Chingri Malai Curry

My friend Amrita today served us a delicious prawn recipes, which was loved by all of us and so we all got share it immediately with us and here’s for your to try it out on the weekend.

Ingredients

400 gm prawns 

2-3 potatoes

3 tbsp mustard oil

1/2 tbsp whole jeera

2 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

2 tsp jeera powder

1 tsp chilli powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Salt to taste

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp garam masala

1 1/4 cup coconut milk

2 tsp ghee  

Procedure: 

Blanch the prawns in turmeric water. 

Heat mustard oil in a pan and add sugar and whole jeera ; then add prawns and stir fry till white ( Prawns have to be white and soft). Keep prawns aside. 

Heat mustard oil in a pan and add sugar and whole jeera add chopped potatoes, ginger paste, jeera powder, red chilli powder and turmeric powder and sauté

Now add the prawns and slit green chillies and stir for few minutes. 

Add the coconut milk, cook for few more minutes and then add salt. 

In the end sprinkle garam masala and ghee on top and serve.

Serve with hot roti with pav / garlic bread

Salad Dressing!

It’s been quite a few days since I wrote last! A combination of work pressure, travel and inability to get some time to myself have all been in a way the reasons for not penning my thoughts.

All of us who were eagerly awaiting the rains in Mumbai over the past two weeks  have been greatly disappointed that we are still seeing bright , hot and humid sunny days. All of this makes us want to have chilled drinks and light meals and what better starter or in- between meals snack than an interesting, tasty and  healthy bowl of fresh salad..... and what better way to make a salad interesting than having a cool, yummy dressing!

Here are a couple....

Cucumber and Dill

Ingredients:

1 cup grated cucumber

1 cup regular yoghurt

1/4 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp fresh dill finely chopped

1 tsp Dijon mustard

¼ tsp pepper powder

Salt to taste

Procedure:

Drain the grated cucumber thoroughly, In a bowl blend yoghurt, add cucumber and all other ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate  for a while . Serve with crispy salad of iceberg lettuce, spinach and salad leaves, croutons etc.

Caeser Salad Dressing:

Ingredients

½ cup or katori grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tbps chopped parsley

2- 3 cloves garlic

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth, Season with additional sal and pepper if required. Serve with any salad you dish up.

Appams with Mutton Stew

A hearty aromatic mutton and potato broth with the subtle sweetness of coconut milk.  Served with fluffy appams

Ingredients

For Appams

• 350 gm rice, soaked for six to eight hours
• 75 gm boiled rice
• 150 ml coconut water
• 75 ml coconut milk
• Water as required
• Salt to taste
• 1 tbsp sugar
• ¼ tsp soda bicarb
• Oil as needed

For Mutton Stew

• 5 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 sticks cinnamon
• 2 cloves
• 4 green cardamoms
• 6 - 8 black peppercorns crushed
• 2 onions, cubed
• 2 tsp ginger juliennes
• 3 green chillies slit
• 10 - 12 curry leaves
• 500 gm boneless mutton, cubed and boiled until half done
• 2 potatoes cubed
• 750 ml thick coconut milk

Procedure
To prepare Appams, blend the two types of rice with coconut water and coconut milk to get a smooth paste, adding water if required.  Stir in salt and sugar and set aside for eight hours in a warm place. Mix in soda bicarb and a little water to get a creamy consistency.

Heat an appam chatty and brush with oil.  Add a ladle of batter to the pan, and tilt around to spread evenly.  Cover with a lid and cook on medium heat for 2 – 3 minutes.  The edges should be crisp and the centre spongy.  Make more Appams with the batter.  To make the stew heat coconut oil in a pan and add cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms.  Sauté for a few seconds. Add onion, ginger, green chillies and curry leaves and cook until onions are soft.  Add the mutton, potato, thin coconut milk and salt and cook until mutton and potatoes are done.  Remove from heat and add thick coconut milk and black peppercorns.  Stir well.  Serve hot with Appam.

Spinach & Dal Parathas

Last night for dinner, one of the dishes we had was Moong Dal with Spinach.  Since there was fair bit of leftover dal, I decided to use it in an interesting and different way by making Parathas and served them with Dahi and Papad as good breakfast.  Here's what I did...

Ingredients
1 small onion finely chopped
2 green chillies finely chopped
Few coriander leaves finely chopped
1/2 tsp ajwain
1 tsp oil for the dough
Few tsps for frying
Salt to taste

Procedure
Put dal in a bowl.  Add all the ingredients, oil and enough wheat flour to make a soft dough for rotis.  Make balls of 1 to 2 inch sized diameter and roll-out like rotis.  Cook on hot tava on medium flame till both sides are done.  Fry with a little oil on both sides till the Paratha has uniform brown spots and is well cooked. 
Serve hot with pickle, papad, dahi or egg bhurji.

Mango Panna

A lovely drink to beat the summer heat.... try making Mango Panna over the weekend. 

Ingredients
2 large raw mangoes
1 cup sugar
8 - 10 cardamoms peeled and powdered (optional)
3 tblsp chopped Mint Leaves (Pudina Leaves)
1 tsp Salt (Namak)
1/2  tsp dry-roasted and grounded Cumin Seed (Jeera)
4 cups water

Procedure
Peel and cut mango into small pieces.  Boil the mango and sugar in a little water till soft.  Cool.  Blend the mango mixture in a mixie or blender.  Add all the spices and blend well with water. Serve chill with crushed ice.

Paneer & Poha Cutlets

Ingredients

2 medium sized potatoes (boiled, peeled & mashed)

1 cup poha or beaten rice

200 gms paneer

2 green chillies finely chopped

1 inch piece ginger finely chopped

1 small onion finely chopped

½ tsp jeera powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

½ tsp garam masala powder

Few coriander leaves finely chopped

2 slices of white bread

1 pinch of boondi colour (optional)

Salt to taste

Oil for frying

Procedure

In a large bowl put mashed potatoes, mashed paneer and poha that has been soaked in water for just a minute or two and squeezed out.  Add onion, ginger, green chillies, all the dry spices.  Soak the two slices of bread in a bowl of water, squeeze out and add to the ingredients in the bowl.  Add salt, coriander leaves and mix well into a well-blended dough.  Make balls (slightly larger than a table tennis ball).  Flatten each into round cutlets or shape them to have a tear-shape.  Heat a few tsps of oil in a non-stick pan and place four – six cutlets at a time.   Fry on medium flame till golden brown on both sides.  Serve hot with coriander and mint chutney, tomato ketchup or chilli sauce or onion rings and lemon slices.  

With the summer heat intensifying by the day, we all seem to lose our appetite for food, but build up a big appetite for drinks that cool and satiate us in the hot and humid weather.  Over the last few days, I have tried a few summer coolers that are quick to fix and ever so satisfying...

Mango Milkshake

Put one medium sized Alphonso Mango (peeled and cut) and a big glass of cold  milk with 2 tsps  sugar in a blender and blend for a minute or two till the mango dissolves in the milk.  Pour in a tall glass and chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes.  Top with a few pieces of sliced mango and enjoy!

Fresh Lime with Mint and Crushed Ice

Dissolve1 ½ tbsp of sugar in a little warm water in a pan or bowl. Add the  juice of one large lemon. Now add 1 ½ glass of chilled  water, a few mint leave and some crushed ice and a pinch of salt ( optional)  Stir well and serve in a tall glass.  Decorate it with a slice of lime placed on the rim of the glass. 

Masala  Lassi

Blend 3 – 4 tbsp of yoghurt with a  glass of chilled water in a pan or bowl. Add  ¼ tsp each  of jeera and black pepper powder and  ½ tsp salt . Mix well and serve in a tall glass. 

Water Melon Juice

Cut water melon into pieces, remove the seeds and blend in a blender with crushed ice.  Serve in a tall glass with a few pieces of water melon. 

Kesar Sherbat

Buy any good brand of Kesar Sherbat. Put 2 – 3 spoons to a glass, top it up with chilled water, crushed ice and juice of half a lemon.  Makes a really refreshing drink.