Chettinad Chicken

I did it. Chettinad Chicken has been on my 'To-Do' list for the longest possible time. And I had kept on procrastinating till i ran out of gravy chicken recipes. A quick look at my drafts revealed quite a few recipes that I had bookmarked for sometime. And the first one happened to be this rich and delectable South indian style curry.

Chettinad happens to be a part of the state of Tamil Nadu and it is quite known for its rich and aromatic cuisine. A flourishing traders community known as the 'Chettiars' are attributed with the distinct 'Chettinad Cuisine'. The famous saying in South India 'One is lucky to eat like a Chettiar' bears testimony to the rich culinary heritage of this region. And Chettinad Chicken happens to be one of the more (if not the most) famous non-vegetarian recipes from this region. Read on:

Preparation Time - 50 mins - 1 hr

Ingredients -1/2 kg skinless chicken, 1 large onion + 1 medium sized onion, 1 large tomato, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp lime juice, 5 tsp oil, 2 tsp ginger garlic paste, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, salt to taste, chopped coriander for the garnish.

For the masala - 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp coriander seeds, 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, 1 tbsp poppy seeds, 2 red chillis, 1 tsp peppercorns, 1/2 inch cinnamon, 2 cloves, 1 green cardamon, 1 petal of star anise, 1 petal of mace, 1 pinch nutmeg, 3 tbsp freshly grated coconut.

Preparation - Marinate the chicken with salt, turmeric and lime juice. Keep aside for 1-2 hours.

Cut the onion into thin slices. Chop the tomato into small pieces.

Cooking - Dry roast all the masalas except for star anise, mace, nutmeg and coconut. (Better to roast each masala/spice separately till it gives off its distinct fragrance but if one is running short of time roast them together taking care not to burn any of it.)

Dry roast the coconut separately. Allow all the roasted masalas and coconut to cool down. Then combine and grind into a coarse powder. Add the ginger garlic paste to this powder.

Heat the oil in a wok. Add curry leaves and sliced onions. Fry on low flame till onion turns light brown.

Add the masala paste along with nutmeg, mace and star anise. Fry for 3 minutes.

Add the tomato pieces with chilli powder and a little salt. Cook till tomatoes turn tender and start to leave oil.

Add the chicken pieces. Cook covered on medium to high flame for 5-6 minutes,stirring once or twice in between.

Add 1 to 1 1/2 cups of boiling water to the chicken. Simmer for 5-6 minutes or till the chicken pieces are tender.

Switch off flame and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with paratha/appam or even white rice.

Note - I used only 2/3 of the total ground masala as i find it rather spicy. But u can modify the quantity of masala as per taste.

Khol Rabi Rasam

Rasam happens to be among those 'once in a blue moon' recipes that find a place in our menu. While it has its own unique taste, i find myself cooking more of  'kanji' /'khatta' varieties as they include at least one or more vegetables. Even when i made this rasam, I could not stop myself from adding some 'Kholrabi' to it.
The flavor turned out to be quite different from the usual tomato rasam/lemon rasam i had tried earlier.

While I like to have rasam just by itself and hence add very little of the rasam powder, please add more than double the quantity I have mentioned if having it with rice. Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Ingredients - 1 medium sized khol rabi, a fistful of toor dal, 1 medium sized tomato, 1 tsp tamarind paste, 1 sprig curry leaves, 2 garlic flakes, 1 tsp rasam powder, 2 dry red chillis, 1/2 tsp mustard seeds, 2 pinch asafoetida, 2 pinch pepper powder, pinch of turmeric, salt to taste, 2 tsp oil, coriander for garnishing (optional).

Preparation - Dissolve the rasam powder and tamarind in 1/2 cup water. Keep aside.

Cut the tomato into large chunks and de-seed them.

Cooking - Wash and transfer the toor dal to a pressure cooker. Cut the khol rabi into big chunks and add to the pressure cooker. Add 1 1/2 cups of water along with salt to taste and turmeric. 

Cook for 2 whistles. Allow steam to escape before opening lid. Remove the Khol rabi pieces and mash the dal.

Heat oil in a wok. Add broken red chilli, mustard seeds, crushed garlic and curry leaves. Add the asafotida.

Add the tomato with a little salt. Cook till it softens. Add 1 cup boiling water.

Add the rasam powder and tamarind mixture. Bring to boil and allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Add the mashed dal and khol rabi pieces along with pepper powder. Allow to simmer for 6-7 minutes.

Serve hot with rice.

Schezwan Chicken Recipe

Another Indo-Chinese fusion recipe from my kitchen . Read on:

Ingredients:
For marinate : Boneless chicken pieces ( 30a0 gm ), egg white( 1 no ), cornflour ( 1 tsp ), maida ( 1 tsp ), vinegar ( 1/2 tsp), soya sauce ( 1 tsp ), fish sauce ( 1/3 tsp), finely cut garlic ( 1 tsp, heaped ), salt.

For the saute : Capsicum ( 1 small ), carrot ( 1/2 of a small ), onion ( 1 small ), spring onions ( 1 tbsp, finely chopped), schezwan sauce ( 2-3 tsp), fish sauce ( 1 tsp ), soya sauce ( 1/2 tsp ), finely cut garlic ( 1 tsp ), pepper powder ( 1/4 tsp), salt, tomato sauce ( 1 tsp ), cornflour ( 1 tsp), oil ( 3 tsp ).

For deep frying : oil .

Preparation: Mix all the ingredients for marination in a large bowl. Keep aside for 2 hours.

Cut the capsicum, carrot and onion into long strips.

Cooking: Heat sufficient oil in wok for deep frying the chicken.

Add the chicken pieces in small batches. Lower the flame. Fry for 3-4 mins.
Remove from wok and keep aside.

Mix the cornflour with 4-5 tbsp water so that no lumps remain.

Heat 3 tsp of oil in a wok. Add the schezwan sauce. Saute for 2 mins.

Add the cornstarch paste and stir till it starts thickening.

Add the fried chicken along with tomato sauce, soya sauce, fish sauce and garlic. Fry on high flame for 2-3 mins.

Add all the vegetables. Sprinkle pepper powder and a pinch of salt. Toss it well. (Add a few teaspoons of water if it is too dry or sticking to the pan )

Serve hot as an appetizer or even a side dish.

Happy Saraswati Puja!!

Happy Saraswati Puja to All!!

Goddess Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom and learning is being worshiped by Oriya folks (especially the students) with much fervor on this day. The traditional prasad offered on this day is the 'Chuda Ghasa', prepared with flattened/beaten rice, ghee, coconut and sugar/jaggery. (Some cucumber/banana/apple slices can also be added if it is to be consumed immediately)

Come join in the celebrations!!!!

Mula Khatta

With the onset of winters, one finds a whole lot of varieties of khatta, ambila and kanji being introduced in the menu of most Odiya households. Vegetables like elephant apple, indian olives and star fruit are abundantly available in the local markets and find a place in any feast happening around this time of the year.

As I have always maintained, Oriya food transcends the need to merely satisfy the 'jivha' and focuses on the appeasement of the 'jiva'. Hardly any surprise then that this kind of diet mirrors the ancient Ayurvedic wisdom which states that one should partake sweet, sour and spicy food during the winters to balance out the 'dosas', especially the 'Vata' dosa. Since winters is considered to be the time when the digestive system is at its strongest, it calls for a heavy or high calorific diet else the body may burn its fat reserves and create a 'Vata' dosa (when the fat reserves fall below the minimum required limit ).

'Mula', 'mooli' or radish is essentially a winter vegetable. While it is quite liked in the stir-fried form (bhaja), it is also added to many oriya preparations like 'dalma', 'kanji', 'ambila' and 'ghanta'. It is also prepared into a sweet-sour preparation referred to as 'khatta'. Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 25 mins

Ingredients - 1 large radish, 2 large tomatoes, 2 dry red chillis, 1 sprig curry leaves, 3-4 tbs yogurt, 1/2 tsp mustard paste, 1/4 tsp mustard seeds, 5-6 garlic flakes, 2 pinch asafoetida, 2 tsp oil, 1/5 tsp turmeric, salt to taste.

Preparation - Chop the radish into thick slices. Transfer to a pressure cooker along with 1 cup water and cook for 1 whistle (on medium). Once steam escapes. open the lid. Drain off excess water.

Chop the tomato into 4 halves each.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a wok. Add the mustard seeds, broken red chillis, curry leaves and asafoetida.
Follow with the crushed garlic flakes.Fry for 30 seconds.

Add the tomatoes along with salt and turmeric. Cook till it turns into a paste.

Lower the flame, and add the yogurt and mustard paste. Stir for 2-3 minutes.

Add 3 cups water and bring to a boil. Add the boiled radish at this stage. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve hot/cold with rice, dal and veggies.

Oats Uttapam

Another oats recipe from my kitchen. While I have been constantly raving about how to incorporate oats in one's breakfast, I do not like the almost insipid oats porridge (what even flavor it may be) on an everyday basis. So I try and add to the regular breakfast items like dosa, upma, pongal or even khichdi. The latest victim of my experimentation has been the 'Uttapam'.

I have given it another twist my topping it with cherry tomatoes, cheese and some Italian seasoning. Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 10 mins

Ingredients - 1 cup regular uttapam batter, 1 cup quick cooking oats, 1 medium sized onion, 6-8 cherry tomatoes, 6-8 pear tomatoes, grated cheese, chilli flakes, mixed herbs seasoning, 3 tsp oil, salt to taste.

Preparation - Mix the oats into the regular batter and keep aside for 5-6 mins.

Chop the onions into small pieces. Cut the tomatoes into two.

Cooking - Heat a non-stick frying pan. Season with a few drops of oil ( or use an oil spray instead ).

Pour 1/3 of the batter onto the pan and do not spread it too much. ( The batter does spread on its own. But if you think that its too thick, just spread it a bit more. )

Put the onions and tomatoes over it. Sprinkle chilli flakes, seasoning and a little bit of salt. Layer on the grated cheese.

Cover with a lid and let it cook through.

Flip over and cook on the other side for 1 minute. Remove from pan.

Serve hot with coconut chutney / ketchup.

Mutton Dalma

Dalma or dal cooked with vegetables has the traditional image of being a fasting day 'Osa-bara' recipe. While this simple dish is equally tasty and healthy, it just does not feature regularly in our meals due to the mindset associated with it. The fact that it is little bland also contributes to its getting looked over.

But the introduction of a non-vegetarian ingredient can really work wonders to get this dish right back on the dinner tables. No more agonizing over whether to cook veg or non-veg for a meal (especially dinners as that is when most family get a chance to come together). A medley of pulses, vegetables and meat seems like a fantastic one-pot meal solution ( of course with some rice/ rotis thrown in ) for all our nutritional needs.

Read on:

Preparation Time - 30 mins

Ingredients - 1 cup roasted split moong dal, 1/2 cup cubed green papaya, 1/2 cup cubed pumpkin, 1 medium sized potato cubed, 1 medium sized tomato cubed, 1 medium sized onion, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp mustard seeds, 2/3 tsp jeera lanka gunda (roasted cumin-chilli powder), 2 green chilli, 1/3 tsp turmeric, 1/4 tsp garam masala powder, 1 bay leaf, 3 tsp oil, salt to taste.

For the mutton marinade- 6-7 small mutton pieces, 1 tsp cooking oil, 1/2 inch cinnamon, 1 small green cardamon, 5-6 peppercorns, 1 dry red chilli, 2 pinch turmeric, salt to taste. ( Mix/rub everything together for 2-3 minutes. Allow to marinate for half hour.)

Cooking - Dry roast moong dal till it gives a sweet fragrance. Keep aside.

Cook the marinated mutton pieces (along with spices) in a pressure cooker till half done. Keep aside till steam escapes. Remove from the pressure cooker.

Add 1 1/2 tsp oil into the cooker. Add the chopped onion. Fry till light brown. Add the half-cooked mutton and stir fry for 3-4 mins.

Add all the vegetables along with the washed moong dal. Add salt, turmeric and 3 cups water. Close the lid and cook for 1-2 whistles.

Allow steam to escape before opening lid.

Prepare the tempering. Heat oil in a tadka pan. Add the bay leaf, cumin, mustard and broken green chillis. Once it starts spluttering , pour over the contents of cooker. Add the garam masala. Boil for 3-4 mins. Add the roasted cumin-chilli powder and remove from flame.

Serve with rice/paratha .

Chocolate-Honey Cake

This is one of Nigella's heavenly looking cakes that I had been eyeing for sometime. I guess the way she waxes eloquent about them only adds up to ones' expectations. 'So..it is just a modified version of a chocolate cake' most folks would be thinking. But it is tough to conjure up the right words to describe what the honey bit ( well actually a lot of it ) does to this cake. I can only say that its pure unadulterated pleasure . The gooey sauce that is poured over it only makes it more sinful. And the bees just add to its mystique. It has got everything to be that 'made for a special occasion' cake.

Having been out of practice for quite sometime ( around 5 months), I ended up over-filling(more than 2/3rd) the baking tin as I could not find my usual measuring cups. Had to deal with a real mess as it overflowed and was all over the oven floor. Moreover the top got a little too dark as i forgot to cover it with a foil after the cake had done its rising. Finally, as i did not have the honeycomb baking tin, I resorted to cutting off the edges of a round cake to give it the desired shape. Not finding my usual serrated knife, i cut it with a regular one that resulted in some chipping on the sides. Felt really bad when the sides did not look as clean as I had visualized. Moreover, I painted the bees when the sauce was still a bit warm and hence it ended up spreading a bit (Please keep these in mind before trying out the cake). Have to admit that it did dampen my spirits a bit but the first bite itself made me forget everything.

Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 1 hour 30 mins

Ingredients -
For the cake - 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 2/3 cup honey, 1 cup dark chocolate pieces, 3 eggs, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp fruit salt ( i used ENO), 1 tsp cocoa powder, 1/2 tsp coffee, 1/2 - 1 cup boiling water.

For the gooey sauce - 1/2 cup honey, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup dark chocolate pieces, 1/3 cup powdered sugar.

For the honey bees - Marzipan, almond flakes.

Preparation - Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler. Allow it to come down to room temperature.

Beat the sugar and butter till light and fluffy. Add the honey and mix well.

Break the 3 eggs in another bowl and whisk them up till soft peaks can be formed.
Add the eggs to the butter-sugar mixture, a little at a time. Stir in 1-2 tsp of the flour into the batter.
Once all the eggs are incorporated into the batter, add the melted chocolate.

Mix the flour, cocoa powder, coffee, baking powder and fruit salt in a separate bowl.
Sift in the flour mixture into the batter, a little at a time. Do not beat too much, just gently stir it in.

Finally add the boiling water, a few teaspoons at a time. Check that the mixture does not get too runny.

Cooking - Pre-heat a oven to 180 degrees.
Grease a baking tin with butter. Sift in some flour over it.

Pour the batter into the tin and put into the oven. Bake at 175 degrees till the cake is done. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.( Took about 40 mins for mine.)

Remove the cake from the tin while it is still warm. Allow to cool down completely before pouring the sauce over it.

For the sauce - Bring water and honey to boil. Add the dark chocolate pieces and stir in gently. Switch off flame. The heat is sufficient to melt the chocolate. Add the powdered sugar and beat to remove any lumps. One should get a silky texture sauce. Allow it to stand till it is just warm to touch.

Pour the sauce carefully over the cake. It does get a little drippy and messy. (But you are welcone to lick it off...and trust me, you will only be too happy doing it.)

Shape the bees out of the marzipan. Take a toothpick and paint their face and stripes with the remaining chocolate sauce. Stick in the almond flakes to give them wings. Position the over the cake.

Chocolate-Honey cake is now ready to be served. (Anybody fancy eating a fat honeybee????)

[ Note -All ingredients should be at room temperature. A have used a low sugar dark chocolate. If you are using a normal one, do reduce the quantity of sugar added to the batter/sauce. Also keep the consistency of the honey in mind while adding water.]

How to make Vegan Marzipan @ home ??

Marzipan is a confection consisting primarily of sugar or honey and almond meal, sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract. It is often made into sweets; common uses are marzipan-filled chocolate and small marzipan imitations of fruits and vegetables. It is also rolled into thin sheets and glazed for icing cakes, primarily birthday and wedding cakes and Christmas cake. [Source: Wiki]

While some marzipan recipes make use of the egg white instead of water, I preferred this simple vegan recipe: It can be used it as a substitute for fondant in some cases. Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 10 mins

Ingredients - 1 cup almonds, 1 cup powdered/castor sugar, coloring agent as desired.

Preparation - Boil water in a saucepan. Add the almonds and boil for 1 minute.
Drain off the hot water and add cold water. Allow to stand for 2-3 mins.

Drain off water. Now you can remove the skins easily. (The above steps are usually referred to as blanching)

Take the almonds in a food processor and grind into a powder (almond meal). Do not overdo else the almond meal releases its natural oils and it starts sticking to the sides of the jar.

Take the almond meal and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl. Add water ( if using any color, add it to the water), a few drops at first and then more if needed. The ingredients should come together into a tight dough.

Take the dough and work/knead if further on a clean working surface to remove any lumps.

Shape it as desired or roll out into a thin layer to cover your cake.

Store it for up to 1 week (rolled in a thin film and put in a airtight container). But remember to bring it to room temperature before working it.

[ I have painted the marzipan figurines in the above picture with chocolate sauce ]

Mutton Ghuguni ( Mutton and Yellow Peas Curry )

Mutton curry and  ghuguni(yellow peas curry) both have a cult following in Orissa. The two dishes cannot be more different from each other and yet are equally delectable. So it is little wonder that they had to come together and create yet another delicious recipe.

Mutton fat or 'Charbi' is usually added to ghuguni to improve its flavor while keeping the costs low, I preferred adding mutton pieces instead. This is my way of cutting back on my meat intake as one would have fewer pieces of meat in a ghuguni as compared to a full fledged mutton curry. One can serve this with roti, paratha, chakuli or even rice.

Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time: 40-50 mins

Ingredients: Mutton pieces ( 200 gm ), yellow peas (200 gm), potato ( 1 medium sized one ), tomato ( 1 medium), onion ( 1 medium), ginger-garlic paste ( 1 tsp), cumin seeds (1/5 tsp), cumin powder (1/3 tsp), coriander powder (1/3 tsp), chilli powder ( 1/2 tsp), garam masala powder (1/5 tsp), meat masala ( 1/3 tsp), oil (2 tsp), coriander leaves, turmeric powder, salt to taste.

For the mutton marinade - 1 small onion (chopped) , 2 green chillis, 1/2 inch cinnamon, 1 small green cardamon, 1 tsp mustard oil, 1/4 tsp turmeric, salt to taste.

Preparation: Soak the yellow peas for about 8 hours. Wash and put in a cooker along with potato, salt and turmeric powder. Cook for 1 whistle. Open when steam escapes and remove the potato.

Marinate the mutton pieces with all the ingredients for the marinade for 1 hour. Cook or 2-3 whistles or till it is sixty-seventy percent done. Transfer this to the pressure cooker containing the boiled peas. Cook together for another 1-2 whistle . Allow the steam to escape before opening lid.

Cut the onion and tomato into small pieces. Peel the potato and cut into medium sized cubes.

Cooking: Heat oil in a deep vessel. When it starts smoking, add the cumin seeds and bay leaf. Wait till it splutters, and then add onion pieces. Fry the onion for about 2-3 mins and then add ginger-garlic paste.

Cook for 2-3 mins, then add the potato pieces ,tomatoes, salt and turmeric powder. Fry for about 5 mins. Add the cumin powder, coriander powder, meat masala and chilli powder.

Cook for 1-2 mins. Add the contents of the pressure cooker. Mix and cook on high flame for 4-5 minutes. Add boiling water, check the salt (add more if needed) and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

Stir in the garam masala and remove from fire. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Egg Butter Masala ( Low calorie version )

Chicken Butter Masala happens to be one of the most popular Indian chicken dishes. I guess if the Tandoori chicken wins first place in any popularity contest, the butter masala would be considered as a close second. Whenever I invite any friends who do not eat chicken, I feel rather sorry at not being able to serve them this wonderful dish. That is what egged me to recreate the magic of Chicken Butter Masala with eggs (Yeah ...everyone loves eggs). And it turned out to be a winner.

You can use fresh cream if you like but I have added low-fat milk instead of water to add richness to the gravy. Keeping a close check on the calories these days. Read on for the recipe:

Preparation Time - 30 minutes

Ingredients - 4 eggs, 2 big onions, 2 small/medium tomatoes, 2 tsp ginger garlic paste, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1 big cardamon, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder, 1/3 tsp turmeric, salt to taste, 3 tsp oil, 1 tbsp butter, 7-8 cashews, a fistful of raisins, 1 cup skim/low-fat milk.

Preparation - Soak the cashews and raisins for 3-4 hours.
Grind into a smooth paste.

Roughly chop the onions and tomatoes.

Cooking - Heat 1 1/2 tsp of oil in a wok. Add the roughly chopped onions. Fry on low flame till you can see brown spots. This indicates that caramelization has started and the onions turn sweet.

At the same time, heat sufficient water in a saucepan. Add the eggs and boil for 12-15 minutes. Allow to cool down a bit and remove the shells.

Remove the onions from the wok and allow to cool a bit. Grind into a smooth paste.

Add the boiled eggs along with a pinch of turmeric to the wok. Fry to a golden color. Remove and keep aside (You can skip this step if you wish)

Add the remaining oil and butter to the wok. Once it is hot enough, add the cumin seeds and big cardamon. Fry for 30 seconds and remove the cardamon as it tends to overpower the other flavors.

Add onion paste and fry for 2 mins. Add GG paste and fry for 3-4 minutes.

Add the roughly chopped tomatoes with salt, turmeric and red chilli powder. Fry till oil separates from the paste.

Add the cashews and raisins paste and cook for 2 mins. The raisins add sweetness to this curry hence i have skipped sugar. If not using raisins add 1 1/2 tsp sugar.

Slowly stir in the milk and bring to a boil. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Make small cuts into the eggs and add to the curry. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Switch off flame.

Serve hot with rotis/phulkas or rice. (I like to have it with both)