Fish tagine

Fish tagine 

The Egyptian tagine (pronounced with a hard ‘g’) is much like the better-known Moroccan tajine (pronounced with a soft ‘j’). This recipe uses barramundi instead of the traditional Nile perch, with calamari and prawns drawing on the fruits of Egypt’s Mediterranean coastline and its famous river.

Ingredients

1 barramundi fillet, cut into 2 cm pieces
1 calamari tube cleaned, and sliced
250g prawns, peeled and deveined

Marinade
½ tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp crushed garlic
Juice of ½ lime (or lemon)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp cumin
½ cup fresh coriander, chopped roughly

Sauce
1 roasted red capsicum, peeled
3 fresh tomatoes
1 cup chopped celery
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp tomato paste
Small handful of fresh coriander leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

In a mixing bowl, combine the ingredients for the marinade and mix well. Add the barramundi pieces, calamari and prawns. Mix so the seafood is well coated and marinate for 4 hours.

To make the sauce, blend the tomatoes, capsicum, including the seeds, celery and cumin. 

In a large frying pan heat 1 tsp olive oil on a high heat and fry the red onion until soft. Add the blended sauce mixture and bring to a high simmer. Stir in the tomato paste, salt, pepper, coriander leaves and little cumin.

Cover the base of the tagine with some of the sauce, add the seafood, then cover the seafood with the remaining sauce. Place the tagine plate on the stove over a medium heat for a few minutes to start the cooking process. Then transfer to the oven, pre-heated 180°C for 40-45 mins.

Serve with fresh bread, couscous or rice.

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Sunhari Raan Mussallam

Sunhari Raan Mussallam

Awadhi cuisine  is from the city of Lucknow, which is the capital of the state of Uttar Pradesh inCentral-South Asia and Northern India, and the cooking patterns of the city are similar to those of Central Asia, the Middle East, andNorthern India as well. The cuisine consists of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Awadh has been greatly influenced by Mughal cooking techniques, and the cuisine of Lucknow bears similarities to those of Persia, Kashmir, Punjab and Hyderabad; and the city is known for Nawabi foods.

The bawarchis and rakabdars of Awadh gave birth to the dum style of cooking or the art of cooking over a slow fire, which has become synonymous with Lucknow today. Their spread consisted of elaborate dishes like kebabs, kormas, biryani, kaliya, nahari-kulchas, zarda, sheermal, roomali rotis, and warqi parathas. The richness of Awadh cuisine lies not only in the variety of cuisine but also in the ingredients used like mutton, paneer, and rich spices including cardamom and saffron.

Ingredients:

Leg of Lamb :approx 1kg

Ist marination:

1. 2 tbsp ginger paste
2. 2 tbsp garlic paste
3. Red chilly paste
4. Lime juice
5. Salt

2nd marination:

1. 3 tbsp yoghurt
2. 1-2 sliced onion
3. 11/2 tsp cumin seeds
4. 3 black pepper corns
5. 3 cloves
6. 1/2 cinnamon stick
7. 1 bayleaf
8. 2 black cardamom
9. 2 green cardamom
10. little mace
11. 1 tsp fennel seeds (optional)
12. 2-3 tomatoes chopped
13. 2 tbsp tomato paste
14. 1/2 tbsp turmeric powder
15. 1/2 tbsp coriander powder
16. 1/2 tbsp cumin powder
17. 1 tbsp red chilly powder
18. 1/2 tbsp garam masala
19. salt to taste

Method:

1. Mix ginger, garlic, red chilly paste, lime juice and salt into a paste for first marinade, rub them on to the lamb and set aside for at least 30 minutes , preferably overnight. 
2. Take yoghurt, onion, red chilli, tomatoes, cardamom, cumin, cardamom and mix it with cloves,cinnamon, bay leaves, mace and garam masala for the second marinade.Add the lamb and smear the marinade over it.
3. Cover with the foil and leave in the fridge for at least 6 hour or overnight.
4. Place the covered roasting tin in a preheated oven at 160c and cook for 3 hours.
5. Cut the meat off the bone into large batons.
6. Finely blitz the drained sauce in a blender and add a little cream.
7. Heat ghee in a pan, add the meat batons, saute for a minute or two and add the sauce and bring to boil.
8. It is traditionally served with shirmal.

Sheermal or Shirmal , is a saffron-flavored traditional flatbread made in Iran, Pakistan, Lucknow region of India, probably from Persian influences. It is one of the several rare Lucknow delicacies in India. It is also part of the Awadhi cuisine.

It is a mildly sweet Naan made out of Maida (All-purpose flour), leavened with yeast, baked in tandoor or oven. In the olden days, it was made just like roti. The warm water in the recipe for roti was replaced with warm milk sweetened with sugar and flavored with saffron. Nowadays, the restaurants make it like a Naan and the final product resembles Danish pastry. It is best served with Lucknow Kababs and can even be relished stand alone. It is sometimes also combined along with Nihari.

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Undhiyu

UNDHIYU

This is one of the classic mixed vegetable preparations made in gujarat. It is called "undhiyu" as it was traditionally prepared in an earthen pot hung up-side down on a fire flame ("undhu" means up-side down in gujarati). The ingredients to this dish are found specifically in gujarat in the winter season. 

Ingredients:

1. 7-8 small Brinjal  (eggplant)
2. 500gms Flat beans (papdi)
3. 1 purple yam (kand)
4. 2 Sweet potato
5. 2 potatoes
6. 3 Bananas (ripe)
7. Oil as required (sesame oil if possible)
8. Salt to taste

For the paste:

1. Green garlic 3/4 bunch
2. Coriander leaves,bunch
3. Fresh coconut 1
4. Ginger, 1tbsp
5. Garlic, 1tbsp
6. Green chilly, 1tbsp

Addition to the paste:

1. 2 tbsp Raisins
2. 1 tbsp coriander powder
3. 1 tbsp cumin powder
4. 2 tsp carom seeds
5. 11/2 tsp asafoetida
6. 1 tbsp poppy seeds

Methi Muthia:

These Gujarati delicacies are cooked in number of ways - I have seen them steamed, stir fried and fried. I have seen them made Vegan and without. The myriad number of variations for making Muthiyas are quite boggling but each one of them is unique in its own way. I will deep fry them, the fried balls will be used in the final step of the recipe to absorb away the remaining water from the gravy.

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup bengal gram (chickpea flour)
2. 1 cup fenugreek leaves (methi) ( frozen works too, make sure you thaw it well before adding it and you need not add water additionally this way)
3. 1 tsp grated ginger
4. 1/2 tsp chilli powder (or as per taste)
5. 1 tsp coriander-cumin powder (Jeera-dhaniya powder)
6. 1/4 tsp turmeric
7. 1 tbsp curd (optional)
8. 1 tsp sugar
9. 1 tbsp vegetable oil
10. Salt to taste

Method for muthia :

1. Mix all the ingredients together.
2. Bind them together to form a stiff dough. If too stiff add few tsp of water to loosen it up and if too watery, add the flours and rest of the ingredients proportionately to tighten it up. It should allow you to shape it into small sausage shaped pieces or any shape you desire.
3. Deep fry them in oil until golden brown.
4. Place them in a paper tissue to get rid of excess oil if any.
5. It can be Served warm as a standalone or with chutneys, But we will leave it for later use.

Method:

1. Prepare a paste of all the ingredients mentioned above, and after the paste is ready, add all the ingredients mentioned after the paste ingredients, mix well.
2. Slit the brinjals into four, and stuff in the paste.
3. Slit the bananas on the side, and stuff in the paste and cut into two.
4. Massage the remaining paste to the flat beans, sweet potatoes and purple yam separately.
5. Take a deep cooking vessel, add oil to it, as it heats up add the blat beans and saute.
6. Next step is to add the Brinjals, sweet potatoes and yam, and keep in mind do not stir it any more.
7. Add two to three cups of water or vegetable stock, and let it simmer for a while.
8. Finally add the bananas and and muthia balls.
9. The banans will be cooked in no time, and the sweet juice will go down the vegetables.
10. The muthia will absorb the remaining water from the vegetables.
11. Garnish with Green Garlic and Coriander leaves.
12. It can be served on its own or with Bhakri or puri.

Note:

1. For this recipe, use good amount of oil .

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Rogan Josh

Rogan Josh 

Rogan josh (or roghan josh) is an aromatic lamb dish of Persian origin, which is one of the signature recipes of Kashmiri cuisine.Rogan  means "oil" in Persian, while josh  means "heat, hot, boiling, or passionate". Rogan josh thus means cooked in oil at intense heat. Another interpretation of the name rogan josh is derived from the word rogan meaning "red color" (the same Indo-European root that is the source of the French "rouge" and the Spanish "rojo") and josh meaning passion or heat.

Rogan josh was brought to Kashmir by the Mughals, whose cuisine was in turn influenced by Persian cuisine. The unrelenting summer heat of the Indian plains took the Mughals frequently to Kashmir, which has a cooler climate because of its altitude.

Ingredients:

1. 1kg lamb, cut form leg, washed
2. 1 cup/220 ml mustard/refined oil
3. salt to taste
4. 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
5. 2 cinnamon sticks
6. 2 bayleaf
7. 2 cloves
8. 1 tsp cumin seeds
9. 3 tsp red chilly powder
10. 1/2 cup/ 110g yoghurt
11. 2 tsp ginger powder (sooth)
12. 3 tsp fennel (sauf) powder
13. 3 black cardamoms (badi elaichi), crushed
14. 3 green cardamoms (choti elaichi), crushed
15. 1 tsp cumin powder
16. 1/2 saffron, optional

Method:

1. Heat oil in a vessel; Add salt, asafoetida, cinnamon sticks, bayleaf, cloves, cumin seeds, and meat.Fry till the meat turns brown.
2. Add 1 cup of water and red chilly powder; keep stirring with a ladle till the colour turns red.
3. Whisk yoghurt and add to the meat. Add two cups of water, ginger powder and fennel powder; cook till the meat is tender.
4. Add the cardamom and cumin powder; mix well.
5. Finally, add saffron.Simmer for two minutes and and serve with steamed rice.

Note:

Cook in a pressure cooker, if in a hurry. Personally, I do not use a pressure cooker if the quality of meat is good, as it gets tender while frying.

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Orange Souffle

Orange souffle

Ingredients:

1. 11/2 corn flour
2. 7 eggs, seperated
3. 1/2 ltr milk
4. 33/4 th tsp gelatin
5. 10 tbsp fine sugar
6. 125-250 ml whipped cream
7. 5 oranges

Method:

1. Squeeze juice of four oranges and and separate pulp of one.Boil and cool milk. Mix cornflour and egg yolks into a smooth paste.Add the past and juice to the milk. ix and cook on medium heat, Stirring until smooth and thick. Soak gelatin powder 3-4 tbsp in tepid water. Dissolve over medium heat and add to orange custard. Mix well and cool.
2. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks and hold. Sprinkle 1 tbsp of sugar at a time beating all until all sugar has been consumed. Carefully and gently fold eggs whites into the custard.
3. Put half of the milk and juice mixture into a bowl, add half of the whipped cream and fold orange segments into the mixture. Add the rest of the mixture. Decorate with piped cream round the edges of bowl. Make flowers of the orange segments, add coktail cherries to give colour.
4. Refrigerate immediately for 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
5. To obtain orange segments: with a sharp knife cut white pith from oranges; cut along both sides of each dividing membrane and lift out segments from centre.

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Chocolate souffle

Chocolate souffle

Absolutely Delicious..!!

Loosely translated, soufflé means “full of air.” That doesn’t sound so difficult, does it? In the food world, one of the best ways to get a dish “full of air” is to fold in whipped egg whites, or unsweetened meringue, into it. A classic soufflé has two main components: a starch-thickened egg yolk-rich base, and whipped egg whites.

In the case of this chocolate soufflé, the base is flavored with bittersweet chocolate, coffee, and vanilla. Without the addition of the whipped egg whites, you’d have a rich chocolate pudding. But, fold in the whipped egg whites, and something amazing happens.

All those small little bubbles you beat into the whites expand in the heat of the oven, et voila: what would have been a thick, rich, dense pudding turns into a light, ethereal, melt-in-your-mouth soufflé.

Ingredients:

1. 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2. 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3. ½-1 teaspoon salt, to taste
4. 1 1/2 cups milk
5. 12 oz bittersweet baking chocolate, coarsely chopped
6. 1/2 cup brewed strong coffee
7. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8. 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
9. 5 egg yolks
10. 7 egg whites
11. Confectioners sugar

Pre-Preparation:

• Get all the ingredients together and prepare the coffee, make sure the chocolate is chopped.

           Make the base and chill up to a day before.

• Preheat oven to 375ºF.

          Coat the inside of the baking dish with butter and sugar.

Method:

1. Melt butter in a sauce pot over medium heat, whisk in flour, salt and then milk and cook until it comes to a boil for a few seconds and thickens. What you have just made is a very basic béchamel sauce.
2. Off the heat, stir in chocolate and stir constantly until it's melted. Add coffee, vanilla, and ¼ cup of sugar, whisking until smooth. One at a time, add the egg yolks while whisking constantly. With the addition of these ingredients, you have just made chocolate pastry cream, or chocolate pudding.
3. Cool, cover and chill the base for at least four hours and up to a day ahead.
4. About an hour before you want to serve the soufflé, butter a 2-2 1/2 quart soufflé dish or straight-sided baking dish. Add about 2-3 Tablespoons of granulated sugar, and then tap and rotate the dish to cover the bottom and sides with sugar.
5. In a perfectly clean and dry bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks, and gradually whisk in the remaining ¼ cup of sugar. Continue to whisk until the peaks are stiff and glossy.
6. Stir ¼ of the whites into the soufflé base to lighten it. Then, thoroughly but gently fold in the rest of the whites.
7. Fill the soufflé dish all the way to the top. If you’d like, run your thumb around the top inside of the soufflé dish to clean off the rim. Some chefs say this helps the soufflé to rise more evenly.
8. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes until the soufflé rises 2 inches above soufflé dish and/or the top of the soufflé is golden brown. Dust with confectioners sugar and serve immediately because the soufflé will deflate in less than two minutes.
9. For individual soufflés, butter and sugar individual ramekins and bake for about 20 minutes, or until well risen.

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Cheese Souffle

Cheese souffle

A soufflé  is a lightly baked cake made with egg yolks and beaten egg whites combined with various other ingredients and served as a savory main dish or sweetened as a dessert. The word soufflé is the past participle of the French verbsouffler which means "to blow up" or more loosely "puff up"—an apt description of what happens to this combination of custard and egg whites.

Ingredients:

1. Butter :50g
2. Breadcrumbs :50g
3. Eggs :8
4. Salt & black pepper :pinch
5. Cornflour :1tsp
6. Nutmeg, freshly grated :pinch
7. Raclette Cheese :250g

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190c, using bottom heat with no fan if possible. Grease 4 souffle moulds, with butter and dust with fie beadcrumbs.
2. Separate the eggs. Add salt to the egg white. Beat the egg whites with a whisk until stiff, and fold in the corn flour. Add the egg yolks, pepper and pinch of nutmeg.
3. Cut away and discard the rind and edges of the raclette and coarsely grate the cheese. Fold into the eggs with a rubber spatula. Don't stir it too much, otherwise the egg mixture will collapse and the souffle will not rise properly.
4. Using a ladle, distribute the egg mixture into the souffle moulds until they are three quater full.
5. Distribute the remaining cheese over the souffles.Layer a porcelain casserole dish with baking paper and fill it with 2 cm hot water and place the souffle moulds inside.
6. Put the dish in the oven. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes depending on the oven. The temperature can be increased to the highest temperature at the end so the tops of the cheese souffles take on a good colour.
7. You can serve it with a light tomato butter or mushroom cream sauce.

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Mirch Ka Salan

Mirch Ka Salan

Mirchi ka Salan is a spicy, tangy and piquant green peppers curry. It is made with green peppers, either Anaheim or jalapenos. Mirchi ka salan is  served with  mutton biryani, vegetable biryani or palao. 

Ingredients:

1. Green chillies : 250 g

• For tempering:

1. Cumin seeds: 2 1/2 tsp
2. Curry leaves : few
3. Mustard seeds: 1/2 tsp
4. Nigella seeds: 1/3 tsp
5. Fenugreek seeds: 1/8 tsp

• For dry paste:

1. Poppy seeds : 1 tbsp
2. White Sesame Seeds :2 tbsp
3. Groundnuts / peanuts : 1/2 cup
4. Freshly scraped Coconut : 3/4 cup
5. Dry roasted Coriander seed : 1 tsp
6. Cumin seeds: 1 1/2 tsp

• For gravy:

1. Vegetable oil : 2-3 tbsp
2. Onions – 2, large,
3. Ginger garlic paste:2 tsp
4. Turmeric powder– 1/2 tsp
5. Cilantro / coriander leaves – 3 tbsp, finely chopped
6. Thick tamarind pulp – 3 tbsp
7. Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash the green chillies (not sure this is jalapeno or Korean chilli, but you will easily spot it in local market in South India), leave the stalk intact and pat them dry.
2. Slit down the middle to top and discard the seeds with the help of a spoon. These tiny seeds of chillies are real cause of the spiciness.
3. Since this recipe consumes lots of time, so try to do some time management. Heat a tawa or griddle and dry roast the scraped coconut, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, peanuts, coriander seeds and cumin seeds, all separately.
4. While this is going on, heat another pan and roast the sliced onions till they turn brown. Add a pinch of salt to quicken the process of browning.
5. Grind the roasted coconut, sesame, poppy seeds, peanuts, coriander seeds and cumin seeds all separately in a small masala grinder / mixer. Keep it aside.
6. Grind the roasted onions (remember to cool it before putting in a mixer) to a fine and smooth puree.
7. Now heat some oil in a pan up to smoking hot and add the chillies carefully. As soon as the chillies comes in contact with hot oil, blister will form on its surface.
8. Lightly toss the chillies in hot oil and with the help of a slotted spoon, take them out and drain on a tissue paper.
9. To the same oil add the spices meant for tempering and let them splutter for few seconds.
10. Add the pureed onion and mix it well, so that the roasted onion can absorb the flavour of spices.
11. Fry for some time on a low heat and add next the ginger garlic paste. Let it fry for couple of minute.
12. Next add the coconut paste, freshly ground sesame powder, poppy-seed powder, peanut and stir fry for few more minutes until the oil separates out.
13. Add the red chilli powder, turmeric powder and a pinch of salt. Stir fry it for few more minute until the rawness of peanut and coconut disappear.
14. Add the cumin and coriander powder and mix well.
15. Add around 3 cups of water and the diluted tamarind pulp. Mix thoroughly, gently add the tossed green chillies to it , stir it and cover, simmer it for 20 minutes till done.
16. At the end chillies should be soft, intact and well absorbed in the creamy masala gravy.
17. Serve the hot mirchi ka salan with Hyderabadi biryani, the best accompaniment it can get.
18. Nevertheless it taste good with steamed rice or plain roti / paratha.
19. It is best served with Hyderabadi Biryani.

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Maxican Burnt Corn Salad

Maxican Burnt Corn Salad

Ingredients:

1. Sweet corn kernels                                                                    11/2 cup
2. White onions                                                                             1 no.
3. Capsicum                                                                                  1 no.
4. Tomato                                                                                     1 no.
5. Oil                                                                                            2 tbsp
6. Salt                                                                                           To taste

Dressing:

1. Salad oil                                                                                    2 tsp
2. Lime juice                                                                                 1 tsp
3. Chilly pow                                                                                2 pinch
4. Sugar                                                                                       1 tsp

Method:

1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan until it smokes.
2. Add the corn kernels & go on stirring until they are slightly burnt.
3. Add the remaining oil, onion & capsicum & cook for a minute, remove.
4. Mix the corn kernels, onion, capsicum, tomato & salt.
5. Pour the dressing on top & serve immediately.
6. It can also be served cold.

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