Spicy Chicken Burgers (Simply delightful and very satisfying)

Hi everyone! I am so glad to be posting again. Last week was a good week food-wise . I tried out a few new recipes and they turned out pretty neat. One of them was this burger recipe that was a complete hit. Recently I have taken to watching re-runs of 30 Minute Meals by Rachel Ray and there is something about that show that really inspires me to just get up and spend time in the kitchen trying out recipes. It's probably Rachel enthusiasm on the show and the very homly no-fuss dinners that she makes that I find very appealing. So a few days back I saw her cook some burgers and cole slaw and I decided then that I wanted to cook burgers for dinner too. I already had chicken in the fridge. But I also wanted really spicy burgers.

So I surfed the net for some good burger recipes and was completely impressed by a recipe put up by Kevin on his blog Closet Cooking. Its a fab idea to use curry powder for burgers. My family just loved these burgers, so thanks Kevin for a great recipe.I tweaked it a bit here and there to suit my taste and it came out awesome.

What you need:

500 gms chicken mince (you could buy chicken breast and mince it in your processor)

4 spring onions finely chopped,

1 cup finely chopped coriander

1 tblspn minced ginger

1 tblspn minced garlic

1 cup bread crumbs

2 tspns lemon zest,

4 tspns hot curry powder,

2 tspns chilly powder,

2 to 3 tblspns tomato ketchup

salt to taste

To assemble the burger you need:

Burger Buns,

Mayonnaise,

Lettuce

Tomato slices

Cheese slices

Ketchup or Hot Jalapeno Relish

Method:

Mix all the above ingredients well , but do not overmix. Use a gentle hand. This prevents the chicken patties from drying out.

Shape them into equal sized patties shallow fry for 10 to 12 mins turning them once over half-way through.

Assemble the burgers as you like and enjoy with some oven chips and a glass of icy coke.

ENJOY!!!! I know we did

Delicious Butter Chicken with the Restaurant Taste

Hi everyone ! So Diwali is behind us now and so are all the rich sweets and treats. So it's time for something different now. I tried out this Butter Chicken a few days back and it turned out pretty good and tasted just like the restaurant one we get in India. I checked out a recipe from http://www.videojug.com/ which is a fabulous site with very clear and step-by-step easy videos on how to make lots and lots of delicious recipes. Do check it out yourself sometime. I almost followed the entire recipe just as shown except for one step, and that is regarding pre-cooking the chicken. On videojug they have sauteed the chicken before adding it to the curry but I find that makes the chicken very chewy. So I grilled the chicken breasts in the oven until completely cooked and then cut them into bitesize pieces.

You will need…
2 chicken breasts,
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
¼ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp garlic, crushed
1 tsp ginger, crushed
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder
2 tbsp ground almonds
220 g can of whole peeled tomatoes/ or chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp natural yoghurt
2 tbsp fresh coriander or spinach, chopped , 1 heaped tblspn kasoori methi (which was not in the original recipe )
salt and pepper

Method:
Step 1:
Smother the chicken breasts with the vegetable oil and season well with salt and pepper
Step 2:
Grill the chicken breasts in the oven at approx 200 deg C for around 30 mins or until completely cooked .
Step 3: After removing from oven let it rest for a few minutes before cutting it into bite-size pieces and put it aside
Step 4:
In a frying pan melt the butter.
Step 5:
Fry the onion with the cinnamon.
Now add the onion and cinnamon and fry together in the pan.
Step 6:
Add the remaining ingredients.
At this point add the crushed garlic, crushed ginger, turmeric, chilli powder, almonds, peeled tomatoes, tomato paste and the natural yoghurt. Stir all of the ingredients together and mix thoroughly.
Step 7:
Bring to the boil and cook.
Bring the ingredients to a boil and stir for 4-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Step 8:
Add the chicken.
Put the chicken back into the pan and combine with the other ingredients.

In last stage of cooking add the kasoori methi. Before adding it microwave it for a few seconds and then crush it slightly between your fingers to release it's flavour.
Step 9:
Add the fresh coriander.
To compliment the dish, garnish with coriander,or fresh spinach ,or finely chopped spring onions and mix with the sauce.
Step 10:
Serve steaming hot and eat up with Naan Bread or Rice!

Delicious Chicken Wraps (Like they say"No one can eat just one")

I am a cook of varying moods. I guess we all are to some extent. What I cook each day is to some extent ruled by my mood on that particular day. Many people get the impression that because I run a food blog I am completely besotted by cooking and the kitchen. But that's not always true.
I have also read and heard people say that cooking is relaxing. Not for me. It can be very exhausting at times .I feel cooking can be relaxing only if you do it once in a while. It also depends on where you are when you are cooking. For eg: cooking in the UK where the weather is mostly cool is OK. It does not make you all hot and flushed. But I have also cooked in Pune and Mumbai where the temperatures are soaring quite often and cooking is the last thing you want to do in such weather . And that too Indian cooking which has you standing at the hob for at least an hour doing all the stirring and frying and rolling out piles and piles of chapatis. Not a thing I relish always.

So when I have one "I don't want to cooking moods" what do I do? Well , the answer to that is not always easy. Sometimes I have to go through the entire rigmarole because that's the healthiest option for everyone in the family. But not to worry , there are other healthy options as well . And this dish today always comes up trumps with my family. There is minimum fuss with maximum taste and you don't even have to switch on the gas if you have shop bought cooked chicken.

What you need is:
For 4 people:
8 tortilla wraps (I buy "wheat and white")
approx 3 cups cooked chicken (shredded)
hummous
mayonnaise
3 grated carrots
lots of fresh crisp lettuce
hot peri peri sauce (or any other hot sauce)
grated cheddar cheese

Method:
First spread generous amounts of hummous on a wrap
Next spread the shredded chicken,
Top this with grated carrot and crispy lettuce
Dot it with hot peri peri sauce and sprinkle the grated cheddar last
Roll up the tortilla tightly and cut into 3 or 4 pieces to make it easier to eat.

There you have a healthy and hearty meal ready without having to toil over the cooker hob for hours. If you wish have your favourite soup along with it (that too a canned one ) to make the meal even more filling. You can replace the chicken with canned tuna or mackerel and vegetarians can replace the chicken with paneer.

Enjoy

A very quick and very delicious rice

On weekdays I eat my lunch alone. Hubby and son both having carried their packed lunches along with them are never at home for lunch on a weekday. Now I am a person who loves one dish non-fussy meals. Hubby being a bit of a traditionalist where eating is concerned likes elaborate meals and so when I cook a Maharashtrian meal for the three of us (which is every evening ) I cook Bhaji, Amti, Chapatis some form of Koshimbir or salad and sometimes rice. It takes about an hour and a half to cook all this from scratch. Gets a bit monotonous when you have to do it almost everyday, though I admit I do prepare pasta and garlic bread and stuff like that and all three of us are very happy eating that too. Why wouldn't we be?

But then when I eat alone I try to make food that requires minimum amount of time cooking but is at the same time filling, nutritious and full on flavour. No compromise there. Some days back I made this rice with whatever was available in my fridge. I was surprised at how good it tasted. It was hot, spicy, sweet and sour all at the same time. And although I couldn't wait to dig in I had the good sense to take a picture of the dish. And am I glad I did. I can share it with all of you today.

Ingredients:

3 cups leftover cooked rice,

1 onion sliced,

1 tblspn readymade garlic paste from a bottle

1 cup cooked and shredded chicken,

1 cup assorted diced vegetables (capsicum, carrots,peas corn, sugar snap peas)

2 spring onions finely chopped,

2 tblspns tomato ketchup,

2 tblspns soya sauce,

1 stock cube of OXO veg,

salt to taste

Oil to cook

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a wok, and stir fry the sliced onion ,garlic and all the veggies until cooked but still with a bite to them

2. Next add and stir in the shredded chicken and crush and sprinkle the OXO stock cube over it. As the chicken is already cooked it does not require any further cooking.

3. Now add the rice, both the sauces and salt. Toss it all well but with a light hand. As a final touch add the chopped spring onions . These come at the end as a garnish.

Your rice is ready to eat. You can replace the chicken with scrambled eggs or skip both and make it completely vegetarian. The star ingredient here is the tomato ketchup. That is what lends the rice that awesome flavour. It is bit of cheating but who is complaining.

Vegetable and Chicken Stew (A very satisfying combo)

Last whole week has been a nightmare. I mean something like a boiler breakdown in mid November leaving you with no hot water and no central heating is something that happens only on TV commercials where they are tying to persuade you to to purchase one particular brand of boiler, right? Wrong! It happens . It happened to us. Seven days ago the boiler made a series of very threatening sounds and then went completely silent. Result: No Central heating and no hot water running from the taps. Total nightmare.

The CH problem has been temporarily solved with a portable electric heater which our kind home-owner provided us with but no hot water means taking a bath with only one small bucketful of water ; water that has been heated in a big pot on the gas hob, no showers , and washing up the dishes all other pots and pans in ice cold water , which is ice cold even with rubber gloves on.

My one major concern was doing up the washing up in the evening after dinner. The idea of washing dishes in cold water in the evening is something I just could not bear. So I decided that till I had this problem I would cook dishes that would be one dish meals ,could be cooked in one big pot and eaten in disposable plates or bowls.
Now a thick soup is something all of us love at home. So I knew this stew would definitely be agreeable to all three of us. It's yummy, very filling, nutritious and the perfect thing to eat with a piece of nice crusty bread on a very wintry evening.

So Stew it was: A vegetable and chicken stew made with frozen veggies and small chunks of chicken.
Ingredients:
3 cups of mixed frozen vegetables (the variety I had was peas , carrots, corn and beans)
1 cup finely diced chestnut mushrooms (use any other you like)
1/2 cup shredded cabbage,
1/2 cup cooked rice (I had some leftover in the fridge)
1 onion finely chopped,
2 cloves of garlic crushed,
2 cups of chicken cubed (uncooked)
2 cubes of OXO chicken stock (use any brand you prefer)
5 cups of water
1 tblspn cornflour
2 tblspn butter (can be replaced with 3 tblspns of oil)
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
1. Heat the butter in a saucepan and saute the onion and garlic for a few minutes on a moderate heat until they are light brown in colour.
2. Add all the other vegetables in there frozen form , cabbage and the chopped mushrooms.
3. Next add the cubed chicken and saute until chicken turns white on the outside.
4. Add all the water now and bring to a boil. (The quantity of water is approx ,add more if you like) . When the water reaches a boil crush the stock cubes in it stir well and lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes or until chicken pieces are completely cooked .
5. Now mix the cornflour in a small amount of cold water and add this to the stew. Keep simmering until the stew thickens. At this stage add the cooked rice. Then add salt and pepper to taste and serve hot with big chunks of warm crusty bread.

This a very heart -warming stew. Children love it and is also great for people recovering from any illness. And of course great when you have no hot water to do the washing up:;)

Chicken Frankie (Dadar Shivaji Park style)

All those who have eaten a Chicken Frankie at the Tibbs outlet at Shivaji Park Dadar in Mumbai will agree with me when I say that the frankie you get there is surpassed by none. It's spicy ,hot ,tangy and the outer roll is filled with the most delicious and tender spicy chicken. If you have just spent a whole morning shopping in Dadar, and are looking for some great tasting food to replenish your energy conserves so that you can shop some more later then this is the place to head for. After reading this you might be under the impression that I am a regular there, but the fact is that I have frequented that place only twice in my life, but the taste was so awesome that every time I think of Frankies that's the only place I remember.

So some days back when I made these at home I tried my level best to replicate the taste and must say I did succeed to some extent. After all some things always taste best when eaten at the road side. I am sure you all agree.

But here's how I went about it:

To make about 6 frankies you will need:

250 gms boneless chicken cut into bite size pieces,

puree of 2 tomatoes,

1 onion finely chopped,

4 to 5 cloves of garlic crushed,

1 inch piece of ginger finely grated,

1.5 tspn amchoor powder (dry mango powder)

1 tspn chilly powder, (more if you want it hotter)

1 tspn garam masala,

1/2 tspn coriander powder,

1/2 tspn cumin powder,

3 to 4 tblspns fresh coriander chopped

1 tblspn fresh mint coarsely chopped

2 to 3 tblspns oil

salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a saute pan and fry the garlic ginger for a minute,

2. Add to that the chopped onion and fry further till onion is golden,

3. Next add the tomato puree and all the spice powders except for the amchoor ( chilly, cumin , coriander and garam masala) ,

4. Now cook on a moderate flame till the tomato is thoroughly cooked and as lost some of its moisture,

5. Add the chicken pieces at this stage and cook further adding a little amount of water if needed . We want a moist filling for the frankie but not a runny one (Chicken will take about 4 to 5 minutes to cook. Don't overcook as the chicken will go dry and rubbery),

6. Once the chicken is cooked add the amchoor, fresh coriander, mint and salt and give it a stir. Give it a taste and set aside.

For the outer Roll:

You need:

1 cup wholemeal flour and 1 cup plain flour (maida)

1 tspn salt

1 tblspn oil

Mix all the above ingredients into a soft dough.

This dough will make about 6 large wraps or chapatis

Roll out the wraps one at a time and half roast them.

When all the wraps are cooked keep them covered till you need them. Also keep at hand 2 eggs .

For the salad stuffing:

1 onion thinly sliced,

1 cup cabbage thinly sliced,

1 cup shredded lettuce,

2 tspns lemon juice,

1/2 tspn chilly powder,

a pinch of salt

Now to assemble the frankie:

1. Break one egg into a bowl and lightly beat it. Heat the tawa (flat pan) and spray a little oil on it . Place one wrap on the hot tawa and brush it generously with some egg . Flip the wrap onto the other side and let the egg cook well. This will form a delicious egg coating on the inside of the wrap.

2. Remove the wrap from the tawa. In the centre of the wrap place 2 tblspns of the chicken stuffing and some of the raw salad stuffing. Dot it with any spicy sauce of your choice and roll it up into a fabulous frankie.

3 Repeat the procedure with all the other wraps..

That's it. You can now dig in. Just make plenty of wraps and filling as everyone is going to ask for seconds and thirds and maybe even fourths.

Enjoy!

Steamed Veggie and Chicken Salad

Wow!

This must be the longest unplanned break I have taken from blogging. Normally nothing would keep me away from my blog,absolutely nothing. But this long break has been caused by the fact that I have put myself on a diet and I am currently not cooking any fancy stuff that I normally do at least once a week . You might say "Oh ,but Anupama you could blog about so many delicious low-fat recipes!" But the truth is I have not tried out any such. And quite frankly I don't feel like. I mean the ordinary maharashtrian everyday food is so simple and low fat that I don't find the need to make any special diet recipes. So currently I am enjoying our normal Poli ,Bhaji, Aamti ,Koshimbir fare accompanied by loads of very thin taak (buttermilk) with the odd roasted papad thrown in for variety .

But then yesterday when I opened my blog and saw those same old Suralchya Wadya on the front page I myself promptly shut off my blog and went on to see some other site. I mean they have been there forever now and I will absolutely not blame all you bloggo-buddies out there if you never come to my blog ever again .

But now Diet or No-Diet I am ready again to share with all of you something fantastic that is so easy to make ,very nutritious and also a treat for the taste buds. I ate this salad for the first time after my marriage when my MiL made it. (Ofcourse she made it only with veggies)I just loved it. It looks quite like Russian Salad which I had in a restaurant once but was not too crazy about. It tasted too sweet. Over the years I have tweaked the recipe a bit to our liking.

It's low in calories and made with absolutely no-fuss ingredients which are normally available in all kitchens.

What you need:

1 medium potato peeled and cut into small cubes,

1 medium carrot also peeled and cut into small cubes,

1/2 a cup of small cauliflower florets,

1/2 a cup of french beans finely cut,

1/2 a cup cooked red kidney beans,(rajma)

1/2 a cup of green peas,

1/2 a cup of sweet corn

1/2 a cup chopped cucumber,

1/2 a cup cooked and shredded chicken (optional)

For the Dressing:

1 cup low fat yogurt (Place the yogurt in a large soup strainer for about 1/2 an hour. This drains out all the whey and leaves behind only the creamy thick yogurt)

1 tblspn low fat mayonnaise (completely optional),

1/2 cup milk,

1 tspn sugar,

1 tspns cumin powder,

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

Place all the prepared vegetables in a colander and steam them until tender by placing the colander on a saucepan with boiling water. Keep the heat moderate. This takes about 15 to 20 mins.

Alternatively ,you could boil the veggies in water but steaming as we all know is the healthier way to cook them.

After they have cooked leave them in the colander to cool completely.

Meanwhile prepare the dressing by mixing all the ingredients and give it a taste.

Once the veggies have cooled down transfer them to a bowl and pour all the dressing over them. Add the chicken and kidney beans and stir all together very gently.

You can garnish it with any fruit of your choice. Pomogranate seeds look particularly pretty.