Monday 15 February 2016

Maggi Noodles with Veggies and Eggs...

Maggi Noodles with Veggies and Eggs... 
It is a all time favourite dish of many. My husband claims that he lived on Maggi during his collage days, my daughter can have Maggi any time of the day. For me it is quick and easy to cook. I have cooked it in a desi way with Veggies and Eggs and seasoned it with Madras Curry powder.. 

Ingredients 
4 pieces of Veg Maggi Noodles
4 Eggs
1/4 cup of each Vegetables chopped 
Carrot
Capsicum 
French beans 
Cauliflower or Broccoli 
Onion
Tomato
1 tsp Garlic chopped
1 tsp Green chillies chopped
2 tsp Curry powder
2 Maggi Masala sachets
Salt to taste 
1 tbsp Oil
1 tbsp Butter 
Few Coriander Leaves chopped for garnishing 


Method
Take a wok, add oil and butter. Let the butter melt. Add the garlic and chillies. Sauté it for a minute, add the onions. Sauté it till brown in colour. Add the vegetables one by one and stir it, add the curry powder, Maggi masala and salt. Stir it. Take Maggi, crush it and add it to the vegetables, stir it. Add 3 cup of water, stir it. Cover and cook, stirring in between  till it is done, and little water is left in the wok. Break the eggs on top, cover and cook till the eggs are done, switch off the flame and garnish it with coriander leaves.

Sunday 14 February 2016

Happy Valentine with Chocolate Strawberry Rose Cupcake...

Happy Valentine with Chocolate Strawberry Rose Cupcake...
Humorous Anniversary...❤️❤️
It was a small funny incident which happened 2 years back on my anniversary day, I had just woken up from my sleep, I saw my husband walking in side the room towards me, trying to tell me some thing and he was very excited.  I was in my own world. There was a big bunch in his hand which I though was a big bunch of roses, I very happily went to take it from in his hand and was wondering that in 18 years of our married life he never got me any surprise gifts, how come today he got roses that too early in the morning... I became very... very happy.  But no, it was not roses,  it was a big bunch of fenugreek leaves and spring onions which he had picked up on the way back after dropping our daughter to school. He wanted me to make Meethi Aloo for lunch... He loves to shop for vegetables and he loves to eat... So for Valentine's Day Strawberry roses for him...

Chocolate Strawberry Rose Cupcake
Strawberry filling
Ingredients
5 medium size strawberries  sliced
1/4  cup Sugar
1 tbsp Cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp Water

Method
Put the  strawberries in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly and cook for 5 minutes,  then add the sugar and cornstarch mix. Stir  4 to 5 minutes more until mixture thicken slightly. Remove from heat and allow it to cool.
Chocolate Strawberry Rose Cupcake  
Ingredients
1 cup All purpose Flour
2 tbsp Coco powder
1/2 cup Powder Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/2 cup Oil
2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 cup Milk + 1 tbsp Vinegar ( Mix)
    OR
1/2 cup Curd + 1/2 cup Milk ( Mix )
Any Frosting
6 Strawberry Roses
1 tbsp of Golden Sugar sprinkles

Method
In a large bowl sieve together flour, coco, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Keep it aside. Take oil and sugar. Beat it well till the sugar in cooperates with the oil. Add vanilla essence and Milk vinegar OR Milk Curd. Beat it once more. Add the flour mix 1/2 cup  at a time and beat it until  you get a thick batter. If the batter is too thick then add 1 or 2 tbsp milk. The batter should be thick dropping consistency. Arrange the cupcake liners. Fill in 2/3 rd of the cup cake liners. Bake at 180 degrees for 25 minutes or till done. Insert a toothpick and if it comes out clean it is done. Cool the cupcake completely. Make a hole in each cupcake in the centre  and spoon the strawberry filling in each. Pipe the frosting on the cupcakes. Decorate with strawberry rose and some golden sprinkles.

Saturday 13 February 2016

Roti Jala served with Pickled Chicken

Roti Jala served with Pickled Chicken 

Roti Jala is a traditional flat, net, lacy bread from Malaysia and is served with any curry. I have made Malaysian Pickled Chicken to go with Roti Jala. 

Roti Jala
Ingredients 
1 1/2 cups  All Purpose Flour
1 tetra pack Coconut Milk or more 
1 Egg Beaten
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder 
Melted Ghee for Brushing (Optional) 

Method 
Take a mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and turmeric powder, mix it. Add the egg and coconut milk little at a time and whisk in to a thin batter. Heat a frying pan. Keep the flame on low heat and brush the pan lightly with ghee. Drizzle the batter from a squeeze bottle on the pan to create a net pattern. Cook until it is  light golden on the base. Turn and lightly cook the other side, take it out on a plate and repeat with remaining batter. When cool, fold roti in to half from both the sides and then roll from the other end. Serve with pickled chicken. 

Pickled Chicken 

For the Ground Spices 
Ingredients 
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tbsp Coriander seeds
10 Cloves
2 Cardomom 
1 small stick Cinnamom 
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 
1/4 tsp Nutmeg powder

Method 
Dry roast all the above ingredients except Turmeric and Nutmeg. Cool the ingredients, add the turmeric powder and nutmeg and grind it into a fine powder. 

For Marinating the Chicken 
Ingredients 
10 medium size Chicken pieces
Spice powder
Salt to taste

Method
Mix all the above ingredients in a mixing bowl and marinate it for 1 hour. 

For the Wet Spices 
Ingredients 
2 Onions cut into thick slices
1 tsp Ginger chopped
1 tsp Garlic 
1 Lemon Grass Stalk chopped 
5 Red Dry Chillies soaked in water

Method 
 In a blender blend chillies, onions, ginger, garlic and lemongrass into a paste. Add very little water if required to make the paste. 

For the Pickled Chicken 
Ingredients 
Marinated Chicken pieces 
Wet Paste 
3 tbsp Vinegar 
1/2 tbsp Sugar 
Salt to taste 
½ cup Chicken stock
2 tbsp Ghee 
Few  Mint and Coriander leaves for garnishing 

Method 
 Heat ghee in a wok on medium heat, add the wet paste. Stir fry the paste for 3 minutes or till the oil has separated from the paste. Add the marinated chicken and fry for 10 minutes. Add the stock, stir and cover the wok. Simmer until the chicken has cooked. Add vinegar, salt and sugar. Stir and simmer for another 2 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves and mint leaves. Serve with Roti Jala.

Thursday 11 February 2016

Spicy Pumpkin Orange Jam

Spicy Pumpkin Orange Jam


Ingredients
1 big bowl or 1/2 kg of Pumpkin peeled, deseeded and cut in to thin slices
Juice of 2 Oranges
Juice of 2 Lime
1 tbsp Ginger juice
1 stick Cinnamon
1 Star Anise
2 Pinch of Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Chilli flakes
Pinch of Salt
3 cups Sugar
2 cups of Water


Method
Add the pumpkin and water into a large pot. Cook the pumpkin on high flame until the pumpkin slices are soft, mushy and the water has almost evaporated. Add the sugar, orange juice, lime juice, ginger juice,  cinnamon, star anise, nutmeg, salt and chilli flakes. Cook on low flame on a large burner, stirring it occasionally in the beginning and then continuously as the jam begins to thicken and reaches the setting point. To check, take water in a small plate, add a droplet of the jam, if the droplet settles in one place and does not spread then it is done. Remove the pot from the heat. Take the clean glass jar. It has to be completely dry. While it is still warm, pour into the jar. It can be preserved upto  2 months.

Wednesday 10 February 2016

Chicken and Prawn Balti

 Chicken and Prawn Balti


Ingredients
10 to 12 Boneless Chicken pieces
1 bowl medium sized Prawns
2 Onions chopped
2 Tomatoes chopped
1 Green Capsicum cut into pieces
1 tsp Green Chillies crushed
1 tsp Ginger crushed
1 tbsp Garlic crushed
1 bowl Tomato puree
2 tbsp Curd
Salt to taste
3 tbsp Balti Masala powder
2 tbsp Oil
Few Coriander leaves chopped  for garnishing


Method
Take a wok, add oil. Let it heat. Add the onions and sauté it till translucent. Add the green chillies, garlic and ginger. Sauté it for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes sauté it for 2 minutes, then add the chicken, stir it. Add the tomatoes and capsicum, stir it, add the salt and balti masala. Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Add the prawns and tomato puree, stir it the add the curd. Stir and cover and cook till the chicken pieces are tender. Garnish it with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Balti Masala powder
Ingredients
2 tbsp Cumin Seed
1 tbsp Coriander seeds
1 tbsp Fennel seeds
1 tbsp Mustard seeds
1 tbsp Fenugreek seeds
1 tsp Nigella  seeds
1 big Cinnamon stick broken into small pieces
4 Black Cardamom
1 tbsp Peppercorns
10 Cloves
1 tbsp Dry Fenugreek leaves
20  dried Curry leaves
5 Bay leaves
1 tbsp Turmeric powder
1 tbsp  Garlic powder
1 tbsp Ginger powder
1 tbsp Red Chilli powder


Method
Take a pan. Add all the spices one by one and dry roast it. Cool it. Add the spices into a grinder, add the powder. Grind all the ingredients to a fine powder. Cool it and store it in an air tight dry glass bottle.