Friday, 30 May 2014

Mutton Rogan Josh



Ingredients
  • 700g mutton, cut into 1 inch pieces 
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 1 cinnamon stick, halved 
  • 6 cloves
  • 4 black cardamoms 
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp ginger paste
  • 1 tbsp garlic paste
  • 2 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder (it's not spicy much, mainly used for coloring)
  • 1/2 tsp fennel powder 
  • 1/2 tsp ginger powder 
  • 1 tbsp meat masala (optional)
  • Chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup whisked yogurt 
  • 4 tbs oil (mustard oil is recommended)
  • Salt to taste 

Method
- Heat oil in a casserole, add cinnamon stick, cloves, black cardamoms, bay leaves, onion and cook until the onion is golden brown, stir occasionally to avoid getting burnt.
- Add in ginger & garlic paste, stir well. In a few minutes, the raw smell of ginger goes off, add mutton, meat masala and mix. Braise the mutton for 3-4 minutes or until it gets colored evenly.
- Then add the stock enough to cover the mutton, season with a good pinch of salt and cook under cover for 30 minutes or until the mutton is soft.
- Mix the chilli powder with 1/2 cup of water then add into the rogan josh along with fennel powder and ginger powder. Mix thoroughly then add in whisked yogurt and stir well.
- Cook the rogan josh for further 10-15 minutes or until the gravy a bit thickens.
- Serve hot with steamed rice or paratha.

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Saturday, 24 May 2014

Punjabi Okra Masala



Ingredients
  • 250g okra, trim the ends and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 big tomatoes, finely chopped 
  • 1 tbsp ginger & garlic paste
  • 1/2 tsp chopped fresh chili
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 3/4 tsp red chili powder
  • 3/4 tsp coriander powder
  • 1/4 tsp amchur powder (dried mango powder)
  • 1/4 tsp kasuri methi (opt)
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  • A handful of fresh curry leaves
  • A pinch of garam masala
  • Cooking oil
  • Salt to taste

Method
- Heat oil in a frying pan or a wok, add the okra and saute on medium low flame for 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and keep aside.
- In the same pan, add some oil over medium heat. Once hot, add cumin seeds and curry leaves, allow them to splutter. Then add chopped onion and chili, sauce for 4 minutes.
- Add ginger & garlic paste, saute until the raw smell goes off, then add chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, amchur powder and kasuri methi, mix well.
- Add chopped tomatoes and saute on medium low heat until soft. Add the okra and mix well, cook it under cover for 10 minutes, stir occasionally. Once cooked, season well with salt and garam masala, mix well and turn off the heat.
- Serve hot with steamed rice or indian bread (Chapati).

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Thursday, 15 May 2014

Malai Kofta Curry


Ingredients

* Paneer Kofta
  • 1-1/2 cup grated Paneer/Cottage Cheese
  • 1 potato, boiled, peeled & mashed
  • 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1/2 tsp finely chopped green chilli
  • 1/2 tsp grated ginger
  • 1/2 tsp coriander powder
  • 2 tbsp cashew nuts
  • 2 tbsp corn flour
* Kofta Curry
  • 2 big onions, sliced
  • 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala
  • 1/2 tsp coriander powder
  •  1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 green chilli
  • 1/2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tbsp whipped cream 

Method
* For Kofta
- In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and mix it really well.
- Make small golf size balls and stuff some raisins in it.
- Deep fry them until golden brown.

* For Curry
- Soak cashew nuts in warm water for 2 hours.
- Heat oil in a frying pan, add sliced onion and cook until browned up. Then add to a blender to make onion puree.
- Mix cashew nuts, green chilli and chopped tomatoes and run into a blender.
- Heat oil in a casserole, and onion puree and cook for 2 minutes, add ginger & garlic paste and cook until the raw smell of ginger goes off. Then add tomato puree, mix well.
- Add turmeric powder, garam masala, red chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder in to the casserole and cook for 7 minutes over medium heat.
- Add in water, stir, season with salt, sugar and cook for further 5 minutes.
- Then add whipped cream and cook for 4 minutes.
- Serve hot with paneer kofta.

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Sunday, 11 May 2014

Chicken Lollypop


Ingredients
  • 10 chicken lollypops (made of chicken wings)
  • 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste 
  • 1 tsp crushed black peppercorns
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce 
  • 1 tbsp chopped ginger
  • 1 tbsp chopped garlic
  • 2 tbsp red chilli paste
  • 1/2 cup refined flour
  • 1/2 cup corn flour 
  • 1 cup chopped coriander 
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil for deep-frying

Method
- Combine chicken lollypops, ginger-garlic paste, salt, 1/2 tsp crushed black peppercorns and soy sauce in a bowl and mix well. Marinate the chicken for 15 minutes.
- Heat oil in a deep frying pan. Combine ginger, garlic, red chilli paste, refined flour, corn flour, salt, remaining crushed peppercorns and chopped coriander  in another bowl and mix well. Add little water and mix well till a thick battle is formed.
- Deep marinated lollypops in the batter and deep-fry them in hot oil till golden. Drain on absorbent paper.
- Serve hot.

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Thursday, 1 May 2014

Stir-fried Beef with Macaroni (Nui Xào Bò)


Ingredients
  • 300g macaroni 
  • 300g beef, finely sliced
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 onion, roughly sliced
  • 1 capsicum, roughly sliced
  • 5 spring onions, roughly chopped
  • Salt, ground pepper
  • Knorr seasoning powder or chicken powder

Method
- Boil water in a pot, add the macaroni, a bit of salt, oil and cook for 4-5 minutes, drain and let dry.
- In a mixing bowl, marinate the sliced beef with chopped garlic, 1 tsp seasoning powder, 1/2 tsp oil and 1/2 tsp ground pepper, mix well and set aside.
- Heat oil in a frying pan, add the macaroni, tomato paste and stir well to combine.Turn off the heat.
- Meanwhile, heat oil in a wok, saute chopped onion and spring onion, add capsicum and saute for a few minutes, then add the marinated beef and stir well. Transfer all the macaroni into the wok, season all together with 2 tbsp seasoning powder, 1/2 tsp salt and stir well.
- Serve hot with sliced tomatoes and soy sauce.

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Monday, 28 April 2014

Vietnamese Caramelised Pork and Eggs (Thịt Kho Trứng)


Ingredients
  • 300g pork belly, roughly cut
  • 2 liters of coconut water 
  • 1/4 cup fish sauce
  • 4 hard boiled eggs
  • 3 garlic cloves, peeled and halved 
  • Sugar, salt
  • 25g bean sprout
  • 25g garlic chives
  • 25g carrots, long thinly sliced
  • 25g onion, thinly sliced

Method
- We should prepare the pickle to go with the dish a day before, mix all the vegetables in a mixing bowl. To prepare the sauce for the pickle, combine 2 cups of water, 3 tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl and mix well to dissolve, then add 1 cup of white vinegar. Stuff all mixed vegetables in a big glass bottle, add the sauce and close the cap, adjust the quantity of water and vinegar to make sure it's enough to almost reach the top of the mixed vegetables. Refrigerate the pickle overnight before serving.
- Heat water in a big casserole, when it comes to a boil, add the pork and boil it for 2 minutes. Then discard the water and rinse the pork thoroughly under cold water. Marinate it with 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp salt, mix well and keep it marinated in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
- To make the caramilised sauce, add 2 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp water into a sauce pan over low heat, cook until the sauce turns golden brown. 
- Boil all the coconut water in a big pot, add the marinated pork and let it cook uncovered over medium low heat for 1 hour, remember to skim off the scum in the meantime.
- Then season the stock with fish sauce, salt to taste, add the hard boiled eggs, the caramilised sauce and halved garlic cloves to the pot and let it cook over low heat for another 1 hour.
- As cooked, the pork should be very tender and the broth should be clear and has a natural caramel color.
- Serve hot with steamed rice, and the pickle. Another serving idea is that you can wet a rice paper, add cabbage, mixed vegetable pickle, a little of pork and egg, then roll and eat it with the broth as dip.

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Monday, 21 April 2014

Masala Stuffed Okra


Ingredients
  • 300g okra
  • coriander seeds
  • 2 medium sized onion, sliced
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
* Spices for stuffing:
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala
  • 1/2 tsp mango powder
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1-1/2 tsp coriander powder
  • 1-1/2 tsp fennel seeds powder
  • 2 tsp salt

Method
- Wash the okras and let them dry. Make a long slit and spare 1/2 inch from each end. Keep aside.
- In a small bowl, mix all the spices together. Use a teaspoon to stuff the mixture into the okras. For each okra, we need about 1/4 tsp of the mixture. Keep the leftover spices mix for cooking later.
- Heat oil in a wok over medium flame, add coriander seeds and onions, saute the onions till just translucent then add the remaining spices, fry it for a minute then add the okras. Stir fry them over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, then cover the wok and cook over low heat for around 8-10 minutes. No need to add any water. Check and stir the okras sometimes to make sure they don't stick to the bottom of the wok.
- Serve hot.

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