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Friday, August 30, 2013

Paneer Butter Masala - Restaurant Style - Step by step instructions.

How to  make Restaurant style Panner Butter Masala / Paneer Makhani recipe
Paneer Butter Masala Restaurant style
Ingredients
Fresh Paneer / Indian Cottage cheese cubed - 250 gms
Onion large sized - 2 nos
Ginger - 1" piece
Apple Tomato / Bangalore Tomato / Roma tomato large - 1 and 1/2 nos
Cashew nuts - 15 nos
Kashmiri Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Kasuri methi - 1/4 tsp
Sugar - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Green Cardamom - 2 nos
Thick cream / heavy cream - 1/4 cup
Butter - 50 gms
Oil - 2 tsp
Paneer Makhani
Method
1. Chop onions, ginger and tomato coarsely.
2. If preferred shallow fry the paneer cubes until golden color or use as it is.
3. Roast kasuri methi in a pan on low heat, allow to cool and crush the roasted kasuri methi between palms, set aside.
4. Heat oil in a non stick pan, add chopped onions, ginger and sugar, saute for few minutes until onions turns transparent and glossy.
5. Add cashew nuts, cardamom, red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder to the onions and saute on low heat for a minute.
6. Next add chopped tomatoes to the pan and saute on low heat for 8 to 10 mins, until raw smell of tomato leaves and oil oozes on the sides of pan.
7. Remove pan from heat and allow the tomato mixture to cool.
8. Grind the tomato mixture to smooth paste in mixer blender by adding little water.
9. Wipe the same pan and return to heat.
10. On low heat add butter to the pan, reserve a dollop of butter to garnish.
11. When butter starts slightly to melt, add the ground tomato gravy paste, paneer and required salt to the pan, add required water to loosen the gravy and keep stirring for a minute to slightly thicken.
12. Add heavy cream and crushed kasuri methi to the gravy and stir.
Garnish Paneer butter masala with dollop of butter and serve hot with ghee rice, roti or pulka.
Panner Butter Masala Recipe

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Chicken Sausage Indian Recipes - Masala Rice


Chicken Sausage Masala Rice
Ingredients
Basmati Rice - 1 cup
Chicken Sausage - 3 nos
Chicken Stock or Water - 1 and 1/2 cups
Ginger and Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 3/4 to 1 tsp
Tumeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Salt to taste
Cloves - 2 nos
Cardamom - 1 no
Cinnamon - 1" piece
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mint and Coriander leaves chopped - few tbsp (optional)

Chicken Sausage Recipes
Method
1. Chop chicken sausages to thick slices.
2. Heat oil in a pan when hot add cloves, cardamom and cinnamon, saute for few seconds.
3. Add chopped chicken sausages to pan and stir fry for a minute.
4. Now add red chilli powder, tumeric powder, garam masala powder, ginger and garlic paste to pan and stir fry until raw smell leaves.
5. Add the chicken stock to the pan and bring it to boil.
6. When the stock starts boiling add rice, chopped herbs and required salt to the boiling stock.
7. Cover the pan with lid and cook on low heat until rice is tender and done.
Serve hot with Raita.
Chicken Sausage Indian

Friday, August 23, 2013

My New Blog - ©Chettinad Recipes - http://chettinadrecipesblog.blogspot.com

Chettinad Recipes

My mom and grandma, gracious Chettiyar ladies spent most of their time in cooking and handicrafts. With growing family and its needs my granny lived in various parts of Tamilnadu and my mom after marriage moved to Chennai forever. As I grew up and my marriage life in US and currently in Australia brought me wide visibility about international cuisines and thereby started its influence in my kitchen.
I always wanted to record and preserve my granny's handcrafted Chettinad recipes and I thought the right time has begun now, I enquired and learnt lots of traditional Chettinad recipes from my mom, as my grandma is no more, I tried to preserved her handwritten authentic recipes as much as possible and also traced lots of traditional recipes from my relatives too.
You can expect a variety of authentic Chettinad and South Indian recipes in my new blog and with touch of  my restaurant style Chettinad recipes too.
I would like you to travel with me through my chettinad cooking experiences and try out these recipes, your feedback are greatly appreciated as they are my motivating factors.
Chettinad Recipes Blog

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Appalam Kuzhambu

Applam Vathakuzhambu
Ingredients
Appalam - 2 nos ( torn into small pieces)
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Whole dry chilli - 2 nos
Toor dal - 1 tsp
Channa dal - 1 tsp
Methi seeds -  tsp
Curry leaves - few
Asafetida - few pinch
Tamarind - Gooseberry size( soaked in water and extracted)
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 3 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil - 1 cup
Applam Kuzhambu Recipe
Method
1. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, whole dry chilli, toor dal, channa dal, methi seeds and torn applam pieces.
2. Saute for few seconds, add red chilli powder and coriander powder to the pan and stir well.
3. Now add tamarind extract, salt and a cup of water to the pan, bring gravy to boil.
4. Once gravy starts boiling add curry leaves and asafetida, reduce heat simmer gravy for few minutes.
Serve hot Applam Kuzhambu with steamed rice and poriyal
Applam Vathakulambu

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Naan Recipe - How to make Butter Naan in Oven


Naan Recipe
Ingredients
Maida / All purpose flour - 4 cups
Thick Curd - 4 tbsp
Warm milk - 1/2 cup
Dry yeast - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 1 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Water if required

Garnish
Butter, Chopped garlic, Chopped coriander, Sesame seeds etc to spread over Naan
How to make Naan
Method
1. In a bowl add yeast & sugar to warm milk and mix well.
2. Cover the bowl and set aside to rest until the yeast in milk ferments and becomes frothy.
3. In a large bowl add flour, salt, curd and fermented milk. 
4. Mix the flour and knead dough well for 7 mins until dough becomes soft. 
5. Cover the dough in the bowl with damp cloth and set aside for atleast 4 hours or until the dough to raise & double in size. 
6. Once naan dough doubles in size divide the dough into equal sized balls. 
7. Roll the dough into oval triangular shapes.( to get the oval triangular shape of naan, first roll the dough in oval shape then at one oval end roll the dough in opposite direction so that one end gets wider and other end gets narrow). 
8. Pre-heat oven to 180C to 200C depending on your oven, place the rolled naan on greased cookie sheet.
9. Place the cookie sheet in the top rack of the oven and bake for 3 mins on each side or until golden bubbles appear on top of naan.
10. Transfer the baked naan to a plate and generously spread butter on top on hot naan. 
Serve hot butter naan with palak paneer, butter chicken etc.

Tips
While finally rolling out naan sprinkle chopped garlic and coriander for garlic naan or sprinkle chopped dried fruits and nuts for Kashmiri naan or sprinkle some sesame seeds to keep it humble. 

Naan Bread Recipe

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Mighty Pops - Silicone Ice Pop Makers


What is your favorite treat during summer? For me it’s always popsicle. I love the frozen fruity and candy flavor pops, so used to buy bags and bags of popsicle from supermarkets during summer.
But now a days I’m concerned about buying pops from supermarkets for my little one are they healthy? what about quality etc.

So here comes my savior and partner in making homemade ice pops it’s called "Mighty Pops" these are beautiful silicon ice pop makers which are BPA free and dish washer safe.

There are 6 big silicon ice pop makers in each box, you can make many varieties of homemade ice pops with juices, fruit purees, yogurt, soda, peanut butter, chocolates etc. There are also 3 great recipe ideas in each carton if you are running short of ideas.
I tried their berry, banana and yogurt pops and it turned out great and it was as easy as piece of cake to make the ice pops with "Mighty pops" silicone molds.
Moreover you can send these homemade ice pops in the same attractive colorful molds for kids lunch box.

Want to try these...buy these Mighty pops silicone molds at Amazon.com
And like them at their Facebook, Twitter, Youtube to know more about this amazing product.