Chicken Noodle Biriyani!

Hello darlings!! I have some news to share... I recently started at a new job! It is special, considering that I have been with the same company for 10 years now! I did get emotional when I left, I have to be honest, but then again, change never did any one any harm :)

This dish that I present to you today is something different too. We've had chicken, we've had noodles, and we have had biriyani (most of us any way!), but what happens when you combine the 3 of them together?

I glanced upon this dish by chance, and considering that all my muslim friends out there are looking for different varieties of dishes to break their fast with, I thought I should give this a try! So Safreena, Sherin, Natha, Safeera, Meera aunty and any more people I have missed, this is all for u guys!! Ramadan Kareem once again!!

INGREDIENTS   

• Chicken- 1 kilo- cut into small pieces
• Noodles- 2 packets (I used Koko, considering all the controversy surrounding Maggi at the moment!)
• Chicken stock- 1/2 cup (I used 2 Maggi chicken cubes)
• Turmeric powder- 1/2 teaspoon
• Red chilly powder- 1 tablespoon
• Coriander powder- 1 1/2 tablespoon
• Black pepper powder- 1 teaspoon
• Curd- 5 tablespoons
• Ginger garlic paste- 2 teaspoons
• Onion- 2 medium, sliced thinly
• Water- 1 cup boiling (enough to boil the chicken)
• Ghee- 2-3 tablespoons (You can alternatively use olive oil/vegetable oil for a healthier option)
• Bay leaves- 2
• Cloves- 2
• Cardamom seeds- 2
• Coriander leaves- garnish


METHOD


• Boil the chicken with salt and turmeric powder till it cooks through. This should take 20-25 minutes on a medium flame.Once boiled, let it cool and shred the chicken into fine pieces.
• Cook the noodles separately and drain out the excess water using a colander. This should take 5 minutes (follow the instructions on the packet).
• In a separate saucepan, heat the ghee, and to this, add the bay leaves, cloves and cardamom. Fry for few seconds.
• Add the ginger garlic paste followed by the onions and fry till they turn golden brown. Add a little salt at this stage to speed up the process.
• Mix the coriander, chilly and pepper powders in the curd and add this to the sauce pan. Reduce the flame at this stage and saute till it starts bubbling. This should take a few seconds. Add more salt at this stage.
• Add the shredded chicken at this stage and combine. Close the pan for about 5 minutes. 
• Finally add the noodles and mix together till everything gets combined thoroughly. 
• Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.

Now,wasn't that simple? This is the perfect dish to make when you have unexpected guests or simply want to break your fast with something different! Do try it out and let me know how it turns out.

Till next time, adios amigos and Ramadan Kareem!

Chicken Lollipop!

What's not to like about this dish...chicken and lollipop...what could possibly go wrong :) Jokes apart, this is something I have always wanted to try out, but never get around to doing due to some reason or the other...you know how it is, and considering how lazy I am, it did end up in the back burner for a while..until now.

So, when A finally requested this as the starter for his birthday menu, I jumped at the opportunity...well, literally anyway :D You actually get fresh chicken lollipops, which just need to be cleaned...something I never realized, probably because I haven't looked hard enough!

Which left me with trying to find a really good recipe...and for once, I was actually lost. I thought of looking around for the perfect chicken lollipop recipe, but then decided against it...why not go with the flow! So, I have come up with a recipe, which I am sure is more or less the standard way of making chicken lollipop fry, the difference being that this was cooked with absolutely no oil! I know I have been promising to do a review of the air fryer..and I will do it...trust me!! The air fryer requires absolutely no oil, which resulted in yummy, spicy and oil free chicken lollipop fry!

For now, on to the recipe....

INGREDIENTS                                                                                                   

• Chicken lollipops- 8 pieces
• Coriander powder- 1 tablespoon
• Garam masala powder- 1/2 teaspoon
• Red chilly powder- 2 teaspoons
• Corn flour- 4 teaspoons
• All purpose flour- 4 teaspoons
• Juice of 1 lemon

To grind

• Dried red chilies- 6 to 7 depending on how spicy you want the marinade
• Green chilies- 2 (optional)
• Ginger- 1/4 inch
• Coriander leaves
• Curd- 4-5 tablespoons

METHOD

• Clean the lollipops with some salt and vinegar to get rid of the raw smell. Wash them with water twice and the 3rd rinse should be done with salt and vinegar/lime juice to give a shiny and clean look to the chicken.
• Marinate the lollipops with the spice powders, corn and all purpose flours and the lemon juice.
• To this, add the "ground mixture". While grinding, ensure that no water is added, because the marinade already has a liquid consistency.
• Marinate the lollipops for at least 15 minutes to  a half hour.
• If using the saucepan, fry in about 5 tablespoons of oil for about 3-4 minutes on either side, till both sides are sufficiently golden brown.
• If using the oven, roast the lollipops for about 20 minutes, 10 minutes on either side, in a 180 degree oven, preheated for 10 minutes.
• If using the air fryer, roast for 12 minutes at 190 degrees.

And that's it...scrumptious chicken lollipops are ready! Serve hot!!

A few pointers to keepin mind...the only reason I added the chilly powder was for some color. Green chilies, as mentioned above, are totally optional. The end result for me was spicy, but to each his own.

Do try this out and let me know how it turns out! Till next time, adios amigos and God bless!

Roast Peri Peri Chicken!

I have this weird habit...if I see someone eating something appealing and that I cannot have at that moment, I need to make it that very same day! I guess we all have our weird little ways..he he!

Just yesterday, in fact, a colleague of mine was the inspiration of this particular recipe, coz she was having this absolutely divine looking roasted chicken leg and I knew, then and there, I needed to have it. Of course, I had to be a bit civilized and not snatch it from her hand (now that would have been something!), so I decided to hold off just an hour longer till I got home and set about making this.

In actual fact, this dish is just a typical one pot meal that takes hardly any time for preparation and just a wee bit time in the oven, but the end result is absolutely succulent, divinely gorgeous chicken...and you've hardly spend any time at all int he kitchen!

On to the recipe then, am sure you must be hungry already!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 whole chicken, defrosted and cleaned thoroughly. Do not remove the skin, that's where all the taste is!
• 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste (I used store bought, if using fresh, mash half a ginger and a clove of garlic)
• 1 tablespoon red chilly flakes
• 1 tablespoon peri peri sauce (or you can use 1 tablespoon hot sauce)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 potato, sliced into wedges
• 1 carrot, sliced thinly
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Olive oil (to apply at the base of the baking dish and over the chicken, approx 3 tablespoons)

METHOD

• Marinate the cleaned chicken with the ginger and garlic paste. red chilly flakes, lemon juice, salt and pepper thoroughly. Apply inside the chicken as well to enhance the taste. Keep this aside for 15 minutes to half an hour.
• Apply olive oil at the base of the baking dish and over the chicken and place into the oven.
• I use a gas oven, so I placed the chicken at gas mark, and this was NOT pre heated. 
• After 25 minutes on one side, turn over and roast the other side.
• 5 minutes before taking the chicken out, place potatoes and carrots in the baking dish. They should take not more than 5 to 8 minutes to roast.
• Switch off the oven, wait for 5 minutes and take out the chicken.

Tada, delicious peri peri roast chicken (or the other way around!) is ready!

Now, was'nt that easy? Try it out and let me know how it turns out!

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!

Grandma's chicken curry!

Seeing the title of my post, you must be probably thinking that this is how my grandma cooks chicken curry. She probably did, I'm not sure. I actually got this recipe from "Kiran TV", and thought it looked pretty interesting. Probably a bit time consuming but definitely worth it. And of course, being the lazy bugger that I am, I did resort to a few short cut methods. Trust me though, it was scrumptious. I normally use onions only for my chicken curry, but here I have used a combination of both shallots and onions. Perhaps, the biggest surprise I had was the fact that there were no tomatoes used for this curry. In fact, nothing tangy whatsoever. And since I always like my curries tangy, I improvised and added some lemon juice. So, curious about the dish? Read on then...

INGREDIENTS- For Marination

•  500 gms chicken
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons red chilly powder
• 2 teaspoons coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
• Pinch of fennel seeds (optional)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt to taste

INGREDIENTS- For Cooking

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 10 shallots-finely chopped
• 1 medium sized onion-finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons ginger garlic paste
• 3 green chillies finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon red chilly powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1 cup thin coconut milk
• 1 cup thick coconut milk
• 1/4 cup water
• Salt to taste

INGREDIENTS- For Garnish

• 5 tablespoons coconut grated
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 dried red chillies (optional- I did not use this)
• 2 tablespoons oil

METHOD

• Clean the chicken thoroughly. The final wash should be with vinegar, salt and lemon juice to get rid of the smell and to have a nice glaze.
• Marinate the chicken with the ingredients under "For Marination" and set aside. Set this aside before you start chopping the shallots,ginger,garlic and green chillies. It should be marinated for at least 20 minutes.
• Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds.
• Add chopped shallots and onion followed by the ginger garlic paste and green chillies. Saute till the raw smell disappears and the onions start to turn brown. Add salt and curry leaves at this stage.
• Once the onions have turned brown, reduce the flame and add the turmeric, coriander,black pepper and garam masala powders.
• After a minute add the red chilly powder.
• Once they cook, add water and saute till the oil separates from the spices.
• Now add the thin coconut milk. For this, mix 2 1/2 tablespoons coconut milk powder with 1 cup hot water.
• Cover and cook on a medium flame for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Once the chicken is cooked, check salt levels.
• Now add the thick coconut milk and wait for it to just boil once. Switch off the flame.
• In a frying pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and fry curry leaves and coconut till it turns brown.
• Add this to the chicken curry and mix in.

  Tada, grandma's chicken curry is ready. I have taken just one. I feel that the curry covers the whole chicken. Sorry about that. Next pics will be more clear, promise!

You can have this with appam, chapathys, bread or even rice. Try it out and let me know how it turns out! BTW, in case you haven't noticed, The stats have crossed 1200 and we're still going. So on that note, I would like to dedicate this recipe to all you lovely people out there. Love u guys!! God bless!

Chicken in roasted gravy!

Good morning all...hope u guys are doing good today! This is a recipe I have been wanting to do for quite some time actually..and I finally got the opportunity yesterday. You would probably have heard of Maria's Menu? Who has'nt, eh? if you haven't, you should check her out at http://www.mariasmenu.com/. Trust me, you wont regret it. But at the same time, please don't ignore this poor soul :P. Anyways, this recipe is from her blog. So, Maria, this one's for you girl! Here we go...

INGREDIENTS

• Chicken- 1/2 kilo (500 gms)
• Onions- 2 1/2 medium sized- finely chopped
• 6-8 shallots (kunjulli)- finely chopped
• Garlic- 3 cloves, chopped
• Ginger- 1/4" piece, chopped
• Tomato- 1 medium or 2 small- chopped
• Ginger-Garlic paste- 1 teaspoon
• Red chilly powder- 2 1/2 teaspoons
• Coriander powder- 1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon
• Black pepper powder- 2 teaspoons
• Garam masala powder- 1/2 teaspoon
• Fennel powder (perinjeerakam powder)- 1/2 teaspoon
• Water- 1/2 cup
• Oil -2 tablespoons
• Salt to taste

METHOD

• Marinate the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon red chilly powder, 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon black pepper powder, 1/2 teaspoon ginger garlic paste and salt. Keep this aside for 15-20 minutes.
• In the sauce pan, heat oil and add shallots.
• Wait till they turn slightly brown, before adding the onions.
• Saute till the onions turn dark brown. Add a little salt at this stage. Ensure they don't get burnt. This should take upto 7 minutes on a medium flame.
• Add the ginger and garlic and saute for another 2 minutes till you get a nice aroma.
• Now add all your masala powders and reduce the flame so as to not burn the powders.
• Add tomatoes and saute till they get nicely mashed.
• Now add the water and salt.
• Add chicken pieces and cook for 5 minutes on a medium flame.
• Now reduce the flame and cover the chicken and cook for another 15-20 minutes till the chicken is done.
• Garnish with curry leaves.

So, what do you think? Do try it out and leave behind your thoughts.

BTW, neetustastytreats is now on google plus!! Woohoo!! You can leave your feedback there too! So till next time, take care and God bless! Am sending this over to the Master Chef Event, http://youtoocancookindianfood.blogspot.ca/2012/05/my-first-event-master-chef-contest-win.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20YouTooCanCook%20(You%20Too%20Can%20Cook), hosted by Divya Pramil, who has a lovely blog, http://youtoocancookindianfood.blogspot.ca/. Fingers crossed!

Kerala special chicken fry!

Remember my very first post on this blog? That's right, my oil free chicken curry. From oil free, we are going to take a giant leap forward to a chicken fry that relies heavily on oil. So for all those health conscious people, who have even the slightest issue with oil and cholesterol and all that jazz, you can stop right here. For the rest of you who beleive in living life to the fullest, go ahead :)

In Kerala, we have "Toddy shops" or as we say in Malayalam, "kallushaap". Aaahhh...the very word makes me drool. My first experience at a toddy shop was because of my dear sister in law and brother in law. I can still remember every dish we had there. Right from the "puttu and duck curry" to the beef. But one thing we did miss there was some real authentic chicken fry. This recipe is from a popular show on a Malayalam channel titled "Asianet". The program is called "Foodpath" and hosted by one of my favorite anchors Raj Kalesh. I made a few minor changes to the recipe, just because of the non availability of the ingredients where I live, but the end result was truly scrumptious. Naveen and Amy, this one's for you guys!

INGREDIENTS

• 500 gms chicken, cut into medium pieces
• 1 medium sized onion, finely sliced
• 4 cloves of garlic crushed
• 1 small piece ginger crushed
• 2 1/2 teaspoons red chilly powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• Juice of 1 small lemon
• 1/4 cup oil
• Salt to taste
• Curry leaves, garnish

METHOD

• Wash the chicken pieces thoroughly. The final wash should be with vinegar and lemon juice to give the chicken a glaze.
• Marinate this with the lemon juice for 10 minutes to soften the pieces.
• Next marinate it with garlic, ginger,chilly powder, pepper powder, turmeric powder and sufficient salt. Keep this aside for at least half hour to 45 minutes.
• Take sufficient oil for deep frying. For me, this was a 1/4 cup, but some people may require more.
• Once the oil is sufficiently hot, lower the flame to medium. Add a few curry leaves.
• Now add chicken pieces. Each side should take approx 5-7 minutes.
• When the chicken is almost cooked, drain out the excess oil and set aside.
• Now, in the same oil, fry the sliced onion till golden brown. Ensure to reduce the oil. I used only about 4 tablespoons.
• Once the onions are brown, add the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes on medium flame.
• Drain out the excessive oil and garnish with curry leaves.

Tada, special "kallushaap" chicken fry is ready! Don't you want to see how it looks like?

I've garnished this with a few onion and curry leaves...

So, what do you think? The best way to know if your chicken's cooked sufficiently, is when it starts falling of the bone...but then again, you probably know that..:).

Do try this out and tell me how it turned out!

Oil Free Chicken Curry!

Hey you guys! Ok, for those of you'll who've been wondering why my blog was up for a week without any recipes, I do have a good excuse...You see, I am based in Dubai, but my job requires me to travel sometimes. So currently I am in Canada, and was getting my bearings straightened out. But now I'm good to go! So, here goes my first recipe. This one's dedicated to my dear man, A, who stood by me when I came up with the idea of a blog. It's also for all those of my friends and family who believed in me when i told them about my idea. So Smi, Renu, Erin, this one's for u guys too. Most importantly, the people who helped me create this blog, my lil cousins, Samantha and Shaiba. So, that's it for my lil speech.tee hee! On with the recipe. 


As the name suggests, I have created this with absolutely zero oil, trust me! And you know what, it actually tasted good. So here we are...

INGREDIENTS

• 1 kilo chicken, cut into medium pieces, cleaned properly. i recommend you wash it with salt and vinegar for that extra "glow".
• 3 medium sized onions, chopped finely
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of ginger garlic paste. If using normal ginger and garlic, a medium sized ginger and approx 4-5 garlic cloves crushed using a grinder or a mortar and pestle.
• 4 chilies, slit in half
• 2 tomatoes chopped in small cubes
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder
• 2 tablespoons red chilly powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper powder
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder
• 1 cup curd. For me a cup would mean about 4 tablespoons. Those of you'll who love curd, go ahead and use 5. Bear in mind the curd should not be too sour.
• Salt to taste.
• Coriander leaves to garnish

METHOD

In a saucepan, combine all the ingredients in the order mentioned above, except for the coriander leaves, and cook on a medium flame for approx 35 minutes, or till the chicken is done. Tada, oil free chicken curry is ready! Garnish generously with coriander leaves.



Closeup of the curry



And that's my lunch plate :)

 Ok, I apologise if the shots are not too professional..but hey I'm just getting started! I promise, I shall get better. In the mean time, do try out my dish and let me know what you guys think. I promise, you wont regret it :)