Brown Rice Spaghetti with Rotisserie Seasoned Chicken

A couple of stores in the US carry some really interesting things. Among others, I hate why Trader Joe's hasn't yet opened a store around where we live. So, every time I'd go to meet people who lived near one, I'd never miss a chance to hop by and gape at all the line-up of organic, naturally delicious stuff they stock up. I flip like a teenager in love, each and every time I see their packaging and brown bags made using recycled paper.

On one such voracious trip to Trader Joe's I picked up this packet of brown rice spaghetti. Following the package instructions, the first time around I cooked it and tossed it in some regular marinara sauce. No great shakes. Tasted good. But, this spaghetti was so earthy and wholesome I just had  to put it to better use.

On another (not so voracious) mundane grocery shopping day, I picked up some Oscar Mayor  Carving Board Rotisserie Seasoned Chicken. I could possibly eat just this thing all by itself and not want anything else with it. Randomly cut the chicken into chunks, add tomatoes, onions, lettuce, seasoned bread croutons and your favorite dressing and it is a meal in itself! 

And, on another wonderful day when I really was voraciously hungry, I married the most delicious spaghetti with the best deli chicken in town and made this scrumptious lunch.

You need very few ingredients for this one but the outcome will make people thing you slogged for hours in the kitchen. You can even make this with regular pasta and deli chicken (or cooked shredded chicken). Yum is the word. Try it for yourself!

Grilled Shrimp Kababs

We're really not big seafood eaters. But, when it comes to shrimp we'd go the extra mile to make it. Not the curried/gravied (if there's a word like that) ones. We don't go there. We like oil, really. Ahem! Shrimp. Even if it comes deep-fried, packed with calories and bread crumbs alike. Now, like many other things that change, this frenzy of fried shrimp changed too - Ever since we bought our indoor grill! I've made grilled chicken cutlets and veggie seekh kababs, to name a few things I've thrown over the fancy gadget. I really want to use it a lot more. So, keep your eyes hooked on to SSTT.

But, for now let me serve you some Grilled Shrimp Kababs. Succulent, spicy and just made for those lazy weekend lunches when you want to do less in the kitchen and catch up with you favorite shows on TV.

You can make this using the regular conventional oven, too. I've explained that process in the recipe as well. 

This one is so easy to put together, you'd be running to buy shrimp the moment you're done reading this super-short reicpe.

Ingredients

50-60 Shrimp (tail-off), peeled, de-veined, washed

Vegetables (I've used Tomato, Onion and Green Pepper) cut into 1 inch squares

For the marinade

1 tsp Turmeric powder

3-4 tsp Chillie powder (or per taste)

2 tsp Coriander/Dhania powder

1 tsp Garam Masala powder

1 tbsp Ginger paste

1 tbsp Garlic paste

1/4 Cup Yogurt/curd

2 tbsp Lemon juice

And, of course, some salt to taste!

Other stuff you'll need

Grill/Conventional oven

5-6 bamboo skewers soaked in water

Method

- Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a zip-top bag and shake until well mixed

- Toss in the shrimp, vegetables and give another good shake to coat everything inside

- Marinate for a good 4-6 hours, or even longer if you have the time

- Preheat grill/oven. If using oven, preheat to 400F

- Thread marinated shrimp and vegetables over skewers in any pattern you wish and place on hot grill. In the oven place them over baking sheet lined with tin foil

- DO NOT throw away remaining marinade

- Keep flipping and basting the shrimp with leftover marinade and grill/bake until done

- Serve hot with a tall glass of fizzy raspberry lemon cooler

Makes about 5-6 skewers with around 10 shrimp on each

Broccoli And Egg Stir-fry Noodles

I am a sucker for routines. My husband will swear by this. He, for one, is the complete opposite. Laid back and 'let-things-happen' kinda person. But, I need to have a fixed time for everything. So, after a good eight years of being married we've slowly but gradually found some sort of an equilibrium. I flex my rules and he, his. Still with all this flexing and bending, there's almost no time on weekdays to prepare laborious meals for us. Preparing lunch comes on the close quarters to running a marathon as I juggle all my chores. Yet, I want to give my little son and myself something worth sitting down to eat together. Enter Stir-fries!!

I do not normally use eggs in my stir-fry noodles. But, who cannot do with some extra protein, huh?

Saucy Indo-Chinese Coriander Garlic Chicken

There's definitely something about the fusion of Indian ingredients with Chinese delicacies. Something that makes one wants to go back for more than one serving. And, that's exactly what happened to me when I ate this dish at an Indo-Chinese restaurant. The combination of a garlic-y sauce with lots of fresh corainder all done up into a gulp-me-down chicken gravy cannot be resisted by a die-hard Indo-Chinese food fanatic like me!

A few days after we devoured this, I began getting haunted by the flavours - almost as if they continued to linger over my tastebuds, daunting me. I simply had to try making my version of the same at home - and soon! So, I did and here it is, just for you!

So, quickly prepare yourself some fried rice to go with this and lay the table for a hearty meal!

Kiddie Fruit and Veggie Raita

They say parenting is all about being selfless and getting priceless rewards. In the process of being an incarnation of all these qualities, we end up emptying gallon after gallon of patience. I might sound like a horrible mother saying so, but I would say you must be blessed and lucky if your toddler gobbles down everything you stash on her plate - Veggies and fruit, included!

My sonny boy S is not a fussy eater really (knock on wood!), but just like all you mom's out there I like to go an extra step to make sure he gets his daily dose of fruit and veggies. So, to balance out the patience and nutrition equation I decided why not throw in almost everything I had on hand into his snack bowl with some whole milk yogurt and some chaat masala? Makes for a great side at lunch/dinner time or wonderful simply as a snack! (Talk about getting in that much needed calcium)The crispy texture of the fruit and veggies combined with the smooth notes rendered by the yogurt can tickle even the picky-est of tastebuds for sure.

Make this once and do NOT lie to me about the number of spoons you shoved down your throat before you passed the bowl over to your little one!

Masala Chicken Burgers

It's been a while since I made these now. Over a month really. Somehow, I got too carried away posting cakes and bakes and these drool-worthy fellas sat on the back burners, awaiting their chance to get published on SSTT.

Would'nt it be a shame on me if I had not tried making burgers at home living in the country that almost eats them as a staple meal? What had me running to fetch the ingredients for the same was the show - The Next Food Network Star. Why? This showcased competitors (chefs or otherwise) who'd compete to win a show on the network. Nice, eh? I had my eyes on one participant - Aarti Sequiera, an Indian, who was mixing Indian flavours onto American classics with so much ease, that I simply HAD to do something on those lines at home. Thanks Aarti, for the inspiration! The outcome - Juicy Indo-American Chicken Burgers! Oh and yes Aarti won the challenge and hosts her show on Food Network. She's already had 3 episodes on TV and she sure rocks! Check out her page here. And, when you're done, read up my recipe!

Now, stop drooling and grab those ingredients. This one's so easy, you could be eating it even before you think.

Chicken Manchurian

I have'nt till date met a person who despises Manchurian - chicken or otherwise. It's no surprise that this dish has found its way to the streets of India. And, as always, we Indians manage to add our 'tadka' to everything that hits our shore - be it food or anything else! Indo-Chinese cuisine is one such product. Like Chinese food itself was'nt hearty and filling, we jazz it up to suit our tastebuds and churn out plate after plate on every other street/restaurant.

I can still feel the heat from the chillies in the Cauliflower Manchurian and Vegetable Noodles I used to eat at least twice a week at the street-food vendor back in my college days. Some metabolism I had, eh?! Oh, that feels like ages ago and I am beginning to feel old saying all this. So , before I get way too nostalgic, let me get down to sharing this scrummy recipe with you!

Ingredients

2 lb Chicken breasts (You can use bone-in or boneless) - Washed and cut into bite sized pieces

1/4th Cup Cornflour dissolved in 3/4 cup of water
5 Cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2inch stick of Ginger, grated
1 Cup Onions, julienned
3/4 Cup Chopped Scallions (Green Onions)
3 Green Chillies, chopped
1/4 Cup Fresh Coriander sprigs, chopped
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
2-3 tbsp Chilie sauce
1/2 tsp Red Chillie powder
1/2 tsp Ajinomoto (I just use very little to give the dish some authentic Chinese flavour. This is optional. You can use only regular salt, too, if you're not feeling that indulgent)
Oil
And, of course, some salt to taste!

Method
- Heat oil in a wok/kadai
- Stir the cornflour in the water to form a thin batter. Add some salt and the red chillie powder to this to give it some flavour
- Dip the chicken pieces in this batter and deep fry. Place fried chicken pieces on paper towel drain any excess oil. Oh, yeah let's try to get a wee bit close to being healthy at least at one step ;)
- Now in a shallow saucepan, heat about 2 tbsp. of oil and add the green chillies, garlic, ginger and onions and stir until the onions are transparent
- Add the coriander and stir further
- Lower the flame and pour in the sauces
- Now add ajonomoto and some more salt and fry for a good minute on a medium flame
- Toss in half the scallions and fry for about 30 seconds
- Add fried chicken pieces and fry until well coated with sauce mixture
- Sprinkle left over scallions and serve hot

SERVES 2-3

Chicken Chettinad

Yeah, yeah Chicken Chettinad. Sounds great I know. Tastes even better. But dont begin to assume I knew it the moment I got my hands on the chicken. (*thud* There goes my image in the dumps). We all love this dish, and it is on almost every menu card in nearly every Indian restaurant that serves up non-vegetarian Indian cuisine. So, over the past few weeks I was taken over by a sudden obsession to try out a new type of a gravy using Chicken. Something other than my regular C Cubed. It just had to be something spicy so this one came to my mind. I chanced on this recipe on Indian Food Forever, a website that I think carries quite a decent collection of recipes. The original recipe calls for poppy seeds. I normallly do not use them and did not have them on hand. If you do, then go ahead and 'pop' them in when you try this out. I am sure they'll render a great flavour!

Ingredients
For the masala
1/2 Cup Grated coconut
1" stick Cinnamon
1tsp Fennel seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1tsp Coriander seeds
3pcs Cardamom (Badi elaichi)
2 Cloves
1 Star anise
6-8 Whole red chilies
2 tsp Poppy Seeds (Optional. I have not used this)

Other Ingredients
2lbs Chicken, washed and cleaned, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
 1 Cup Onion, chopped
1 tbsp Ginger, chopped
2 tbsp Garlic, chopped
1 tsp Red chili powder
3/4 Cup Tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp Lemon juice
10-12 Curry leaves
Fresh coriander leaves, to garnish
1/2 cup Oil
Salt To Taste

Method

- In a large wok/kadai, dry roast the ingredients for the masala
- Grind the roasted masala ingredients to a fine paste in the blender using minimum water
- Add the ginger and garlic to this paste in the blender and run it further to make a smooth paste/masala
- Heat oil in a heavy bottomed vessel
- Fry the onions till golden brown
- Toss in the curry leaves and allow to splutter
- Now add the ground paste and sauté for about a minute
- Add the tomatoes, red chili powder and turmeric powder and sauté.
- Add the chicken, mix and cook for 5 minutes and then add 2 cups of water and lemon juice
- Stir
- Add salt and cover and cook till the chicken is done. You could opt to pressure cook at this point.
- Serve piping hot chicken chettinad, garnished with coriander leaves along-side steamed rice, rotis or pooris

SERVES 4

Kheema Balls And Coconut Gravy

This happens to be one of my husband's favourite dishes. Sadly, for him I do not make it too often. Not because I do not want to..but simply because it carries with it way too many calories, which he too agrees is not good for us. But, whenever we make it, the fried kheema (minced meat) balls find their way into our tummies before even taking the plunge into the gravy. So, basically this is like a two in one preparation. You can serve the fried kheema balls as an appetizer and dunk some of them (if they escape everyones hands!) into the gravy.

This is my mother-in-law's all time hit recipe and holds a special place in my heart. During my newly-wed days (and even now!) I remember, she would undoubtedly make this for us whenever she would get her hands on kheema in the market ....even after a long, tiring day at work! I would stand there looking at her work her magic in the kitchen...at the most helping with peeling garlic cloves. Shame! With no prior cooking know-how, the making of this specific dish seemed far too complicated for me to even think of trying on my own. Ingredients all over the kitchen...some being blended, some chopped. I was simply dumbfounded, for all I knew back then was to fix a cup of tea for myself. But, she made it all seem so simple and always told me, "Cooking is no rocket science. Just keep trying and you will learn it all". And thanks to her support, I've finally - finally - mastered this preparation! Here it is for you all to try and enjoy.

Before you start, let me give you a heads-up on the basic method employed to make this. You make two separate fine ground masalas - One for the gravy and one to add to the kheema/minced meat to flavour the balls.

Also, if you intend making only the fried kheema balls as an appetizer then you can skip reading the coconut gravy part of this recipe.

But, if you plan to make the gravy and add the kheema balls in it then make sure you first semi-fry some kheema balls (for curry) and then deep fry rest. By semi-fry, I mean, fry for about a minute on low flame just to allow the outsides of the kheema balls to turn light brown (and to bind the kheema ball together) and set aside.

That being said I will take you through the recipe now.

Ingredients for the Kheema Balls Masala
1/4 Cup Coconut, grated(I use thawed frozen coconut flakes)
2 tbsp Garlic, grated
1 tbsp Ginger, grated
1" stick Cinnamon
4-5 Cloves
1 Cup Fresh Coriander
1/2 Cup Chana Dalia (Putane)
1.5 tsp Turmeric powder
1.5 tbsp Dhaniya powder/Coriander seed powder
1.5 tbsp Red Chilli powder (adjust to suit your taste)
2lb/1kg Kheema/minced meat(mutton/goat/lamb)- Washed
And, of course, some salt to taste!

If kheema is not very fine then you can add it in the mixer too along with masala and grind it more. You might have to do this in batches to ensure that the entire bulk of kheema is well mixed with the masala.

Method
- Add all the ingredients (except kheema) in the mixer/blender and make a fine paste with minimal use of water
- Add this to the kheema and mix thoroughly
- Make balls (about 1" in diameter) and deep fry (Semi-fry a couple, if you intend to make the gravy, and set them aside right now...else they will be eaten up. Just a word of caution!)


Ingredients for the Coconut Gravy Masala
1/2 Cup Coconut, grated(I use thawed frozen coconut flakes)
1/2 Cup Onion, diced
1/2 Cup Tomato, diced
2 tbsp Garlic, grated
1 tbsp Ginger, grated
1/2 cup Fresh coriander leaves
1" Cinnamon stick
4-5 Cloves
1 tbsp Dhaniya powder
1 tbsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
And, of course, some salt to taste!

Method
- Add all these ingredients in the mixer/blender to make a fine masala using minimum water
- In a pan/cooker, heat oil and add the ground masala and stir
- Add turmeric and salt and bring to a boil
- Once the raw smell goes, simmer add the half fried kheema balls
- Cover and simmer, stirring occassionally, allowing the semi-fried kheema balls to absorb the masala flavour and get cooked through (remember they were only half done when they were fried!)
- Serve hot with either plain white or Ghee rice

NOTEWORTHY NOTES
1. You can add mutton pieces/bones, if you have any left from the kheema to this gravy, but ensure you cook them well before you add the semi-fried kheema balls.
2. The gravy thickens with time, so if you plan on making it before-hand you might want to add more water and heat it just before you serve

SERVES 4-5