Saturday, October 25, 2008

Karahi Chicken (Hot and Spicy Chicken Curry)

1.5kg chicken pieces
3 onions, chopped
1½ tsp ginger & garlic paste
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
2 whole chillis
1 tsp coriander seeds
10g garam masala
3 bay leaves
100ml Oil
1/2 bunch coriander leaves, chopped
salt to taste
Heat oil in a pan and add oil, bay leaves, red chillies, coriander seeds, garam masala and roast till they splutter. Add the onions and sauté for sometime till it browns. Add the ginger, garlic paste and fry till the oil floats on top. Add the tomatoes and continue cooking. Add the Kashmiri chilli powder and cook for some time.
Now add the chicken and stir a little, then add some water for cooking.
When cooked remove from heat and garnish with chopped coriander leaves and fried Kashmiri red chillies.

Kesari


250 gms sweetened condensed milk
1 cup Suji or semolina
3/4 cup Ghee
1 tsp water
1 tsp Kesari powder or yellow color
a handful Cashews and raisins
Heat the ghee and fry the cashews and raisins and keep aside. Fry the semolina in the ghee till it turns brown.
Add the kesari powder to the 2 cups water and add to the semolina. Keep stirring so that no lumps are formed. Then add the condensed milk and keep stirring till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
Put on a greased plate and when cooled cut into the desired shapes.
Serve garnished with the roasted cashews and raisins.

Coconut Laddoos


400 gms sweetened Condensed milk
4 cups desiccated Grated coconut
Take some 50 Gms of the grated coconut and keep aside. Add the remaining coconut to the condensed milk and cook on slow fire. Gently mix till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
Cool and roll into small laddoos with greased palms. Roll the laddoos in the coconut powder set aside and serve.
This makes around 20 medium sized laddoos.

Mattar Pulao (Green Pea Pulao)

500 gms Basmati Rice, washed & soaked for 1/2 an hour
1 Onion, sliced
2 cups green peas, parboiled
170g Ghee
1 Bay leaf
8 Peepercorns
3in Cinnamon stick
2 Cardamom pods
8 Cloves
50g Cashews
100g Raisins
Salt to taste
Fry the onions in a pan with the ghee till brown. Fry the cashews and raisins and keep aside.
Add cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns and cardamoms and fry for a minute. Then add the rice and fry on low heat so that the rice grains are coated with the ghee. Add the green peas and fry for another 3 minutes.
Add salt and cover the rice with double its amount of boiling water. Bring to a boil and then simmer till the water is absorbed.
Garnish with the fried cashews and raisins and serve hot.

Tandoori Chicken

1 cup thick, plain yoghurt
1 garlic clove, crushed
2cm piece ginger, peeled, grated
1 tblspn lemon juice
1 tbspn olive oil
1 tspn garam masala
1 tspn ground coriander
1/2 tspn chilli powder
1/2 tspn turmeric
1/2 tspn salt
6 chicken thigh fillets, trimmed
cooked rice and lemon wedges, to serve

Combine yoghurt, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, oil, spices and salt in a large ceramic bowl. Cut 2 slits in top of each chicken thigh, making sure not to cut all the way through. Add chicken to yoghurt mixture and turn to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Preheat oven to 220°C. Grease and line a large baking dish. Place chicken in dish and roast for 30 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with rice and lemon.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Kachumbar

2 medium-sized onions chopped very fine
3 tomatoes chopped very fine
1 large cucumber chopped very fine
2 green chillies chopped very fine
1/2 bunch coriander leaves chopped very fine
Juice of 1 lemon / 2 limes
Salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Mix all the vegetables together in a large salad bowl and chill.
In a small bottle (must have a tighly-fitting cover), mix the lime/lemon juice, oil, salt, sugar and chilli powder. Put the lid on and shake the bottle well to mix all the ingredients in it and dissolve the sugar.
Pour the dressing over the salad just before you are ready to eat. Mix well and serve.

Rajma (Red Kidney Bean Curry)

This dish is extremely popular not just in North India but elsewhere as well. Serve Rajma with plain boiled rice, Kachumbar salad and your favorite pickle.

2 cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed under running water
2 tbsps vegetable/canola/sunflower cooking oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 medium-sized onions chopped fine
2"piece of ginger jullinned
6 cloves of garlic minced
2 large tomatoes chopped into 1" cubes
2 fresh green chillies chopped fine
2 tsps coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
A pinch of asafetida
Chopped coriander to garnish

Heat the oil in a deep pan and add the cumin seeds. When they stop sizzling, add the onion and fry till soft. Add the ginger and garlic and fry for 2 minutes.
Add the green chillies, tomatoes, coriander, cumin, turmeric and garam marsala powders and fry till the oil separates from the masala.
Add the red kidney beans, 4 cups of warm water, asafetida, salt to taste and cook till beans are very soft (aproximately 10 minutes). Mash some of the beans roughly (this thickens the gravy).
Garnish with corainder and serve piping hot with plain boiled rice and Kachumber salad and a pickle of your choice.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Three Bean Salad

This simple and delicious recipe was given to us by one of the WFD participants.
3 cans of three bean mix, drained
1 can of sweet corn kernels, drained
1 red capsicum sliced finely
2 onions sliced finely
2 tbspn olive oil
2 tbspn white vinegar
Mix all the vegetables together. Pour the oil over the vegetables, pour over the vinegar too. Stir to combine. Refrigerate until required to serve. Serves 30

Potato Pancakes

2 eggs
2 tablespoons plain flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 medium potatoes, peeled and shredded
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper. Mix in potatoes and onion.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. In batches, drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the potato mixture into the skillet. Press to flatten. Cook about 3 minutes on each side, until browned and crisp. Drain on paper towels.
Serve with a poached egg and sliced tomato, or with sour cream and applesauce, or with a snag and a chop at your next barbeque.

American Pancakes

From Happy Days with the Naked Chef
These American pancakes are great! Instead of being thin and silky like French crêpes, they are wonderfully fluffy and thick and can be made to perfection straight away. Simple, simple, simple – my Jools goes mad for them.

3 large eggs
115g plain flour
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
140ml milk
a pinch of salt
First separate the eggs, putting the whites into one bowl and the yolks into another. Add the flour, baking powder and milk to the yolks and mix to a smooth thick batter. Whisk the whites with the salt until they form stiff peaks. Fold into the batter – it is now ready to use.
Heat a good non-stick pan on a medium heat. Pour some of your batter into the pan and fry for a couple of minutes until it starts to look golden and firm. At this point sprinkle your chosen flavouring (see below) on to the uncooked side before loosening with a spatula and flipping the pancake over. Continue frying until both sides are golden.
You can make these pancakes large or small, to your liking. You can serve them simply doused in maple syrup and even with some butter or crème fraîche. Or if you choose to sprinkle with a flavouring, try one of these...fresh corn from the cob, crispy bacon or pancetta, blueberries, banana, stewed apple,
grated chocolate, anything else you can imagine...PS Blueberry pancakes are great but you must try the corn pancakes. On one condition – you must use fresh corn. To do this, remove the outer leaves and carefully run a knife down the cob – this will loosen all the lovely pieces of corn – and sprinkle these raw over your pancake, before flipping it in the pan. I like to have some grilled bacon over my corn pancakes, drizzled with a little maple syrup. This sounds bloody horrid but it honestly tastes great!

Chicken & Broccoli Pancakes

¾ cup plain flour
1 egg, beaten
300 ml low-fat milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup (150 g) frozen peas
150 g frozen broccoli florets
25 g butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
¼ cup plain flour
300 ml low-fat milk
250 g skinless roast chicken meat, cut into thin strips
2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon or 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
2 tablespoons finely grated mature cheddar or parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 190°C. First make the batter. Sift the flour into a bowl, add the egg and a pinch of salt, then gradually whisk in the milk to form a smooth batter. (This can be done in a blender or food processor.) Transfer to a jug.
Heat a frying pan, preferably non-stick, and brush lightly with a little oil. Pour one-eighth of the batter into the pan and quickly swirl to coat the bottom. Cook for 1–2 minutes until set, then flip over and cook the other side. Remove and place on paper towel. Repeat to make eight pancakes, greasing the pan with oil as necessary. Stack the pancakes, interleaved with paper towel or baking paper. (The pancakes can be frozen.)
To make the filling, cook the peas and broccoli in a saucepan of boiling water, or in the microwave, following the packet instructions. Drain, then roughly chop the broccoli. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan, add the onion and cook gently for 3–4 minutes until softened. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, then gradually stir in the milk. Bring to the boil, still stirring, then simmer for 2–3 minutes. Stir in the chicken, peas, broccoli and tarragon and season.
Spoon some filling onto the centre of each pancake, spreading it out a little, then roll up to enclose the filling. Arrange the filled pancakes, in a single layer, in a lightly greased, shallow oblong ovenproof dish, such as a lasagna dish, then sprinkle evenly with the cheese. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden.