Mutton Curry ~ Kerala Style!

Yipee, my first mutton curry recipe!! I bought some mutton the day before and was dying to make it, coz it has been so long since I had some nice mutton curry. It's at these times that I truly miss mom :(...so i tried to recreate her magic in the kitchen. When she makes mutton curry, she doesent use coconut milk, but here I added some just to make the curry even more richer than it already is. The result was truly scrumptious, no where near mom's though. So, here we are...hope u guys like this!

INGREDIENTS

• 500 gms mutton, finely cubed
• 2 onions- medium, thinly sliced
• 1/4 inch piece ginger, chopped roughly
• 3 green chillies, slit through the middle
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped roughly
• 2 teaspoons red chilly powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• Turmeric powder- A pinch
• Garam masala (All spice powder)- 1 teaspoon
• 2 tomatoes -cut into small cubes
• 300 ml coconut milk (4 teaspoons coconut milk powder with a quarter cup hot water)
• Salt to taste
• Oil- 1 1/2 tablespoons
• Curry leaves- Garnish

METHOD

• Heat oil in a pan. Once it is sufficiently hot, add the garlic, ginger and chillies and fry for a minute till they give out a nice aroma.
• Add onions and saute till they turn slightly transparent and the raw smell goes. Add a little salt to cook them faster.
• Mix the turmeric, chilly and coriander powders with 2 tablespoons water and add this to the pan. Fry for a minute till the raw smell goes. Reduce the flame slightly at this stage.
• Add the garam masala powder and fry for another minute.
• Now, add the tomatoes and mix till the tomatoes get properly mashed.
• Add the mutton pieces and cover for about 10 minutes on a low flame till the mutton pieces become slightly brown.
• Now, add the coconut milk and increase the flame till it boils properly. Then reduce the flame and let it simmer for another 40 minutes or till the mutton gets cooked.
• Garnish with curry leaves.

Tada, mutton curry is ready. Most people cook using a pressure cooker, but I prefer cooking in the pot, as I feel it tastes better. Alright, picture time..

For the more health conscious people, you can avoid adding the coconut milk and just cook it in water instead. That tastes great too. So anyways, do try this out and let me know your thoughts. This tastes great with chapathys, naan, bread and even rice. Coupled with some cucumber and curd salad, purrrfect!! God bless!

Sending this over to

Dish Name Starts with M

Image courtesy: Google Images

Traditional Kerala chicken curry [Trissur style]!

Off late, I have been afflicted with a disease..it's called home sickness..:(. Symptoms are laziness, boredom, mood swings, sleepless nights, and the tendency to get a bear hug. I know, I know, I just came back from  vacation, but hey, I'm only human, right? I have feelings too. I so badly wanna see A. In this day and age, thanks to technology and a certain Mr. Steve Jobs, we have been able to see each other and talk regularly. Then comes the issue of the time difference. By the time I get home, he's fast asleep, miles away in Dubai. Oh well, enough already. I decided to buck up and do a bit of cooking to cheer myself up. Browsing through the net, I came across http://www.yummyoyummy.com/, run by Maya and Akhila, and thought that the curry looked pretty interesting. So, I decided to give it a try and am sure glad I did! So Maya and Akhila, this one's for you guys!

INGREDIENTS

• Chicken - 900 gms (almost 1 kilo)
• Onions- 2 medium, thinly sliced
• Ginger garlic paste- 1 teaspoon
• Green chillies- 3 slit through the middle
• Turmeric powder- 1/2 teaspoon
• Red Chilly powder- 1 teaspoon
• Coriander powder- 1 teaspoon
• Black pepper powder- 1/2 teaspoon
• Garam masala powder (All spice powder) - 1/2 teaspoon
• Tomatoes - 1 medium or 2 small, chopped in cubes
• 1/2 cup thick coconut milk
• Shallots for garnish
• Salt- As required
• Curry leaves- garnish
• Oil - 1 1/2 tablespoons

METHOD

• Marinate the chicken pieces with 1/2 teaspoon red chilly powder, pinch of turmeric powder and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper powder. Keep this aside for at least 1/2 an hour.
• Heat oil in a sauce pan. Once the oil is sufficiently hot, add the finely sliced onions and saute till they turn golden. Add a little salt at this stage.
• Add the green chilies and ginger garlic paste and saute till you get a nice aroma. 
• Now add the remaining turmeric and chilly powders followed by the coriander powder and fry for a minute.
• Now add the tomatoes and saute till they get mashed completely. If you want, you can add 2 tablespoons of water at this stage. Chicken releases water when it gets cooked. Check salt levels at this stage.
• Add the chicken pieces, cover and cook on a low to medium flame for about 30 minutes or till the chicken is done.
• Once the chicken is done, add the thick coconut milk and lower the flame. After one boil, switch off the flame.
• In a  separate frying pan, heat oil, and fry chopped shallots(4-5) and curry leaves till the shallots turn brown.
• Pour this over the gravy and close the pan immediately.

Superb chicken curry is ready. Here are the pics...

I tried to rotate the pics, but for some reason, it did not work :(. They're taken straight from the pan, for a more authentic feel. So, what do you think? Check it out n let me know, k?

Sending this over to "The Master Chef Contest" hosted by Rekha. Wish me luck! (http://youtoocancookindianfood.blogspot.ca/2012/05/my-first-event-master-chef-contest-win.html)

God bless!

Vengaya Kara Kuzhambu!

The recipe that I am going to post today makes me a little nostalgic..takes me back to my college years in fact. So, if you feel that I am being a bit too sentimental, please do forgive. Life has a funny way of teaching us things. When we are in school, we want to break free from rules and enjoy in college. In college, we desperately want to get a job and earn fast cash. When we have a job and realize the pressures involved in getting a promotion, we just want to start all over again. At least, that's the case for me.

I had 3 best friends in college..Renuka, Bhuvana and Namitha. We all studied together in Chennai. This particular recipe takes me to the college canteen where we used to sit and laugh and share those good old days. Everyone's married and settled now but am sure that the good old memories will never be forgotten. This recipe is a dedication to my 3 friends and also Nags, from whose blog, Edible Garden, this recipe was borrowed. The original recipe is Vengaya Kara Kuzhambu (with Coconut Milk) Recipe, but my version is below, without the sambar powder. Enjoi!

INGREDIENTS

• 15 shallots, peeled and cleaned. Do not chop them.
• 1 tomato, finely cubed
• Juice from one lemon sized ball of tamarind (Soak tamarind in 1/4 cup of water for 10 minutes)
• 2 teaspoons red chilly powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (all spice) powder
• Salt to taste
• Pinch of fenugreek seeds
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 cup thick coconut milk

METHOD

• Heat oil and splutter fenugreek seeds.
• Once fenugreek seeds turn brown, add the whole shallots and chopped tomato and saute for a few minutes till the raw smell disappears.
• Add the tamarind paste, all the spice powders and salt.
• After one boil, simmer the gravy for about 12 minutes till the shallots have become soft.
• Now add the coconut milk and wait for it to boil once before switching off the flame.

As simple as that! You can have this with just about anything, but rice is the best combination. Here are the pics..

On the stove!

A portion of my dinner!

As you can see, the gravy is extremely light coloured because of the coconut milk. You can increase the quantity of spices if you wish, but I feel this was perfect. Till next time, take care and God bless!

Boatman's Fish Curry!

Hello my dear friends!!! I am so glad to be blogging again..well, you guessed it..am back from vacation! Time just flew by..and I'll have to wait another 7 weeks before seeing A again. So, in the mean time, I'll just have to continue being occupied with my blog, and talking to all you lovely people out there!

It's time for my all time fave food again, fish! And this time, I prepared it in the way they make it on houseboats. The recipe is courtesy Amrita TV from one of my favorite programs, Taste of Kerala! I have to warn you though, this is an extremely spicy fish curry, so it's best you have it with some rice and moru kachiyathu. The best way to prepare this would be in an earthern pot or as we mallus call it, a mann chatti. I had to make do with the normal saucepan, but the taste was incredible. You can find the recipe of moru in my blog. I decided to experiment with a new fish this time, haddock. This is an extremely tender and incredibly tasty fish and i was glad I took a chance, it was totally worth it! So, enough blabbing, onwards with the recipe..

INGREDIENTS

• 600 gms haddock fillets (you can use king fish, black pomfret, salmon, sardines)
• 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• 12 shallots, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon ginger, finely sliced
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons red chilly powder
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 5-6 pieces kudampuli (camboge or fish tamarind)- In case you don't have this, you can use vaalan puli or the normal tamarind. You have to soak it for at least 15 minutes in warm water and squeeze out the pulp. If using this, you will require at least 4 tablespoons of the pulp.
• 1 cup water
• Salt to taste
• Coconut oil, for cooking
• Curry leaves, garnish

METHOD

• In an earthern pot or saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil and add fenugreek seeds. Ensure the seeds do not get burnt, else it gives the curry a bitter taste.
• Once the seeds have turned slightly brown, add the ginger and garlic. Saute for 30 seconds till the raw smell goes.
• Add the chopped shallots and saute till the raw smell goes. Add a little salt at this stage.
• Make a paste of the chilly and turmeric powders and add this to the pan. Pour in some hot water to the bowl containing the paste, and add this, so as not to waste any of the paste. Saute this and reduce the flame while doing so to ensure that the powders don't get burnt. Wait till the oil starts appearing on top. 
• Add the camboge pieces or tamarind pulp at this stage along with some salt. 
• At this stage, if you feel the gravy is not enough, you can add 1 cup of water. You can add more water depending on the amount of gravy you require. I added only 1.
• Once the gravy starts boiling, check salt levels.
• Add the fish pieces gently, and rotate the pan. Avoid using the spoon so as to not break the fish pieces.
• After it boils initially, reduce the flame to low and cook uncovered for about 10-12 minutes. Ensure that you do not cover the dish as the taste reduces.
• The gravy will begin to thicken after 10 minutes, and the fish would have sufficiently cooked.
• Switch off the flame and garnish with curry leaves and a tablespoon of oil.

Tada, scrumptious fish curry is ready! Notice that I asked to cook the curry uncovered. That's the beauty of this dish, and it lasts longer too, even if you don't refrigerate it. What's that? Pics, you say? Your wish is my command :)

And one with my rice..

So, what do you think? You can reduce the spiciness if you want by adding just 2 tablespoons of red chilly powder. Then again, what's life without a little spice? :) Do try this out and let me know what you think, k? So till next time, adios amigos, take care and God bless!