Easy - Peasy Beef Samosa

I never thought making samosas were this easy! Do you have some left-over beef fry /curry and chapathi dough? Then please roll out the dough, fill in some shredded beef fry, tuck them in and deep fry! Your kids will love..we actually fought for that last one!!

The only problem with atta being used as the wrapper is that the samosas should be consumed immediately. As it sits, they lose their crispness. But I am sure there wouldn't be any left. If at all you want the crispness to last longer, please use a maida dough instead of atta.

You can follow the same recipe for chicken samosas too, if you have some leftover chicken curry. Easy - peasy..aint it?

Ingredients

Left-over beef curry or fry - around 2 cups (if there is too much gravy, just cook them for some more time so that the moisture dries up. You do not want it to be too dry, something like wet will be perfect)

Chapathi dough - as needed

Oil - for frying

Method

1. Shred the beef in a food processor.

2. Roll out a small ball of chapathi dough. Cut them in half as shown. Twist them to make a cone and fill in a tbsp of beef. 

3. Tuck them in, press tightly to close

4. Deep fry in oil

Enjoy with some tomato ketchup.

Chicken Stew / Ishtu

For Easter and Christmas, our day starts with Stew/Ishtu for breakfast. Its such an unavoidable item for breakfast and when paired with Appam, they make a terrific combo. The rich, creamy stew combined with feather-like appams melt in your mouth and slowly glide through your food pipe tickling your taste buds at the right spots. They are mild, yet spicy (from the whole spices added) and tangy (from vinegar) all at the same time. The secret to good ishtu is that there should be a balance between all these flavours - mildness, tangy, spicy - none of the flavours should be overpowering.

Ingredients

Carrot - 1, washed, peeled and diced
Potato - 1, washed, peeled and diced
Cooked chicken pieces (fairly big pieces) - 2 cups (You can directly add uncooked pieces too)
Chicken stock (optional - left from cooking the chicken) - 1/2 cup
Whole spices
   Cardamom - 1
   Cinnamom - 2 inch piece, broken to smaller pieces
   Cloves - 4
   Whole black pepper - 5-6
Big onion - 1 medium
Green chilly - 1 or 2, as per your tolerance. I like to keep it mild, so add only one
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Ginger - 1 inch pieces, julienned
Thick coconut milk - 1/2 cup
Thin coconut milk - 1 1/2 cups (it should not be too thin, something like semi-thick)
Coconut oil - 2 tbsp
Vinegar - 1 tbsp

Method

1. Heat a kadai, add coconut oil.

2. Once hot (throughout cooking, it should be on low-medium heat), add the whole spices and wait till they splutter.

3. Add the diced onion and saute till they turn pink (take care not to saute for more time)

4. Add the julienned ginger and green chilly (slit), mix in

5. Add in the diced potatoes and carrots, stir well. Let them get cooked in the oil for a while (approx 3 min). Take care not to burn them, keep stirring).

6. Add in the chicken pieces (cooked or uncooked) along with the chicken stock. Add half cup water if chicken stock isn't available. If using uncooked chicken, you donot need any water as chicken will start releasing its juices. Cover and cook till carrots, chicken and potatoes are cooked well.

7. Once cooked (you should be able to smash the potatoes easily with the back of a spoon), add the semi-thick coconut milk. Mix well. Add salt. Smash some pieces of carrots and potatoes so that the sauce becomes thick. 

8. When the coconut milk starts to boil (do not allow to boil well), quickly add the thick coconut milk and immediately switch off the stove. Stir for a minute, to ensure coconut milk do not curdle.

9. Add vinegar, stir well. Serve hot with Appams

Mixed Fried Rice with Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao chicken is one dish that won our hearts in the first try itself, in a nearby restaurant. 

Me, being myself, wanted to recreate it at home. I just went by the taste, and added the ingredients I felt, were in that dish. And the result was this tasty, home-made kung pao chicken. Loved it..we all!! 

Ingredients - Kung Pao Chicken

To Marinate

Boneless chicken, cut into small pieces - about 300g

Salt - as per taste

Pepper powder - 1 tsp

Soy sauce - 1 tsp

Half egg (optional)

Corn flour - 1 tsp

For Sauting

Big onion - 1 medium, cubed

Garlic - 2 cloves, crushed

Capsicum - 1 small, cubed

Roasted Cashew/Peanuts - handful

Kashmiri chilly powder - 1 tsp or dried red chilly - 2

Spring onions - 2 tbsp, for garnishing

Soy sauce - 1 tbsp

Rice vinegar - 1 tbsp

Chicken broth/ water - 1/2 cup or 1 cup if you need more gravy

Sugar - a pinch

Dried red chilly (Kashmiri) - 2

Method

1. Marinate the chicken pieces with ingredients mentioned and keep them for 10 minutes.

2. Heat oil in a pan and fry them (in med-high heat) till the chicken pieces are cooked. (When you cut the chicken with a wooden spoon/spatula, it should not be reddish inside. Do not cook them for too long as then it will dry and will not be juicy any more). Keep them aside.

3. Make a concoction of broth, soy sauce, rice vinegar, salt & sugar. Keep aside.

4. Heat a pan, add oil. Add dried red chilly. Saute till it turns the oil red. If you are using unroasted cashew/peanuts, add at this stage and saute till they turn crisp.

5. Add cubed onions and saute for not more than 30s (you need them crisp). Add the garlic and bell peppers and saute for another 30s. Add peanuts / cashews (if using roasted ones). Add kashmiri red chilly powder if you need more colour.

6. Add the sauce mixture. Let it boil. Add the cooked chicken. Let the gravy thicken. Adjust salt. 

7. Switch off the stove and sprinkle from spring onions.

Ingredients - Mixed Fried Rice

You can follow the recipe as in Vegetable Fried Rice. In addition to veggies, you can optionally add stir fried chicken, egg, shrimps.

Cooked cooled rice - 4 cups (refer recipe here)

Egg - 2

Chicken, cut into small pieces - 1/2 cup

Shrimp - 1/4 cup

Salt - as needed

Pepper powder - about 1 tsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Method

1. Beat egg well along with salt and pepper. Adding a tsp of water to this will help in beating the egg really fluffy.

2. Marinate chicken with salt and pepper and keep for 10 min.

3. Marinate shrimp with salt and pepper and keep for 10 min.

4. Heat a pan, add oil. Add chicken pieces (med-high heat) and fry till cooked (not reddish inside). It wont take more than 4 minutes, keep stirring. Drain oil and keep aside.

5. In same pan, fry shrimps till cooked. Again, this will not take more than 3-4 minutes. Ensure stirring to avoid burning. Remove and keep aside.

6. In remaining oil, add the beaten egg. Wait for 10s and then scramble them lightly. Once cooked, remove.

7. Add all of these into the rice and mix gently.

Payyoli Chicken

Payyoli chicken...We have had this tasty starter only from the Calicut Paragon restaurants. Never knew it was so easy to make..until I got the recipe during my usual blog-hopping.

Ingredients

Chicken - 500g

Kashmiri chilly powder - 2 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Vinegar - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 2 sprig

Salt - to taste

Crushed ginger - 1 tbsp

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Coconut oil - 3 tbsp + 1 tbsp

Green chilly - 2, whole

Method

1. Marinate the chicken with 1 tbsp kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric powder, 1 sprig of curry leaves, salt, vinegar and crushed ginger. Let it rest for atleast 30 min.

2. Mix the grated coconut with the remaining 1 tbsp of kashmiri chilli powder and keep aside.

3. Heat 3 tbsp of coconut oil in a kadai or manchatti. Add the curry leaves and marinated chicken. Saute well on high heat for about 2 min.

4. After that reduce the heat, cover the pot and cook till the chicken is almost done.

5. Now open the lid and add the grated coconut-chilly powder mixture. Cook till all the water is evaporated and mixture turns semi-dry.

6. Move the chicken mixture to the sides of the pan and make a small well in the middle of the pan, add the remaining oil. When its hot enough, add the remaining sprig of curry leaves and green chilly. Mix entire mixture and let it dry up. 

7. Serve hot!!

Baked Chicken & Veggies in Garlic Sauce

The women's magazine "Vanitha" has played a major role in transforming many a Malayali women into good cooks. Here is one dinner dish recipe from Vanitha, altered as per my family's taste.

Ingradients - for the Chicken Bake

To marinate
Chicken - half chicken, cut lengthwise
Soy sauce - 2 tbsp
Freshly crushed pepper - 2 tbsp
Mustard powder - a pinch
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - as per taste
Vegetables - Sliced carrot, beans, baby potatoes, baby corn, green peas, brocoli & cauliflower.

Marinate the chicken with soy sauce, pepper & mustard powder, salt & oil. Let the marinade sit for atleast 6 hours. After the specified time, roast the chicken on a tawa, 2 min on each side.

Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees.

Now arrange the roasted chicken and vegetables (sprinkle salt) in an oven proof dish and bake in the pre-heated oven for about 1 hr. Turn sides after 30 min.

Steamed Vegetables

Carrot - 1/2 of a carrot, thinly sliced

Green peas (not the dried version) - 10-12

Beans - 4-5

Baby corn - 4-5

Cauliflower florets - 4-5

Broccoli - 4-5

Steam the vegetables until done. Sprinkle salt & freshly crushed pepper.

Garlic sauce

Garlic - 1 clove

All purpose flour - 1 tbsp

Soy sauce - 1 tsp

Tomato sauce - 1 tbsp

Water - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1/4 tsp

Salt - as per taste

Freshly crushed pepper - 1.5 tsp

Butter - 1 tbsp

In a heated pan, add butter. When it melts, add the crushed garlic clove and required salt. When the raw smell is gone, add all purpose flour and saute well. Now add soy sauce, tomato sauce, sugar, water, pepper and stir well to get a thick sauce. Adjust salt and pepper. The garlic sauce is ready.

Garlic bread

French loaf bread - 5-6 pieces

Butter - 2 tbsp

Garlic - 1 clove

Salt -  as per taste

In a non-stick pan, heat butter. Once melted, add crushed garlic. Once raw smell is gone, add the required salt and switch off the stove. Now take the bread slices one by one and brush the garlic infused butter onto the bread. Heat a tawa and keep the bread slices on the tawa with the buttered side down. Once it becomes crisp, turn each of them to the other side till they are crisp too. Switch off the tawa. 

Porkkum Kayayum / Pork with Raw Banana

This post is a dedication to all pork lovers, and who does not make a fussy face in front of a pork dish!!

Hailing from a place known for pork & pork dishes, I will not let go a chance of cooking pork for guests who enjoy it. Recently we had a Goan friend visiting us, and me and my husband were thrilled at the chance of getting to cook & eat pork.

The recipe below is adapted from Mishmash's, however adjusted to our taste. I love my grandmom's idea of adding raw banana to the pork dish, as it gives something other than meat to chew on in between. The sight of raw banana skin cooked & coated with pork fat itself makes me drool.

So straight into the recipe..

Cubed pork - 1 kg (it should be a good mix of meat & fatty chunks, as the fat adds an un-explainable flavor to the dish. Moreover, it is this fat that is used for sauteing the onions...no other oil is used).

Coriander powder - 4 tbsp
Chilly powder - 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Garlic - 1 big pod
Ginger - a 4 inch piece
Salt - as per taste

Raw banana (pacha ethakkaya) - 2

Big onion - 2 big, thinly sliced
Small onion - 8 - 10, thinly sliced (this is optional, as small onion adds flavor, as well as good for health)
Chilly - 5-6 nos, slit lengthwise
Black pepper powder - 2 tsp
Garam masala - 3 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

Method

Wash the pork thoroughly and marinate the meat with slightly roasted coriander powder, chilly powder, salt & turmeric powder. Now add crushed ginger & garlic to the meat and mix thoroughly with hand. Set aside this for 30 min.

Wash & clean the raw banana, cut into cubes and cook with little salt, turmeric powder & enough water. Once cooked, drain excess water and keep aside.

Pressure cook the marinated pork with around half cup water (I normally cook it for 1 whistle in high flame & 3 whistles in low flame). Let all the pressure gets released.

Meanwhile, keep a heavy bottomed kadai or manchatti (manchatti is the best!) on the stove and let it get hot.
Once the pressure has been released from pressure cooker, open the cooker & drain the pork fat into the chatti. Let the fat boil in the chatti for sometime. This is to remove the water traces from the fat.
Once the fat is hot enough, add thinly sliced big & small onions and saute well in the fat.
Once the onions are translucent, add the slit chillies, and throw in some curry leaves. Let them get sauteed well, stirring in between.
Now add half the black pepper & 1 tsp of freshly made garam masala and saute for a min.
Add the cooked meat & raw banana to this mixture and combine well.
Let the meat get cooked in the masala for atleast 7-8 min. Don't forget to stir in between (This stage is a dangerous one, as a nice aroma starts filling your kitchen, and you just cannot stop yourself from tasting the erachikashanam and the neykashanam alternately).
While the meat gets soaked & sauteed in the masala, sprinkle rest of black pepper & garam masala and mix well so that all masalas gets absorbed by the pork.

Serve hot with kuthari choru or even with chapathis...they taste great!!