Schezwan Chicken

Schezwan chicken is a yummy and spicy chicken dish where the marinated chicken is fried and then tossed in schezwan chutney/sauce. Serve as a appetizer or with fried rice/noodles.

Ingredients :

• Chicken - 500 gms
• For Marination :
• Ginger-Garlic Paste - 1 tsp
• Green Chili Sauce - 1 tsp
• Soy Sauce - 1 tsp
• Vinegar - 1 tsp
• Corn Flour - 2 tbsp
• Maida - 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil for frying + 1 tbsp
• Onion - 1 medium-sized
• Capsicum - 1 small
• Spring onions - 4 sprig
• Ching's Schezwan Chutney as required

Method :

• Marination and Frying 
• Wash the chicken pieces and marinate with the ingredients listed under for marination at least for 2 hours.
• Deep fry the chicken pieces in medium hot oil and drain on an absorbent paper. (For other less-oil frying methods refer tips).
• Sauteing :
• In a wok/kadai heat 1 tbsp oil on medium flame.
• Add cubed onion and sliced white spring onion. Saute and then add cubed capsicum.(Do not fry them for long time. Saute for half a minute to retain their crunchiness).
• Add Ching's Schezwan Chutney as per required spiciness, 2 tbsp water and mix well.
• Add fried chicken pieces and coat well with the chutney and saute till it gets dried.
• Add green spring onions and mix well.
• Hot and spicy schezwan chicken is ready to be served.

Tips : 

• Less Oil frying Method : Add 1 tbsp of oil for the marinated chicken. (During the process of cooking brush the chicken pieces with oil if required.)
• Air Fryer Method : Place the chicken pieces in 2 batches on a greased grill rack or directly in the greased basket. Cook at 160 degree c for 5 mins on each side. Then at 180 degree c for 3 mins on each side till they are golden brown.
• Grilling in oven : Grill the chicken pieces in medium power till cooked and on high power to brown them.
• Sandwich Grill : Grill them on greased sandwich grill until done. 

Peas Pulao

Peas Pulao is easy and simple one pot meal. Peas and Basmati Rice are cooked in water seasoned with clove, cinnamon, bay leaf, onion and ginger-garlic paste. This yummy and aromatic peas pulao pairs well with various accompaniments and Indian curries like Dal Fry, Mixed Vegetable Sabzi, Paneer do pyaaz, Kadai paneer for vegetarians and chettinad pepper chicken masala, Egg Kurma for non-vegetarians,

Ingredients :

• Basmati Rice - 1 cup
• Green Peas - 1 cup
• Onion - 2 medium-sized
• Cinnamon - 1" stick
• Clove - 3
• Bay Leaf - 2
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tbsp
• Green Chili - 2
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method :

• Wash and soak basmati rice for half an hour.
• In a pan heat oil and season with cinnamon, clove and bay leaf.
• Add sliced onion, ginger-garlic paste, slit green chilies and saute till onions are translucent.
• Add peas and saute for a minute.
• Add 2 cups water, salt and let it come to a boil.
• When water is boiling add drained basmati rice and give a stir.
• If using pressure cooker, cover the lid and cook for 2 to 3 whistles. Else continue cooking till all the water is absorbed and then cover with lid and put it on low flame for 10 mins.
• Let it sit for 10 mins. Open the lid and mix gently.
• Serve it with your choice of accompaniments.

Laccha Paratha

Laccha Paratha is a multilayered shallow fried North Indian flat bread made from whole wheat flour. Its South Indian counterpart is Malabar Parotta which is made from all purpose flour(Maida). The technique to make both these paratha is same to make it at home. But it wouldn't require much effort for kneading the dough as in Malabar Parotta.

Ingredients :

• Whole Wheat Flour - 2 cups
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Salt as required
• Oil for applying on the dough and for frying

Method :

• In a bowl take wheat flour, salt, oil and mix well.
• Now add water little by little and knead it into a soft dough. Cover the dough and keep aside for 30 mins.

• Take a medium sized ball of dough.

• Roll it into thin disc.

• Apply oil on the paratha disc.

• From the edge start folding and pleating as shown in the below pic.

• Continue pleating till the other end.

• Roll the pleated dough with oil side up and tuck the end underneath.

• Repeat the process for other dough balls.
• Heat a tawa on medium flame.
• Grease the surface with oil. Take one swirled dough and roll it into paratha.

• Place the paratha on the hot tawa.

• After sometime you can see the bubbles and color change. Flip, spread oil and let it cook.

• Turn it again and apply oil. Cook till both sides are browned and evenly cooked.
• Remove it from the tawa and continue cooking with other parathas.
• Serve it hot with your choice of sabzi like Mixed Vegetable Sabzi, Paneer Do Pyaaz, Kadai Paneer, Dal Fry, Chettinad Pepper Chicken, Egg Kurma.

Chicken Pakoda

Chicken onion pakoda/ chicken fritters are crispy and juicy starters filled with flavors. Chicken is marinated in spices and coated with flour and deep fried. Onions are added to give volume and flavor to the fritters. Serve it as a tea time snack with tomato ketchup.

Ingredients :

• Chicken strips - 1/2 cup
• Onion sliced - 1/2 cup
• Green chili - 4
• Curry leaves - 2 sprig
• For Marination : 
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp
• Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric Powder - 1/8 tsp
• Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• Chickpea Flour(Besan) - 4 to 6 tbsp
• Rice Flour - 1 tbsp
• Oil for deep frying

Method :

• Wash and cut boneless chicken into thin strips. Slice onion and separate the layers. Slit and de-seed green chilies.
• In a bowl take chicken strips, sliced onion, green chili, curry leaves and the ingredients mentioned under for marination.

• Mix them well and set aside for 30 mins.

• Heat oil in kadai on medium flame.
• Add rice flour and required amount of besan just enough to bind them. (Do not make it floury. If it is too dry sprinkle water.)

• When oil is hot enough drop small portions of the chicken and onion mix. Fry them in 2 to 3 batch.
• Fry till golden brown and drain them on absorbent paper.
• Crispy and juicy chicken pakoda is ready to be served.

Masala Vada - Karnataka Style

Masala vada are crispy fritters prepared with chana dal, spices and greens such as coriander leaves, pudina leaves, curry leaves and dill leaves(Sabbsige Soppu). This is a traditional deep fried item of karnataka served with the main meal in most of the festivals and occasions. It is an yummy tea time snack too!

Ingredients :

• Chana Dal - 1 n 1/4 cup (250gms)
• Onion - 1 large-sized
• Coriander Leaves - 1/3 cup chopped
• Pudina leaves - 1/3 cup chopped
• Dill Leaves - 1/2 cup chopped
• Curry leaves - 1/4 cup chopped
• Salt to taste
• To Grind :
• Red Chili - 3 to 4
• Pepper - 1 tsp
• Garlic - 8 cloves
• Ginger - 1" piece
• Clove - 3
• Cinnamon - 1" stick

Method :

• Wash and soak chana dal for 2 to 3 hours. Drain and keep aside.
• Take the ingredients for grinding and grind to a paste. Do not add water for grinding.  

• Add few tbsp of drained chana dal to masala in the mixer jar and grind to a fine paste.(Just to make sure the masala is grinded well)

• Transfer the mixture to a bowl. 

• Grind remaining chana dal coarsely in batches without adding water. (Do not add water for grinding as it will make the mixture soggy and you wont get crispy vadas. Moisture content in dal will be sufficient) 
• You should be able to see few whole lentils as it is. It would give crunchy bite to the vada.
• Transfer the coarsely grinded mixture to the masala. 

• Add chopped onions, coriander leaves, pudina leaves, dill leaves, curry leaves and salt (Refer tips). Mix well.

• Heat oil in a kadai on medium flame.
• Meanwhile make lemon sized balls from the mixture and arrange them in plate. Keep a bowl with water to wet the hands while shaping the vada.

• Check if the oil is hot enough by dropping little mixture in the oil. If it raises up, oil is ready for frying.
• Wet both your hands and shape each ball to flat patties with medium thickness.
• Slide them in oil and deep fry on medium flame until golden in color. You can fry 6 to 8 patties at a time.

• Drain them on absorbent paper. 

• Serve hot with main meal or as a snack.

 

Tips :

• You can keep the mix in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, fry whenever needed and serve hot & crispy. So do not add salt to the whole batter as it would leave out water. Transfer the prepared mix to a container leaving out how much is needed and then add salt.
• You can add 1 or 2 tbsp of rice flour to the mix if :
• Mix turns out little watery.
• If its not binding well or breaking in the oil.

Puri Recipe for Pani Puri

Puri for chaat recipes are round shaped small crispy puri which is small enough to easily fit in your mouth, is a must have ingredient in many chaat recipes like pani puri, dahi puri etc. These are hollow which allow to make a hole on top and fill them with your favorite filling and enjoy them in a bite.
These are easily available in stores at India. But back in KSA we dont get the puris and not even yummy chaat items. So we got to prepare the puris at home and enjoy them with the prepared stuffing. Homemade is the best and healthy too. So lets get into making this small crispy puris.

Ingredients :

• Fine Rava/ Semolina - 1 Cup
• Wheat Flour - 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• Water for kneading
• Oil for rolling & frying

Method :

• In a bowl take unroasted rava, wheat flour, salt and mix well.
• Add water in parts and knead the dough. Rava absorbs water while kneading. Dough should not be very soft nor too hard.
• Cover the dough with damp cloth and allow it to rest for 30 minutes.
• Knead the dough again until smooth texture.
• Make small balls out of the dough. Cover them with damp cloth till u roll them.

• Grease the surface with oil and roll each ball into small puri and arrange them on a plate.

• Another way of rolling is to divide the dough into 3-4 equal portions. Take each portion and roll them into large roti with thickness of phulka or chapathi. It should not be very thin nor thick.

• With the help of a round cookie cutter or lid, cut the rolled dough into small discs. 

• Remove the extra dough and mix it with remaining dough. Arrange small puris on a plate and cover with damp cloth if you are not frying them immediately. Repeat the process for remaining dough. 

• Heat oil in a kadai on medium flame. When oil is medium hot, slide one puri at a time into the oil and press lightly to help them puff up. 
• You can fry 6-8 puris at a time until crispy and golden brown on both sides.

• Drain them onto a absorbent paper to absorb extra oil.

• Store them in an airtight container after they cool down. Use them for chaat recipes like Pani Puri & more chaat recipes which I will be posting shortly. 

Bhel Puri

Bhel puri is a popular roadside snack/ chaat in India. It is a delicious combination of puffed rice, onion, tomato, cucumber mixed with spicy-tangy-sweet chutney garnished with crushed papdi and sev.

Ingredients :

• Puffed Rice - 2 cups
• Onion chopped - 1/3 cup
• Tomato chopped - 1/3 cup
• Cucumber chopped - 1/3 cup
• Dates Tamarind Chutney - 2 tbsp
• Green chutney - 1 1/2 tbsp
• Chat Masala - 1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaves chopped - 2 tbsp
• Masala Peanuts - 1/3 cup
• Papdis - 8 (optional)
• Sev - 1/2 cup

Method :

• Prepare the chutneys with their recipes. Prepare them in advance and store them in refrigerator.
• Take puffed rice in a deep bowl.

• Add chopped onion, tomato, cucumber. (You can even add cooked and chopped potato, grated carrot)

• Add in both the chutneys and chaat masala. (There is salt added in both the chutneys, so no need to add it here)

• Mix everything well.

• Add masala peanuts, chopped coriander leaves and give a stir.

• Divide it into 2 equal portions and transfer to serving plates.
• Crush the papdis and spread them over the bhel. Or you can even add crushed papdis along with peanuts and mix.

• And sprinkle 1/4 cup sev onto each plate. Serve them immediately as it would turn soggy in few minutes.