Coloured Jewelled Capsicum

Three Coloured Capsicum

I love cooking this dish because the end result is so appetising and colourful.  The brightly coloured, jewelled capsicums just beg to be eaten.  Besides, it's simple and quick and I promise, you will spend about 15 minutes in the kitchen.  It can be served as an accompaniment or eaten alone.  

The Recipe:

3 medium sized capsicums, one of each colour; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tsp pepper corns, crushed; 2 tbsp olive oil; salt to taste;  1 tbsp thin soy sauce.

Wash, halve, de-seed and cut the capsicums into thin strips.  Heat oil in a non stick pan and stir fry the garlic till fragrant.  Add the capsicum and stir fry on high heat for 2 minutes only.  Lower flame, add the pepper and salt to taste.  Transfer to serving dish.  Drizzle soy sauce over just before serving.  Lip smacking delicious and crunchy to boot.

Leftover Pie

Five Star Pie

It's fascinating to see what one could make from leftovers languishing in the refrigerator.  I had some pasta,  mince, mint rice (rice cooked with 1 sliced onion and a bunch of mint leaves) and a piece of dry cheese.  Oh and some chicken soup too.  Put them together in layers, pour the soup over and you have a gorgeous  Five Star Pie.

The Recipe:

For The Mince: http://www.fromthefryingpan.blogspot.com/2013/07/family-trade-mark.html

2 cups leftover pasta- whatever you have will do.  I used spaghetti; 1 cup mince; 1 cup chicken soup; 1/2 cup of Mint Rice;  50 gms of dry cheese, sliced thin; salt and pepper to taste.  Baby tomatoes for garnishing.

Oil the pie dish and arrange ingredients in layers starting with the spaghetti, then the mint rice, followed by the mince.  Pour the soup all over the mince and let it seep down on to the spaghetti.  Arrange the cheese on top and bake in a preheated oven at 150 Degrees Centigrade or till cheese is brown and bubbly.  Garnish with baby tomatoes and serve hot.  Watch your favourite TV programme as you tuck into this delicious Five Star Pie.

Ten Minute Cheesy Vegetable Bake

Cauliflower Potato  Duo

This is a recipe  that can be made very quickly.  In fact it takes more time to prepare the vegetables than the cooking time.  Throw in whatever you have in your vegetable basket and sprinkle some cheese on top and bake for 15 minutes until cheese melts in a very hot oven.

The Recipe :

1 large cauliflower broken into florets; 2 spring onions, chopped; 12 ready to cook potato quarters; 50 gm grated cheese; salt and pepper to taste; 1 inch ginger, crushed; 3 flakes garlic, crushed.

Cut and soak cauliflower  in salt water for 10 minutes.  Drain.  Boil in very little water for 5 minutes until dry.  Grill potatoes in oven at highest heat for 7 minutes.   Mix the cauliflower and potato with the crushed ginger and garlic and the seasoning.  Place in a heat proof dish.  Sprinkle the grated cheese all over.  Scatter the spring onions on top.  Bake at 175 C for 15 minutes till cheese has melted.  Serve hot with warm, crusty garlic bread.

Jack (Fruit) Of All Trades

Tender Jackfruit

As a child, whenever my Mother cooked vegetables like jack fruit, pumpkin, ladies finger, greens and what not, we turned our noses up and surreptitiously dumped our portions in the dustbin. Last week my brother bought some tender jack fruits and requested my Mum to cook it.    I was aghast!  Memories of my childhood bete noire surfaced and I wrinkled my nose in disgust.  I liked the pickle but the vegetable was a different matter.  To cut a long story short, I liked it and am sharing the recipe today.


The Recipe:

1 small tender jack fruit, cleaned and chopped (this is an art; rub oil all over your fingers before you even attempt to cut it); 1/4 coconut, grated; 1 tsp mustard; 1 large onion, sliced fine; 3 dried red chillies broken; 1/2 tsp jeera (cumin seeds) powder; a few sprigs curry leaves; salt to taste a pinch of haldi (turmeric); a pinch of mustard and 2 tbsp oil for stir frying.

Grind the coconut and mustard together.  Keep aside till required.  Heat the oil in a non stick pan and add the mustard seeds.  When they crackle add the curry leaves and broken red chillies.  Stir fry a minute.  Now add the sliced onions, lower flame and cook till golden brown.  Add the ground coconut and fry for a few minutes till a delectable aroma arises.  Lastly add the turmeric, jeera powder and the tender jack, stir fry a minute, lower flame and cover and cook for 5 minutes.  Add water if required.  Serve hot with rice or chappathis.

De Light Full

Pumpkin Soup

Summer in Bangalore is here in all it’s glory and the fruits galore everywhere are a proof of that.  It’s a lovely feeling to eat light meals and enjoy the fruits and vegetables of the season.  Light meals are in and they keep you full and on the go.  De Light Full in short.

The Recipe:

¼ kg orange pumpkin,  washed, skinned  and cut into chunks; 1 large onion, skinned and quartered;  3 large garlic flakes; ½ inch piece of ginger;  4 cups chicken stock or two soup cubes;  coriander for garnishing; salt and pepper to taste ; 1 small onion minced and fried in 1tsp oil for seasoning; a dash of milk per cup.

Pressure  cook the pumpkin, onion, garlic and ginger for 10 minutes in 1 cup water.  Cool and puree.  Transfer to a large sauce pan and add the stock, beating well with a whisk till smooth.  Boil till thick and creamy,  adjust  seasoning and serve hot with rusks or garlic bread  in individual bowls with a dash of milk and garnished with coriander leaves. 

Nothing But Breadfruit

BreadfruitLast week while shopping for vegetables, I was very excited to see a large, green vegetable that looked very familiar.  It turned out to be one of our favourite childhood vegetables - breadfruit -  and so we bought it. The vendor had no clue as to what it was and was quite pleased when we told him the Kannada name for it.  Bread fruit is a smaller cousin to the jack fruit, usually eaten as a vegetable and can be used as a replacement for potato, in curries, cakes and dough nuts and also as a substitute for flour.  However we like it fried or dipped in batter and fried.  A delicious snack for all ages at any time.

The Recipe:     

1 breadfruit; oil for frying

For Batter :        1 cup water; 1/4 cup gram flour; salt to taste; chilli powder to taste; 1 tsp rice flour; 1 tsp cornflour; 1/2 tsp baking powder.  Mix all ingredients to a smooth liquidy batter. 

Cut the breadfruit in half, quarter it and remove the pith in the middle .  Slice into large pieces and soak in salt water for 5 minutes.  

1.  Drain thoroughly and deep fry half of the slices to a golden brown.  Serve hot with sauce  or as it is.

2.  Dip the remaining breadfruit slices in the  batter and deep fry in hot oil  till crisp and brown.  Serve hot with sauce or just as it is.