eCurry - The Recipe Blog

I still haven’t got used to this crazy Texas weather. It was 65 degrees yesterday, and today its freezing 25 degrees. The kids have started the winter holidays. During these chilly winter evenings all I want to do is curl up at the corner of the couch with my cozy slipper socks, a throw and a good book.  The dinner can wait, but can it really? Well this is what happened…. Some parathas, some really hot stuffed jalapenos on the side & a bowl of yogurt. Quick & Simple.

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I remember the time when back in India many moons back we used to live in a joint family. My grandparents, uncles, aunts  & cousins all lived in a big house, ate all together in one long dining table. Sunday afternoon lunches were always beautiful times when everyone was home, relaxed & talking for hours over food. Even tho’ I might have been only about 6 or 7 years old, I still  remember that one of the dishes used to be mutton curry or chicken curry. The hot steaming curry, used to be placed at the  center of the table, & all us little kids eyed it with utmost enthusiasm, while waiting for our turns.

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Children are a joy & mine are growing very very fast. Birthdays are such a special time, but these days always bring in a down tone for me… the years are just flying by, and soon I will have no tiny, helpless, clinging baby to hold:-(  Well, we have to accept life the way it is and above all Enjoy every precious moment.

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Its Saturday and we arranged a get together with our family living in the town. It is great to have family near by when we are sooo far away from home. However, even a small get together would need some food right?  When it is a preplanned party I always arrange to cook before hand so I get some time with the guests. This time I had absolutley no time ! I mean they were an hour away… I need a quick fix.

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Homemade Harissa

Harissa is a traditional side with Moroccan and North African food. It is a potently spicy sauce, with the main ingredient being a lot of Hot Peppers. I make this very often for quite a few reasons. It is very easy to make, & the Harissa added to about anything charges up the taste. Add it to rice, salads, dips, couscous or any other sauce or sides and you have a tongue tickling sensational taste.

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Murg Malai Tikka Kabab

Chicken Tikka makes regular appearance  in all Indian restaurants. The Malai kabab is little different from the usual orange hued chicken tikka that you see in the appetizer section of the restaurant’s menu. These are irresistible tender succulent pieces of chicken that melts in your mouth as they are marinated in thick yogurt, creme (malai), cheese, herbs & spices and grilled to perfection. This makes great appetizers or have it as a main meal with grilled vegetables and your choice of rice, or couscous.

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The “Saas Bahu” combination is supposed to give the creeps:-D However my mom-in-law is one of the most wonderful people I have ever come across and I could not ask for more. Getting married when I just stepped in to my twenties… I thought and moved with caution, but immediatley she helped me get absorbed in to the family and more than all, amazed me with her exceptional cooking skills. Over the years I have learned a lot of what she cooks, especially the ones which are loved and craved by my hubby.

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Potatoes & Fenugreek Seeds

Tucked away among the tiny villages in the colorful and beautiful deserts of Rajasthan, nestles a oasis surrounded by cool shady trees. This haven of peace is the Ashram - Bala. We had the privilege to visit this place last time we visited Jaipur and paid our respects to SatiMata. We also had the privilege to have our lunch here, inside the cool thick walls where no air condition is needed even when it is 90 degrees outside.

Along with all the other delicious dishes we had for lunch, there was this particular dish which I liked the  best even though I did not and could not figure out what I was eating, other than it had cubes of potatoes in it. This was something which I had never eaten before… Later I had found out that the main ingredient which felt like a kind of lentil to me, was actually green fenugreek(methi) seeds cooked like a vegetable!! I cook green fenugreek (methi) leaves, use the seeds and Kasuri Methi as spice/seasoning. But never ever did I imagine that the unripened fenugreek seeds can be cooked too. They lack the bitterness of the seeds which we usually use as spice.

I never found green fenugreek seeds here, but I was suggested to soak the regular ripened fenugreek seeds overnight as an alternative. This takes away some of the bitterness (they are still a wee little bitter), and also swells up to a soft plump, which makes it possible to cook it like a vegetable.

This dish is so very different. I was just going to post it when I came across the Herb Mania Fenugreek Event. What timing!!

This goes to the Herb Mania Fenugreek Event hosted by RedChillies.

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup Fenugreek(Methi) seeds
2. 2 medium sized Potatoes
3. 1 inch ginger peeled
4. 4-5 Cloves of Garlic
5. 4 Hot Green Peppers (like Serrano)
6. 1 Tomato chopped
7. 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric
8. 2 teaspoons Red Chili Powder (adjust to your taste)
9. Salt
10. 1 teaspoon Coriander Powder
11. 3 tablespoons Oil
12. 1 tablespoon Plain Yogurt
13. 1 teaspoon Ghee (for Tarka)
14. 1/2 teaspoon Red Chili Powder (for Tarka)
15. 1 tablespoon chopped Cilantro for garnish

Preparation:

Soak the fenugreek seeds in water overnight. Wash them thoroughly and strain out the water.

Peel and cut the potatoes in to 1″ cubes. Sprinkle salt and turmeric on them and set aside. Heat oil and fry the potatoes till they start to brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Blend Ginger, hot green pepper, garlic and tomato in a puree. Pour this in the same oil the potatoes were fried and simmer till the oil separates from the sides. Add the Potatoes and the Fenugreek seeds. Mix it so the pureed tomato and ginger garlic coats the potatoes and the seeds. Fry for about 8 - 10 more minutes.

Mix Turmeric, salt, coriander powder and red chilli powder in half cup of water and pour it in the pan. Cover and cook till the potatoes are tender. It should not dry up completely. There should be enough water to coat the potatoes and the seeds and a little bit more. Add more water if its too dry. Add the Plain yogurt mixed with little water. Simmer uncovered at low heat for another 10 minutes.

Switch off the heat. Now for the Tarka, heat the ghee and when smoking hot add the chilli powder and immediately pour it on the potatoes and fenugreek. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Fenugreek seeds & Potatoes with Poori

Serve with Poori or any Indian bread. Best tasted with Poori and Shrikhand on the side.

Pan Seared Chicken with Tomatoes

This is an extremely easy but deliciously healthy recipe. I have used orange juice instead of the traditional lemon as a citric marinade. The orange does not make it as tangy, but gives it a smoother taste. The cumin in the marinade and the tomato, onion topping adds that smoky flavor. The chicken breasts can alternatively be grilled outside too. Have it at home or make it big in a barbeque cook out party!

Ingredients:

2 Skinless, boneless breasts of Chicken

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 Onion chopped

2 Roma tomatoes chopped

1/2 cup tomato puree

2 cloves of garlic minced

2 tablespoon orange juice

1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds

Salt to taste

1/4 cup pitted black olives halved vertically

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon  butter

For marinade:

Juice of 1/4  Orange (Freshly Squeezed Juice)

1/4 Onion grated

1″ Ginger grated

1/2 teaspoon Cumin Seeds

1/2 teaspoon roasted ground cumin

Salt to taste

Preparation:

Slit the chicken breast in a couple of places on each side.

Squeeze out the juice of the onion and ginger and throw away the fiber. Add the cumin seeds, roasted ground cumin, and salt. Mix all the ingredients and pour it over the chicken and let the chicken sit in the marinade for atleast an hour.

Heat oil in a pan. Place the chicken breasts and cover and cook on both sides till chicken is done. Then brown the chicken on both sides on high heat. Set aside.

Heat butter in pan. Add the garlic and stir it around for sometime. Do not let it brown. Add the onions and brown them slightly. Add the cumin seeds, Tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, orange juice and salt, and cook for about 5- 10 minutes, till the tomatoes are almost done. Add the olives and the cilantro and switch off the heat.

Arrange the chicken on the serving plate and pour the tomato and the onions on the chicken.

Potato and Cauliflower with Creme

  

Ingredients:

 

1. 1 Cauliflower - Florets broken into pieces
2. 2 Medium Potatoes - cubed
3. 1/2 Onion Sliced
4. 1 tablespoon Ginger Paste
5. 1 tablespoon Garlic paste
6. 1/2 cup Tomato Puree
7. 2 tablespoons oil (to fry the potato & cauliflower)
8. 2 tablespoons oil
9. 1 big black cardamom
10. 1″ cinnamon
11. 2 cloves
12. 2 red dry chilis
13. 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi)
14. 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (Available in Indian Groceries)
15. 2 teaspoons turmeric (To coat the Potato & Cauliflower)
16. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
17. Salt to taste
18. 1 teaspoon red Chili powder (optional)
19. 3 tablespoons heavy cream ( can substitute with 1/2 cup of whole milk)

Preparation:

turmeric coated

Coat the potatoes and cauliflower florets with 2 teaspoon of turmeric and a sprikle of salt and let it sit for about 15 minutes.

Fried Cauliflower & Potato

Heat oil and fry the potatoes and cauliflower in batches till they start to brown. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside.

In a pan, dry roast the cardamom, cinnamon, and clove. Add oil add the red dry chili and the fenugreek seeds.  Once they start to sizzle add the sliced onions and fry till they just start to brown.

Add the ginger paste, the garlic paste and the tomato puree. Add salt, turmeric and red chili powder to it. Fry till you see the oil leaving the sides of the pan. Add the cauliflower and the potato. Stir gently to mix, so all the tomato gravy coats the vegetables. Add half cup of water,  cover and cook till the potatoes and cauliflowers are tender but not mushy. Add the creme, and simmer for about another 10 minutes. Sprinkle kasuri methi on the top and gently mix.

cauliflower& potato with roti

 

 

 

Serve hot with roti or paratha.