Daily Archives: May 18, 2017

Erachi ularthathu

Preparation time : 30 minutes
Cooking time : 20 minutes
Serves : 8 members

Description

My carnivores son loves non vegetarian food. Him being a foodie, likes food that is cooked to perfection. His new fond dish is the Kerala style meat ularthiyathu with coconut bits in them. Hubby dear hates it when I make this dish, so I seldom make this dish. So he keeps bugging my mother in law asking her to cook and send over. Recently I made this and he was like,” mee – ( that’s how he calls me ), chellama’s ( my mother – law ) preparation was much better than your version. You know the rivalry in all homes to gain love treating your loved ones through food. Well that’s what creeped up into me now. I made sure to get the recipe from my mother – in – law and gave it a try again following her recipe religiously. Yet again the same comment from my boy with a grin. I looked at him and he’s like, I am kidding mom . This is yum. But I know he did mean what he told as there are a few dishes that we can not master like our elders do what so ever. This is one such. I guess the love she has over her grand son over powers through what she cooks.

Kerala style mutton / beef roast with coconut bits

Step 1

Ingredients to grind

Ingredients	Quantity
Cinnamon	2 inch piece
Cardamom	2
Cloves	2
Coriander powder	3 1/2 tablespoons
Dry red chillies	8
Pepper corns	1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds	1 tablespoon
Fennel seeds	1 tablespoon
Coconut oil	1 tablespoon

Method to grind

Heat coconut oil and sauté all the above ingredients separately until a good aroma arises making sure the ingredients do not burn . Cool completely and grind to a smooth paste.

Step 2

Ingredients to pressure cook

Ingredients	Quantity
Mutton or beef	1 kg
Small onions	1 cup chopped
Ginger paste	1 teaspoon
Garlic paste	1 teaspoon
Salt	to taste
Vinegar	1/2 cup
Curry leaves	few

Method

Mix all the above ingredients together along with the ground masala paste. Pressure cook for four whistles or more until meat is cooked and tender.
Once the whistle sound subsides, open the lid and reduce the water in the mutton to a thick gravy consistency by boiling in high flame.

Step 3

Ingredients to temper

Ingredients	Quantity
Coconut oil	5 tablespoons
Curry leaves	few
Dry red chillies	4 torn
Coconut bits	1/2 cup

Method

Heat coconut oil. Add coconut bits and sauté to golden. Top with the torn dry red chilies and curry leaves.
Once they crackle. Pour the reduced mutton gravy over.
Mix well and bring to boil. Reduce the flame to low and roast the mutton further for another 15 minutes in low flame stirring in between every three minutes once.
Serve hot with any thing and every thing.

Cornflakes Crusted Prawns

Preparation time : 30 minutes + one hour marination time
Cooking time : 2 minutes for each batch deep fried
Serves : 6 members

Description

Prawns is a family favorite. Anything and everything made with them are always welcome in the table for any meal. Fed up with the regular ways I cook them, I wanted a crispy fried dish made that could be served as a starter. Batter friend prawns is done regularly so not that. My mind was digging for what might give a crispy result. Cornflakes popped up. I started with the recipe and made sure to give the prawn a cornflakes crust. My experiment didn’t go for waste as it was a super hit at home. The crispy crust with the juicy prawn inside was like a marriage made in heaven. Me being the match maker here, was sure over whelmed.

Ingredients to marinate

Ingredients	Quantity
Prawns with tail	20 cleaned
Red chilly powder	1 teaspoon
Dried Oregano	1/2 teaspoon
ginger and garlic paste	1/2 teaspoon
salt	to taste
lime juice	a squeez
ajinomoto	a pinch ( optional)

Method

Marinate the prawn in all the above ingredients for one hour or more.

Ingredients for the crust

Ingredients	Quantity
Flour / Maida	1/2 cup
corn flour	1/2 cup
salt	to taste
water	little
Corn flakes	3 cups
oil	to deep fry

Method

Mix flour /maida and cornflour together along with salt to taste and water to get a thick gooey batter with no lumps.
Place the cornflakes on a flat plate or tray . Take the marinated prawn piece and dip into the batter and press the prawn towards the cornflakes.
Make sure the cornflakes has coated the prawn well. Turn over and do the same. Repeat the same to all the prawn.
Heat oil to deep fry.
Add the prawn pieces 5 to 6 at a time. Lower the flame and fry till prawn is crisp. Drain. Serve hot with tomato sauce and mayonnaise.

Guava shots

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Preparation time : 30 minutes
Cooking time : 2 minutes + setting time in the refrigerator
Serves : 6 members

Description

I see three guavas in my kitchen counter that are super ripe with their skin shrinking and dull. I could hear them say, “hello mam , can you put us to some good use before we die in no style”. It was a lazy day for me. Not wanting to cook much, I just wanted to grind the guava’s to make juice. But when I cut the guavas and got to see it’s pink fleas inside. I wanted to make a dessert but with no high end technical efforts to be put in. I just went with what I thought might work out. Set it in short glasses. The color was so welcoming but looked too pale. I added another layer to add more glamour. It work perfectly both visually and taste wise too. Having my friend and her daughter visit me with out notice. I ended serving then these guava shots that unnamed just as they asked me what it was. They told they will share one but ended up gobbling what was served to them. My friends daughter made sure to get the recipe from me too. I was happy I gave the dull going to die guavas a glamorous stylish death.

Ingredients

Ingredients	Quantity
Guava	3 chopped that has pink flesh inside
Cream	3 cups
Gelatin	3 tablespoons
Water	1 cup + 1/4 cup
Sugar	1 and 1/2 cups
Vanilla essence	1/4 teaspoon

Method

Grind the chopped guava with 1 cup water to a smooth paste. Strain and keep aside.
Soak gelatin in 1/4 cup water in a microwave safe bowl for five minutes. Then microwave it for 50 seconds to dissolve. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Blend cream, sugar and vanilla essence together until sugar dissolves. Set aside one cup of the cream mix and place in the refrigerator. Pour the remaining cream mix into the the guava purée and mix well.
Add the cooled gelatin 3/4 th into the guava + cream mix and mix well. Pour into short glasses to 3/4 full evenly. Place in the refrigerator to set for one hour.
Microwave the remaining gelatin for 30 seconds as it would have set by now. Cool to room temperature. Mix the cooled gelatin with the remain one cup cream mixture from the refrigerator.
Spoon one tablespoon of the cream mixture over the set guava shots. Place the shots once again in the refrigerator for another one hour to set. Serve chilled .

Notes

In case you do not get pink flesh guavas add pink food color to the guava purée.

Thai khanom krok

Preparation time : 39 minutes
Cooking time : 5 minutes for each batch cooked
Serves : 8 members

Description

Any holiday destination we go to, I make sure to have a foodie day for myself. The others along with me are welcome to join me always. Two years back on my trip to London it was my day and I choose to visit the borough market in southwark. It is one of the oldest food market’s in London. In the year 2014, it celebrated its 1000 years of existence. I was blown away with the food counters from countries all over the world to their local fresh produce. I felt like a kid in a candy store. My mind had a million things running with in me with excitement taking note of so many new flavor’s, ingredients, and authentic cuisine of many countries. After a long three hour walk through out the entire market, just before we could leave. I was drawn towards a counter from where I could smell a sweet aroma filling the air. Checked to see what it was? Two Asian ladies were busy making something like our Tamil style Kuli paniyaram. I immediately placed an order for one plate. It was piping hot, so had to wait to gobble up a few to know its taste. They were sweet with the flavor of coconut over powering and a crunch from the sweet corn on top. It vanished with a few seconds time. After that it was a forgotten story but I made sure to talk about it when ever I shared my foodie experience in the borough market to friends. This year on my vacation to Bangkok in the floating market, me gazing at things around. I get to see a lady make the same sweet in a boat. I immediately buy two plates this time. I gave one with dad and I was relishing the other plate. Mom was waiting for her share once dad was done with the sweet but dad finished the entire plate leaving mom staring at him with a naive look. I gave her mine and we had a good laugh over this incident. Only then did I get to know this was a Thai dish. I took pictures of this and showed it to our cab driver and told him I want the recipe. He was so sweet to get a hand written note of the recipe in Thai from his wife which he translated to me in English with so much difficulty. I some how managed to take note and tried it out at my home kitchen. I was surprised with the results being pitch perfect just like what I had in London and Bangkok. I am totally in love with my journey of this khanom krok from London to Bangkok to my home kitchen.

Ingredients for the first layer

Ingredients	Quantity
Rice flour	1 cup
Thick coconut milk	1 cup
Cooked rice	4 tablespoons
Grated coconut	1/2 cup
Club soda	1 cup
Sugar	2 tablespoons
Salt	1/2 teaspoon

Method for the first layer

Grind cooked rice + grated coconut and 1/4 cup of club soda to a smooth paste and keep aside.
Mix all the other ingredients mentioned under the first layer together.
Mix in the ground smooth boiled rice paste and keep aside.

Ingredients for the second layer

Ingredients	Quantity
Thick coconut milk	2 cups
Rice flour	4 tablespoons
Sugar	8 tablespoons
Salt	1/4 teaspoon
Green onion	1/4 cup chopped
Sweet corn kernels	1/4 cup boiled

Method for the second layer

Mix all the ingredients together and mix well with no lumps.

How to proceed

Heat a kulipaniyaram pan / appi pan . Grease with oil dipped tissue into all the dents.
Pour around 1 tablespoon of the first layer batter into all the greased dents. Then swirl the pan in clock wise moment making sure the batter in all the dents cover to the top of the dent giving it a half circle cup shape.
Pour 1 teaspoon of second layer mix over into each dent over the first layer.
Sprinkle chopped onion stem greens and cooked sweet corn kernels.
Cover and cook further for five to six minutes until cooked through and has a golden crust on the first layer.
Remove with a spoon and serve hot with two cooked khanom krok paired together.