Vegetable Kothu Barotta

This is a very popular road side dish in Tamilnadu. "Kothu" means  "minced". The leftover barotta is minced and then cooked with egg and  leftover meat or vegetable kurma. I'm posting here the video of both my version and the fast food version. This is a very simple, easy and delicious dish you don't want to miss.


Ingredients:
2 cups minced  malabar barotta
1 cup chopped cabbage
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
3/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
4 slit green chillies
few sprigs of curry leaves
1tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 cup finley chopped coriander leaves
3 eggs
3/4 cup kurma
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp fennel powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
3/4 tbsp ghee
salt to taste
4 tbsp oil


Method:

  Heat 3 tbsp oil in a wok. Add curry leaves and onion and fry lightly.
  Then add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies and fry for another minute. Now add chopped tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes are soft. Then add  chilli pwd, coriander pwd, fennel pwd and turmeric and mix them well.
  Beat eggs well with half of the kurma. Now move the onion masalas to the side of the pan and pour the egg mixture to the middle of the wok, wait for a minute to let the egg cook and then scramble the egg and mix the onion masalas and cook everything well.
  Now  move this to one side of the wok and heat 1 tbsp oil and add the cabbage and carrots and cook for a minute.
 Then mix everything well and  add the remaining kurma and cook for few minutes.
 Finally add the minced barotta, coriander leaves and ghee and check for salt. Make sure you add salt towards the end, since the kurma and barotta already have salt in them.
 Serve hot.

Mushroom 65

                         This is a  restaurant style mushroom 65, which is super delicious and simple to make.


1st group ingredients:
2 cups Mushrooms
1/4 tsp black pepper powder
1/4 tsp salt
a pinch of sugar
2 tbsp corn flour
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
a pinch of red food colour or tandoori masala
1 egg +1 tbsp water or 4 tbsp water if you omit the egg
oil for deep frying

2nd group ingredients:
2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
4 small green chillies slit lengthwise
few sprigs curry leaves
2 tbsp thick yogurt
1tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
a pinch of salt
a pinch of sugar
a pinch of red food colour
4 tbsp oil

Method:
Clean mushrooms and cut them into quarters; add salt, sugar and black pepper and mix it well. Now add the egg and water, corn flour, all purpose flour, food colour/tandoori masala:  mix them well. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry this. Drain it in a paper towel and set it aside.

In  another kadai heat oil, add the garlic and let it brown.Then add the curry leaves and green chillies, and saute them for a minute. Add coriander powder, chilli powder, food colour, salt, sugar and cook  for a few minutes on low heat. Now add the yogurt and cook on medium high flame. When the yogurt starts to bubble add the fried mushrooms and cook for another two minutes. Let the masala coat the mushrooms well. Turn off the heat and sprinkle some chopped coriander leaves and serve it hot.

Prawns cooked with spring onion

I usually use spring onions as a  garnish in Chinese cooking. I bought a whole pack of spring onions from Costco and didn't know what to do with them. When I was talking to my niece the other day, she gave me her mother-in-law's mouthwatering recipe for this prawn dish. This is a very simple, quick and easy dish. Thanks Shabnum, for sharing this recipe.

Ingredients:
250 gm prawns or shrimps
8 to 9 spring onions (green and white seperately chopped)
1 tsp ginger and garlic paste
2 small tomatoes
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
sugar a pinch(optional)
4 tbsp oil


Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Add the white part of the spring onions and saute well. Add ginger and garlic paste; when it is slightly brown, add the chopped tomatoes. When the tomatoes are soft, add the chilli powder, turmeric, salt and sugar and mix it well. Now add the prawns and cook for a couple of minutes. Then add the green part of the spring onions. Do not add water. Let this cook on medium heat for 15 minutes. Simmer it for another 5 minutes. Enjoy this delectable dish which goes very well with white rice and rasam.

Creamy Gobi Masala

If you really want to impress your guests with your cooking, you should  definitely try this one out. Simply delicious...

1st group of ingredients:

2 cups-cauliflower( cut them into small florets)
1 tbsp- finely chopped garlic
1 tsp- chopped green chilli
1 tsp- red chilli paste
1 tsp-kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
1 tsp- finely chopped curry leaves
1 tbsp finely chopped onion
2 tbsp finely chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp -khoa or mawa (you can find it in Indian stores)
1 tsp- red chilli powder
2 tsp- coriander powder
1/2 tsp- jeera powder
1/4 tsp- ground black pepper
 1/4 tsp turmeric
3 tbsp oil
salt to taste

2nd group of ingredients:

1/2 cup- chopped onion
1 tbsp chopped ginger
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1/2 inch- cinnamon stick
2 cloves
2 cardamom
5 whole cashew nuts
2 tbsp oil

For garnish:

3 tbsp cream
1 tsp butter
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves


Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Add the second group of ingredients except cashew and cook them till the onion is slightly brown. Cool and grind them along with the cashew to a smooth paste. Keep it aside.

Heat oil in a wok or kadai. Add garlic and cook till it is slightly brown. Now add the green chili, red chilli paste, kasoori methi, curry leaves, onion and tomatoes and saute well. Add the  crumbled khoa along with the chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, ground black pepper, cumin powder and salt to taste. Then add the cauliflower and mix it well. Now add the onion paste along with 1/2 cup of water and cook it for a couple of minutes, and then add 1/2 cup milk and allow it boil till the gravy thickens a little bit. Turn the heat off and add the cream, butter, chopped coriander leaves  and serve it with pulav or roti. Enjoy.

Chicken Tikka

                         One of the best, simple and easy dishes to include in your barbeque menu

Ingredients:

2  lbs  cubed boneless chicken breast or thigh
1  cup  yogurt
1 tbsp  tandoori masala or chikken tikka masala (I used Shan chicken tikka masala)
2 tsp lemon juice.
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp jeera powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
ghee for basting

Method:
Marinate the chicken with all the above ingredients except ghee, for about 2 hours in the refrigerator.
If you are using wooden skewers, soak them in water for atleast half an hour before you grill. 
Thread the chicken pieces in the skewers and place it on your preheated outdoor grill. Baste ghee all over the chicken pieces while it is cooking. It is ready to eat in less than half an hour. Serve it on a platter.Enjoy!

Sarkarai pongal

    Sarkarai pongal is a sweet dish made out of rice, moong dal and jaggery. Traditionally, our neighbours in Nagercoil send this to us every year during Pongal and we all love it.

Ingredients:
1 cup- raw rice
a fistful of moong dal
1 1/2 cups- dark jaggery
3 cups- water
1 cup- milk
2 cardamom
1 clove
a pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 cup ghee
1 tbsp -broken cashew

Method:
Dry roast the rice and dal for  a couple of minutes and wash them well.
In a pot add the rice , dal and water.
Bring them to a boil, cover the pot and reduce the flame. Let it cook for 15 minutes .
Once the rice is soft, add milk and the powdered jaggery and mix well.
Heat ghee in a pan and add cashew and fry till golden brown. Pour this over the rice mixture.
Finally, add the crushed cardamom, cloves and nutmeg . Stir well and serve hot.