Kitchen Aromas

Masi's Pepper Chicken

Ingredients
2 breasts of chicken
3 tb sps onion paste
1 t sp ginger paste
1 t sp garlic paste
3 cloves of fresh garlic crushed
2 t sp crushed black pepper
salt to taste
1 tb sp yogurt
1 1/2 tb sp cooking oil
coriander leaves for garnish

Method

Wash the chicken breast and pat dry with a kitchen towel.
Poke the chicken all over with a fork for the marinade to soak in.
Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients except oil and coriander leaves and let it soak for as long as possible. You could do it over night and leave it in the fridge.
Heat oil in a frypan or kadai till smoking. Lower heat , place the chicken pieces flat in the frypan and cook for a minute or so to seal . Turn and do the same to the other side.
Add any extra marinade and cover. Cook on a very low flame, turning the chicken once or twice.
Check to see if the chicken is cooked through.Dry out any extra liquid.It should be just coated with the masala.
Sprinkle fresh coriander leaves and serve with a salad and mashed potatoes.

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Shahi Paneer/Tofu

Ingredients
200 gms paneer/tofu
7 cahews
1/2 cup milk
jeera/cumin powder
1/4 t sp haldi / turmeric
red chilli powder to taste
salt to taste
kasturi methi(dry fenugeric leaves)
1tb sp cooking oil
1 tb sp ghee/ butter
1/2 t sp of sugar

Method

Soak the cashew nuts in milk till soft. Grind and make a paste and keep aside.
Cut the paneer into large triangles.
Heat oil in a kadai. Turn the heat off and now add jeera and haldi powder.Quickly add the paneer pieces and stir so that the masalas do not discolour.
Turn on the heat and cook for 1 minute.
Add the salt and chilli powder and stir it gently.
Add the cashew paste and stir to coat the paneer.Add the sugar and cook to melt it.
Add the kasturi methi and cook for 3 minutes.
Serve with hot rotis or pulao.

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Note: Adjust the amount of the cashew paste to your liking.

Chatpatti Gajar( carrot)

Ingredients
2 long red or orange carrots
1 t sp. finely chopped ginger
1 tb sp. finely chopped coriander leaves
juice of 1/2 alime or lemon
3/4th t sp. roasted ground jeera(cumin powder)
chilli flakes to taste
salt to taste
cayene pepper to taste
olive oil

Method

Scrape, wash and cut the carrots into 1/2" thick slices.
Put carrots into boiling water for 1 minute and turn off the heat.Let them be in the water for another minute or so. It should be crunchy.
Drain and add all the ingredients and a drizzle of olive oil.
Mix well and chill in the fridge.
Serve as short eats with cocktails or enjoy it as a side dish with an omelette, or grilled fish.
Takes not more than ten minutes for the entire process. an excellent healthy snack when you are short of time annd hungry.

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Mangalore Prawn/ Fish /veg. curry

Ingredients
200 gms prawns or your favourite fish cut into cubes
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 cloves of garlic
small piece ginger
2 medium size tomatoes chopped roughly
3/4 dhania (coriander powder)
1/2 t sp jeera (cumin) powder
chilli powder to taste
salt to taste
2-3 green chillies slit and cut into half
1 tb sp cooking oil
1/4 piece of fresh coconut or 2 tbsps of coconut powder/dessicated coconut

Method

Heat oil in a frypan, add chopped oniond and fry till golden brown .
Add chopped ginger, garlic, dhania powder and jeera powder and fry till the raw smell goes.
Add chopped tomaoes and salt and cook till soft.Remove from heat, cool and grind to a paste along with the coconut.
Put the ground masala back in the fry pan. add the slit green chillies,and ginger julliens and cook for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water if the masala is too thick and bring to a boil.
Now add the prawns/ fish and cook till tender. Do not over cook the prawns or they'll turn hard.
Serve with boiled rice.

Vegetarian option
Replace the fish with mushrooms or fried cubes of brinjal(egg plant) or try any of your favourite vegetable    that you feel will taste good with this strong robust masala.I repeat, use your imagination.

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Note:
A quicker version is to grind the raw ingredients, fry for 5 minutes, add the fish/ prawns and cook till done.
Tamrind pulp can be added before adding the prawns to give it a slightly sour taste.
A really satisfying quick dish for a cold winter evening .

Dum Biryani

Ingredients

3/4th cups black channa(Bengal Gram) soaked overnight
2 cups Basmati rice
3 tb sps chopped onions
1t sp ginger paste
11/2 t sp garlic paste
2 tomatoes chopped or 2tb sps tomato puree

Whole masalas for the rice
5-7 green cardmoms
5 cloves
3 1" sticks of cinamon
11 pepper corns
3 bay leaves

Dry masalas for the channa
1 tb sp dhania(coriander) powder
1/2 t sp chilli powder
1/2 t sp haldi (turmeric) powder
1 t sp garam masala made with coarsely ground (3green cardmoms, 1" stick cinamon, 3 cloves 5 peppercorns)

Msalas for the layers
1 large onion sliced fine and fried crisp.
1 cup fresh chopped mint and coriander leaves and 3 green chillies

2 tb sps cooking oil
2 tb sps pure ghee (clarified butter)
a good pinch of saffron strands soaked in 1 tb sp milk
1/2 - 1 t sp kewra essence for the aroma

Method

Wash and soak the rice for 1/2 an hour.
Boil 8 cups of water in a large saucepan with 2 t sps of salt and all the whole masalas. Add the washed rice and boil till its almost cooked.
Drain the excess water and spread the rice in a platter so that the grains stay separate.
Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, fry the chopped onions till golden brown.
Add the ginger garlic pastes and fry till the raw smell goes.
Add the dry masalas with a little bit of water and fry for 3 minutes.
Now add the channa that has been soaked over night.
Add the tomatoes/tomato puree and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Add the coarsely ground garam masala and mix well.
Add 21/2 cups of water, close the lid and pressure cook on high heat till high pressure is reached.Lower heat and cook for 10 minutes.
Let the cooker cool down , open the lid and dry out the excess water if any.It should be moist with thick masala but no curry.
Now you are ready to put the biryani together.
Take an over proof dish and spread the ghee at the bottom.
Divide the rice into 3 portions and spread 1 part in the dish.
Layer the rice with the fried onion, green mint , coriander and green chillies.
Add a layer of 1/2 the cooked channa and top with a layer of rice.
Repeat another layer similarly and top with the 3rd portion of rice.You are ready to add the flavours.
With your finger ,make holes in the layers of rice . Pour a few drops of the saffron milk into each hole along with a few drops of Kewra essence (optinal).
Cover and seal with aluminium foil .Cook in a pre heated oven for about 20 minutes.Alternately cook on an indirect low flame (on dum).
Open the foil just before serving.
Serve with raita of your choice.

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Kadai Chicken

Ingredients

800 gms chicken
200 gms/ approximately 1cup chopped onions
1tbsp ginger paste
1 1/2 tb sps garlic paste
200 gms /1 cup yogurt
3 tbsps oil
1" stick cinnamon
4-5 cloves
5 green cardmoms
1 tb sp coriander powder
1 t sp red chilli powder
2 tb sps kasuri methi /dry fenugreek leaves crushed and soaked in 1/2 cup warm water
salt to taste
1 tb sp chopped green coriander
ginger julliens

Method

Wash and cut the chicken into 8 pieces skin removed.
Heat oil in a kadai/ large frypan.
Add all the whole masalas, add the chopped onions and fry till golden brown and a bit soft.
Add ginger paste and fry well ,not letting it stick to the pan.
Add the chicken pieces and fry till brown on all sides.
Now add the garlic paste and Kasuri methi/ dry fenugrrek leaves that have been soaked in water for 10 minutes and fry well for atleast 5 minutes.
Add the dry masalas and let it cook till the raw smell goes. Sprinkle a little water if too dry.
The chicken should be well browned by now.
Lower heat and add well beaten yogurt, stirring all the time so that it does not split.
Mix well with the chicken and cover the kadai /pan with a lid and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove the cover and gently turn the chicken, it should have enough liquid, if not add 1/4 cup water, mix well and cover for another 5-7 minutes.
Check if the chicken is tender and cook on slow heat without the lid for another 2-3 minutes, taking care not to break the pieces.The masala should coat the chiken well but should not be too dry.
Sprinkle chopped green coriander and ginger julliens on top and serve with rotis/parathas or rice.

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Meal In One (Daal saag)

Ingredients

1/2 cup channa daal (split gram)
250 gms spinach
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 large tomatoes
2 tsps chopped garlic
1 tsp chopped ginger
1tb sp cooking oil/ghee
1/2 t sp haldi/turmeric
1/2 t sp chilli powder
3 t sps dhania/ coriander powder
1/2 t sp whole jeera/cumin
1 pinch of asafoetida
1 dry red chilli
salt to taste

Method

Wash and soak daal for 2-3 hours.
Heat oil /ghee in a fry pan or pressure cooker, add the dry red chilli broken into two and as it changes colour add whole jeera and asafoetida.
Add chopped onions as jeera begins to crackle and cook till soft and golden brown.
Add ginger, garlic and cook till the raw smell goes.
Add the dry masalas and salt to taste and cook for 2 minutes , taking care not to burn the masalas.
Add chopped tomatoes and cook well till oil begins to show on the side.
Now add the drained daal and spinach and mix well with the masala.
Add 2 1/2 cups of water and pressure cook for 5 minutes or till the daal is tender.
Let the pressure reduce naturally, open the cooker and stir really well so that the spinach and daal are mixed well.
Adjust the consistency to your liking by letting it cook without the lid for 2-3 minutes.
A delicious meal is ready full of proteins and iron from the spinach.
Enjoy with roties or parathas or steamed rice.Pickle and chutney will be a good accompaniment.

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