Shish Tawook

When in Bahrain....one of my favorite restaurant was Nadhmi in Riffa.....an awesome grill run by a bunch of Lebanese men and they made the best shish tawook ever....served with lip smacking hummus, baba ganoush, tabbouleh and pickled jalapenos........And you know what?...... Lebanese men are very handsome and friendly......no wonder I went to Nadhmi often.

My shish tawook did not come anywhere close to Nadhmi's but definitely good enough.

Recipe Source:Dedemed.com
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Ingredients

• 2 Chicken Breasts , cubed
• 6 cloves garlic ,minced
• 1/2 tbsp Tomato paste
• 2 tbsp Tomato ketchup
• 1tsp Chilli powder or paprika
• 1/4 cup Yogurt
• 2 tbsp Lemon juice
• salt to taste
• Olive oil

Method

1. Marinate chicken cubes in garlic,tomato paste,tomato sauce, chilli powder,yogurt, lemon juice and salt for 2 to 4 hours or overnight.
2. Pierce the marinated chicken cubes into the wooden skewer sticks.
3. Grill on barbecue and keep basting with olive oil till done or you can also pan fry the chicken or roast in the oven.
4. Serve with roasted veggies and pita bread.  

Spaghetti with Chicken Meatballs

No story behind this dish.....wanted to have Spaghetti after I watched Eat pray love......Julia Robert enjoying her spaghetti all alone in Italy.... OK ....I guess that's a short story.

Ingredients

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For Chicken Meatballs

• 3 medium Chicken Breasts,minced
• 1/2 cup Breadcrumbs
• 5 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
• Salt to taste
• 3tbsp Olive oil

For Sauce

• 6 medium Tomatoes , ripe
• 1/2 cup tomato puree
• 5 cloves Garlic, minced
• 2tsp Red chilli flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp or as required freshly ground pepper
• 1tsp sugar
• Salt to taste
• 250g spaghetti

Method

1. Make tomato concasse -Boil 3 cups of water, while the water is coming to boil, make a small 'X' on the tomatoes (as shown below). Drop all the tomatoes into boiling water for few seconds(blanching). Remove from hot water as soon as the skin around the 'X' curls up or loosens. Dip the hot tomatoes into cold water to stop the tomatoes from cooking further. Peel the skin of all the tomatoes and keep aside. Cut the tomatoes and remove the pulp and seeds(keep this aside) and chop up the rest of the tomato and blend to a puree in a processor/blender/mixie. I went a step further and passed the pulp and seeds through a sieve to get little more sauce, you can skip this step and discard the pulp and the seeds. The whole idea of tomato concasse is to avoid the seeds and the skin of the tomato.
2. In a bowl mix minced chicken,breadcrumbs,garlic,salt,red chilli flakes and pepper. Shape the mixture into small balls (if its not holding shape or is too sticky add more breadcrumbs).Place the uncooked meatballs on an aluminium foil or wax paper.
3. Place a large non stick pan on medium flame,add olive oil and fry the chicken meatballs till they turn brown on all sides.Remove from oil and place on a kitchen towel.
4. Remove excess olive oil from the pan and reserve 3tsp, add garlic and bay leaf, stir for a minute and add the tomato concasse and tomato puree and  red chilli flakes, pepper, salt and sugar(adjust according to your taste)  cook for few minutes ,toss in the meat ball and add little water or stock if the sauce is very thick(since I used the pulp my sauce was of the right consistency). Let the sauce reduce little and the meatballs cook through..Now prepare spaghetti.
5. Cook the spaghetti-Bring 6 cups of water to a boil, add generous amount of salt. Drop in the spaghetti and stir once and let it cook for 8 to 9 minutes or till al dente (firm but not hard). Drain the water.
6. Toss the spaghetti into the prepared meatball sauce and heat through.Serve with bread,

Chicken Burritos - Kids Special

Few months ago I got to know that my girl had outgrown her diary allergy.......Since I love diary- cream ,cheese ,butter, ice cream ,chocolates  it was very hard for me to keep my daughter away from such temptations.....I was so happy the day I came to know that she can have diary ......I just could not wait to try out diary based kid friendly recipes....and she loved these burritos...so did I....so did my granny.....I guess I cannot call it kids special then :)

Ingredients
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For Chicken Filling

• 1 1/4 cups cooked Chicken (250g)
• 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
• 1/2cup Sour cream
• 1/2 tsp Pepper Powder

• 4 Flour tortilla
• 1 cup finely shredded Lettuce
• 2 small Tomatoes , chopped
• 3/4 cup Grated Cheese

For Tortillas

• 1 cup All purpose flour
• Pinch Baking Powder
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 1 tsp salt
• Milk or water (enough to make a soft dough)

Method

 For Flour tortilla

1. In a bowl mix all the ingredients- flour,baking powder, butter, salt and add enough water or milk to make a soft dough.
2. Cover and keep aside for 20 minutes
3. Make medium sized balls with the dough, roll out thin and lightly fry on a flat pan till light brown spots appear on the tortilla.
4. Cover with a cloth to keep warm and soft.

For Chicken filling

1. In a bowl combine cooked chicken, mayonnaise, Sour cream and pepper.Mix well to coat the chicken pieces.

Assemble the Burritos

1. Place tortilla on a plate, put 3 to 4 tbsp of the chicken filling top with cheese, lettuce and tomatoes onone side of the tortilla and roll securely to close the filling.
2. Cut in half and serve.

Thai Green Curry with Chicken and Veggies

I will never get tired of saying this over and over again.......'I LOVE THAI FOOD'........its this amazing blend of fresh basil......lemon grass......lemon leaves.......galangal........coconut...........its like fireworks in your mouth.

I was pretty apprehensive about making this curry, was not sure if it would be accepted at home ....since my trusted critic ...my sister Devina has betrayed me and left the country(hope you are reading this Devs).....but I was surprised to watch my dad enjoy this curry..........he over ate (which rarely happens).

Point to be noted:  All the 'Hot Veggies' can exclude the chicken.....the poor chicken....

Ingredients
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Recipe source: Nita Mehta

• 1 cup Thai Green Curry Paste
• 250g Chicken ,cubed (I used boneless)
• 5 to 6 Babycorn, slit
• 1/2 cup Broccoli
• 1/2 Red Capsicum , diced - optional
• 1/2 Yellow Capsicum, diced- optional
• 10 to 12 Button Mushroom, sliced
• 500ml Coconut Milk, tinned
• 1 cup Water
• 1 tsp Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Sugar
• salt to taste
• 2 Lime leaves ,chopped
• 10 to 15 fresh Basil leaves , chopped
• 2 Red chillies , chopped- to garnish
• 1 tbsp Oil

Method

1. Place a pan on medium heat, add oil. When oil is hot add green curry paste and fry for 2 minutes. Now add the chicken and stir for few minutes.Toss in all the vegetables except for broccoli (I like my broccoli to have a crunch to it,so I toss it in when the curry is almost done).
2. Now add coconut milk and mix well. Cover and simmer till the chicken and vegetables are almost done.Add water ,you can increase or reduce the amount of water according to your desired consistency.
3. Add sugar, salt, soy sauce, lime leaves ,basil leaves and broccoli and cook for few more minutes.
4. Garnish with red chillies.
5. Serve with hot rice.

Thai Chicken Satay

After the success of my Chicken in Red Thai Curry....I went into 'Thai Mode' :)

Recipe Source:-Nita Mehta's Thai cooking
Ingredients
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• 400 g Chicken ,boneless bite size pieces 
• 8 Bamboo Skewers,soaked in water

Marinade

• 1 tsp Red chilli powder
• 1 1/2 tsp Brown Sugar
• 3 Fresh red chillies,seeded and thinly sliced
• 1 tsp Lemon Grass ,finely chopped
• 1 tsp Lemon leaves , finely chopped
• 2 tsp oil
• 3 tbsp Coconut powder mixed in 1 tbsp milk
• 1tsp Soy Sauce
• 1 inch piece Ginger/galangal, grated
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp Cornflour
• 10 flakes Garlic, crushed
• 1 1/2 tsp Cumin powder
• 1 1/2 tsp Coriander powder

Method

1. Mix all marinade ingredients in a bowl.
2. Add the chicken pieces and mix well.Refrigerate for 2 hours.
3. Oil the bamboo skewer and thread the marinated chicken.Do not leave any space between the chicken while threading. Reserve the marinade in the bowl.
4. Grill the chicken in a preheated oven/grill at 220 degree C for 15 minutes, turning the chicken once in between and basting with the marinade.
5. Or heat a non stick pan, grease with little oil and place the chicken on the pan and fry on high heat till the chicken cooked.
6. Serve with Thai Peanut Sauce.

Chicken in Red Thai Curry

I was introduced to Thai food when I was in Bahrain by Nalini Aunty....she is such an amazing host and cook....can whip up Prawn Tom Yum Soup, Chicken in Green Thai Curry, Stir Fried Vegetables and Jasmine rice in less than 60 minutes....this was when I fell in love with Thai food.

I was paired with Madusmitha of Red Spice this week for Blog hop Wednesday...When I was surfing through her recipes...I just pounced on the Red Thai curry...I knew this was one recipe I would love to try out...Madhusmitha had used ready made red curry paste in her recipe...but I always wanted to make the paste  from scratch...I had Nita Mehta's book 'Thai cooking for Indian kitchen' and I tried out her recipe...I was so happy with the end result.....nothing is as satisfying as seeing my daughter enjoying the curry with rice for lunch...and asking for the same Thai curry again for dinner.......my best CRITIC :)

This is a 'must try'dish....you won't be disappointed .

Recipe Source :Red Spice and Nita Mehta's Thai cooking


Ingredients
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• 200 grms Boneless Chicken (cut to medium size)
• 1/2 small Broccoli,cut to small florets 
• 10 to15Mushrooms, sliced
• 10 Baby corn, sliced to two
• 1/2 Red Capsicum, diced
• 500 ml Coconut Milk (I used tinned)
• 2 tbsp Fish sauce,optional (I skipped this)
• 1 tsp Soya Sauce
• 20 to 25 Basil leaves
• 5 to 6 lemon leaves
• 2 tbsp Oil
• Salt to taste
• 4 Fresh Red Chillies, slit (optional)
• Red Curry Paste
• 200ml  Water

Method

1. Heat oil in a large pan, add red curry paste and fry for 3minutes on low flame.
2. Add chicken and stir fry for 4 minutes.
3. Add all the chopped vegetables and stir fry for a minute. Add the coconut milk, soy sauce and lemon leaves. Cover and cook on low flame for 7 to 8 minutes,till the chicken and veggies are cooked.
4. Add salt ,chopped basil leaves and fresh red chillies and water. Cook for 5 minutes and garnish with red chillies and fresh basil
5. Serve hot with rice.

Sending this post to Tickling Palates

Chicken Green Chops

There are different versions of chicken chops .As long as I remember this is how we have been making chops at home,its been pass down to me by my mother who learnt it from my granny.

My granny rarely cooks nowadays,she just relaxes and watches her daughters do all the cooking.She does enter the kitchen on special occasions...like cooking special dishes for festivals or for a  mother to be.My mother was not in station for few days...so my granny was in charge of the kitchen. When I was busy making my mud pie (recipe coming up soon) granny made this amazing chicken chops....our neighbors dropped by to find out about the amazing aroma .Looks like she hasn't lost touch ...(and yes 15 green chillies...we like our food spicy)

Ingredients
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• 1 kg Chicken (cut to medium pieces)
• 5 big Onions, chopped
• 2 inch Ginger, chopped
• 20 cloves Garlic, roughly chopped
• 15 Green chillies ,slit
• 1/2 small bunch of Coriander leaves
• 3 tbsp Mint leaves
• Cinnamon Small piece
• 4 Cloves
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp Ghee

• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 2 medium Tomatoes ,chopped
• 2 cloves
• Cinnamon small piece
• salt to taste
• 2 tbsp Ghee

Method

1. Heat 2 tbsp ghee is a small pan ,add chopped onion fry for few minutes and add garlic,ginger,cloves and cinnamon and fry till the onions turn golden brown.Add turmeric powder and fry for a minute. Now add green chillies, coriander leaves and mint leaves and fry for 3 to 4minutes. Remove from flame and grind to a smooth paste using very little water.keep this aside.
2. Place a large non stick vessel on medium high flame. Add 2 tbsp ghee, when ghee is hot add cinnamon and cloves and stir for few seconds,now add chopped onion and fry till it turns golden brown,now add chopped tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes melt. add the ground masala and stir and cook till raw smell disappears and ghee leaves the sides of the masala. 
3. Add the chicken and salt and mix well, add 1/2 cup water (or more depending on desired consistency). Cover and cook till the chicken is done.
4. Chicken Chops tastes best with Ghee Rice or any Indian bread.

Homemade Chicken Nuggets- Kids Special

When I was in Bahrain, I used to have frozen chicken nuggets every other day,I think it was the same in most of the households in the Middleeast ...frozen nuggets, sausage,burgers....Until I came across Jamie Olivers food Revolution... he was determined to make school kids eat healthy food...I am not much of a healthy food person...and I am proud of it...I believe in 'Eat your hearts content'...but the whole video on chicken nuggets just grossed me out...I would not call myself a healthy mom....I do let my kid eat junk food sometimes (she just loves KFC-maybe if I see the truth behind KFC...I would feel grossed out,but I choose to act blind). I strongly believe kids should get used to all kinds of food...be it healthy or junk....so Iam really not a picky mom when it comes to food....but...... Frozen chicken nuggets still makes me feel ...YUCK..That is when I decided to make nuggets at home.

I came across this super simple Nugget recipe....my girl went crazzzyy over it...so did my dad ....lol...

Australian Women's Weekly

Ingredients

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• 1 slice white bread,crust removed
• 2 medium Chicken breast ,chopped
• 1/4 Cup Grated cheese (optional)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 small potato ,grated
• 1 small onion , grated
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 tsp Seasoning ,personal choice (pepper/5 spice powder/paprika....)
• 2 cloves Garlic , crushed
• salt to taste
• Breadcrumbs to coat the Nuggets in
• Oil for deep frying

Method

1. Blend in a mixie/processor together white bread,chopped chicken breasts and cheese(I skipped cheese). Transfer to a medium bowl and add potato, onion,egg yolk,seasoning, red chilli flakes and salt.
2. Shape the mixture into nuggets (if they don't hold shape,add little bread crumbs). Coat the shaped nuggets with breadcrumbs.
3. Keep in the fridge for 30 minutes (this helps the nuggets to hold shape). Deep fry in hot oil till the chicken is cooked through and turns golden brown.
4. Serve with mayonnaise or tomato ketchup 

Chicken Chettinad

Chicken Chettinad is from the Chettinad Region of Tamil Nadu....This particular dish is very similar to Mangalorean Cuisine....except for the addition of Fennel seeds(saunf) which I have noticed is used in most of the Tamil Nadu dishes.....

This is one dish my mom enjoys...apart from her Mangalorean Food.

Recipe stolen from Sanjeev Kapoor ..made a few changes....made it more spicy...its looks spicy doesn't it.....slurppppp. This tastes best the next day when masala thickens and coats the chicken well. 

Recipe Source : Sanjeev Kapoor

Ingredients
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• 1 kg Chicken (with bone)
• 15 Dried Red Chillies (long and small mixed)
• 1 cup Fresh Coconut
• 2 tsp Poppy seeds
• 3 tsp Coriander seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 3 Cardamom
• 2 Cloves
• 1 inch Cinnamon
• 1/2 Star anise
• 1 tsp Fennel seeds (saunf)
• 2 inch Ginger
• 10 to 12 cloves Garlic
• 1/2 cup Oil
• 1 large Onion (chopped )
• 10 to 12 Curry Leaves
• 3 medium Tomatoes (chopped)
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
• juice of 1 small Lemon
• 2 tbsp Fresh Coriander leaves
• Salt to taste

Method

1. In a pan add 2 tbsp oil and roast coconut, dried red chillies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, star anise and poppy seeds for 5 to 6 minutes or till you you get a beautiful aroma and the coconut turns slight brown.
2. Grind the above using little water along with ginger and garlic to a slightly coarse paste.
3. Place a large pan on medium high flame , add rest of the oil and when the oil is hot add the chopped onion and fry till the onion  turns golden brown, add the curry leaves and ground masala paste and fry for few minutes. Now add the chopped tomatoes, salt , turmeric powder and red chilli powder and cook for few minutes.
4. Add chicken and mix well, add 1 cup water (less if you want dry or more if you want gravy). Cover and cook.
5. When the chicken is cooked adjust salt, add lemon juice and coriander leaves.
6. Serve hot with rice or chappatis.

Crispy lollipop

  Perfect appetizer for any party and super simple. My daughter just loves this.

Ingredients
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• 1/2 kg chicken lollipop
• 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp red color (optional)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp coriander leaves (chopped)
• 8 tbsp cornflour
• salt to taste
• oil to deep fry

Method

1. In a bowl mix in ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, egg, red color, coriander leaves, salt,turmeric powder and cornflour. Mix till well combined. 
2. Now add the chicken lollipop and mix till the chicken is well coated.
3. Keep aside for 2 hours.
4. Heat oil in a pan , when hot fry the chicken pieces till well cooked and it looks golden brown and crisp.
5. Remove from oil and place on absorbent paper to remove excess oil.
6. Serve as appetizer with tomato sauce. 

Barbeque Sunday - Grilled Chicken

 Babli  Aunty (barbeque specialist ...tsk tsk)  marinated this grilled chicken......... I made the Barbeque Jerk Chicken(and the salad)  and....... my mom made Prawn in green marinade(Not putting it up coz I could not take pictures-will do it next time) ...... cousin Debs was in charge of keeping the fire alive......my sister in law was in charge of photography.......cousin Neetu running errands and then zoning out and again running errands.......  my brother was in charge of the grill- did not turn the potato sticks at the right time- they look charred :) .........my daughter eating marshmallows..........and last but not least ....my dad was the critic....got a good review:)

All together a team effort.

Ingredients

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• 1 1/2 kg chicken (thigh and leg pieces)
• 3/4 cup yogurt
• 2 medium size onion
• 3 inch ginger
• 25 cloves garlic
• 5 green chillies
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 tbsp chilli powder
• 4 tsp tandoori masala(optional)
• 1/2 tsp red color(optional)
• salt to taste
• 2 small lemon

Method

1. Clean the chicken and make 2 to 3 deep slits, squeeze juice of 2 lemon and mix the chicken well and keep this aside.
2. Grind onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies to a fine paste. Pour this into a big mixing bowl and add chilli powder, red color, tandoori masala , turmeric powder, yogurt and salt and mix well.
3. Wash the chicken again and add to the prepared masala. Add more chilli powder if you like the chicken to be spicy.Mix well.
4. Marinate overnight in a refrigerator.
5. Prepare grill, spray oil on the grill and place the marinated chicken on the hot grill. Turn the chicken around and grill till chciken is cooked.
6. Serve with sliced onion and lemon wedges.

 Sending this over to sarv's culinary concept

sending this to a girls diary

Chicken ghee roast

I am so happy that I was able to recreate one of my favorite dish, Chicken ghee roast. The first time I had this amazing dish was when I had been to Mangalore few years back. Hotel Abhiman is very famous for its authentic mangalorean cuisine and Ghee roast is their specialty.

I have tried to search for  good chicken ghee roast in Bangalore, been to Coastal express, Anupama Coast to  Coast, Kudla, Sanadige ..........but never enjoyed ghee roast anywhere. At last found it at Cherie's Kitchen:)

Glad that my family enjoyed it.

 Recipe source:Moyar's

Ingredients
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• 1 kg chicken (cut to medium pieces)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup curds/yogurt
• 1tsp turmeric powder
• salt to taste
• 30 long red chillies (kashmir)
• 8 small red chillies
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 12 to 16 garlic flakes
• cherry size tamarind soaked in 2 tbsp water
• 1 cup ghee
• 2 tsp sugar (optional)
• few curry leaves
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Method

1. Marinate chicken in yogurt/curds, salt , turmeric powder and lemon juice. Refrigerate for 4 hours or more.

2. Meanwhile roast long and small red chillies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorn and fenugreek seeds and grind along with tamarind and garlic to thick and fine paste.

 3. Place a large pan on medium high flame and add 1/4 cup ghee, when ghee is hot add all the marinated chicken and cook till almost done. Transfer the chicken to a vessel.Reserve the liquid released by the chicken  in the separate bowl . Keep this aside.
4. To the same pan add remaining ghee and add the masala paste ,fry for 5 to 7 minutes till the raw smell disappears and oil leaves the side of the masala.
5. Now add the fried chicken, salt and 1/2 cup of reserved liquid. Fry for 5 to 7 minutes till the masala dries up.
6. Now add sugar, curry leaves and coriander leaves.
7.Take off flame and serve as appetizer.

Ratna aunty's biryani- guest post

In the month of April, I had put up a post about the World Cup Final.I had also put up few pictures of the biryani my aunt had made that day.I did not put up the recipe(I wanted to try it out myself first),after few months I moved back to India from Bahrain, and I never got the chance to try out Ratna aunty's biryani.Everyone in  my house loves my mom's biryani ,I did not have the nerve to try something new, I knew I would have to hear the comparison.

I have to tell you that I have not tried out this recipe, I was just a spectator when Ratna Aunty was making this delicious biryani and I wrote down the whole recipe then and there. I would have waited for months  to try this recipe and post it,but one of my viewers Sunita wanted to make this biryani. This one is for Sunita :)

I would like to thank Ratna aunty for sharing this recipe, I have learnt so much from her, she is like a mother to me and also an amazing friend.I miss you Ratna aunty:)

ingredients
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• 1 kg chicken
• 3 medium onion (sliced)
• 7 tbsp oil
• 4 tbsp yogurt
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• salt to taste
• 5 tbsp coriander leaves (chopped)
• 1/4 cup water add few strands of saffron
• 1/4 cup water add pinch of red color (optional)

for masala

• 1 cardamom
• 4 cloves
• 2 inch cinnamon
• 1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 pinch methi seeds/fenugreek
• 10 peppercorns
• 1 tsp poppy seeds
• 1/2 tsp saunf
• 8 long chillies (kashmiri)

for rice

• 4tbsp ghee
• 2 onion finely sliced
• 4 green chillies
• whole spices- 2 cardamom, 4 peppercorn, 1 bay leaf, 3 cloves,1/2 inch cinnamon, 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 3 cups basmati rice (washed,soaked and drained)
• 5 1/2 cup water
• salt to taste

method

1. Grind all the ingredients under masala into a fine powder. Keep this aside.
2. In a pan add 4 tbsp oil ,when hot fry 3 sliced onion till they turn crisp and golden brown,Drain and keep aside.
3. To the same oil add chicken and salt and cook for 10 minutes.Transfer the chicken to a vessel and add 4 tbsp yogurt, turmeric powder and 1/2 of the fried onions.Keep this aside.
4. Add 3 tbsp oil into the pan (the same pan the chicken was cooked in ) , when oil is hot add chopped tomatoes and ginger garlic paste, fry for 3 minutes.Now add the ground masala powder and lemon juice.Add few tablespoons of water if its dry.Fry for 3 to 4 minutes. Now add chicken(mixed with yogurt, turmeric and fried onions).Cook for 5 to 6 minutes.
5. The chicken masala for biryani is ready.
6. Prepare rice--- In a thick bottom pan or rice cooker melt ghee and add sliced onion, when onion turns slight golden brown add whole spice.Fry for few seconds.Add basmati rice and fry till moisture evaporates now add 5 1/2 cups of water and add salt. Cover and cook on very low flame for about 11 to 12 minutes, or till the rice is cooked and water dried out.

How to assemble

1. Divide rice to 3 parts, to one part of rice sprinkle the saffron water (don't use the whole1/4 cup, just enough to get desired color)
2. To the other part of rice sprinkle red color. and leave the 3 rd part rice plain.
3. In a big vessel layer the rice , chicken, fried onion and coriander leaves.
4. Serve with raita.

creamy kadai chicken

 Recipe stolen from Show me the curry

Ingredients
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• 700grms chicken (skinless with bone)
• 2tbsp coriander seeds
• 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 7 whole red chillies (4 long and 3 small-your choice)
• 1 large onion (sliced)
• 2tbsp ginger garlic minced
• 2 large tomatoes chopped
• 2 tsp red chillli pwd(can reduce,I prefer spicy)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• 1/2 tsp dry mango powder (amchoor)
• 6 tbsp pureed tomato
• 1 large capsicum chopped
• 3 tbsp oil
• salt to taste
• hand full chopped coriander leaves
• 1/2 cup cream (can add more depending on preferred consistency)
• 1 green chilli to garnish

Method
1. On medium low flame ,dry roast coriander seeds,fenugreek seeds and red chilllies,till the coriander seeds and fenugreeks seeds turn golden brown.Take off flame and transfer to a plate and let it cool.Grind to coarse powder.Keep aside.
2.Place a vessel on medium high flame,add oil,when oil is hot add the sliced onion and fry for few minutes till the onion turns light brown.

 3.Add ginger garlic paste and fry for 2 minutes.

 4. Now add the chopped tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes are soft.About 5 to 8 minutes.

 5, Now add the coarsely ground masala and mix well.Add chicken and mix well.Now add salt,turmeric powder,dry mango powder,chilli powder and garam masala. Mix well.Cover and cook for 10 minutes.Stir in between.

6.Now add the pureed tomato and chopped coriander leaves and cook for 2 minutes.
7.Add capsicum.
8. Reduce heat and add cream.Mix and let it come to a boil.Take off the flame and garnish with green chillies.
9.Serve with chappati or rice

mom's chicken biryani

Or should I say Shakila aunty's biryani.

soum this one is for you,stop haunting me in my dreams:)

Ingredients
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• 1 kg chicken (with bone cut to medium pieces)
• ghee rice
• 3 medium onion (roughly chopped)
• 2 inch cinnamon
• 5 cloves
• 25 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 inch ginger
• 6 tbsp coriander leaves(chop 3 tbsp finely and keep aside)
• 4 tbsp mint leaves(chop 2 tbsp finely and keep aside)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 4 green chillies
• 10 to 12 cashew nuts
• 2 tomatoes (chopped finely)
• 25 to 30 green chillies (slit slighty in the top)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 ghee or more (be very generous)
• salt to taste

Method

1. Grind onion, turmeric ,ginger,garlic,cinnamon,cloves,cashewnuts,4 green chillies,3 tbsp coriander leaves and 2tbsp mint leaves into very fine paste (do not use water)
2. Place a big vessel on medium high flame, add ghee,when hot add tomatoes and little salt,fry the tomatoes till its melted,now add the slit green chillies.Stir for a minute.
3. Now add the ground masala and fry till the raw smell dissappears and ghee leaves the sides.
4. Add chicken ,salt,chopped coriander and mint leaves.Cover and cook (add 1/2 cup water or less if required)
5. When chicken is almost done add lemon juice and mix,adjust salt to taste.
6. Good sign for a good gravy is when the ghee is floating on the top,
7. Prepare ghee rice

To assemble

Take a big vessel apply little ghee to the bottom of the vessel,put one layer of ghee rice and a layer of chicken masala.Continue the layering till you are done with the chicken and rice.
Place a flat pan on low flame and place the biryani vessel on top of the flame and cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Mix carefully and serve with raita

chilli chicken dry

Chilli chicken is a perfect appetizer,this recipe is from another blog 'Tasty appetite'.

ingredients

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• 1/2 kg boneless chicken (cut to cubes)
• 2 medium onion (cut to cubes)
• 1 capsicum (cut to cubes)
• 1 egg(beaten)
• 2 tbsp green chilli sauce
• 2 tbsp soya sauce
• 3 tsp black pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp vinegar
• 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 8 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
• 4 green chillies (slit)
• salt to tatse
• oil to deep fry + 3 tsp oil
• spring onion for garnish

Method

1. Marinate chicken for 1 hr in egg,cornflour,1 tbsp green chilli sauce, 1 tbsp soya sauce.ginger garlic paste,2 tsp pepper and salt (do not put too much salt coz soya and green chilli sauce already has salt in it)
2. Heat oil in a pan to deep fry, when oil is hot, deep fry the marinated chicken,till done.Remove from oil and place on kitchen paper to remove excess oil.Keep  aside.
3. In another pan ,heat oil when hot add garlic,green chillies and onion and fry for 2 minutes,now add the fried chicken and capsicum and stir, add in remaining soya sauce ,green chilli sauce and pepper.Fry for few minutes till the chicken are well coated.
4. Adjust salt and add the vinegar. Remove from flame and granish with chopped spring onion.
5. Serve with fried rice or as an appetiser.

kori aajadina/ chicken sukka

Kori aajadina /kori sukka atlast,this was one recipe on popular demand list after my mom's biryani(which iam going to post pretty soon,soum please get off my back)

I have put up a short video, please don't mind the music,my daughter keeps screaming in the background :)

Chicken Sukka with little gravy

Chicken Sukka dry

Ingredients

Print this recipe

• 1 1/2 kg chicken(with bone)
• 1/2 tsp poppy seeds
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 3 to 4 cloves
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 onion (1 finely slice /1 finely chopped)
• 20 roasted red chillies (15 long and 5 small)
• 2 tbsp roasted coriander seeds
• 1 tsp roasted cumin seeds
• 30 roasted peppercorn
• 25 roasted fenugreek seeds
• tamarind marble size
• 8 cloves garlic (with skin)
• 1 1/2 cup coconut
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp ghee

for seasoning

• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder or 1/2 inch cinnamon
• 4 tbsp ghee

Method
1. Place a flame on medium flame,add oil, when hot add poppy seeds, cinnamon,cloves stir for few seconds, add 1 finely sliced onion, turmeric and 4 garlic cloves and fry till the onions are soft.

2. Now add red chillies,coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorn, fenugreek seeds, tamarind and fry for a minute.let this cool down before grinding.

3.Grind the above to a fine paste using water.
4. In a deep vessel add the clean chicken ,add 3 /4 th of the ground masala to the chicken,1 finely chopped onion and salt and mix well.cover and cook.
5.Meanwhile roast coconut with 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and 4 cloves garlic for 2 minutes.
6. Grind the above coconut with remaining ground masala for few seconds (the coconut should be coarse)
7.When the chicken is cooked add the ground coconut to the cooked chicken and mix well, add water if you want gravy.Cover and cook for 5 minutes and add seasoning
8. In a pan  heat ghee ,when hot add onion and cinnamon and fry till onion turns dark brown.Add this seasoning on the chicken sukka.
9.Take off the flame and serve.