Chettinad Chicken Fry

I was craving for something very spicy yesterday & thought if making Chettinad Chicken fry. This is my version & may not be the authentic one. But this is super delicious finger licking good. I had this with steamed rice in the afternoon & dry Rotis at night. Lets get cooking it now...

Ingredients:
3/4 Kg Chicken
1 Tomato chopped
1 Onion Chopped
1/2 Tsp Tamarind paste
1/4 Tsp Turmeric powder
1 Tsp Fennel seeds
2 Tbsp desiccated coconut
1/2 cup of water
1 Tbsp Oil
2 Tbsp Ghee
Handful of curry leaf
Coriander leaf for garnish
salt as per taste

For the Masala
1 Tbsp Fennel seeds
6 to 8 Red dried chili
2 Tbsp whole Black pepper
1 Tbsp Coriander seeds
1 Tbsp Cumin seeds
1 Inch Cinnamon
3 Cloves
4 Cardamom
1 bay leaf
1/2 onions chopped
1 Tbsp Garlic Chopped
1 Tbsp Ginger chopped

Method:

1. Dry roast all the ingredients in the Masala list, except onions & ginger garlic & keep aside.
2. Now in a Pan add oil, fry onion, ginger & garlic till its translucent. Now grind the dry roasted spices along with onion & ginger garlic to a smooth paste.
3. In the Pan add Ghee fry fennel seeds, onion, tomatoes add the Masala paste, salt, tamarind paste & fry for 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Add chicken into this & fry it well with this Masala for 5 to 8 minutes. when this gets a little dry, add the water, desiccated coconut & cook this on medium heat for about 8 to 10 minutes till the chicken is dry. Garnish this with fresh Curry leaves & coriander leaves.

Note:

• You can actually marinate the chicken with the Masala for more time to make it more flavorful. Since I don't plan in advance what to cook, I mostly don't marinate.
• If you want it gravy you can add more water.
• Some people fry the curry leaves in oil & add. But  I like to garnish my dish with fresh curry leaves as it adds more flavor to the dish.
• Fennel seeds & black pepper is the main ingredient in this dish.

Happy cooking & eating:)

Cottage Cheese in Black Pepper Orange Sauce

I tried this Paneer dish recently with Orange Juice & it turned out very well. It tasted very different from the regular Paneer dishes. This is a must try & very easy to make. This was made in less than 10 minutes.


Ingredients
1 Cup Paneer cubes (Cottage Cheese)
1 Cloves Garlic Chopped
1 Medium Green Capsicum diced
1 Medium Onion diced
1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
1/4 cup Orange juice
1 Tbsp Oil
Salt as per taste


Method:
In a Pan add oil fry garlic for a minute than add in onion & Capsicum fry this for 2 minutes. Add in Paneer, Orange Juice, Black pepper & salt. Close the lid & simmer for few minutes. Don't cook this for more than 3 minutes as the Paneer will get hard & the veggies will become soft. 


Note: 

• Eat it fresh to enjoy the juiciness in the Paneer. Make & serve Immediately to relish it.
• Do not over cook the veggies as we need crunch in the onions & Capsicum.
• If you want it very spicy than add in some slit green chili's

Cauliflower & Cherry Tomato Stir Fry

Yet another day when I want to make something very quick, healthy & at the same time tasty. I had Cauliflower & cherry tomatoes in the fridge so just went with the flow & this was the result of it. I never thought this will taste very tasty. But yes, this in deed was very healthy & tasty quick side dish. I had made Dry wheat Flat Bread (Pulka) & we had this dish with it.


Ingredients:


1 Medium Cauliflower 
10 Cherry Tomatoes
1 Tbsp Garlic Chopped
1 Tbsp Ginger Chopped
1 Medium Onion Chopped
2 Tbsp Soya Sauce
1 Tbsp Tomato Sauce
1/4 Tsp Black Pepper powder
1 Tbsp Oil for frying
1 Tsp Corn Flour mixed in 1/4 cup of water
Salt as per Taste


Method: 


Clean & cut the Cauliflower to small pieces. In a Pan add Oil & fry the cauliflower on medium heat with lid covered for about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove it from the Pan & in the same Pan now add Ginger, Garlic, onion & fry them for 3 minutes. Add in all the sauces, salt, pepper & fry for few minutes. Now add the cauliflower, Cherry Tomatoes 1/2 cup of water & Corn flower paste. Simmer this for a minute & serve it hot.