Chicken Kheema

Subhash had been having a stressful week and I wanted to make something special for him. Luckily I found ground chicken in the grocery store and I decided to surprise him with this dish. Looking at the smile on his face was worth the time spent in the kitchen :) So here is the recipe for Chicken Kheema which is said to have originated in Persia but is extremely popular in India and Pakistan.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground chicken (You can use any other kind of ground meat too)

1/2 cup peas ( fresh or frozen)

1 large onion, chopped

1 tsp Ginger Garlic paste

2 Green Chillies, chopped

1/2 tsp Turmeric

1/2 tsp Red Chilli powder

Salt to taste

2 Bay Leaves

4 Cloves

2 Cardamoms

1/2 inch piece Cinammon

Oil for cooking

Cilantro for seasoning

Method:

- Take oil in a pan. Add the whole garam masala. Then add the onions and saute till golden brown. (Sometimes I omit the whole masala and add ground garam masala powder instead, both taste equally good)

- Add ginger garlic paste. Also add turmeric, salt and red chilli powder and cook till the oil separates from masala. (You can also add 1/2 tspn of kitchen king or chicken masala or garam masala).

- Now add the peas and cook for 5 minutes.

- Add the ground chicken and cook well on medium heat, stirring occasionally till all the water in keema dries up and it looks grainy.

- Remove from heat. Sprinkle cilantro and serve with naan, roti, paratha or pav

Kappa Meen Curry

Kappa or Yucca root is widely grown in Kerala. Apart from being inexpensive it is also an excellent source of dietary fiber and carbohydrates. Kappa and Meen curry is undoubtedly a 'Match made in Heaven' and hence one of the most popular dishes of Kerala ranging from a poor man’s hut to a five star hotel. Here is one of numerous ways of making the fish curry to be served with Kappa

Ingredients:

1/2 kg Fish (Sardine, Mackeral, King Fish, Tilapia or any other fish of your choice)

5 - 6 Pearl onions/ Shallots

1 1/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp Corriander powder

1/4 tsp. Mustard seeds

Curry Leaves

Tamarind - Lemon sized

Coconut Oil for cooking (you can also any other oil though traditionally coconut oil is used)

Method:

- Soak tamarind in hot water for at least fifteen minutes.

- Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and saute the onions.

- Add the ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and corriander powder and roast for a minute.

- Now add in the fish and the tamarind paste and cook on medium heat till done. (Do not stir much because that may break the fish pieces)

- This curry tastes best when allowed to rest for a few hours and even better the following day.

- You can serve it with rice or Kappa, latter being one of our favorites.

Unnaka Chemmeen Curry

Fish and coconut are integral to Kerala cuisine, and this dish is surely an amazing combination of the two. This curry always brings memories of my summer holidays in Kerala. Dry Fish is usually cooked the most in monsoon in Kerala, however my grandma made it an exception to make it in summer because we cousins find her Unnaka Chemmeen Curry lip smacking. So here is me trying to step into her shoes (too big to fit i must say but still worth it)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Dried Prawns (Unnaka Chemmeen)

1/2 cup diced Mango

1 cup Grated Coconut

1 tsp Chilly Powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder

1/4 tsp Cumin Seeds

1 medium Onion

7-8 Red chillies

Oil for cooking

Salt to taste

For Seasoning

1 tbsp Oil

1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds

4- 5 Shallots Sliced

Curry Leaves

Method:

- Clean the chemmeen by removing the head and tail, if it has not been removed already and wash the chemmeen thoroughly.

- Grind together the onion, red chillies and grated coconut.

- Cook the chemmeen in water with turmeric powder, red chilli powder and mangoes.

- Now add the ground the paste and cook well for 5 - 7 mins and remove from heat. Also add salt at this stage because if you add salt earlier you may end up adding more.

- For garnish heat oil (preferably coconut oil) in a pan and splutter mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and shallots and pour this into the curry.

- Serve with rice.

Oolan

Oolan/Olan is perhaps the simplest of the traditional Kerala Sadya dishes. It is traditionally made with mathan (pumpkin), elavan or kumbalanga (winter melon or ash gourd), and black-eyed peas or cow peas. Enriched with coconut milk the unique combination of the ingredients produces a delicious dish with a unique, pleasing and inviting aroma which itself make you crave for more.

Ingredients:

2-3 tbsp Black eyed peas or Cow peas (Vanpayar)

1 cup diced Pumpkin (Mathanga/Mathan) or Ash gourd (Kumbalanga)

3- 4 Green chillies slit

1/2 cup Coconut milk

Salt to taste

1 tbsp Coconut oil

Curry leaves for garnish

Method:

- Pressure cook the pre soaked Black eyed peas/Cow peas until and keep it aside.

- Cook ashgourd /pumpkin and slit green chillies with salt and water until the vegetables turn soft.

- Now add in the cooked Black eyed peas/Cow peas and stir

- Then add the coconut milk and allow it to boil and remove it from the heat (the gravy should be thick)

- Season with coconut oil and a sprig of curry leaves. Mix well, cover it with a lid and allow it to stand for around 1/2 an hour before serving. This will help the dish to absorb the flavour of curry leaves and coconut oil.

- Serve with rice.

Dhokla

Having lived in Mumbai all my life i have always been surrounded by Gujarati sweetmeat shops. Everytime i passed these shops i would hog on the fluffiest, softest and spongiest Dhoklas ever. Here is how I try to recreate the same dhoklas in my kitchen

Ingredients:

500 gms Besan (Chickpea Flour)

1 cup Yoghurt (not very sour)

1 cup Water

1 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp green chilli paste (or more)

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp fruit salt/ soda bi carbonate

Salt to taste

Tempering:

2 tbsp. Oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

Few curry leaves

2-3 green chillies slit lengthwise

1/2 cup water

Garnish:

Cilantro (finely chopped)

Coconut ( freshly grated)

Method:

- Sieve besan and mix it with the yoghurt. The batter should be of a thick consistency. Keep this aside for 2 hours.

- Mix in the ginger paste, green chilli paste, turmeric powder, salt, lime juice and sugar.

- Prepare the steamer and grease a pan to steam the dhokla in.

- Mix the fruit salt gently into the batter, you will be able to see bubbles. (In case you want to make the dhokla in batches, remember to add the fruit salt/ baking soda to each batch of batter just before steaming and not before)

- Immediately pour the batter into the greased dish and put it into the steamer. The batter will rise while cooking so the pan should not be filled to the brim.

- Cook the dhokla till a toothpick comes out clean and has no batte sticking on it. (You can use rice cooker or pressure cooker or idli cooker for steaming dhoklas)

- Allow the steamed Dhokla to cool slightly and cut into squares.

- For the seasoning/tempering heat the oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds. Also add the curry leaves and green chillies.

- Pour this into the warm water kept aside for tempering and Sprinkle this mixture all over the prepared Dhokla and keep it aside for 10 mins.

- Garnish with the cilantro and coconut and serve with Tamarind Chutney and Green Chutney.

Beetroot Sabzi

Beets seem to be one of those vegetables you either love or hate. Earlier I belonged to latter group and hence always preferred staying as far as possible from it till the time my mom came up with this amazing Beetroot Sabzi. Since then, beet has been a regular dish at home.

The rich maroon flesh of beetroot is naturally sweet and nutritious. Not only does it clean the kidneys and gall bladder but is also extremely useful in the treatment of anaemia.

If you stay away from beetroot mainly because of the mess it would create while cooking then try adding 1/4 tsp sugar while cooking and the colour will spread less.

Ingredients:

Beetroot - 1 cup diced or grated (I personally prefer grated, since you can cook it directly unliked diced which u need to pre cook)

Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp

Curry Leaves 5-6

Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp

Hing (Asafoetida) - a pinch

Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

Coconut - 1/2 cup grated (frozen or fresh)

Oil for cooking

Salt to taste

Method:

- Heat oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and urad dal.

- Add in the beets and saute well. Add salt and other masalas and let the beet cook well. In case the beets have been pre cooked then all you need to do is saute well.

- Garnish with coconut and serve with rice or rotis.

Kothimbir Wadi

Kothimbir Wadi is a typical Maharashtrian starter snack. The main ingredients being ... well you guessed it "Kothimbir (Cilantro)". All my maharashtrian friends swear by it and whenever i make it I remember my friends mom's words "Khaoon tar paha" which means atleast try it ...

Ingredients:

Cilantro - 5 bunches

Besan (Chickpea Flour) - 1 1/2 cup

Semolina - 1/2 cup

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Red Chilli Powder - 1 1/2 tsp or less depending on your spice level (You can also use green chillie paste)

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Garam Masala - 1 tsp

Hing - a pinch

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

Method:

- Mix together all the ingredients and make a dough by adding little water at a time. (Too much water will turn the dough soggy)

- Divide the dough in 2 - 3 parts and make elongated logs. You can also spread the entire dough on a greased pan (not more than 2" thick).

- Steam the dough like you would steam idlis. Usually it takes 5- 10 mins to steam well. You can also pressure cook the dough like you cook dal/rice.

- Let the dough cool for sometime. Once it cools completely cut it into slices and then you can deep fry or shallow fry the Wadis. (I usually freeze the slices of dough ina ziplock and fry them only when i need)

- Garnish with cilantro and coconut and serve with chutney.

Tip: You can replace the corriander with methi leaves or shredded cabbage. All the wadis taste equally divine.

Instant Lemon Pickle

Usually preparing pickles is to mix all the ingredients and keeping it in the sun for 15 days in the jar and shaking it daily. Well being a big pickle fan but a lazy girl, the minute I came acroos this recipe of Instant Lemon Pickle on a website i tried it and trust me it tastes delicious. Surely worth trying.

Ingredients:

Lemon - 1 Big sized

Red Chilli Powder - 1 tbsp

Mustard Seeds - 1 tspn

Oil - 1 tbsp

Salt

Hing

Method:

- Dice the lemon and pressure cook (without adding water) for just few minutes. Set aside in a mixing bowl.

- When it cools completely, mix in the Salt, Red chilli powder and Hing. Mix well.

- Heat Oil and spatter the Mustard seeds. Pour this over the pickle and mix well. .

- Instant lemon pickle is ready. Serve with curd rice or rotis. Store in air tight glass container and refrigerate.

Courtesy: www.paajaka.com

Dry Egg Masala

This is one of mom’s egg preparations that I love. I know the tastes of mom’s dishes are so very special. I try to get as close there but there's always nothing to match the love and affection that goes into a mom's cooking.

Dry Egg Masala is a very simple dish you can pull off with just a few ingredients (Yeah the best part of this dish is you don’t need to plan it ahead)

Ingredients:

Eggs 3

Onions 4-5 medium sized

Chilli powder - 1 tsp or depending on your spice level

Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp

Corriander Powder – 1 tsp

Tomatoes – 1-2 medium sized

Ginger garlic paste – ½ tsp

Curry leaves - a handful

Cooking oil - 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Method:

- Boil the eggs, de-shell and keep aside.

- Take oil in a pan. Add the onions and saute till golden brown

- Now add ginger garlic paste, chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt. Saute well.

- Add in the tomatoes and sauté well. Add the boiled eggs and cook for 5 minutes or till the gravy thickens, rather almost dry.

- Add in some fresh curry leaves and serve with rice or rotis.

Mushroom Matar Masala

Mushrooms are supposedly the only fruit or vegetable with natural vitamin D. Researchs suggest that mushrooms or substances in mushrooms actually aid the immune system.

Since I learnt all this, Mushroom has been an integral part of my cooking. Mushrooms complement almost any everyday meal. They are easy to sauté and add savory flavor, texture, appetite appeal and nutrients to just about anything. I like it in my omlettes, salad, soups and the most favorite being the spicy Mushroom Matar Masala.

Ingredients:

Mushroom - 200gms

Green Peas - 1 cup (frozen or fresh)

Onions - 1 medium sized

Tomatoes - 1 medium sized (you can also use tomato paste)

Ginger garlic paste - 1 1/2 tbsp

1 tbsp - Chilli powder or less depending on your spice level

1 tbsp - Coriander powder

1 tsp - Turmeric

1 tsp - Garam masala powder

1/2 cup - Cashewnut paste

Oil for cooking

Salt To Taste

Cilatro for garnishing

Method:

- Clean, wash and cut the mushrooms into medium pieces. and chop onions finely.Saute the mushroom slices till they turn light brown in a greased pan and keep aside.

- Heat oil in pan. Saute onions till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste and cook for 1/2 a minute.

- Add tomatoes and cook till oil leaves the sides.

- Add chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric, garam masala, salt and cook for 2 minutes. (I have also tried adding 1 tbsp chicken masala and it sure does taste great)

- Lastly dissolve the cashewnut paste in one cup of water and mix well and add it to the pan and bring it to boil. Add water as per the required consistency.

- Now add the green peas and mushrooms and cook till the peas are fully cooked. I usually add the peas first, in case they are frozen and then the mushrooms.

- Garnish with cilantro and serve the mushroom matar masala with rice or rotis.

Tip: You can also add 3 tbsp yoghurt to make the gravy more rich and thick.