Spanish Chicken Stew

Ingredients

Makes: 4

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 red onions, coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 400g chopped tomatoes, or 2 tins peeled tomatoes
• 400g kabuli chane, soaked overnight and boiled or use tinned
• 475ml water
• 2 teaspoons degi mirch
• 1 teaspoon crushed chilli flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 potato, cubed
• 4 chicken thighs
• 115g sausage, (prefer Spanish chorizo sausage), casing removed and thickly sliced

Preparation method

Prep: 20 mins | Cook: 1 hour 30 mins

1.

Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Stir in onions and garlic, cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent.

2.

Pour in tomatoes, kabuli chole and water; season with degi mirch, chilli flakes, salt, and pepper.

3.

Stir in carrots and potatoes, then place chicken thighs skin-side up on top of the vegetables.

4.

Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 25 minutes.

5.

Now, either cook it for 15 more minutes on the stove or bake. If baking, preheat oven to 200 degrees C.

6.

Remove chicken from the stew and set aside. Stir in the sausage slices, then pour the stew into a baking dish. Place the chicken thighs on top, skin-side up.

7.

Bake in preheated oven until the stew has thickened and the chicken skin is crispy, about 15 minutes.

Creamy Chicken Pasta

Creamy Chicken Pasta

Ingredients: 

Fussili Pasta 
Dolmoi Extra Mushroom (3-4 people) 
1/2 tbsp - olive oil
100g - small onion
Grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese
100 ml - thick cream
350g - chicken strips

Method

1. Dice the onion and fry in the olive oil for 2 mins.
2. Add the chicken strips, and fry gently for 1 min.
3. Add the jar of Extra Mushroom and simmer until the chicken is cooked and the sauce is hot.
4. Take off the heat, mix with cooked pasta, add the cream and stir.
5. Sprinkle the grated cheese liberally over the sauce, place under a grill for 2 mins, until cheese has melted.
6. Serves 4.

Kesari Jalebis with Rabdi

Kesari Jalebis with Rabdi

Ingredients: 

For Jalebis:
200 gms - plain flour (maida)
20 gms - gram flour (besan) 
200 gms - sugar 
few drops - yellow colour
10 to 12 strands - kesar, dissolved in 1 tbsp - warm milk
2 tbsp - milk 
ghee to deep fry 
a plastic easy squeeze bottle

For Rabdi:
1 cup - strawberry pulp
2 litres - full cream milk
1 tsp - rose water
1/2 tsp - strawberry essence
1/4 cup - sugar
1/4 cup - condensed milk
10 to 12 - cardamoms peeled
10 - almonds

Method

Method for Jalebis:

1. Sieve 100 gms. maida and besan together.
2. Make a batter using warm water.
3. Keep aside for 24 hours.
4. Add remaining maida, food colour and saffron and more warm water if required.
5. The batter should fall easily when poured - Not too thick not too thin.
6. Keep aside.
7. Make syrup of the sugar by adding water and boiling.
8. Add the milk and all the scum to form while boiling.
9. Make one string syrup. Strain.
10. Fill bottle with batter. The nozzle should have a hole the thickness of a knitting needle.
11. Heat ghee well in a shallow frying pan and form jalebis in the form of concentric circles about 2 inches on the outside.
12. Fry till crisp, drop into hot syrup. Drain with a perforated spoon, serve hot.

Method for Rabdi:

1. Fresh grind cardamom to rough powder.
2. Rub with pestle till dissolved.
3. Chop almonds into thin slivers.
4. Pour milk in a large heavy saucepan.
5. Put to boil on high. Continue boiling till half quantity is left.
6. Keep skimming off the top cream every now and then.
7. Collect and keep aside in a separate container.
8. Add sugar, stir till dissolved.
9. Add all other ingredients, including saved top cream.
10. Stir, take off fire.
11. Cool to room temperature.
12. Refrigerate till well chilled.

To Serve:

1. Pour rabdi in the serving plate.
2. Arrange jalebi over it.
3. Garnish with thin slices of strawberries and rose petals.

Rabdi:
Making time: 1 hour (excluding cooling & chilling time)
Makes: 6 servings
Shelflife: 1 day refrigerated

Jalebi:
Makes: 30-35 pieces
Shelflife: 2-3 days

Moorgi Kosha (Bengali Chicken Curry)

Ingredients

Serves: 6

• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• salt, to taste
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tbsp water, divided
• 1 tbsp turmeric
• ½ tsp chilly powder, or to taste
• ½ tsp Kashmiri degi mirch
• 2 tbsp ground ginger
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 1kg chicken breast chunks (or chicken thighs)
• 1 tomato, thinly sliced
• ¼ tsp sugar
• 3 pods cardamom, lightly crushed
• 3 cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp ground coriander seeds
• A large bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped

Preparation method

Prep: 15 mins | Cook: 1 hour | Extra time: 15 mins, preserving

1.

Heat the oil in a medium deep pan over high heat. Add 1/3 of the onion, sprinkle a little salt and fry for a few minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Remove from oil and set aside on paper napkins.

2.

Add the bay leaf and the rest of the onions to the oil. Season with a little salt, and fry until golden brown. Add a spoonful of water and stir so that the onions break down – the water should turn a rich caramel colour. Add the turmeric, chilly, degi mirch, ginger and garlic; stir well. Reduce heat to medium high. When the fat leaves the sides, add a spoonful of water, and stir again.

3.

Add the chicken and the sliced tomato. Season with salt and sugar; stir. Add the cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, ghee and a spoonful of water. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 or 35 minutes.

4.

Remove the lid, if there is water left in the pan, raise the heat to medium. Add the ground coriander and cook until all the water has evaporated (or you can leave as much gravy as you like).

5.

Spoon onto serving plates and sprinkle with fresh coriander and the reserved fried onions. Serve with naan or basmati rice.

Bottle Gourd kofta

Ingredients

Serves: 4

• 1 small Bottle gourd
• 3 tbsp cornflour
• 3 slices bread
• 3 large onions
• 2 large tomatoes
• 1 large piece ginger
• 20 gms cashew
• 1 cup fresh cream
• turmeric 1/2 tsp
• salt to taste
• chilli powder 2 tsp
• coriander powder 2 tsp
• oil to deep fry
• cumin seeds, bay leaf seasoning

Preparation method

Prep: 20 mins | Cook: 20 mins

1.

Peel and grate the bottle gourd. squeeze and remove the water content.

2.

Mix cornflour and bread slices to the grated bottle gourd. add salt, chilli powder, coriander leaves and make a dough. split the dough into 6-8 balls and roll them firmly into dumplings

3.

Heat oil in a frying pan and deep fry the dumplings. Keep them aside.

4.

Chop and grind the onions, tomatoes,cashew, ginger and garlic into a paste. Heat onion in a frying pan and add cumin seeds and the bay leaf. Then add the ground paste to the oil and fry till the curry paste separates from the oil. Add chilli powder, coriander powder and salt and mix well.

5.

add cream to the fried curry paste and mix well. add water and bring it to a semi gravy consistency.

6.

add the fried dumplings to the gravy and serve with hot rotis, naan or fried rice.

Tip

Cornflour and bread slices help to bind the dough well, so you may need to use an additional bread slice to get the right dough consistency.

Egg, Mushroom and Soya Scramble

Egg, Mushroom and Soya Scramble

Ingredients: 

egg - 4, lightly beaten
button mushrooms - 1/2 cup, chopped
soya granules - 1/2 cup
onion - 1/2 cup, minced
green chili - 1 tsp, minced
garam masala - 1/2 tsp
tomato puree - 2 tbsp
oil - 1 tbsp
mint and coriander leaves - 1 tbsp each, chopped
salt to taste

Method

1. Soak Soya granules in hot water for 15 minutes.
2. Drain and squeeze out the water.
3. Heat oil in a fry pan; fry onions till pale brown.
4. Add green chili and mushroom.
5. Cook till the liquid from mushrooms id evaporated.
6. Add garam masala, salt and tomato puree.
7. Add eggs and stir till eggs are lightly set.
8. Add mint and coriander leaves.
9. Mix and remove from fire.
10. Serve hot on toast.

Baked Cheesy Veggie Pasta

Baked Cheesy Veggie Pasta

Ingredients:
 
1 cup - penne pasta
1/2 cup - capsicum (red, green, yellow)
1 - onion (big size) 
3 tbsp - mozzarella cheese 
1 tbsp - olive oil 
1 tsp - ginger garlic paste 
1/2 tsp - green chillies, finely minced 
1 tsp - crushed pepper

Method

1. Cook pasta with salt and a teaspoon of cooking oil until it becomes soft.
2. Drain it in a colander, and wash the pasta twice under running water.
3. Once the water is completely drained, add a teaspoon of olive oil, so that it does not become sticky.
4. Heat pan with olive oil add sliced onions to it, add a pinch of salt and fry for a minute.
5. Now add ginger garlic paste, minced green chillies to it, saute well till the raw smell goes off.
6. Then add the sliced capsicum, with enough salt and cook until it is half done.
7. Now preheat oven for 200 degrees Celsius.
8. Divide pasta, veggie and cheese to 3 portions, arranging with sauteed veggie as the first layer then add cooked pasta.
9. Now spread cheese, repeat the same cycle twice.
10. Then bake it until the cheese melts and forms a golden crust on top.
11. Take out from oven and add crushed pepper on top. Serve hot.