TANDOORI CHICKEN TIKKA

Tandoori chicken is one the most loved Indian recipes. And I sure make it often.

This healthy delight should be a staple at most households, not just for how easy it is to make but also the health factor.

However, while I write this post, it is raining outside and I want to enjoy the weather with a cup of tea, so this is gonna be one short post.

• Servings: 3-4 persons
• Time: 10 min preparation 40 minutes grilling
• Difficulty: EASY
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1 kg chicken with bone

Tomato puree 200 ml

¼ cup oil

1/3 cup vinegar

3 tbsp Tandoori masala

Salt to taste

Chaat masala to taste

Lemon juice to taste

In a bowl, mix tomato puree, oil, vinegar, tandoori masala and salt. Add chicken and toss till well coated. Allow chicken to marinate for atleast 15 minutes, longer is better.

Preheat oven to 200c and cook chicken in batches according to the oven size for approx 40-45 minutes

The recipe works very well with a grill or an air fryer.

VEG THAI GREEN CURRY WITH PANEER

This is one of my mum’s favorite dish. It is also one of my favorite dishes to cook. It takes no time or effort and tastes like heaven.

I’m sure most people make this already, however, I’ve been asked for this recipe a few times so I decided to post it anyways.

You can add vegetables of your choice, these are just the ones that are easily available near me throughout the year. Also, you can substitute tofu for paneer if you wish.

VEG GREEN THAI CURRY WITH PANEER

• Servings: 6 persons
• Time: 20 minutes
• Difficulty: EASY
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1 broccoli, cut into florets
1 cups thickly sliced mushrooms
1 cup sliced carrot
1 cup diced yellow pumpkin
15-18 baby corn
1 cup diced paneer(cottage cheese) or tofu
3 tbsp green curry paste
1 can(400 ml) coconut milk
2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
In a pan, heat oil and add vegetables, saute for 2 minutes.
Add 1 cup of water and cover, steam vegetables for 3-5 minutes
Add curry paste, coconut milk and salt and steam for another 5 minutes.
Add more water to bring the curry to desired consistency, and adjust salt.
Add paneer and simmer for 2 minutes.
P.S. cooking paneer for too long will make it tough. Always add paneer at the end of the recipe, and gently reheat at the time of serving.

GOAN FISH CURRY

Wow!! I’m cooking after three days. I missed cooking. But this was one hectic week, and the next one seems much worse.

At least I managed to cook for sometime today. I haven’t been sleeping much lately; and I’ll be honest, I’m so tired I’ll start getting into fights with people soon. Yeah!! I do that when I’m tired.

Also, I’m sorry for any typos or bad photography today. And I’m going to keep this post short. So off to the recipe.

• Servings: 3-4persons
• Time: 15 minutes cooking, 10 minutes preparation
• Difficulty: easy
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1/2 kg or 1 pound sole fillet, cubed
lemon sized ball of tamarind
1 tomato, large
1 onion, large
3/4 cup dessicated coconut
1″ peice of ginger
4-5 garlic cloves
2-4 green chillies(can be adjusted as per taste)
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

In a small bowl, put hot water and tamarind and allow to stand for a few minutes. When tamarind is soft, mash well with fingers and strain strain through a sieve. Retain water.
Put the onion and tomato in a little water, and microwave for 2 minutes, till soft. Remove the tomato peel.
Put the tamarind, tomato, onion, coconut, ginger, garlic and chillies in a grinder and form a paste.
In a pan, heat 2 tbsp oil, and add the coconut paste, coriander powder, turmeric powder and salt. Saute well, till oil seperates.
Add 2 cups of water, and the fish. Cook till the fish is tender, about 10 minutes.
Add black pepper and adjust salt.
Serve with rice or chappati.

BBQ CHICKEN SALAD

I tried to eat healthy today.

I ate a light meal for lunch. But then I went for a movie, and ate a kathi roll there. Yumm!!

Then I ate a light chicken salad for dinner, but I was so hungry I ate an entire mango, a banana and a big bowl of leftover chocolate pudding from yesterday. I would still have said, All is well that ends well, only I’m still looking forward to another dessert.

I don’t think I have a chance of eating healthy in this lifetime, but if you have a stronger will power than I do, make this salad for a healthy light delicious meal.

Serve with garlic bread or pasta for a filling supper, or as is for a light lunch.

Enjoy.

• Servings: 1 person
• Time: 20 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
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cooking spray
1 chicken breast
1 tbsp mayo
2 tbsp bbq sauce
10-12 lettuce leaves
7-8 chery tomatoes
1 medium onion
1/3 cucumber
2 tbsp vinaigrette
salt
pepper

In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise and bbq sauce.
Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the chicken breast.
Spray a pan with cooking spray, and grill the chicken. When done, brush the bbq-mayo mix on both sides of the chicken and grill for 1 minute on each side.
Remove on a plate, and cut into slices.
In a bowl tear lettuce and slice cucumber and onions. Add cherry tometoes and chicken.
Drizzle vinaigrette over the salad, and toss well. Adjust salt and pepper.
Chill for a few minutes before serving.

CREAMY CAJUN CHICKEN SALAD

A quick salad recipe is a must for Delhi summers.. partly because cool salad is all you can think of, but more importantly because there is only so much time you can spend in the kitchen.

So today i tried to whip up a Cajun flavored salad. This was as delicious as it was easy.

Since shredded chicken is small in size it cooks in no time, and the rest of the salad will be prepared while it cooks. Jam in the fridge for a few minutes and you’re set to serve.. or gobble up right from the bowl.

Served with focaccia, this salad will make for a great light meal.

• Servings: 3-4 persons
• Time: 20 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
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1 tbsp Butter

1 cup shredded chicken

2 tomatoes, discard seeds, slice thin

7-8 lettuce leaves

12-15 walnuts

2 tbsp roasted seed mix(pumpkin, sesame, flax as desired)

2 tsp Cajun spice

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

3 tbsp thousand island

In a pan, heat butter, add chicken 1 tsp Cajun spice, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper. Sauté till cooked through(about10-12 minutes). When cooked remove onto a plate and place in the fridge to cool.

While chicken is cooking, thinly slice tomatoes and discard seeds. Tear lettuce leaves into bite sized pieces. Add walnuts and seeds to the mix.

When chicken cools down, add to the salad mix.

Prepare dressing by mixing 1 tsp Cajun spice into 3 tbsp thousand island dressing.

Add dressing and serve.

Note: it is best to add dressing at the time of serving.

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FRIED SALAMI SANDWICH

The weather.. yeah, I’m gonna rant about the weather.. it’s driving me mad.

I wake up in the morning, look out at the beautifully cast sky, decide it’ll be a cool day, and plan an outing. Two hours later.. scorching sun.

Ugghhh.. its 50c. I don’t have to bake anymore.. stuff gets baked on it’s own all the time.

I’m waiting for winters. I love winters and hot chocolate and spiced teas and pumpkin lattes.. and I’m really messed in my head right now.

I think this is enough ranting for the day.. however (you knew there was a however, didn’t you?), this is enough only for today. The summers here last till October and you are going to here a lot of it.

And now for today’s recipe. I made a simple salami sandwich and served it with cream of pumpkin soup.

The quantities for the fillings can obviously be changed to suit your taste. The primary flavors are salami and cheddar.

• Servings: 2 sandwiches
• Time: 15 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
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2 tbsp Butter

16 salami slices (chicken, mutton, pork or any other you like)

Half a medium zucchini (sliced thin)

4 slices sandwich bread

8-10 slices Gherkins

4 tbsp Olives

2 tbsp chopped Jalapenos

4 Cheddar slices

2-4 lettuce leaves

Mayonnaise

Salsa

In a pan, heat a little butter and pan-fry the salami slices and zucchini slices.

On a bread slice, spread mayonnaise. Put 8 salami slices, half the zucchini slices, 4-5 gherkins, 2 tbsp olives, 1 tbsp chopped jalapenos, 2 slices cheddar, 1-2 lettuce leaves. Butter the other side and put a little salsa.

Heat a griller/toaster and grill as desired.

Repeat for the second sandwich.

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CASHEW CHICKEN

Do you have enough recipes that are no-fuss,  least effort, flavorful and require minimal ingredients. I have many, but never enough. Meals that can be put out in less than 30 minutes are perfect for hectic weekdays, lazy weekends, unannounced guests and any other situation.

This cashew chicken is probably a go to recipe in many households, but if it is not in yours, try it and it will be everyone’s favorite.

You can dry roast the cashews while the chicken is being sauteed, or use roasted cashews from a box. If you wish to roast cashews in the microwave please check this link.

Wash and drain chicken. Add 2 tbsp corn flour, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper. Mix well.

In a pan, heat 2-3 tbsp sesame oil and add chicken. Stir-fry for 8-10 minutes, till chicken is tender and browned.

Meanwhile, in a pan, heat 1 tsp oil and roast cashews.

Add, cashews, garlic, soy, vinegar and hoisin sauce. Stir-fry for another 3-4 minutes.

At this point you can stir in onion green, cook for 30 seconds and serves as a dry dish.
Or, to serve with gravy, add 1 cup of water, adjust salt, and stir in onion greens. Cook for 30 seconds and remove from heat.

Serve on a bed of rice.

• Servings: 4 persons
• Time: 30 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
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½ kg or 1 pound boneless chicken, diced

2 tbsp corn flour

2 green onions, stems only, chopped

½ cup cashews

3-4 garlic cloves, grated or smashed

2-3 tbsp sesame oil

2 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp vinegar

2 tbsp hoisin sauce

Wash and drain chicken. Add 2 tbsp corn flour, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper. Mix well.

In a pan, heat 2-3 tbsp sesame oil and add chicken. Stir-fry for 8-10 minutes, till chicken is tender and browned.

Add, cashews, garlic, soy, vinegar and hoisin sauce. Stir-fry for another 3-4 minutes.

At this point you can stir in onion green, cook for 30 seconds and serves as a dry dish.

Or, to serve with rice, add 1 cup of water, adjust salt, and stir in onion greens. Cook for 30 seconds and remove from heat.

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