Pages

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Baked red snapper fish + fruit salsa

I was looking for recipes on how to bake fish online and I came across quite a few recipes that combined fish and fruit salsa.
It got me excited right away.. cause I simply love fruits these days.

Fish:
I adapted this recipe from http://www.yoursouthernpeach.com/2012/02/chili-salmon-tropical-salsa.html

Red snapper: 2 fillets

spices for marination:
olive oil
lime juice
salt
pepper
kozambhu powder http://easyhappycooking.blogspot.com/2013/08/kozambhu-powder.html

I cut each fillet into 2 halves.
After cleaning the drying these fish fillets, I marinated them with the spices needed for marination.
I added the spices per intuition.
I lined an oven tray with foil and rubbed it with little bit oil.
I put the marinated pieces on the oven tray (skin side down).
I covered and chilled them in the refrigerator for 3 hrs.

After that, I preheated the oven to 450F and put in the marinated fish.
I left it on each side for 20 mins (total of 40 mins).
and tadaa.... its done!

Fruit salsa:
I adapted the recipe from http://rachelvoorhees.com/2012/09/drunken-fruit-salsa/
(except I didn't use the liquor... so, it's not quite drunken :D)

I pretty much did everything exactly as per that recipe except I didn't have pineapple and green peppers handy.. so, I skipped them.
And, I didn't bother to roast any peppers.
It tasted great and tummy felt calm and good :)







baked muffin pan idli's with baked sweet potato fries


Baked idli's

baked idli's have got to be one of the best discoveries I made.
The idli's come out soo soft and fluffy... they are just great! and the cleanup is so much easier than the pressure cooker method.

Method:
preheat the oven to 350F.
pour idli batter into muffin pan moulds (so, it fills upto half of each mould).
Get another oven pan half filled with water ready.

Once the oven is preheated, put the muffin pan on the top rack and the pan with water in the
bottom rack.
(The way I look at it, you are sort of emulating pressure cooker here with the muffin pan and the water to steam).
The idlis should rise and be done somewhere between 15-20 mins.
You need to pull them out as soon as you see that its starting to form a thin crust on the top.

Sweet potato fries

Serves: 4
Sweet potatoes: 2
olive oil: 1 tbs.
salt: to taste
pepper: 1/2 table spoon
paprika: 1/2 table spoon

(Note: vary amount of pepper and paprika to your taste)


Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into thick fingers.
In a bowl, mix the sweet potato fingers with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika.

Preheat the oven to 450F.
Now take a flat oven pan and line it with aluminium foil.
Spread the sweet potato fingers on it without crowding them (else, they won't be crispy).
Once the oven is preheated, put the pan with sweet potato fingers in.
After 10 mins, take the pan out and turn the fingers around.
Put it in for another 10 mins.
Now, take them out and enjoy :).






Saturday, August 3, 2013

Aloo/brinjal gravy

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Aloo/Brinjal: 1 pound
onions: 1 medium (chopped)
tomatoes: 2 large
yellow habanero chillies: 2 (with seeds removed) - gives a nice flavor.
kozambhu powder: 2 1/2 heaping teaspoons
turmeric powder: 1/4 teaspoon
salt : to taste
Oil: 3 tablespoons

In dhinchik, smash:
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
2 stalks curry leaves
5 flakes of garlic

Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker. Peel and cut them into small pieces.
Now,  heat oil in a pan. Once oil heats, add the dhinchik smash.
once this splutters, add onions. Keep heat high (setting: 8).
Once onions get golden brown, add tomatoes.
Now, add aloo/brinjal. Stir it for 5 minutes.
Add all the spices.
Stir for another 5 minutes.
Add 3 cups of water.
Close the lid and boil it for 15 minutes on a heat setting of 6.
Open the lid and sim it for 10 minutes (on heat setting: 2).
Now, you should see the oil oozing out on all the sides of the pan.
Now, garnish with coriander leaves and serve.




kozambhu powder


To make 2 pounds kozambhu powder:

Ingredients:
200 grams red chillies
400 grams coriander seeds
50 grams of cumin seeds
25 grams fenugreek seeds
25 grams mustard seeds

Optionally, slightly dry roast the spices.
Cool it down and then grind it into a fine powder.


chamadumpala(arbi) fry

Serves: 4 people

Arbi: 2 pounds
kozambhu powder: 3 heaping teaspoons.
turmeric powder: 1/2 teaspoon
salt: to taste
tamarind paste: 1 teaspoon
oil: 5 tablespoons

mustard seeds: 1 teaspoon
split urad dal: 2 teaspoons
curry leaves: 3 stalks


Directions.

Boil Arbi in pressure cooker (on high (setting: 8) for 3 whistles).
Now, peel and cut into small pieces.
Mix arbi with all the spices and sprinkle little water (for spices to stick onto arbi).

Heat oil on the stove on sim (setting: 4).
Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Now, add urad dal and curry leaves.
Add spice mixed arbi and fry it till browned (about 15-20 minutes) (at the same sim setting),





potato fry

Serves: 4 people

Ingredients:
potatoes (boiled, peel and cut into small pieces): 1 pound
Chilli powder: 1 teaspoon.
Coriander powder: 1 teaspoon.
Salt: per taste
turmeric powder: 1/4 teaspoon
oil: 2 tablespoons.

Directions:
mix potatoes in a separate bowl with all the above men
tioned spices.
Heat the oil on sim (setting: 4).
Add cumin seeds.
Once cumin splutters, add potatoes with the spice mix.
now, fry them at the same sim heat setting for about 15 minutes.
Fry it for another 10 mins if you like it more fried.

Masala tea


Ingredients:

Tea masala powder: 1/2 heaping teaspoon (you can reduce this if you want the tea to be less strong)
(http://easyhappycooking.blogspot.com/2013/08/tea-masala-powder.html)
Tea leaves: 1/2 heaping teaspoon (you can reduce this if you want the tea to be less strong)
water: 1/2 cup
milk: 1/2 cup

Directions:
Boil water.
Once water boils, put masala powder and mix.
Then, add tea leaves and mix.
Now, add milk and sugar and let it come to a boiling point.

As soon as the mix starts to come to a boiling point, reduce the heat to sim and stir it continuously for the next 10 mins.
Now, turn off the heat and sieve the tea into a cup.

Tea masala powder

Ingredients:

Dry ginger: 250 gms.
Whole Elaichi: 1/2 cup (full heap)
Whole Peppercorns: 1/2 cup

In dhinchik, smash dry ginger.
Now, grind the smashed dry ginger and the other two ingredients and make into a fine powder.

This makes an extremely fragrant tea masala that makes your tea taste sooo goood!