Roasted Red Pepper Chicken

 As winter came, it brought along with it vegetables that we do not find easily with our local vegetable sellers. When these absolutely fresh red peppers tumbled into my kitchen I could not stop myself from whisking up this dish.

 Ingredients

Chicken –   350 gms

Red pepper -2 large

Garlic -  6 pods

Onion thinly sliced – one

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

Five spice powder – 1tsp

Salt – as per taste

!. Clean the chicken and pat it dry with a kitchen napkin. Rub five spice powder with little oil all over the chicken. Keep it aside for 20 mins.

2. Roast both the red peppers on open flame on a gas stove till the skin becomes all black and roasted. Keep the peppers covered for some time so that it becomes easier for you to peel off the skin.

3. Take one and a half of the roasted pepper along with garlic and 3 tbsp oil and blitz it in the food processor till it becomes a smooth paste.

4. Cut the remaining half of the roasted pepper into small pieces.

5. Heat oil in a pan and add the thinly sliced onions to it. Saute for sometime and then add the marinated chicken.

6. Now add the pepper and garlic paste to the chicken and saute till the oil separates from the sides.

7. Add the remaining pepper pcs, salt and red chilli powder to the chicken. Add sufficient water to the chicken for gravy.

8. Once the chicken is cooked properly take it off heat and serve with rice.

 

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Walnut marble cake

When I had started baking few years back, marble cake was one of the first cakes that I had baked. Before I had baked it, I reckoned it to be a very difficult recipe but once I started, it became super easy. I have added walnuts to the original recipe and it was such a big hit during my bake sale. So please find below the recipe and do try it out.

 Ingredients

Flour – 2 cups

Eggs – 4

Butter – 80 gms

Sugar – 1 to 1½ cup (depending on your taste)

Cocoa powder – 5- 6 tbsp

Walnuts – ½ cup (chopped )

Baking powder – 1tbsp

 !. Beat butter along with sugar. Add an egg to this mixture. Mix it well. Now add 1 cup of flour and mix well. Add another egg and continue to mix.

2.  Repeat the process

3. Dust the walnuts with flour and add to the cake mix.

4. Add baking powder and mix it well.

5. Now divide the cake mixture into two equal portions. Add Cocoa powder to one portion and mix it well.

6. Dust your cake tin (9”) with flour and preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

7. Now alternately put a layer of the cocoa cake mix followed by the plain cake mix in the cake tin.

8. It takes normally 30-40 min in a normal oven at 200 degrees for the cake to be baked. Do check by putting a skewer in the middle before taking out the cake if it’s thoroughly cooked.

Happy Baking!

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Pickled potatoes

Pickled potatoes

This potato dish is from my friend Deepanjali’s kitchen. This is supposed to be a common dish in Nepali cuisine. It just takes 10 mins to prepare once you have all the ingredients ready. It is an excellent side dish for any dinner or lunch menu. The nutty taste along with the sesame flavour is quite addictive.

 Ingredients

Baby or small potatoes – 250 gms

White sesame seeds – 2 tbsp

Peanuts - handful

Kalonji seeds (onion seeds) – a few grains for tempering

Lemon juice – 2 tbsp

Mustard Oil – 3 tbsp to 4 tbsp

Green chillies – 3 to 4

Red chilli pdr – ½ tsp (optional)

   1.    Boil the potatoes but be careful in not making them mushy. They   should be firm but cooked.

2.   Roast the peanuts and sesame seeds and grind them to a fine powder.

3.   Mix the potatoes with roasted peanuts and sesame powder along with red chilli powder and green chillies.

4.   Heat mustard oil till it becomes translucent. Take it off heat. Temper with kalonji seeds and add the potatoes.

5.   Add the lemon juice.

6.   Garnish with coriander and onions.

 

 

 

 

diwali mela stall

Diwali Mela Stall!!

 



Vedant, Neel & Shruti, my able assistants

I never ever thought that I would be putting up a food stall that too in a diwali fair but life is full of unexpected turns and twists and I am glad that this opportunity came my way through a friend. Swati’s gentle push and my husband’s strong support made me foray into this unknown arena. It was a wonderful experience firstly because it was really satisfying to see people enjoying your food and secondly because everything was SOLD OUT!! My very able assistant Shruti was a wonderful salesperson and accountant and her enthusiasm won everyone over. I was selling doughnuts, choco lava cake, choco chip muffin, walnut marble cake and pizza. The marble cake and choco lava cake was a huge hit. The lesson I learnt from this experience was never shy away from anything.. if you really determine there is nothing that you cannot achieve.







 



















cake doughnuts in chocolate sauce

The men in my family love doughnuts, so I have been searching for a good recipe for quite a long time and finally got one from bakingabout.com. There are generally two types of doughnuts, cake doughnuts and raised doughnuts that are made from yeast. The recipe Iam sharing today is a cake doughnut. It is extremely easy to make.

Cake doughnuts.



without chocolate sauce

Ingredients

Flour – 2 cups and little extra

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Milk -1/4 cup

Sugar – 3tbsp

Butter – 3 tbsp

Egg- 1

Cinnamon pdr – ½ tsp

Oil -  for frying.

For dipping

Chocolate – ½ cup

Cream- ½ cup

 

1.    Mix together flour, baking pdr, sugar, cinnamon pdr in a mixing bowl. Take butter and mix it in this flour mixture until its comes to sand like grainy consistency.

2.   Now warm the milk.  

3.   Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add the milk and the beaten egg. Mix well. 

4.   At this time the dough will be quite sticky. Place the dough on your clean kitchen top and keep on adding little flour and mixing till the dough no longer sticks to your hands and you can shape it into a soft ball. 

5.   Though the original recipe doesnot say this but I rested the dough for about 20 mins. 

6.   Dust your kitchen top with flour and roll the dough into 1 inch thickness. If you have a doughnut cutter you can use it to cut the doughnut dough. I used one small bowl and a small bottle cap to cut into doughnut shapes. Do remember to dust the cutters with flour before cutting.

 

7.   Heat oil in pan for deep frying. Fry them till they are golden brown on both sides. Drain them on a paper towel and cool them to room temperature before dipping them in the chocolate sauce.

 

8.    For the sauce grate chocolate and put it in a microwave safe bowl for 10- 15 seconds on high power or till the chocolate melts.Add cream to the melted chocolate and microwave for 5 secs and the sauce is ready. 

 

9.   Dip the doughnuts in the chocolate sauce on one side and let it rest on wire rack for the excess chocolate to drain. If you are not a chocolate fan just sprinkle some icing sugar on the doughnut and its ready to be eaten!

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Mixed vegetables in moong dal

Bengali food is generally famous for its non vegetarian fare but most people don’t know that the vegetarian dishes that are prepared in Bengali kitchens are extremely tasty and are made with very holistic approach. Most of the vegetarian dishes are made without garlic and onion. These dishes bring back very fond memories of childhood especially of Durga Puja. A Bengali will not start his lunch or dinner without a generous helping of dal(pulses) and vegetables.. Today’s recipe is quite a common dish in Bengali households. Mixed vegetables in moong dal

 Ingredients

Split Moong dal or dhuli moong dal – 100 gms

Pumpkin- 150 gms

Carrot –1

Beans- 10

Ginger- 1tsp (grated)

Green chilli – 2

Dry red chilli – 2

Panchphoran _ ½ tsp (mix of whole cumin, fenugreek, mustard seeds, nigella seeds & fennel seeds)

Dry bay leaf – 2

Salt – as per taste

Sugar – 1 tsp

Ghee or clarified butter – 1tsp (optional)

 

1.    Dry roast the split moong dal in a kadhai till they start turning golden. Add adequate water, salt and let it boil.

2.   In the meantime cut all the vegetables into small cubes.

3.   When the dal is done halfway, add the pumpkin and carrot cubes. Add the beans at a later stage so that it does not lose its colour and crunch.

4.   Add half of the grated ginger to the dal at this stage. You can add little water if required. Add sugar. The consistency should not be very thick and also not very runny. It should be somewhere in the middle.

5.   Once all the vegetables and dal is cooked take it off heat.

6.   Heat 2 tbsp oil in a separate pan to add the tempering. Add panchphoran, red chilli, bay leaf and the remaining ginger one by one. Now add the dal with vegetables to this and bring it to a boil. You can add the slit green chillies at this point.

7.   Heat ghee and add to the cooked dal. You can omit the ghee if you want to.

 

Hopefully you will relish this dish!

 

 

 

 

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Paneer and capsicum in red sea

I have been caught up in so many different things that I have been neglecting the blog for some time.  So today as soon as I made this dish I sat down to upload this without any further delay. This dish is a quick fix and is 100% vegetarian, prepared without garlic and onion. I call this dish Paneer and capsicum in red sea.



Ingredients


 Paneer  -- 200 gms

Capsicum – 2 to 3

Ginger – ½ tsp (grated)

Tomato puree – 4 to 5 tbsp

MSG – a pinch

Red chilli pdr – ½ tsp

Salt – as per taste

Sugar – ½ tsp

 

1.    Cut paneer into small cubes. Heat oil in pan and fry the paneer cubes slightly till they are golden brown on the sides. Take off from oil and drain on a paper napkin.

2.   Cut capsicum into thin strips.

3.   Add grated ginger to the oil. Add capsicum and saute for some time. Now add the sugar, salt and red chilli pdr and stir .

4.   Now add the tomato puree and stir fry till the oil separates from the side.

5.   Add MSG or ajinamoto .

6.   Now add the fried paneer cubes and softly mix it with the capsicum mixture in the pan.

7.   At this stage you can keep it dry and serve it just like that or you can add little water and make gravy, whichever way you prefer. It will taste good both ways.

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kacchakela or plantain koftas in gravy

The recipe Iam sharing today is a vegetarian dish commonly known in hindi as kacchakela or plantain koftas in gravy. It is filling and rich and a great option for  a vegetarian dish to serve in a  dinner party.

                                                                                                                      serves 3 to 4

 Ingredients

Plantain or raw banana – 2

Potatoes – 2

Onion – 2

Tomato -1

Garlic pods – 4 to 5

Curd – 3tsp

Flour -  2 tbsp

Red chilli powder – 1tsp (or as per taste)

Turmeric pdr – ½ tsp

Coriander pdr – ½ tsp

Green chilli – 1

Kasuri methi or dry fenugreek leaves – 1 tbsp

1.    Peel the raw bananas and potatoes and boil them till they are tender but not too mushy. Strain the vegetables and mash them to a fine consistency.

2.   Add flour to this mixture to absorb the moisture and to avoid the koftas breaking while frying. Thinly dice half the onion and add to the banana and potato mash. Add thinly sliced green chilli, crushed fenugreek leaves, carom seeds and salt. Mix them thoroughly and shape into small balls.

3.   Deep fry these balls or koftas till they are golden brown from all sides. Drain them on a paper towel.

4.   For the gravy you need to heat oil in a pan. Make a paste of the remaining onion, tomato, garlic and add to the oil. Add turmeric, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt to the above mixture and sauté till the oil starts separating from sides.

5.   Now remove the pan from fire and add the curd and mix it thoroughly so that it does not curdle. Once it is mixed put it back on heat and continue stirring.

6.    Now add the remaining crushed fenugreek leaves and bring to a boil.

7.   Add the koftas and remove from flame. Garnish with coriander leaves.

It’s ready to eat!

Tip: Add the koftas only at the end and do not boil once you have put them in the gravy. If you are making it for a dinner party add the koftas to the gravy only before serving and let them stand in the gravy for a few minutes for the koftas to absorb the gravy.

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Fried Egg cubes in spicy curry

The last two weeks have been very hectic with lots of things to do throughout the day. As the summer break is over I feel like I have been bulldozed by homework’s and projects and early mornings that start with pushing my son out of bed to reach school on time. So I hardly got any time to write. But finally the mayhem has died and life has settled down to more monotonous routine and I have been able to steal a few moments to share this recipe. This is from my mother’s kitchen and one of her specialities and one of my favourites. This recipe is basically a different take on Egg curry... so I thought to name it Fried Egg Dumplings in spicy curry or Fried egg cubes in spicy curry

Eggs – 3

Potatoes – 2 (medium sized)

Onion – 2

Tomatoes – 2

Garlic pods – 5 to 6

Ginger paste – ¼ tsp

Coriander powder – 1tsp

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Red chilli powder – ½ tsp or as per your taste

Garam masala pdr – 1tsp

Green chilli – 2

Salt - as per taste

1.    Boil the potatoes and mash them nicely. Add two lightly beaten eggs to the mashed potatoes. Dice one onion and the green chillies very finely and add to the mixture. Now add little salt (as per taste) to this and mix it really well.

2.   Grease a flat bottomed pan of medium size and put the egg mixture in this. Cover and steam till the mixture rises and comes to a firm consistency. Let it cool for some time.

3.   In the meantime make a paste of the tomatoes, garlic and the remaining onion.

4.   Cut the steamed egg mixture into diamond like shapes and don’t worry if you find some mixture sticking to the plate. Scrap them with a spoon and make similar shapes with your hand.

5.   Now break the last egg and beat it lightly. Dip these steamed egg cubes into the beaten egg and fry them till they are golden on all sides. Be careful not to let the oil to be too hot or these dumplings have a tendency of burning fast.

6.   Keep these fried dumplings aside till the curry is complete.

  7.   For the curry, heat oil in a pan add the onion and tomato paste. Add turmeric powder, ginger paste, coriander pdr, red chilli pdr and sauté for some time. Add salt. Once the oil starts leaving the side of the pan add 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Now add the fried dumplings and garam masala. Garnish with coriander leaves.

         8.    Serve hot with rice or roti.

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Bhutanese dish - pork ema dashi

 The next Bhutanese dish is known as Pork Ema Dashi. This is a fermented cheese based dish. Since this cheese is only found in Bhutan you can replicate this dish by using Feta cheese. The lady in whose restaurant at Paro we had this dish said they use both processed and fermented cheese. I used only processed cheese and it came out quite nice.

 PORK EMA DASHI

Pork – 250gms

Potato – 1 (medium size)

Green chilli – 7to 8 (depending on your taste)

Garlic pods – 6 to 7

Capsicum – 1

Amul processed cheese – 70 gms

Onion – 1

 1.    Cut pork into medium sized pcs. Heat a thick bottomed pan and add a glass and a half of water to it. Now add the pork pcs and 2 to 3 pods of garlic to the water. Boil till the pork pcs are tender. You can add more water if need be.

2.   Cut the potato into small cubes and just before the pork pcs become tender add them. If added in the beginning the potatoes might get mushy and the gravy will also thicken up too much.

3.   Make a paste of green chillies and remaining garlic pods and add to the stew.

4.   Dice the onions finely and also add to the above stew.

5.   Now add the cheese and stir till it melts and the gravy starts thickening.

6.   Add thin strips of capsicum before taking it off the heat.

Serve it with plain rice and it is yummmmy!!

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Bhutanese pork dishes

This week I am going to share two wonderful recipes that I stumbled across my trip to The Land of Thunder Dragon or commonly known as Bhutan. It was one of the most memorable trip of my life. Bhutan is a paradise for non vegeteranians. Especially the winter dried pork and beef slices are to die for. My partner in crime was my good friend Deepanjali who is also a foodie like me and so I would like to dedicate this chapter of chilli garlic & me to her. The people of Bhutan are very gentle and simple just like their dishes. The first recipe is known as Pork Sikampa. Well this is not the original recipe but my adaptation of the same and it tasted as heavenly as the original one.

PORK SIKAMPA

Very thinly sliced pork pcs (along with the fat) – 10 pcs

Garlic powder – 1tsp

Red chilli flakes – 3 tsp or as per your taste

Paprika powder – 1tsp

Garlic pods – 3

Dark soya sauce

Capsicum – 1

Salt – as per taste

1.    Marinate the pork pcs with the garlic powder, red chilli flakes and a dash of soya sauce for 10 mins.

2.   Heat a non-stick fry pan and add the pork pcs to the pan. They start sizzling within a few seconds. Turn sides only when one side is nicely caramelised.

3.   When both the sides of the pork pcs are nicely caramelised add the garlic pods and the paprika pdr and sauté for few mins. Season with salt.

4.   Cut capsicum into thin slices and add to the pork just before taking it off heat.

5.   Serve hot with pickled onions.

It is quite a spicy dish but you can use your own variation of chilli or paprika powder to suite your taste buds. You can also put in thin slices of radish to this which also tastes quite nice.

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Mango Relish Panna cotta

Mangoes are in season and anywhere you go you will find people buying and selling mangoes. So I thought why not a dessert to cool of the summer heat with a summer fruit. Today’s recipe is Mango Relish Panna cotta. It’s quite simple and easy to make..

                                                        Serves – 6 to 8               

Mango (not very ripe) -2

Mango (ripe) -   1

Roasted Fennel seeds – 1tbsp

Dry Red chilli – 1

Sugar – 2 ½ cups (or as per your taste)

Milk – 500ml

Fresh Cream – 300 ml

Fruit essence – 2 drops

Gelatin – 5 tsp

Oil – 1 tbsp

!. Take the unripe mango and grate it. Heat oil in a pan and add ½ tsp fennel seeds and the red chilli. Once the fennel seeds and the red chilli start to change colour add the grated mangoes and sauté for some time. Now add 1 cup sugar to the pan and continue stirring till the sugar dissolves and you get a jam like consistency. You can also add a pinch of red chilli powder to get that kick of sweet sour and a hint of chilli but it is optional.

2. In the meantime cut the ripe mango into small pieces and store for later. Mix the gelatine in cold water and let it stand for 10min.

3. In a pan add the milk and the remaining sugar and bring to a boil. Stir continuously to avoid the sugar sticking to the pan. Now add the cream and the fennel seeds. Mix well and let it simmer for some time. Take it off the heat and add the fruit essence. Now add the gelatine to the milk and cream mixture and stir it nicely. Let it cool.

4. In a glass or small bowl first put a layer of the mango chutney and then add a layer of the milk mixture. Add a few pcs of mango to the milk. Top it with a layer of mango chutney and a dollop of whipped cream.

It not only looks heavenly but tastes heavenly too!

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