Kiren's 14th Birthday

Today my son turn 14.  To celebrate I made his favourite food - chicken and also chocolate cake - another of his favourite.

Lets look the cake that I made for you.  It is themed after football field.

For lunch, I made Hyderabadi Chicken Briyani.  I have done this briyani once - long before I started blogging. It turned out good.  I cant remember whose recipe I had use then, but this time I used Chef Sanjay Thumma of Vahrehvah.com.  Will post in a bit.


Enjoy

** Sathiarani **

Drum Stick Leaves Omelette

Anyone fancy drumstick leaves omelette.  Drumstick leaves or murugai keerai in tamil is a nutritious vegetable.  You can stir fry make, cooked with some dhall or even omelette.

Drumstick fruit itself you can make curry with chicken, mutton, egg curry, or dalca or simple vegetarian curry.  You can stir fry with some masala, make rasam out of its pulp (click here)

This tree grows so well here in the middle east, atleast in Qatar.  You can find everyone with land to plant will have it grown.  

Drumstick leaves

Drumstick leaves omelet

Ingredients

Eggs whisked with salt

sliced onions

chilly - sliced thinly

a handful of drumstick leaves

Preparation

Heat pan with some oil

Saute onion with chilly till soft

Add in the leaves and stir well with onions.  Try to separate the leaves so as not to get them lump in one area.

Carefully pour in the eggs mixture, cook on medium heat, cooking the bottom and carefully turn over the omelet and cook for a few more minutes till nice brown.

Serve.

** Sathiarani **

Asian InspiredTaufoo Salad

Simple and easy, no fuss salad ala Thai.  No specific measurement just go with the flow.

Ingredients

Taufoo - cut bite size and deep fry.

Sliced Onions - slight crushed with your hands

Chilly - sliced small

Carrots - Shredded

Cucumber - Sliced finely

Roasted peanuts - removed skin in whole or crushed

Roasted white sesame 

Coriander - coarsely chopped 

Sweet & Spicy Sauce

Preparations

Mix all the ingredients nicely coated with the sauce and ready to serve.

Enjoy

** Sathiarani**

Lemongrass Chicken Noodle Soup

Yesterday night's dinner - another version of chicken noodle soup with whatever that I have in the fridge.

Ingredients

300gms of chicken bones only

250gm chicken breast 

2tbs of ginger garlic paste

4-5 celery stalks - chopped coarsely

4-5 lemongrass white part only - slightly bruised

2tbs of white pepper powder

1 tbs of fish sauce

1 tbs of light soy sauce 

salt to taste

Garnishing/Side Dish

Fried Taufo

Shredded chicken pieces

Spring Onions

Coriander Leaves

Blanched broccoli and cauliflower

Preparation

1.  Boil chicken bones with water 750ml with 2 tbs of ginger/garlic paste, salt. lemongrass on medium fire about three quarter reduced

2.  Add in soy sauce, fish sauce, white pepper powder and celery and boil further for another 15 mins.

3.  Add in chicken breast and let it cook; once cooked, remove it and shred into small pieces.

4. Blanched broccoli and cauliflower in the same soup.  Remove and put it into cold water.

5.  To prepare the noodles : put vermicelli rice into cold water and put on heat till it is about cooked. Strain and run thru cold water.

To serve

In a bowl, put some noodles, shredded chicken, fried taufo, vegetables, spring onions, and coriander leaves and pour soup onto the noodles

If you wish added spiciness, chopped some green chilly and mix some soy sauce.

The condiments

Preparation of the soup

Noodles soaked to be cooked

Ready to savour

Enjoy

** Sathiarani ** 

Deep Fried Banana Balls @ Cekodok Pisang @ Cucur Pisang

If you have over-ripe bananas what else can you do instead of cake.  Well this is what we used to have as tea time snack - Deep Fried Banana Balls.  Back home it is known as cucur pisang or cekodok pisang.

It is as easy as 1,2,3...

Step 1 : Mix all ingredients

Step 2 : Fry till golden brown

Step 3 Serve

Ingredients

4-5 over ripe bananas - any bananas will do I used the long type
1 cup of self raising flour
salt
sugar according to to your taste

Preparation

1.  Mashed the bananas well

2.  Mix all the flour, salt and sugar.

3.  Heat oil and and once it is hot, drop in dollops of mixture. I use a spoon to get almost same size balls.

4.  Fry till golden brown, remove and strain.  Make sure the oil is not too hot as it will turn brown fast but not cooked inside.

5.  Serve and enjoy.



** Sathiarani**

Laukhi Ki Chutney @ Bottlegourd Chutney

I have got half of a laukhi/bottlegourd/soorkai which I have used the other half to make sambar.  I was planning to make idly for dinner with chicken curry and needed to make a chutney.

Remembered long back, a friend of mine ever mentioned making chutney out of the skin ridged bottlegourd.  I was tempted to make my chutney of the same but the decided otherwise as the bottlegourd skin was more brown than green.  Instead I used chopped bottlegourd.

I always like to prepare my chutneys using coconut oil.  It gives this nice aroma while sauteing and afterwards.  I was pleasantly surprised on how it turned out - my sister-in-law liked it.

Ingredients:

Half of bottle gourd medium sized
1 medium sized onion
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
2-3 green/red chilly - depending on your spicy taste bud
1 sprig of curry leaves
10 sprigs of coriander leaves - chopped coarsely
salt to taste
tamarind paste/juice - small pinch
1 -2 tbs of coconut oil - optional can use any other vegetable oil
1tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp of channa dhall
2-3 tbs of coconut gratings.


Preparation:

Some of the ingredients 

1. Removed the skin of the bottlegourd.  Chopped the vegetable to small pieces.  Since you are grinding into a paste, you need not remove the inner white portion and the seeds of the bottle gourd if they are not hard.

2  Heat coconut oil. Once hot, add in cumin seeds.  Let it splutter.  Afterward add in channa dhall and let it turn slightly brown.

3.  Next add in the onions and cook till soft and light in colour.  Add in ginger/garlic paste - stir till the rawness of the paste disappear.  Add in green chilly and curry leaves.  Fry for another minute or two so.

4.  Add in the the chopped bottle gourd. Mix well and let it cooked till soft.

5.  Add in the coriander leaves and cooked for a few more minutes.

6.  Remove from fire and leave it to cool.

7.  In a grinder, add in the cooled bottle gourd mixture, adding coconut scraps. salt and tamarind juice/paste.  Blend into a fine paste.

8.  Remove from the blender and serve with some chopped coriander leaves.

Thai Style Steamed Fish with Lemon Sauce

This is a late post - found this picture while clearing up space on the camera.  Made it about a month ago.

I used a white fish called Sherry. You can fry, make fish curry, fish balls, bbq and even steam. In any manner of cooking, the flesh is always soft and sweet.  You can use any good white flesh fish for steaming.

My steamer is a medium sized therefore I had to cut the head and leave it in the pan so as it gives extra flavouring while steaming. My whole family are not a fan of fish head and normally get the fishmonger to remove the head while cleaning.

I like to add some vegetables when steaming the fish so as I get 2 in 1 dish instead of preparing a separate dish.

Ingredients

1 whole fish - clean and gutted - sliced diagonally
1 tbs ginger garlic paste
1/2 cup of lemon juice  and lemon zest
2 tbs of fish sauce
2 tbs of light soy sauce
1tsp of brown sugar - optional
3-5 small green/red chilly -depending on your spice intake. slightly bruised
1-2 lemon grass - bruised light use the white end only
1 tbs chinese red dates - optional
1-2 kaffir lime leaves -otional
mixture of cauliflower/brocolli/carrots - optional
3-5 springs of coriander leaves
chopped spring onions


Preparation:

1.  Prepare your steaming pot.

2.  Cut 3-5 diagonal slashes across the fish depending on the size of the fish, about 2 inches apart on both sides of the fish.  This is to ensure that gravy/sauce gets coated well with the fish.

3.  In a pan ready to steam, rub ginger garlic paste on both sides of the fish. Sprinkle salt as well on both side of fish.  Under the fish place the bruised lemongrass.

4.  In a different bowl, add in lemon juice, lemon zest, brown sugar, soy sauce and fish sauce .  Adjust the seasoning if required.

5.  Pour lemon juice mixture over the fish together with chinese red dates, kaffir leaves and chilly.

6. Steam on medium heat, covered.  Add in the vegetables when the fish are about done.  Cover the steamer for another 5-8 mins till the vegetables are tender and cooked.

7.  Serve hot with coarsely chopped coriander leaves and finely chopped spring onions.

Enjoy Thai Styled Steamed Fish with Lemon Sauce with rice and some spicy vegetable.


** Sathiarani**

Almost White Vermicelli Rice Noodle @ Meehoon

I have always fried meehoon/beehoon aka vermicelli rice with some soy sauce and chilly paste rendering it almost red in colour.  This time around I decided to prepare it almost white with some soy sauce.  The addition of white pepper gives a slight dash of peppery taste on your tongue.

Almost White Vermicelli Rice Noodle aka Meehoon.

Ingredients

1 packet of 200gm vermicelli rice

1 whole bulb of garlic - pounded finely

1/2 half carrot - sliced thinly

2-3 pieces of lettuce - chopped coarsely

chicken breast cut into small pieces

1.5 tsp of white pepper

1 tsp of light soy sauce (salted)

1 whole spring onion - chopped finely

salt to taste

oil for saute

How to prepare

1.  In a bowl, marinate chicken strips with white pepper, soy sauce and salt to taste. Leave it aside to marinate about 15-20mins.

2.  In a pot, put in the vermicelli rice covered with cold water and put it to boil.  You will noticed that the noodles will turn into nice white colour when it is almost done.   Strain and keep aside.

To be sure feel it with your fingers, you will know it is cooked. You need not wait till the water starts to boil. This will only make the noodles very mushy when it cook it further.

3.   In a big deep wok, heat enough oil, add in whisked egg to make it scrambled eggs.  Set it aside.

4.  In the same wok, heat oil, once it is hot, saute in pounded garlic till nice aromatic.  Add in the marinated chicken and stir well.  Cook for a few more minutes and add it carrots and lettuce to the mixture. Keep stirring and cook it further.

5.  Add in the vermicelli and stir well till the sauces/chicken mixture are well coated with the vermicelli.

6.  When they are fully coated, add in the scrambled eggs and chopped spring onions and mix well.

7.  Ready to be serve.

Enjoy!!!

** Sathiarani **

Dhall Fry

Dhall fry is so simple to prepare that anyone can do it.  It is best eaten with rice or chapatis/rotis, naans.

Dhall fry best done with tuvar dhall (pigeon pea lentils).  You can also make them with either moong dhall, masoor dhall or chana dhall.  

Mine was a combo of moong dhall and tuvar dhall equal portion. I like to saute with ghee and a cooking ahead atleast an hour or more so as to let the spices absorb well with the dhall gravy.

You can use a pressure cooker or with a laid back fashion as I just did (but beware not to burnt them though)

Ingredients

1 cup of tuvar dhall

1 cup of moong dhall
enough water to pressure cook
1 tsp of turmeric powder

4 tbs of ghee
1 tsp of mustard seeds
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 big onion - chopped

1 tsp ginger garlic
2 red chilies - chopped coarsely
2 sprigs of curry leaves
2 -3 dry chilly
a good dash of asofetida
1 tsp of turmeric powder
1 tsp of red chilly powder

1 medium sized tomato - chopped finely

salt to taste
3-4 tbs of chopped coriander leaves
water to adjust the thickness of dhall
1 tsp of lemon juice. - optional

How to prepare:

1.  Wash and pressure cooker both dhalls with turmeric powder till soft without any grains felt.  It should be kind of creamy and mushy.

2.  In a pan, heat ghee till melted.  Add in mustard seeds and let it splutter

3.  When the mustard seeds starts spluttering, add in onions, fry till soft and translucent, add in ginger garlic paste. Once the rawness of the ginger garlic is disappear, add in the chilies and curry leaves, stir well

4.  Add in the powders, stir and mixed well.

5.  Next goes in the chopped tomatoes, mix well and stir well and cooked till the tomatoes are soft and the oil is separated from the sides.

6.  At this point, season with salt, add in the cooked dhall, mixed well, beware though, the dhall is very thick and they will start to pop.

7.  Add in some water, depending on your required consistency, mixing well with the tempered and dhall.

8.  Once they are well coated, remove from fire, add in the chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice.  Stir well.

If you prefer, you may add in a dash of ghee and chopped coriander leaves while serving.

Enjoy.

Dhall Fry

Dhall Fry and Chapatis

Sathiarani

Mix Vegetables with Tofu

Some brocollis, carrots, cauliflowers and tofus you can make a great dish. No strict amount but a handful of this and that with some good seasoning and voila you get an easy peasy dish.

If you fancy meat/seafood, you may add them while sauteing onions/ginger garlic.

Ingredients

broccoli florets
cauliflower floerets
tofus - firm ones cut into square and deep fried
carrots - sliced diagonaly
Salted soya sauce
fish sauce
oyster sauce
slices of onions
ginger garlic paste
chopped spring onions
some water

Method

Wash and drain the vegetables.
In a pan heat some oil, once hot, stir in onion, once it is soft, add in ginger garlic paste and in stir.
Add in the vegetables, stir well, uncovered,  as to coat with the onions and ginger garlic paste.
In a different bowl, mix all the sauces with some water.
Once the vegetables are almost done, add in the sauces as well the tofu. mix well, let it simmer for a more minutes.
Add in chopped spring onions and serve hot with some steaming hot rice.

Enjoy

Sathiarani

Mutton Bone Rasam/Soup

Mutton Bone Rasam/Soup

My son recently had a hairline fractured on his left elbow.  Friends suggested making home made mutton bone soup for a speedy recovery. Apparently the juicy from the bones have healing properties for the bones.  I used a pressure cooker to stew my soup.

Lets look at how to prepare this soup.

Item A
1 tsp of peppercorn
2 tsp of coriander
1 tsp of white peppercorn
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
2-3 dried chillies depending on the spiciness required
a few sprigs of curry leave

Item B
1 small onion
thumb sized ginger
3-5 cloves of garlic

Item C
1 tomato - chopped small
2-3 chilly  chopped coarsely

Item D
150 gms of mutton bones with fats
6 cups of water
1/2 tsp of turmeric

Item E
1 tbs of gingely oil - optional

Item F
a handful of finely chopped coriander leaves

1.  Grind items A into fine powder and Items B into fine paste.
2.  In a pressure cooker/deep based pot put in all items except gingely oil and coriander leaves.  Cover the pressure cooker and let it on till 5 whistles.
3.  If not using a pressure cooker, stew/boil the soup for an hour or till the meat are well cooked.
4.  Add in gingely oil and chopped coriander leaves and leave it to simmer for another 10 mins.
5.  Ready to serve with bread or rice or just enjoy it as it is.

Enjoy

Sathiarani

Quick and Simple Bake Salmon

A recipe shared by my niece, Mirosha from US. I tried this version of marination for our dinner a few days ago.  I could not find any chipotle powder so I substituted with paprika powder.  I love the use of paprika powder for marinating sea foods and meats. 

For side dish I had some carrots, potatoes, capsicums and broccoli.  My potatoes was slightly under-cooked, should have boiled and let it bake together with the other veges.

Ingredients required

3 cuts of salmon

Orange Juice from 2 oranges

Teriyaki Sauce enough to glaze the salmon

Chipotle pepper powder - enough to cover the salmons.

Vegetables of your choice for side dish.

  

• Thaw salmon, squeeze orange juice on it and let it sit for about half hour.
• Glaze it with teriyaki sauce
• sprinkle with chipotle pepper powde as per need
• bake skin side down for 30 mins on 180C
• broil on hi 5mins before removing and serve hot.

Enjoy

Sathiarani