Chicken Sukka

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs - cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/4 cup yogurt
1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
2 medium onions - finely chopped
2 medium tomatoes - finely chopped
9 garlic flakes - minced
1/2 inch ginger - finely grated
1/2 cup of cilantro/coriander - chopped
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder
2 teaspoons dhania jeera powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
salt to taste
1/4 cup oil

Method

Marinate the chicken pieces in the yogurt and the ginger garlic paste and let it stand for atleast half hour. In a wok/karahi add the oil. when it gets hot add the onions and fry them till they turn a nice golden brown. To this add the tomatoes, ginger, garlic and the cilantro and fry the mixture till the oil leaves the sides of the karahi. Add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, dhaina jeera powder and the garam masala and saute fir about 5 minutes. Then add the marinated chicken pieces and some salt and mix well. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Uncover and cook till all the water evaporates and the chicken is coated in the dry masala mixture. Serve with Naan/Rotis and salad.

Blackened Tilapia/Tiger Shrimps with roasted cauliflower and quinoa salsa

Blackened Tilapia and Salmon have been a favorite with us. Everytime we visit a restaurant that serves fish - this has been once of the most ordered items. Our kiddo also loves this dish and savors every bite. The spices and the color make it very appetizing and the heat is something that an Indian palate will always appreciate - ofcorse the heat can be altered by just adjusting the black pepper powder and the red pepper powder (chilli powder).

since this has been a favorite on the restaurant menus for us - thought of giving it a try at home. searched the net for various recipes - finally mixed and matched from various sites and came up with the spice blend that looked good to my eyes. The end result was good too (",)

Ingredients

Blackening Spice Mix

for
4 tilapia fillets (frozen ones that I had thawed)
10 tiger shrimps

1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 tablespoon oregano
1/2 tablespoon rosemary
1/2 tablespoon thyme
1/2 tablespoon black pepper powder
1/2 tablespoon red pepper powder (chilli powder)
1/2 tablespoon cumin powder
1 tablespoon salt
Pam - oil spray

Roasted Cauliflower

1 bunch cauliflower - cut into florets
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon coriander and cumin powder
salt to taste
Pam - oil spray

Quinoa Salsa

1 cup quinoa
1 cup corn kernels (I used frozen) - thawed and steamed
2 cups veg stock
1 avacado - finely chopped
1 tomato - finely chopped
1 white onion - finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno - seeded and devined - finely minced
juice of one lemon
salt to taste

Method

Blackened Tilapia/Tiger Shrimps

Mix all the dry ingredients together in a grinder and blend together till the rosemary, thyme and oregano are a fine powder.
Dab the mixture on the fish fillets and the shrimps and cover and let it marinate for about 45 minutes to an hour.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Line a tray with aluminium foil - spray pam and put the fish and the shrimps on it and bake in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Put it on broil for 5 minutes and take it off the oven - cover and let it stand for 5 minutes.
Fish/Shrimps are ready to eat.

Roasted Cauliflower

cut the cauliflower into florets. Clean in running water. Dry well and mix the paprika, turmeric, salt and corainader and cumin powder - cover all the florets in the dry spice mix. Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil and spray Pam - bake it in a 350 F oven for 15 to 20 minutes till cauliflowers are tender yet firm.
Roasted cauliflower is ready.

Quinoa Salsa

Cook the 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups of stock in a microwave. Microwave on high for 4 minutes - then mix it and microwave gain for 4 minutes. Let the quinoa stand for a minute or two - it is done. Add the corn, tomatoes, onions, avacado, jalapeno, lemon juice, cilantro and salt. Mix well and let it stand for about half hour before its ready.

Pear & Ginger Cake

The other day I was reading a recipe book I had picked up from Home Goods - it was all about baking. One of the titles caught my eye - 'Pear & Ginger Cake' - Loved the flavor combo and thought of making it. I just added some cardamom and some nutmeg to add my touch to the flavors (I love nutmeg). It was a wonderful way to get back to baking. How I had missed my bowl mixer and my cake pans and my oven too :). The cake turned out nice and was over within no time :)

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature)
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/4 cup maida/refined flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
3 eggs (at room temperature)
2 pears (peeled, cored and thinly sliced) - brush them with lemon juice to avoid them from getting dark
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 cardamom pods (peeled and finely crushed)
pinch of crushed nutmeg

Method

Lightly grease a deep 8 inch cake pan with butter and then dust it all over with flour and keep it aside.
Mix together the butter and sugar and eggs and beat well till its smooth and fluffy. Then add the flour little by little and mix till its a smooth consistency. Then add the ground ginger, cardamom powder, nutmeg powder and baking powder and mix well till all is incorporated.
Spoon this cake mixture into the prepared cake pan and level the surface with a spatula very lightly. Arrange the pear slices over the batter and grease it with some butter and sprinkle the brown sugar.
Bake in a preheated over (350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius) for 35 to 40 minutes untill the cake top is golden and it is springy to touch.
Cool on a cooling rack.
Can be eaten slightly warm with a dollop of vanilla ice-cream or just like that :)

Dhansak

Dhansak - well, the name itself says it - Dhan means grains and sak mans leafy veggies. This is a Parsi delicacy and it is traditionally cooked with goat meat - but, you can cook it with chicken too. The lentils and leafy veggies make it healthy and the meat adds to the glory. Traditionally this is cooked with split masoor dal (the orange colored dal) - but, I have made some variations here to suit my taste buds :)

Ingredients

1 pound mutton (goat meat) - cubed into bite size pieces
1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
1/2 cup of curds
1/2 cup split moong dal
1/2 cup split masoor dal
1/2 cup tuvar dal
1/4 cup channa dal
1/4 cup udad dal
1 bunch fenugreek leaves
1 bunch dill leaves
1 cup chopped spinach
1 cup cubed pumpkin pieces
1 medium onion chopped
1 medium tomato chopped
7 to 8 cloves of garlic chopped
1/2 inch ginger shopped
2 teaspoons ghee (clarified Butter)
1 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon dhansak masala (I used everest brand)
2 teaspoons dhania jeera powder
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder (you can add more if you want it spicy)
salt to taste

Method

Marinate the meat in salt, ginger garlic paste and curds and let it sit for 2 hours. Then add some oil to a pressure cooker and add the meat pieces there and cook for about 4 whistles. The meat should be cooked tender by then. If not then cook for another 2 whistles. Remove it into a bowl and let it sit.

Clean the pressure cooker well. Wash the grains atleast four times in water and keep aside. Chop all the green veggies. Now add the ghee. To this add the chopped onions and garlic and saute till the onions turn golden. Then add the tomatoes and the ginger and cook till the ghee leaves the side of the cooker. add all the chopped greens and the pumpkin and mix well. To this add all the grains and mix well. Add the dhania jeera powder, dhansak masala, turmeric powder, chilli powder and add 3 cups of water. Cover and let it cook for about 3 whistles. Once that is done, use a potato masher or a  buttermilk churner and churn the dal and veggies mixture. Add salt and check for seasonings - if you wish to add more masala or more chilli powder you can do that now. If the dal is too thick you can add some water. Add the cooked meat pieces to this mixture and let it simmer uncovered for about 10 to 15 minutes. garnish with chopped cilantro.

Traditionally this is eaten with brown basmati rice - but, can be served with white rice, naan or even bread.

Arbi/Colocasia Thick Chips

Chips - I know I know, it sounds unhealthy. But, what if they are not deep fried? Yes, that does sound like a crunchy yummy snack.

Ingredients

1 pound arbi/colocasia

salt

crushed pepper

chilli powder

chat masala

oil for shallow frying

Method

Clean the arbi very well to remove all dirt. Place it in a vegetable steamer and steam till its cooked. Do not overcook it or cook it in water, it will become mushy.

Once its cooled down, remove the skin and make 1/8 inch slices. In a cast iron pan add oil and shallow fry the arbi disks. Once it gets golden brown on both sides, remove it an place on a paper towel. Sprinkle salt, pepper, chilli powder and chat masala when the arbi disks are hot.

Enjoy it just like that or as a side with plain dal and rice.