Chicken & Peanut noodles

Yesterday I made a stirfry that turned out quite a hit at home...and the whole thing took just half an hour and I just made it using whatever ingredients were at home. 

For the marinade:

2-3 tsp peanut butter

2 tsp lemon juice

1-2 tsp honey

2 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp crushed garlic

Rest of the ingredients:

About 1/2-3/4 pounds boneless-skinless chicken, cut into smallish pieces

1 packet noodles (i used japanese noodles but i dont think it makes any dif)

1-1.5 cups finely chopped veggies (i used capsicum, spring onions and corn)

3 cloves garlic

1 green chilli/jalapeno

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp corn flour

Handful of roasted peanuts, coarsely crushed

Marinate the chicken and leave it for a while (i think i left it for about an hour)

Once marinated add some cornflour into the mix (i did it because it looked too watery and i wanted the chicken to be dry but what it did was created a really nice crust to the chicken! discovery by accident)

Boil the noodles with some salt based on instructions on the noodle packet and drain.

In a pan add a bit of oil and let the oil get sizzle a bit before you drop the chicken in. If the oil is hot the outside of the chicken will brown nicely. Once it starts to get brown (shouldnt take more than 2-3 mins), turn the heat down and cook for another 7-8 mins till the chicken is cooked.

Take the chicken out. Add a bit more oil to the pan and put in the garlic and green chillis. After a couple of minutes add in the veggies (except green onion if you are using it). stir fry the veggies for a few mins till they are done to the way you like it. Add some soy sauce and mix it in. Add the cooked chicken and check for salt (i didnt need to add too much because of the soy sauce). If not spicy enough, add some more red pepper flakes. Finally mix in the noodles into the pan. Add the peanut powder and spring onions and mix them in. Shouldnt take more than 3 or 4 mins after that.

:)

Loughborough Butter Chicken

Just saw the postings on the blog and realized there were none in April!! Slow month for experimental cooking??  Everyone must be busy with work/home etc..

 

Weekend before last when Prudy was here I had not seen him for two whole weeks, so decided to cook something VERY special and labour intensive.. I was meant to cook a homely chicken curry but when it was done it looked a lot like butter chicken :) So decided to call it Butter Chicken of Loughborough .. hehe.. 

 

 So I used thigh pieces and drumsticks for this.. would have used breasts but this was a special occasion so decided to indulge a little. In a bowl I mixed some mustard oil, chopped ginger, chopped garlic, lime juice and little corainder powder.  I marinated the chicken in this for a couple of hours.  After about 2-3 hours I applied a second marinade to the chicken.  In a pan with a tiny bit of oil I roasted whole garam masala (2-3 cloves, 4-5 peppercorns, cinnamon, bay leaf, black cardamom) and chopped/peeled almonds.  I crushed it all together, using a bowl and side of a belan :) then mixed it all in some plain yogurt, I also put in a bit of red chilli powder to this.  I coated the chicken pieces nicely in this marinade and leaved it for another 3-4 hours. This was done on a Friday and I was working from home so it worked out alright.. otherwise would have done it over night.

 

For the gravy, in a pan with oil I fried cumin seeds, chopped ginger/garlin and chopped onions and chopped green chillies till onions were translucent. I mixed a bit of coriander powder, garam masala, red chilli powder, salt in a bit of water and added to the pan. I also added 1 tsp of Shaan chicken curry powder not sure why I did that since all the masalas that were suppose to be in it I had already put in the chicken marinade or the pan... not sure if adding it made any difference.  Then added tomato puree (lots) to this mixture.  I then added just the chicken pieces from the marinade.  Once they were slightly cooked from the outside, I added the rest of the yogurt marinade, covered it with a lid and started cooking it on low heat.  Since the chicken pieces had a lot of oil and I had added some oil in my first marinade I didnt feel I needed to add any butter or cream, the yogurt already made it quite creamy as well. 

 

One tip that I saw on the net which I could have done as it sounded pretty cool.. was to make a small bowl out of aluminium foil and put inside it couple of small pieces of hot coal, you then float/place it in the cokking pot on top of the gravy while it is cooking and cover it.  It apparently gives a nice charcoaly flavour the the curry.  I will def try it next time.  My flatmates are into sheesha so there is always small pieces of coal available.. hehe..

 

Garnished the dish with chopped coriander and had it with rice and it was yummy as!!! :)

 

Ciao!

S

Spicy chicken curry + more pulusu ideas

I totally love the sour/tangy curry!!! it is really yummmy... and i recently realised too that the sugar/jaggery at the end is very imp... When i first made this curry without the sugar/jaggery, Ram's like 'its sour..' i was like 'well, that's the point isint it.' (the name in telugu means 'sour').. but that's when he said its supposed to be sweet :D I thought he was nuts and laughed at him. But then he added jaggery to it the next time i made it and it tasted so much better with the sweetness!!

If I may, can I add that you can do the same curry with any veggie really.. tastes best with raw banana (again, learnt from Ram), okra and tomato.. In the case of veggies, u add them right at the beginning - after the onions brown a bit, add the veggies n fry them till they stop smelling 'raw' :D after that, u continue with the tamarind etc. Megs.. do u know any other veggies that r good for this? i can only think of these..

I tried making a spicy chicken over the weekend.. looked up recipes and mixed up a couple and ended up with this whcih tasted awesome and blew our mouths away.

Spicy chicken curry

Grind together into a paste (with a small amt of water if needed):
Cumin - 1 tsp
Poppy seeds - 1 tsp
Corriander seeds - 1 tsp
Whole cloves - 3
Cardamom pod - 1 small one
Ginger - small piece
Garlic - 2 cloves

Other ingredients:
Chicken  - I used 2 boneless breasts
Onions - 2, chop up as big/small as u want
Green chillies - 3, slit into halves
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp (maybe add acc to taste)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Add the chilli pwd, tumeric pwd and a bit of salt to the chicken and keep aside for about 15-20mins. Meanwhile fry the onions in oil till brown, add the green chillies, chicken and the masala paste. Mix well and add a bit of water if u want gravy.. if u want it dry, dont add water. Cover and simmer till the chicken's done.

It turned out really yummy and very 'authentic' :D

:)

Coconut Chicken

Hey Megz...

Here is the recipe of my special coconut chicken curry. When I make it, I usually make lots.. cos we love it! hehe..

Ingredients:

• chicken thighs (~500gms)
  
• for marinade:
• curry powder (3 tbsp)
  
• red chilli powder (1 tbsp)
  
• salt (to taste)
  
• chopped onion (1 large)
  
• chopped green chillies (3-4)
  
• cumin seeds (2 tsp)
  
• curry leaves (4-5)
  
• chopped/grated ginger (2 tsp)
  
• chopped/grated garlic (2 tsp)
  
• tamarind paste (usually about 1-2 tbsp, really depends on how tangy you like your curry)
  
• white vinegar (1/4 cup)
  
• cinnamon powder (2 tsp)
  
• coconut milk (1 can)
  

1. Add marinade ingredients to chicken, rub it in well and keep it for a couple of hours
2. In a frying pan add some oil and bring to heat.
3. Add cumin seeds, cook well.
4. Add ginger garlic paste and saute well (about 1 min)
5. Add chopped onions and green chillies. Brown the onions well.
6. Add curry leaves.
7. Add tamarind paste and vinegar and cinnamon.
8. Add chicken to the frying pan and cook on med-high heat for about 10 minutes
9. Add coconut milk and bring to boil
10. Cook on low heat until chicken is cooked and all ingredients are well incorporated. You may want to cover and cook so you dont loose so much water.. unless you like your gravy thick.

Have fun! :)

s

Swati's "Better-than-Mum's" Chicken Drumsticks

Will we all be this forthcoming and prompt on a blog? Not sure about me.. at the moment I am happy keeping as an email discussion between 4 of us..

Ok so the news... last night I made chicken drumsticks based on a recipe I made up myself and they came out sooo good.. I got the best compliment from Prudy.. it was and I quote 'damn ammu.. so professional.. it tastes even better than my mum's chicken.. ooh but dont tell her .. she will kill me'.. LOL!!!

So here is what I did:
- chicken drumsticks marinated in dry spice mix (large amount of corainder powder, medium amount of garam masala, small amount of curry powder, red chilli powder to taste, salt to taste)
- fried 2-3 tbsp cumin seeds, chopped ginger and chopped garlic in a cooking pot in 2 tbsp oil
- brown 1 large onion
- add spice marinated chicken
- mix everything in the pot well (add little water if it is too dry just so spices and onions coat schicken drumsticks nicely)
- add lots of dark soya sauce
- garnish with lots of coriander and spring onions

It was so simple and it came out really well.. I think it had lots to do it with the cooking utensils.. I used non-stick cooking pot with lid.. and cooked mostly with lid on so chicken remained moist.. nothing stuck to the bottom of the pan which helped masalas cook real nice.. I dried the water at the end by jst putting on high heat with lid off for a few minutes..

We ate it with rice and rasam (that prudy made - he is a rasam expert!)..

yummy dinner!!

I am gonna try all the pasta sauces.. btw have never cooked with wine.. what is deglazing the pan?

And yes agree with all the pastry sheet ideas.. lol.. have tried one very similar to praneeti's myself.. instead of muffin tray used flat tray and made it like a pizza.. :D

Anch when I moved to the UK we didnt have a pressure cooker or a microwave-able pot large enough to cook rice.. I used to do the boil and strain rice method.. and I comp agree.. it makes the rice very light and fluffy.. but alas.. I have started using the microwave again.. just out of convenience sake. :( will get myself to go back to that method.. it does make a difference..

love to all.. sisterhood united..

s

 

Easy Peasy Chicken Curry

Oh, and here's the recipe i sent out on the recipe exchange email. It's what I make on the days that i'm really tired and not in the mood for experimentation or anything complicated

 

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast (cut into bite sized pieces)
2 medium sized onions (red would be nice but any type will do)
1 large red or green pepper
1 tsp crushed garlic/garlic paste
1 tsp crushed ginger/ginger paste
1/2 - 1 tsp chilli powder/cayenne pepper - dependent on your spice tolerance :)
3 tbsp ketchup
salt

Chop the onions finely. Put them in the microwave for 2-3 minutes until a little tender.
Heat 1-2 tbsp oil in a pan. Once heated add the microwaved onions into the oil with the ginger and garlic. Stir to ensure the three ingredients are well mixed and there are no lumps of ginger or garlic. Let the onions cooked till almost browned stirring occasionally.
Chop the red/green pepper into bite sized pieces and add to the onions in the pan. Add the ketchup with the salt and chill powder. Stir to mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add in the pieces of chicken. Stir to ensure all the spices/veggies coat the chicken well and cook uncovered for 4-5 minutes till the chicken starts to turn white.
Cover the pan. Reduce the heat to medium and let it cook for 10 mins or so (check up to see when the chicken is almost completely cooked).
Once the chicken is almost completely cooked uncover and stir. Keep cooking uncovered for a few minutes till the chicken browns a little.