Pan Fried Meat Cutlets

My hubby's cousin had a sweet lil daughter few months ago and now she is back home with the sweetheart and is busy settling down. Poor thing, she has been away for a few months and so it must be extremely difficult getting things in order. So I thought why not cook up a few goodies for her so she doesn't have to do much cooking next week.

And so I thought cutlets would be a good idea. Cutlet is such a common snack in India that almost anybody would know how to make it. But beef and mutton cutlets are a familiar sight mostly in Kerala given the largely vegetarian  population of other places in India.

Back home, my mom would always stock up meat (beef) cutlets in her freezer because we used to have unexpected guests all the time and cutlets always helped make up for the absence of any other non-veg dish. My sister and I used to polish off a good number of them at a sitting. Cutlets are usually deep fried, but I don't use that method. I only shallow fry them with drizzles of oil on a non-stick pan. You can also grill them.

Anyways, cutlets are a great snack when you have company or otherwise. You might think that the procedure is all too long and painful but in reality it is not so.

This definitely is a winner with young and old alike. Hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients

Beef - 1/2 kg

Vinegar - 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp

Water - 1/4 to 1/2 cup

Big onion - 2 (big)

Ginger - 1/2 inch piece

Garlic - 2 cloves (optional)

Green chilli - 2 to 3

Pepper - 3/4 tsp (adjust as per spice tolerance)

Potato - 2 (big; boiled & mashed)

Curry leaves

Egg - 2 (beaten)

Breadcrumbs

Oil

Method

Boil and cook the beef in a pressure cooker along with a pinch of salt, vinegar and water till done. Let all the water evaporate.

Finely chop ginger, garlic, green chillies and onions. Also, mince the cooked beef and keep aside.

Heat oil in a wok. Add finely chopped ginger, garlic, green chillies, onions and curry leaves and saut'e till onions become soft, transparent and reduces in quantity. Into this, add the minced beef along with pepper and salt (be careful while adding salt as the beef has already been cooked with a little salt) and saut'e till browned here and there. Make sure all the moisture evaporates, but be careful not to dry out the mixture too much. Check for salt at this time. Keep this mixture aside to cool down. Once cooled, add the mashed potato and combine well. Now, take small amounts of this mixture and shape it into whatever shape you want, dip in beaten egg, roll in breadcrumbs and shallow fry/deep fry or grill. Garnish with onion rings.

Notes: You can simply fry the cutlets just by dipping it in the egg batter and omit the breadcrumbs. It tastes good this way too.

You can use the same recipe for chicken cutlets too. I have not used garam masala for the above recipe, but you could add some while making chicken cutlets.

Source: My Mom

Cabbage Mezhukuperatti

Hope everything is going great with you. My refrigerator is stuffed with so many things. Oh no, no not stuffed with food, stuffed with a little food and a lot of veggies. I'm sure you are surprised but well for me this is an everyday issue. We only have space in the kitchen for a small refrigerator and so when the veggie tray gets packed I am forced to stack my veggies along with food in the food compartments :( And so I ultimately end up with a very cramped and constipated refrigerator!!! :)

I think cabbage is one vegetable where I use the most amount of onions compared to any other vegetable, be it 'thoran' or 'mezhukuperatti'. I wish I could explain why that happens except that I like it's taste best this way. I was quite happy after making this dish. It's not everyday that I make Cabbage Mezhukuperatti. (usually I make Cabbage Thoran) This recipe was given to me by my mom long time ago but somehow I never tried making it. When it comes to cabbage mezhukuperatti, the best way I like to have it is with rice, sambar/moru kachiyathu, red fish curry and cabbage mezhukuperatti.

For my friends who are reading this recipe and not into our way of eating, I assure you this dish is versatile. It can be eaten as a sabji for chapathis/rotis along with a simple dal.

With the success of this dish, this is definitely going to be a regular on our daily menu. Hope you enjoy it too. Have fun!

Ingredients

Cabbage - 1/2 of a medium cabbage

Big Onion - 1 to 1 1/2 (big)

Green chillies - 2 to 3 (adjust as per spice tolerance)

Garlic - 3 to 4 cloves

Salt - to taste

Pepper - 3/4 tsp

Ajinomoto - a pinch (optional)

Oil

Method

Heat oil in a wok and saut'e garlic, green chillies and onions till onions turn golden brown. When the onions have browned well add cabbage along with pepper and salt. Mix well. Add a splash of water into this mixture and cover and cook for about 2 minutes on a high flame and another 2 minutes on low flame. Finally, add a pinch of ajinomoto and combine well till all the moisture disappears.

Source: My Mom

Sweet Tomato Chutney

Hi everyone, I'm back :) Yup, its been almost a month since we met. I went to Kerala, my hometown for sometime and thoroughly enjoyed my stay there. I did get back a week ago but was busy settling down. However this gap wasn't planned, I was hoping to catch up with you in between, but it didn't work out. Anyways, now I'm back home and I was just waiting to sit in front of the computer and say hello to all of you.

I'm sure for a lot of you hailing from Kerala, you are still recovering from the joyous mood of Onam. A lot of things come to my mind when I think of Onam, the colourful Pookalams, the very entertaining Pulikali, of course a very dignified and benevolent Maveli (I particularly enjoyed the Maveli bit because my Dad used to dress up as Maveli every year for Onam celebrations at the apartment complex we stay in) and of course many other fun things, but for me my favourite part was the Onasadya. I just crave for a yummy spread of the traditional dishes laid out on the banana leaf during Onam. This time I was in Bangalore for Onam and was really really upset I couldn't eat a good sadya. But God was so good to me :) our neighbour who happens to be a malayalee too sent across some sumptuous "onam vibhavangal" and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We devoured and demolished it really quick.

Anyways, coming back to the recipe, this is one of those dishes which will take you right into Gujarat. The dish is extremely easy to prepare, takes just a few minutes and tastes awesome. This of course may not be an authentic recipe but it tastes really good made like this too. We are still on our very strict diet which is working quite well these days, Reju is very determined to lose weight and I'm inspired. This sweet chutney is a yummy treat that goes extremely well with rotis/chapathis and a simple sabji. The sourness of tomato soothed over by sweet jaggery/gud and with a hint of spice from the green chillies makes this dish delicious.

Give it a shot and let me know what you think. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Tomato - 1 (big)

Onion - 1 (medium)

Ginger - 1/2 inch piece

Green chilli - 1

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Salt - to taste

Jaggery/Gud (powdered) - 1 to 1 1/4 tbsp

Oil

Method

Heat oil in a wok and splutter mustard seeds. Add ginger, green chilli, and onions and saut'e till onions turn golden brown. Add finely chopped tomatoes along with salt and saut'e till tomatoes become soft and oil surfaces here and there. Switch off flame and add powdered jaggery into it and combine well.

Gajar Ka Halwa/Carrot Halwa

I have made chocolate mousse and cake, biscuit puddding and other desserts but I really haven't tried my hand at Indian sweets and thus thought I'd try out something new for a change. Gajar Ka Halwa is something that I love and this was the first time I was making it. And guess what, it was an absolute hit! :) I'm on top of the world, never in my wildest dreams did I think I will be making Gajar Ka Halwa! But the sad part is I did not get a good photograph of this dish. Well, to be honest after I made it, I thought I would share the joy of our happy day with our neighbours and gave everyone a share of what I made and completely forgot about leaving some for a photograph to be put on the blog!!!! :( Sorry for that "not so very nice" photo, will do better next time.

I'm not sure whether this is the authentic or traditional method but this is how I made it with prior online instructions from my lovely sister and expert cook, Sharon and the chef at VahRehVah.com... I found this method easier because the carrot cooks faster in the pressure cooker and thus the whole process takes lesser time. This dish is something you can prepare to satisfy a sudden sweet craving.

So, friends, I thought I will end this week with a sweet note because we will be going home today to spend a few days with family. I may not be able to upload or blog for a few days and I'm definitely going to miss you all and your yummy delights. So everyone, have a pleasant and fun weekend. Happy cooking!

Ingredients

Carrots (grated fine) - 4 cups

Milk - 2 cups

Mawa/Khova - 200 gms (you can also add 2 cups of curdled milk/channe/ricotta cheese)

Sugar - 1 cup (you can add more if you like it sweeter)

Ghee - 2 tsp

Chopped Cashew & Almonds - 1 tbsp each

Golden Raisins - 1 tbsp

Cardamom (skinned & crushed fine) - 2 to 3 (change as per taste)

Method

Roast the chopped cashew, almonds and raisins in a little ghee and keep aside.

Heat ghee in a pressure cooker and add the grated carrots into it. Saut'e for 5 to 7 minutes. Now add the milk, mix and seal the pressure cooker with lid. Cook till pressure releases 4 times (4 whistles) and switch off the flame. Remove the lid when the pressure has reduced completely. At this stage, you can either transfer the mixture to a wide, deep non-stick skillet or continue to cook it in the pressure cooker itself. (if your pressure cooker is non-stick, perfect!) Add mawa/khova into it and stir continuously for about 2 to 3 minutes allowing it to cook. Now add the sugar and let it simmer on a low flame. (add sugar only after the carrots have been cooked well) Add the cardamom powder and roasted cashew, almonds and raisins into it and continue to cook till excess liquid evaporates and the mixture starts coming off the pan.

Take this in a serving plate and garnish with slivered almonds or any nuts and raisins. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Chicken Varuval

Over weekends, you will agree we all like to have some special food to enjoy family time. Two weeks back I got this recipe from a cookery show I watched on T.V and decided to prepare it on our special day. I like experimenting with chicken because it beautifully adapts with a myriad of flavors. You add lemon juice or herbs or garam masala or whatever you can think of and chicken, like a sponge will absorb and blend with it to make a delectable dish.

So here is how I cooked Chicken Varuval.

Ingredients

Chicken - 1/2 kg

Big Onion (diced) - 2 (big)

Tomato (diced) - 2 (medium)

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Red Chilli powder - 1 tbsp

Curry leaves

Coriander leaves

Oil

For Masala mix

Cinnamon (roasted & powdered fine) - 1 piece

Cloves - 4

Cardamom - 3

Coriander powder - 2 tbsp

Cumin powder - 1 tbsp

Fennel seeds (roasted & powdered) - 1/2 tsp

Coconut pieces/Thengakothu - 3 tbsp

Dry chillies - 3 to 4

Ginger (sliced) - 1 tbsp

Garlic (sliced) - 1 tbsp

Method

Grind all the ingredients under masala mix (Do not add water) into a dry paste and keep aside. (you can dry roast the solid spices first and then grind for smooth and easy grinding)

Heat oil in a wok and saut'e onions till light brown. Add curry leaves and tomatoes and saut'e till oil separates. Add turmeric powder and red chilli powder and saut'e till raw smell goes away. Now, add the chicken and combine well till all the masala is coated on the chicken. Cover and cook for 10 minutes without any water. Once the chicken is cooked, add the dry masala mix paste and mix well. Keep stirring till the raw smell of the masala goes away. The chicken pieces should be coated well with the masala. This dish has a dry consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Kerala Prawns Fry

Prawns has always been a favourite among both of us and the good thing is whenever I have made a dish with prawns, it turns out well. Reju as you know is not a very "Fishy" person but he loves prawns and this dish is now one of the most sought after items at home!

You know I always wonder how the famous saying "Stomach is the way to a man's heart" is so true! Good food definitely is one of those things that makes them happy.

Anyway getting back to the recipe, this dish is definitely one that will be licked clean off the plate. My heart warms over just talking about it. We loved it, hope you enjoy it too.

Serve with Rice or Chapathi.

Ingredients

Tiger Prawns - 250 gms

Red Chilli powder - 2 to 2 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder - 2 to 2 1/2 tsp

Ginger & Garlic paste - 2 tsp

Curry leaves

Big Onions (finely chopped) - 2

Lime juice - 1 tbsp (or vinegar - 1 tsp)

Kokum/Kodampuli - 1 piece (soaked in water; to be used to clean the prawns)

Method

Clean, de-vein and wash the tiger prawns with kokum/kodampuli. Prick the cleaned prawns gently with a fork. Marinate it with red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, ginger & garlic paste, salt and vinegar. Let it rest for a few hours (I keep it overnight)

Heat oil in a non-stick pan. Add onions and curry leaves and fry till golden brown. Now, add the marinated prawns and saut'e till it gets coated well with the masala. Cover and cook the prawns till done on a low flame. When cooked, take off the lid and fry till dry and masala gets coated on the prawns. Serve hot as an appetizer or snack or as a side to go with rice or warm rotis.

Mushroom Fried Rice

Today my husband and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary! Just can't believe that it's been a year since we have been married...Gosh, how time flies! Got a beautiful bouquet of flowers and a hot cup of tea from my lovely husband in the morning. It has been a perfect day! Thank you Reju, you're the best.

As you already know, we are going home tomorrow for a short holiday and I was quite busy cleaning up the refrigerator. But with the anniversary and all today, I thought how could I give my hubby boy 2-day old food from the refrigerator! So I thought I'll prepare a surprise special meal for him today and I definitely had Reju swooning, ahem! I'm glad I brought a smile on his face.

You guys want to know what I cooked today. Here goes....I made Mushroom Fried Rice, Chicken Varuval, Kerala Prawns Fry and Carrot Halwa. Phew...took sometime but it was worth it! :) All these dishes were not too complicated, simple and I must tell you, it came out quite well. Reju loved it all, he kept saying that everything was delicious and that meant a lot to me.

This recipe is originally from a show I watched on NDTV Goodtimes. But I have made a few changes here and there and I hope you like it. This rice dish with mushrooms and celery/spring onions is a meal on it's own for veggie lovers.

I'll be posting each of these recipes as different posts within the next two days. Make sure you try them. You enjoy cooking while we enjoy a nice quiet dinner at 'Copper Chimney', a new restaurant which just opened up in Bangalore.

Cheers.

Ingredients

Basmati Rice - 1 cup

Mushroom (sliced) - 200 gms

Shallots - 3 to 4

Garlic - 2 to 3 cloves

Green chilli - 1 or 2 (as per spice tolerance)

Celery/Spring onions - 2 to 3 (chop up the leaves to add towards the last)

Soya sauce - 2 tsp

Vinegar - 1 tsp

Red Chilli sauce (I used Ching's Secret Red Chilli sauce) - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Pepper (crushed) - 1 tsp (Add more if you like it spicy)

Oil

Method

Boil the rice with 1 tsp salt and 1 tbsp oil till bite-like. Drain and rinse under cold water. Leave in the colander and work 1 tbsp oil into it.

Heat oil in a wok and saut'e garlic and shallots for 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and celery/spring onions and saut'e over high heat, till they look glossy and reduce in quantity. (let the water content of the mushrooms disappear) Add the soya sauce, chilli sauce and vinegar and mix well. Now, add the rice and combine well. Stir till rice and veggies are well mixed. Check for salt and add more at this stage, if needed. (add about 2 tbsp of stock if you have, at this stage) Finally, add the spring onion leaves and toss for a minute or two and switch off the flame.