Malabar Chicken Biryani

Chicken biryani was never my cup of tea- hours and efforts put in all turn futile. With my in-laws visiting us just for a day- i had to stack something in the fridge so that i didnt have to toil in the kitchen and can spend some quality time with them. Biryani was the best option but i was not really sure- how good i could make it- and did i ever mention that my mother-in-law has a doctorate in “Nutrition and Diet’s”-so all put together- i was really nervous about my menu for lunch- “The Ambitious Malabar Chicken Biryani”.

After going through the many recipes for the biryani i decided to conjure something where i could use my favourite kerala chicken masala and then mix with the rice and hence that would really leave very little room for me to mess up

It turned out very well. My father-in-law gave me 99 out of 100 and even better, my mother-in-law borrowed my recipe.

You Need:

For the Rice

1. Basmati Rice- 4 cups

2. Water- 10 cups

3. Cardamom- 5 nos

4. Cloves- 5 nos

5. Cinnamon- 1 small piece

6. Bay Leaf- 1 nos.

7. Pudina Leaves- A small bunch

8. Ghee- 2 tbsp

9. Salt- To taste

For the Chicken Masala

1. Chicken- 1 kg (Cut in to bite pieces)

2. Onions- 5 Medium nos (Thinly Sliced)

3. Tomatoes- 4 Medium nos (Chopped)

4. Red Chilly Powder- 2 tbsp

5. Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp

6. Crushed Pepper- 1 tsp

7. Garlic Pods- 8 pods

8. Ginger- 1 inch

9. Cardamom- 5 nos

10. Cinnamon- 1 inch

11. Cloves- 5 nos

12. Curry Leaves- A handful

13. Coriander Leaves- A handful

14. Mustard Seeds to splutter

15. Salt to taste

16. Cooking Oil- 1/4th Cup

For Layering

1. Onions- 2 Medium nos (Thinly Sliced)

2. Mint Leaves- 1/2 Cup

3. Coriander Leaves – 1/2 Cup (Finely chopped)

4. Cashews- 1/4th Cup

5. Biryani Masala Powder- 1 tbsp (Recipe below mentioned)

6. Milk- 1/4th Cup

7. Saffron Strands- 1 tbsp

8. Ghee- 4 tbsp

For the Biryani Masala Powder

1. Cloves- 4 nos

2. Cinnamon- 1/2 inch

3. Cloves- 4 nos

4. Curry Leaves- 5 leaves

5. Ghee- 1 tsp

This is how you make it:

Preparing the Biryani Rice

1. Wash the biryani rice till the water runs clear.

2. Heat the ghee in a large vessel and add the cloves, cardamom, cloves and the bay leaves.

3. Stir the whole spices for just a minute or till you can smell the nice aroma of the spices.

4. Add the washed rice to the ghee and the whole spices and mix for approximately 3-4 minutes or again till the aromas come.

5. Pour the water in to the vessel, add the mint leaves and cook till the rice is done.

6. Drain the excess water by pouring the rice in to a colander.

7. Spread the rice and set aside.

Preparing the Chicken Masala

1. Marinate the chicken pieces in 1 tbsp red chilly powder, 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and a little salt. Set aside for atleast 30 minutes in room temperature.

2. Heat 1/4th cup oil in a large vessel.

3. Add the onions and fry till it turns golden brown and crispy on medium heat.

4. Remove the onions from the vessels. Slightly mash the onions. A quick whip in the food processor or a mixer would be enough. Set aside the mashed onions.

5. In the same oil, add the tomatoes and fry for around 5 minutes. Remove the tomatoes from the vessel and set aside.

6. Grind the coriander leaves, curry leaves, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, turmeric powder, crushed pepper and the red chilly powder to a fine paste.

7. Add the ground paste to the vessel (the same vessel which was used for frying the onions and the tomatoes). The leftover oil would be sufficient and hence there is no need to add anymore oil.

8. Saute the paste till it is well cooked and the oil breaks out from the paste. You may add the salt at this stage.

9. At this stage add the marinated chicken pieces and mix well with the ground paste.

10. Mix well and stir for 5 minutes.

11. Add the fried onions and tomatoes and mix well. Stir for 5 minutes.

12. Add 1/4th cup water to the chicken.

23. Cover and cook till the chicken is well done. The masala/gravy will be pretty thick.

24. Set aside the chicken masala.

Preparing the Garnish for Layering:

1. Add 1 tbsp of ghee to a frying pan and brown the cashews. Set aside the cashews.

2. Add rest of the ghee and shallow fry the sliced onions. till hey are brown and crispy. Make sure that you do not burn the onions. Set aside the fried onions

3. In the same pan add the mint leaves and saute for 30 seconds. Remove from fire and set aside.

4. Warm the milk and mix the saffron strands and set aside.

5. For the Biryani masala powder- In a different pan add 1tbsp of ghee and saute the cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and the curry leaves. Saute till the fragrances comes out- this should take about 30-40 secs. Set aside and let the whole spices cool. Grind the whole spices to a fine powder and set aside.

At this stage pre-heat the oven to 200 degree Celsius.

Final Layering

1. Take a deep oven proof dish and grease it with a little ghee.

2. Complete the first layering with a couple of chicken pieces and gravy.

3. Complete the second layering with the basmati rice.

4. Sprinkle some biryani masala powder, fried onions, chopped coriander leaves, sauteed mint leaves, cashews and 2 tsps of saffron milk.

5. Repeat the layering in the – chicken-rice-garnish, sequence.

6. Finish off with the rice as the final layering, sprinkle some generous amount of gravy over the rice and add the garnish.

7. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Removes from oven and slightly mix over the rice with a large spoon/spatula. Place the dish back in the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

8. Remove from the oven and wait for atleast 15 minutes before serving.

9. Serve the biryani with some mint chutney, raitha, papaddam and lime pickle.

Good Reading

1. Chicken Biryani from Kerala Recipes

2. Kerala Style Kozhi Biryani from Hackorama

3. Annita’s Kerala Chicken Biryani

4. Gini’s Chicken Biryani- Malabar Ishtyle

5. Malabar Chicken Biryani from Red Carnation

Kerala Chicken Stew/Kozhi Ishtoo

Ente swantham kerala chickenistoo !!

Easter celebrations at my parent’s house will be incomplete if there is no appams and chicken stew for breakfast ! My only motivation to sit through the early morning Easter Sunday mass is the thought of hot steaming appams and stew waiting for me back home. This Easter i missed my mom’s Easter breakfast (i so regret that)- thanks to being a busy working adult, i couldnt go to Kerala :(

This recipe is a recreation of my mom’s version of chicken ishtoo and this is also how one would make mutton stew except fot the extra time mutton needs to cook !

You Need :

1. Chicken- 1/2 kg, cut in to bite pieces.

2. Crushed Peppercorns- 1 tbsp

3. White Vinegar- 1 tbsp

4. Crushed Garlic- 2 tbsp

5. Chopped Ginger- 1 tbsp

6. Chopped Green Chillies- 2 tbsp

7. Green Cardamom- 5 nos

8. Cloves- 4 nos

9. Cinammon Stick- 1 small stick

10. Onions- 1 cup, diced

12. Maida – 1 tbsp

13. Coconut Milk- 200 ml thick coconut milk added with 300 ml of water (total 500ml)

14. Thick Coconut Milk- 100 ml

15. Oil- 2 tbsp

16. Curry leaves- 7-8 sprigs

17. Turmeric Powder- 1/4th tsp

18. Garam Masala- 1 tbsp

19. Salt to taste

This is how you make it :

1. Clean the chicken pieces and marinate the chicken with vinegar and crushed peppercorns for 30 minutes.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices- cardamom, cloves and Cinnamon and saute for a minute.

3. Add the chopped ginger, green chillies and crushed garlic and saute for 2 minutes or till they turn slightly brown.

4. Now add the chopped onions and saute till the onions turn pink.

5. Add the turmeric powder and garam masala and mix well and saute for another minute.

6. Add salt according to your taste and mix well.

7. Add maidaand mix well with the mixture.

8. Add the chicken pieces with the vinegar and mix well till the maida mixture coats the chicken.

9. Add the 500 ml thin coconut milk.

10. Add the curry leaves and then cover and cook on a very low flame till the chicken is tender and cooked.

11. Finally just a minute before taking the chicken off from the flame, add the 100 ml thick coconut milk.

12. Serve the stew with appams, chappati, white rice or bread.

Good Reading

1. Mutton Stew from Salkaaram

2.Kerala Chicken Stew from Mary Has Two Little Lambs

3. Kozhi Istoo from Malabar Spices

4. Cooking Goddess’s Kerala Chicken Stew

5. Chicken Stew from Aayi’s Recipes

 

 

Butter Chicken/Murgh Makhani

 

Reuben, my husband, is a big fan of butter chicken but except for a very few versions he hated most of them- i am talking about the butter chicken masala you get at the restaurants. The last time we had some very good butter chicken was at his office party. I tried to keep the flavour in my mind so that i may adjust the recipe to his taste ! This recipe is partly adapted from Alfred’s Prasad’s Murg Makhani but i have made some changes here and there to adapt it to my husband’s taste. And may i add that- HE LOVED IT

There is approximately 391 calories per bowl of butter chicken,

You Need:

For the Chicken

1. Cut Chicken- 1/2 kg (You have the option of using boneless chicken)

2. Hung Curd- 1/2 Cup

3. Diced Onions- 1/2 Cup

4. Chopped chillies- 1 tbsp

5. Ginger-Garlic Paste- 1 tbsp

6. Cumin Powder- 1 tsp

7. Coriander Powder- 1 tsp

8. Red Chilly Powder- 1 tbsp

9. Turmeric Powder- 1/2 tsp

10. Lime Juice- 2 tbsp

11. Mint Leaves- 3 Sprigs

12. Tomato Paste- 1/2 Cup

13. Garam Masala Powder- 2 tbsp

14. Salt to taste

For the Makhani Gravy

1. Whole Tomatoes- 3/4th kg

2. Finely Chopped Ginger- 1 tbsp

3. Finely Chopped Garlic- 1 tbsp

4. Finely Chopped Green Chillies- 1 tbsp

5. Whole Green Cardamom- 1 tsp

6. Whole Cinamon Sticks- 4 nos

7. Bay Leaves- 4 nos

8. Red Chilly Powder- 1 tbsp

9. Garam Masala Powder- 1 tsp

10. Kasuri Methi Powder- 2 tsp

11. Tomato Paste- 2 tbsp

12. Cloves- 4 nos

13. Cream- 100 gms

14. Cashewnut- 75 gms

15. Honey- 2 tsp

16. Butter- 75 gms

17. Salt to taste

18. Water- 1/4th Cup

This is how you make it:

Chicken

1. Make deep gashes on the chicken pieces using a sharp knife.

2. Blend the hung yogurt, onions, green chillies, mint leaves, ginger-garlic paste, cumin powder, garam masalapowder, turmeric powder, red chilly powder, coriander powder, lime juice, tomato paste and salt to a smooth paste.

3. Put the chicken piece in to a “ziploc pouch” and pour the marinade over the chicken and seal the pouch. Make sure that the marinade is mixed well with the chicken.

4. Refrigerate the marinated chicken for atleast 12 hours. I refrigerated the chicken for around 24 hours.

5. Pre-heat the oven to 250 degree celcius and the take the chicken out from the refrigerator. The chicken should reach room temperature before placing it in the oven.

6. Oil a roasting rack or a baking tray and place the chicken pieces on the rack/tray. Before placing the chicken on the rack make sure that the extra marinade is brushed off.

7. Roast the chicken for 25 minutes without touching it. After 25 minutes insert a knife in to a piece and see if the juice that run out is clear. If clear then the chicken is done or else roast till the juices run clear.

If you do not want to go through the trouble of making this chicken (tandoor style), you can just buy some tandoori chicken from a restaurant and use the same.

Makhani Gravy

1. Heat a pan and add a generous amount of butter.

2. When the butter is melted, reduce the flame to medium. Add the cloves, cardamom, cinamon sticks and bay leaves. Stir for a minute.

3. Now add the chopped ginger, chopped garlic and chopped green chillies. Stir for another minute.

4. Add the whole tomatoes and stir for 4-5 minutes.

5. Add water and then cover and cook till the tomato is pureed.

6. In the meantime, grind 3/4 th of the cashewnuts to a smooth paste by adding a little water.

7. Grind the pureed tomatoes to a fine paste and bring it back to the flame.

8. When the puree comes to a boil, add the tomato paste.

9. Stir for 2-3 minutes and then add cashew paste.

10. Stir for another 2-3 minutes and then add the red chilly powder and the garam masala powder.

11. Stir well for 4-5 minutes and then add the honey and mix well.

12. Now add the kasturi methi and stir well for 4-5 minutes.

13. Stir in the cream and mix well.

14. Cover the vessel and cook in a very low flame for 5 minutes.

15. In the meantime melt a little butter in a pan, add the broken cashewnuts and then add the chicken and mix well.

16. Mix the buttered chicken and cashews in to the simmering gravy and mix well.

17. Add a small block of butter on top and cover and cook for another 5 minutes on a very low flame.

18. Vola- your butter chicken is ready to serve

Good Reading

1. Alfred Prasad’s Murgh Makhani

2. Deepa’s Butter Chicken Masala

3. Butter Chicken from Salad-Recipe

4. Indian Butter Chicken from Wandering Chopsticks

5. Butter Chicken from Cinnamon Trail

Note: If you want your butter chicken to look all red then add a drop of food colour to the makhani gravy. I usually avoid any artifical colors.

Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips

I wonder why this is called a bread ??? Either ways i love it !! I got to stay in a very swanky hotel on a recent trip to Hyderabad. The breakfast was complimentary with the stay and banana bread was one of the dishes served for breakfast. And i was not even slightly embarrassed to pile my plate with banana bread a.k.a cake !! 

I ransacked quite a lot of blogs and food site for the perfect recipe and “Evolving Taste” was my winner. As usual i have slighly ammended the recipe to suit my taste.

There is approximately 195 calories per slice.

You Need:

1. Flour- 1 3/4th Cups

2. Butter- 100 gms

3. Egg- 1 nos (Well beaten)

4. Sugar- 1 Cup (Powdered)

5. Banana- 3 nos (Large bananas mashed to a smooth consistency)

6. Vanilla Essence- 1 Tbsp

7. Baking Soda- 1 Tsp

8. Chocolate Chips- 1/2 Cup

This is how you make it :

1. Pre-hear the oven to 160 degree celcius.

2.Sift the flour and baking soda to remove any lumps and set aside.

3. Cream the sugar and butter to a very smooth consistency.

4. Add the egg and the vanilla essence to this mixture and mix well.

5. Now add the mashed bananas along with the cream and mix well.

6. Add the flour+baking soda and fold well to this mixture.

7. Fold the chocolate chips in to the mixture.

8. The mixture should be a thick smooth consistency.

Note: You may replace the chocolate chips with pecan or hazelnuts and then you will “Banana Nut Bread” !

Good Readings

1. Elsie’s Banana Bread

2. Banana Bread from Joy of Baking

3. Pinch My Salt’s Whole Wheat Banana Bread

4. Cherry Walnut Bread from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen

5. Pooja’s Banana Nut Cake

Weight Loss & Fudge Brownie

                                                   

26 years old, 84 kilos and only 5 feet and 4 inches- i am on the verge on obesity (I am 10 kilos overweight than my husband). Most of my readers would have now figured out as to where all the food that i cook goes After being seriously overweight for 2 years, i have finally joined a gym and i am sweating out all my past food-sins. I have a personal trainer- who has been doing an amazing job to keep me motivated and to keep up with my fat-woman’s-tantrums. My weight loss programme is a combination of workouts, diet and lipid  activity modifier (LAM) massages. As a part of my diet i have made some important changes in my food habits- i try to restrict my calorie intake to around 1200 per day ! Iam yet to regularise my diet and i still fall in to the tempations of junk food but once i have it in place- i will be posting it on my blog !!  

Today however is about the other side of my weight loss plan- the temptation of “Fudge Brownie”. I have been wanting to make fudge brownies for a long time and just because i am on weight loss programme is no reason to treat my eyes atleast. My husband loves my brownies so after a long hectic week at work for him- this is the way i wanted to treat him !

Each serving of brownie (2 inch square and 60.0 gms) is approximately 250 calories so i think i can afford to have a piece per day as long i restrict the rest of my diet to 950 calories !

You Need:

1. Flour (Maida)- 3/4th Cup

2. Baking Soda- 1/2 tsp

3. Butter- 75 gms

4. Sugar- 3/4th Cup

5. Dark Chocolate- 150 gms (Broken in to small pieces)

6. Egg- 2 nos

7. Vanilla Essence- 1 tsp

This is how you make it:

1. On a medium flame, melt the butter and the sugar. Stir continously during the process and make sure you take the vessel off the flame as soon as the mixture reaches the boiling point.

2. Mix the chocolate pieces in to the mixture and stir till it is melted and well mixed.

3. Set aside the mixture till is luke warm.

4. When the mixture is lukeware- add the eggs one at a time. Whisk constantly during this process or else the eggs might get cooked and you will end up with scrambled eggs in your brownies.

5. Mix the flour and the baking soda and add it to the chocolate mixture.

6. Add the vanilla essence and whisk till all the ingredients are well mixed.

7. Pour the mixture in to buttered baking dish and bake in a oven that has been pre-heated to 175 degree celcius.

Good Reading:

Vegan Goey Fudge Brownie from A Piece of Peace

Maklang’s Fudge Brownie

Dark Squidgy Choc Fudge Brownie from Koleksi Resipe

Dark, Indulgent Chocolate Brownie from Pies & Bass

Chocolate Almond Brownie from Jugalbandi

Coming Soon: The Fudge Brownie Pic

Spicy Chettinad Chicken Curry

I have been hunting for a perfect chicken curry recipe since i was getting a little tired of all the diffrent types of chicken curry i knew..that’s when i came across Sailu’s food blog which caters to mostly Andhra recipes !! The Chettinad Chicken Curry on her blog looked exciting and with my brother in town – this was exactly what i needed to get in to his good books

You Need :

For the Masala (Roast and grind to a fine powder)

1. Coriander Seeds- 1/2 tbsp

2. Cardamom Pods- 3 nos

3. Dry Red Chillies- 9 nos

4. Pepper Corns- 1/2 tsp

5. Cumin Seeds- 1/2 tsp

6. Fennel Seeds- 3/4th tsp

7. Cinnamon- 1 small stick

8. Curry- Handful

9. Oil- 1/2 tsp

For the paste (Grind to a smooth Paste)

1. Green Chillies- 3 nos

2. Ginger- 1 Stick

3. Garlic- 9 pods

For the Chicken

1. Chicken- 1 Kg (Curry Cut)

2. Small Onion- 1 Cup (Thinly Sliced)

3. Tomato- 1 nos (Diced)

4. Turmeric Powder- 1/2 tsp

5. Coconut Milk- 1 cup (Diluted with 1/4th cup water)

6. Salt to taste

7. Coriander leaves- Handful

8. Oil- 2 tbsp

9. Mustard to splutter

This is how you make it :

1. Heat 1/2 tsp oil in a vessel and roast the curry leaves, dry red chillies, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cardamom, cinnamon, coriander seeds and pepper corns for around 2-3 minutes on medium flame. Remove from fire, cool and grind to a fine powder. Set aside this powder.

2. Grind the green chillies, cloves and ginger to a smooth paste and set aside.

3. Place a cooking vessel on the flame and add 2 tbsp oil.

4. Splutter the mustard seeds when the oil is well heated.

5. Add the curry leaves and stir for around 45 seconds.

6. Add the small onions and saute till they turn transparent.

7. Now add the chilly-ginger-garlic paste to the onion.

8. Saute for another minute on a medium flame.

9. Add the chicken pieces and mix well with the mixture. Stirr for around 5 minutes on high flame. Make sure that you are stirring constantly as it may stick to the bottom of the cooking vessel.

10. Reduce the medium flame, add turmeric powder, salt and coriander leaves to the chicken and mix well. Stir for another 5 minutes.

11. Add the coconut milk to the chicken and stir well. Cover and cook the chicken on medium flame till the chicken is well cooked. This will take approximately 25-30 minutes.

12. When the chicken is tender and cooked, add the masala powder and stir well.

13. Remove from the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.

This is a very spicy dish so you may reduce the amount of pepper corns or red chillies. Enjoy the curry with chappatis or rice.

Good Reading :

1. Seena’s Chettinad Chicken Curry

2. Veetusamayal’s Chettinad Chicken Curry

3. Box of Spices’s Chettinad Chicken Curry

4. Sumi’s Kitchen’s Chettinad Chicken Curry

5. Madhur Jaffery’s Chettinad Pepper Chicken

Melt in Your Mouth Carrot Pudding

 

OK ! let me cut the crap- my carrot pudding is nothing but hamara gajjar ka halwa. Even though my mom is my favourite cook, I was not a great fan of her gajjar ka halwa when i was kid. But now I realise that it was not her gajjar ka halwa that I did not like but it was the fact that it was made out of my least favourite veggie that made me think I hated it !!

Hence I never really bothered to make it till one fine day my husband confessed his secret craving to have gajjar ka halwa. After that day- gajjar ka halwa is one of the regular desserts in my house.

My recipe is slightly different from the regular fare since I don’t use milk but instead use khova (Solidified milk) and just like the name suggest- it is indeed melt in your mouth halwa. So enjoy and let me know what you think about it

You Need :

1. Carrot-1 Kg, Finely Grated

2. Sugar- 1 Cup

3. Ghee- 1/4th Cup

4. Khova- 500 g

5. Cardamom- 1 tsp, powdered

This is how you make it :

1. Heat 1/4th cup of ghee in a large pan.

2. Add the grated carrots and fry till all the moisture is gone. You will also notice that colour of the carrot has turned pale orange. This will take approximately 15-20 minutes.

3. Add the sugar and the cardamom powder and fry till the sugar has mixed well with the carrots. Make sure that you are stirring often and continue this process till the moisture is completely gone.

4. Now crumble the khoya and add it to the grated carrots and keep stirring till the khoya melts and makes the carrot creamy.

5. Stir till the khoya is well mixed and the moisture has completely dried.

6. Remove from fire and let the halwa cool.

7. Serve with some vanilla ice cream.

8. The whole process will take 1 hour.

Good Reading :

Hooked on Heat’s Gajjar Ka Halwa

Anthony’s Kitchen’s Gajjar Ka Halwa 

Sanjha Chulha’s Gajjar Ka Halwa

Mirch Masala’s Gajjar Ka Halwa 

Chocolate Muffins with a Sexy Sauce

                   

A Muffin is an exorbitant 50 Rs a piece in Bangalore- Half my appetite goes away when i fish out the 50 Rs note to pay for my muffins !! To top it all- the menacing look from my husband who cant understand why would anyone pay 50 Rs for a cake that looks like a mushroom, kills rest of my appetiteI have been wanting to bake some muffins for a long time but did not have the right baking utensils to do so and then finally my sister who was coming down from UK to visit me, became my messiah- she got me the perfect mould to bake my muffins !There are like a 100000 recipes for muffins available online but it was “The Passionate Cooks” recipe for Triple Chocolate Muffin that I decided to try, of course i have slightly amended it here and there.You Need :For the Muffin

1. Dark Chocolate- 250 g (Broken in to pieces)
2. Caster Sugar/Powdered Sugar- 160 g
3. Butter- 250 g
4. Eggs- 4 nos
5. Baking Powder- 20 g
6. Flour (Maida)- 250 g
7. Milk- 60 ml

For the Sauce

1. Dark Chocolate- 75 g or 3/4^th Cup (Broken in to pieces)
2. Butter- 10 g or 2 tbsp
3. Golden Syrup- 2 tbsp (Heated)
4. Cream- 3 tbsp

This is how you make it :Muffin

1. Pre heat the oven to 200 C
2. Melt the dark chocolate, sugar and the butter by double boiler method
3. Remove from fire and let the mixture cool.
4. Beat in eggs one by one in to the mixture.
5. Fold in the flour and baking powder.
6. Finally add the milk to loosen the consistency of the mixture.
7. Pour the mixture in to the moulds and bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked through and well risen.

Sauce

1. Melt the chocolate with the butter.
2. Remove from fire.
3. Mix in the golden syrup and the cream.
4. Serve hot.

Serving Tips : Gently pour 2 tsp sauce over the muffin and serve hot.Good Reading:

1. Nigella’s Chocolate Muffin
2. Pinch my Salts’s Dark Chocolate Muffin
3. My Log My Blog’s Organic Chocolate Chip Muffin
4. A Cat in the Kitchen’s Chocolate Muffin
5. Gourmet A Go Go’s Double Chocolate Muffin with Dried Fruits

 

Kerala Style Roasted Chicken

 

I have always wanted to roast a chicken but my husband being a very “Moderate Eater”, I was always worried that it would be too much for us to finish. But then I accidentally bumped in to Maneka Nirmal’s Kerala Kitchen and saw her recipe for “Roast Chicken-Kerala style”- then there was no stopping me- my greed got over my senses. Maneka had the simple version of the roast chicken on her blog- I was ambitious and wanted my roast chicken with stuffing’s so finally after going through many recipes I decided to conjure out something which suited my taste. This recipe is largely inspired by Mallu Girl’s version of “Kozhi Nirachathu”.The chicken came out well and it was super delicious- my husband and I managed to finish the whole chicken in just 2 days. This is now one of our favourite dishes- a perfect something to have on a weekend night while enjoying a movie !!You Need : For Marinating

1. 1 Whole Chicken- Thoroughly Cleaned and De skinned. (Approx 1 kg)
2. Chilly Powder – 3 tbsp
3. Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp
4. Salt- As per Taste
5. Oil- 3 tbsp

For the Stuffing

1. Onion- 3 cups (thinly sliced)
2. Eggs- 1 nos (Hard Boiled & De Shelled)
3. Cashew Nuts- ½ cup
4. Biryani Masala Powder- 2 tbsp
5. Curry Leaves- 2 Sprigs
6. Peppercorns- 1 tbsp (Coarsely Crushed)
7. Mustard Seeds to splutter
8. Salt to taste

For the Gravy

1. Onions- 3 cups (finely chopped)
2. Tomato- 1 cup (finely chopped)
3. Tomato Puree- ½ cup
4. Garlic-Ginger Paste- 1 tbsp
5. Green Chillies- 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
6. Turmeric Powder-  ½ tsp
7. Coriander Powder- 1 tsp
8. Garam Masala- 2 tsp
9. Curry Leaves- 1 sprig
10. Coriander Leaves- 1 handful
11. Mustard to Splutter
12. Salt to Taste

Side Veggies (Optional)

1. Carrot : ½ cup (thickly diced)
2. Onion : ½ cup (thickly diced)
3. Capsicum : ½ cup (thickly diced)
4. Potatoes : ½ cup (thickly diced)

Other Ingredients

1. Olive Oil- ½ cup (you can use any oil as per your taste)
2. Salt to sprinkle
3. Pepper Powder to sprinkle

This is how you make it:Marinating the Chicken :

1. Thoroughly clean the chicken both inside and outside. Make slits on the chicken so that the marinade can penetrate well in to the chicken.
2. Make a thick paste with the chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt with olive oil. I prefer to make the paste with oil as it has a better consistency and will stick to the chicken better.
3. Rub this paste over and inside the chicken liberally.
4. Cover and refrigerate the chicken for atleast 1 hour. I usually let the chicken marinate overnight or a minimum of 6 hours.  

Preparing the stuffing :

1. Splutter the mustard seeds in 3 tbsp olive oil.
2. Then splutter the curry leaves.
3. Before the curry leaves start turning brown, add the onions and sauté till the onions start turning brown.
4. Add the Biryani Masala. You may also use the ready made version. Mix the masala well with the onions and continue sautéing.
5. Add whole cashew nuts and the boiled egg.
6. Continue to sauté till the oil starts separating from the mixture.
7. Remove from fire and let it cool.

Preparing the chicken to roast :

1. Pre heat oven to 200 C.
2. Stuff the chicken: Push the egg in to the cavity and then onion mixture. Finally tie and secure the chicken with a kitchen twine. I didn’t have a kitchen twine so I used dental floss
3. Place a large frying pan over medium heat. Pour 1/4^th cup olive oil and place the chicken in the frying pan brown the chicken on all the four side in the frying pan (this process will take atleast 5 minutes on each sides).
4. Place the chicken (breast side down) on a baking dish and arrange the veggies (carrots, onions & potatoes) on the sides of the chicken. If there is any left over stuffing arrange these also along the sides.
5. Drizzle olive oil on the top of the chicken and over the veggies. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over the veggies.
6. Place the chicken inside the oven and let it roast for around 45 minutes.
7. After 20 minutes turn the chicken (breast side up.)
8. After another 20 minutes turn the chicken back to breast side position and baste the chicken with the juice that has come out from the chicken. Continue the basting process at regular intervals. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basting

Preparing the Gravy :

1. After placing the chicken in the oven start preparing the gravy.
2. Splutter a few mustard seeds in the oil which was used to brown the chicken.
3. Add the ginger-garlic paste and chopped green chillies and let it fry for 30-40 seconds.
4. Add the chopped onions and sauté till it turns transparent.
5. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for another 3-4 minutes.
6. Now add the spices- turmeric, coriander powder and garam masala and salt to taste. Continue to sauté till the spices are well cooked.
7. Now add the tomato puree and mix well with the mixture and continue to fry for another 2-3 minutes. (Make sure that it retains the thick liquidy consistency. If you feel that the mixture is drying up then add half a cup of water).
8. Remove from fire and let it cool. 

Adding the Gravy to the Chicken :

1. After the first 40 minutes of roasting is over take the chicken out from the oven.
2. Pour the gravy over the chicken and drizzle the rest on sides of the chicken.
3. Slightly mix and toss the side veggies to ensure that the veggies have not stuck to the bottom of the dish.
4. Return the chicken to the oven and roast for another 30-40 minutes.
5. In between make sure that the chicken is well basted in regular intervals.

Remove the chicken from the oven and remove the twined. Carve after cooling. The taste gets better as the dish gets older. Good Reading:Patti’s Kerala Chicken RoastGinni Ann’s Roast Chicken with Indian Spices and a Pan GravyReza Mahammad’s Stuffed ChickenSigsiv’s Whole Roast Chicken with Chestnuts 

Caramel Pudding / Flan

 

I first heard about flan on the movie “Envy” starring my favourite Hollywood star Ben Stiller and Jack Black. In the movie Jack Black’s family was crazy about flan and utlimately it was flan that made them and Ben Stiller’s family super rich !!

I had to give the recipe a shot and i found the perfect recipe on Armida Armador’s  Armida Cooks. The pictoral description made it very easy for me try it out. And finally when it came out of my oven- i loved it more than Jack Black in Envy

Did i add that flan is more like a caramel pudding !!

You Need:

1. Eggs- 4 nos

2. Condensed Milk- 3/4th of the can

3. Milk- 1 can (same measurement as the condensed milk)

4. Vanilla Essence- 1 tsp

For the Caramel

1. Sugar- 1/2 cup

This is how you make it:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degree celcius.

2. Place the sugar in a saucepan and cover over medium heat without stirring the sugar.

3. Once the sugar starts melting, start stirring continously till the sugar is completly melted and it turn deep rich brown.

4. Pour the caramel in to the casserole you intend in to bake in the flan.

5. Blend the eggs, milk, condensed milk and the vanilla essence till all the ingredients are well mixed. This would require you to blend on low for 30 seconds and then on high for atleast 2 minutes.

6. Pour the mixture in to the casserole on top of the caramel.

7. Bake the caramel pudding on 180 degree celcius for 45-60 minutes. Stick a knife down the centre of the pudding and if the knife comes out clean, vola ! your pudding is done !!

8. For best results- let the pudding cool down and then cover and refrigerate for atleast 4 hours.