Andhra Chicken Curry

This is a classic Andhra Chicken curry recipe. A very good friend of mine Mrs. P, who hails from AP shared this recipe with me, so it can't get any more authentic than this. She is an awesome cook herself, and whatever simple dish she whips up with the most basic ingredients tastes just simply amazing, and I keep asking her for recipes. I don't eat chicken or any other meat except sea food (very limited) and eggs here and there. I have been cooking chicken for my DH, though, and every time I try a new chicken recipe, its always an experiment on him, and I honestly have no clue how its tastes and I simply have to trust his opinion. My DH, my BIL and few other friends who have tasted this recipe always gave me a thumbs up! The aromas from Fenugreek leaves Or Mint leaves (whichever you choose to use) makes it aromatic and gives that nice flavor. In the recipe below, I have not used cashew-milk paste, but P said if you want a more rich gravy, then you can grind handful of cashews along with milk and add it instead of water. I am yet to try it, and I am sure, it will only make the gravy more creamy and rich!

Ingredients:

1 Kg chicken, cleaned and cut into small bite size pieces (I used the ones with bones)

3 medium onions, finely chopped

2 or 3 ripe tomatoes, chopped

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

4 cloves

2 cardamom

1" cinnamon stick

1 bunch mint leaves OR 1 cup fresh fenugreek/methi levees cleaned and chopped coarsely (I have also used 1/2 cup Kasoori Methi (dried leaves) when I was out of Fresh Methi and it worked fine, too)

4 tbsp cooking oil

salt to taste

3 tsp red chilli powder or more as per the spiciness you prefer.

1/3 tsp turmeric powder

For Marinade:

Marinade chicken in a bowl ahead of time with about 1/3 cup yogurt, red chilli powder, ginger garlic paste for about 30 minutes. Longer you keep, the better it is.

NOTE: Make sure to fry chicken very well before adding water. Also, for a rich gravy, grind some cashew pieces with milk and add when adding the water.

Method:

1) Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan. When hot, add cloves, cardamom, cinnamon stick and fry for a minute. Then, add finely chopped onions and ginger garlic paste and fry until nice and golden. Add mint OR fenugreek leaves and fry for few minutes.

2) Add tomatoes and fry until it starts to melt. Add haldi/turmeric and red chilli powder and fry until the oil starts to leave from the side.

3) Add marinaded chicken pieces and fry until the chicken is brown and oil starts to come from the side. Now add water, salt and mix everything well. Cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve with rice or naan.

Spicy Coriander Mint Pulao

Here is another recipe for a spicy and delicious pulao. This recipe uses fresh herbs such has Cilantro Or Coriander leaves and Mint leaves along with other spices. It gives a nice green color, aroma and a nice fresh flavor. This is an easy one pot meal that can be served for lunch or dinner along side raita. This is a favorite in my household. The below recipe makes 5 to 6 servings.

Ingredients:

11/2 cups Basmati rice, washed and drained

Vegetables about 11/2 to 2 cups like carrots, green peas, beans.

Water less than 3 cups, may be 2.5 so the rice does not get over cooked.

1 large onion thinly sliced

1 small tomato, chopped (optional)

1 Bay leaf

Salt to taste

2 tbsp Cooking oil

1 tbsp Butter or Ghee (clarified butter)

1 tbsp cashews

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Make a paste using below ingredients:

1 cup Coriander leaves with stems, cleaned

1/4 cup Mint leaves, cleaned

5 Green chillies or as per desired spiciness

2 garlic cloves

1" Ginger

2 tsp Fennel seeds

5 Cloves

2 Cardamom

1" Cinnamon stick

2 tsp chopped onion

Method:

1) In a heavy bottomed pan, heat oil and ghee (you have to be liberal with oil so the rice does not stick to the bottom). When hot, add onions and cashew pieces and fry till the onion is golden brown.

2) While that is browning, make a smooth paste of all the ingredients listed under 'Make a paste using below ingredients:' using little water and set aside.

3) When the onion is nice and golden, add this paste and fry on a medium heat until the paste is cooked through and you see oil leaving the sides (takes about 10 mins or so). You must fry this paste really well. At this, point add turmeric powder and fry for a minute or two.

4) When the paste is fried and cooked through, add vegetables and stir fry for another minute or two.

5) Now add the rice and gently mix everything together. Add water, salt and check the spice level and mix again. Pressure cook for 1 whistle and then turn off the heat; this makes the rice grains separated and cooks evenly. Serve with your choice of raita.

Pizza!

Pizza is a popular dish/pie which does not need any formal introduction. Its a much loved food globally! I love pizza, and I was initially intimidated to try it out myself. It's usually a take-out staple but if you try making it at home, then, you might stick to your home made pizzas. It does not take much time and effort to bake a pizza, and once you are comfortable making one, you will prefer baking one at home and not order it from your local pizza shop! The below recipe is from a good friend of mine, and it makes a very good pizza crust. I usually make mine without sauce, but just vegetables, seasoning and cheese.

Ingredients:

3 cups of flour/bread flour

1 cup of water (warm) - adjust accordingly

1/4 cup olive oil

one package instant yeast

salt to taste

Method:

1. Add 3 cups of flour, salt, yeast, and 1/2 cup of warm water into the work bowl and stir to combine (just briefly). Let it stand for about 15 minutes (this process is called autolysing).

2. Once you let it stand, slowly add the rest of the flour while you knead. You may need more water and flour as you knead the dough. Knead it well for about 15 minutes. Punch it down, and done. Knead with olive oil at the end.

P.S:For Best results, its good to make the dough the day before and let it rise in the fridge overnight).

For toppings:

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced

2 medium tomato, chopped

4 or 5 garlic cloves, minced/sliced

1/2 cup chopped capsicum/bell pepper

2 tbsp Italian Seasoning

Crushed pepper

Salt to taste

Olive oil

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Making Pizza:

1) Preheat the oven to 450°F for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour.

2) On a flat surface, sprinkle some flour and take the dough and flatten it with your hands, or use a rolling pin, roll it out until it forms in to 1/2 inch thick circle until it reaches the desired diameter - about 10 to 12 inches. You can turn and stretch the dough, too. It can be a bit challenging to get the right shape at first, so do not worry about it. Mine always comes in an oblong shape and it is actually perfect for my pan.

3) Add the toppings as per your taste. I prefer without the sauce so I just go with Onions, bell peppers, fresh tomatoes, and lots of cheese, Italian seasonings, and drizzle olive oil at the top. Bake it for about 15 minutes, and then turn the oven to Broil mode for last 5 minutes so that top gets nice and brown.

Enjoy!

Ashgourd cooked in a spicy, sweet and tangy sauce/Puli koddel

This is a quintessential konkani recipe. It is a very popular dish prepared during special occasions as it doesn't have onions or garlic in it. Also no function or ceremony would be complete without this dish. Growing up, I was never really fond of this dish, but of course, now, I love it.

This dish has very unique flavors from the roasted coconut, varieties of spices roasted in oil, and the sweetness from jaggery and sourness from tamarind, and the toasted sesame seeds complements all the flavors making it an unique dish.

Typically, this dish is prepared using Winter Melon or Ash gourd. However, you can also prepare this using pumpkin, zucchini or cucumber, and it tastes equally great.

Ingredients:

Ashgourd/Winter melon peeled and cut into cubes about 2 cups

For seasoning:

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Curry leaves 1 sprig/5 to 6 leaves

Cooking oil about 4 tsp

Salt to taste

Tamarind 1 medium sized lump

1/2 tbsp jaggery

Salt to taste

Coconut gratings about 1/2 cup

Fry the below items in 2 tsp oil:

Coriander seeds 1 tbsp

Red chillies 6, or more if you want to make it spicy

Bengal gram dal/Chana dal 1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds or methi 1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder/haldi 1/4 tsp

Asafoetida a pinch

Raw rice washed 1 tsp

Black sesame seeds/til 3 tsp

Method:

1) Cook Ashgourd with little turmeric and jaggery/brown sugar.

2) Meanwhile, in a saute pan, toast/roast the coconut gratings until light brown. Be careful not to burn.

3) Fry ingredients from Coriander seeds to raw rice in little oil, and keep aside.

4) Wash the sesame seeds and drain the water and and roast till dry.

5) In a blender, add the roasted coconut, fried ingredients along with sesame seeds and tamarind and blend to a paste using little water - the masala need not be very fine.

6) Add the masala/paste to the cooked ash gourd, add water, salt and water to make a thick gravy and bring it to good rolling boil.

7) Heat oil in a small pan. When heated through, add mustard seeds; when it starts sputtering, follow with curry leaves and add this over the curry.

Serve hot with rice.

Chinese style noodles

Here is a simple recipe to make noodles Indo-chinese way. All you need is some egg noodles, veggies of your choice. Makes a tasty and wholesome meal.

Ingredients:

Egg Noodles about 4 individual pieces (looks like Maggi noodles pack)

3/4 cup chopped Bell pepper aka Capsicum

1 cup Shredded cabbage

1 medium onion sliced

3 cloves garlic

1/2" ginger

3 or 4 green chillies

Salt to taste

Oil for cooking

Method:

1) Boil water and cook the noodles as mentioned on the package. When done, drain and set it aside.

2) Make a coarse paste of Ginger, garlic and green chillies using a mortar and pestle.

3) Heat oil in a wide pan/wok, and add sliced onions and ginger, garlic, green chili paste and stir fry until golden.

3) Add the shredded cabbage and chopped bell peppers and stir fry for few minutes on high heat. Add salt and mix well.

4) Now add the boiled noodles and combine everything together.

Serve with Gobi Manchuri.