As we’re on the Indian theme at the moment….
Ingredients:-
2 Chicken Breasts, cubed
1 Onion, diced
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced to a paste
a Thumb of Ginger, grated to a paste
½ Tsp of Chilli Powder
½ Tsp of Garam Masala
¼ Tsp of Turmeric
8 Curry Leaves
6 Tbsp of Gram Flour
3 Tbsp of Rice Flour
2 Tbsp of Water
1 Egg White
Salt to taste
Method:-
(1) Add the Gram Flour, Rice Flour, Salt, Chilli Powder and Garam Masala to a bowl and mix well.
(2) Add the Garlic, Ginger and Curry Leaves.
(3) Add the Chicken and Egg White.
(4) Add enough Water the make a really stiff patter.
(5) Fry in batches at 160c until the batter is a light brown colour.
(6) Drain over kitchen paper and serve in a boat made from a lettuce leaf. (Very 1970’s, but still looks good!)
If you fry these in batches at about 160c it prevents the Egg in the batter burning and you end up with a light brown batter and succulent Chicken. Just make sure the Chicken is cooked through. We use a kitchen probe, but cutting one of the larger ones in half and checking that there is no pink in the middle will work. If you are using a probe you’re looking for 75c.
As a side this works really well with Indian dishes.
Ingredients:-
½ a Cabbage, sliced
½ an Onion, sliced
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
½ Tsp Cumin seeds
½ Tsp of Mustard seeds
1 Tsp of Curry Powder
½ Tsp of Garam Masala
A pinch of Asafoefida
A handful of Frozen Peas
½ Tsp of Salt
Oil to fry
Method:-
(1) Add a little Oil to a frying pan over a medium heat.
(2) Throw in the Cumin and Mustard seeds and fry until they start to pop.
(3) Add the Onion and fry until softened.
(4) Stir in the Garlic and season with Salt.
(5) Add the Curry Powder, Garam Masala and Asafoefida and stir in well over a low heat.
(6) Add the Cabbage and increase the heat whilst stirring constantly.
(7) Add the Peas and stir in.
(8) Cook for a further 2 minutes and then drain & serve.
We had this with Belly Pork rubbed with Indian style Spices and cooked very low & slow. A cracking side. Not great cold, so don’t make too much!
We had a couple of yellow sticker Chicken Breasts in the freezer. They're not in the freezer any more!
Ingredients for the marinade:-
2 Chicken Breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
½ Tsp of Turmeric
½ Tsp of Cayenne Pepper
½ Tsp of Salt
Ingredients for the Curry:-
1 Onion, diced
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Thumb of Ginger, grated
1 Tsp of Chilli Powder
1 Tsp of Coriander Powder
1 Tsp of Funnel Powder
1 Tsp of Garam Masala
A handful of Curry Leaves
A punnet of Cherry Tomatoes, chopped
a Handful of Coriander, chopped
400ml of Water
1 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to taste
Method:-
(1) Combine the Turmeric, Cayenne, Salt and Chicken.
(2) Allow to marinade for half an hour.
(3) In a large pan add a little oil over a medium heat.
(4) Add the marinaded Chicken and cool gently until no-longer pink.
(5) Set aside.
(6) Add the Onions to the pan and cook until softened.
(7) Add the Ginger & Garlic and stir over a medium heat for a minute.
(8) Add the remaining Spices and the Curry Leaves.
(9) Add the Tomato Puree and stir well.
(10) Add the Tomatoes and Water.
(11) Return the Chicken, reducing the heat to low and simmer for an hour.
(12) 10 minutes before serving stir in the Coriander.
We severed ours with Sage Aloo, Indian style Sides & Salads and Popadums. This was a really well balanced Curry without the aggression of some Anglicised Curries.
We fancied a bit of Fish for a change. But decided to ‘Pimp’ it up a bit. So Indian style Fish and Chips was the result.
Ingredients for the Fish Marinade:-
A reasonable sized fillet of Fish (Cod in our case) Cut into pieces
¼ of a Tsp of Asafoetida
¼ of a Tsp of Fenugreek
½ a Tsp of Hot Paprika
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced to a paste
The Juice of half a Lemon
1 Thumb of fresh Ginger, minced to a paste
½ a Tsp of Cumin powder
Salt & Pepper to season
Method:-
(1) Mix all the ingredients.
(2) Evenly coat the fish and allow to marinade for 20 minutes.
(3) Dredge in the dry batter mix ingredients (See below)
Ingredients for the Batter:-
3 Tbsp of Cornflour
3 Tbsp of Gram Flour
¼ of a Tsp of Asafoetida
¼ of a Tsp of Fenugreek
1 Tsp of Baking Powder
½ tsp of Turmeric
Soda Water
Salt & Pepper to season
Method:-
(1) Mix all the dry ingredients and dredge the Fish to coat.
(2) Set the Fish aside.
(3) Heat a fryer to 170c.
(4) Add Soda Water and whisk to create a thick batter.
(5) Coat the Fish in Batter mix and fry in small batches until they float and the batter looks quite browned.
(6) Drain on kitchen paper before serving.
We dressed ours with a Lemon Caper dressing and fresh Parsley. The flavours of the spices really gave a bit of white Fish a kick! We’ll probably not be making plain old Fish & Chips again, any time soon!
For us this is quite a traditional recipe. We didn't shoehorn any oddities into it. Yay!
Meatballs Ingredients:-
400g of Pork Mince
1 Onion, diced
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
2 Tbsp of fresh Basil, chopped
1 Tsp of Ground Cinnamon
½ Tsp of Garlic Powder
½ Tsp of Mixed Herbs
Salt & Pepper to season
1 Tbsp of Oil & 1 Tbsp of Olive based Margarine, to fry
Sauce Ingredients:-
1 Onion, diced
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
200ml of Chicken Stock
1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
2 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
1 Cinnamon Stick
100ml of Red Wine
1 Tbsp of Caster Sugar
Oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to season
Pasta to serve, gluten free for us
Method:-
For the Meatballs
(1) Add the Oil & Margarine to a frying pan.
(2) Over a medium heat add the Onions and soften, then add the Garlic and fry for a further minute.
(3) Remove and set aside to cool.
(4) In a bowl add the Mince, Salt & Pepper, Garlic Powder, Basil, Mixed Herbs, Ground Cinnamon and fried Onion & Garlic.
(5) Mix well and form into balls.
(6) Add a little Oil to a frying pans and over a low heat fry the Meatballs until they are cook through.
For the Sauce
(1) Add a little Oil to a pan oven a medium heat and add the Onions, frying until softened.
(2) Add the Garlic and fry for a further minute.
(3) Add the Tomato Puree and stir in.
(4) Season with Salt & Pepper.
(5) Add the tin of Tomatoes, Red Wine, Stock, Cinnamon Stick and sugar.
(6) Allow to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
(7) Cook you Pasta according to the instructions on the packet.
(8) Plate the Pasta, placing the Meatballs over the Pasta and then spoon the Sauce over. Making sure to remove the Cinnamon Stick.
We dressed ours with some fresh Basil. But grated Italian Style Cheese would be a wonderful addition.
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