Pepper Chicken drumsticks in a light Tomato gravy

I had made this chicken dish as an accompaniment for the Carrot-Coconut rice.

My little one prefers the drumstick pieces of the chicken. So she asked,  "Mama, why can't you buy just the drumsticks?" And so I did. I had a little fun at it too. When she actually expressed how she enjoyed this make (when Dad was over last weekend), I had a bit of fun saying, "Hey see Mama found a chicken who had only legs and that's why there are so many in this gravy!" :D She is too smart for me though! She caught me out in less than a minute.

Although I ventured to make this recipe in my mum's way, I realised that it was not possible without red chili powder, so I just took the inspiration and ran a modified version to the same recipe to accommodate both Daddy's and Isabelle's taste buds and tummies. I will add Mum's complete version once I have tried the same.

This recipe calls for a slow cooking process to add more flavour.

You need: 

• 14 pcs of chicken drumsticks, cleaned and slit across the fleshy part of the drumsticks
• 2 medium onions, diced finely
• Salt to taste
• 2 medium size tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tbsp pepper powder
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tbsp Garam Masala
• 1-2 cups of drinking water
• Oil to drizzle

The Make:

1. In a large non-stick pan, drizzle some oil. Toss in the onions on medium heat and saute well until translucent.
2. Next toss in the chopped tomatoes and lower the heat.
3. Saute on low heat and then add the salt and all the spices. Cover and allow to cook slowly on low heat.
4. Uncover and add in the chicken pieces in about 2-3 minutes and cover the pan once more and continue to cook slowly for the next 40 minutes.* Add water as required only. Most likely you would not need to as the chicken releases the liquids which makes for a very nice gravy.
5. Once cooked, turn off the heat and serve hot with rice or rotis.

Enjoy!!

*Note:
 i. If I had used the whole chicken, it had to be cut into small sized pieces and would take an hour and a half over slow cooking process to get this recipe right.

Okra curry - Mum's recipe

I always, always loved Mum's Okra curry. I miss it lots now! The other day as I was stewing thinking of what to make for lunch the following day, my thoughts treaded upon mum's okra curry and I found myself yearning for it, then teared up.

I then felt a convincing voice/thought that said, "Oh you can make it from memory! After all how many times have you witnessed this make?"

So I ventured on making Mum's Okra curry (Vendakya curry).

It turned on somewhat quite close to what she made but what would I not give to taste her make one more time. Sigh! Sorry dear readers the grieving process from losing your mum esp. one who has inspired your cooking/baking, etc is tremendous that I am quite unsure if I would ever come out of this. Love you Mum and miss you loads.

You need:

• 500 gms of lady's fingers/okra, chopped
• 1 tbsp of red chili powder
• 1 tbsp of coriander powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 large onion, diced lengthwise
• 2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped finely
• 1/2" ginger, chopped finely
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Drizzle of oil
•  Up to 1 cup of drinking water or 1/2 cup drinking water & first and second milk of half a medium sized  coconut.

The Make:
Preparation Time: 10 minutes | Cooking Time: 20-25 minutes | Serves 3-4 adults

1. In a non-stick pot, drizzle some oil and once warm, add in the mustard seeds. Allow to splutter.
2. Then toss in the curry leaves on medium low heat.
3. Add in the onions and saute on medium heat until the onions are translucent. Next add in the ginger and garlic and saute for a minute. Then add the spices and salt and saute well for another minute.
4. Next add in the okra and saute well.
5. Add in the tomatoes stir well until the tomatoes have softened and the stickiness of the okra disappears. This would take between 3-5 minutes.
6. Add about half a cup of water and stir well. Check to see if the okra is almost fully immersed in the gravy, else add another half cup of water or the second milk of the coconut gratings.
7. Cover and allow the okra to fully cook and flavour the gravy over the next 15 minutes. Then lower the flame and add in the first milk of coconut gratings. Allow to warm up and turn off the flame.

Serve hot with piping hot rice or your choice of roti. Bon Appetit!

Aamras Puris with Alu Bhaaji (Fried Mango-pulp Indian bread with spiced Potato mash)

Puris are unleavened, deep-fried Indian bread that are most consumed for breakfast. In our home, puris are made with a blend of wheat flour and refined wheat (plain) flour. This time I wanted to try something different so I explored the Rice flour option with wheat flour and I had some mango pulp as well so I added that to the mix. It turned out #fabulous as was expressed by my toddler and hubby :)

In the spirit of trying the new blend of Puri dough, I thought let's take it a step further and make a different kind of Alu Bhaaji to go with it. With some of the extra potatoes, I made some potato wedges for my toddler and reserved some of the Aamras (mango pulp) as well.

Normally Aamras is served on the side but I thought it might be fun to incorporate some of it in the Puri dough.

You need:

For the Aamras:

• 3 fully ripe Mangoes (Alphonso), deseeded and pulped
• Powdered sugar to taste (optional)
• 1 tsp Cardamom powder
• 1 tbsp cream (optional)
• Pinch of saffron strands or crispy onion strands (optional) -for garnish

For the Aamras Puris:

• 3 cups of wheat flour (chapatti flour)
• 1/2 cup of rice flour
• 2 tbsp of ghee (clarifed butter)
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• Water to make the dough
• Cooking oil for deep frying
• 1/2 the quantity of the prepared Aamras

For the Alu Bhaji:

• 4 medium-sized potatoes, boiled and skinned
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 tbsp Garam masala powder
• 1/2 tbsp Raw mango powder
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 1 tbsp Ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tbsp of water
• Drizzle of oil

The Make:
Preparation Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 15 minutes | Serves 4

The Aamras:
1. Blend  the mango pulp, cardamom powder, sugar as per taste and cream (optional). If you use the cream, you will get a lighter  colour of the mango pulp blend.
2. Reserve half of the Aamras for the puris and then chill the remaining in individual serving bowls.
3. Garnish with saffron strands or crispy onion strands if desired

The Aamras Puris:
1. Combine the wheat flour, rice flour and salt. Add in the ghee and mix to crumbs.
2. Add the reserved quantity of aamras and mix in. Next, add in the water bit-by-bit and knead to a stiff dough.
3. Divide the dough into equal portion and roll into balls. Next using the rolling pin, roll the dough balls into flat rounds.
4. Heat enough oil in deep-bottomed wok and lower heat on medium flame, when oil is hot enough.
5. Carefully slip in the rolled-out puri in oil and fry both sides until golden brown. Drain and set aside on a kitchen towel and repeat till all the rolled out puris are fried.

The Alu Bhaaji:

1. Heat the oil in a skillet and toss in the onions. Fry until translucent.
2. Add the ginger-garlic paste and saute for about a minute or until the ginger-garlic paste leaves the sides of the skillet.
3. Next add in the garam masala, salt and raw mango powder and saute for another minute with about a tbsp of water.
4. Mash the potatoes separately and add the potatoes to the spices mix and saute well.
5. Add the additional tbsp of water to prevent sticking to the base of the dish and saute for about a minute.

Serve hot with the puris and chilled aamras.

Hope your guests/family enjoys this dish as much as my family did!

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Fried Rice - Mummy's recipe

As I mentioned in the Duck roast post, this Fried Rice would be an excellent accompaniment to the Duck Roast. Not only is this a simple to make accompaniment, it is also goes well with the Duck Roast Gravy! I used to always resign myself to the fact that rice was something I was never good at making esp. Fried Rice, Biriyani, etc. Well not until I followed mum's instructions to the 'T' and also had a televised encounter with Jamie Oliver :) So all it takes is good listening (and might I add obeying) skills to get it right (after a few tries).

This one is mum's recipe so it turned out pretty fab (Thank God as I had guests to feed).

To make this simple Fried rice,

You need:

• 3 coffee mugs (about 600 gms) basmati (long grained) rice 
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
• 1 large onion, diced finely
• 1" ginger, diced finely or ground
• 1" cinnamon stick
• Veggies of your choice - carrots, green peas, beans, etc., diced finely
• 6-7 cups of drinking water
• 1-2 tbsp of cooking oil
• 1 tbsp of ghee or clarified butter (optional)
• Drizzle of oil (optional)

Method:

Serves 7 adults | Cooking Time: 15 minutes | Preparation Time: 15 minutes (to 1 hour)

1. Clean the rice and then soak for at least for at least 15 minutes to 1 hour. The reason for this is that the more you soak it, the lesser water would be required to be added during the cooking process which means lesser possibilities of turning up with a less than fluffed rice.
2. Boil 6 cups of water with salt and cardamom powder and a drizzle of oil (optional) to avoid the rice from sticking (I did not add any oil at this stage and it turned out fine) in a non-stick pot.
3. When the water comes to a rolling boil, lower the heat and take out a palm full of the soaked rice bit by bit, add it to the boiled water and discard the soaked water. Cover and cook until the rice comes to a boil. Turn off the flame and leave covered.
4. Heat the oil in a wok/non-stick pot and toss in the onions.
5. Saute the onions with a pinch or less of salt until translucent and then add the ginger and saute for a minute.
6. Toss in the cinnamon stick and saute for another minute.
7. Next add in the veggies and saute for a few minutes (with ghee - optional) until translucent.
8. Transfer the sauteed veggies to the half cooked rice and add another cup of water if required. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes on medium flame*.
9. Fluff the rice with a fork before serving. Serve hot with your favourite dish or Duck Roast.

*Tip: Medium flame as it would get too stodgy and take more time on low flame.

These pictures are again from a time before my blogging adventure began. I will replace them once I make this dish again. Just had to share the recipe as its only 4 days to go to Christmas :) 
Merry Christmas all!

Roasted Pumpkin Soup for the Soul! - A Winter Special

Brrrr.....winter is here again! This year we have had the quickest and shortest summer and the earliest winter. No complaints! I most definitely prefer pleasant weather than scorching heat after having moved to India from my favourite desert where I was born and raised! I hear that this year Dubai has been and will be experiencing rains and frost esp since the last week and into the next couple of weeks.

While Mother Nature waves her magic wand to bring in surprising changes to the weather, we do our best and help stay warm during these chilly nights. What better to have during these cold nights for a dinner than a nice hot bowl of soup! Pumpkin is one of those neglected veggies but in reality its health benefits are far too many to miss out on this delicious veggie. You can make both as sweet and savoury dishes with this humble vegetable. With Halloween come and gone, perhaps many may not want to hear of pumpkin. This soup however should not be missed! Not only is it an easy make it is packed fiber, vitamins and minerals that would help you build immunity to what the cold weather brings. Many nutrition research reviews have also claimed that the modest pumpkin has helped prevent several diseases including but not limited to heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, arthritis and even cancer!

This recipe was inspired by Donna Hay -from her TV series Fast, Fresh and Simple! I did not add the honey though and instead added cinnamon and garlic cloves for that extra punch! Also I topped the soup with croutons and glazed onions.

To make this delicious pumpkin soup,

You need:

• 1.5 kg pumpkin, cut lengthwise and seeds scooped out
• 2 cup veg/chicken stock
• 100 ml cream
• 1/2 tbsp natural honey (optional)
• Pinch of cinnamon
• 1 large white onion
• Rock salt, to sprinkle
• EVOO/Olive oil, to drizzle
• 4 cloves of garlic
• Pinch of salt and pepper

For the garnish:

• 2 slices of bread, chopped into cubes
• 1/2 onion, finely diced
• 1/2  tbsp Butter (optional)
• Sour cream (optional)

The Make
Serves 2-3 | Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Preparation Time: 60 minutes
Source: Donna Hay

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2. On a baking tray, place the garlic cloves and onion in whole with skin on and the pumpkin with the cut side up.
3. Drizzle with a little EVOO and sprinkle some salt on top.
4. Bake the pumpkin for about an hour or until the pumpkin softens and starts to brown. Scoop the pumpkin out of the skin and into the blender. Pop out the flesh from the garlic and onion, discard the skins and transfer it to the blender.
5. Add half of the stock and blend until smooth.
6. Add the blended mixture to a saucepan and pour in the remaining stock, cinnamon, honey (optional), cream, pinch of salt and pepper and whisk carefully over medium-low heat and bring it up to a boil.
7. For the croutons you can either toss the bread  into the heated oven with a drizzle of EVOO or heat it on a saucepan with some butter.Also take about 1/4 tbsp of butter and glaze the onion.
8. Serve your healthy pumpkin soup hot with croutons and glazed onions or sour cream on top.