Grilled tomatoes...

 

So we are in a new year, leaving 2020 behind, looking forward to going back to normal life. Many have labeled 2020 as the worst year of all, but was it really? Personally it was as shocking as it could be. Losing my mother just 5 days before her birthday and that too all of a sudden. It was devastating for us. But life goes on and we all find a way to survive. I picked up my camera, started taking photos and I decided to blog again. I don’t want to label the past year as the most dreadful or horrible but I take it as a learning of my lifetime. Happiness does not come from getting everything you want in life. Happiness is a choice, nothing will make you happy unless you decide to be happy. The pain, the emptiness will be always there but doing what I love most is something that makes me happy and a better person, and there is no bigger happiness than seeing the seeds that you’ve sown grow into lush green plants and find its stems pouring with bright orange cherry tomatoes. 

Pan seared fish with spicy coriander pesto...

We all need quick easy recipes for weekdays meal. Specially in hot and humid country like ours, spending long hours preparing and elaborate cooking is really stressful. Here is one such easy recipe that can be a instant hit. I had some bhetki or betki fish in the freezer and was not sure what to prepare with that. 

Whole mung bean curry..

Dal or lentil along with rice and roti is an usual affair in every Indian kitchen. A wide variety of lentils are consumed and preparations vary from region to region. My family is no exception, almost everyday or the other I prepare dal. To make sure it doesn't get boring I use all the different varieties of lentils I know and also try to prepare them in different ways to bring variations in the menu. I already have different recipes involving lentils on my blog, here is another one to add to the list. This time, I have made a whole mung bean curry.

Meatballs with mango glaze...

When I was asked to submit a recipe using summer fruits for an blog event, surprisingly the first thing came to my mind was not a dessert, but a savory dish. May be because I personally inclined to spicy savory stuffs than sugar loaded dishes. It's common to incorporate juicy pulpy summer fruits to a dessert or some frozen good. Specially when we are talking about mangoes. But I used it to glaze the chicken meatballs. The natural sweetness of mango, heat of dried red chilies and tartness of lime juice created a magic. Try it before the mangoes vanish from the market.

Mach er matha diye dal...

Every Bengali can relate to the image above, a typical Bengali lunch, steamed rice, fried potato roundels and yellow lentils with fish head. Bengalis' are known for their fondness of fish. No meal is complete without fish in it. Fish itself is considered auspicious, and is cooked and served during every festivity and special occasions.  It may seem surprising to some when they see how a giant Rohu/Katla head specially bought and cooked with utmost care to celebrate someone's birthday or to welcome the newly wed groom, but in our part of the country, fish head has always been considered a symbol of affection and respect depending on whom it is served to. In early times it was mandatory to serve the fish head to the the head of the family or the earning member of the family, a gesture of the gender-biased patriarchal society Times may have changed but I know there are families who still believe in this hierarchical legacy.

Noodles with shrimps...

I always complain about summer, the heat, the humidity. But there are few things that are undeniably good about summer, the seasonal fruits like mangoes, litchi, black plums. And the best part is the summer break. The school is closed, the kid is at home, alarms are not buzzing at the wee hour of the morning, altogether a relaxed and happy me.

Chingri macher bora...

Who doesn't like fresh juicy sweet shrimps? So when I found some in the market few days back, didn't take long to buy a bagful. I wanted to keep it simple to enjoy the flavorful shrimps to the fullest. I was juggling with different recipes, finally an easy shrimp balls recipe came to my mind. It is a tweaked version of a traditional Bengali style shrimp ball recipe.

Macher dimer bora...

Bengalis are known for their inclination towards fish. A Bengali meal is incomplete without fish in it. No part of the fish is thrown out, be it the head or the gut or the bones. Different dishes are prepared using different parts of the fish. Mach er dim or fish roe is no exception and considered a delicacy in Bengali cuisine.

Pressure cooker chicken curry...

I prefer to spend the weekends either relaxing with my family or just to have some precious me time. Doing nothing and sitting with a cup of coffee or tea is such a bliss, a rare thing that happens but I look for those priceless moments. Throughout the week following a routine is so tedious, and repeating the mandatory chores is so irksome. So I make it point to switch off the alarm on my phone for the weekends,though the body clock always betrays me and I end up tossing and turning on my bed at 5 in the morning while the man and the kid sleep peacefully. I mostly tip toe around the house and sip the hot cup of tea alone and enjoy the perfect me time. Yes we do go out, meet family members, party with friends but also enjoy the rejuvenating lazy weekends.

Chicken pulao...

Last week was a difficult one for me. The minor surgery I had to undergo resulted in restrictions in movement and thus my daily routine. Never mind the associated pain, missing a planned dine out with my friends due to this was more agonizing. But as the saying goes - everything has it's silver lining, I managed to get an uninterrupted break with the support of pain killers and other meds. The man was in charge of the kitchen and other household works. I enjoyed the egg curry for lunch and some not so round paratha for dinner. Yes, being sick now and then is not so bad after all. So this Sunday it was my turn to treat him and of course my little one who relentlessly tried her best to help me and comfort me in her small little ways.

No recipe chicken curry...

Chicken curry is the most frequently cooked dish in my kitchen. Mostly I follow the recipe I have learnt from my mom. Sometimes I try my hand on restaurant style dishes. But last Sunday I was not in a mood to follow any recipes, that's the reason I call it a 'no recipe' chicken curry. I just kept on cooking from my mind. I slow cooked the chicken and did not add any extra water. I let the chicken cook in it's own water and at the end added a handful of fresh coriander to give the dish a special touch. The end result was a scrumptious bowl of chicken curry, loved by all in my family. So before I forget what I put in that curry let me share it with you all.

Things needed to make the chicken curry:

• Chicken on bones ( a whole chicken cut into 12-14 pieces)
• Onion (very thinly sliced): 2 cups
• Garlic: 7-8 cloves
• Tomato: 1 (large)
• Ginger (grated): 2 tbsp
• Green chili: 2-3
• Green cardamom: 2-3
• Cinnamon: 1 stick
• Cloves: 4-5
• Shah jeera or Black Cumin: 1 tsp
• Black peppercorns: 10-12
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Kashmiri red chili powder: 1tsp
• Cumin powder: 2tsp
• Garam masala powder: 1tsp
• Coriander leaves: 1/2 cup
• Salt to taste
• Sugar: 1 tsp
• Potato: cubed and fried (optional)
• Mustard oil or olive oil to cook

Steps of making the chicken curry:

1. Clean and wash the chicken pieces.

2. Make a paste of garlic, ginger, tomato and green chili, keep aside.

3. In a large heavy bottom pan or kadhai heat 3 table spoons of oil. I used mustard oil, that gives a different taste to the dish. Olive oil can also be used. When the oil is hot add the sugar and let it caramelize. This will give the curry a nice color.

4. Add the whole spices, as the cloves splutter add thinly sliced onion. Fry the onion till brown.

5. Add the chicken pieces, cook the chicken with the onion over high heat for 7-8 min. Keep turning the chicken pieces.

6. Reduce heat add the ginger-garlic-tomato paste. Cook over medium heat for 3-4 min.

7. Add turmeric powder, cumin powder, kashmiri red chili powder, salt, mix well. Cover and cook over low medium heat for 40-45 min. Keep stirring in between. The chicken will cook in it's own water. I did not add any extra water. Check the salt, adjust accordingly. If you like your curry to be spicy add stilted green chilies. Add garam masala powder and chopped fresh coriander. Serve hot with rice or roti.

Note: If you want to add potato to this curry, peel and cube the potato and fry them. Add the fried potato pieces 10 min before the curry is done.

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Asian style meatballs...

The list of favorite food in my family is quite long. It extends from simple humble alu sedho (mashed potato) bhat (rice) to mutton biryani. Every now and then I get requests to prepare something special for lunch or dinner. The requests mostly come from the little one in my house. I respect my daughter's food preferences and try to introduce her with variety of food. Thankfully she loves to try new food. And whenever I cook up something new or different from the usual she gladly accepts to play the part of the food critic. I find it amusing the way she tastes the first bite from her plate or licks the gravy or chew few little grains of rice. I think she is profoundly influenced by all the judges of cookery shows on TV, specially Masterchef. Fortunately she is a very lenient judge, most of the time I pass with flying colors with a request to make that particular dish again for her. She is the most important reason that motivates me to create something new in my kitchen.

So on a note to impress her while preparing some meatballs to go with the pasta, I thought to give it an Asian twist. Instead of basil, cheese etc I used soy sauce, ginger, garlic to flavor the meatballs and it came out so good and replaced pasta with fried rice. I shallow fried the meatballs. The meatballs can be baked in oven or deep fried, as per choice. I glazed the meatballs with sweet and spicy combination of sriracha, honey and soy sauce. The result was finger licking good.

The ingredients for this recipe are easily available. I used minced chicken to make the meatballs, you can use any other meat of your choice. Depending on one's taste the amount of red chili sauce and honey can be altered. If you like the meatballs to be very spicy add chopped green chilies or red chili flakes to it. These delicious meatballs can be served either as a starter or a side dish.

Things needed to make Asian Style Meatballs:

(Serves 3-4)

For the meatballs:

• Minced chicken: 300 gm
• Onion (very finely chopped): 4 tbsp
• Ginger (grated): 1/2 tsp
• Garlic (minced): 1 tbsp
• Sesame oil: 1 tbsp
• Soy sauce: 1 tbsp
• Egg: 1
• Corn starch: 2-3 tbsp
• Black pepper powder: 1 tsp
• Salt to taste

For the glaze:

• Soy sauce: 3 tbsp
• Sriracha or red chili sauce: 2 tbsp
• Honey: 2 tbsp
• Rice wine vinegar: 1 tbsp
• Ginger (juice): 1/2 tsp [grate the ginger and squeeze the juice out] 
• Garlic (grated): 2 tsp
• Black pepper powder: 1/2 tsp
• Water: 1/2 cup
• Corn starch: 3-4 tsp
• Salt to taste

Other ingrdients:

• Vegetable oil: 3-4 tbsp
• Sesame seeds and spring onion to garnish

Steps of making Asian Style Meatballs:

1. In a bowl take all the ingredients for meatballs, mix well and make 14 equal size balls. 

2. Heat 3 tbsp oil in a pan, when the oil is hot shallow fry the meatballs till nicely brown from all sides. Take out the meatballs and keep aside.

3. Mix all the ingredients for the glaze in a cup. Taste and adjust salt, honey and chili sauce accordingly.

4. Wipe off excess oil from the pan. Add 1 teaspoon of oil in the pan, when the oil is hot pour the glaze mix and let it boil. As it starts to boil add the meatballs, cook over medium heat and keep coating the meatballs with the glaze.

5. Transfer into a serving plate or bowl, garnish with sesame seeds and chopped green part of the spring onion. Serve hot. Pour the excess glaze in a small bowl and serve it as dipping sauce.

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Pan grilled paneer...

Being a non-vegetarian, I always find it difficult to think of a vegetarian starter. But while planning a party one needs to consider the food preference of all the guests and I am sure, we all have friends who are strictly vegetarian. So I thought I would give it a try and prepare a simple quick vegetarian dish that can win everyone's heart.

It's pan grilled paneer. I marinated the paneer cubes with a spicy, tangy and sweet combination. I commonly use the same marination to grill prawns too. For a change I tried it with paneer and it came out really good. I used a cast iron griddle pan to grill the paneer, but you can use any heavy bottom flat pan (tawa). The griddle gives a nice grill marks on the paneer, if you are using a flat pan you won't get the grill marks but it won't affect the taste for sure.

I used sriracha, honey, garlic, lime juice and freshly chopped coriander leaves to marinate the paneer cubes. Sriracha is a red chili sauce available easily in any supermarket. If you don't have sriracha at home, use red chili powder mixed with a little vinegar.

Ingredients for Pan Grilled Paneer:

• Paneer (cut into rectangles or cubes): 250 gms
• Toasted sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

For marination:

• Sriracha sauce: 3 tbsp
• Honey: 2 tbsp
• Lime juice: 1 tbsp
• Garlic (minced): 2 tbsp
• Fresh coriander (finely chopped): 2 tbsp
• Extra virgin olive oil: 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Steps of making Pan Grilled Paneer:

1. In a bowl mix all the ingredients for marination, mix well.

2. Cut paneer into rectangles or cubes or any other shape of your choice.

3. Marinate the paneer cubes in the marinade for 15 min to 1 hr.

4. Put the paneer pieces into wooden skewers. The paneer can be cooked without the skewers also.

5. Heat a pan, brush oil on the pan, when the pan is hot place the marinated paneer and cook till the surface takes nice color.

6. Serve immediately with onion rings and lime wedges. Toasted sesame seeds can be used as garnish.

One can try this same recipe with broccoli or tofu.

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Thai basil fried rice...

I love one pot meals. A balanced dish with lean meat and carbohydrates with a simple crunchy salad perfectly suits my mid-week dinner plan. Last Wednesday I prepared fried rice, but not the usual one. It was Thai style fried rice. (Here you can check my better than take out fried rice recipe.)

When it comes to Thai food, first thing comes to our mind is the explosion of flavour from lemongrass, kaffir lime, thai basil, holy basil, and the strong sharp smell of fish sauce and of course the heat from fresh red chilies.

Achari aloo...

Do you like potatoes? For me it's one of the must vegetable. I love it in all different ways, from fried to boiled, mashed to curried. When it comes to Indian cooking one can find generous use of potatoes, though potatoes are not indigenous to India. Potato came to India during the colonial period, through the Portuguese in the early 17th century.

I can't think of my mutton or chicken curries without potatoes, or who can refuse some steaming hot Samosas stuffed with potato. So it is, the love for potato, whatever may be the consequences (read calories).

Today I made a dry potato curry with a spicy and tangy twist, Achari Aloo, pickle flavored potato curry. The dish gets the pickle flavor from the dry spices, fennel, fenugreek, black cumin, mustard etc. And loads of garlic and dry red chili are essential part of this dish. I used dry mango powder to bring tangy taste to the dish. If you do not find dry mango powder then use vinegar or lime juice, instead.

Things needed to make Achari Aloo:

• Baby potatoes: 12-14
• Onion (very finely chopped): 1 cup
• Garlic (thinly sliced): 3 tbsp
• Ginger paste: 2 tsp
• Yogurt: 1/3 cup
• Fennel seed: 1 tsp+1/2 tsp
• Black cumin (kalonji) seed: 1 tsp+1/2 tsp
• Fenugreek seed: 1/2 tsp+1/4 tsp
• Mustard seed: 1/2 tsp+1/4 tsp
• Cumin seed: 1 tsp+1/2 tsp
• Dry red chilies: 5-6
• Green chilies: 2-3
• Red chili powder: 2 tsp
• Coriander powder: 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Dry mango (Amchur) powder: 2 tsp
• Mustard oil to cook
• Salt to taste
• Sugar to taste
• Fresh coriander leaves to garnish

Steps of making Achari Aloo:

1. Take large deep pan with cover, put the potatoes in the pan with enough water and one teaspoon salt. Let the water boil, reduce heat and cook for 5-6 min, switch off and drain. Wash with cold water. Peel the potato and prick with a fork or tooth pick. Keep aside.

2. In a flat pan, take 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, 1/2 teaspoon black cumin 1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, 1/4 teaspoon mustard seed, 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seed, and roast all the seed, but take care not to burn. Let cool down and coarsely ground the seeds. Keep aside.

3. Heat oil (preferably mustard oil) in a pan, fry the potatoes till they turn golden brown. Take out and keep aside.

4. In the same oil, add dry red chilies, rest of the seeds. As the seeds crackles, add garlic. As the garlic changes color add onion, cook till golden brown. Add ginger paste, cook for 1-2 min.

5. Add red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, cook over low heat for 1-2 min, if needed add few teaspoons of water.

6. Beat the yogurt with little sugar and water, add the the yogurt. Cook till oil separates. Add the fried potatoes, the ground spices, and chopped green chilies. Cook for 4-5 min. Add dry mango powder, mix well. Check seasoning and adjust accordingly. Switch off heat, sprinkle chopped coriander leaves, serve hot with rotis or parathas.

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Black eyed bean salad and my submission for BWW#118

Few days back while cleaning the pantry shelves I found these black eyed beans. I'm not a big fan of these beans. Once in a while I use them to make mixed dal. But for some reason looking at the half filled jar of these black and white beans, I found them very interesting and clicked some pics of these not so loved beans. And to be honest whatever the bean may taste like, I found them to be very camera friendly and photogenic. The first shot  below was clicked in daylight, using a Nikon D600 and 105mm lens. I used a homemade reflector (aluminium foil wrapped over a hard board) to lit up the front.

After I clicked the first one I thought of changing the mood of the pic and placed a black cloth as a background, the second image appeared very dramatic. I changed the saturation of the second pic to make it black and white, the following image is my submission for Black and White Wednesday event. This event was initially started by Susan of Well Seasoned Cook and now being managed by Cinzia of Cindystar. This week it's being hosted by Sreevalli of Ammaji Kitchen. Thank you Sreevalli.

Black eyed beans are called lobia in India. I remember my mother used to cook a simple dish with these beans. But I was never fond of that curry. I made a quick and healthy salad. You can have this as a healthy lunch or serve with crackers as a snack.

It is a very easy and quick salad. Either you can use dried beans or canned beans. If you are using dried beans, them soak them overnight in enough water. Rinse well and cook before making the salad or any other dishes. I used simple ingredients, onion, tomato, cucumber etc for the salad. And made an easy vinaigrette flavored with parsley and garlic.

Things needed to make Black eyed beans salad:

• Cooked or canned black eyed beans: 1 cup
• Red onion (diced): 1/4 cup
• Tomato/ cherry tomato: 1/3 cup
• Cucumber (diced): 1/3 cup
• EVOO: 3 tbsp
• Apple cider vinegar: 1 tbsp
• Garlic (minced): 1 tsp
• Parsley: 1 tsp
• Honey: 1/2 tbsp
• Chili flakes: 1-2 tsp
• Black pepper powder to taste
• Salt to taste
• Feta cheese (optional)
• Crackers to serve (optional)

Steps of making Black eyed beans salad:

1. If you are using canned black eyed beans, then drain and keep the beans aside. If you are using dried beans, then the beans are need to be soaked in enough water for atleast 8 hrs or over night. After proper soaking drain and wash the beans and cook. This cooked beans can be used in various ways.

2. In a bowl add EVOO, vinegar, honey, chili flakes, salt, black pepper, parsley, garlic, mix well. Add cooked beans and other ingredients, mix well. Serve immediately.

I used dried parsley, you can use fresh, in that case increase the amount to 1 tablespoon. I used cheery tomato, you can use any of your choice.

Serving suggestion: Sprinkle feta cheese on the salad and serve with some multi-grain cracker.

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Prawn curry with potato and cauliflower..

It's been two weeks since we welcomed the new year, surprisingly this is my first post of the year. It was not that I was out of town or not cooking or sick, I did make some finger-licking Indian curries as well as some simple salads and baked a few things during this "no show" phase. The truth is I was just lazy to pick up my camera to click the food I cooked. Hope to make that up in the coming days.

Today it's all about my favorite seafood, prawns, and that too paired with another favorite of mine, cauliflower. Earlier I posted a recipe on this combo, though that was with shrimps (Shrimp and cauliflower curry). Usually I cook prawn curry without garlic, for a change, this time I added a little onion and garlic to enhance the taste a bit more.

While working with prawn or shrimp, keep in mind not to overcook them. Or else they will turn hard and chewy.

I used fresh large prawns for the curry and kept the heads for more flavor. You can use frozen prawns too. Being a Bengali it's very difficult to ignore potatoes in a curry, so added that too. But seriously potatoes give a nice thickness and texture to the gravy.

And about cauliflower all I have to say is, I love this vegetable. For this particular curry fry the cauliflower florets till brown spots appear on them, cook over high heat and make sure the cauliflower retains its crunchiness.

Things needed to make Prawn Curry: 

• Prawns: 6-8
• Potato: 1 (medium)
• Cauliflower: 1 (small)
• Onion (grated): 3 tbsp
• Garlic (paste): 1/2 tsp
• Ginger (paste): 2 tsp
• Tomato: 1 (large)
• Cumin powder: 2 tsp
• Red chili powder: 2-3 tsp
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Garam masala powder: 1 tsp
• Ghee/clarified butter: 2 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Sugar to taste
• Oil to cook (preferably mustard oil)

Steps of making Prawn Curry:

1. Clean and wash the prawn, smear with little turmeric and salt. Keep aside.

2. In a pan heat oil (3 tablespoon), when the oil is hot fry the prawn for 1 min, turning the sides, take out and keep aside.

3. Peel, wash and cube the potatoes. Fry the cubed potatoes till nicely brown, keep aside. Use the same pan used for frying the prawns.

4. Cut the cauliflower into medium size florets to match the cubed potatoes. Fry the cauliflower florets till brown spots appear on them, keep aside.

5. If needed add more oil to the pan, when the oil is hot add the grated onion and cook till turns brown. Add garlic paste, cook for a minute. Add ginger paste and cook for 2 min. Add chopped tomato, sprinkle little salt, cover and cook till the tomato is done.

6. Add cumin powder, turmeric powder, red chili powder, few teaspoons of water, cook till oil separates from the spices. Add a cup of warm water, salt and sugar. As the water boils add fried potatoes, cover and cook till potatoes are done. Add fried cauliflower florets and fried prawns, cook for 2-3 min. Add ghee (clarified butter) and garam masala powder. Switch off heat, keep the pan covered for 5-6 min, serve hot with steamed rice.

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