Curd Rice

Few of my friends have been asking for more of vegetarian recipes, I thought i will add more of vegii ones. So thought of adding my favourite curd rice.

This is a special delicious one, but don't add the optional items given, to your everyday curd rice, it would add on to your calories.



Ingredients:

Well cooked rice 1 cup,
Curd 1/2 cup,
Milk as required,
Salt as required,
Butter(Optional) 1 tbsp,
Fresh Cream(Optional) 1 tbsp

For Seasoning

Mustard 1 tsp,
Black gram Dal 1 tsp,
Green chilly 1,
Dry Red Chilly 2,
Few Curry leaves ,
Few Coriander leaves
Oil 1 tsp

Preparation:

1) Cook the rice well and add milk to it and smash the rice.
2) Add oil to a small tawa and fry the ingredients for seasoning.
3) Add it to the rice.
4) If you like add the butter and cream to the rice and refrigerate it.
5) Then add the curd and salt 1 hour before you are ready to eat.

My cousin has been asking me to add the quantity for each of the ingredients, so I started adding them approximately from this post and will update the older ones soon. But the quantity are indicative and it can be modified based on individuals taste buds :-).

Mushroom Soup

I read this on one of the health magazines and tried it out and it tasted so good.


Ingredients:

Mushroom,
Onion,
Cornflour powder,
Butter,
Milk,
Pepper,
Salt


Preparation:

1) Cut the mushroom and take a few pieces of mushroom fry and keep aside.
2) Cut the onions and fry them in little oil and add the remanining mushroom to it. Fry them for sometime and then add the cornflour powder to it.
3) Once the onion and the mushroom are fried well, grind to a smooth paste.
4) Add the butter in a pan and add the ground paste to it and add the milk to it and let it boil for few mins.
5) Then add little salt and pepper to taste and serve hot.

I have tried the same recipe for tomato soup and it came out very well too.

Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer in Makhani Gravy

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Paneer Butter Masala one of my favorite dishes. Paneer cooked in silky Makhani gravy. It tastes divinely with Naan bread or Pulao.

Ingredients:	Quantity
Paneer Cubed	500 gms
Onion Chopped	2 nos
Tomatoes Peeled and Chopped	4-5 nos
Ginger Garlic Paste	2 tbsp
Cashew Paste	4-5 tbsp
Butter	4-5 tbsp
Chili Powder	1/2 tbsp
Coriander Powder	2 tsp
Turmeric Powder	1/4 tsp
Salt	To taste
Garam Masala	1 tsp
Green Chili (Optional)	1-2 nos
Kasuri Methi crushed	1 tbsp
Fresh Cream	2-3 tbsp + 1 tbsp for garnish
Chopped Coriander Leaves	To Garnish

Preparation:
1) Heat one tbsp butter in a pan and fry the onions and ginger garlic paste until the onions caramelize.
2) Add the peeled and chopped tomatoes and green chilies. Then add the chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and salt.
3) Then add the cashew paste, half of kasuri methi and sauté for a min or two and then blend it using a blender adding very little water.
4) Add the remaining butter to the pan and add the blended tomato mixture. Let it boil for a couple of min's.
5) Add the Paneer cubes and then sprinkle the garam masala and add the remaining kasuri methi and fresh cream.
6) Sauté them and let it cook for a couple of min's, until the flavors blend well.
7) Garnish with the remaining fresh cream and chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with Pulao or Naan bread.

Chicken Biryani

Simple and Easy Chicken Biryani

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This is one of the first dishes I have blogged long time ago. Updated it to my current standard of cooking. The biryani is easy and for beginners, where the rice and chicken are cooked together in a pressure cooker.

Ingredients:	Quantity
Basmati Rice	2 cups
Chicken cut into large pieces	1 lb.
Onion Sliced	2 nos
Tomato	2 nos
Ginger Garlic Paste	2 tbsp
Green Chilies	2-3 nos
Chili Powder	2 tsp
Coriander Powder	1 tsp
Black Pepper	1/2 tsp
Cumin Powder	1/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder	1/2 tsp
Garam Masala	1 tsp
Cardamom	2-3 nos
Cinnamon	1 stick
Cloves	2-3 nos
Bay Leaves	1 nos
Ghee	1-2 tbsp
Salt	To taste
Milk	1/4 cup
Saffron	3-4 strands
Yogurt	1/2 cup
Lime juice	1-2 tbsp
Fried Onions	1/2 cup

Preparation:
1) Marinate the chicken in the yogurt, turmeric powder, chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala, salt, finely chopped green chilies, one tbsp ginger garlic paste, half of the whole garam masala, half of finely chopped tomato, half of fried onion, ghee, lime juice and mint & coriander leaves. Let it marinate for at least for an hour or two.
2) Soak the basmati rice for 30 min's and fry in ghee for few min's (frying is optional) and set aside. Soak the saffron in the warm milk.
3) Heat oil in a pan and add the remaining whole garam masala, ginger garlic paste and the chopped onions and sauté for few Min's and add the tomatoes and slit green chilies.
4) Add the marinated chicken with all the marinade and the saffron soaked milk. Sauté for a few min's and then remove from heat. Measure the liquid in the gravy and add remaining water enough to cook rice. (Rice:Liquid is 1:1.5 ratio)
5) Pressure cook the rice and gravy mix on medium high until pressure is released. Add the whistle and simmer it for 10-12 min's. (No whistles).
6) Once the pressure reduces remove the lid and garnish with the remaining fried onion and chopped coriander and serve with raita or any curry dish.

Prawn Masala

I have got this recipe from my perima. I used to like the prawn masala that she does, so thought of giving it a try. It is a simple and easy to prepare. It is yummy with any pulao.

Ingredients:

Cleaned prawns,
Onion,
tomato,
garlic,
turmeric powder,
chilly powder,
coriander powder,
pepper powder,
salt,
curry leaves,
oil.

Preparation:

1) Fry the chopped onions and garlic in a pan.
2) Once it is fried a bit, add tomato and let it fry.
3) Add the turmeric, chilly, coriander, pepper and salt to it and fry for a mintue.
4) Finally add the prawns and curry leaves and fry until the prawns are well cooked. (To test if the prawns are cooked, try to cut the prawn, if you are able to cut it, then it is well cooked)

Meen Kuzhambu

Traditional South Indian Fish Curry

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First time I had tried this dish being inspired by my cousin and another friend's Tamil Nadu style traditional Meen Kuzhambu a few years ago. I have improvised this to my current style of cooking.

Ingredients:	Quantity
Fish	750 gms
Onion	1 nos
Garlic Chopped	8-10 nos
Green Chili	1 nos
Tamarind Paste	2 tbsp
Salt	To taste
Oil	2 tbsp
Spice Paste:
Small Onions/Shallots	8-10 nos
Large Tomatoes	2 nos
Red Chili Powder	1 tbsp
Coriander Powder	1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder	1 tsp
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Fennel Seeds	1 tsp
Fenugreek Seeds	1 tsp
Grated Coconut (Optional)*	1 tbsp
Curry Leaves	5-6 leaves
Tempering:
Mustard Seeds	1 tsp
Fenugreek Seeds	1/2 tsp
Urad Dal	1 tsp
Curry Leaves	One Strand
Coriander Leaves	To Garnish

Preparation:
1) Clean fish and add little salt and half a tsp turmeric powder and set aside.
2) Heat oil in a pan and fry cumin, fennel and fenugreek seeds and add the small onion and fry for 3-4 mins and grind it with the remaining ingredients for spice paste.
3) Heat oil in a sauce pan and add the ingredients for tempering and once the mustard splutters add the finely chopped onions and garlic.
4) Add the ground spice paste and sauté well for 3-4 mins and then add the tamarind paste and add water to get it into medium consistency. Let it boil for 10 mins.
5) Add the fish into the curry and let it cook for 10 - 12 mins or until the fish is well cooked.
6) Garnish with chopped coriander and serve it with steamed rice.

Note: * Kuzhambu tastes as good without the coconut. It gives slightly a different taste.

Chicken Kurma

I was rushing to cook chicken kurma for lunch. Just switched on the TV to listen to songs and while browsing thru the channels saw a samayal programme on a telugu

channel. Just paused by that and that days recipe was chicken kurma. It sounded and looked gud, so i just noted it down and tried that afternoon. To my surprise it came out so well, so thought of sharing it here.



Ingredients:

Fennel(Sombu)
Jeera(Jeeragam)
Pepper powder
Coriander powder(Dhania)
Dry Red Chilly
Small onion
Cardamom(Elachi)
Clove
Cinnamon(Pattai)
garlic


Fry and grind all the above ingredients

Wash and clean the chicken and then marinate it in turmeric and little salt for 10 mins

Fry the below items seperately
Onions
Ginger
corriander leaves
turmeric
Oil

Grind the coconut and take the first set of thick milk and keep it aside.
Add more water and grind the coconut and take the thin milk.

Photo: Selvam

Preparation:

1) Add the thin coconut milk and let it boil, then add the marinated chicken.
2) Add the ground masala paste.
3) Now add the fried onions and ginger and let it boil until the chicken is well cooked.
4) Finally add the thick coconut milk and let it boil for few mins and now it is ready to be served.

The Story of Archie into the Kitchen

The funniest thing is me writing a blog on cooking. I have seldom been into the kitchen until my marriage. I still remember the first time I tried to cook, I forgot (actually I didn't know) to put the water in the cooker beneath the vessel set which had rice and toovar Dal and that day's lunch was with full smoke smell. Don't think that I was in my high school, I was in my college first year. Though my parents ate that day saying that the food was good, my mother never allowed me to cook after that :)).

I again tried cooking only after my marriage, with Selvam's help. I used to take hours to cook a simple South Indian meal for two with rice, sambar and a curry :). Slowly I had improved on cooking and this weekend I had cooked a for a lunch party with at least 10 dishes for six people. I should thank Selvam for his patience he has had during this phase and the help he has provided me for this improvement. I have learned all these stuff from the Internet, television cookery shows, friends and relatives and recipe books. So I thought I should start a blog to share my recipes, which I had already experimented at home with various combinations and modifications of all the learned recipes.