Cardamom chicken

I thought I had a good chance of catching up on the slack in blogging after posting two in October, but it’s November 30^th, and with 2 incomplete drafts not magically completing themselves, I am going to resort to my backup plan – a recipe!

This time, it’s for something I have cooked probably 3 times, and if mine, but more importantly, Sucharita’s memory serves me correctly, it has always tasted great!

I first cooked this when Sucharita was probably in high school and was visiting us during a summer break. As I didn’t want to cook the usual curries, which she was happy to eat as long as there was chicken in it, I decided to try something different – still had chicken in it, still spicy, and from and Indian recipe book, so can still be called Indian food. It is from a book called "the food of INDIA" that I picked up from Costco as an impulse buy. My version is modified slightly to make it simpler. 

Ingredients

3 lbs boneless skinless chicken (cut into pieces of a size that you prefer)

2 tsp cardamom seeds (you can remove these from cardamom pods, but buying the seeds from an Indian grocery store will make this a lot easier)

1 tbsp garlic paste

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 cup plain yogurt (I always use whole milk yogurt, either Verka or Mountain High)

1 tbsp ground pepper (best if freshly ground)

2 tsp salt

1 can (approx. 12 ounces) coconut milk

6 to 10 green chillies, cut in halves lengthwise (based on your preferred spice level)

3 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp cooking oil

2 tbsp chopped cilantro (for cooking)

Cilantro for garnishing

Note: you can use less yogurt and/or coconut milk if you want the chicken to be drier.

Grind the cardamon seeds, and mix in a bowl with the ground pepper, ginger and garlic paste, salt and yogurt. Add the chicken and coat well and leave in the fridge to marinate for at least an hour. 

Heat the cooking oil on medium heat in a heavy pan. Add the marinated chicken along with all the ingredients in the bowl, and fry for a couple of minutes. Stir in the green chillies, and fry for an additional minute. Add the coconut milk and cilantro, bring to a boil, and let it simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the lemon juice, and season with additional salt if needed. Add the cilantro and serve over Jasmine or Basmati rice. 

Enjoy!

Simple salt and pepper chicken

I thought I was well prepared, as I had wine, sangria, several non-alcoholic beverages, fruits, veggies, cheese, crackers, and other snacks, but when Susan asked if there was any meat, I had to think quickly of a tasty but fast option with available ingredients. Getting used to a Chopped Kitchen strategy.

Ingredients:

Chicken wings, about 20 pieces

Salt and pepper, to taste

¼ cup red wine vinegar

2 tbsp oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat an oven-proof skillet on stove top. Add the oil to an oven-proof skillet, and place the chicken wings in the skillet once the oil is hot. Cook for 5 minutes on medium heat on one side, then turn and cook for 3 minutes on the other side. Season with salt and pepper, and add the red wine vinegar to the skillet. Leave on stove for another minute, and then transfer to the oven (preheated to 400 degrees). Bake for 20 minutes. Remove right away and transfer to serving dish.

Serve with your favorite BBQ sauce, Sriracha, or green chutney. Since the chicken is lightly flavored, it will go with any of your favorite sauces. My guests skipped the sauces, and enjoyed it as is.

Side note: I also made a raspberry strudel, my first real pastry baking adventure. It was very stressful and I don’t remember much of the process, but it was edible J

Egg Curry

It’s funny that I am posting an egg curry recipe as it is not really a favorite food, and I have probably cooked it only once before. As always, there is a story related to the recipe that I will tell (and hopefully you will read) before I describe the recipe.

After a grocery shopping and cooking marathon last weekend for Jasmine’s farewell party, and living on leftover food for a couple of days, I decided that some simple meals would work fine for the next few days. That thought led me to creating my own version of a kale salad quesadilla with Cajun seasoning (recipe to be provided another day). I quickly tired of the two other versions of my so-called healthy quesadillas, and Jay didn’t even want to try what was a delicious and unusual creation. And after 2 days at a conference, I felt that I wanted a more authentic home-cooked meal which didn’t involve grocery shopping for ingredients. So I decided to do a Chopped kitchen version of cooking a meal – placed all the possible ingredients on the countertop, and started thinking of how to convert them into a meal. I had everything except a good protein.

Then I saw it! Half a case of hard-boiled eggs, from Costco! Credit for this great find at Costco goes to Poonam and Amarjot. I laughed at myself for considering egg curry as my Chopped kitchen meal, but I didn’t really have a good excuse besides just eating hard-boiled eggs with a side salad for dinner (and letting Jay eat instant noodles).

Egg Curry

Ingredients

6 eggs, hard-boiled and halved vertically

1 tbsp cooking oil

I large onion, chopped

3 medium tomatoes, chopped

3 green chillies, either sliced half or cut into small pieces (long spicy ones or thai peppers – you can add up to 6 to make the curry spicier)

A few curry leaves (if you have them – available at most good Indian stores)

1 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp red chilli powder

1tsp coriander powder

Pinch of turmeric

Salt to taste (2 tsp should be enough)

Note: Use a pan large enough to fit the eggs in one layer.

Heat 1 tbsp of cooking oil in the pan, and add the onion. Add the mustard seeds, green chillies and curry leaves as the onions start changing color. Turn down the heat to medium, and when the onions start to brown, add the ginger and garlic paste and mix well. Add the remaining spices, fry for about 20 seconds, and add the tomatoes. Mix the ingredients well as they cook together. Once the tomatoes have cooked, approx. 5 minutes, layer the boiled eggs, yolk-side facing up, on top of the cooked ingredients. Turn down the heat to low, and let the eggs soak in the flavors as you add spoonfuls of the cooked ingredients on top of each egg. Switch the heat off in 5 minutes, and let the curry sit for 10 minutes or so before serving.

Serve over steamed rice.

Add coriander / cilantro leaves over the cooked curry for additional flavor. As I didn’t have any in my Chopped kitchen, I did not include it in the ingredients :).

I am happy with how this turned out, and I might cook this again, with an intent to make egg curry next time. So happy with the process and outcome that I even have pictures for this blog post. 

My lemon tree is a lemon, and other non-gratitudes #gratitudes

Yes, my lemon tree is a lemon! After 12 years of hoping that it would provide enough juicy lemons to last for weeks, if not months, I am giving up hope. The first few years, there were lemons which provided a few drops of juice if lucky. Now the tree won't even provide any lemons. Oh well! I have to trek to the neighbor's tree with the tall-handled picker to get good lemons. My neighbor's tree has lemons big enough and juicy enough to provide half a cup of juice each!

It was an adventurous week with cooking ingredients. While shopping for mint, I saw Thai basil, and decided to try cooking Thai basil chicken. As is usually the case with my following recipes, I tweaked a few ingredients, but followed the instructions carefully for the basil as I had never used it before. Added it at the very end, and turned off the stove in 20 seconds. Well, the chicken was absolutely delicious but it didn't taste anything like Thai basil chicken. Since I had plenty of basil left over, I attempted it again, with the same result. With absolutely no faith in the third time's the charm nonsense, I added all that was leftover but after the stove was already turned off, and I could now taste the basil. But without the rest of the ingredients, it was not really what I was aiming for, but delicious regardless.

After a long hike on Sunday, I decided that it was going to be an easy pasta day. While shopping for pasta, I sighted egg noodles, and with my new found interest in Thai cooking, I decided to prepare pad kee mao. Things went rather well except the noodles I picked were the short ones meant for chicken noodle soup. Another delicious dish with a slightly off ingredient.

While I am writing about non-gratitudes, it's important to mention that I am still looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, and have hiked hundreds of miles in my search. No pot of gold but I am in better shape than I ever was, have seen amazingly beautiful things, and best of all, made a lot of wonderful friends.

This week is off to a good start! Warm and sunny day, and coincidentally, date day with Sucharita. We had a wonderful time at the Half Moon Bay State Park Beach. We were sweating and regretted bringing jackets for backup instead of shorts! Finished the day with Fabiana and Oliver. Fabiana wanted to walk Oliver, but he walked us instead. Now it's time to finish the leftover partly authentic pad kee mao.

Cabbage and potatoes

Sharing my mom's simple cabbage recipe. I am not a huge fan of cabbage but love this recipe. 

I still remember the day, after moving to the U.S., when I purchased a very nice looking head of lettuce in order to cook my mom's recipe of cabbage and potatoes. It definitely did not taste right, and it was only when I finally found the green cabbage (printed labels help) in the grocery store that I realized my mistake. The first image is lettuce, the second cabbage.

Ingredients: 

Approximately 2lbs cabbage, thinly sliced

One medium sized potato, thinly sliced (not more than 1lb)

One medium sized onion, preferably white onion, sliced 

3 green chilies (Thai chillies, preferably), chopped - you can add 1 more chilli if you want spicier flavor

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp oil

Fry the onions in the oil on medium until they become translucent. Add the chillies and fry until the onions are light brown. Add the mustard seeds, and fry for 10 seconds. Add the potatoes, salt and coriander powder, and sautée for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the cabbage, and mix well with the onions and potatoes. Cover and cook on medium heat until cabbage is fully cooked, about 15 minutes. 

Best when served with freshly baked rotis. Can use bread or nan as a substitute, or use as a side with rice. 

Tips: 

If you don't like or cannot handle biting into a green chillies, chop them in large pieces. You will get the flavor when cooking, but can remove the chillies when eating. 

For a saucy texture, you can add one chopped medium sized tomato to the potatoes and onions and fry for a minute before adding the cabbage. This will change the taste of the original recipe. 

Enjoy! 

Spicy scrambled eggs

If you have read / tried my other recipes, you already know that green chillies are an ingredient in most of them. I use either Serrano peppers or Thai chillies in many of my recipes, for their flavor and of course, hotness. And my scrambled eggs also include this spicy and flavorful ingredient. Over the years, I have experimented with a few ingredients that enhance the flavor of the scrambled eggs I love to cook, and eat. And I can eat this for breakfast, lunch, dinner or anytime in between.

Ingredients:
4 eggs, well beaten

1 tablespoon milk

1 tablespoon oil
1 medium onion, chopped

2 Thai chillies or Serrano peppers, chopped (add more or less based on your preference)

I clove garlic sliced or 1/2 tsp minced garlic

I tsp red chili powder

Pinch of turmeric

1 tsp salt 

Mix the eggs, milk, chili powder, turmeric and salt. Set it aside. 

Heat the oil in a pan. Add the green chillies and onions, and fry until the onions start changing color (about a minute). Add the garlic and mix well with the onions. Add the egg mix and stir to mix well with the fried onions. Continue to gently stir so the eggs don't stick to the pan. Continue on low heat until the eggs are fully cooked. 

Serve with bread, chappatis, or tortillas.

Simple Okra - 2 recipes for the price of one!

A lot of people do not like okra because it is sticky. I have been able to cook the okra recipes below without their being slimy or sticky :). The first important thing is to make sure not to use okra from the frozen vegetables section (that is fine for gumbo, but not for my recipes), and to buy the smaller, more tender okra from either an Indian grocery store, or other produce stores that carry them. Sometimes you will find them at the local farmer's market, too. The second thing is - wash and dry the okra before you slice or chop it. Washing it after cutting it can make it retain moisture that can make it sticky.

Recipe 1 - Dry spicy okra
2 lbs okra, heads off, sliced lengthwise into half
1tsp salt
2tsp red chili powder
Pinch of turmeric
Half tsp coriander powder
1tbsp oil

Add oil to a non-stick pan at high heat and wait until it is warm. Add the okra and the other spices to the pan. Stir to mix. Cook at medium heat, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. The okra should be tender and about half its original size when cooked. It is very important that you do not add water during cooking, and do not cover the pan, as this will make the okra sticky.

Serve as a side with rice, or eat it with a roti or a paratha.

Recipe 2 - Okra with onions
2 lbs okra, heads off, cut in half inch round pieces
One small onion, sliced thinly
1tsp salt
2tsp red chili powder
Pinch of turmeric
Half tsp coriander powder
1tbsp oil

Add oil to a non-stick pan at high heat, add onions once warm. Fry the onions until they change color, and then add the okra and the other spices to the pan. Stir to mix. Cook at medium heat, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. The okra should be tender and about half its original size when cooked. It is very important that you do not add water during cooking, and do not cover the pan, as this will make the okra sticky.

The addition of the onions makes the second recipe less dry, and this can be eaten with rice, rotis or parathas.

Prawn curry

This recipe does not have all the ideal ingredients as I created it out of the few available options in the fridge and pantry. I just got lucky that I had prawns in the freezer.

Ingredients:
2lb prawns, peeled and deveined
I cup yogurt (coconut milk can be used as a substitute, and is found in many recipes)
I medium onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
2 green chillies, chopped
2 tsp salt
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 tbsp oil

Fry the onions until they change color and are translucent. Add the chopped green chillies and garlic and fry for 30 seconds. Add the coriander and chilli powder, fry for 10 seconds and immediately add the chopped tomato and salt. Mix the ingredients well before adding the prawns. Make sure that the prawns are coated well with the other ingredients. Turn down the heat to medium, and let the prawns cook for 5 minutes. Add the yogurt or coconut milk, and simmer for 10 minutes. Let it sit for 5 minutes to soak up the flavors before serving with a side of rice. You can garnish with cilantro - I just did not have any in the fridge!

Enjoy!

Tandoori chicken - easy oven recipe

This is an easy recipe for a cold or rainy day that you can use to make Tandoori chicken in the oven. You can use the same ingredients for grilling. 

3lb chicken

For marinade:

1/2 cup yogurt

1 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp garlic paste

3 tsp red chilli powder (if you want it really spicy, or make it 2)

1 tsp corriander powder

1 tsp cumin powder

A pinch of turmeric

Salt to taste

1 tsp of any tandoori paste that you have

Fork the chicken, and marinate for at least 2 hours. 

Place the chicken on a flat baking dish. 

Cook at 450 degrees for 20 minutes, then broil it for 7 to 10 minutes to make it crispy.

If you have the patience to turn the pieces over, then broil for 5 to 7 minutes on each side. 

Squeeze lemon juice over the chicken before broiling, and after turning the pieces over. This will keep it juicy.  

Serve with freshly sliced onions and squeeze a little lemon juice on the top.

Spanish rice, with an extra oomph

My very own recipe, which I came up with after looking at a few online that did not quite have the oomph that the people I cook for and I like in our food. This serves approximately 12 people as a side.  

Ingredients

1 can (approx. 15 ounces) stewed tomatoes

1 ½ cup rice (washed and drained)

1 ½ cup water

Salt to taste (approx. 2 teaspoons)

1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil

3 thai chillies, chopped very fine (add less or more to adjust the spice level – thai chillies are spicier than Serrano peppers, which can be used as a substitute)

1 onion, chopped into very small pieces

1 small tomato, chopped into small pieces

1 teaspoon cumin powder

2 teaspoons red chilli powder (you can use paprika if you can’t handle red chillies)

Green onions and cilantro for garnish

Mash the stewed tomatoes with potato masher or spin them in the food processor

In a medium saucepan, add the oil, and fry the chopped onions, thai chillies and tomato until the onions are translucent (or change color)

Add the rice and fry for 30 seconds stirring constantly so rice does not burn or stick to the pan

Add the cumin and chilli powder and mix well

Add the stewed tomatoes and water to the pan

Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low

Cover and cook for approx. 15 mins or until rice is done

NOTE: Do not stir the rice when it’s cooking

Once cooked, take off the cover and let the rice cool down completely before lightly forking and transferring to serving dish

The rice can be warmed in microwave if needed

Garnish with green onions and cilantro and serve

Enjoy! 

Ground beef and lentil rice pilaf recipe

Most people who I cook for like spicy food, but sometimes I have to make exceptions. It can be challenging to cook something that everyone will enjoy even when many are expecting the "hot" level to be higher. I created this recipe keeping in mind the few who cannot eat spicy food, and the many who would love this even though they expect a different spice level.

Ingredients:
The below ingredients are party size and will be adequate for 12 people. You can change the ingredients to half the portion for a smaller serving, or just enjoy the leftovers - it tastes quite good the next day. 

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup toor dal (lentils called toor are available at all Indian grocery stores)
2 cups rice
1/2 tsp freshly sliced garlic
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp ground coriander seeds
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
4 to 6 Fresh dill sprigs
Cooking oil
Salt to taste

Cook the rice and set aside to cool. Add 2 tsp salt when cooking the rice.

In a saucepan, warm 1 tbsp of cooking oil.
Add the garlic, stir until it changes color and then add the ground beef.
Let the beef fry for 5 minutes, stirring so it does not burn.

In a separate saucepan, warm 1 tbsp of cooking oil.
Add the mustard seeds, and let it fry until the seeds start to sputter.

Add the lentils and fry for 3 minutes.

Add ½ cup water and let the lentils cook on medium heat until all the water has evaporated.

Once all the water has evaporated from the lentils, add the lentils to the saucepan with the beef, add 2 tsp salt, the ground coriander and pepper, and mix well.

Add 1 cup water to the saucepan and cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Check if the lentils are fully cooked. If they are, then cook uncovered until all water has evaporated. If they need more time, add some more water and continue to cook uncovered, and repeat the previous step.

Once the beef and lentil mix is cooked and all the water has evaporated, set is aside for a few minutes to cool.

Chop the dill and gently mix it in with the cooked rice. Add the beef and lentils and mix it in with the rice. 

You can garnish with freshly cut serrano or thai chillies to make it spicier!

This can be served with a traditional Indian or Mediterranean yogurt salad, or can be a side dish to other entrees.

 ENJOY!!