Roasted Garlicky Lime Chicken

This dish can be served as a starter. The longer it is kept for marination the chicken will be soft and juicy.So keep it as long as 5 to 6 hours for marination. It’s a easy recipe and delicious in taste too. This dish is good to be served in parties. 

Ingredients

5  Chicken Drumsticks

1 tbsp Garlic paste

Juice of 1 Lime 

1 tsp chopped Coriander Leaves 

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Pepper powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli powder

3 tbsp Fresh Cream

2 tbsp Grape seed Oil or any Oil

Method 

Take a mixing bowl. Add the lime juice, garlic, fresh cream, red chilli powder and pepper powder.  Whisk it well. Add the oil and whisk it once again. Apply the marination on the chicken drumsticks. Keep it aside to marinate for at least for 2 hours. Arrange the marinated chicken drumsticks on a foil baking sheet and apply the remaining marination on the chicken drumsticks. Roast it in a preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes at 250 degree celsius, flip the chicken pieces in between and spray oil on the chicken pieces. After it is done then sprinkle with coriander leaves. Serve it hot. 

Chicken Mini Pancake

These mini pancakes can be enjoyed as snacks. It is easy to make and can be enjoyed by children and adults. The batter is made with chicken pieces and other ingredients, it is then shallow fried. It can be served hot with cheese dip or sauce of your choice.

Ingredients

200 grams boneless Chicken cut into small pieces

1 tsp Pickled Chillies or 1 Green Chilli chopped

1 cup chopped Spinach Leaves

1 tsp minced Garlic

4 tsp Mayonnaise

2 Eggs

150 ml Thin Butter milk

3/4 cup Wheat Flour

4 tbsp Rice Flour

2 cubes Cheddar Cheese grated

Salt to taste

1/2 to 1 tsp Pepper powder

1 tsp Dijon Mustard

Oil for shallow frying

Method

Take a mixing bowl. Add the wheat flour, rice flour, pepper powder and salt. Mix the flour. Now add the dijon mustard, mayonnaise,cheese and eggs. Mix it all together. Now gradually little at a time add the buttermilk and stir the batter, till it is a thick dropping consistency. Now add the garlic, pickled chilli, spinach and the chicken and mix it. Add the remaining buttermilk and mix it well. Cover the bowl and let it rest for at least an hour. Open the lid and stir the batter well. Heat a non-stick pan over medium low heat and add 2tbsp oil. Let the oil heat up. Add 2 tbsp of the batter. Slightly flatten the batter, cover and cook on medium low heat it,one side until it becomes golden brown, then flip and cook on the other side until golden brown in colour. Serve it hot with cheese dip or sauce of your choice. 

P. S. You can add 2 tbsp Oats to the flour to make it more healthier. You can all add vegetables like grated carrots, capsicum, grated zucchini

or bottle gourd.

Clams and Egg Sandwich

This sandwich can be eaten for breakfast or snacks. I added clams to my sandwich and here is how I made it... I have used home made mayonnaise, but you can use the store bought ones too. 

Ingredients 

1/4 cup  cleaned Clams

2 small Onions sliced 

1 tsp Garlic minced 

1/4 cup Cabbage sliced 

1 tomato cubes

1/2 tsp Pepper

Salt to taste 

1 tbsp Butter

1/2 cup Mayonnaise 

2 Egg whites

Sliced Breads 

Method 

Take a pan, add butter and let it melt. Add the onions and garlic. Sauté it till light brown in colour. Add the clams, salt and pepper. Continue and stir fry it for 2 minutes. Now add the beaten egg whites and stir it on low heat for 2 minutes. Switch of the flames. Add cabbage and tomato. Mix it. Take 2 slices of bread. You can toast the bread or use it as it is. Apply the mayonnaise. Add the stuffing and add some more mayonnaise on top. Cover it up with another slice of bread. Enjoy it...

Homemade Mayonnaise 

Ingredients 

2 remaining Egg yolks

1/4 cup Olive oil

2 tbsp Vinegar

Salt to taste 

1/4 tsp Pepper powder

Method 

Blend all the ingredients together till it thickens up.

Savoury Mini Cake Loaf

This is a healthy vegetarian dish which can be served as snacks.

Here I have used Amaranth Flour and Semolina for the base along with vegetables. I have used chickpea leaves as it's available in the market in this season but we can use spinach leaves instead of chickpea leaves. 

Amaranth Flour contains high source of Protein, Calcium and Fiber. It is ideal for gluten intolerent. It has high levels of the amino acid lysine which help your body to properly absorb calcium from the digestive tract. Here I have used Amaranth flour from Original Indian Table which I had received it as a prize in  a contest. 

Ingredients

1 cup Amaranth Flour

1 cup Fine Semolina

1 small Onion chopped

1 medium size Carrot chopped 

1 medium size Capsicum chopped 

1/2 cup Chickpea Leaves or Spinach chopped 

2 Fresh Green / Red Chillies chopped

1 tsp Garlic chopped

1/2 tsp Ginger chopped

2 1/2 tbsp Walnut chopped

Salt to taste

1 tsp Sugar 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Soda Bicarbonate

1/4 cup Melted Ghee

500 ml Butter Milk

Method

Mix together amaranth flour, semolina, salt, turmeric powder, sugar and baking powder. Mix it. Add the ghee. Now add the butter milk little at a time into the flour and whisk it. Whisk it properly so that no lumps remain and it forms into a thick batter. Add all the vegetables. Mix the batter well. Add the soda bicarbonate and mix it again. Here I have taken 3 mini loaf tin and greased it with ghee. Pour the batter into the pan until 3/4 of the pan is filled. Sprinkle the chopped walnut on top.

Bake it in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. After 45 minutes, insert a tooth pick and check. If it comes out clean then it’s done. Remove it from the oven and let it cool a bit. Remove it from the tin, cool it further before slicing. Enjoy it with a cup of tea. 

Chingri Macher Matha diye Kochu Saag Batta..

Prawn head and Colocasia leaves Paste....

 I love traditional dishes. Many of the authentic dishes or traditional home recipes are not available in any restaurants. It’s when some one personally shares them, we get to know. These recipes are not showy but one must taste them to experience it. Recently my love for these kind of traditional simple home cooked recipes have got more rooted in me.. 

This is one such recipe I am going to share with you which is my recipe connecting to my roots. 

 I had some prawn heads left with me after making  the prawn pickle for order. I didn’t feel like throwing them as I personally love to chew the prawn heads and I feel it’s more tastier than the prawn. I also had a bunch of Colocasia leaves in the fridge. So taking these two ingredients, put together... this recipe was created... 

Ingredients 

500 grams Prawn head after cleaning the prawns.. 

(Cleaned, marinated with salt and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder. And fried in Mustard oil.) 

1 bunch of Colocasia leaves chopped without stems

1 medium size Onion chopped 

2 to 3 or more Green chills chopped 

1 tsp Garlic paste

1/2 tsp Ginger paste

1 tsp Tamarind paste

1/2 tsp Nigella seeds / Kalonji 

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Cumin powder

2 tbsp + 1/2 tsp Mustard Oil

1 roasted dry whole chilli for garnishing.. 

Method 

Take 2 cups of water in a wok and add 1/2 tsp salt and colocasia leaves and let it cook till the water begins to bubble. Switch off the flame and drain the water out from the leaves. Keep it aside. Traditionally the Prawn heads and the Colocasia leaves should have been ground on a shil batta, but I have used a chopper. So first grind the prawn head and then add the leaves and grind them together again. As we don’t want fine paste, it’s better to use a chopper or a food processor. Add 2 tbsp oil in a wok. Let it heat up. Add the kalonji. As the kalonji begins to crackle, add the green chillies, ginger paste and garlic paste. Sauté it for few seconds. Add the onions and let it cook for 2 minutes or till the onions become light pink in colour. Add the prawn head and colocasia leaves paste. On a low flame, stir and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the cumin powder, stir for few seconds. Add the tamarind paste and stir for few seconds more. Now add the salt. Stir and continue to cook for another 2 minutes or till the paste starts to leave the sides of the wok. Remove the paste in a bowl, garnish with roasted whole red chilli and drizzle 1/2 tsp Mustard oil. Later you can crush the red chilli and sprinkle on top. This paste taste even better the next day. Server it with hot steaming rice... 

 P. S. You can add 2 tbsp fresh coconut paste at the end after you add salt and mix it. The coconut flavour will enhance the taste of the fish.