Methi Chicken Curry

Growing up methi leaves were not that common in our households unlike their seeds. The flavor of frying the seeds always reminded me of the methi seed flavor infused fish curries. So on my first introduction with this dish I was almost deceived by the flavor that I belived and thought what I tasted was fish. I should admit I was disappointed a bit because it was far away from my home in an alien land, lol.  

Ok thats the story behind my liking for methi chicken (oh that reminds me, should try it with fish sometime, and what fish should I use? I think that should be a seperate brainstorming session)

Now try this recipe and be creative with your palette and pair it with butter toasted bread (Yes, I meant our plain old bread), rice, roti or naan.

Make it a thick and hot gravy. Tomato paste is optional though I recommend it because it adds an edge to the the tang and thickness. 

Go try this dish and leave your comments.

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs Chicken, cubed

1 medium Onion, finely chopped

2 medium Tomatoes, pureed

2 tsp Tomato paste (optional)

1 tsp Shahi jeera

2 tsp Ginger garlic paste

1 tsp Turmeric powder

4 tsp Chili powder

2 tsp Coriander powder

2 tsp Cumin powder

2 tsp Garam masala powder

2 tbsp Yogurt

2 tblsp dried Methi leaves

2 sprigs Curry leaves

2 tblsp choppped Coriander leaves

4 tblsp Olive oil (cooking oil)

Salt to taste

11/2 cup warm water

METHOD:

 Heat a deep pan on medium flame and add the oil. When it's warm, add shahi jeera and fry for few seconds.Then add curry leaves followed by onions with a little salt. Salt helps onions wilt fast and adds flavor. Fry onions until they turn golden brown.

Once onions turn golden, add ginger garlic paste and fry until the raw smell is gone. Then add the tomato paste (if using) and let the oil seperate. Then add in the pureed tomato, close the pan and let it cook on low flame for five mins. 

Now open the lid and add the dry masalas except garam masala, followed by the chicken.

Fry for few minutes and add yogurt. Then add the methi leaves and the water, stir well, add more salt if needed, close the lid, reduce flame and simmer until the chicken gets cooked. 

Switch off flame, add garam masala and chopped coriander leaves and leave it with closed lid for a few minutes before serving.

 

Thai Sweet Chili Salmon

Salmon is one of those fishes packed with goodness. But be sure to buy wild

caught or the wild caught sock-eye salmon. If you like salmon, I'm sure you would love this recipe. Honey can be replaced with maple syrup and you may reduce the amount of honey if you don't really like the sweetness on fish.

This Thai recipe is a perfect blend of flavors and balanced amount of sweet and heat and sure you will experience a blast of textures too. Give it a try and leave your comments.

 

INGREDIENTS :

6 Fillet of Sockeye Salmon

2 Tblsp chopped spring onion

Sauce:

1/4 Cup siriracha sauce

1 Tblsp honey

2 Tsp red chili flakes

Method :

 The salmon fillet can be around 6" size. We prefer with skin because if you brown the skin thw right way, it adds a crispy bite to it. If you are not a big fan of skin on feel free to remove it. If skin on then scratch off to remove the scales. Clean and pat dry.

  Mix together the ingredients for the sauce, reserve a tablespoon of sauce and then marinate the salmon pieces with the rest of the marinade and keep for atleast 2 hours or overnite.

You can either grill them or bake them. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Line up the salmon pieces, skin side down. Sprinkle few drops of oil all over and bake for about 10 mins. Then flip over the salmon pieces and cook for another 10 mins. Finally brush the reserved sauce over the skin and broil for 2 minutes untilthe skin turns light brown and crisp.

Remove from oven and transfer to a serving plate and garnish with chopped spring onions.

Thai sweet chili salmon can be served with rice and a side or salad.

Hydrabadi Mutton Soup

Soups are always a heartwarming dish to devour. Mostly we have it as a starter but this particular soup can be had for a light breakfast or dinner on a cold day.

Really flavorful and packed with goodness this soup will be an instant hit at homes. The shallots must be browned a little bit which gives the touch of french onion soup flavor to this mutton soup. Hope you enjoy.

INGREDIENTS:

10 Pieces bone in mutton or paya

1 Tsp ginger garlic paste

1/2 Tsp salt

10 Shallots

1/2 Tsp chopped ginger

1 Big green chilly

1 Tblsp oil

1 Tsp coriander seeds

1/2 Tsp cumin seeds

1 Tsp pepper corns

10 Mint leaves

1 Tblsp gram(channa) flour

4 Cups water

Salt to taste

METHOD:

   In a pressure cooker take the cleaned meat pieces/paya and mix in ginger garlic paste and salt along with 3 cups of water and cook for 2 whistles, reduce flame to medium and cook for another ten munutes. While you wait for the steam to subside prepare the seasonig.

 Heat a pan over medium heat and fry the finely chopped shallots until golden brown. Then add chopped ginger and green chillies and fry along.

Meanwhile coarsely grind the coriander seeds, cumin and pepper and add to the onion. Fry until raw smell is gone.

Add the chopped mint leaves and fry a bit. 

To this add the cooked bones along with the liquid. Add more water if neeed. You must get about 4 cups altogether. Add more salt as needed.

Mix the gram flour in 1/4 cup water and add to the soup mix. Reduce flame and simmer for about 20 minutes or until everything blends together and the soup thickens.

Serve as a starter or with bread or naan as a main course.

Tiramisu Cheese Cake

It's once again a RH's baking session and this time her idea was Cheese Cake. She came up with few flavor options and based on the ingredients available at home everyone agreed on Tiramisu flavor.

It was a real treat and turned out super good. I just did some manuevering. 

Few Tips to getting that perfect cake.

1. Make sure the filling is real "satiny" smooth.

2. If cracks appear on final product do not panic, its quite normal.

3. Always bake the crust before filling in the cake batter.

4. If the toothpick comes out clean but still the cake is wiggly, its absolutely fine and will set over cooling.

5. Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature.

6. Give the cake its cooling time, atleast 6 hours in refrigerator and 20 minutes at room temperature before serving, I know this step is really hard but believe me its worth the wait.

INGREDIENTS:

2 Pack ladyfingers (14 ounce)

4 Tblsp melted unsalted butter 

12 Tsp Instant coffee 

8 Tblsp water

3 8-ounce pack cream cheese 

1 8-ounce pack mascarpone cheese 

1 Cup granulated sugar 

2 Eggs

4 Tblsp all purpose flour 

4 Tblsp Cocoa powder 

METHOD:

   Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Fill 3/4th of a roasting pan with water and place it on the bottom rack of the oven.

Prepare a springform pan by lining the bottom with parchment paper and cover the outer sides and bottom with aluminum foil.

Make a strong espresso with four teaspoons of coffee in 3 tablespoons of water for the crust and other 8 teaspoons of coffee in 5 tablespoons of water and reserve for the cake.

Crumble the ladyfingers, add the melted butter and 3 tablespoons espresso.Mix well and make sure no lumps and press as a base into the prepared springform pan and bake for about 8 mins in the oven. Keep aside while preparing the filling.

Cream together the cream cheese, sugar and mascarpone until very smooth. Then mix in the reserved espresso and egg one by one and then the flour.

The batter should have a 'satiny' texture by now.

Pour this into the prepared crust and bake for about 40 mins. Insert a toothpick to make sure it comes oit clean. If the cake looks wiggly its fine because it will finish cooking while cooling.

Dust the top with cocoa powder.

Cool completely and refrigerate overnight or atleast 4 hours and keep it in room temperature for about 20 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Most of the days my little baker RH comes home from school with a craving to bake something. She can do by herself though I would like to watch her because electrics are involved and mostly depends on my mood or time if she would bake or so.

Today everything fell in place that others at home were lucky enough to indulge in this melt in your mouth chocolate chip cookie.

She found this recipe in a website and tried to incorporate a trick she learned from watching a famous chef in tv which turned out really well. And as I had only wheat flour at home we used that and no one noticed that either.

INGREDIENTS:

Makes 20 Cookies

2 Cups Wheat flour

11/2 Tsp Baking soda

1/2 Tsp Salt

3/4 Cup melted butter 

1 Cup Brown sugar

1/2 Cup Granulated sugar

1 Egg

2 Tblsp Mayonnaise (secret ingredient)

1 Tblsp Vanilla essence 

11/2 Cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

METHOD:

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment or butter and dust with flour. You will make 18 to 20 cookies with this measurement.

In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking soda and salt and keep aside.

In another bowl beat with a hand mixer ( you can use stand mixer too) at medium speed the melted butter along with the white and brown sugar until well blended.

Then add the egg, mayonnaise and vanilla essence until pale and creamy.

Now reduce the speed and mix in the flour mixture. Beat until it blends together.

Then add the chocolate chips and using a spatula mix them into the dough.

Now using an ice cream scoop, scoop out the dough and place in the cookie sheet atleast 3 inches apart.

This space is needed because the cookie spreads as it gets cooked.

Bake for about 15 to 18 mins. This time depends on your oven. So go for 15 and extend as needed.

The tootjpick inserted comes out clean. The cookies will be soft and hardens as it cools.

Mango Ricotta Parfait

 Sometimes thinking of making breakfast can be really tiring. This parfait is perfect for such days or even a midday or after school snack. You can adjust the portion size of the cup depending on what tume you are planning to have this. You can add mango pieces along with the fruits and choose not to use ricotta if you are not a big fan of cheese. 

INGREDIENTS:

Makes 2

1/2 Cup Greek Yogurt

1/2 Cup Mango Puree

2 Tblsp Ricotta Cheese

1 Tsp Honey

1/2 Tsp Honey

1 Tblsp Chopped Pistachios 

1/2 Cup Granola

1/2 Cup Berries

METHOD:

  In a bowl mix together the greek yogurt, ricotta cheese and mango puree along with honey and rose water.

Take two tall glasses and pour a layer of this yogurt mix, add a layer of berries and then granola. Repeat this process one more time and garnish with the chopped nuts.

Carrot Ginger Soup

Soup is always a soulful dish. Paired with a light side they make a hearty meal. Carrot soup is a healthy and easy way to feed your kids. With a little sweetness and richness from the cream it's hard for anyone to say no. Make it light with stock (may be water too) or scrumptious with some cream. It can be either served hot or cold.

INGREDIENTS :

Makes 4

1 Medium Onion Chopped

6 Big Carrots, peeled and Chopped

2" Piece Ginger, peeled and Chopped

4 Garlic Cloves minced

2 Tomatoes Chopped

2 Cups Chicken/Vegetable broth or water

2 Tblsp Olive Oil

2 Tsp Lemon Rind

1 Bay Leaf

4 Tblsp Grated Parmesan Cheese

(Optional)

1/2 Cup Heavy Cream (Optional)

Lemon Wedges (Optional)

METHOD :

  Heat a large heavy bottomed pan over medium heat. Pour the olive oil and fry the bay leaf and then add chopped onion. Fry until translucent. Then add the ginger and garlic fry for a minute. Then add the tomatoes and then carrots and then the lemon rind. Saute for a minute and add the stock. Cook covered until the vegetables are well cooked. Switch off the stove and let it cool down a little bit. 

Remove the bay leaf and transfer this to a blender and puree everything together.

Pour this back into the pan and heat and season with salt and pepper. Adjust the consistency with warm water. If using the cream finally add that to the soup and let the cream heat through.

Serve warm with grated parmesan cheese on top or serve cold with lime wedges.