Arabic Rice

Arabic Rice

I loved this rice from the minute I ate it a few years ago in Bangalore and made up my mind to get the recipe by hook or by crook.  I can't tell you how many recipes I've tried from www.google.com and how often we ate the many versions of  Arabic Rice.  To cut a long story short, I was going through my list of recipes last month and decided to google the internet once more and I found what I had been searching for.  Here it is, modified by me.  I cooked and froze about 6 boxes for the family to use while I am travelling or too lazy to cook.

The Recipe:

1 kg skinless chicken, jointed, washed and drained; 250 gms Low G. I. brown  Basmathi rice, washed and drained; 1 large tomato, quartered; a fe carrots; 6 cloves garlic, crushed;  1 lemon juiced; rind of 1 lemon; 1 tsp pepper to taste; 1/4 cup olive oil; 1 stick cinnamon; 3 cloves; 3 cardamoms; 1large onion sliced; 500 ml water. 3 boiled eggs for garnish, halved.

Mix the spices, garlic, lemon juice, rind, pepper powder and olive oil in a bowl.  Marinade the chicken in half of this mixture for 30 minutes.  Next, boil the chicken and carrots in 500 ml water and simmer for 5 minutes.  Take the chicken and carrots out and keep warm.  Measure 500 ml stock to cook the rice and keep the remaining aside.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a non stick pan and stir fry half the onions till glazed.  Add the rice and gently stir fry till coated with oil.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in another non stick pan and  fry the remaining onions till golden brown.  Add the remaining lemon and olive oil mixture and stir fry for 2 minutes.  Add to the rice and mix well.  Transfer to rice cooker and add the 500 ml stock.  Cook till done.  Transfer to large pyrex dish and layer the chicken and rice.  Pour the remaining stock over and bake for 15 minutes at 200 C or 400 F till the chicken on top is brown.  Garnish with carrots and boiled eggs and serve with a mint and cucumber yoghurt.  This is one dish I could eat everyday.  Mmmm...

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Baked Seer Fish With Gravy

Baked Seer Fish With Gravy

This is a wonderful recipe to serve at parties and to make an impression.  It is not only a visual treat and  a gastronomical delight- it is easy to prepare.  Just get everything ready the night before and throw it in the oven the next day.  Multi task and get everything done together.

The Recipe:

1 small seerfish ( about 900 gms), gutted, washed and drained. Slash the fish on both sides to enable the marinade to go in.

Masala Paste:1 tbsp ginger garlic paste; 1 dsp coriander powder; 1/2 tsp jeera powder; 1/4 tsp turmeric powder; 1 tsp chilli powder or more to taste; 2 tbsp vinegar.
  Mix all the ingredients together into a thick paste.

3 large potatoes, parboiled and sliced thickly.

Rub the masala paste inside and all over the fish and potatoes.
Marinade the fish and par boiled potatoes in the masala paste  overnight.  Next day bring to room temperature and bake fish and potatoes in a pre heated oven at 200 C or 400 F for 20 minutes each side.  Test with a metal skewer for doneness.  Rest for 10 minutes, garnish with greens and tomatoes and serve hot with boiled rice or any bread. 

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Multi Grain Garlic Bread

The other day I walked into a supermarket and the smell of freshly baked bread lured me to the bread section.  I succumbed to a crusty, brown, delicious looking multi grain bread and brought it home to make garlic bread.  I came across this recipe on Facebook ( RECIPE30. com ) and decided to try it out.  The result- another soon to become family favourite and oh so easy to make.

The Recipe:

1 long loaf of multi grain bread; 1 small bunch of parsley, washed and wiped dry; 1/4 cup olive oil; 5 large flakes garlic; some cheese for garnishing; salt to taste.

Grind the parsley, olive oil, garlic and  salt to taste.  Slice the loaf in half lengthwise and then cut each in half.  Spread liberally with the parsley mixture.  Then, join the halves together, wrap in foil and bake in a preheated oven at 200 C or 400 F for 10 minutes.  Remove, open out , sprinkle with cheese and bake again  without foil for 10 minutes at the same temperature.  Enjoy as a snack or serve with pasta or salad.

NB:  I sprinkled the cheese and serve it immediately as the heat is enough to melt it.

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Guilt Free Basil Vanilla Silk

My sister Anu has been cooking up a storm this week and made a delectable Qatari Hissu Drink which she shared on her Facebook Page called "FoodPrints."  We all loved it and this is my version of the ever popular sweet basil drink which is good for the respiratory and digestive system.

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Moulded Tomato Salad

This is practically a weekly ritual in our house.  We all love salads and this is an easy way to use up the odds and ends in the fridge, which more often than not is tomatoes.   Put it in a mould and gently lift up the mould and you have a dish worthy of any great chef.

The Recipe:

3 medium sized tomatoes, washed and cubed and strained to remove all the juice; 4 tbsp thick curds; a few coriander leaves; salt to taste; 1 green chilli, minced. Mix all ingredients together.  Place the mould on serving plate.  Put the salad in making sure to pack it firmly.  Gently lift up the mould.  Add required garnish and serve with your meal.

NB:  I used a square mould.

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Jeera Rice

Jeera Pulao

Jeera Rice is an Indian dish consisting of rice and cumin seeds.  This rice dish is known as Zeera Rice in Pakistan.  It is a popular dish in Northern India, an everyday rice dish. It is easy to prepare unlike a biriyani.  Jeera is the Hindi word for cumin seeds. 

 Jeera Pulao or Jeera Rice happens to be a favourite dish of mine.  Not only because it is so quick to make and easy on the stomach but because it can be paired with any kind oof cuisine.  You can eat it with Roast Chicken and Gravy or Chicken Curry or even with Egg Stew.  And that's why I make it so often.  I got the recipe from my Mum and although it is a North Indian dish, it is firmly established in our very Mangalorean household.

The Recipe:

250 gms Low G. I Basmathi Rice;  1 large onion, sliced fine; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 inch piece ginger, minced; 1 tsp jeera seeds; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 tsp ghee; 1 small stick of cinnamon and 3 cloves; 500ml hot water; 1 tsp salt to taste.

Wash the rice three to four times until the water runs clear.  Soak it for 45 minutes in enough water to cover it.  Drain completely and keep at hand.  Heat a non stick pan and add the olive oil and ghee to it.  Saute the spices till fragrant.  Add onions, ginger and garlic and stir fry till golden brown.  Next add the rice and gently fry till the grains are coated with the oil and transparent to look at.  Transfer to rice cooker.  Add hot water and salt and cook till done.  Fluff the rice with the rice cooker spoon and keep open for about 10 minutes for the steam to escape.  Serve hot.

For those using a pressure cooker - pressure cook for 5 minutes.   Keep in the cooker for another 5 minutes without opening.  Open, fluff grains with a fork, spread out on a tray to cool for 10 minutes and serve with an accompanying curry.

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Kadle

Years ago, as children living in Bangalore, we had a neighbour who made delicious snacks for all festivals.  As soon as we finished our tea at home, we would rush to her house where her Mum would give us all kinds of tasty protein snacks in cups made from dried leaves.  Decades later, I think of her whenever I make this and remember the good times that we had.

The Recipe:

250 gms kadle (chick peas) white or black variety; 1/2 tsp mustard; a sprig of curry leaves; 1 tbsp grated coconut; 1 tbsp olive oil; salt to taste.

Wash and soak the dried chick peas in water overnight.  Next day rinse and pressure cook in 500 ml water for 45 minutes.  If you do not have a cooker, boil in one litre water until soft and water is dried up.  Keep adding water until the chick peas are soft.  Rinse and drain.  Heat oil in a large non stick pan.  Add the mustard seeds.  When they crackle, throw in the curry leaves, lower flame and stir fry till crisp.  Add the chick peas and salt to taste.  Garnish with grated coconut and serve hot or cold as a snack or a side dish with your meal.

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