Chicken Stew/ Chicken Ishtu

Chicken stew is an excellent combo curry with Appam. This combination is very important in Christian cuisine. It goes well with idiyappam, chappaty, Roti, etc. Cooked with vegetables like carrot, beans, potato, green peas and chicken, it is a very healthy dish.

Ingredients

1. Chicken 200gm

2. Carrot 1 small

3. Potato 1 small

4. Beans 3 or 4 sliced to small pieces

5. Curry leaves 1 strand

6. Green Chillies slit lengthwise

7. Cardamom 2

8. Cinnamon 1 small piece

9. Pepper corns few

10. Cloves 2

11. Garlic 2 pods

12. Ginger 1'' piece

13. Coriander leaves 2 or 3 strands

14. Turmeric powder(optional) a pinch (do not use if you like your stew white)

15. Oil, Salt

16. Onion 1 medium sized sliced a bit coarsely(not too fine)

17. Thin coconut milk 1.5 cup

18. Thick coconut milk 1 cup

19. Garam masala 1 pinch(optional)

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan.

2. When hot, add curry leaves and saute.

3. Add the masalas, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, pepper corns, and saute.

4. Add garlic, ginger, green chillies, one by one, sauting in between.

5. Add onion and saute well for about 4 mins.

6. Add turmeric if you are using.

7. Add the chicken pieces. Make them small. You can use boneless or with bone. Its your preference.

8. Saute well for 7 to 8 mins.

9. Simmer and add thin coconut milk and let it get cooked for 8 mins (or until it gets cooked.. Try eating a piece)

10. If you feel a lack in flavour, you can add a pinch of Garam Masala.

11. Add sliced potatoes.and carrot.

12. Let it get cooked in lowest flame.

13. When everything is cooked, add the thick  coconut milk.

14. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Enjoy your yummy and healthy chicken stew.

Mutton Dum Biriyani - Eid Special

Ingredients 


1. Mutton 1.5 Kg
2. Onion 7+2
3. Ginger garlic paste 1/2  cup
4. Tomato 4
5. Coriander leaves 1 cup
6. Mint leaves 1/2 cup , 3 strands with stem
7. Cashew nuts -1/2 cup
8. Kismis 1/4 cup
8. Poppy seeds 1.5 tbsp
9. Caraway seeds ,sajeerakam - 1tsp grounded
10. Curd - 2 tbsp
11. Lime juice of 1 small lemon
12. Mace ,jathipathri 4 strands
13. Green Chilly 12 ground to paste
14. Ghee
15. Oil
16. Salt
17. Basmati rice 1 Kg
18. Pineapple essence


Method

Wash mutton thoroughly. Cook mutton adding 3/4 tsp turmeric poweder. 1 tsp garam masala powder, salt, curry leaves. Pressure cook to 4 or 5 whistles and check if its cooked. If there is water  , leave open the cooker and boil off the water until only a little gravy is left. This you will need for the masala.
Soak poppy seeds and cashewnuts in water and get them ground to a paste. Keep aside.
Add 7 sliced onions to a pan, and saute till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste and saute. 
Add green chilly paste and add sliced tomatoes once sauted. When tomatoes are soated well, add 1/4 cup coriander leaves and 1/4 cup mint leaves. Saute.
Add 2 tbsp curd, juice of 1 lemon - reduce if you dont like sourness much.
Add the ground poppy seeds and cashew nut paste at this stage.
Add enough salt.
Add the cooked mutton to the masala and mix everything well. Switch off after sometimes and keep the whole pan aside.


Make Ghee Rice by taking water, double the amount of rice used.  Add cloves, pepper , star aise , salt while making ghee rice. Dont add too much ghee as we will be adding ghee while layering the biriyani.

Layering

Fry the 1/4 cup cashews and kismis, and 2 thinly sliced  onions
Take away 1/2 of the masala and spread it evenly in the pan Put 1/2 of the cooked ghee rice above the masala. Put some mint leaves and coriander leaves. Put a drop of pineapple essence. Put a little caraway seeds grounded.Put a strand of Mace Add 2tbsp Ghee.  Adjust this according to the ghee used in Ghee rice. Add some fried cashews, kismis and onions.
Now add the rest of the masala and spread it evenly. Add the remaining cooked ghee rice and repeat the same until you have finished your masala and rice. Make sure rice layer comes on top.
Put the three strands of mint leaves on top

'Dum' ming

Seal the biriyani pot with maida and cook in reheated oven for 30 minutes. Alteratively we can cook on stove top with the lowest flame.

I do this over the traditional fireplace by putting burnt hot coconut shells over the aluminium lid of the biriyani pot.

Apple Bread Pudding

So the break is over. I am back. Even though I had few saved pictures in my computer I dint feel like blogging for some time. I have started taking pics through my husband's Blackberry. Lets see how it goes.
I had been craving for some kind of pudding for some time. I usually make caramel custard. But I wanted something different this time. Also wanted it to be easy. Came across this yummylicious recipe from A Good Apetite.























I have made my adaptations. Here you go:

3 - 4 c 1/2-inch bread cubes (I used wheat bread)
2 apples, peeled, cored & diced
2 eggs
1/2 tin (or lesser) condensed milk loosened by adding 1/4 cup water.
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 t cinnamon
salt


Mix the bread cubes & diced apples together.
Place in baking tray.
Beat the eggs. Whisk in the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon,  & a pinch of salt. Stir in loosened condensed milk.
Pour the egg mixture evenly over the apple bread mixture. Use a spoon to press the bread down into the mixture to soak it in. Let sit for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Sprinkle a little cinnamon & sugar on the top . Bake for 60 minutes until they are golden brown & the custard has set. Eat it warm/after cooling, as you like it. Tastes best when cooled.


I had baked only for 45 minutes or so. Original recipe calls for 60mins baking.

Do try it out. Very simple & yummy.

Chemmeen Ada (Prawns Ada)

Meen Kayam (Fish Masala for frying prawns)

Ingredients:

1.Chilly Powder - 2 tbsp

2.Turmeric Powder - 1.5 tsp

3.Ginger - 1 small piece

4.Garlic pods - 4-5

5.Fennel Seeds - 1 dsp

6.Salt

7.Coconut vinegar

Preparation of Meen Kayam

Grind together all 7 ingredients well 

Chemmen Pathiri

Ingredients

1. Prawns - 1/2 Kg

2. Coconut Oil - 1.5 tbsp

3.Onion - 3 medium sized

4.Coriander leaves - few

5.Curry leaves- few

6.Ginger - 1medium sized

7.Garlic pods - 4

8. Green chilly - 2

9. Grounded fennel seeds powder - 1 dessert spoon

10.Garam masala powder- 1 dessert spoon

11.Pepper Powder 1 dessert spoon

12.Salt

Preparation of Prawns masala

1.Addthe meen kayam to prawns in a pan & saute well. 

2.Now add 1/2-3/4 cup  water and  cook in low flame for few minutes.

3.Saute in between and let the meen kayam mix absorb into prawns, until water is dried.

4. When water is absorbed, add 1.5 tbsp coconut oil. Saute well

and let it fry lightly. Slgihtly mash the prawns.

5.Now keep aside the prawns fry.

6.Saute sliced onion, in oil, in a pan. When it turns to brownish, add mashed garlic, green chillies, ginger,minced curry leaves and coriander leaves. Saute well. Add more oil  if required.

7.Add fennel seeds powder, pepper powder, garam masala powder.

8.Saute well until the raw smell goes.

9.Now add the fried prawns to the mixture. Mix well.

For Ada

1. Rice Powder 11/4 -1.5 cups

2. Water - same qnty as rice powder.

3.Salt

4.Coconut milk 1/4 cup

Preparation 

Prepare the dough the same way as you do for Idiyappam .

While mixing the dough use coconut milk instead of water for better taste.

When dough is ready, make a ball ( larger than lemon sized).

 Roll it flat using a rolling pin/pathiri press to form  a palm sized disc.

 Fill it with prawns masala and  fold it so the disc is closed as shown in the picture.

Press the edges firmly  so that ada is closed all through the edge.

Repeat the same for the remaining dough.

Steam the adas in a steamer  with/without plantain leaves covering the adas.

Cook for 7-10 minutes.

Serve when cooled.

Source:

Amrita TV taste of kerala for prawns masala preparation.

Mutta marichathu/Kaya Pola (Egg & Plantain Cake)

This one is a sweet dish, especially during the Ramadan season. It is very easy to cook and very nutritious. Its a good evening snack to give for kids.

Ingredients

1.Ripe Plantains - 2

2.Eggs - 4

3.Sugar - 8 tbsp

4.Crushed Cardomom - 5-6 nos

5.Ghee - 1-2 tbsp

6.Cashew Nuts - 9 (broken)

7.Raisins - 1 tbsp or more

Preparation

1.Cut the plantains lengthwise and cut them into small cubes.

2.Fry them in ghee in a medium sized sauce pan, till golden brownish colour comes(here & there).

3.Fry cashew till brownish, after removing the plantains.

4.Fry raisins also till golden brown.

5.Beat the eggs well along with sugar and powdered  cardamom.

6.Transfer the plantains, cashews & raisins into the beaten egg and stir it until spreads evenly.

7.Now transfer the mixture into the same pan and cook in lowest flame.

8.Cover with a proper fitting lid.

9.Cook until the top part is set. It should take around 10-15 mins. You can see it first rises well and then sets back

10.Transfer this to another plate and serve hot or warm with tea.

Notes

Take care not to burn the lower part of cake , cook in low flame only. It is better to keep watching while it gets cooked. 

Unnakkaya

Ingredients

Ripe  Bananas ( Nenthrampazham )
 - 2

Grated coconut - 2 tbsp

Sugar - 2 tbsp

Raisins - 2 tsp

Cashew nuts, chopped - 5 tsp

Ghee ( for coconut ) - 2 tsp

Oil / ghee
 ( for shallow frying ) - 2 tbsp

Preparation

Steam the banana till it becomes tender. Mash it into a fine paste. Divide into six equal portions.

Heat ghee in a frying pan. Add cashew nut,  Sauté on a low heat till it turns slightly brown and fragrant. Repeat the same with raisins and keep aside. Dissolve 2 tbsp sugar in 1little water , now add coconut and saute for 2mins. Mix it with cashew nuts & raisins. Divide it into 5 portions again
Take a little of the banana paste in the palm, flatten it, stuff it with grated coconut- cashew - kismis mixture and roll into elongated shape very carefully.

Heat oil / ghee in a wide frying pan. Arrange each one gently and shallow fry on a low heat till golden color on both sides ( approximately 15 - 20 minutes ).

Notes

Fillings can be altered according to your taste. Egg can be added optionally.

Dry fruits - The healthy capsules

Dry Fruits are an Important ingredient for iftar and in the month of Ramadan. Muslims break their fast

with Karakka(dried dates),water and other dry fruits. They are very nutritious and an  enormous source of energy, hence called the healthy capsule Read More

Dry fruits are an important item for iftar & during the month of Ramadan