. Also this is a dry chicken recipe, so do not add more water.
If you like it a little less spicy, you can reduce the amount of green chillis or red chilli powder.
Variation
I prefer making this item with Chicken Breasts but you may use chicken thighs as well. Use chicken with or without bones.
Ajinomoto and Red Color are optional. Incase you do not want it, you may avoid adding the same.

Ginger Coriander Chicken

It was a Friday and we deceided to make our evening a little special with some good food and drinks.We quickly bought a tray of Chicken Thigh from the neighbourhood food and grocery store.I was sure not to make the regular stuff ........ so my quest for a different Chicken recipe ended with my Ginger Coriander Chicken.I and my husband loved the flavor and I bet you will like it too.
Preparation Time - 30 minutes
Serves - 3
Ingredients

Boneless Chicken Thigh - 1/2 pound

Onion - 1 small

Ginger - 1 tbsp chopped

Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tsp

Chopped Coriander leaves - 2 Cups

Curry Leaves - few

Green Chillis - 4

Soy Sauce - 1 tbsp

Vinegar - 1 tbsp

Corn Flour - 1 tbsp

Ground Pepper - 1/2 tsp

Salte to taste

Oil for cooking

Method of Preparation
1 Cut chicken into small to medium pieces,clean and keep aside.Marinate chicken with soy sauce,vinegar and corn flour. Grind Onion,coriander leaves,curry leaves and green chillis in a blender.Chop ginger into small pieces.

2 In a wide open pan (preferably a non stick pan),pour about 2 tbsp of oil. Once oil is heated spread the marinated chicken and fry.

3 Once the chicken gets a texture and a golden brown color add ginger garlic paste and chopped ginger to it and fry for 2 to 3 minutes.Add salt now.

4 Add the minced coriander onion paste to the chicken. Keep frying the chicken on medium heat till all the water evaporates and the coriander paste sticks to the chicken pieces and the chicken is throughly cooked.

5 Sprinkle ground pepper.

Garnish with chopped coriander.

Serving Tips

Serve hot with phulka,naan or paratha.

Notes

Marinate the chicken with sauce, vinegar and keep aside for minimum 20 - 30 minutes.

Make sure you keep stirring the chicken else the spices will stick to the pan.

Variation

Instead of throwing the coriander stems, add it along with the leaves and blend.

Instead of boneless pieces, you may also use thigh pieces with bones.

Other Names

Coriander - Cilantro

Fish in Mustard and Poppy Seed Gravy

This fish recipe is very dear to my heart and especially when it is from mom's kitchen.

This recipe is popularly known as Macha Besara. Macha means fish and Besara meaning mustard gravy.My love for fish is unending.This is a household recipe in Odisha and is prepared from a local fresh water fish called Rohu.Traditionally the masala for this curry is prepared by grinding poppy seeds and mustard seeds along with other spices in a mortar and pestle.
If you are visiting Odisha anytime,this is a highly recommended dish for all fish lovers.
Enjoy your fish curry.
Preparation Time - 60 minutes
Serves - 4
Ingredients
Fish - 4-5 pieces medium (I used Tilapia)
Onion - 1 Small
Tomato -1
Green Chilli -2
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 2.5 tsp
Poppy Seeds - 1 tbsp
Dry Red Chilli - 1
Garlic Cloves - 3
Turmeric Powder - 1.5 tsp
Curry Leaves - few
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking
Method of Preparation
1 Clean fish and pat dry with a paper towel.Rub turmeric powder and little salt on both sides of the fish.
Finely chop onions,tomato, slit the green chilli's.
On a skillet,dry roast the poppy seeds till they turn light brown in color.
Combine Mustard Seeds(2 tsp), Poppy Seeds, Cumin Seeds,Garlic Cloves and Red Dry Chilli and grind to make a good paste.(Add approximately 3 tbsp of water for grinding)
2 Take a Skillet and pour some oil on it. When the oil is hot fry the fish on both sides.Keep aside. Make sure that you only semi cook the fish.
3 Now take around 3 tsp of oil in a deep pan (kadhai), sputter 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add a pinch of turmeric powder to the oil.Now add the onions and fry till they look translucent.Also put the chopped tomatoes to it and fry till they are semi soft. Now add 3/4 cup water to this and cover it till the water comes to a boil (Takes approximately 5 minutes on medium heat). Slowly put the fried fish into this boiling water. Now add the masala prepared from mustard and poppy seeds on top of it. Simmer for 10 minutes on medium heat till the gravy reaches a desired consistency.

Garnish with little cilantro leaves if desired.
Serving Tips
Serve hot with rice.
Notes
Make sure the oil is hot before you fry the fish, else the fish will stick to the skillet and may break while turning it.Properly grind the mustard and poppy seeds. Also use water at room temperature to grind it as hot water makes the mustard seeds bitter. Cut the onion length wise for this specific recipe.
Variation
You may use any fish as per your taste for this recipe. For a more nutty taste use an additional spoon of poppy seeds.
Other Names
Poppy Seeds-Khus Khus,Posto,Kasakasa,Gasagasalu

Tawa Masala Fish

This recipe is called Tawa Masala Fish beause the fillets are marinated in a variety of spices (masala) and fried on a Tawa (Skillet). I had this dish at one of my friends place. In one sentence I can describe this fish recipe as "Simple and Delicious".

I am sure all of you will also like this dish as much as I did.

Preparation Time - 30 minutes

Ingredients

Fish - 2 big fillets of Tilapia

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp

Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp

Lemon juice - 1 tp

Cumin Powder - 1 tsp

Corriander Powder - 1 tsp

Gram Flour - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Method of Preparation

1 Wash the fish fillets under running water and pat dry with a paper towel.

2 Cut the fillets into medium size pieces

3 Sprinkle salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, cumin powder, corriander powder on the fillets and rub them properly.

4 Next add the lemon juice, ginger garlic paste and rub on the fillets to marinate.

5.Keep the marinatd fish fillets aside for 20 - 30 minutes.

6. Now sprikle the gram flour on the fishes and rub it on the fillets. This acts as a binding agent and will not allow the spices to fall off the fish while frying, so that all the flavors remain intact.

7. Take an iron tawa ( nonstick pan is also good ) and pour some oil on it. Once the oil is properly heated, put the marinated fishes to fry. Fry equally on both the sides till golden brown for a crisp texture.

Once everything is fried, remove to a serving dish and garnish with corriander leaves, onions and lemon.

Serving Tips

If you serve it as a starter, cut thin slices on onion and sprinkle some chat masala on it along with few drops of lemon juice.

Also add it as a side dish with rice/ pulao/ jeera rice etc.

Notes

Make sure that the oil is properly heated before you fry, else the fish may break while turning it.

Variations

Instead of Tilapia fillets, try with Salmon fillets or any other fish.

You can also marinate with store bought fish masala instead of individual spices.

Other Names

Gram Four - Besan