10 minutes can make a desi sweet? Hard to believe but true :) - Coconut Laddoos

My discovery of the day...a 10 minute, 3 ingredient mithai...pretty excited about it :)

This morning I suddenly remember coconut laddoos...it was a sweet my mum made for every diwali when I was young but later stopped cuz coconut is so high cholestrol etc. Anyway I called mum and asked her how to make it...she said she would boil milk, sugar and coconut together till it started to thicken but suggested I use sweetened condensed milk instead and give the microwave a try to avoid the mess (cuz she said it tends to spill etc)

So I did...and success! hehe

3 ingredients as I said: (the quantities below made 13 average sized laddoos)

400gms grated coconut (I used a frozen pack from the indian store - make sure it's frozen fresh coconut - the dried one will have too much of a coconut oil smell)

300gms condensed milk

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

If using frozen coconut defrost it completely in the microwave first

Mix all three ingredients properly so there are no lumps

Put it in the microwave for 3 minutes

Take it out - stir thoroughly

Put it back in for 2 minutes

Take it out and stir once again

(Repeat last two steps 2 more times or till it becomes thick enough - just keep an eye on it cause it might spill depending on the power of your microwave)

Once the mixture feels fairly thick

Spread it on a greased plate and let it cool

Once it's cooled make them into laddoos - place in the refrigerator so they firm up a bit

(Mine are in the fridge right now but me and Saugar had one each just after I made 'em and they're definitely a hit - especially for something so simple!!)

Merry Christmas!

xoxo

Megha

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.

 

Some interesting breakkie ideas

Anch...the pasta sauce sounds good...except i dont usually have wine in the house since neither of us drink....hehe

thanks for the tip on brown pasta...

and praneeti - will def try the savoury tarts...they sound lovely

i love puff pastry...there's so much you can do with it...even the simplest things

 

my simplest puff pastry "recipe" (it's not really one) but great for a quick saturday/sunday morning breakfast

 

cut puff pastry into fairly big squares (one sheet into 4 pieces).

take hard boiled eggs and cut them in half. sprinkle salt and pepper.

put half a boiled egg on each pastry square and fold the pastry over so it's a triangle

bake till golden brown

i know it sounds ridiculously simple but it's awesome

 

oh and another breakfast idea...this i sort of came up with myself after seeing something on tv...saugar liked it - more for the fun of it!

ingredients required per serving - 2 slices of fairly thick bread, 1 egg, 1.5 strips of turkey bacon (u can use regular bacon too - i dont like bacon so use turkey), a sprinkling of cheese (can be any kind - something that melts nicely - i usually use grated mozarella)

cook the bacon to a crisp on a seperate pan (or i recently saw a tip that cooking bacon in an oven/toaster oven works better - haven't tried yet)

take the first slice of bread - using a wine glass, cut a hole in the center of it.

heat a tiny bit of butter on a pan and place the slice of bread with the hole on it.

take an egg and break it right into that hole - try to keep the egg from running outside the hole - but a little won't matter.

let it cook till the underside of the egg is hard enough then flip it. add salt and pepper
cook the other side - a little will spread - but not a big deal.

how much you want to cook it depends on how you like your egg - both me an saugar like it a tiny bit runny when you bite into it

while the bread and egg is cooking on the other side toast the other slice of bread - either on the pan or lightly in a toaster

once the egg is almost done to how you like it - break the bacon strips into half and put three halves (hence 1.5 strips on the bread/egg). sprinkle a little cheese and place the second piece of bread on top.

cook for a little longer till the cheese melts a little

 

there's my little tit-bits for the day

 

and yes if all in favour let's start a blog

anch - rather than an email address - maybe just starting a blog on blogger with all of us having access to post to it?

if that works i can set one up and send you invites

 

signing out....

megha :)

 

Finally the fourth sister is here! Anchal's fancy-shmancy pasta sauce

Heheheehe I'm jealous i have no one to cook for and you girls aren't even around tsk :(

 

BUT here is a recipe for Pasta Sauce

Chop one large red onion, crushed garlic and sautee in olive oil....keep cooking this until the onions start to go a bit brown then add slices of portabello mushrooms (button mushrooms wont have the same affect) and wait till they cook right down and almost start to blacken.  Add salt and pepper to taste and then add half a cup of red wine to deglaze the pan, this should take off all the bits from the bottom (this is where all the yummy flavour is :) ).  To this add a can of chopped tomatoes....and the sauce should go to this really nice brown colour....trust me it doesn't taste tomato-ey at all, to add a little bit of richness add a tiny knob of butter and that'll make the sauce all shiny.  I usually make this with penne pasta or with spirals but you can try anything.

 

As for cooking brown pasta my tip is to heavily salt your water and not add the pasta until the water is bubbling and then just to keep the pasta moist add a tsp of olive oil or a small bit of butter....it wont let the pasta stick or dry out but it'll get taken out with the water so you wont be having fat either.

 

Ooohhh another tip I have is for cooking rice, when you cook basmati rice instead of cooking it in a rice cooker or a pressure cooker...cook it in a kadhai or an open pan....after the rice is cooked put it in a sieve and pour boiling water over it...this takes all the starch out and makes the rice nice and fluffy, you'll be amazed at how light the rice is and it doesnt leave you feeling sleepy or lathargic.

 

Those are my tips for today, quick recipes for cranberry cookies and ginger bread men coming up :)

 

Ohhh and also be careful with the choice of food processor you are using for your dosa batter, i've just recently burnt my blender because it couldnt handle the load so a food processor is a good idea and also make sure you check the wattage....i know this sounds so old fashione but the best thing i've found so far for dosa batter's is the sumeet mixi from india...they were fantastic!!!

 

okie ladies i have heaps more to share so i'm thinking do we want to start a blog of the sisterhood of the travelling kadhai?  what about sisterhoodkadhai@gmail.com as a common account and then we can just add things on the blog....what do you think??

 

love yaa

xoxoxxo

a

Praneeti's Savoury Tarts

BTW.. thought I might as well share with you all my random, easy-to-make recipe that I sent to someone else :) These are yummy as!!


Savoury Tarts
You need muffin trays to make this
Ingredients:
- puff pastry sheets,
- veggies/any leftover curry (tastes best with leftover curries),
- tomato & chilli (ideally sriracha sauce),
- mozzarella cheese

Method:
- cut out squares of the pastry sheets and line each muffin well with one sheet
- put in some sauce mix and spread it around
- put in the veggies/leftover curry
- spread some mozzarella cheese on top
- bake at 180degC for about 20-30 mins (or till done)