kabsa

Kabsa

Few years back I had this dish in a restaurant while traveling from Dubai to Oman border. Just loved the dish. After that I never had it but it was always there in my mind. Finally I made this at home today.... On the occasion of Eid.. 

Kabsa is a family of mixed rice dishes that are served mostly in Jordan and Saudi Arabia, where it is commonly regarded as a national dish in these countries. Kabsa, though, is believed to be indigenous to Yemen. In countries such as Jordan, Qatar, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraqand Kuwait, the dish is popularly known as machbūs, but is served mostly in the same way. These dishes are usually made with rice (usually long-grain, such as basmati), meat, vegetables, and a mixture of spices. There are many kinds of kabsa and each kind has a uniqueness about it.  The spices used in kabsa are largely responsible for its taste. The dish can be served hot with daqqūs, which is a home-made Arabic tomato sauce. Kabsa is also known as machbūs in the Persian Gulf region. 

Informative source Net.. 

Ingredients

1 whole Small Chicken or Chicken cut into 4 pieces

1 1/2 cup Rice soaked

1 1/2 liter Water

Salt to taste

4 tbsp Butter

2 Onion chopped

2 Tomato chopped

2 tbsp Tomato purée

1 tsp Garlic paste

 Spice mix

1 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Pepper powder

1/2 tsp Chilli powder

1/4 tsp Cumin powder

2 pinch Nutmeg powder

1 stick Cinnamon

4 Cloves

2 pinch Saffron

1 bay leaf

1/2 dry Lime powder (Optional)

Mix all the powder spices together in a bowl.

For Garnishing

1 tbsp Almond chopped

1 tbsp Cashews

1 tbsp Raisins

Fry all the above ingredients for garnishing in 1/2 tbsp Butter

Method

Add water, chicken and salt in a pot.

Cover pot and cook until the chicken is cooked.Remove chicken from stock and set aside. Reserve stock. In another pot melt butter and fry chicken from all sides until get a brownish colour. Remove chicken and set aside.In the same butter fry garlic and onions until onion golden brown. Add spices, tomatoes and tomato puree, mix well. Pour 2 1/2 cup chicken stock. Add rice, cover and cook until rice 80 % done. Now place chicken on top of rice and simmer about 10 minutes.Garnish with nuts and serve with Daqqūs and Salad.

Daqqūs - Arabic Tomato Salsa

Ingredients

3 tomatoes cut into 4 pieces

1/2 cup of Coriander leaves

2 Garlic

Salt to taste

1 tsp Cumin seeds

Method

Put all ingredients in the food processor. Blend all the ingredients in the processor.

Kanchakalar Khosha Bata / Raw Banana Peel Chutney....

Kanchakalar Khosha Bata / Raw Banana Peel Chutney.... 

 

We Bengalis have a habit of cooking all parts of the vegetables... May be in olden days people lived in joint family needed to cook food in bulk, so making a dish from the skin of the vegetable gives in an additional side dish to a meal. Khosha Bata can be made from some  of the vegetables like Bottle gourd (Lauer Khosha Bata), Raw banana( Kanchakalar Khosha Bata), Pointed gourd ( Potoler Khosha Bata), Peas skin (Koraichutir Khosha Bata).... Recipes of these various vegetable Bata will differ... So today I am making...Kanchakalar Khosha Bata which is s very traditional Bengali dish. Though the dish does not look appealing, it is rich in Iron and is extremely delicious to have it with hot steamed rice.

Ingredients

Peel/ Skin of 4 Raw Bananas 

3 cloves of Garlic

1 Green chilly

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Mustard oil

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds / Kalonji

For seasoning

1 tsp Mustard oil

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds / Kalonji

1 Dry red chillies

Method 

Pressure cook the peels/ Skin. Take a pan. Add 1/2 tsp Mustard oil. Heat it till smoking hot. Reduce the flame. Add Nigella seeds/Kalonji. Add the garlic cloves. Sauté the garlic till brown. Add the peels/ skin, salt and turmeric powder. Cook for 5 minutes. Take it off the flame and cool it. Blend the banana peel and the garlic in a blender in to a course paste. In a small pan add the mustard oil. Once the oil is heated, add in the Nigella seeds and the dry red chillies. Sauté on medium flame until the red chillies are roasted and browned. Add the peel paste and sauté on low heat for 5 minutes until the raw smell disappears. Have it with hot steaming rice. 

Mutton and Yam Curry

Mutton and Yam Curry

Ingredients

250 grams mutton pieces

250 grams Yam - Peeled and cut into cubes 

1 big Onion chopped 

1 Tomato chopped 

2 Green chillies slit lengthwise

1 tsp Garlic Paste

1 tsp Ginger Paste

1 cup Coconut milk

1/2  tsp Chilli powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Pepper powder

1 tsp Cumin powder

1 tsp Garam Masala

1/2 tsp Fennel seed powder

1 Bay leaf

Salt to taste 

1 tbsp Mint leaves chopped 

1 tbsp Coriander leaves chopped 

1 tbsp Oil 

Method 

Heat oil in a pressure cooker,add bay leaf. Add ginger-garlic paste. Sauté it for few seconds, add onion and sauté it for 3 minutes add the tomatoes and continue to sauté for 3 mins more. Add the mutton pieces,red chilli powder, pepper powder,turmeric powder,coriander powder,cumin powder,garam masala, fennel seed powder,1/2 tbsp mint and 1/2 tbsp coriander leaves and salt. Stir it, cover and cook for 5 mins. Add green chillies,yam pieces,sauté it for 2 minutes and add coconut milk + 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook till 4 whistles. Turn off the flame, open the cooker after the pressure releases. Garnish with coriander and mint leaves, serve it with hot Rice or Roti or Paratha... 

Italian Tomato Mozzarella Crostini made with Ciabatta Bread....

Italian Tomato Mozzarella Crostini made with Ciabatta Bread.... 

Ingredients

12 Ciabatta bread slices

12 strips Of fresh Mozzarella

2 Tomatoes cut into half and sliced

2 Onion cut into half and sliced

Olive oil

Dry Orageno for seasoning 

Sprinkle of Pepper

Salt as per taste

Optional- 2 slices Ham cut into long strips 

Method 

Place bread slices on a baking sheet. Bake until toasted for about 6-8 minutes at 200 degrees in a preheated oven.. Remove and add ham (Optional), tomato and onion. Sprinkle with pepper.

Add mozzarella. Top with seasoning and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for about 8-10 minutes at 200 degrees or till the cheese melts. When done, place crostini on serving plate and serve immediately.

Ciabatta

Ciabatta 

It means slipper bread is an Italian white bread made from wheat flour, water, salt, olive oil and yeast. Ciabatta is somewhat elongated, broad and flat and is baked in many variations.

Ingredients

3 1/2 + 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour

2 cups Lukewarm Water

1½ tsp salt

1 1/2 tbsp Dry a Yeast

1 tbsp Olive Oil

Method

Take a mixing bowl. Add in 3 1/2 cups of flour, make a well in the centre. Add yeast and water. Mix the flour with the help of a wooden spoon. The dough will be quite sticky.  Leave the dough covered for 6 hours or over night if possible.  Add salt and 1/2 tbsp oil to the dough and mix it.Add 1/2 cup of flour on the dough and mix the dough for few minutes. Add 1/2 tbsp oil and cover the dough and and let it rest for 2 hours. Sprinkle some more flour, take the dough and divide the dough in to 2 portions. Grease a baking tray. Apply oil on the palms as the dough is a soft dough. Take one portion of the dough flatten and stretch the dough and give it a longish cylindrical shape. Give folds from all the sides. Turn the dough. Then with the help of the knuckles, press it to flatten the dough a bit. Do the same for the other dough. Cover and let the dough to rise for a hour. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celcius. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. During baking, spritz loaves with water every 5 to 10 minutes for a crispier crust.They sound hollow when you tap the bread. Cool the bread completely before cutting.