Bachelor's Egg Curry ( 1 tsp Oil Calorie Recipe Series )

 IMP - Bachelor's Egg Curry is an original recipe created by the blogger and has been published for the first time on oriyarasoi.com.


During the years spent as a bachelor, I have stayed at quite a few rented places. The furnished ones are always the first preference for most of us but sadly very few of them live up to their claims. A majority of the owners make it a point to provide the basic stuff and leave out small but useful appliances . A mixer-grinder is one such item that most flat owners like to classify as a luxury. While it is totally possible to cook a meal without using one, we Indians are suckers for curries steeped in onion-ginger-garlic gravy. But is it possible to make a decent gravy without the use of a mixer-grinder ?

Yes, it is entirely possible. As with a majority of our inventions (that we so lovingly label as 'jugaad'), this gravy was born out of necessity. I learnt to stir up a mean gravy without using any appliances and that too in record time. And it was made possible by the use of a pressure cooker !! Plus, the entire process helped me to cut down on the quantity of oil that I used to put in my curries.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 15 mins

Ingredients -

• 2 eggs
• 1 small onion
• 1 medium tomato
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 2 cloves
• 1 green cardamom
• 1 inch cinnamon 
• 1 dry red chili
• 2 pinch cumin seeds
• 2 pinch red chili powder
• 1 pinch garam masala
• 1/2 tsp kasuri methi
• 2 tsp chopped cilantro
• 2 pinch turmeric
• salt to taste
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 bay leaf (optional)

Preparation - Peel and cut the onion into 4 pieces. Chop the ginger and garlic into small pieces.

Transfer to a pressure cooker along with 1 cup water.  Add the remaining whole spices and tomato.

Close the lid and cook for 2-3 whistles on medium flame.

Drain the water into a cup and remove the cloves, cinnamon and cardamom. Crush the remaining ingredients with a back of a heavy spoon.

Cooking - Heat 1 tsp oil in a wok. Add the cumin and bay leaf.

Once the cumin seeds start spluttering, add the turmeric powder. Immediately add the onion-tomato paste.

Cook for 5 mins. Add the chili powder, garam masala and kasuri methi along with the saved water.

Bring to a boil. Break the eggs gently and add most of the whites to the curry. Stir the curry gently for about a minute.

Once they are cooked, add the yolks and close with a lid. Let it simmer gently for 2 minutes if you like them runny inside. Else cook for 2-3 mins more.

Garnish with cilantro.

Serve hot with rotis/phulkas or even some white rice.

Sri Lankan Egg Curry

"Why egg curry ?", asked my husband."Why not egg curry ? Eggs are wonderfully delicious and they also contain a bit of almost every nutrient that we need. And they actually help us lose weight as they are incredibly filling. Plus they  provide protection from eye disease, blood clots, strokes, heart attacks, and promotes healthy skin and hair", I replied back. Argument won, we had a comforting egg curry and white rice for lunch.

Even if I were to ignore the above health benefits, I would still go for eggs. An egg curry seems special when compared to any vegetarian fare yet it is somehow comforting than any non vegetarian preparation. For me and lots of other folks, egg do not fall into the 'strictly non vegetarian' category. And I know for sure that almost everyone enjoys a good egg curry. Here is a simple Sri Lankan style egg curry recipe that I picked up from the internet and modified it a bit . Yeah you guessed it right...it is the Peter Kuruvita effect !!!

Read on -

Preparation Time - 25 mins

Ingredients -

• 2 eggs 
• 1 small onion
• 1 small tomato
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 tsp Sri Lankan Curry powder
• 1/5 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1 pandan leaf
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1 green chili
• 3 tsp oil
• salt to taste
• cilantro for garnishing

For curry powder -

• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 3 cardamon pods
• 2-3 dry red chilis
• Sprig of curry leaves
• 1 1/2 inch long cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon rice
• 1 tsp turmeric powder

Preparation - Heat a frying pan. Add all other spices (except for turmeric) mentioned under 'For curry powder' and roast till they give off their fragrance.

Remove from flame and allow to cool down. Grind into a fine powder and mix turmeric with it. Since this is more than what you need for the curry, keep the rest of it in an air-tight bottle in the fridge.

Boil the eggs for 10 mins. Immerse them in cold water for a minute, crack them and remove their shells.

Chop the onion into medium sized pieces and the tomato into smallest possible bits.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a wok. Pierce the eggs with a fork and add to the wok. Sprinkle a little salt and fry then for 3-4 mins till they turn brown on all over. Remove and keep aside.

Add the onions to the same wok and fry till translucent. Add the turmeric, chili powder and sri lankan curry powder and fry for a minute.

Add the tomatoes and cook till mushy.

Add the coconut milk along with 1/2 cup water. Throw in curry leaves, slit green chili and pandan leaf. Add salt and bring it to a boil.

Add the eggs and cover with a lid. Let it simmer for 6-7 mins.

Remove from the wok and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serve hot with white rice.

Note - Sri Lankan egg curry is traditionally served with Idiyappam.

Anda Tarkari ( Odisha style Egg curry)

Egg Curry is one of my favorites right from the childhood days. Since half of the family members were vegetarian by choice, egg used to be the most preferred non-veg ingredient unless we had guests coming over. And after I got married, I discovered that it is not only tasty but also easy to prepare. Luckily, I was able to convince my hard-core non-vegetarian husband into trying it out. But not without it's share of drama. But all's well that ends well. My efforts paid off for now he is a fan of the humble yet flavorsome Egg curry.

Read on for the recipe -

Cooking Time Required: 25-30 mins

Ingredients:

• 4 Eggs
• 1 large potato
• 2 medium sized onion
• 1 large tomato
• 1 inch ginger 
• 8-9 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander
• 2 dry red chillis
• 2 inch long cinnamon
• 2-3 cloves
• 2 green cardamom
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 pinch garam masala powder 
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 4 tsp oil
• salt to taste
• 1 tsp sugar

Preparation: Take a pan of water. Add the eggs along with a 1 tsp vinegar (keeps the eggs from cracking during boiling) and boil for 8-10 mins. Remove from fire and allow to cool.Break open and remove the shell.

Grind the onions, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, ginger, garlic, red chillis, cinnamon, bay leaves, cloves and cardamon into a fine paste along with a little water.

Make a puree out of the tomato.

Cooking: Heat 2 tsp of oil in a wok. Add a pinch of turmeric and the eggs. Fry till eggs turn reddish brown. Remove from wok and keep aside.

Cut the potatoes into long slices/cubes and add to the wok. Stir fry till it turns golden brown. Remove from wok and keep aside.

Pour the remaining oil into the wok. Add the sugar and wait for it to turn a little brown.

Add the masala paste along with salt (helps in cooking faster) and keep stirring at regular intervals till the raw smell goes off.

Follow with the pureed tomato.  Add 3-4 cups of water to the paste and bring to a boil.

Add the fried eggs and potatoes and boil for 5-10 mins. Sprinkle garam masala on top and remove from fire.

Serve hot with either rice or roti.