Green Chicken Fry or Pudina Chicken

Pudina Chicken or famously known as Mint chicken / Green chicken is one of my favorites among Chicken delicacies. I always try to get the flavor and taste of green chicken that my mom makes. But ... it always falls short of that touch and her TLC in preparing that dish for us. Tho' I resisted a lot to put up this recipe for public, I think it's time for my mom to know how much I miss her and more so her cooking.



Here we go with the Ingredients:

Chicken 3-4 lbs
Onions 3 medium sized
Oil 1 tbsp
Turmeric 2 pinches
Salt - per taste
Ginger garlic paste - 2 tspn
Coriander powder - 2 tspn
Chilli powder - 2 tspn
Green Chillies -13- 17 medium sized
Mint - leaves from one bunch
Coriander - 15 stalks
Fenugreek leaves/Methi leaves - 1tbsp when crushed


Preparation time: 10 mins Cooking time: 20-25 mins


Make a paste of half the quantity of onions, mint leaves, methi leaves, coriander leaves, and green chillies. This, we call as the 'green paste'. Now in a wide mouthed pan, fry onions in oil till they are translucent. Add ginger garlic paste and turmeric to the onions and saute well. Now add the chicken pieces and salt. Place a lid on the pan and allow the water in the chicken to cook the pieces. Now when the water is no more and the chicken pieces are about to stick the base of the pan, add the green paste and mix thoroughly. Let the paste make its way into every piece. If not, add half cup of water to the green paste and mix again. Keep the pan on medium heat and then add coriander powder, chilli powder and stir. Now remove the lid from the pan and let the water evaporate. Remember, the outcome must be dry chicken. Best is when the pieces have just begun to turn brown. This one beats the best of roast and fry chicken. Garnish it with a dash of lemon and savor it with rasam and steamed rice. Uhhmm! Yummy Green Chicken.

'Hallo' Halwa

My bro' wanted me to put up some special halloween dish and suggested this "Hallo" Halwa or Carrot Pudding. Back in India, this is called 'gazar ka halwa' which is made on special occasions. Doesn't take much time but has a lot of calorific value. So I wouldn't suggest that you eat it daily but a bite or two would surely quench your sweet tooth cravings. Add a scoop of vanilla icecream and it becomes the king of all desserts.

Ingredients:

2 lbs carrots

1 1/2 litre milk (approx 3 full measure cups)

400-500 gm sugar

Elaichi powder (cardamom) - two pinches

Saffron - few flakes or few drops orange colour (optional)

2 tbsp Ghee/Clarified butter

Almonds, pista, raisins for garnishing

Preparation time : 10 mins Cooking time: 30 mins

Peel and grate carrots. Boil milk in a heavy saucepan and add grated carrots to it. Boil till thick, stirring occassionally. Once the milk starts thickening, stir continuously. Add sugar and cook further till thickens. Add ghee, cardamom, saffron and colour and mix well. Continue to stir on low heat till the mixture collects into a soft ball or the ghee starts seperating out. Serve hot, garnished with a chopped almond or pista and raisins. I think this is the only time during the halloween that you can't say 'boo'.

Catfish fillet curry

This is my husband's signature dish. I cannot tell you how simple it is to cook and how awesome it tastes. So on behalf of him, here's me revealing his secret recipe for Catfish fillets curry. Let's give it a name... uhmm... How about Yummy Fish Fillet curry? Well, I just realized how lacking in creativity I am.

Ingredients:

Catfish 2-2.5 lbs

Pepper corns - 10

Bay Leaves - 3

Turmeric - a pinch

Onions - 1 1/2 medium sized

Vegetable/Canola/Corn Oil- 2 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Paprika powder/Red Chilli powder - 2 tspn

Coriander/Dhania powder- 3 tspn

Cumin powder- 1 tspn

Ginger, Garlic paste - 1 1/2 tbsp

Water - 1 cup

Cilantro/Coriander leaves- 1/4 bunch

Lemon - 1 small for garnishing

Preparation time: 5 mins Cooking time: 12 mins

Thoroughly wash the catfish fillets and apply salt and 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste. Set them aside.

Now heat the oil in a pan and add pepper corns. When the pepper corns splutter add bay leaves and see that the leaves dissolve completely in oil for their flavor to soak in. Then add sliced onions, 1/2 tbsp of the ginger garlic paste,and turmeric and saute well. Take care not to let the onions turn dark brown as that lends the curry a funny smell and taste. Then add coriander, cumin, and red chilli powders. Quickly mix the ingredients in the pan. When the powders begin to stick to the base of the pan, add the catfish fillets and mix thoroughly. Put a lid on the pan for water to drain out from the fillets. As the water drains out, try mixing it with the sauted onions and powders. Add one full cup of water and thinly cut cilantro in the pan. Let the fillets cook in that full cup of water. When you see that the fish fillets are cooked, remove the lid from the pan and let the extra water vaporize. For garnishing just squeeze in a dash of lemon.

Remember! this freshly prepared fillet curry is best eaten with Rotis/Tortillas/Bread/Pav. Yummy! ain't it?

Gongura Mutton

I've 'Googled' and found that 'Gongura,' the original Telugu word, is called Sorrel leaves in English. So now we have Sorrel leaves mutton curry to prepare. Bah! I find the name long and boring. So prefer calling it Gongura mutton and hope you guys don't mind calling it too.

It's a dish that most people from Telangana and Rayalseema region in AP, India, prepare for any grand or small occasion. Its simple recipe and tangy taste is what leaves a foodie asking for more. Infact, there are many ways how you can prepare the same thing. I'll share a few methods.

Ingredients:

1/2 kg lamb meat, cleaned and cut into pieces

1/2 tspn turmeric powder

Salt to taste

10 cloves of garlic

1/2 inch piece of ginger

4 cloves (lavang)

4 whole green cardamoms (ilaichi)

2 bay leaves

1 large cinnamon stick

200 gm gongura leaves

1 large onion thinly chopped

1 stem large curry leaves

3 tbsp cooking oil

10-12 green chillies

Cilantro and Mint leaves for garnishing

Cooking time: 15-20 mins Preparation time: 7 mins

Method 1

First, boil the mutton and ginger garlic with some salt in a pressure cooker. Take out the ginger garlic and make a paste of it and keep aside.

Now, in a pan, heat oil and add all the whole spices. Once they start spluttering, add the ginger garlic paste, green chilies and then the sliced onions to the oil. Saute the onions till they become transparent and then add the gongura leaves(sorrel), curry leaves and all the ground spices and salt. Thoroughly saute till the oil is separated from the mixture. Now add the fully boiled mutton pieces and saute for another five minutes so that they get well mixed with the spices paste. Then add water and boil till the gravy thickens. Garnish with fresh coriander/cilantro or even mint leaves and serve hot with rice.

Method 2

Step 1:Wash gongura, keep aside.
Step 2:Cut meat into bite sized pieces and mix along with garlic and ginger pastes and keep aside.
Step 3:Grind poppy seeds, cumin, coriander seeds, cloves and dried red chilis with 1/4 cup of water until soft.

Step 4:Heat oil in a non-stick skillet and fry onions until brown. Next add meat from step 2 and fry on medium heat until meat looks dry.

Now add 1.5 cups of water, cover and cook until meat is soft. Next add ground spices, gongoora and salt, stir well and cover. Cook on low heat for 25 minutes more.

Egg vindal

I dunno why this is called Egg Vindal...but I tried it out with a concotion of ingredients and hey! it turned out quite tasty. I can guarantee that my trial and error hasn't been in vain. There we go-

Ingredients:
4-5 boiled eggs
2 chopped onions
4-6 red chilies
4 garlic cloves and a inch sized ginger piece
1/2 tspn cumin seeds
2-3 cloves
1 small stick cinnamon
1 tspn garam masala
3/4 cup vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp ghee /butter/oil
Salt to taste

Preparation time: 5 mins Cooking time: 12 mins

Mix the chillies, cumin seeds, ginger, garlic, 1/4 cup vinegar and salt and blend it to a fine paste.
Heat ghee/butter in a wok/pan and fry onions until they turn slightly brown. Now add the paste along with cloves and cinnamon. Then add sugar, vinegar and garam masala. Take care not to let the masala stick to the bottom of the pan. While this is done, you can boil the eggs on the other burner.
Cut the boiled eggs into two halves and add to the curry in the pan. Then cook until the gravy thickens and serve with parathas/rotis or even plain steamed rice.

Uhmm! DELICIOUS is the word.

Tomato Chutney

This chutney is especially for those who do not have too much time to spare for the kitchen. Students, working men/women - this recipe is just meant for you.

Ingredients:

2 Tomatoes medium sized

Mint leaves - half cup

Green Chillies/red chillies - 10-12 with the stalk removed and slit

Cumin seeds - 2 tspn

Dhania seeds - 1 1/2 tspn

Tamarind - 1 tspn

Onion - 1/2 the bulb

Garlic - 2 medium sized cloves

Oil- 1 tbsp

Preparation time : 2 mins Cooking time : 5 mins

Heat oil in a kada/saucepan. Add jeera/cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add onions, slit garlic, chillies, dhania seeds, tamarind. When the onions are turning transparent add mint leaves and medium sized cubed tomatoes. Saute them until the tomatoes start peeling off their skin and the fleshy inside starts showing dark brown side. Now take the pan off the burner and let it cool for a min or two. Grind the contents in a mixie/wet grinder. Make sure to grind it finely into a paste. Thats where the taste lies.

Serve it hot or cold with rotis or steamed rice and ghee. Hey! this chutney tastes good with Dosas and idlis, too(so says my husband!). Doesn't it taste Yummy? Uhmm!

PS- If you like it spicier add more chillies.

Chicken - Hyderabadi

This is a recipe which is easy to prepare when you do not have all the spices and masalas handy. This basic chicken curry can compete with any other of its kind in 'Tandoori' category. I call it Chicken Hyderabadi - simply 'cos it's a recipe concocted by me, a Hyderabadi.

Well, there are a lot of other 30 minute recipes here in this link but I bet if any of these can outdo the taste of my recipe. I really betcha!!!!

So now to begin our yummy kitchen's - chicken recipe, these are the ingredients we need.

Ingredients:

Chicken -3 lb
salt - 1 tspn per taste
Ginger garlic - 1 1/2 tbsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tspn
Chilli/paprika powder - 3 1/2 tspn
Dhania or corinader powder - 2 tspn
Food color/Saffron - a pinch (optional)
Oil- 2 tbsp
Cilantro leaves for garnishing

Preparation time: 15 mins Cooking time: 25 mins Final Form: Dry without gravy.

It's very simple. First marinate the chicken adding all the above ingredients in the same order as mentioned, except oil, for 15 mins. Next, take a pan with a lid and heat the oil. When fumes start emerging from the pan add the marinated chicken and quickly close the lid. Let the water from the chicken drain out and cook the pieces. Once in a while change the position of the chicken pieces so that they all get evenly cooked. Add some food color/saffron if you like. Once the water drains out, take a piece and taste it to see if that's how tender you'd like the chicken to be. If it still isn't tender, add 1/2 cup of water and let it cook for some more time. Now when the water is thoroughly soaked in, remove the lid from the pan and let the chicken now get fried in the remaining oil in the pan. See to it that the pieces don't stick to the bottom of the pan and get charred. While its equally important that the pieces get fried in the oil, take care that they dont become more tender. By removing the lid we are making way for the moisture to escape. Finally, you get shallow fried chicken pieces which can be served with cilantro that is added for garnishing.

Yummy!!!

Glossary of cooking terms and spices

If you are unsure about any spices or cooking terms used in any of these recipes then try using this very helpful glossary. Click anywhere on the title or here.

Kadai Capsicum

I love this recipe with/without egg. Love to call it capsicubes dish. People who have aversion to bell peppers too will start licking their fingers once they taste this dish. So start cooking and let your kitchen be known for its yummy recipes.

Ingredients:

Shimla mirchi/Capsicum/bell peppers 4-5 full sized
Onions - 1 big size

Oil- 2 tbsp(tablespoon)

Salt - per taste
Chilli/Paprika powder - 2 tspn

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tspn

Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon(tspn)

Ginger&Garlic paste - 1 1/2 tspn

Chana dal - 1 tbsp

Turmeric- a pinch or two

Dhania/coriander seeds powder - 2 tspn

Eggs- 3

Coconut powder & cilantro leaves for garnishing

Cooking time:12 mins Preparation time: 7 mins

Heat the oil in a kadai/pan till you can see the vapors coming from it. Add mustard and cumin seeds till they crackle and to this add the sliced onions. Saute the onions till they turn pink. Now add some salt and turmeric and ginger garlic paste. Take care to saute the ingredients on the pan till they turn light brown. Quickly add chana dal and when the dal begins to darken in its color add dhania powder, chilli powder and capsicum cubes in that order. Close the lid on the pan and let the steam cook the capsicubes. The cubes get tender which is a sign of them being cooked, in no later than 5 mins.

Now remove the lid from the pan and let the moisture dry up. Remember to cook this dish on a medium burner. Stir fry the contents for another 3-5 mins. Now you may add cilantro and serve the dish hot if you're stricltly vegetarian else add 3 eggs to the dish. Don't disturb the eggs while they're getting cooked. Once they solidify, scramble the egg pieces into the capsicubes. Its best to serve the dish with a slight garnishing of cilantro leaves and coconut powder. Yummy ain't it?

Gobi Manchurian

I have some stuff in my fridge for a long while now, so why don't I try this Gobi Manchurian? Cauliflower florets fry, I mean (for want of better translation ;)



1 Medium sized Cauliflower

A pinch of saunf

1 Big sized Onion

3 Tbsps Butter

1 Cup Warm water

1/2 Cup Corn Flour

1/4 Cup All purpose flour

3 Tbsps Soya Sauce

4 Tbsps Tomato Sauce

3 Tbsps Chilli paste

1 1/2 Tspns Red Chilli powder

Oil for Deep fry

Salt

2 pinches White pepper



Gobi Fry



Set aside the Cauli florets in a thick paste of cornflour, all purpose flour, butter, 2 tbspns chillies paste and warm water. Let the florets soak the paste as much as possible. Now put these florets in a kadai/ deep fry pan and fry them well till they turn brown. Remove the florets from the pan and let them stand on a plate with some tissue paper to absorb the excess oil. As the florets settle down longer they start turning crispier.



Paste

Now lets prepare the manchurian paste. Saute the finely chopped onion in some oil on a pan. When the onions start turning brown, put some soya sauce, remaining chilli paste and tomato paste and saute it thoroughly. When the pan starts drying up the manchurian paste put 4 tbsps warm water and saute the paste again. Sprinkle the powdered saunf on the paste.



It's important to keep both the florets and the paste separately until food is served. But make sure you pour the paste on the florets and serve hot. Set aside some florets without the paste on them. Makes for a crispy yummy bite. Uhmmm!