Chicken Lollipop

Sorry guys for not being so active in this space. You all know that I am an entrepreneur at "Sweet Zions Bake house" This small caking business has kept me very busy these days. This month is the month of birthdays & I was having cake orders every other days. We were also out on a holiday last week to Disney Florida. So all in all the May month is & has been a wonderful month. 

Today got up early as Hubby had to go for cricket practice. I am happy coz my son is still asleep & I thought will soon post one recipe. Whenever I have house parties, my friends keep asking me for recipes of dishes that I made. So today I am sharing this mouthwatering, very famous in mine & my mom's kitchen "Chicken Lollipop"  

Making time: 45 mins
Serves: 8- 10 people (20 lollipops)
Cooking time: 8-10 mins

Ingredients:

• 10 chicken wings
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup Corn flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbspn ginger garlic paste
• 1 tbspn red chili powder
• 1/2 tspn cumin powder
• 1/2 tspn garam masala powder
• 1/4 tspn back peppercorns
• 2 tbspn lemon juice
• 4 tbspn of water
• salt as per taste
• color optional.  (I use kashmiri red chili which given natural coloring)
• oil for deep frying

Method:

1. You need to clean the wings & make lollipops out of them. Watch this video on how to make it here
2. Lightly beat the 2 eggs & make a paste with flours, ginger garlic, cumin, chili, pepper, Garam masala, lemon juice, salt & water. 
3. Marinade the lollipops in this paste & set in in the fridge for at least 2 to 4 hours, Overnight is even better. 
4. Heat the oil until its very hot, now turn off the flame to medium, slowly start dropping the lollipops in the oil & fry them on medium flame for 5 minutes & on high flame for 2 to 3 minutes. Once they are evenly cooked, just remove them and put hem on a kitchen paper towel to remove any access oil.

Note:

1. The main point to note to have crispy juicy chicken is to fry them at the right temperature. You need to make sure you fry them in medium heat & then in high heat. In medium heat the chicken will slowly cook inside & still will retain the moisture. High heat in the last stage will ensure that the outer coating gets crispy. 
2. If you fry them in high heat throughout, you will end up with a dry, burnt lollipops.
3. Add extra water to the paste to get the right consistency. The paste should be like a pan cake batter consistency 

Orange Chicken

I can never get tired with chicken & there are so many ways to cook them. They are so versatile & tastes good even with just some salt & pepper. My freezer always has some chicken in stock. I probably cook chicken at least 3 to 4 times a week. Yes you heard me right... we are big time chicken eaters:) I cant think of a week without having them. The only time I hated it was when I was pregnant. I just couldn't stand the name, smell nor picture of a chicken dish. I don't know what that pregnancy harmone had done to me, that I hated to eat non veg & specially chicken. Well now coming back to today's post, this is a very simple chicken recipe which is very similar to many Indian Chinese chicken recipes. This is how I made it.

Serves: 4 people
Making time: 30-40 minutes

Ingredients

• 300 gms Boneless Chicken (Thigh)
• 1/2 cup All-purpose flour
• 3 Tbsp. Corn flour
• 1 egg slightly beaten
• 1.5 Tsp. Chilli Powder
• 3 Tbsp. Light Soya Sauce
• 2 tbspn chili sauce
• 1 Tsp. black Pepper
• 2 Green Chili Chopped
• 2 Tbsp Garlic minced
• 1 Tbsp minced Ginger
• Juice of 1 orange (1/4 cup)
• zest of two orange (4 Tbspn)
• Salt as per taste
• Less than 1/4 cup water
• hand full of chopped spring onions to garnish
• Cooking Oil for Frying

Method:

1. Make a semi thick batter with all-purpose flour, corn flour, eggs, salt & water. 
2. Dip the boneless chicken in this batter & fry it in hot oil for 3-5 mins. Remove them when they are cooked & set aside.
3. In a wok/ Pan add 2 tbspn of oil, fry ginger, garlic, green chili for a 30 seconds
4. Now add in all the sauces, Chili powder, pepper powder & fry for 1/2 a minute. 
5. Add orange juice,  the chicken toss well & fry this till all the sauces are blended well to the chicken.
6. Finally add in the grated orange zest &  chopped spring onions give it a good mix.
7. Serve this hot as appetisers or along with Fried Rice, steamed rice or anything that you wish to have:)

Chicken 65

Hello people,

I am so excited to do my 1st blog post in this new country!. Most of you already know that I have relocated to Texas Austin. Its been close to 3 weeks in this new country & I have slowly started liking this place. Currently we are still staying in the hotel & fortunately we have a well equipped kitchen. The first 1 week we eat from outside almost everyday. I was so fed up with Pizzas, Tortillas that I decided to cook our normal Indian food. I definitely love the Mexican food here & I have been feasting on all the fatty food. Very soon I need to start hitting the gym:)

Along with us my hubby`s friend (colleague) also has moved to Austin. Since we are put up in the same hotel, I get to meet his wife everyday & its a great time pass. She was at my place last week & I had made chicken 65 for lunch. She loved it & was asking for the recipe, that`s when I realized that this recipe is still not up in my blog. Chicken 65 is one of India's famous appetizers. It is also a street food that is available all over India.  I make this dish quite often at home as its very easy to make. I mostly make it when I have guest at home & also when I have cravings to have fried chicken:). This dish tastes superb when its made fresh & had hot. This is a very good party appetizer & it definitely be a big hit.So finally here is my chicken 65 recipe. Well there might be many versions of this on Google, but this is one of the easiest & tastiest one that I make.

Serves: 5 people
Making time: 30 mins
Marination: (Optional)

Ingredients:

• 500 gms bones chicken cut into cubes
• 8 Tbsp plain flour
• 3 Tbsp corn flour
• 1 Tbsp chopped ginger
• 1 Tbsp chopped garlic
• 3 Tbsp light soya sauce
• 1 Tbsp kashmiri chili powder (Paprika)
• 1/2 Tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 Tsp Coriander powder
• 1/2 tspn Garam Masala powder
• 1/4 Tsp turmeric powder
• 1 Egg beaten
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 Tspn chili powder to garnish
• salt as per taste
• 1/4 Tsp Red food color optional (I dint add color)
• 2- 5 Tbsp water
• Cooking oil for deep frying (Sunflower, vegetable or Canola oil)
• 10- 15 curry leaves

Directions:

1. Make a semi thick batter with plain flour, corn flour & beaten egg.
2. Add in all the Masala powder (chili powder, coriander, cumin, garam masala, turmeric powder) salt. lemon juice& salt to the batter & mix well. Add water if required to get the right consistency.
3. Mix the chicken cubes in this batter & allow it to rest for about 1 hour in the refrigerator.
4. Heat the oil in the heavy bottom pan, deep fry the chicken until golden brown on medium heat. Remove chicken & place it on a paper towel for excess oil to drain.
5. Now in a Wok or a Pan add 2 tbson of oil, fry the ginger & garlic until light brown, Add the curry leaves, 1/4 tspn chili pwder, Soya Sauce, lemon juice & turn off the heat. Now mix in the hot fried chicken into this & give it a good toss. Serve it fresh & hot. 

Note:

1. This time when I made chicken 65, I dint have corn flour nor plain flour. I added Pan cake flour instead & the result was very good too. You may wish to use Pan cake four too:)
2. If you want it more spicy you can add more chili powder in the batter or also can add in chopped green chilies
3. Always serve this fresh to enjoy the crispiness.

Pepper Chicken Masala

 

Tomorrow a friend of mine is visiting Singapore for a Dental Conference. Its gonna be fun because she is going to stay with us for a week. Now that she is around, I will also get introduced to a good Dental surgeon who can do my wisdom tooth surgery. Well Dental stuff is very very expensive here. I have enquired in couple of good places & they are charges are not less than $2000:(.  Hoping she will get me some discount too:) Well although our family is filled with Dentists, I never get the time back in India to get this done. Th last 2 visits Zion was little & I really dint have the time for this. Coz once the surgery is done I will be on bed for a week. So finally I am left with one option to do here in Singapore, as my Maid can take care of Zion while I rest.

So coming back to today's post, This is a Coorgi way of making Pepper chicken. This is my mother's recipe & I love this pepper fry. My mom would mostly pair this up with Akki Rotti & Kadambittu. I can still remember eating it almost every weekend while its raining outside. I made it Yesterday for dinner & my hubby couldn't stop eating:) Curry, spices, masala is all that he needs for food. He is game for any tasty Indian food. I kind of get bored with too much Indian. So, I am planning for Prawn Burgers for dinner tonight:) Well I have also taken a video recipe for this one. I will be publishing it as soon as I do the editing. This is how I made the Chicken Pepper Masala.

Ingredients:

• 1 kG Chicken cleaned & medium cut
• 2 Onions sliced thinly
• 2 Medium Tomatoes chopped small
• 1 Tbsp Minced Garlic
• 2 Tbsp Minced Ginger
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• 1 Tspn Chili powder
• 1/4 Tspn Turmeric powder
• 1 Inch Cinnamon Stick
• 4 Cloves
• 4 Cardamom pods
• 2 Bay leaves
• 1/2 Tspn Grated Nutmeg
• Garam Masala (Recipe below)
• 2 Tbsp Oil
• Salt as per taste
• Coriander leaves to garnish
• 1/4 tspn Sugar

Garm Masala

• 2 Tbsp Black pepper corns
• 1 inch Cinnamon
• 4 Cloves
• 5 Cardamom pods
• 1 Petal Star Aniz
• 2 Tbsp Coriander seeds
• 1 Tbsp Poppy seeds

Direction:

1. Wash the chicken well, drain water & set aside
2. Dry roast all the ingredients mentioned in the Garam masala & make a fine powder by grinding it in mixer.
3. In a heavy bottom Pan add oil, tip in minced ginger, garlic, cinnamon sticks, cardamom, cloves, bay leaves, grated nutmeg, Fry this for a minute. Now add in the onions & let it fry until pink.
4. Combine the tomatoes, Garam masala, turmeric powder, Chili powder & give it a good mix. Add 4 Tbsp of water so that the spices gets well combined. Fry this for 2 minutes.
5. Add in the chicken to this & give it a good mix. Season it with salt & lemon juice. Close lid & cook this on low flame for 15 to 20 minutes. In between saute once or twice. You needn't add water as the chicken will leave a lot of water while cooking. In case you want more gravy then add 1/4 cup of hot water. We never add water as its tasty this way.
6. After 20 mins of cooking check if the chicken is done. If done garnish it with sugar, coriander leaves & its ready to serve.

I could some how manage to take some pics of the making of Chicken pepper.

 

Coorgi Chicken Biriyani

Chicken Biriyani

 

My hubby & I are big time Biryani Fans. Most of the time when we go to Indian restaurants this will be one of the items that we will order. In India Biriyani is made differently in various states. In my house alone for that matter, my mom has her own version, so does my sister & mother-in-law. I love to taste the different variety of Biriyanis. The most commonly made in my house is the Hyderbadi Dum Biriyani. This time I wanted to make something really new. I just tried to mix up my Mom's coorg Biriyani recipe with the Malabar (Northern Kerala) Biriyani & made this new recipe. This one definitely is a keep recipe & we loved it! My hubby kept saying very nice after every serve:). This biriyani was so tempting that we both had 3 serves & still kept looking at the Biriyani in the serving dish:) This recipe is very light I have used only whole spices & have not added any masala powders. This is also a healthy version as I have just used 2 Tbspn of Ghee. This is how I made it.

 

 

 
Serves: 5
 
Ingredients:

• 2 cups Basmati Rice
• 1 Kg chicken (medium pieces around 14)
• 2 Tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 Tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 Tbsp Poppy seeds
• 6 green chilis slit
• 3 Large Onions sliced
• 2 Medium tomatoes chopped
• 1 cup chopped coriander leaves
• 4 Tbsp yogurt
• 2 piece 4 inch cinnamon
• 4 Cardamom
• 4 Cloves
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 Star Aniz
• Biriyani Masala (Recipe below)
• 1/2 cup fried onion
• 2 Tbsp Lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp Black currants
• 2 Tbsp chopped sweet Lemon peel preserve
• Salt as per taste
• 2 Tbsp Ghee

Biryani Masala:

• Cinnamon 2 inch piece
• Cardamom 8
• Cloves 4
• Nutmeg 1/2 Tspn grated
• bay leaves- 1
• Star Anise-1 pod
• (Dry roast all together and grind to a fine powder along with ginger garlic, fennel seeds & poppy seeds)

For the Rice:

Soak Basmati Rice (India gate premium)in water for about 15 mins. Now Boil a big pot of water & add in the Rice in the boiling water along with some salt. Let the rice cook for 5 mins or untill its 70% done. Turn off the flame, drain water & set the rice aside.

 

Method:

1. Clean the chicken and cut into medium sized pieces. Wash and drain well.
2. Soak the fennel seeds and poppy seeds in a bowl of hot water for 5 mins. Grind this along with Ginger, garlic, green chili's & the Biriyani Masala.
3. In a big Kadai add in 2 Tbp of oil & fry the onions, Cinnamon sticks, cloves, cardamom, bay leaf  until they are light brown.
4. Now add in the ground Masala paste , turmeric powder & saute until fat separation for 3 to 5 mins.
5. Add in the yogurt, salt as per taste & chicken. Give it a good mix turn off the stove & let it marinate in this masala for about 2 hours,
6. After 2 hours cook the chicken for about 5 to 7 mins until 80% done.
7. Add in the lemon juice & 1 tbsp of coriander leaves.
8. Now transfer 1/ 4th of the chicken curry to a big Pan in which you want to Dum cook or Bake.
9. Layer the rice on top of the curry, sprinkle fried onions, coriander leaves, black currants & Lemon preserve. Now continue this process again & in the final step add in 2 Tbsp of Ghee on the top most layer. (I made 3 layers in total)
10. Now close lid tightly, use a silver foil if required. Dum it (Slow cook it on a very very low flame for about 30 mins)
11. After 30 mins turn off the flame & let the Biriyani rest for another 20 mins,
12. Now slowly mix the rice with a wooden spatula so that the masalas get well coated on the rice. Do not over mix at this stage.

 
Here is the step by step picture.

 

Chicken Tikka Masala

 

Chicken Tikka Masala is such a famous Indian dish. Well there is a debate on who first made this dish the UK or India. Whoever it may be, I love this curry & we all know that this is also one of India's famous street food. You will see that this dish is always red in color however you can skip adding color to this dish & I bet it will taste the same. Traditionally Tikka's are made in Tandoor oven. Since we don't have Tandoori at homes, we can bake the Tikkas & than add them into the sauce. If you dont have an oven than you can pan fry the chicken. This recipe is again customised little bit to suit our taste buds at home. Well when it comes to cooking there are no set rules for me:) I mostly go with the follow depending on what ingredients I have. Only if it is a recipe that I have never tried or made a similar one, then I follow the recipe as it is. Like the latest one I followed with a recipe is Japanese Cheese Cake. The post is still pending & will be up soon. Coming back to Tikka Masala, You can actually make the sauce  ahead in advance & store it in the fridge. This recipe is healthier than the butter chicken or any other chicken curries. This is how I made it

Ingredients:

Tikka Marination

• 500 gms boneless chicken cubes
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbso ginger garlic paste
• 1/4 tspn cardamom powder
• 1 tbsp red chili powder
• 1/ 2 Tspn cumin powder
• 1/2 tspn coriander powder
• 1 tspn Kasoori methi
• 3 Tbsp thick yogurt
• Salt as per taste

For the Sauce:

• 2 medium Tomatoes
• 3 tbsp Tomato paste
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 3 Tbsp oil
• 1 tspn Cumin seeds
• 6 cashews nuts
• 1 tbsp Chili powder
• 1/2 tspn cumin powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tspn garam masala powder
• Red color optional
• salt as per taste
• Coriander leaves to garnish
• 1/2 cup hot water

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients mentioned in the marinade for about 2 hours in the refrigerator
2. Now bake the chicken at high heat in the pre heated oven for about 20 to 30 mins. Add 1 tbsp of oil on top of the chicken before baking. Once they are done set aside
3. In a blender blend in 2 tomatoes, cashew nuts, ginger & garlic to a smooth paste.
4. In heavy bottom pan add oil, cumin seeds, Blended tomatoes mixture, tomatoes paste, & all other masalas mentioned in the sauce. Add some water in between if required. Close lid & cook until fat separation.
5. Now add in 1/2 cup of water & bring to a rolling boil.
6. Finally add in some color, baked chicken & cook it in low flame for about 2 to 3 minutes.
7. Garnish this dish with some coriander leaves.

Note:

• I dint add any color to chicken while baking. I just added 2 drops of color to the sauce. You can skip adding color.
• You can also make Paneer Tikka Masala the same way.
• This dish goes very well with both Roti & rice.

 

 

Here is the step by step picture. You can bake the Chicken on top of the silver foil to avoid the chicken sticking to the baking tray.

 

 

 

Roast Chicken

If you have been following my blog for sometime then you must have realised that I love to experiment with food. Interest in food & cooking started when I was in 5th Standard. On weekends when my parents & sister used to sleep in the afternoon, I will be in the kitchen experimenting something. Fortunately I think I am blessed with magic in my hands. From those days I have been able to cook tasty food. My friends say that "Any one can cook "but very few people are gifted & whatever they make it turns out good. My friends who have tasted my food keep saying that even though they try my recipes they some how fail to get the same taste as I get:) Now I take pride in saying that I am gifted:) Some self praise.

Well my hubby is my food critic & because of him today I have reached a totally different level in cooking. All the heavy duty cooking started only after marriage. Before that I used to love cooking but never cooked as much as I do now. Going forward all my culinary innovation will be named after C2K (Corporate2kitchen), I made this chicken roast 2 weeks ago & I must confess that this is one of the best chicken roast I have ever had. The flavours were so mild & the chicken was marinated so well that we could feel the juices inside the chicken. The pic was taken at night a7 thats why the clarity is not so good. This chicken got over the same night.:) This is how I made it.

Serves: 4 chicken lovers.

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken with skin on
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 tspn cardamom powder
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tspn cumin powder
• 1/2 tspn coriander powder
• 2 tbsp thick coconut cream
• salt as per taste
• 1 Tspn Kasuri Methi
• 1 tbsp Soya sauce
• 1/2 Tspn Coarsely powdered black pepper powder
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp Ginger garlic paste

Method:

• Make a paste with all the above ingredients.
• Marinade the chicken well with this paste, Try & apply this paste between the chicken & the skin. Make sure that the chicken is well coated  & let it sit in the fridge for at least 2 to 4 hours. (You can also keep it overnight)
• Now preheat the oven to 260 degree for 10 mins & bake for about 45 to 60 mins in the middle rack.
• After 30 mins of baking you will see that the chicken is 70 % done & lot of fat separation around the tray.
• Scoop off some fat with a spoon & pour it on top of the chicken & let it bake until the chicken is full cooked.

 

Chicken Sukka

 

Chicken Sukka or Ajadina is a very special & common dish in Mangalore region. This dish goes very well with Neer Dosas. I love this dish anytime with any anything. It has lot of flavours & coconut in it. This dish can be made either dry or with some curry. Like any other chicken dished this is also very addictive:). This is one dish which my mom made very often at home. I know that this dish is very common & made often in Mangaloreans home. Well this is my Mom's recipe & I think its the same as originak recipe with little or no changes. Since there is a lot of coconut in this, its defenitely not a very healthy dish to make more often. Atleast in my home where me & my hubby are on a bigger size:) The process might seems long coz of many ingredients but trust me this is again a easy recipe.I am going to devide the recipe process into 3 parts for easy understanding.

 

Serves: 6

Cooking time: 45 mins

 

Ingredients:

• 1 Kg small pieces Chicken
• 1 large Onion chopped
• 1 Tbsp minced ginger & garlic

For dryroasting & Grinding.

• 1 tspn Poppy seeds / khus-khus
• 3 inch Cinnamon stick
• 4 cloves
• Onion - 1 medium size, finely sliced
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
• Crushed garlic with skin - 5 cloves
• 12 to 15 Dry red chillies (Remove seeds)
• 2 Tbsp Coriander seeds
• 1/2 Tbsp Whole black peppercorns
• 1/4 tsp Fenugreek seeds 
• 1 Tspn Cumin seeds/jeera
• Tamarind - marble sized or Tamarind paste - 1/2 tspn

For garnishing

• Grated coconut - 1 cup
• Garlic with skin - 3 cloves
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil
• handful of curry leaves

  Preparation:

1. Heat a pan and dry roast the poppy seeds, cinnamon, cloves, sliced onion, garlic and turmeric powder.
2. Saute till the onions turn pale. Add dry red chillies, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, peppercorns and tamarind one by one and saute. Let it cool and then grind to a fine paste.
3. In a pan, add the chicken, chopped onion, salt and 3/4th of the ground masala paste. The remaining 1/4th to be added in the last step along with the coconut.
4. Cook The chicken without adding any extra water as  chicken itself will have some water in it. If you feel the chicken is getting very dry than add 1/4 cup of water.
5. In a pan dry roast the coconut, 3 cloves of garlic and cumin on a slow flame for about 2-3 minutes till you get a nice aroma . 
6. Once this is cooled, add in the remaining 1/4 th ground masala to this.
7. When the chicken is 90 % done add the coconut masala to it & give it a good mix.
8. If you want a little gravy then add some water to the chicken. Close lid & cook for 2 mins or until gravy thickens.
9. Garnish the dish with Curry leaves or coriander leaves.

Note:

• Since I dint have Curry leaves I skipped adding it.
• My dish looks a little darker coz I added more pepper as I love the peppery taste.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#27

Chicken Dum Biriyani

Chicken Dum Biriyani had so many versions. We all know that Hyderabad Dum Biriyani is very famous & a tasty one. Every state has their own versions of Biriyani. Some of them do it the pressure cooker way & some layer it. I make both type of Biriyanis & the very taste one is my Chicken Dum Biriyani. I have got many appreciation for this Biriyani from my friends & guests. This is a very easy & healthy version. It will take a couple of attempts to master this. One important ingredient to make finest Biriyani is the "Rice". Experiment with different brand & use the one that works best for you. I always use India gate premium Basmati Rice. This brand works great for me unlike others where the Rice gets broken or mushy. This is how I make my Biriyani

Ingredients:

1. 1 Kg Chicken cleaned & cut into medium pieces
2. 3 large onions thinly chopped long
3. 3 Inch cinnamon stick
4. 5 cloves
5. 5 cardamoms
6. 2 dry bay leaf
7. 2 star aniz
8. 1.5 tbsp ginger garlic paste
9. 2 medium tomatoes chopped
10. 1/2 cup yogurt
11. 1.5 tbsp Red Chili powder
12. 2 tbsp coriander powder
13. 1 tspn Cumin powder
14. 1 tbsp Everest Garam Masala powder
15. 2 tbsp lemon juice
16. 4 green chilis slit
17. Handful of coriander leaves chopped
18. 2 Tbsp ghee
19. 4 tbsp oil
20. Salt as per taste
21. 2 Cups Basmati Rice
22. Fried Cashew nuts & onions for garnishing (Optional)

Method:

1. Wash & soak the Basmati Rice for about 20 mins in the water.
2. Boil a pot full of water & add in the Basmati rice & cook until the rice is 3/4th done. Drain water & keep the rice aside
3. In a big heavy bottom Pan add oil & fry 2- 8 until the onions are pink.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, Make of paste of 10-14 items add this & cook this on low flame until fat separation for about 5 - 8 mins.
5. Now add the chicken to this mixture & give it a good mix, Cook this for about 8 mins or until the chicken is cooked 3/4th & excess water is drained off.
6. Add in the lemon juice, slit green chili's, salt half of coriander leaves & mix well.
7. Lower the gas flame & place the rice on top of the chicken mixture. Use a wooden spatula to press the rice towards down.
8. Garnish the top of rice with coriander leaves & 2 Tbsp ghee around the corners. Dum it (Slow cook) for about 30 mins. Turn off the flame & wait for about 15 mins for the rice to cool a little.
9. Now take a wooden spatula & mix the rice gently so that the masalas & rice gets well coated. Donot over mix or else the rice will break off.
10. Garnish the Biriyani with Cashew nuts & fried onions if you want.

Note:

• The Biriyani needs to be cooked on very low flame. I have a gas topper which protect the direct heat from getting the rice burnt. You can also use an old flat pan on top of gas to keep it under the Biriyani vessel.
• You can also bake this rice in a preheated oven at 150 degree for about 30 - 45 mins. Make sure you cover the vessel with a silver foil.
• You can also garnish the Biriyani with some fried Cashew nuts & onions which I do occasionaly
• In the below picture I have not used coriander leaves as it was not available at home.
• Make sure you have this Biriyani hot.
• What I do sometimes is make the biriyani in advance (skip dum) leave it like that outside. I Dum it just 30 mins before lunch/ dinner time to have it hot.

 

Nargisi Kofta

 

This is my 2nd recipe under seasonal for BM#27. Although this is not very seasonal, since its a heavy dish its made on occasions & especially during winters. This dish will keep your stomach full & not make you feel hungry soon:)

Zion is feeling better now but unfortunately I am having food poison & my hubby is also unwell. This was few days ago I had a cream puff from a bakery. It was not so good still I eat it & now having bad stomach pain, loss of appetite & lose motion:(. I haven't been cooking as I am having some kind of aversion towards food, like I used to feel when I was pregnant. I made this Kofta curry 3 days ago. It is the recipe, from the ancient Mughlai cuisine. They also say this is a Pakistani recipe & Mostly made in Muslim Houses.  In this classic recipe mince meat are stuffed around boiled eggs and served in delicious curry. Add it to dinner party menu and catch the appreciation. You can either serve this as Appetiser or as main course. I used Home made chicken mince for this recipe. You may add any meat you like. For vegetarians Aloo Paneer will be an ideal option. I also plan to make a vegetarian version sometime soon. Well this dish is very heavy & one piece kind of fills your stomach.

Serves: 4 - 5 people

Ingredients:
For koftas

• 4 hard boiled eggs
• 1 Tbsp minced ginger garlic
• 200 gms minced chicken
• 1 tspn chili powder
• 1/4 tspn Cardamom powder
• 1/4 tspn garam Masala powder
• 4 tbspn chopped coriander leaves
• Bread crumbs for coating
• Salt as per taste
• Oil for deep frying

For the Gravy/ Curry

• 1 medium onion chopped
• 1 tbso ginger garlic paste
• 2 tomatoes chopped
• 6 Cashew nuts
• 1 Tspn Chili powder
• 1/4 tspn Turmeric powder
• 1/4 Tspn cardamom powder
• 1 tspn Garam Masala powder
• 1/4 tspn Cumin powder
• 2 tbsp Yogurt
• salt as per taste
• coriander leaves to garnish
• 2 Inch cinnamon stick,
• 4 Cloves
• 4 cardamom pods
• 1 star aniz
• 2 tbspn oil
• 2 chopped green chilis
• 1.5 cup hot water

Method:

1. In a mixie/ Ginger jar add boneless chicken pieces, ginger, garlic, chili powder, cardamom powder, garam masala, salt & mince it in a mixer or blender.
2. Now take a ball size of minced meat mixture & coat the hard boiled eggs with it. You can use a plastic wrap to easily coat the meat to the eggs.
3. Now coat this with bread crumbs & deep fry for 3 to 4 mins on all sides. Set this aside (Now if you want you can cut the Koftas into half & have them as appetisers.)
4. For the Gravy: In a pan add oil, fry cinnamon sticks, cardamom, star aniz, cloves, onions until the onions are translucent.
5. Now in a mixie jar make a fine paste of Tomatoes, ginger .garlic & cashew nuts
6. Add this paste to the pan & all add in the Chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, cumin powder, Cardamom powder & mix well. Let this cook until fat separation.
7. Now add 2 tbsp yogurt, water, salt & bring this to a boil for about 2 mins
8. Reduce the flame & add in the koftas into the curry. Simmer this for about 3 to 5 mins & garnish them with green chilis, coriander leaves.

 

 

I have tried my best to take step by step pictures:
This is a first step in making koftas. I made the chicken mince at home with some boneless chicken pieces,

 
 This is how you can coat the eggs with minced meat, This is a very easy method & no mess

 
If you are nothing going to eat the koftas as appetizers than you can fry just for few minutes & cook it longer in the sauce

 

This is a simple sauce recipe. Since the Koftas are very rich & heavy I dont add any creamin to the sauce.

 

 

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#27